In an update on Brock Lesnar’s current standing with the WWE and his WWE SummerSlam status after he was flagged by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) for a potential anti-doping violation, The New York Department of State, the body that governs the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC), issued the following statement to WrestlingInc.com in regards to whether the New York State Athletic Commission would prevent Brock Lesnar from performing at WWE SummerSlam on August 21st in Brooklyn, New York.

“In 2002, New York State passed legislation that scaled back the regulation of “professional wrestling” in many respects based on a recognition that the activity is entertainment rather than bona-fide athletic competition. Under current New York State law, “professional wrestling” is defined as wrestling “primarily for the purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise a bona fide athletic contest or competition” (NY Unconsolidated Laws section 8928-b[1]). As such, the State does not license individual wrestlers, and Mr. Lesnar is not a licensee of the New York State Athletic Commission. In the context of “professional wrestling,” as defined above, the State licenses only the promoter, such as the WWE. Per New York law, among other health and safety requirements that apply to the licensing of a promoter, the event promoter is required to have a physician examine each wrestler and determine whether each wrestler is medically fit to participate. The question of whether Mr. Lesnar is fit to participate in a “professional wrestling” event is one that will be determined by the application of the professional medical judgment of the examining physician, the policies of the WWE, and the choices made by Mr. Lesnar with regard to his own participation leading up to the event date.”

For those wondering, this appears to confirm that the state would not prevent Lesnar from participating at WWE SummerSlam due to an MMA suspension as New York does not license individual wrestlers and his participation is merely up to the physician, WWE and Brock Lesnar himself. The state of New York does require all professional wrestling events to have a medical physician present, as he/she will determine whether the wrestlers are medically fit to participate.