Paul Heyman believes Brock Lesnar could have remained undefeated throughout his UFC career if serious health problems had not interrupted his time in mixed martial arts.
During a recent appearance on In Depth with Graham Bensinger, Heyman discussed his longtime relationship with Lesnar and reflected on the former WWE and UFC Heavyweight Champion’s extraordinary athletic abilities. He argued that Lesnar’s accomplishments have often been overlooked because of his background in professional wrestling and the medical setbacks that affected his career.
Following his initial departure from WWE, Lesnar made the transition to MMA and captured the UFC Heavyweight Championship in just his fourth professional fight. He held the championship for nearly two years before losing to Cain Velasquez in October 2010, with his career also significantly affected by diverticulitis. “It’s one of those things, it’s just magic. It’s lightning in a bottle. He was my Aryan and I was his Jew. His name was perfect, what a name. Brock Lesnar, you don’t have to make up a name,” Heyman said. “He is the greatest athlete on the face of the planet and the only reason why he doesn’t get the credit he deserves is number one, there is a preconceived notion of what a professional wrestler is.”
Heyman went on to suggest that Lesnar’s battle with diverticulitis prevented him from reaching even greater heights in combat sports. He expressed his belief that Lesnar would have remained UFC Heavyweight Champion well into his late forties had the illness not disrupted his career. “Number two, because diverticulitis robbed him of so much more great athletic accomplishment. If he didn’t have diverticulitis, he would’ve never been defeated in UFC. Never. He’d still be champion today at 49,” Heyman continued. “There’s nobody on this planet that could hang with him, no one. No one would get out of the first round with him, there’s no way.”
The discussion also covered Lesnar’s attempt to enter the NFL following his departure from WWE in 2004. Lesnar participated in training camp with the Minnesota Vikings, and Heyman claimed his athletic testing results were so impressive that the organisation initially hesitated to release them publicly. “He went out for the Minnesota Vikings training camp, they were reluctant to release to the media his combine numbers because he came out of WWE,” Heyman explained. “The Minnesota Vikings were concerned that the media would think this is a WWE stunt with these numbers, because whether it was the 40 yard dash or the 100 yard dash or the quarter mile or the standing jump or whatever it was, his combine numbers were of Olympic qualifying time.”
Heyman also recalled the serious motorcycle accident Lesnar suffered shortly before attending training camp. According to Heyman, Lesnar sustained multiple injuries, including a fractured pelvis, a torn groin and a broken jaw, but remained determined to pursue his NFL ambitions.
“At 6″3, 285 pounds and six weeks before training camp, right after leaving WWE, he flipped his motorcycle at like 90 or 100 miles an hour in Minnesota,” Heyman said. “He tore his groin and he fractured his pelvis and he tore everything all the way down to his knees and he broke his jaw. They had to wire his jaw shut.”
Despite the severity of those injuries, Heyman claimed Lesnar took drastic measures to ensure he could maintain his weight and participate in training camp while recovering. “So, he cut the wires off of his jaw so he could eat and maintain body weight. He showed up at training camp recovering from a fractured pelvis, a torn groin, and everything else. He was beyond black and purple from the stomach down to the knees.”
Although Lesnar ultimately did not secure a permanent place on the Vikings’ roster, his attempt to transition from professional wrestling to American football remains another notable chapter in his athletic career.
Lesnar later returned to WWE and continued competing at the highest level before retiring from in-ring competition following his loss to Oba Femi at SummerSlam in August 2026.
Heyman’s latest comments underline his belief that Lesnar’s athletic potential extended far beyond professional wrestling, with his health problems representing the biggest obstacle to what he considers an otherwise unparalleled career.
