UFC eyeing Mir vs. Lesnar III on NYE?

When former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar appeared Octagon side at UFC 184, many fans wondered if this mean a return to the UFC was imminent. No one knows more about the worlds of MMA and pro wrestling combined than Dave Meltzer. In his latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Meltzer breaks down what is going on.

Meltzer reports that Lesnar is believed to be making $5 million per year, for three WEE PPVs per year, and a number of attendant responsibilities. And he thinks that, plus his ability to be at the top of the wrestling food chain as he ages, will be the deciding factor.

As far as Lesnar’s future after the end of this month, that’s anyone’s guess. One would have figured the decision of where to sign his next deal would go down to the wire because he’s in a unique position to have three major companies all willing to pay big money for his services and based on his contract, he can’t legally negotiate with UFC or Bellator until the end of the month.

Lesnar walked out at television on 2/23 in Nashville, when he was advertised and scheduled to appear, to build up his WWE title match with Roman Reigns that headlines the 3/29 show at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.

The only thing new is that there was a shouting match between Lesnar and McMahon in Nashville, loud enough that people who heard it were concerned about the situation. Lesnar then left the arena, stemming from whatever the issue was with his talks regarding signing a new contract. It was claimed last week that the differences were not insurmountable, but that it was two people who didn’t want to back down to the other.

Lesnar then showed up in Los Angeles, in an enormous suit-and-tie, sitting with Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta at UFC 184 … Obviously appearing at the show was meant to send a message to WWE, and McMahon in particular.

Lesnar had made arrangements with Dana White at least a couple of days earlier to appear at the show. It wasn’t a last minute thing, although everyone kept it secret. UFC itself pushed him being there.

Those in UFC had expected for some time that Lesnar would be returning, beginning with a fight with Frank Mir. Mir had brought up the night before Lesnar’s issue with McMahon, about potentially fighting Lesnar, noting that if he didn’t win his 2/22 fight over Antonio Silva, he wouldn’t get what he acknowledged would be his highest profile match possible.

Lesnar vs. Mir would be a rematch of UFC 100, nearly six years ago, where Lesnar finished Mir in the second round, to unify the UFC heavyweight title that Lesnar held, and the interim heavyweight title, that Mir held. That event did 1.6 million buys, by far the largest number in UFC history, and a figure surpassed only a few times in PPV history, all for massive boxing events.

However, those in WWE believed Lesnar would be signing a new deal with their company. The feeling is that he would have more longevity on top as a pro wrestler, given that he turns 38 this summer, even if he could earn more short-term money in MMA. In doing so, he’d have to train harder, and risk more physical damage than he would have from his limited pro wrestling schedule.

When Lesnar retired from UFC in 2011, he cited a promise made to his wife about making a championship run and then retiring, and once he lost to Alistair Overeem, his championship run looked to be over. Logic points to wrestling unless he’s got something in him who thinks an illness robbed him of what he could have accomplished. Age stands still for nobody, but you can make it stand still easier in pro wrestling than MMA if the person in charge chooses to.

Even if Lesnar has decided he’s leaving, and if the new contract is anything like the last two, that would on the outside feel like a mistake, it’s still preferable to be negotiating between three big companies (UFC, Viacom and WWE) as two. Although most feel that even though he could make money and beat lesser heavyweights in Bellator, that they are not in the running, because Lesnar only wants to be with the top organization. The idea is if he’s going to compete in a sport, he’s competing to be the best, and he can’t be that in Bellator.

It is also believed that there is still a good chance he will sign his new deal with WWE. Only he knows how serious his idea of having unfinished business in UFC as being a reason he’s looking at leaving. Or whether he is saying that to use MMA as a leverage move to get a better deal for wrestling. There is also the question of what kind of a deal Viacom would come up with, as they could offer more freak show fights, which are more winnable than going into UFC. Even Mir is significantly higher level than the type of opponents he would most likely face in Bellator, such as Kimbo Slice or Bobby Lashley.

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