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3/26/2015 UPDATE: Wow... Reportedly, the new Brock Lesnar contract is a deal for 3 years at $3 million per year base salary that is guaranteed. I would guess that Lesnar will make a % on merchandise sold and a % of the live gate for Pay Per Views he appears on. Some are calling it a discount but it's still a 3 year, $3 million guaranteed deal. With knowledge of the deal now available, you have to now hand it to Vince McMahon as a business man. See why investors respect him as CEO? My guess was probably correct from my 2/27/2015 Column in that Vince McMahon did NOT want to pay Brock Lesnar $5 Million Per year for another 1 year extension. Lesnar was furious and walked out... I don't believe his story about attending UFC "for the atmosphere". I believe he was there to negotiate with Dana White and to create leverage on Vince. In the end, Vince and Brock came to a great compromise. As it turns out, Brock appears to be enjoying his current WWE run and it also appears that his family, namely his wife Rena "Sable" My guess is that Vince McMahon held firm at the lower $3 million deal but the compromise was adding the 2nd and 3rd years for nice income security for Lesnar. In addition, Lesnar continues his part-time schedule of 4 Pay Per Views and 10-15 RAW appearances (or whatever it may be). Now that we know the details of the deal, I would say that both sides won. Sure, Brock is receiving less per year, but it's a 3 year guaranteed deal for $3 million and the part-time schedule with travel perks continues. For Vince McMahon, he has Brock Lesnar locked up for 3 years and can guarantee WWE stock investors that Lesnar remains a WWE Network attraction for Pay Per Views. Plus, Vince keeps Lesnar away from UFC and not let Dana White capitalize on the WWE's hard work for the last 3 years making the Brock Lesnar brand stronger than ever. But the fans really win... The most compelling part about the WWE for the last 3 years, Brock Lesnar, returns for 3 more years. When this contract is done, there is a good chance that we'll have to officially add Brock Lesnar to the WWE All-Time Greats list along with Bruno, Andre, Hogan, Austin, Rock, and Cena, the "Mount Rushmore" of the WWE. I'm even starting to lessen my Roman Reigns hate... If Reigns wins, I'm like "fuck it", Lesnar can move on to other wrestlers now. 1 bad night for Lesnar won't erase the past 3 years and shouldn't ruin the next 3 years. -------------------------------------------- So here I was during January 2015 with the depressing thought of Brock Lesnar possibly returning to MMA (reportedly slimming down at the time to get in MMA shape) and Roman Reigns being handpicked by WWE Management to actually beat Lesnar at Wrestlemania 31 for the WWE Title... Depression as a wrestling fan was setting in. After all, since 2012, Brock Lesnar and his manager Paul Heyman have been the most interesting part of the WWE. There have been various moments upon Brock's 2012 return that have put chills down my spine as a wrestling fan. His return, facing off with Triple H for the first time, staring down Hulk Hogan/Scott Hall/Kevin Nash/Ric Flair, beating the Undertaker to end the streak... Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman were all I really had to look forward to as a WWE fan. I was getting worried with the way Brock Lesnar walked out of WWE RAW a few weeks ago and then appearing at the UFC event with President Dana White. I thought he was as good as gone... Rumors then began to swirl that WWE negotiations would continue but I just needed to see something more concrete. We were too close to Wrestlemania 31 and waiting until the last minute could have been a disaster for the WWE. Then, he was appearing on ESPN this past Tuesday. "Oh shit", I thought, as ESPN was a sports channel and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is more of a sport than the WWE. Just didn't make sense to me, at the time, why he'd announce his WWE return on ESPN. Then, it happened... Holy Mother of God! And it's a THREE YEAR DEAL, too! Brock Lesnar quotes: From ESPN, Brock said that he "couldn't refuse the offer that Vince McMahon made him at RAW" the previous night and he wondered what he could gain by a UFC return. After all, he was a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and a successful drawing one at that. Lesnar also said that his recent UFC appearance was just to feel that atmosphere last time and that it wasn't a negotiating tactic. More... "The fighter in me wants to continue, but at this stage in my life, it