NFL Legend Herschel Walker Among the Top 10 Most High-Profile MMA Debuts

Tonight, live on SHOWTIME, NFL legend and former Heisman trophy winner Herschel Walker will make his long anticipated mixed martial arts debut. The 47-year-old will step into the cage against Greg Nagy as part of the Strikeforce: Miami main card.

Let's take a look at where Walker's debut will rank among the top 10 most high profile debuts in MMA history.

10. Latasha Marzolla

Marzolla isn’t exactly an A-List celebrity, but she is a former Playboy model and even had a brief stint with the WWE. Believe it or not, this voluptuous blonde has been enthralled with martial arts for most of her life. She took up wrestling in high school and eventually transitioned into Muay Thai under the world famous Master Toddy.

The beautiful kickboxer’s entrance into the world of MMA opened several eyes, considering that she has appeared in multiple Playboy Special Editions series and was chosen as the 2004 Model of the Year. In May 2009 the blonde bombshell made her amateur debut, stopping her opponent in the first round with strikes.

As an amateur, Marzolla is 2-0 and establishing the reputation for being one of the top prospects in Women's MMA.

9. Mariusz Pudzianowski

At 6’1" and 320-lbs, Pudzianowski is recognized as the strongest man on the face of the earth. The monstrous pole has won more World's Strongest Man championships than anyone else who has ever competed in the event.

With his immense power and massive frame, MMA fans pondered how Pudzianowski would fare inside the cage.

Well in 2009, “The Dominator” answered those questions with a huge exclamation point. In his homeland of Poland, Pudzianowski pounded on opponent Marcin Najman with punches until Najman submitted from the strikes.

Before the fight Pudzianowski said: "Ta ręka niesie za sobą śmierć, a tej drugiej sam się boję," which in English translates to, "This hand brings death, but the other one even I am afraid of."

8. Satoshi Ishii

North American fans might not be familiar with Ishii, but in Japan he is a very big deal. Noted for winning a gold medal in Olympic Judo at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China, a silver medal at the 2006 Asian Games, and two All-Japan Judo Championships, Ishii is highly regarded for being one of the best Japanese athletes in the world.

After winning the gold medal, Ishii expressed his desire to transition into MMA. Despite rumors of a UFC signing, Ishii made his debut as part of the Dynamite!! 2009 card in Japan. He would end up losing a unanimous decision to fellow Judoka gold medalist and MMA veteran Hidehiko Yoshida.

7. Jason David Frank

When Frank—who is best known for his role as the Green Ranger in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers—announced he would be making his professional MMA debut, he was met with mixed reactions. Some critics believed that the movie star was looking to use MMA’s popularity to get his name back out there after his acting career went down the toilet.

What those critics fail to realize is that before being a Power Ranger, Frank was a dedicated martial artist. He is a sixth degree black belt in Shotokan karate and has been involved in martial arts for most of his life. Nonetheless, whether fans support him or not, everyone is interested to see what the Green Ranger can accomplish in MMA.

Frank will make his much anticipated MMA debut against Jonathon "the Mack Truck" Mack January 30th at the Houston Arena Theatre at Lonestar Beatdown.

6. Bobby Lashley

Working under Vince McMahon, Lashley became a household name in the predetermined world of the WWE. He was a main event level superstar and most remembered for shaving McMahon's head at Wrestlemania 23 after defeating the late Umaga in a "battle of the billionaires" match.

Soon after leaving the WWE, Lashley announced his plans to debut in MMA. With a solid collegiate wrestling background, Lashley transitioned into the sport quite successfully. He is now 4-0 and looking to score his fifth straight win against UFC veteran Wes Sims at Strikeforce: Miami.

5. Jose Canseco

If you look up the term "Major League Idiot" in the dictionary, you will see a picture of Canseco getting his face smashed in from the 7'2" "techno Goliath" Hong Man-Choi...much like the picture featured on this slide.

Canseco figured that since he's already inflicted enough embarrassment to his own sport (baseball), he would try to make a mockery out of another in MMA. Canseco's preparations leading up to his bout against the gigantic Choi included a lot of talking and barely any training at all.

The joke was on him in the end though as Choi brutally defeated him in the first round.

4. Kyle Maynard

The story of Kyle Maynard is truly one of the most inspirational tales that can ever be told. Maynard was born with congenital amputation of the forearms and lower legs. However, that did not stop him from defying all odds and having a very successful high-school and college wrestling career.

The 2004 ESPY winner for "best athlete with a disability" officially made his MMA debut in 2009, losing a lopsided unanimous decision to Bryan Fry. Luckily, Maynard wasn't seriously injured in his efforts. Otherwise the sport could have gone under fire from the mainstream media.

3. Kimbo Slice

Kimbo Slice is the guy who became an internet sensation seemingly over night thanks to his unsanctioned street-fight videos that were posted on YouTube. Millions of people watched Slice compete in bare-knuckle brawls outside of Taco Bell and Walmart and instantly fell in love with the Miami brawler.

Slice left the underground fighting scene in 2007 and signed a professional MMA contract with now-defunct EliteXC promotion. After the demise of Elite XC, Slice joined the cast of The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights and helped break an all time Spike TV ratings record for the series.

The heavy-handed brawler is now 1-0 in the UFC after a victory over Houston Alexander and is rumored to be facing fellow TUF 10 castmate Matt Mitrione at UFC 113 in Canada.

2. Brock Lesnar

Lesnar was an accomplished amateur wrestler, winning the 2000 NCAA heavyweight wrestling championship before gaining prominence as a WWE superstar. He was built up as "The Next Big Thing" for the WWE and was quickly pushed into the main event.

In 2004, Lesnar left the WWE due to a contract dispute. After a brief stint with the NFL, Lesnar decided he would jump into MMA. He made quick work of his opponent Min Soo Kim and then shortly after signed a contract with the largest MMA promotion in the world: The UFC.

Fast forward two years later and Lesnar is now the UFC heavyweight champion, one of the most popular fighters in the sport, and is currently ranked as the No. 2 heavyweight in the world by a majority of MMA outlets.

1. Herschel Walker

Walker is highly regarded as being one of the greatest athletes that has ever lived. But at 47 years of age, it's difficult to imagine that the NFL legend can be a competitive fighter. Still, he brings a ton of media attention with him and has done a great job promoting this fight on ESPN.

His teammates and coaches at American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, California speak very highly of Walker and his performance in training. In fact, Javier Mendez told reporters that Walker is the best student he has ever had and is able to keep pace with top ranked UFC heavyweight contender Cain Velasquez.

Time will tell if Walker will live up to the hype, but one thing is for sure: He is the most high profile athlete to ever make the cross-over into MMA.

This slide-show was also featured on fiveknuckles.com