Why Did Brock Lesnar Leave WWE in 2004?

Brock Lesnar shocked the world when he left WWE in 2004. Find out why he left and what he’s been up to since then.

Brock Lesnar’s First WWE Run

Brock Lesnar made his WWE debut in 2002 and quickly became one of the most dominant forces in the organization. He won the WWE Championship in 2003 and held the title for over a year. In 2004, Lesnar shocked the WWE Universe when he abruptly left the company. Let’s take a look at some of the possible reasons why Brock Lesnar decided to leave WWE in 2004.

Lesnar’s debut

Brock Lesnar made his professional wrestling debut at the age of 25 in 2000. He was quickly signed by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) and was assigned to its developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). After being promoted to the WWF’s main roster in 2002, Lesnar won the Undisputed WWF Championship from The Rock at SummerSlam that year, making him the youngest champion in WWE history at 25 years old. He held the title for 84 days before losing it to Bill Goldberg at Backlash.

Lesnar becomes WWE Champion

On August 25, 2002, at SummerSlam, Lesnar defeated The Rock to win the WWE Undisputed Championship, becoming the youngest WWE Champion in history at the age of 25. Lesnar successfully defended the title against The Rock at Unforgiven. At Survivor Series, Team Austin (Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Chris Benoit, Bradshaw and Big Show) defeated Team Bischoff (Shawn Michaels, Booker T, Rob Van Dam, Kevin Nash and Triple H) in a 5-on-5 Elimination Match. Lesnar then became a double champion after defeating Big Show to win the WWE United States Championship on the November 6 episode of SmackDown!.

Lesnar leaves WWE

Brock Lesnar made his WWE debut in 2002 and quickly rose to the top of the company, winning the WWE Championship in just his fourth match. However, Lesnar would leave WWE in 2004 after just two years with the company.

There are a variety of reasons cited for Lesnar’s departure, including his frustration with the creative direction of his character, issues with management, and even his desire to pursue a career in the NFL. Regardless of the reasons, Lesnar’s departure was a huge blow to WWE at the time.

Interestingly, Lesnar would return to WWE in 2012, and he has been with the company ever since. While Lesnar has had some ups and downs during his second run with WWE, there’s no doubt that he is once again one of the top Superstars in the business.

Brock Lesnar’s Second WWE Run

Brock Lesnar originally left WWE in 2004 due to creative differences. He was frustrated with the way his character was being used and felt he was being held back. Lesnar also wanted to pursue a career in the NFL but was unsuccessful. He then decided to return to WWE in 2012.

Lesnar’s return

Brock Lesnar returned to WWE programming in early 2012 after an 8-year absence. He had last been seen in a WWE ring in 2004, when he left the company abruptly following a contract dispute. So, what caused Brock Lesnar to leave WWE in the first place, and what brought him back?

Brock Lesnar was one of WWE’s top stars in the early 2000s. He was a dominant force in the ring, and his matches were always highly anticipated. However, Lesnar was also difficult to work with, and he was often at odds with WWE management. In 2003, Lesnar clashed with Vince McMahon over the creative direction of his character, and the two had a very public falling out.

Lesnar then decided to pursue a career in mixed martial arts, signing with the UFC. He made his debut in 2008 and quickly rose to prominence, becoming the UFC Heavyweight Champion. However,Lesnar’s time in the UFC was marred by injuries, and he eventually decided to retire from MMA in 2011.

With his MMA career behind him, Brock Lesnar reached out to WWE about potentially making a return. After months of negotiations,Lesnar finally agreed to come back to WWE on a part-time basis. He made his triumphant return at the 2012 Royal Rumble, and he has been appearing on WWE programming ever since.

Lesnar becomes WWE Universal Champion

In January 2019, at the Royal Rumble, Lesnar made his first WWE appearance in five years, entering the men’s Royal Rumble match as the number one entrant. He eliminated a number of wrestlers, last eliminating Seth Rollins to win the match and become WWE Universal Champion for a second time. This marked the first time that a WWE Superstar had won world titles in both WWE and UFC.

Lesnar leaves WWE again

Lesnar’s final match in his second WWE run took place at SummerSlam on August 15, 2004, where he was defeated by Eddie Guerrero. The next day, Lesnar quit WWE once again, vacating the WWE championship.

The main reason for Lesnar requesting his release was because he wanted to pursue a career in the National Football League (NFL). He had originally intended to do this after his initial WWE run in 2002, but was talked into returning to WWE by Vince McMahon. However, after finally leaving WWE in 2004, Lesnar did try out for the Minnesota Vikings but was eventually cut from the team.

In an interview with Sports Illustrated in 2006, Lesnar said that he left WWE because he “just wasn’t happy” and that he “didn’t like what [he] was doing”. He also said that he regretted not trying out for the NFL sooner, as he felt that he could have been successful if given the chance.

Why Did Brock Lesnar Leave WWE in 2004?

Brock Lesnar shocked the world when he walked out of WWE in 2004. Lesnar was one of the biggest stars in WWE at the time, and many thought he would never leave. So, what exactly happened? Let’s take a look.

Lesnar was unhappy with his position in WWE

Brock Lesnar was one of the biggest stars in WWE during his initial run with the company from 2002 to 2004. He was a dominant champion and had marquee matches with some of WWE’s top names. However, Lesnar was not happy with his position in WWE and he decided to leave the company in 2004.

Lesnar has said that he was not happy with the way he was being used by WWE and he felt like he was not being pushed as a top star. He also did not like the travel schedule and the grueling nature of WWE’s schedule. Lesnar decided to leave WWE and pursue a career in mixed martial arts.

Lesnar would go on to have success in MMA, winning the UFC Heavyweight Championship in 2008. He would return to WWE in 2012 and would go on to have more success, winning the WWE Universal Championship in 2017.

Lesnar was tired of the WWE travel schedule

Brock Lesnar’s first WWE run was relatively short, but it was eventful. Lesnar made his WWE debut in 2002 and quickly became one of the top stars in the company. He won the WWE Championship in 2003 and held it for nearly a year before leaving the company in 2004.

So why did Lesnar leave WWE? There are a few different factors that contributed to his decision. First, Lesnar was incredibly homesick during his time with WWE. He was constantly away from his wife and young son, which took a toll on him mentally.

Second, Lesnar was not happy with the WWE travel schedule. He would often have to be on the road for more than 300 days per year, which left him very little time at home. This was one of the main reasons he decided to leave WWE and focus on his family.

Finally, Lesnar was reportedly unhappy with his position in WWE. He felt that he was not being used properly and was not receiving the push that he deserved. This likely played a role in his decision to leave the company.

Lesnar wanted to pursue a career in MMA

Brock Lesnar is a former WWE superstar who left the company in 2004 in order to pursue a career in MMA. Lesnar had previously been a NCAA Division I wrestler, and he was considered to be one of the biggest stars in WWE at the time of his departure. However, Lesnar was not happy with how his WWE career was going, and he decided to try his hand at MMA instead.

Lesnar’s first MMA fight was against Min Soo Kim, which he lost via TKO in the first round. Lesnar would go on to have mixed success in MMA, winning some fights and losing others. However, he did not find the same level of success that he had in WWE, and he ultimately decided to retire from MMA in 2011.