It was his second TKO loss in just over a year’s time when former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar got crushed against Alistair Overeem at UFC 141 last Friday night. Afterwards, he promptly retired in the octagon during his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan.
There’s no question that Brock Lesnar was one of the biggest PPV draws in UFC history with Georges St. Pierre being the largest. Many people are wondering how his retirement will affect UFC PPV buyrates in the future, so let’s take a look at some facts. Lesnar has fought a total of four times since 2009 and here are the PPV estimates for each fight below:
- UFC 100 (July 11th, 2009)-1.6 million PPV buys
- UFC 116 (July 3rd, 2010)-1.15 million PPV buys
- UFC 121 (October 23rd, 2010)-1 million PPV buys
- UFC 141 (December 30th, 2011)-PPV TBD
So just looking at the numbers it’s clear that Lesnar was a huge PPV draw, but he was basically only fighting once per year mainly due to filming season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter and dealing with recurring bouts of Diverticulitis. Since Lesnar was only fighting once per year as of late it shouldn’t be that big of a blow to the UFC overall. However, there are three big questions we need answers to that will provide a clearer overall picture in regards to this subject:
- How many of the fans that Lesnar influenced to watch MMA will continue to purchase UFC PPV’s?
- If Lesnar returns to the WWE (rumors are rampant), how will that affect UFC PPV’s that compete with the shows he would headline in professional wrestling?
- Can Alistair Overeem develop into a legitmate PPV draw if he defeats Junior dos Santos and becomes the UFC heavyweight champion?
I think it’s safe to assume that Lesnar influenced some pro wrestling fans and other casual fans to purchase UFC PPV’s. The PPV numbers show that buyrates went through the roof once he became the UFC heavyweight champion.
Lesnar has been gone from the WWE scene for some time now, last appearing almost seven years ago. It will be interesting to see if old and current professional wrestling fans will tune in after seeing how Lesnar fared in real(not scripted) fights. After all, he basically got destroyed in his last two MMA fights, getting taken out in the very first round on both occasions.
If Lesnar returns to the WWE, I’m sure the folks at Zuffa will try to prevent that and their could be some sort of clause in his contract that would prevent it for a period of time. Either that or he’ll have to go through the court system the same way he did with the WWE after he left professional wrestling the first time.
Finally, it’ll be interesting to see if Alistair Overeem can become a legitimate PPV draw with his destruction of Lesnar. He’s marketable, speaks English well, is known by fight fans worldwide, and can end fights in devastating fashion. It could be possible for him to offset some of what the UFC will lose with Lesnar provided he’s able to defeat Junior dos Santos when they fight later this year.
What are your thoughts on Lesnar’s career and how will his retirement affect UFC buyrates?