Brock Lesnar Shocks at SummerSlam: Impactful Return to WWE
In an unexpected turn that shook the wrestling universe, Brock Lesnar made his return to WWE at SummerSlam, just six months after being mentioned in a lawsuit against the company and former executive Vince McMahon. 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 remained alone in the center of the ring, while the fans chanted “Thank you, Cena!”. Then, Lesnar made his entrance, causing the audience to go wild. Finally, Lesnar entered the ring and applied his finishing move, the “F-5”, to Cena to close the show. Lesnar, known for his dominance in amateur wrestling at the University of Minnesota and his time in the UFC between 2008 and 2011, is most famous for his multiple stints in the WWE, where he was crowned a seven-time world champion, nicknamed “The Beast Incarnate”.Janel Grant, former WWE employee, officially identified Lesnar in a court filing on January 31, related to her lawsuit filed against WWE and McMahon in January 2024.
In the original lawsuit, a star wrestler was mentioned in the accusation, but Lesnar’s name was not provided. Lesnar is not included as a defendant in the lawsuit.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. According to her statements, 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. In addition, she claims 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, following the filing of Grant’s lawsuit. WWE has tried to avoid commenting on the ongoing litigation. There were no press conferences after SummerSlam, as WWE opted for its wrestlers to speak exclusively on the post-event show instead of answering questions from reporters. 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.”
Jessica Rosenberg, McMahon’s lawyer.
Levesque also discussed 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 a complete legal matter that is totally separate and apart from what we do.” “My job is to present the best creative product that WWE can make. Fortunately and happily, it has been successful. The business is in a good moment 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 here,” said Levesque. “Anything you thought was happening, suddenly goes out the window. The Brock factor changes everything incredibly and makes it unpredictable. It’s incredible to have him back.”
Paul Levesque
