There were four words uttered at the conclusion of UFC 121 that has the both the MMA and wrestling communities buzzing:
"You wanna do it?"
That was what The Undertaker had to say to Brock Lesnar as he left the Octagon just moments after losing the UFC Heavyweight Championship.
It was a moment frozen in time and caught during an interview with Ariel Helwani for all to see on video. It was brief. It was tense. It was simple.
It was also money.
So money.
Money for the WWE that is.
During that quick moment, the seed was planted for a dream match at WrestleMania 27: The Undertaker putting his undefeated streak on the line against the former UFC Heavyweight Champion and former WWE Champion Brock Lesnar.
Money.
That match would be big bucks for Vince McMahon and exactly what he is looking for to get people everywhere talking about his company and that event.
It would garner mainstream press from all corners: wrestling, MMA and sports in general. I'm sure Vinny Mac is grinning like a cheshire cat right now just thinking about the buildup to this epic match.
We can't be sure if the heat between the two men is legit or not. Maybe they don't like one another dating back to the time that Lesnar was "The Next Big Thing" in the WWE.
But UFC president Dana White believes the two of them are friends. And, more importantly, he doesn't know if Lesnar wants to make a return to wrestling.
Here's what White had to say about the matter following Saturday's UFC event: "First of all, I don't know if he is or isn't (returning to WWE). I would find that hard to believe, but The Undertaker has been coming for a long time. He's a fan of mixed martial arts, and Brock is one of his guys. Those guys wrestled together. I went up and put the belt on Cain (Velasquez), talked to Brock and went right out, so I didn't hear any exchange. But if those guys were going back and forth, it's because they are friends."
It sure seems like White doesn't discount Lesnar going back to WWE at least for one big match. Here's another interesting quote from El Presidente:
"Brock and I butt heads on things. We just do. It is what it is, you know? I don't think it's something like, 'Oh, we're fighting and this thing is never going to work.' We tend to battle on things."
Maybe that butting of heads between the super-egos could open the door for Lesnar to want to go back to the wrestling world. Or maybe that's why they are butting heads -- because Lesnar has already been approached and he wants to do the match.
Sure, he's said that pro wrestling was a part of his past and fighting is his life now. But dollars do a lot of talking too and there is a lot of money to be made even for just a one-time return to WWE.
And you know McMahon would cough up a lot of green to get him. It was back in 1998 when he happily shelled out a reported $3 million for Mike Tyson to be a special enforcer at WrestleMania 14 between Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels. What seemed like a costly investment at a time when business was bad for the company turned out to be a wise move and helped spark the beginning of a huge renaissance for WWE.
Lesnar is worth at least that amount and maybe double to face The Undertaker at WrestleMania 27 next April. I highly doubt he would want to return to WWE on a full-time basis. He left the business in 2004 because he hated the grind, the travel, the few days off away from his family.
But just one time, one huge match against one of the biggest superstars in WWE history at WrestleMania might be too good to pass up.
Brian Fritz reporting
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