Bobby Lashley doesn’t have many items left on his career checklist. Saturday’s match with Brock Lesnar at WWE’s Royal Rumble is one of them.

Lashley never has faced Lesnar before in a one-on-one setting, which is somewhat surprising given their respective backgrounds in collegiate wrestling, professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. It’s always been something that’s been pinned on his radar, but up until now, the stars haven’t aligned.

“Ever since I started when I got into WWE there was a lot of comparisons between me and Brock,” Lashley told MMA Junkie. “Then it was so weird, because in the beginning everyone was like, ‘Oh, Brock. Brock. Brock.’ Because we had a lot of similarities when we first started. I stayed in professional wrestling, and Brock was gone. He started fighting. When I started fighting, Brock got into pro wrestling. I never met Brock, but I was always being asked by media, ‘You and Brock?’ I always said the same thing: Sure. It’s obviously what the fans want.”

Even after years of demand, Lashley needed some breaks for his clash with Lesnar to materialize. Fellow WWE superstar Roman Reigns’ positive COVID-19 test forced the company to shake up its plans, and it opted to shift in the direction of pitting Lashley and Lesnar against one another for the first time.

Although their trajectories were never truly in line, Lashley never thought Lesnar was out of the realm of possibility. It finally materialized under the WWE umbrella in pro wrestling, but Lashley said this meeting could’ve happened a number of different ways, including a full-fledged MMA fight.

Lashley’s MMA career lasted longer and saw him compete 17 times while going 15-2. He never rose to the heights of Lesnar, however, who became UFC heavyweight champion and shook up the sport during his brief but impactful stint.

Although Lashley and Lesnar never competed in the same MMA organization, Lashley said it was something he actively campaigned for while competing for Bellator and Lesnar in UFC.

“I thought it was going to happen there (in MMA),” Lashley said. “But I was with (Scott) Coker, and he was with Dana (White). Coker is always open to doing whatever. We kind of briefly talked about it a few times. He was open for it if there was ever an opportunity for it to happen.”

Lashley, 45, and Lesnar, 44, might be living in the twilight of their athletic careers to a degree, but it doesn’t dim the excitement on Lashley’s end. He is keen to engage with Lesnar on a platform where their skills are arguably strongest.

“Of course I want to win it,” Lashley said. “People have been waiting to keep score on this matchup for 15 years, and it’s been 0-0 this entire time. So the first time we meet, everyone’s like, ‘Who’s going to win this?’ So, of course, it’s super important to me to get that first check in this feud.”

Check out more discussion with Lashley about his MMA career and upcoming match with Lesnar in the video above.

The Royal Rumble takes place at The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis, Mo. The entire event streams on Peacock.