This is the final installment of the Ropes, Ring and Cage UFC 91 preview, airing live on PPV this Saturday from Las Vegas, NV. For the whole week's predictions, scroll down to the bottom of this column.
Randy Couture (16-8) vs. Brock Lesnar (2-1) - UFC Heavyweight Championship
On Couture
What more can be said about the man known as 'Captain America'? At 45 years old, Couture has given hope to a generation of older athletes that they can still be relevant, competitive and a winner years after most people would have written them off.
He is the only five-time champion in UFC history and only the second to win titles in two divisions (BJ Penn). He's an Army veteran, a former three-time Olympic alternate and a multiple-time national wrestling champion at Oklahoma State.
Of course, this was back in the 1980s, but who's counting?
The UFC Hall-of-Famer debuted in May 1997 with a rear naked choke win over Tony Haime and TKO win over Steven Graham at UFC 13, when they had multiple matches in one night.
Seventy-eight events later, he's headlining what is expected to be the biggest event in the company's history. His notable career wins include tallies over Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz, Tim Sylvia, Kevin Randleman and Vitor Belfort. Notable losses include Liddell (twice), Josh Barnett, Belfort and Ricco Rodriguez.
Even though he hasn't fought since August 2007, he's won two of his last three fights including his Heavyweight title victory over Sylvia in in March 2007. He stands 6'1", 220 pounds and has been in more major events than most on the current roster. Couture isn't just involved in the big moment...he IS the big moment.
On Lesnar
Pretty straight-forward here as Lesnar doesn't have much of an MMA past. However, it's how quickly he's improved, his heel character and his potential that has got people buzzing about Lesnar.
The fact he's 6'3" and 265 pounds probably doesn't hurt either: the dude is a beast and on Saturday, he'll be gunning for the UFC Heavyweight title in just his fourth professional fight.
"The Next Big Thing" was a former standout collegiate wrestler at the University of Minnesota and won a 2000 national title as a heavyweight after placing second the year before. In four year, Lesnar became a two-time NJCAA All-American, two-time NCAA All-American, two-time Big Ten Conference Champion and racked up a 106-5 record. So yeah, he's got wrestling credentials.
Then, there was his WWE run. Lesnar was a major attraction in McMahonLand, becoming the youngest WWE Champion they ever had at the time at just 25 years of age. He was a major draw, feuding with the likes of Hulk Hogan, Goldberg, The Rock, Undertaker, John Cena and Kurt Angle in his three years with the company. After attempting to make the Minnesota Vikings as a walk-on, he eventually found his way to MMA even though there were legal hoops with WWE that needed to be cleared before it happened.
Lesnar debuted for K-1 in June 2007, defeating Min Soo Kim by TKO (strikes) just over a minute into the first round. He signed a deal with the UFC and debuted against former Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir in February 2008, losing a well-documented match via kneebar submission in the first round. He rebounded with a well-received unanimous decision win over Heath Herring in August and now, here we are.
15 comments Last one added 7 months ago — Leave a Comment
Nathan Lusk 7 months ago
Wow. I know it sounds weird, but that is a bold prediction. I'm thinking Lesnar by strikes, bro. And I am an old school UFC fan. I remember watching Gracie win his very first one back when they were tournament-style with almost no rules or weight classes... You know, back when there were actually different styles, not just different specialties. Anyway, good article, and good luck to you on your pick (you will definitely need it).
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Josh Nason 7 months ago
A bold prediction? Lesnar is only slightly favored in Vegas and most polls are running 50/50. Lesnar definitely could win by strikes or submission as easy as Couture could.
It's going to be a great fight. Can't wait!
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Nathan Lusk 7 months ago
While Lesnar might be only slightly favored, I am sure you see that Couture winning should really be viewed as a long shot. The only thing Couture has on him is wrestling (but not much) and experience (a lot). Lesnar's power will make up for any wrestling advantage Couture has, and his scary spped (especially for his size) will shore up any other disadvantages Lesnar may have. But you definitely got one thing right... It will be a great one.
