Eric Bischoff Talks If Brock Lesnar Has Been Worth What WWE Has Spent On Him

During the latest edition of his “83 Weeks” podcast, Eric Bischoff commented on Brock Lesnar’s status in WWE, whether he’s been worth what WWE has spent on him, and more. You can check out some highlights from the interview below:

On if Lesnar has been worth the investment WWE has spent on him: “You know, from our collective points of view — I’m being serious now. As fans, as people on the outside looking in, that’s a subjective . First of all, how much money has he made [WWE], does anybody know? A lot, we all know he’s made a lot. But how much is ‘a lot?’ Is ‘a lot’ $10 million? Is ‘a lot’ $100 million? Is ‘a lot’ $200 million? What is ‘a lot?’ And unless you know that number, then how do you begin to, you know, come up with an objective answer to a subjective question? You can’t, you know? A), you have to know how much money has WWE invested in Brock Lesnar over those years. And the other part of that equation, if you’re being honest and not just a hater or a superfan, regardless of how you feel about Brock. If you don’t know how much money Brock Lesnar has generated for WWE, which none of us do, then how can you honestly answer that question? The answer to my question is, ‘you can’t.’

On if he’s enjoyed Lesnar’s run: “Then it really breaks down to, have I enjoyed watching Brock Lesnar over the years? I think for the most part the answer is ‘Yes.’ I think there’s gonna be some die-hard people that like to think they know better than anybody else, and they understand the wrestling business because they read Dave Meltzer’s nonsense — you know, you’re always gonna have those people out there. There’s a handful of them, a large handful but there’s a handful of them out there. And when I say ‘a handful,’ I mean compared to the broader 25 million people around the world that watch wrestling. But it’s a subjective question. I myself have always enjoyed the intensity and believability and the credibility that Brock brings to the table in his matches. They’re completely different than what we saw at Money in the Bank. Could you see Brock Lesnar in that? Could you see Brock Lesnar, you know, at the elevators, in the food fight? I can’t. That was slapstick, it was comedy, it was not to be taken seriously. He would have been miscast completely in that role. But on the other hand, when we’ve seen some of the more serious matches with Brock Lesnar, he allows me to believe. He allows me to put my guard down, not feel a little silly for being interested in the product in the first place because he is so intense, and he is so believable. So for me, ehh, yeah. I’ve enjoyed watching Brock, and i think he’s added a tremendous amount of credibility and believability to the product. But in terms of ‘Do you think he’s worth the money?’ None of us, and I mean none of us other than probably the financial office or financial floor in WWE can really answer that question.”

On if Lesnar will return: “Boy, if there’s anybody that’s qualified to say ‘Never say never,’ that’s me. So I just can’t allow myself to think there’s a situation where he’s never going to come back. I don’t think he wants to. Let’s start off with the realities of it: he certainly doesn’t need to. He doesn’t need to. So then it comes down to ‘Want To’ … Do I think there’ll be a point when Brock Lesnar wants to come back? I do. Because Brock Lesnar has been an athlete his entire life. He’s been a competitor his entire life. His entire life, he’s had a goal, he’s had a match. An amateur wrestling match, or wrestling season. After wrestling, he — f**k, he was a walk-on for the Minnesota Vikings. Come on. And he’d never played football in high school or college, and if he played, he played very little … When you get that bug, when you get that desire to perform, it doesn’t go away, no matter what your situation is. So I wouldn’t expect we’ll see him back any time soon ’cause it takes a while for that want to begin to propagate inside of your head and your soul. But I would expect we’ll see him back.”