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Brock Lesnar Arrives On WWE SmackDown, Attacks John Cena During Match With Sami Zayn

The Beast is back and he is apparently out to destroy John Cena's farewell tour. Brock Lesnar returned to WWE SmackDown Friday to once again lay out the 'Greatest of All-Time.'
Rick Ucchino|
Brock Lesnar & John Cena
Brock Lesnar & John Cena | WWE

The Beast is back and he has once again made John Cena his target.

Brock Lesnar had not appeared on WWE programming since his shocking return at SummerSlam back in August, but that changed Friday night in Chicago.

The rumors of his travel plans to the Windy City turned out to be true as Lesnar arrived at the Allstate Arena to disrupt Cena's farewell to the very venue that hosted his WWE debut over 23 years ago.

Friday night was John Cena's final ever appearance on SmackDown. He opened the show to thank the Chicago crowd for an incredible reception and to soak in a special moment along the road to his retirement. He was interrupted by Sami Zayn, who was looking to have his own full circle moment with the 'Greatest of All-Time'.

It was over 10 years ago when Zayn made his main roster debut by answering a John Cena United States Open Challenge and he wanted to pay that gesture forward. He asked Cena for permission to implement his own Sami Zayn United States Open Challenge before offering him the first shot at the title.

Much to the approval of the 16,600 fans packed into the Allstate Arena, Cena accepted the challenge and the match began immediately. The two put together a strong back-and-forth encounter that covered multiple segments, with the audience firmly behind the 17-Time World Champion. 

Cena once again used this match to pay homage to some of his greatest rivals. He pulled out Kurt Angle's Angle Slam, Kevin Owens' Pop Up Power Bomb, CM Punk's GTS and Adam Copeland's Spear all in an effort to put Zayn away, but the United States Champion kicked out at two on every move.

It was after John hit an avalanche Attitude Adjustment on Sami, that Brock Lesnar made his way to the ring to ruin an otherwise stellar match-up. He gave and F-5 to Zayn before starting in on Cena. He gave the his longtime rival two F-5's before making his exit. All the while the crowd was expressing their disapproval of his actions.

Moments after the attack, Lesnar got up close and personal with a camera operator in gorilla and told Cena he'd see him at Wrestlepalooza. The match was soon made official for the next Premium Live Event on Saturday, September 20 at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.

WWE Wrestlepalooza Card (Announced):

IYO SKY vs. Stephanie Vaquer
IYO SKY vs. Stephanie Vaquer | WWE

IYO SKY vs. Stephanie Vaquer for the vacated Women's World Championship

John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar

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Published | Modified
Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com

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