Heyman: Without Diverticulitis, Lesnar Would Still Hold UFC Title

Paul Heyman says nobody would have beaten Brock Lesnar in the UFC if not for his health problems. Lesnar's long-time WWE manager believes a healthy Lesnar would still be champion today at 49.

"If he didn't have diverticulitis, he would have never been defeated in the UFC," Heyman told Graham Bensinger. "Never. Never. He'd still be champion today at 49. There's nobody on this planet that could hang with him, no one. No one. No one. No one would get out of the first round with him. There's no way."

Heyman argued that the illnesses cut Lesnar's career short and robbed him of many accomplishments. In his view, Lesnar would still sit at the top of the heavyweight division if they had not been a factor.

Lesnar's UFC run

Lesnar had to convince Dana White to sign him to the UFC. That was not a problem for White once he saw the pay-per-view numbers. After a setback in his Octagon debut, Lesnar won the heavyweight title just two fights later, stopping Randy Couture in the second round in 2008.

His multiple battles with diverticulitis were followed by some heavy losses. He left the sport in 2011. A brief return in 2016 against Mark Hunt ended in a fight that was overturned to a no contest, and that was the end of his MMA career.

Joe Rogan believes Lesnar could have been the greatest of all time if he had dedicated himself to the sport at an earlier age.

Rematches

Lesnar had only one rematch in MMA. He avenged his loss to Frank Mir by stopping the heavyweight legend at UFC 100. Cain Velasquez ended Lesnar's reign in 2010 by finishing him in the first round. The two faced off again in 2019 at WWE's Crown Jewel event. Lesnar dominated that match and won in just over two minutes.

Lesnar wrestled his final WWE match in August, ending one of the most successful careers in the promotion's history.

Source: Bloody Elbow