For almost fifteen years, Brock Lesnar has been in the public spotlight. After winning a NCAA wrestling title, he became a WWE “superstar (WWE does not like them being refered to as wrestlers) and rose to the top of the sports entertainment world. After having enough of that, he moved on to mixed martial arts and has become the biggest star in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Now, Brock teams up with close friend, and former pro wrestling manager, Paul Heyman to tell his story. Death Clutch looks at the childhood of little Brock Lesnar (I simply can’t imagine him being little) on a South Dakota farm, his journey to the University of Minnesota where he won the NCAA Heavyweight in 2000, his decision to become a professional wrestler and why he quit while still at the top and finally his leap into MMA and his swift journey to the UFC Heavyweight title.
Heyman does a nice job of capturing Brock’s voice. Unlike many books like this, it really does sound as though it is coming from Brock himself and not simply a ghost writer picking and choosing stuff from recorded interviews.
But while this book talks about all aspects of Lesnar’s life, it really does not go into too much detail. I would have enjoyed learning more about the man and his thoughts on all he has gone through. But Lesnar is a notoriously private man. And while that makes the idea of a biography intriguing, it prevents this from being much more than a puff piece. His time in the WWE was full of behind the scenes drama and ended with a lawsuit. Much of that is summarized with frustrating brevity.
The book does do a decent job of giving readers an idea of his childhood and the values his parents instilled in him. Much of who he is today clearly came from those early years. You work hard and get what you deserve. If you fall short, work harder.
Casual fans will likely enjoy Death Clutch, but even close pal Heyman was unable to get Brock to open up enough to make this anything more than a casual glance at the man. There are precious few revelations about his past. I do feel like I have a slightly better understanding of Brock. but only slightly.
Jeremy Lynch
