Alistair Overeem, who once trashed ‘lame, stupid’ pro wrestling, is now a pro wrestler

Alistair Overeem never captured UFC gold, despite all those Stipe tapped! conspiracy theories, but “Demolition Man” remains one of the most decorated heavyweight combatants of his era, thanks to championship titles in DREAM, K-1, and Strikeforce.

Which is why a battle-tested warrior like Overeem would never sully his name in the “lame” and “stupid” world of professional wrestling ... right?

“Just recently, I started looking again on YouTube, and oh my God, this stuff is lame,” Overeem previously told The MMA Hour about rediscovering pro wrestling. “It’s just lame what these guys are doing. It’s fake. It’s lame. It’s stupid. It doesn’t make any sense. It’s not even a sport. It’s just lame. It’s bad acting. It’s just lame. Sorry for all the fans of WWE, but I’m just being honest.”

The fights might be fake, but the paychecks appear to be real.

Perhaps that’s why the 42 year-old Overeem, who hasn’t competed since getting knocked out by Alexander Volkov at UFC Vegas 18 back in early 2021, recently agreed to wrestle fellow big man Adam Scherr, perhaps best known as “Braun Strowman” in WWE.

In fact, “Demolition Man” will be competing for the Wrestling Entertainment Series (WES) heavyweight title on June 4 from inside Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham, England, a pay-per-view (PPV) card that also features WWE veterans Lina Fanene and CJ Perry.

Here’s the current WES lineup, courtesy of Cageside Seats:

FITE PPV Card:

Adam Scherr (Braun Strowman) vs. Alistair Overeem for the WES World championship
Lina Fanene (Nia Jax) vs. CJ Perry (Lana) for the WES Women’s title
Legion of Pain (AOP) w/ Paul Ellering vs. Westin Blake & Steve Maclin for the WES Tag Team championship
Killer Kross vs. Samuray Del Sol vs. JONAH
Madison Rayne & Tenille Dashwood vs. Deonna Purrazzo & Chelsea Green for the WES Women’s Tag Team titles
Dean Muhtadi (Mojo Rawley) vs. Lince Dorado

Free Online “Prelims” Stream:

Mike Bennett vs. Biff Busick (Oney Lorcan)
Dirty Dango (Fandango) vs. Levis Valenzuela Jr. (No Way Jose)

“WES is working hard to become a global brand in the sports entertainment and professional wrestling industry,” organizers wrote on the official website. “We focus on bringing a new level of entertainment to the world of professional wrestling, by bringing together the highest level of athletes.

Tickets for the June 4 card are now on sale starting at £33.98 ($35.60 USD).