Predicting When Brock Lesnar Will Have His Next WWE Match After SummerSlam Loss

Brock Lesnar lost the WWE Universal Championship to Roman Reigns at SummerSlam, but many of the same fans who criticized his part-time title run are already wondering when he will step back into the ring.

Unfortunately for The Beast Incarnate's followers, it may be quite some time before we see him on WWE television again. Before we attempt to predict when he might return, let's go through a timeline of events up to this point.

Before losing to Reigns, Lesnar made an appearance at UFC 226 on July 7. After Daniel Cormier defeated Stipe Miocic for the UFC Heavyweight Championship, the new champion invited Lesnar inside the Octagon. 

Instead of congratulating Cormier on his first-round victory, Lesnar shoved him across the cage, seemingly challenging the champ to a fight.

The multi-time WWE champion re-entered the USADA testing pool around the same time in preparation for his return to UFC, according to Marc Raimondi of MMA Fighting.

Raimondi also posted a tweet stating Dana White confirmed the possible window for a return begins in January 2019, once Lesnar's suspension for a failed test from his UFC 200 bout against Mark Hunt has been served.

If Cormier and Lesnar can avoid injuries during training, UFC 233 and 234 in early 2019 are the earliest events the bout could be booked for.

The Beast was advertised to be on the post-SummerSlam edition of Monday Night Raw in his final contracted appearance, but according to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc), WWE's creative team couldn't find a good-enough excuse to use him.

This led to Kurt Angle telling Paul Heyman his client wouldn't be receiving a rematch against The Big Dog anytime soon as a way of writing The Beast off of television.

The report also states WWE officials would love for Lesnar to return after his fight against Cormier, assuming The Beast doesn't plan on retiring altogether.

What does that mean for the WWE Universe? At this point, not much. Lesnar hasn't talked about whether he wants to return to WWE, but he has never been the kind of person to let people know every move he intends to make.

When Will His Next WWE Match Happen?

When you look at what has happened over the past few months and what the future holds, there are a few possible dates The Beast could return to WWE.

We know Vince McMahon and management see him as a marquee attraction, so it makes the most sense to use his comeback match to boost one of the biggest events of the year.

Hypothetically, let's say Lesnar fights Cormier in late January or early February and comes out of the Octagon unscathed. This would give WWE enough time to begin building a storyline to include him on the WrestleMania 35 card.

If he is injured during the fight or it gets pushed back a couple of months to the spring, SummerSlam 2019 is the first big event after 'Mania where The Beast could return.

The third and worst-case scenario is if Lesnar fails another drug test, gets injured in the fight with Cormier or it gets delayed significantly for some reason. Then the best option for his return becomes the 2020 Royal Rumble or WrestleMania 36.

With the way things are looking and with everything we know, 'Mania 35 seems like the safest bet. It gives Lesnar the window he needs to have a big payday in the UFC and gets him back in the ring before his 42nd birthday.

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When do you think Lesnar will return to WWE, if ever?