Brock Lesnar is set to face Oba Femi inside Hell in a Cell at SummerSlam. This will be the third encounter between the two titanic stars, with both men having won one of their previous two.
Brock Lesnar lost his first bout against Oba Femi at WrestleMania 42, following which the WWE Icon took off his gloves and boots in the ring and signalled retirement. His emotional sendoff on that day made fans almost certain that the Beast Incarnate had indeed retired.
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However, weeks ahead of Clash in Italy, Lesnar returned to ambush Femi with multiple F-5s. Their rematch at Clash in Italy saw Lesnar conquer the Ruler, leading to a third and final showdown in the trilogy at SummerSlam, this time inside Hell in a Cell.
Since Brock Lesnar has already teased retirement once this year, there’s no doubt that he could potentially retire from in-ring action following SummerSlam. In this article, we look at 3 reasons why his match against Oba Femi this weekend could be Lesnar’s last.
#4. The match is in Brock Lesnar’s hometown of Minneapolis
Before WrestleMania 42, fans and analysts argued that Lesnar would retire at SummerSlam in 2026 since the event will be held in his hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Even though Minneapolis isn’t the place Lesnar grew up in, he has strong links to the city because of his collegiate wrestling career.
This is why it came as a shock when it looked like Lesnar had retired for good at WrestleMania 42. Fans continue to argue in the IWC whether the move was sudden or planned. But the most likely story is that Lesnar wanted to retire then and there, as was evident from the emotions running through him and his manager Paul Heyman, but WWE called him back for another final go-around, which he couldn’t refuse.
Despite the outcome of the match, it would make sense for the Beast Incarnate to ride off into the sunset in his hometown this weekend.
#3. Mark Henry’s recent comments loom large over a possible retirement for Brock Lesnar
Former WWE star Mark Henry recently stated in an interview with Casino.org that he thinks Oba Femi will win, and this act of putting a new star over will be Brock’s last before he calls it a day.
Henry’s comments make sense logically, too, as the proverbial “torch pass” is an age-old wrestling tradition that helps new wrestlers become stars after being given the upper hand by a veteran. Lesnar losing to Femi could put the Ruler on the list of one of the most hard-to-beat modern stars and prove to be a fitting bow out for the man who has done it all in the world of pro-wrestling.
Oba Femi has had a great run since his debut on the main roster at the Royal Rumble after he vacated his NXT Championship to join the big leagues. The men’s Royal Rumble match is where Lesnar and Femi first came face to face, and their subsequent rivalry has so far proven that Femi is capable of being the next big thing, something Lesnar was billed as in his initial 24-month run with the company between 2002 and 2004. Mark Henry’s statement that this could be Femi’s “coming out party” would be accurate if Femi emerges victorious against the Beast Incarnate at SummerSlam.
#2. Lesnar has previously said that he was here for a short while
Brock Lesnar has said in interviews that his return to WWE would only be for a short period because he wanted to pay the bills and make a decent living for his family by getting back to work.
He did tease that retirement was on the cards, and fans have since been looking at SummerSlam in Minneapolis as Lesnar’s potential exit gate after over 2 decades (on and off) in the business, especially after the roller coaster emotional ride the fans experienced when they witnessed his shocking WrestleMania 42 retirement gesture.
#1. Oba Femi has promised to end Brock Lesnar
Oba Femi has thrown away his Championship opportunity, the one that he bagged after winning the King of the Ring tournament at Night of Champions, only to end his feud with Brock Lesnar and finish him off once and for all.
From the point of view of the storyline, it makes most sense for Oba Femi to defeat Lesnar after what is sure to be a gruelling battle inside Hell in a Cell at SummerSlam and Lesnar retiring at the end of the loss, because any return then from the beast would do nothing but dilute Femi’s push that would emerge from defeating the man who ended the Undertaker’s famous WrestleMania streak.
It would be fascinating to watch these two behemoths fight it out potentially one last time at SummerSlam this coming weekend. The event takes place at the U.S Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on August 1st and 2nd.
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Edited by Harikesh Shekhar