Brock Lesnar has to be one of the most unique athletes to ever grace the squared circle. He's the current WWE Champion and will feature on the main event night two of Wrestlemania this year as he faces Universal Champion Roman Reigns title-for-title.
He began his WWE career all the way back in 2002 and he hit the ground running, going on a long winning streak and won the undisputed WWE Championship from The Rock at Summerslam just a few months after debuting. He quickly became a star and was the face of the wrestling Goliath.
However in less than two years after debuting Lesnar was burnt out. The constant travelling and damage he was doing to his body was taking its toll and he started to become addicted to alcohol and pain medication. He needed a new start and of all people, WWE legend and soon to be Hall of Famer The Undertaker encouraged him to leave WWE.
Speaking on the True Geordie Podcast, the Deadman detailed the life of a WWE superstar and he conversation he had with Brock before he left.
It's a tough life, travelling the way we do and we don't always have chartered planes, you know we have to go through the public airports so we're always around people and it becomes difficult because certain days you're just hurt. He felt like he was all beat up by the time he go to the UFC and it's hard to put on that facade sometimes when you feel like crap
I think Brock was at a point where he wanted to do something different. He was thinking about going to play pro football and I was like "Brock, you've gotta do what's right for Brock. Everyone is going to be pissed that you're going to leave and they put all this money and this push behind you cause if you don't do this you're going to look back one day with the what ifs."
And that's exactly what Lesnar did.
Brock Lesnar's NFL Career
Brock Lesnar would leave WWE in 2004 after Wrestlemania 20 and attempted to start a career in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings. Lesnar had played as an defensive lineman in high school, but did not play football at all at the University of Minnesota. Regardless, he wowed at the 2004 Combine and signed with his hometown team, the Vikings. He would make it to training camp and play in a few pre-season games but wouldn't ultimately make the main roster.
Did you know Brock Lesnar once made a tackle in a preseason game for the @Vikings? (Aug. 27, 2004) #WrestleMania pic.twitter.com/49lFt6EMBw
— NFL Throwback (@nflthrowback) April 8, 2019
Here's how he described his decision to play American football.
I ain't afraid of anything and I ain't afraid of anybody. I've been an underdog in athletics since I was five. I got zero college offers for wrestling. Now people say I can't play football, that it's a joke. I say I can. I'm as good an athlete as a lot of guys in the NFL, if not better. I've always had to fight for everything. I wasn't the best technician in amateur wrestling but I was strong, had great conditioning, and a hard head. Nobody could break me. As long as I have that, I don't give a damn what anybody else thinks.
We don't think it ended up too badly for him.
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