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Josh Nason 7 months ago
No, I don't see Couture winning as a long-shot. We'll see what happens in just a few hours!
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Robert DesRoche 7 months ago
"And if you feel that Couture is better than Mir, isn't it reasonable to think Couture should win?"
No. This is a terrible argument. One, Lesnar has VASTLY improved since the Mir fight. Two, Couture and Mir are completely different fighters, and styles make fights. Thus, looking at the Mir fight will not tell us anything about how Couture may win a fight vs Lesnar.
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Josh Nason 7 months ago
What do you consider 'vastly' - the one fight with Herring? By saying so, you're essentially saying that he's making the biggest fight-to-fight jump in MMA history. Again, he's had three professional fights. I think to assume his talent is All-World is a bit much, in my opinion.
And of course you can look at other fights to assess how a fighter will do. That's called 'analysis'. Sure, Couture and Mir are different but you can't eliminate one completely because their style may be different. In that case, you can only look at fighters with similar backgrounds and disregard others?
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Robert DesRoche 7 months ago
You think Couture is going to beat Lesnar via TKO with strikes, presumably ground and pound. Mir beat Lesnar with a crazy knee-bar off his back. Yeah . . .
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Josh Nason 7 months ago
Yeah what, Robert? As an 'aspiring writer,' you realize it's completely possible to disagree, right?
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Robert DesRoche 7 months ago
What does the fact that I want to be a writer have to do with the price of tea in China. I know it's possibly to disagree. However, you're the one that started talking down to me. So why don't you take a look in the mirror. I was simply making a point that you yourself didn't think Couture was going to beat Lesnar the way Mir did.
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Amanda Robertson 7 months ago
Brock is so buff its gross,lol. but i give him much due for sacrificing his body like that.
do you like Lesnar better in the WWE or UFC?
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Josh Nason 7 months ago
That's tough to say. Since this will be his third UFC fight, there's not much of a body of work to watch. He had a long run in WWE with some good matches.
Hopefully, he'll add some more highlights to his MMA reel in the next few years.
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Jonny King 7 months ago
Why is everybody hangin off Brock's nads? Just because he is huge and scary looking doesn't give him fighting skills. He got smoked by Mir, a former title holder. He went the distance with herring, who is pretty much a nobody and won by decision. So this awesome wrestler, with his "scary speed" and amazing strength, hasn't managed to knock anybody out in the UFC. This just proves that the fight will be determined by the skill of the fighter. Watch the youtube vids of Lesnars fights; he has no technique. He just goes for the takedown and tries ground and pound. He broke Herring's face with the first punch but couldn't finish him. So, all things considered, Lesnar is not a top level fighter and will most likely get beat by the more experienced Couture. There is the anything can happen factor, so Couture could get caught. Chances are, Couture will beat Lesnar by submission.
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Austin Penny 7 months ago
exactly. Lesnar is just so huge it's tough to get anything going on him that will put him in a position to be taken out. I am not a fan of Lesnar's. I thought he was a d-bag in the (albeit fake) WWE and I think he is in MMA for the "look at me, i'm big, so I can do this" aspect. He beat Couture, yes, and I will give him that. He did land a good shot, but it wasn't a 'knockout' hit. The place in the head where he hit Couture was right above the temple which would daze anybody! Couture hung in there with Lesnar and if it had gotten into the third round I think Couture had a huge advantage. From what I could tell (and i'm by no means an MMA expert, i'm rather new to it) Lesnar was sucking wind in the second before he won, and the cut that opened up over his right eye would have been exposed had the fight drawn on and he wouldn't have been as quick as he usually is--something the veteran Couture would have taken advantage of and gone after the eye. I thought it was an entertaining fight to say the least. I can't wait for someone to figure out what it takes to knock Lesnar on his ass!
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Red Jensen 7 months ago
I wish the show would get started
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C Douglas Baker 7 months ago
Well, I saw the fight and it was a damn good one. Coture got caught with a good shot.
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