The Beast Incarnate Returns: Brock Lesnar Destroyed John Cena At SummerSlam 2025

At SummerSlam on Sunday, Brock Lesnar made a dramatic return to WWE, his first appearance since SummerSlam 2023. The 48-year-old, dressed in a leather cowboy outfit, emerged after Cody Rhodes defeated John Cena to reclaim the Undisputed WWE Championship in the main event.

With Cena, nearing the end of his wrestling retirement tour, still reeling from a grueling 40-minute match, Lesnar gave him no respite. The two shared a tense stare-down before Lesnar delivered an F-5, leaving Cena laid out in the ring at SummerSlam.

Lesnar’s return was unexpected because of his mention in Janel Grant’s amended lawsuit against Vince McMahon and WWE, filed on last year in January. While not a defendant, Lesnar is implicated in allegations that McMahon offered Grant to him for sexual purposes to secure his WWE re-signing in 2021. The initial lawsuit, filed on January 25, 2024, referenced a “world-famous athlete and former UFC Heavyweight Champion” without naming Lesnar, but the amended complaint explicitly identifies him.

Following allegations in the lawsuit, WWE removed him from the WWE 2K24 game and seemingly distanced itself from him. Lesnar’s return to WWE programming has sparked significant attention, given the serious nature of these claims Lesnar was reportedly slated for a 2024 Royal Rumble return but was pulled last minute due to the lawsuit’s allegations. Lesnar’s return, amid ongoing legal scrutiny, has reignited debate about his future in WWE.

Brock Lesnar’s ICONIC relation with SummerSlam

Ever since the past decade, Brock Lesnar has been synonymous with memorable SummerSlam. Since his massive return in 2012, Lesnar has managed to main event eight of the ten SummerSlams he has competed in. Brock has also dominated and won five of the ten matches.

Starting in 2012, the Beast Incarnate main evented and battered down Triple H in a No Disqualification match. Then, in 2013, the same format was followed by Lesnar (not in the main event) to dominate CM Punk with the same stipulation. In 2014, he defeated John Cena to win the WWE Championship. However, the winning streak ended in 2015 when he faced the wrath of his past ‘ghost’ The Undertaker.

Then he gained the momentum in 2016 by dismantling Randy Orton in a singles yet brutal match. The end was uncanny and saw his technical knockout win. In 2017, he took down three other guys, namely Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, and Roman Reigns, defending his Universal Championship. However, the SummerSlam win streak ended again when he lost the Universal Championship against Reigns in 2018.

In 2019 again, he lost the second-time won Universal Championship against Seth Rollins in a main event bout. He did not compete in 2020 but came back with a stunning return in 2021 to confront the Tribal Chief. In 2022, his final SummerSlam main event (so far) came against his classic opponent Reigns in a last man standing match. However, now on a losing record at the Biggest Party of the Summer, his rival was Cody Rhodes.

Ever since that match, he has not been seen in WWE. However, now the Beast Incarnate is back!