Brock Lesnar's book, 10 years on: 5 things we learned - Vince McMahon heat, why he envied Kane in WWE

Brock Lesnar’s book, Death Clutch: My Story of Determination, Domination, and Survival, was released on May 24, 2011. At the time, The Beast Incarnate still competed in the UFC and he had not appeared in WWE for over seven years.

Written by Paul Heyman, Death Clutch tells the story of Lesnar’s upbringing and subsequent journey to WWE and UFC stardom. The book also focuses on the former UFC Heavyweight Champion’s marriage to Rena Lesnar (also known as Sable), as well as his battle with diverticulitis.

While Brock Lesnar has performed part-time for WWE since 2012, the eight-time WWE world champion did not have that privilege earlier in his career. From 2002 to 2004, The Next Big Thing worked a full-time schedule before he eventually decided he no longer wanted to live that lifestyle.

In his book, Lesnar opened up about his struggles on the road in WWE. He also commented on various superstars he worked with during his initial two-year WWE run, including Curt Hennig, Kane, and The Rock.

Now, 10 years after the book’s release, let’s take a look back at five interesting stories that Lesnar told about his time in WWE.

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#5 Curt Hennig’s words of advice for Brock Lesnar

Curt Hennig (also known as Mr. Perfect) was one of Brock Lesnar’s closest friends in the wrestling business before he sadly passed away in 2003.

Hennig’s father, Larry “The Axe” Hennig, wrestled from 1956 to 1985. His son, Joe Hennig (Curtis Axel), worked for WWE between 2007 and 2020, and he has even trained with Brock Lesnar.

Lesnar's book included details about a key piece of advice that Curt gave him about when he should walk away from the wrestling industry.

“Curt’s dad smartened him up early about what the pro wrestling business had to offer, and the price you have to pay to achieve success in it. Curt taught me something that sticks with me to this day—in the wrestling business, you have to ‘Get in to get out!’” Lesnar said. [H/T Bloody Elbow]

When Brock Lesnar and Curt Hennig are mentioned in the same sentence, the words “Plane Ride from Hell” usually follow.

In May 2002, several WWE Superstars were reprimanded following a drunken flight home from a European tour. Hennig was fired by WWE after he instigated a fight with Lesnar on the plane.

Former WWE executive Jim Ross recently clarified on VICE’s "Dark Side of the Ring" that the incident was nothing more than “play-fighting.”

#4 Brock Lesnar envied Kane

In the book, Brock Lesnar explained why he believes the man behind Kane’s character, Glenn Jacobs, had “the greatest gig ever” as a WWE Superstar.

Jacobs’ Kane character wore a mask from October 1997 to June 2003, so the majority of fans did not know what he looked like.

As someone who prefers to keep his life outside of WWE private, Lesnar envied Jacobs for not getting recognized during those six years.

“He had the greatest gig ever, because he was a big star who wore a mask on TV. When he went home, he’d get to take off the mask and live a normal life. Nobody knew what he looked like, and no one ever bothered him when he went about his personal life. He must have had about as normal a life as you can have in professional wrestling,” Lesnar said. [H/T Bloody Elbow]

Brock Lesnar initially performed on WWE’s main roster from March 2002 to March 2004. During that time, Jacobs’ face was finally revealed as part of a storyline on RAW in June 2003.

Jacobs has appeared in WWE both with and without his mask over the last 18 years. In 2018, he competed with his mask in a Triple Threat match against Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman at the Royal Rumble. Ironically, both men have become quite recognizable; even without his mask, Jacobs remains popular due to his work in the political arena.

#3 The reason for Brock Lesnar’s sword tattoo

Brock Lesnar’s first run with WWE did not end on good terms. Following his defeat against Goldberg at WrestleMania 20, he stuck his middle finger up to the camera as a sign of disrespect toward Vince McMahon.

The WWE Chairman allowed Lesnar to leave his company in 2004, ending their working relationship for the time being. But as part of the deal, it was agreed that The Next Big Thing would not be allowed to wrestle elsewhere for the next six years.

Lesnar evidently felt like WWE held a sword up against his throat, so he got a sword tattoo as a permanent reminder of that negative feeling.

“I felt like life was holding a sword right up against my throat, so I went under the ink gun because I never wanted to forget exactly how I felt at that time," said Lesnar. "The tattoo on my chest has so much meaning to me. In some ways, it’s funny, because the period of my life that I’m talking about is a time I so want to forget, but I know I can use this memory as motivation."

Despite this contract clause, Brock Lesnar appeared in New Japan Pro-Wrestling shortly after leaving WWE. This decision led to a legal battle between Lesnar and WWE, which was eventually resolved in 2006.

#2 Brock Lesnar felt Vince McMahon manipulated him

One of Brock Lesnar’s first major WWE moments came at SummerSlam 2002 when he defeated Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to win the Undisputed Championship.

The only other one-on-one match between the two men took place at a live event in The Rock’s hometown of Miami in March 2003. The Rock made sporadic WWE appearances at the time, while Lesnar was two weeks away from facing Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 19.

Lesnar said he had no problem losing to The Rock in Miami, especially as his opponent agreed to lose to him seven months earlier. Still, he did not like the fact that he was unaware of the finish until the show had already started.

In his book, Lesnar speculated that Vince McMahon did not want The Rock or WWE agent Jack Lanza to inform him about the outcome. That way, by the time Lesnar found out, it would have been too late for him to try to change the finish.

“Just from the look on Dwayne’s face and the tone in Jack’s voice, I knew they were in on something I wasn’t. It was obvious to me that Vince, Dwayne and Jack were all in cahoots, and I wasn’t being smartened up to the situation until the very last minute. That night changed my attitude toward the WWE, because it’s when I started to feel Vince was a manipulating b*****d, and that I was being played,” Lesnar said. [H/T talkSPORT]

Despite the live event incident, Brock Lesnar and The Rock have always been on good terms. The Great One disclosed on Twitter in 2013 that he was originally supposed to return to the ring at WrestleMania 30 to face Lesnar. But due to The Rock’s schedule heading into the show, the match did not happen. Instead, Lesnar defeated The Undertaker and ended The Phenom's undefeated streak at WrestleMania.

#1 Brock Lesnar left WWE for family reasons

It is common knowledge that Brock Lesnar did not enjoy the full-time WWE lifestyle, but that was not the only reason he left in 2004.

The four-time WrestleMania main-eventer wanted to start a family with his then-girlfriend, Rena (formerly known as Sable), and he knew WWE’s schedule would have made that dream impossible.

“It wasn't about being tough [handling WWE’s gruelling schedule]. It was about having a life. A year or two bouncing around town to town, bar to bar, girl to girl, Vicodin to Vicodin, vodka bottle to vodka bottle, is not a life. I love being in the ring and performing. Bringing people to their feet. Getting people to hate my character. Entertaining the fans. ... But I wanted to have a family too, and I knew there was no way to do that with the schedule I worked,” Lesnar said. [H/T Bleacher Report]

Brock Lesnar married Rena on May 6, 2006. They have two sons together, Turk (born in 2009) and Duke (born in 2010). Lesnar also has two twins, Luke and Mya Lynn (both born in 2002), from his relationship with Nicole McClain.

As the tweet above shows, Mya Lynn joined the Arizona State Sun Devils track and field team in 2019. A Minnesota State Champion, she is one of the best shot-putters in America.