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What’s the story?
In a recent interview with Newsweek, on-screen manager Paul Heyman opened up about his client the current WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar and the possibility of him losing the Universal Title to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 34.
Additionally, Heyman also spoke about the return of former WWE World Champion Daniel Bryan, who got medically cleared to compete in the ring by WWE doctors earlier in the month, and if he would like to see a match between Bryan and Lesnar in the future.
In case you didn’t know…
It is certainly not surprising that Lesnar is currently on the verge of departing from the WWE yet again and is negotiating for a potential return to the UFC Octagon, which could eventually happen sometime later this year.
Lesnar, who is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion, last competed in the Octagon back in 2016 when the WWE had granted him a “one-off opportunity" to compete at UFC 200. The Beast Incarnate went on to defeat Mark Hunt in his return fight.
The heart of the matter
While promoting WrestleMania 34 in his recent interview with Newsweek, Paul Heyman spoke about a host of topics and here are a few highlights from the interview.
The possible outcome of Brock Lesnar losing the Universal Title to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania:
According to Paul Heyman, he believes that it is no secret that as a former Heavyweight Champion of the UFC, Brock Lesnar is currently looking to get back into the Octagon and is definitely eyeballing another fight in the UFC.
“There's no secret. He's posing for pictures with Dana White wearing a UFC shirt in the UFC offices in Las Vegas. That's not a negotiating tactic, Brock Lesnar wants to compete inside of the octagon. There's no leveraging that; it's a fact.”
However, despite the chances of Lesnar returning to the Octagon later this year, Heyman isn’t completely ruling out a win for his client at ‘Mania 34 against Reigns and claims that The Beast Incarnate is certainly capable of focusing on his other projects simultaneously, along with a continued run as Universal Champion.
"Brock Lesnar can do both and he has proven that time and time again. And I've been the co-founder and co-running my agency since I came back in 2012. I've been working on outside projects this entire time, so we can certainly walk that line when it comes to working in WWE and other projects. Mine is entertainment-based, Brock's is beating the hell out of someone in the octagon."
His thoughts on Daniel Bryan being medically cleared to compete:
Paul Heyman claimed that following the announcement of Bryan’s return to the squared circle, the originator of ECW was filled with overwhelming happiness and joyful excitement for “The American Dragon”, because, according to Heyman, this is all Daniel Bryan has ever wanted since the moment he was told he was being forced to retire.
“The emotional rollercoaster that he has been on since that moment has always been with the light at the end of the tunnel, thinking 'somehow, someway a miracle will be bestowed upon me that I can be cleared and step back into the ring and do what I love to do more than anything else in this world.' That's all he wants to do. It's what he dreams about, what he envisions, it's what he wakes up wanting to do and thinks about when he's going to sleep. So ever since that moment, the doctors told him 'sorry we're going to have to advise if you retire' the only dream Daniel Bryan has had, the fantasy in his life, is to be cleared and to exploit the opportunity of stepping back into the ring. And now he has that chance.”
If he wants to see Daniel Bryan vs Brock Lesnar:
In addition, Heyman noted that he has always wanted to see a potential bout between Daniel Bryan and Brock Lesnar, even before Lesnar made his professional wrestling debut on the WWE main roster, when Bryan was known as 'The American Dragon' on promotions such as Ring of Honor.
Furthermore, Heyman claimed that he has always been fond of Daniel Bryan’s matches even in the early part of his career and found him to be one of the most compelling, riveting performers in the history of the Pro Wrestling industry.
"I have wanted to see Brock Lesnar vs Daniel Bryan even before Lesnar debuted on the main roster when Bryan was known as The American Dragon. I loved his matches even in the early part of his career and found him to be one of the most compelling, riveting performers in the history of this industry."
What’s next?
Paul Heyman, as usual, will accompany his client Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 34. Lesnar is set to defend his Universal Title against Roman Reigns on the 8th of April in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Author’s take
Brock Lesnar’s return to the UFC will eventually turn out to be a huge profit for Dana White’s promotion due to Lesnar’s drawing abilities. However, it is undeniable that a man like Brock Lesnar will definitely be missed in the WWE.
