MMA is on the back burner for now as Cain Velasquez made his WWE debut Friday in a surprise twist to the debut of SmackDown on FOX.
Cain Velasquez (14–3) has been dabbling in pro wrestling for the last several months. On Friday, however, he made it clear that at least for now, wrestling is the focus. Velasquez was the surprise guest at the premiere of WWE SmackDown on FOX Friday night. There, the former UFC heavyweight champion got his hands on Brock Lesnar once again.
Only this time, it was in a scripted performance, that came after Lesnar squashed Kofi Kingston in nine seconds to win the WWE Championship.
Lesnar’s bout with Kingston had been advertised for weeks. Velasquez’s involvement in a possible storyline between the real-life UFC foes had been rumored for weeks as well, after word broke that Cain had been seen meeting with WWE officials.
The quick turnaround is probably the biggest surprise, but given the show’s debut on the FOX network, a big surprise felt necessary. Especially after rival AEW had Bellator’s Jake Hager, a.k.a. former WWE champ Jack Swagger, appear on their debut show on Wednesday.
Velasquez and Lesnar will likely do big ratings for the WWE in the short term. However, the question of Cain’s health will likely be an issue, as the ex-champ is reportedly in need of knee surgery. Cain last fought in February, falling via TKO to Francis Ngannou, in a fight where Velasquez’s knee appeared to buckle.
