UFC 199 was an incredible event in and of itself however; the event was made even more memorable when the announcement was made that the biggest draw in UFC history, Brock Lesnar, would be returning for the historic UFC 200 on July 9, 2016. Lesnar is as enigmatic as he is charismatic with a multi-faceted skill set that has provided him with success on a variety of levels in a variety of areas.
We all know that Lesnar is married to Rena Mero, better known as Sable and former WWE Women’s champion, he was on the practice squad of the Minnesota Vikings, and he had an illustrious athletic career winning the WWE Heavyweight Championship four times, the UFC Heavyweight Championship, and an NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship but there are a few things you may not know about Lesnar. For instance, did you know that Lesnar is a character whom can be played with in Madden 2006 or that he suffered from a neck injury at WrestleMania XIX that nearly ended his career? Here is a look at the top three things you may not have known about Brock Lesnar.
3) He joined the National Guard at the age of 17
It’s not hard to imagine a man that is an avid hunter and sponsored by Jack Link’s Beef Jerky would have a patriotic side to him that would lead to a propensity towards joining the military. When an Army recruiter came to his high school he was intrigued and ended up joining the Army National Guard with the hopes and dreams of an action packed military career…only to be sidelined and given a desk job much to his dismay. Uncle Sam had good reason to turn this mountain of athletic potential into a desk jockey and the reason may surprise you and is number two on the list…
2) Brock Lesnar is color blind
That’s right, this former multi-sport champion is color blind however; it isn’t like he sees the world in black and white. Lesnar is one of the 6% of the male population that is red-green colorblind which means Lesnar has a very difficult time differentiating the red and green hues of the color spectrum and as a matter of the fact, this is the most common type of colorblindness. Although not completely debilitating there are some restrictions that have inhibited Lesnar throughout his life such as working with explosives in the US military.
1) Brock Lesnar is a recovering addict
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association, 24.6 million Americans 12 years old or older in 2013, nearly 10% of the population, used illicit drugs. It is no surprise that the tendencies towards substance abuse increase due to a variety of stressors at various points throughout one’s lifetime and this is more than likely even more prevalent when we begin to think about high profile athletes such as Lesnar. By his own admittance he was heavily addicted to alcohol and painkillers during his first few years in the WWE stating in an interview with ESPN, Vodka and Vicodin were my best friends during those years. Thankfully, Lesnar has overcome his addiction and continues to experience a level of success that few are able to rival.
