Brock Lesnar put the main event of SummerSlam on thin ice when he fled the company, not returning to the venue for several hours.
‘The Beast’ was reported to have walked out of the blue brand’s latest broadcast from Boston last Friday, reportedly leaving as soon as word circulated backstage of Vince McMahon’s retirement.
Per Dave Meltzer in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Brock Lesnar was away from the venue for seven hours. Reportedly not returning until 8:30pm local time, it’s said that WWE officials were in contact with Lesnar for the entire time of his sabbatical, supposedly offering him a new deal to tempt him back.
Lesnar ended up closing the episode, surprising many when his music hit to close the show. The seven-time WWE Champion attached Theory to end the night.
THE BEAST IS IN BOSTON.#SmackDown@BrockLesnarpic.twitter.com/n0ue60TGoW
— WWE (@WWE) July 23, 2022
The Wrestling Observer’s Bryan Alvarez was first to report that “From several sources, Brock Lesnar has left SmackDown”. This came shortly after Vince McMahon’s tweet, confirming his retirement from WWE amidst the allegations of sexual misconduct.
Brock Lesnar is slated to challenge Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at SummerSlam this weekend. Cultaholic Wrestling reported following his walkout, however, that WWE were attempting to bring in Goldberg as a last-minute replacement to face Reigns.
Inside The Ropes will be providing live coverage throughout SummerSlam on ITRWrestling.com!