WWE Returns 2017: Brock Lesnar, John Cena Coming Back to ‘Monday Night Raw’ And ‘SmackDown Live’

WWE has been without its two biggest stars since its biggest event of 2017. Neither Brock Lesnar nor John Cena has appeared on WWE TV since WrestleMania 33 weekend, but that is about to change.

Lesnar will make his return on the June 12 episode of “Monday Night Raw,” showing up for the first time since the night after he beat Goldberg for the WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania 33. Cena hasn’t been seen since the WrestleMania 33 pay-per-view, and he’s scheduled to return to “SmackDown Live” on July 4.

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For the first time since winning the belt, Lesnar has a challenger for his title. Samoa Joe became the No.1 contender to the WWE Universal Championship with his victory in the main event of Extreme Rules 2017, and he could come face-to-face with Lesnar for the first time. Joe put Paul Heyman to sleep with a Coquina Clutch the night after becoming the No.1 contender, prompting Lesnar’s return.

Lesnar will defend the title at the Great Ball of Fire pay-per-view on July 9. Unless he has a match on “Monday Night Raw” within the next few weeks, it will be his first match in over three months.

Joe isn’t expected to defeat Lesnar, and their feud could be short-lived. Braun Strowman, Seth Rollins and Finn Balor could all challenge Lesnar for the WWE Universal Championship before WrestleMania 34, where Roman Reigns is expected to take on the champ.

Balor, Kevin Owens, Goldberg and Lesnar have been the only wrestlers to hold the WWE Universal Championship since it was first awarded at SummerSlam 2016. The belt hasn’t been successfully defended since the Royal Rumble when Owens beat Reigns.

Spending months away from WWE has been the norm for Lesnar since he came back to the company in 2012, but Cena’s time as a part-time performer is fairly new. He didn’t even appear on the episode of “SmackDown Live” after WrestleMania 33, and he hasn’t appeared on WWE TV since he teamed with Nikki Bella to defeat The Miz and Maryse.

Cena made a similar return a year ago when he appeared on the Memorial Day edition of “Monday Night Raw,” having not been seen since WrestleMania 32. It was the birth of the feud between Cena and AJ Styles, who turned heel by attacking the 16-time world champion. They would go on to have six pay-per-view matches against one another before WrestleMania 33.

It’s unknown with whom Cena will feud upon his return to WWE, though the list of possible opponents isn’t very large with only so many heels on the “SmackDown Live” roster. A young heel like Baron Corbin might make sense as Cena’s first opponent back at a pay-per-view, though it might not be too long before Cena challenges Jinder Mahal for the WWE Championship.

After Money in the Bank on June 17, the next “SmackDown Live” PPV is set for July 23 with WWE Battleground. Cena will probably have a match at Battleground, and he’ll almost certainly be in one of the top matches at SummerSlam on Aug. 20.