UFC 200: A Look Back at Brock Lesnar's First UFC Run

After a hiatus of over four-and-a-half years, WWE superstar Brock Lesnar is coming back to MMA this weekend at UFC 200. Facing off against Mark "Super Samoan" Hunt (12-10-1), the fight briefly headlined the pay-per-view card after the cancellation of the Jon Jones/Daniel Cormier light heavyweight title unification bout. But now that Cormier is facing Anderson Silva in a non-title fight, the order has shifted once again.

Now following the new headliner of Miesha Tate and Amanda Nunes, the heavyweights both bring years of combat sports experience to the cage. Hunt, a brutalizer known for his walk-off KOs, has a 12-year career and 23 fights behind him. Lesnar has been wrestling professionally since 2000 and has a five-year MMA career under his belt.

In his seven fights in the UFC, Lesnar won the heavyweight championship, defended it twice and lost it in the three years he was with the promotion. On the eve of his return to MMA, let's review those seven fights.

Click through to his UFC debut.

The Debut: Frank Mir

Lesnar's UFC debut came eight months after his first-ever MMA fight in K-1, and it didn't go well for the South Dakota native. Despite landing two takedowns, Brazilian jiu-jitsu wizard Frank Mir secured a kneebar. Lesnar's debut came to a rapid stop at 90 seconds into Round 1.

Fight 2: Heath Herring

Herring replaced Lesnar's original opponent Mark Coleman after Coleman withdrew citing a knee injury at UFC 87. Lesnar's second UFC fight became his first victory following a full three rounds that saw him viciously drop Heath Herring in the first.

The fight never got any better for Herring; throughout the 15 minutes, Lesnar's wrestling proved insurmountable for Herring, as did the rest of his game. Lesnar transitioned from guard to side control to mount with ease, but the fight didn't remain on the ground. Herring, unable to establish anything on Lesnar, lost the fight via unanimous decision. In 2011, after Herring's three-year absence, White announced The Crazy Horse's retirement.

Taking the Belt: Randy Couture

After Randy Couture became the UFC Heavyweight Champion for a third time after defeating Tim Sylvia and defending it once against Gabriel Gonzaga, he met with Lesnar in his third fight in the UFC.

The bout started off on what appeared to be even footing, Couture thwarting the taller, heavier fighter's takedowns and utilizing his years of MMA experience to outsmart Lesnar. But his expertise ultimately couldn't counter Lesnar's power.

Lesnar hit Couture with a nasty elbow in the second round that rocked him, but Couture recovered quickly enough to let him open up a cut on Lesnar's eye with a right. It was Lesnar's own right that dropped Couture. Lesnar rushed in with hammerfists, and referee Mario Yamasaki stopped the fight at 3:07 of Round 2, awarding Lesnar his first finish win in the UFC—and the heavyweight title.

First Title Defense—and a Rematch: Frank Mir II

Lesnar faced the fighter who handed him his first loss in MMA when he defended his new belt for the first time. Matched up with Mir, who, having won the interim heavyweight title at UFC 92, made this a title unification bout, offered Lesnar a shot at redemption.

He took it; less than a year-and-a-half after his first UFC loss, Lesnar further established himself as a legitimate MMA fighter and a sincere threat, even to fighters with years more experience than him, like Mir. The interim champ went for a kneebar, as he had with great success in their first fight, but this time he was met with ground-and-pound from half-guard. He remained there for most of the round.

Mir managed to not only survive that round, but also to land some shots, including two knees, on Lesnar in the second. His offensive strike fell short, and Lesnar took him down and pounded his face before referee Herb Dean stepped in less than two minutes into Round 2. Lesnar was the undisputed heavyweight champion.

Second Title Defense: Shane Carwin

The first round saw Shane Carwin accomplish a lot. A mean uppercut rocked the champion, but neither that nor the blows that followed could finish him. Carwin's takedown off a knee Lesnar threw let him bloody the wrestler's face on the ground, but Lesnar stayed active enough to prevent a stoppage.

At the end of a good first round for Carwin and a rough one for Lesnar, though, it looked like the tide had begun to turn. Lesnar landed a sick knee, and when he returned for Round 2, he had recovered very well. He landed a takedown and cinched up an arm triangle, getting the tap at 2:19.

Losing the Title: Cain Velasquez

After unifying the heavyweight title and defending it, Lesnar's reign came to a crashing halt when Cain Velasquez got a TKO stoppage toward the end of the first round.

Velasquez, undaunted by Lesnar's size and power, remained unfazed when Lesnar blasted him in brutal exchanges early in the round. He also handled Lesnar's takedowns with quiet aplomb, and that composure allowed him to execute his strategy of precision and patience. That ultimately paid off, and after blitzing through Lesnar's defense, referee Herb Dean stepped in at 4:12 of Round 1. The heavyweight division had a new champion in Cain Velasquez.

Enough Was Enough: Alistair Overeem

In his last fight before his first MMA retirement, Lesnar faced Alistair Overeem in his UFC debut. Two inches taller than the 6'3" Lesnar, almost as heavy and with 12 years of MMA under his belt, Overeem was a formidable opponent.

Overeem is also a former Strikeforce and K-1 Kickboxing champion. Curiously, Lesnar didn't really attempt to incorporate his wrestling skills, instead standing with the Dutchman. It proved to be a fatal error. After whiffing an overhand right, Overeem moved his attacks to the body, ultimately dropping Lesnar with a liver kick. 

Overeem then descended on the former champ, pounding him mercilessly until referee Mario Yamasaki called the stoppage at just 2:26 of the first round. Lesnar announced his retirement soon afterward. Overeem, it turns out, tested positive for elevated testosterone levels four months after the fight, a finding that subverted his victory with the suggestion he had been juicing when he won.

On Saturday, Lesnar comes out of retirement for one of the biggest cards, if not the biggest, in UFC history. Will this be a return to glory, or possibly the start of something new? Let us know what you think will happen in the comments!