ain't just about me anymore. You put your pride to the side. You hug your wife and your kids. I'm a 37-year-old man, and some days I feel like I'm 80, just with all the things I've experienced, all the things I've done. I feel fortunate about it. It's like, what else can I do? Why go backward?" (Source: Associated Press) That's really cool... But come on, he played Vince McMahon like a violin. Upset and walking out of RAW just weeks before Wrestlemania 31... Appearing at the UFC event alongside President Dana White. Then, we're right in the middle of the WWE Universe actually crapping all over his opponent, Roman Reigns. The leverage was Brock Lesnar's and he played it perfectly. He now gets a 3 year deal which I can imagine continues the limited appearance contract of about 4 Pay Per Views and probably 10-15 RAW appearances. Jesus, what a life... Better for Brock Lesnar, he'll NEVER get stiffed in the ring by any opponent. Who would want a former UFC Champion pissed off at them? With the "offer he couldn't refuse", it tells me that Lesnar's annual pay and perks were increased for this new 3 year deal. What this 3 year deal tells me is more about Vince McMahon and less than about Brock Lesnar. I believe that Vince feels that having Brock Lesnar as a Pay Per View only wrestling attraction is necessary for the WWE Network to succeed. With the way Reigns is getting booed HARD, the CEO/Board Chairman had to make a significant business decision and put all of his chips on Lesnar. Lesnar was making a reported $5 million per year before. If that has increased, this is an investment for the WWE Network and in my opinion, it's probably worth it. If the WWE can start generating profits beyond the 1,000,000 domestic subscriptions "break even" point and also move DVD/Blu Ray videos of Lesnar's recent WWE tenure, this new 3 year deal will prove to be worth it. WWE has lost lots of money trying to start-up and build up the WWE Network. Lesnar may be a necessary investment... Who doesn't want to see more Brock Lesnar on WWE Network Pay Per Views? Shit, if the WWE actually did Brock Lesnar vs. Sting at Extreme Rules 2015 after both won at Wrestlemania 31? The Internet wants Brock Lesnar vs. Daniel Bryan BADLY... In my opinion, Randy Orton presents the best in-ring match up for Brock Lesnar. I know, it's Orton... But he has effective and credible offense, like the RKO or DDT through the ropes, that could actually hurt Brock Lesnar. WWE has wanted Brock vs. Rock for a while now and it could have happened if the Rock didn't get injured after Wrestlemania 29. In my opinion, the best 2 up and coming wrestlers to benefit most from a Brock Lesnar battle would be Rusev and Bray Wyatt. Both convey a "toughness" that Roman Reigns seems to lack. While Reigns's look is more cosmetic, Rusev and Bray are 2 guys I might run from in a dark alley. Then again, all Roman Reigns has to do is PROVE US ALL WRONG by wrestling a great match at Wrestlemania 31. He should avoid the "wait and see" approach that he showed us for his Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton, and Seth Rollins matches where he refused to show any leadership in calling the matches. For UFC, that's just too bad... In a time where they've had some controversy with failed drug tests, they could have used a big splash name to rejoin them. After all, Brock Lesnar consistently gave UFC events 1,000,000+ buys. Since Lesnar left, UFC has only had ONE event reach 1,000,000 buys. Now, I'm not suggesting that UFC is losing money... Far from it. But he was a big name draw that transcended the UFC brand and brought in many non-MMA fans to watch the sport. His return would have definitely been welcomed by Dana White and UFC reported offered him a nice per-fight deal to rejoin the promotion. However, think about Brock Lesnar the person at this stage in his 37 year old life, about to turn 38 in July... He has 4 kids... 1 daughter from a previous relationship who will turn 13 soon. He is a stepfather to his wife's daughter from her previous marriage. For those who didn't know, Brock actually married Rena "Sable" Mero. You know, the first ever Playboy model from the WWE? Yes, that one... And he has 2 children with her. 1 son about to turn 6 years old and another son about to turn 5. Think about his options... Do I work for $5 million per year on a limited date schedule where the entire roster is afraid to really hurt me... Or do I fight in UFC where I'll get my brains bashed in and I must keep winning fights to earn that payday? Gee, that choice is VERY easy. Brock has it MADE