Brock Lesnar Shocks at SummerSlam: Impactful WWE Return

Brock Lesnar Shocks with WWE Return at SummerSlam

In an unexpected turn of events, Brock Lesnar made his shocking return to WWE during Sunday night at SummerSlam, marking his appearance six months after being mentioned in a lawsuit against the company and former executive Vince McMahon. Lesnar, 48 years old, last competed at SummerSlam 2023, where he was defeated by Cody Rhodes at Ford Field in Detroit. Lesnar’s return came after the main event of the second night of SummerSlam at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. 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!”. He knelt, kissed his hand and then placed it on the canvas. Afterwards, Lesnar’s entrance music resonated, provoking the frenzy of the crowd. Finally, he entered the ring and applied his finishing move, an “F-5”, to Cena, culminating the event. Lesnar, known as “The Beast Incarnate,” is famous for his multiple championships in WWE, where he has been a seven-time world champion. Previously, he was a prominent amateur wrestler at the University of Minnesota and competed in the UFC between 2008 and 2011. Janel Grant, a former WWE employee, officially identified Lesnar in a filing on January 31 in the U.S. District Court, related to her lawsuit filed against WWE and McMahon in January 2024. The original lawsuit mentioned a star wrestler in the accusation, but did not provide Lesnar’s name. Lesnar is not a defendant in the lawsuit.

In a statement issued at the time by McMahon’s attorney, the amended complaint was called a “publicity stunt.”

McMahon’s attorney, Jessica Rosenberg

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. She claims that McMahon demanded 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 alleges that McMahon sent Lesnar to Connecticut in 2021 for a sexual encounter, which ultimately did not happen. 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 journalists. WWE’s Chief Content Officer, Paul Levesque, was not questioned about the lawsuit on Sunday night, but he did address Lesnar’s return.

If there had been a roof on this place, it wouldn’t be here anymore. The dynamic in the room changes when the Beast is here. Anything you thought was happening, it all goes out the window. The Brock factor changes everything incredibly and makes it unpredictable. It’s incredible to have him back.

Paul Levesque

Levesque 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. 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.

Paul Levesque

“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.”