Written By Chris Schad
The University of Minnesota has had its share of legendary athletes. In football, there was Bronko Nagurski. In basketball, Kevin McHale emerged from the iron ranges of Hibbing. If that’s not enough, Dave Winfield was so good, he was the only athlete to be drafted by four professional teams in three different sports. But, for all the legends that the Gophers could tell, perhaps there is none more compelling than that of Brock Lesnar.
Making his way from a dairy farm in Webster, S.D., Lesnar won the National Junior College wrestling championship during his sophomore year at Bismarck State College. After transferring to Minnesota, Lesnar dominated and finished as the national individual runner-up in 1999 and the NCAA individual champion in 2000.
That alone is an interesting storyline, but the Gophers have had 13 NCAA individual champions. What sets Lesnar apart is his stunning athleticism and his path to become a household name throughout multiple platforms.
Lesnar’s first stop came in a venue he never expected: World Wrestling Entertainment.
“I had never watched a lick of wrestling,” Lesnar said in a 2008 interviewfor ESPN’s E:60. “I was like, ‘That’s not wrestling,’ but then Vince [McMahon] slapped a bunch of money on the table.” From there, it was history. Lesnar became a star for WWE, capturing the WWE Championship three times in a three-year span while becoming the youngest champion in the company’s history.
While WWE is a scripted entity, he still made the transition that most ameateur wrestlers can’t. In sports entertainment, it’s all about charisma. While some superstars carry their charisma through promos (aka interviews), Lesnar’s charisma came from his athletic ability.
His strength was astounding as it allowed him to create memorable moments (such as superplexing the Big Show through the ring during aSmackdown taping in 2003), and his agility allowed him to create the“Wheel of Death” during his amateur days and gave him the ability to do a Shooting Star Press despite being listed at 6-foot-3 and 286 pounds.
Of course, while the results may be scripted, the physical toll is real. Lesnar performed through a variety of ailments during his time with WWE, and the city-to-city blur that is a wrestler’s life got repetitive.
After making his departure from WWE in the spring of 2004, Lesnar tried to play his way into the NFL. Despite an aggressive performance with the Minnesota Vikings during training camp that summer, the team cut him right before the season, opening yet another door in UFC.
After a debut fight where he pummelled Frank Mir before he got locked into a submission, it took Lesnar four fights to capture the UFC Heavyweight Championship. He also became a major draw for the company as he participated in five of the largest-grossing pay-per-view events in the company’s history.
However, Lesnar’s success would come to a screeching halt as his own body turned on him. A bout with diverticulitis caused him to drop several fights after becoming the champion and he was forced to retire from UFC in 2011.
“Anything you saw him do, he did as an unhealthy man competing at the very top level on the face of the planet.” Current WWE manager and friend Paul Heyman told Fox Sports last August regarding his time in UFC. “Imagine what he could have done if he was 100 percent healthy.”
The latest detour led Lesnar back home, where he is currently the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. After toying with a return to UFC, hedecided to stay with the WWE and earn full-time pay while working part-time. Such is the life for a man who could draw crowds with a “What will he do next?” level of athletic ability.
“He’s healthy.” Heyman said last summer. “His body is not spending so much energy fighting off diverticulitis. He’s healthy for the first time in years and I think his potential is limitless. He’s a once-in-a-lifetime athlete. This is Jim Thorpe, Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, Gordie Howe, Wayne Gretzky, this is a once-in-a-lifetime athlete.”
All of his credentials makes Lesnar a once-in-a-lifetime Gopher as well as he was able to make transitions few could. His success in WWE spawned many amateur wrestlers (Jack Swagger, Dolph Ziggler, etc.) to follow the same path, but they haven’t had the rabid following that Lesnar has achieved.
His work in the UFC also inspired many wrestlers to jump into the octagon post-WWE. However, few have been able to match Lesnar’s success to go with their experience as entertainers.
Lesnar is a trailblazer that’s put together an impressive résumé to make him a household name. While his name might not get the credibility it deserves from being a professional wrestler, he’s more than deserving of being known as one of the greatest Gopher athletes.