The UFC’s heavyweight division at the present time is running low in talent, but that won’t stop them from generating excitement. DreamFighters has stated that Antonio Nogueira will be defending his UFC title at UFC 87. This could set up a few different scenarios for the division. Nog is 31-4-1 in his career, fighting mostly in the Pride organization. In his last fight he completed an exciting come from behind submission over Tim Sylvia. In his previous 2 fights Nog has been rocked and almost finished, but has shown amazing heart and won both.

The first possible scenario for Nog’s opponent could be Frank Mir. Mir’s rejuvenated career started with a win over WWE sensation Brock Lesnar at UFC 81 by submission. In that fight Lesnar seemed to be in control, and looked to win by knockout but Mir’s Ju Jitsu experience took over and led to a quick submission.

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Brock Lesnar is the new car in the garage. The plastic is still on the seats; it still has the dealer tags, and still has that new car smell. Like a new car, many fans feel that Brock Lesnar is far better than he really is. I enjoy going on the different MMA forums and blog sites and reading how he is the savior of the heavyweight division, how he could beat Fedor, or how great he is. I have nothing against Lesnar at all, but I am not on his large bandwagon.

Lesnar has had an interesting life. He has done much more than the average person and he has a great athletic ability. In 2000 he was crowned the NCAA Heavyweight Champion and the year prior he finished second. After college he moved on to another type of wrestling, professional wrestling. His recent venture takes him into the sport of MMA.

In his first fight in the UFC and second fight in MMA ever, he was paid $250,000; more than anyone else on the fight card that night. It is no question why he was paid this much - Lesnar has a drawing power that other fighters just don’t have. The UFC is banking on Lesner to have a huge following from his pro wrestling days and I believe it is an outrageous paycheck for a guy that was 1-1 in MMA and his first fight in the UFC.

I do not have a problem with Lesnar, and I feel that in the future he could do very well. This however is not a given, as many of the fans want to believe. Although there is a huge upside to Lesnar, there is also a huge downside. Brock Lesnar is similar to Kimbo Slice in the fact that they are not great all around fighters. Brock Lesnar has a great wrestling backgroung, but in my opinion this is his only strong suit. This alone can not propel you to be a champ; Josh Koscheck is the most prolific college wrestler in the UFC, yet he isn’t a champ or even top 3.

The downside of Lesnar starts with his inexperience in the cage. He has 1 fight and lost. Some fans have said that his experience from pro wrestling and being in front of people will transfer into the cage. I feel that this is a stretch. Pro wrestling has nothing to do with getting punched in the face or completely choked out. Lesnar had tons of experience in front of people, but I promise you he was nervous!

Brock Lesnar at this point in his career has many question marks regarding his overall MMA game. First of all we do not know if he has a solid chin or a glass jaw. He also has little ground game. Look at Houston Alexander. You can be very dominant on your feet, but when you go to the ground you have to be able to stop submissions and get back to your feet. It was once said that 95% of all fights end up on the ground. He proved against Mir (an overrated past his prime Mir) that a superior submission artist will give him problems. His standup hasn’t been tested yet. He hasn’t had the chance to show that he can stand and bag with the big guys in the division. If he has boxing training he is keeping it a secret. Another aspect of his game, which is one of the most important, that hasn’t been tested is his heart and conditioning. In his pro MMA career he has only fought for 2:39 combined. He hasn’t proved how he fights when he is severely fatigued. He also hasn’t show whether he has the conditioning to go a full fight (yea I watched the All Access too, he has to prove it in the cage).

The UFC is a business. Part of this business is putting fans in the seats. At this time Brock is an exciting addition to a weak division, especially with the apparent loss of Tim Sylvia and the inability to sign Fedor. If the UFC is smart (and they are), they will feed Brock formidable but beatable opponents. They should avoid scheduling him fights with BJJ black belts, submission artists, or guys that are bad matchups. They need Lesnar to win to keep drawing in the fans. Once Lesnar’s overall game comes together, he could be a force and challenge for the title. Brock has good ground and pound, and is a monster of a man. He has a huge upside and should (I repeat SHOULD) be well worth the money the UFC is paying for him just by his fan following. Many feel that Lesnar could be up for a title fight in 2 or 3 more fights. Lesnar has a huge upside, but then again has tons to prove. It will be interesting as we all watch him mature in the cage, and possibly blossom into the fighter Dana thinks he is. As of right now Brock Lesnar is not that fighter. Right now he can’t beat Nog for the title. Many fans need to be reminded that he is new to MMA. Stop anticipating that he is the next heavyweight force to dominate the UFC, and enjoy his growth in the sport. If he has unreal expectation, he will almost certainly fail.

Zuffa’s Attempt (or Lack Thereof) to Recover From Disaster

Over the last six months, the UFC heavyweight division has been the Hurricane Katrina of promotional failures. Not only has the division failed to put on shows, but they have lost a champion to a contract dispute and every attempt at bringing in a big name star has been thwarted, except for one.

Since Gonzaga knocked out Mirko “CroCop” Filipovic (the UFC’s highest ranked fighter) at UFC 70, there has been a spiral of disaster, and the UFC has done little, if anything, to intelligently combat the rising water.

After Gonzaga’s knockout of CroCop and the loss of much-loathed heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia at the hands of Randy Couture, the prospects went thinner than Couture’s hair, and it became urgent for the UFC to find hairplugs. Those showed up in the form of Brock Lesnar, who failed to impress in his recent debut, despite being the most hyped debuter the UFC has seen in, well, ever.

It’s not a stretch to say that UFC heavyweight division looked like New Orleans after the Hurricane, and it’s not going to far to say that the UFC’s President did as little as the USA’s. He, and the rest of the Zuffa brass, did little to push a serious negotiation with Andrei Arlovski (finally set to return after a nearly 10 month hiatus) or to attempt to reason with heavyweight champion Couture when they started feuding over his contract.

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