WWE Rumors: Bringing in UFC Star Tito Ortiz Would Be a Major Flop

With Brock Lesnar returning to the WWE last week following his tenure with UFC, there has been a lot of buzz surrounding Vince McMahon's company as of late. Lesnar's immediate success has led UFC star Tito Ortiz to express interest in joining the WWE at some point, but McMahon needs to realize that it won't live up to Lesnar's return.

According to Marc Middleton of WrestlingInc.com, Ortiz has considered making the jump to the WWE in the past. In a recent interview, he once again said that it is something he would consider at some point.

The reaction that Lesnar got when he showed up last week and F-5ed John Cena may have something to do with Ortiz's comments, but it simply wouldn't work the same with him.

In one respect, signing Ortiz would bring the WWE more mainstream attention and it would get UFC fans interested just as they are with Lesnar. However, in terms of appealing to the wrestling fanbase, Ortiz wouldn't be a big draw.

People were pumped for Lesnar because he's a former WWE champion. Ortiz is simply a UFC guy with no wrestling experience.

It would be one thing if it were a top guy like Jon Jones making the jump, but Ortiz is washed up. He's 37 years old, has lost five of his last six fights and is likely only seriously interested in joining the WWE at this point because he can no longer get it done in the Octagon.

With that said, it wouldn't be surprising if McMahon brought Ortiz in at some point, since he would like the national attention it would receive. Plus, he could stick it to the UFC.

That being said, if it's for anything other than a quick guest spot or a short feud, the hardcore WWE faithful simply isn't going to be happy.

There is no question that there are some people who enjoy both WWE and UFC, but at the same time, there seems to be a rivalry between the two fanbases. UFC fans poke fun at WWE fans by calling wrestling fake, while WWE fans shoot back by saying that UFC is boring.

If WWE fans wanted to see Ortiz, they would watch UFC. While some do, the vast majority couldn't care less. There is no way of knowing whether Ortiz would even be able to put on a believable match. He also doesn't seem as if he would have sufficient mic skills to be a regular character, so his ceiling is quite low.

The transition did work once before when Ken Shamrock made the leap from MMA to WWE during the Attitude Era, but that was a rare occurrence. Not only was Shamrock smaller than Ortiz and more of a natural athlete, but he entered the company with the moniker of "The World's Most Dangerous Man" as he was a legitimate MMA star.

Ortiz is more of a punching bag at this point in his career, so nobody is going to buy him showing up and dominating the competition like Shamrock did. Ortiz simply isn't a draw anymore, and WWE fans, by and large, have to be hoping that McMahon realizes that.

Locking up Lesnar was a fantastic coup for the WWE, not only because of his appeal to UFC fans, but because of his WWE roots. Ortiz just doesn't have that going for him and it wouldn't be long before the fans turn on him.