As most of you probabaly know by now if you read any MMA sites on the internet, Mark Coleman has been pulled from UFC 87 and Heath Herring has been added to the card to fight Brock Lesnar in Coleman's place. The match will take place on Aug. 9 in Lesnar's home state of Minnesota at the Target Center.
The match with Mark Coleman would have been a dream matchup for many fans. The rising star in Brock Lesnar taking on the Hall of Famer back in the UFC for one last fight. It couldn't be scripted any better than that and it would have been one of the most hyped and most profitable Pay-Per-Views in UFC's history.
But Coleman has been injured and removed from the card and a replacement was sought to fight Lesnar. And that replacement has recently been announced to be Heath Herring. A man who has forty-three professional fights on his resume including wins over Cheick Kongo, Evan Tanner and Antonio Silva.
Now in my opinion, Herring isn't even one of the top three heavyweights in UFC, but he is dangerous and can go toe to toe with anyone in the UFC, including the Heavyweight Champion Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera.
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My question is; would UFC be better served placing Lesnar in a couple of fights he could win relatively easily and let him get a few wins under his belt? I understand with his background and raw ability that he isn't like most rookies, and he isn't like Kimbo even who is being spoon fed opponents in EXC. But the fact remains he has two professional fights and is going against someone with 43, that's a big difference.
Now I know that everyone wants to see Brock take on the top guys in the division, everyone wants to see if he can hang with the elite. But the buzz is going to wear off quickly if he picks up his second straight loss. Any MMA fan would choose to watch Lesnar/Herring over say Lesnar/Antoni Hardonk, but despite that, would you not still watch Lesnar/Hardonk? People are enamored with Brock Lesnar and there going to pay to watch him no matter who he is up against.
Just look at EXC and Kimbo. He's facing scrubs everytime in the ring, but people are clamoring to watch it cause they are intrigued by Kimbo, not the guy he is crushing and when he does get a top of the line opponent it's going to mean a lot more and be a lot better fight because of the experience and training he'll have.
Would it not be more beneficial to UFC to let Lesnar beat up on some undercard guys, rack up some wins, and get some more time in the gym and than have him take on the top guys? In my opinion, yes. Will they lose money by doing this? Not much.
Don't get me wrong, I'm stoked about this fight. I can't wait to see how Brock has progressed and if he can take on a bonafide heavyweight contender in the cage, and I do think he can hold his own against Herring and quite possibly win. But is it really worth the risk of having him lose for the second straight time? For me the answer is no.
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3 months ago
Pretty good article, and I thought you summed things up pretty well. However, he does not hold a victory over Antonio Silva; he holds a victory over Giant Silva, the 7 foot 5 inch beast that is too nice to be a great fighter and usually loses. Was an honest mistake on your part I'm sure.
Anyways, I think it's likely Lesnar will be able to take down and ground and pound Herring for TKO or decision victory, but this is certainly a difficult fight. He'll have to watch out for kicks and knees from Herring on his way in for the take down. Herring can definitely fight off his back to boot. I'd be very interested to see how much of this fight takes place on the feet, or if it does at all other than the opening of each round.
3 months ago
O, I wanted to say, you couldn't find another picture? :P I used the same one for my article involving Lesnar. It's definitely a good shot as it gives a good impression of how huge he is.
3 months ago
After Dana White made the very stupid statement that BJ Penn could beat Kimbo Slice, it is too bad that someone couldn't talk him into putting Brock Lesnar against him. Just my opinion.
3 months ago
this is a dangerous fight for the UFC. I mean I really cant think of anyone who ever fought such high level of competition in their second and third mma fights. Its almost as if Dana White wants to show the world that there is no way he is going to give brock a free ride ala kimbo slice, and he will do so at his own expense.
Heith Herring can very well beat Brock. while if Brock had maybe ten fights under his belt I would feel comfortable that he would win rather easily as he holds most of the physical advantages. But we will see how Brock deals with his "baptism by fire"
3 months ago
If Brock wins, this will be an impressive victory, in my opinion. This is indeed dangerous and risky, however this gamble could pay off huge for the UFC as they build Lesnar to have an aura of power around him, more so than he might have now, being someone who was able to defeat good competition from the beginning.
This is all "if", however. This makes me nervous for Lesnar much like the Mir fight did. Lesnar undoubtedly has the potential to be a champion, but it's foolish to not be worried for him this early in his MMA career. But knowing Lesnar, he likes this. I doubt he's kidding himself that he's the greatest fighter ever, but he's extremely competitive and he knows he got a late start in the fighting game. Being 30, it's now or never if he wants to be a star in the UFC. He can't afford the easy path.
3 months ago
IF you think Brock is the future (and I believe the UFC does) why not put him against good competition right away. If he loses you chalk it up to experience, if he wins the hype and momentum builds. I think the UFC see's all the crap that Kimbo takes because of the guys he has beat and they want to avoid that with Lesnar.
He almost beat Mir, and I'm pretty sure he will take Herring down and pound the will to live out of him. The Heavyweights need a "star", a fan favorite. I think Big Nog is a top three heavyweight but American fans may not get behind him. a guy like Lesnar is the answer, now all he has to do is win.
from 3 months ago
i agree totally. but i must say that an easy win in the ufc is not the same as an easy win in another organization. mark coleman was an easy win for brock to me, and he could still compete at a high level in other organizations.
if i were a ufc matchmaker, I would have had brock fight often. at least three times this year. first fight would have been coleman. second fight would have been somebody like hardonk. then third fight against an eddie sanchez. Next year at least three fights. maybe a heith herring to start the year off. then a frank mir, then a title shot to end the year off.
3 months ago
Hmmm. We just got through seeing a guy lose two fights in a row and get axed. With UFC cutting their fighter rolls Lesnar may not have a big future. He's a money maker for sure but if he cant win....
3 months ago
he won't get fired, not after two losses.
3 months ago
They want a high profile fight for him in front of his Minnesota crowd and that is exactly what they've done. I think Lesnar has a great chance of defeating Herring too.
They have nothing to lose with him. If he loses they can chalk it up to inexperience and still talk about all his potential. If he wins, however, the reward will be great. Lesnar will get instant credibility and be dubbed as the next big thing in the heavyweight division.
about 1 month ago
Frank Mir is still a top fighter in my book and even if you dont think so Lesnar dominated him in their fight, he made a common mistake of not stacking and he tried to pull away instead. He is a power house that I believe has a big future in the UFC and I agree with Will he wont get fired after 2 losses, if that was the case the UFC wouldnt have to cut their fighter rosters it would just be an ongoing process
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