WWE Legend Questions Brock Lesnar's Confusing Return After Retirement Hints

A WWE Hall of Famer is baffled over how the company booked Brock Lesnar's return on Monday night.

After losing his singles match to Oba Femi at WrestleMania 42, Lesnar strongly hinted at retirement. He left his shoes and gloves in the ring, embraced longtime manager Paul Heyman and broke character by acknowledging the fans.

Earlier this month, WWE.com moved Lesnar to the alumni section of the website, another strong hint that he was retired.

But on last night's episode of Raw, Lesnar unexpectedly returned and attacked Femi, delivering multiple F5 finishers to his rival. Heyman met with Raw general manager Adam Pearce in a backstage segment, telling him that Femi has the opportunity to sign a contract for a rematch at the Clash in Italy pay-per-view on May 31.

Speaking on the latest edition of "Busted Open Radio", Hall of Famer Bully Ray (also known as Bubba Ray Dudley in WWE), questioned WWE's booking of Lesnar's surprise return last night (h/t WrestlingInc.com):

"Brock decided to shock the world by taking off his boots, taking off his fist pads or whatever, those MMA gloves, and he leaves them in the middle of the ring, thus signifying that Brock Lesnar is done," Bully Ray said. "We even heard Paul Heyman begging and pleading to move him out of…you know the 'Then, Now, Forever' area of the opening of the show, and put him in the forever part.

"All indicators were that Brock Lesnar was done. Brock Lesnar made a conscious effort to tell the world 'It's over at WrestleMania.' A month later, he changed his mind. Why?"

Bully Ray added that Lesnar should have done something as simple as saying that he changed his mind, or at least explaining why he returned on Monday night.

WWE May Be Pushing Brock Lesnar to Keep Going Behind the Scenes

WWE has always been heavily reliant on part-time performers to headline main events like WrestleMania, SummerSlam and the Royal Rumble.

With Triple H, John Cena, The Undertaker and Goldberg long retired, they don't have many names left from the Ruthless Aggression Era. It's anybody's guess how much longer Lesnar wants to continue wrestling. But given WWE's reliance on the future Hall of Famer, it's certainly possible that they're pushing him to go as long as possible.

Offering giant sums of cash to wrestle the odd match isn't exactly a difficult solution, after all.

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on May 19, 2026, where it first appeared in the Entertainment section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

2026 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.

This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 2:29 PM.