What Does Lesnar’s Return to UFC Mean for SummerSlam?

After months of speculation, it’s all but confirmed that WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar will be reviving his UFC career in January, likely getting an immediate title shot against current heavyweight (and light heavyweight) champion Daniel Cormier.

Lesnar confronted Cormier in the Octagon at UFC 226 after “DC” won the heavyweight title from Stipe Miocic.

UFC president Dana White said in the ensuing press conference that he was “definitely going to make that fight.”

Lesnar’s UFC return puts Vince McMahon and the WWE in a tricky spot. It’s now been nearly three months since Lesnar defended his belt, and he’s surely going to be turning more and more of his attention to MMA training as 2019 approaches. Whether he signs another contract with the WWE or not, he couldn’t be anything more than a very part-time performer at best.

That means it’s time for the longest-reigning champion in WWE history to lose his belt, and as Sascha Paruk from sportsbettingdime.com said, “there’s no bigger or better stage than SummerSlam.” Even before Lesnar had confirmed his UFC return, Paruk already put the odds of Lesnar fighting at SummerSlam at 1/5 (83.3% chance).

Now that his days in the WWE appear to be numbered, the likelihood only goes up.

Initially, Lesnar’s potential SummerSlam matchup was rumored to be with Roman Reigns. But with Bobby Lashley defeating Reigns at Extreme Rules, it now looks like “Destroyer” is going to be the man standing across the squared circle from Lesnar, to the relief of almost every WWE fan the world over.

So, although this isn’t necessarily the last hurrah for Lesnar in the WWE, we are likely entering the final days of his current title reign.