Paul Heyman addresses Brock Lesnar retirement rumours after emotional WrestleMania segment

Paul Heyman was asked about the Brock Lesnar retirement rumours as speculation continues to swirl around his future with WWE – and his response could be seen as a surprise given what happened at Wrestlemania 42.

On Sunday night, after he lost to rising star Oba Femi in just four minutes and 42 seconds, an emotional Lesnar laid his gloves and boots in the middle of the ring.

The 48-year-old, who has dominated the squared circle for more than 20 years, previously hinted that the end could be near during a recent interview with Barstool Sports, when he would only be at the company for a "short time".

And following his actions at Wrestlemania 42, when 'The Beast Incarnate' embraced on-screen advocate Paul Heyman before waving to the capacity crowd, many put two and two together and assumed he was walking away from the WWE.

However, Heyman played down the idea of Lesnar's retirement ahead of Sunday's event.

In an interview with TMZ that was posted following Lesnar's defeat to Oba Femi, Heyman was asked what his vision was going forward. "What's my vision?" he replied. "Another 15 years of dominance by Brock Lesnar."

The reporter soon brought up the idea of Lesnar retiring, something Heyman strongly denied.

"Why are you pushing this whole retirement? You actually read what is posted online and take it seriously. This is part of the great political divide in this country, isn't it, that people actually take seriously irrelevant opinions."

"There's only one relevant opinion, and it's mine," added Heyman. "And mine is that Brock Lesnar dominates the next 15 years."

Gunther should be the one to retire Brock Lesnar, according to former WWE superstar

Many expected Lesnar to retire later this year at SummerSlam in his home state of Minneapolis, including former WWE star Bubba Ray Dudley, who believes that Gunther should be the man to retire Lesnar further down the line.

Speaking on Busted Open Radio, Bubba Ray explained: "Look at what is on the table for Gunther in the next six months. The potential.

"Let's look at the short-term to get Gunther to where we ultimately want him in the long-term. Retire AJ at the Rumble, bring back Brock, retire Brock at SummerSlam in his home [state] of Minnesota."

He added: "You have now done everything that you could possibly do to make Gunther a monster who can be next level credible World Heavyweight champion in the future."