in the WWE. BEST CONTRACTS EVER! So Brock gets to see his family often and can remember seeing them? Win win, and WWE is paying him quite well. Moving forward to Wrestlemania 31, what happens? Lesnar told ESPN that he "wants to leave Wrestlemania 31 with the title". Yikes. Now, he could have said this to simply put hype on the match, but in my opinion, appearing on ESPN just increased the expectations for Brock to now WIN this match. After all, the WWE might receive a boost in actual Pay Per View buys because of Brock Lesnar's ESPN appearance and it would hurt their brand if many casual fans were disappointed in seeing him lose to an inexperienced Roman Reigns. Furthermore, the thought of Roman Reigns winning was because Brock Lesnar was leaving. They had no Brock Lesnar "brand" to salvage. Now they do... In fact, they most protect their asset for the long haul now, 3 years worth of it now. Brock signing this WWE contract frees the WWE to make an audible and make Roman Reigns LOSE. Riddle me this, WWE... How can you have John Cena completely overwhelmed at SummerSlam 2014 despite his complete dominance over the majority of the WWE roster? Seriously, he's called "Super Cena" for a reason... But Lesnar DESTROYED HIM. How can someone as inexperienced as Roman Reigns even put up a fight if this happened to John Cena? I would have no problems if Brock Lesnar DESTROYED Roman Reigns in this fashion. San Francisco fans would LOVE IT, as would most of the wrestling fan base who can EASILY recognize that Roman Reigns is NOT READY to be WWE Champion. Now, within the 2nd year or 3rd year of Brock Lesnar's contract, Roman Reigns will be more experienced and that is when Reigns can defeat him. You need CREDIBILITY to even face off with Lesnar, let alone defeat him. What I believe is a DUMB IDEA is having Paul Heyman TURN on Brock Lesnar. What on earth will that solve? In fact, it would completely neuter Brock Lesnar. Why? Two simple reasons: A) Brock Lesnar can't talk. He's not the best on the microphone. But Heyman is! B) Brock Lesnar appears on a part-time basis. Paul Heyman can appear at anytime on behalf of Brock Lesnar and convey his message. Because Heyman speaks for Lesnar already, it works incredibly well to have Heyman working as a spokesperson. And why not have a babyface Paul Heyman working for a babyface Brock Lesnar, if Lesnar is going to become a babyface. He's virtually that anyway... Aside from the Big Show massacre with the chair at Royal Rumble 2014, when was the last time Brock Lesnar had to rely on cheating to win a match? Sure, you have those heel beatdowns on RAW, but his matches are clean. Fans are already cheering for him... But Paul Heyman IS popular. We have seen his mug on television for 30 some years now and he's a household name to wrestling fans. His DVD/Blu Ray video sold quite well. Many longtime fans still appreciate the work he did for ECW and the 2002-2004 Smackdown brand. He's already over... What would change him as a talker if he worked as a babyface for a change? I would NOT turn him. Many fans are suggesting that he could "fix" Roman Reigns by giving Reigns something he lacks, notably mic skills. However, Reigns has yet to craft a good in-ring ability. That's the REAL problem with Roman Reigns. The in-ring ability is lacking the most from him. Something else to consider... How did Paul Heyman work out for wrestlers Ryback, Curtis Axel, and Cesaro? Now, I could argue the Cesaro point as Heyman's character cared more about hyping Brock Lesnar's Undertaker victory than how great Cesaro was. But he couldn't get Ryback and Axel over not matter how hard he tried. It's as LordsofPain.net's own Webmaster Calvin Martin used to tell me, "you can polish a turd, but at the end of the day, it's still a turd!". Quoting the boss on that one! In my opinion, what is BEST FOR BUSINESS is to have Brock Lesnar DEFEAT Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 31 and keep the momentum going with Paul Heyman at Lesnar's side. Then, throw Sting, Bryan, Orton, Rusev, Bray Wyatt, or even the Rock at him and make $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ for the next 3 years. Looks like I'll be writing columns for LordsofPain.net / WrestlingHeadlines.com for 3 more years... How do you like them apples, Comments section? Ha. Ha. Ha! SO JUST CHILL... 'TIL THE NEXT EPISODE! Comments and feedback are welcome. Follow and Tweet me @titowrestling or login in below to post comments. © Mr. Tito and LordsofPain.net/WrestlingHeadlines.com - 1998-2015
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