Brock Lesnar Shocks with Impactful Return at SummerSlam
The wrestling world was shaken up on Sunday night at SummerSlam, when Brock Lesnar made a surprise return to WWE, just six months after being mentioned in a lawsuit against the company and former executive Vince McMahon. Lesnar’s last appearance in the ring was at SummerSlam 2023, where he was defeated by Cody Rhodes. Lesnar’s return came after the main event of the second night of SummerSlam, held at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Cody Rhodes regained the Undisputed WWE Championship in a “street fight” against John Cena, who has announced his retirement as an active wrestler after this year. Cena, in the middle of the ring, received chants of “Thank you, Cena!”. He knelt, kissed his hand, and placed it on the mat. It was then that Lesnar’s entrance music resonated, unleashing the euphoria of the audience. Lesnar entered the ring and executed his finishing move, the “F-5”, on Cena, marking the end of the show. Lesnar, known as “The Beast Incarnate”, is recognized for his multiple world championships in WWE, accumulating seven titles. Previously, he had a distinguished career as an amateur wrestler at the University of Minnesota and as a UFC fighter between 2008 and 2011. The presence of Lesnar was linked to a lawsuit filed by Janel Grant, a former WWE employee, in which he was officially identified in a court document on January 31. This lawsuit is linked to a complaint filed against WWE and McMahon in January 2024. In the original lawsuit, a star wrestler was mentioned, but Lesnar’s name was not revealed at that time. Lesnar is not a defendant in this lawsuit. In a statement issued by McMahon’s attorney, the amended lawsuit was called an “advertising strategy”.Grant, who worked in the company’s legal and talent departments, alleges that McMahon forced her to have a sexual relationship to keep her job. In addition, she claims that McMahon demanded that she create “personalized sexual content” for Lesnar in July 2021, at a time when McMahon was trying to keep Lesnar under contract with WWE. She also alleges that McMahon sent Lesnar to Connecticut in 2021 for a sexual encounter, which ultimately did not materialize. McMahon resigned in January 2024 as executive chairman of the board of directors of TKO Group, the parent company of WWE, after Grant’s lawsuit was filed. WWE has avoided commenting on the ongoing litigation. There were no press conferences after SummerSlam, opting for the wrestlers to speak exclusively on the post-event show instead of answering questions from journalists. Paul Levesque, WWE’s Chief Content Officer, was not questioned about the lawsuit on Sunday night, but he did address Lesnar’s return.“As expected, the proposed amended lawsuit is nothing more than the latest publicity stunt in an ongoing smear campaign. It is filled with desperate falsehoods from a team that continues to ignore the law and the truth,” stated Jessica Rosenberg, McMahon’s attorney.
Jessica Rosenberg
Levesque also spoke about the accusations against McMahon on the UK-based podcast “The Sports Agents”, which launched on Friday. “All we can do is move forward, for us as a company and creatively,” said Levesque, known as Triple H during his days in the ring. “The accusations are accusations, right? It’s a complicated relationship for anyone in life. Nobody’s perfect. But accusations are made and that’s something totally legal that is totally separate and apart from what we do.” “My job is to present the best creative product that WWE can make. Fortunately, it has been successful. The business is in a good place right now and continues to grow.”“If there were a roof on this place, I wouldn’t be here anymore. The dynamic in the room changes when the Beast is present,” said Levesque. “Anything you thought was happening, goes out the window. The Brock factor changes everything incredibly and makes it unpredictable. It’s incredible to have him back.”
Paul Levesque
