KB News Desk
Brock Lesnar, the American legend who reached the pinnacle of both professional wrestling and mixed martial arts, has announced his retirement from the industry.
Lesnar made the announcement Tuesday during ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show, three days after competing at WWE SummerSlam at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
“I still have something left in me, and so does the pro wrestling business, but Saturday’s match was the end of Brock Lesnar’s career,” he said. “Not just in the ring, but in every respect.”
Lesnar said his SummerSlam appearance was especially emotional. After being thrown by Oba Femi at WrestleMania three months earlier, he recalled thinking, “I can’t do this anymore.” He said he was satisfied just to have been able to compete one more time.
Although professional wrestling is less physically demanding than real combat sports and Lesnar remained capable of performing, he said his decision would not change. His retirement had been widely anticipated after he repeatedly hinted at it both on and off screen this year.
A standout collegiate wrestler at the University of Minnesota, Lesnar won the NCAA Division I heavyweight national championship in 2000. He rose to stardom in WWE after defeating Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson with his signature F-5 in 2002 to capture his first WWE Championship, going on to win multiple world heavyweight titles.
Lesnar left WWE in 2004 to pursue a career in the NFL. Although he did not make a regular-season roster, he transitioned to mixed martial arts. He made his major MMA debut in 2007 by defeating South Korea’s Kim Min-soo at K-1 HERO’S Dynamite!! before joining the UFC, where he captured the heavyweight title in 2008 with a victory over Randy Couture.
His MMA career was shortened by diverticulitis, which forced him to miss extended periods. Lesnar defeated Mark Hunt at UFC 200 in July 2016, but the result was overturned to a no contest after he tested positive on a drug test. He finished his MMA career with a record of 5-3 with one no contest.
Despite his larger-than-life public persona, Lesnar has long preferred a quiet private life. Since 2014, he has lived with his family on a farm near Maryfield, Saskatchewan, Canada, and retirement is unlikely to lead to a full-time career in Hollywood.
(This article was produced with the assistance of AI. — Ed.)
