When the WWE and UFC announced that current WWE-contracted star Brock Lesnar would be fighting again for UFC in a one-off fight at UFC 200 , it surprised a lot of people. When some wondered how Lesnar was getting into a UFC match with such short notice, the news broke that the USADA granted him an exception from the four-month notice required to come out of retirement. Some people, including his opponent Mark Hunt, believes that Lesnar has been juicing this entire time and will get away with it.
There is very little chance that Brock Lesnar has been using steroids during his tenure in the WWE, but Lesnar did admit in a recent ESPN interview that he used to abuse a lot more drugs than that. In the interview, Lesnar admitted that he was abusing alcohol and prescription drugs a great deal the first time he wrestled in the WWE over a decade ago.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5L8Y_8wgxo
Brock Lesnar was one of Jim Ross’ biggest signings when he was the VP of Talent Relations for the WWE, and Lesnar was part of a huge crop of talent in WWE developmental at the time. During that era, names like John Cena, Randy Orton, Shelton Benjamin, and Brock Lesnar were all working in developmental and all got called up around the same time. While Cena and Orton were brought along slowly, Lesnar came up and was an immediate threat, beating The Rock for the world title in his rookie year.
As with many instant stars, especially young ones, fame comes at a price. MMA Fighting reported that, according to Brock Lesnar, the WWE fame caused him to make stupid mistakes based on his own immaturity.
“You go through things in life such as you become rich and you become famous and you’re naïve and you’re young and to top it all off you’re travelling 360 days a year.
“I’m not a man to be in an airplane every day and it took all that for me to discover that and to cope with all that was my best friends, vodka and Vicodin.”
Brock Lesnar looks back on booze and Vicodin fueled early run in WWE https://t.co/85wNKXbRW0 #UFC #WWE pic.twitter.com/5bbQ6EGckz
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) June 10, 2016
The interview also went into a very infamous WWE story that took place aboard an airplane with other WWE stars. Also known as the “plane ride from hell,” the skirmish was between Brock Lesnar and the late “Mr. Perfect,” Curt Hennig. Lesnar called it “whiskey wrestling” and said that it started when Hennig questioned Lesnar’s amateur skills and said he thought he could take him in a real fight.
Hennig was a promising amateur wrestler, but Lesnar was a former NCAA champion wrestler at Minnesota. Hennig was outmatched, and the two began to wrestle on the airplane while others tried to separate them. Lesnar said that he has no memories of what happened because he was “drunk and high” and that he was reprimanded for the fight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J94LLTpgNfA
Brock Lesnar said that he no longer is involved with those kinds of vices, saying it was fresh and cool when he was a kid but isn’t so much fun anymore. Brock left the WWE and tried out for the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL. He failed there and ended up in the UFC, where he won the UFC Heavyweight Championship. He has since returned to the WWE after diverticulitis ended his MMA career.
However, in the ESPN interview, Brock Lesnar said that leaving MMA was the hardest decision he ever had to make and that he would regret it for the rest of his life if he didn’t give it one more try. That is why he has chosen to return for UFC 200.
Mark Hunt to Brock Lesnar: “This is a sport for real fighters” https://t.co/9cvWUIUhBo #UFC #UFC200 pic.twitter.com/ugpffDvAac
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) June 8, 2016
Brock Lesnar’s opponent at UFC 200 is Mark Hunt, and this man has no respect for the WWE superstar. MMA Fighting reported that Hunt has said that Brock Lesnar is “ juiced to the gills .” While the WWE drug tests all their stars and suspends anyone who fails the test, Hunt seems to think that Lesnar is able to get around those. Even though Lesnar has entered the USADA drug testing pool and is likely to pass the test, Hunt believes that Brock used steroids leading up to the announcement to get ready for the fight.
“I don’t think anyone should be exempt from testing. If they’re trying to clean the sport up — mixed martial arts — this is a bad way to do it. I don’t care who you are. It’s ridiculous.”
UFC 200 takes place on July 9. The main event is Daniel Cormier vs. Jon Jones, but the match between WWE superstar Brock Lesnar and Mark Hunt might be the one that everyone is paying attention to.
[Image via WWE]