Sports

Brock Lesnar suspended after drug tests; brawls with Chris Jericho

Brock Lesnar was suspended Tuesday by the Nevada Athletic Commission for failing multiple drug tests prior to the UFC 200 pay-per-view.

Lesnar, who defeated heavyweight Mark Hunt as a headliner for UFC’s anniversary show, was found to have tested positive for hydroxy clomiphene in two separate tests prior to the card. Hydroxy clomiphene is an estrogen blocker, usually used by athletes to counteract the hormonal imbalance from using steroids.

The ruling came two days after Lesnar was involved in a controversial incident at World Wrestling Entertainment’s SummerSlam PPV in New York. Lesnar defeated pro wrestler Randy Orton via a “TKO” finish in which Lesnar battered Orton with legit forearms to his head, and busted a gash across his skull, causing blood to pull in the middle of the ring. The incident left many wondering if Lesnar had gone off script and injured Orton, who required 10 staples to close the wound.

Lesnar, who wrestles part-time for WWE, had a clause in his contract to allow him to fight for UFC.

Meltzer said the entire ending was scripted by WWE, including Lesnar using his elbows to make Orton bleed. Pro wrestlers in the past had used blades to make themselves bleed, hiding them on their person, and then cutting themselves across their forehead to give a since of brutality and reality to their matches. The practice was banned after WWE began cleaning up its product in the late 00s and at the behest of sponsors and television networks. WWE opted to instead have Lensar use forearm shots to bust Orton open for dramatic effect since it no longer practices blading.

The match ending led to another controversy when Lesnar got into a physical confrontation with fellow pro wrestler Chris Jericho. Meltzer reported Jericho began inquiring to WWE staff if the ending of the match was legit and was concerned with Orton’s health. While Lesnar was returning backstage, he made a disparaging comment to Jericho. The two began fighting until WWE executives Vince McMahon and Paul “Triple H” Levesque intervened and separated the two. Jericho is a popular mainstream media figure, a former “Dancing With The Stars Contestant,” former gameshow host, and fronts his own heavy metal band.

Lesnar’s UFC 200 opponent, Mark Hunt, has called for a fighter’s union following Lesnar’s drug test, accusing Lesnar of knowing he would fail the test, but would get paid anyway since the test results wouldn’t be available until after the PPV.

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