Brock Lesnar and the 10 Biggest Draws In MMA

Love him or hate him, it is hard to ignore that Brock Lesnar has had drawn more attention to the sport than any other fighter in MMA history.

However, Lesnar's perceived invincibility was one of the main reasons that so many clamored to watch him fight.

So considering the beating he recently took at the hands of UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, it will be interesting to see if public interest in Lesnar declines now that he has been exposed as a mortal.

With the increasing popularity of MMA, other UFC fighters have become household names as well. Let's take a look at the 10 fighters with the most drawing power in MMA today. 

10. Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor Emelianenko is widely considered to be one of the best fighters in MMA history, yet his ability to draw large viewing audiences has been questioned.

In two appearances with Affliction, Emelianenko fought two former UFC champions, Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski. However, neither event produced more than 100,000 pay-per-view buys.

Still, more than 25 million viewers tuned in as Emelianenko fought Brett Rogers on CBS.

If promoted effectively, Emelianenko could have been one of the biggest draws in MMA history. Public awareness of Emelianenko has increased over recent years, but it will likely be limited by his impending decline.

9. Randy Couture

At 47 years old, Randy Couture's spot on this list is a testament to how much he has done for the growth of the sport.

Despite being a complete mismatch, it could be argued that Couture's co-main event fight with James Toney had more to do with the 570,000 pay-per-view buys that UFC 118 generated than did the main event, a lightweight title fight between B.J. Penn and Frankie Edgar.

Having appeared in The Expendables, Couture has considered retirement from MMA to more seriously pursue his acting career. Couture later opted to postpone his retirement and accepted a fight with Lyoto Machida at UFC 129.

Until Couture does decide to retire, he will likely continue to be one of the bigger draws in MMA.

8. Mauricio Rua

Mauricio "Shogun" Rua is probably the fighter on this list that the mainstream public remains the most unaware of.

Nonetheless, Rua has competed in five different UFC events, and the least successful event he has fought in still produced a pay-per-view buyrate of 350,000. Both times Rua was featured as a UFC main event fighter, both championship fights against Lyoto Machida, the events recorded 500,000 pay-per-view buys or more.

Now a champion, it should be safe to assume that interest in Rua will only increase for his next fight, which is set for UFC 128 against Rashad Evans, another popular UFC fighter.

7. B.J. Penn

Now that he is no longer a champion, B.J. Penn's drawing power may begin taking a hit. Still, Penn will probably remain one of the more popular MMA fighters as long as he continues to fight.

Each of the last six events Penn has participated in have generated 500,000 pay-per-view buys or more. UFC 94, headlined by Penn's second fight against Georges St-Pierre, had a pay-per-view buyrate of 920,000. In that respect, the event was the eight most successful in UFC history.

Penn is set to fight in the main event of UFC 127 against Jon Fitch. That event should serve as an excellent indication of how Penn losing the title has affected his popularity. 

6. Rashad Evans

After his fight with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, some will argue that Rashad Evans is a boring fighter that will have trouble selling fights.

The facts are, Evans has headlined two of the biggest events in UFC history, UFC 114 and UFC 92. Each of those events had seven-figure pay-per-view buyrates.

Evans' next fight, a UFC light heavyweight championship fight against Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, is likely to draw a lot of attention as well.

5. Forrest Griffin

Like Rashad Evans, Forrest Griffin has also fought in two events that have produced one million pay-per-view buys or more.

After winning season one of The Ultimate Fighter and becoming UFC light heavyweight champion, Griffin has become one of the faces of the UFC.

UFC 106, headlined by a fight between Griffin and Tito Ortiz, produced a somewhat disappointing 375,000 pay-per-view buys. While it isn't headlining the card, it will be interesting to see if Griffin's fight against Rich Franklin at UFC 126 will draw more attention.

4. Anderson Silva

Being one of the most dominant fighters in MMA history, it is hard for people to ignore Anderson Silva. The last four events Silva has fought in have sold 500,000 pay-per-views or more.

Despite his recent title defenses being predicted to be non-competitive, Silva has continued to draw large audiences. Now that Chael Sonnen has shown that Silva is beatable, there may be increased interest in Silva's next fight, which will take place at UFC 126 against Vitor Belfort.

3. Quinton Jackson

When Quinton "Rampage" Jackson was chosen to play B.A. Baracus in The A-Team, it showed how popular he has become. With his success in acting, some people questioned whether or not Jackson was still focused on fighting.

In his return to the Octagon, Jackson lost to Rashad Evans, but the event produced more than one million pay-per-view buys. Jackson then fought Lyoto Machida, winning a close decision and helping to sell 500,000 more pay-per-view buys.

Jackson is one of the most popular MMA fighters in the world. If he ever becomes a champion again, his drawing power could be gigantic.

2. Georges St-Pierre

Georges St-Pierre has become one of the most popular athletes in Canadian history. His popularity may not have surpassed Wayne Gretzky within the country, but Dana White's proclamation that St-Pierre has become more popular on a worldwide scale than Gretzky was has become plausible.

St-Pierre has been a part of some of the biggest events in MMA history, and he will most likely add to that list of headlining successful events at UFC 129. St-Pierre will fight Jake Shields at UFC 129, which will be the first UFC event to take place in Toronto, Canada.

1. Brock Lesnar

Brock Lesnar's reign as UFC heavyweight champion is over, but his reign as the biggest draw in MMA will likely continue as long as he continues to fight.

To put Lesnar's draw into perspective, seven UFC events have recorded one million pay-per-view buys. Of those events, four have been headlined by Lesnar.

Many long-time MMA fans feel that Lesnar doesn't belong in the sport. Those people could be right, but they are blind if they can't see the attention that Lesnar has brought to MMA.