have been. Continuing on, after months of hype and trash talking (mostly by Frank Mir), Brock finally got his rematch from their first bout. This fight was sure to settle the score. In the first fight, Brock had complete control until Mir caught him in a kneebar, causing him to submit. I believed going into Saturday's match that, if Mir won, then he is just better than Lesnar. But if Lesnar won, he would be better than Mir, proving the first fight was a fluke. Either way, unless the fight went the distance there would be no need for a rematch. If you did not see the fight, I will sum it up for you in one word: abuse. The fight was never close in the one and a half rounds it lasted. Brock came in with a game plan that Frank Mir had no answer for.Moving on to the post-fight controversy...As Brock celebrated his win over the hometown favorite, he was showered with boos. Alright, that was expected. After all, like I just stated, Frank Mir was fighting in his hometown of Las Vegas. The first questionable thing Lesnar did was stick his middle finger up at the crowd for booing him. I dont agree with Brock's reaction, but hearing an outburst of crowd-wide boos after an emotional and dominant victory would probably cause most people to respond in a disrespectful manner. Brock quickly used his mic time to show off some of his WWE skills. Yes, all of you that hate anything that has to with WWE having any kind of connection to UFC, sorry. Brock had four years of WWE experience working the crowd, whether it was for good or evil. His post-match interview was no different. After being asked what he his plans for after the fight were, he responded by calling Budweiser out, saying he was going home to drink a Coors because Budweiser won’t give him any money. Was this the smart thing to say? Of course not. Why did he say it? Who knows, he was fired up and being emotional. That’s still no excuse for what he said, but I'm sure in his talk with UFC President Dana White later that night, White made it clear that sponsor-bashing will not be tolerated.
In Brocks closing comments he also said he may even, "get on top of his wife" later. Did he need to say that? No. Were there kids watching? Yes. Was that disrespectful to his wife, Sable? Maybe, but probably not. It was pay-per-view, its not like he said, "I may f*ck my wife like crazy later." And disrespecting Sable, haha, this is the same woman that posed naked for Playboy and appeared a little less-than-ladylike on many occasions during her time in the WWE. I'm sure she didn't mind the attention.
Going back to Brock using his WWE mic skills--whether you liked what he said or not, and it appears most didn't, he has officially made himself the bad guy in the heavyweight division with a bulls eye on his head. This is perfect for him and for UFC as well. Fans may not love him for his personality, but all his fights have endless marketing potential and will generate huge publicity as UFC tries to find the man who can shut Brocks mouth. Since the fight, Brock has issued an apology for his actions. Was it a sincere apology? Who knows, but I'm sure Dana White had a lot to do with it.
Moving further along, since the fight, I have been reading a lot of message boards where people have been discussing Brock Lesnar's disrespect for the sport, his opponents and the fans. They also challenge how good he actually is, saying he is only good because of his weight. In general, people are upset about how he didn't win the fight with class.
Well, I can't refute everything said about Brock on the message boards, but I will only say a few things. Summing up what I said in the previous paragraph, fans will either love or really hate Lesnar at this point. Either way, more will watch his fights, whether they want him to win or get his face kicked in. Brock’s comments may not have represented the “product” UFC is trying to produce, but it sells. Brock’s attitude after the fight seemed more like the old UFC, where almost anything was allowed and most people did not respect the sport at all.
I admit, UFC has come along way and probably isn’t trying to look back on what they used to be—but what Brock did won't hurt the company. Brock did not follow the typical blueprint of winning with class and being over-appreciative of the fans, but I seriously doubt any of those fans in attendance will stop watching Brock Lesnar fights because of his actions on Saturday.
Now, I'm going to address what bothers me the most about the Brock Lesnar critics. I keep reading that he only wins because of his weight. Example: "he outweighs everyone by so much, he s
hould win." Yes, Lesnar is heavier than most of the fighters in the heavyweight division, but why is that his problem? He is not violating any rules and he should not be looked down upon because he is huge, very strong and super athletic for his size. To me, that sounds like a person who needs good coaching before they are a dominant fighter in the UFC.I won't say Brock is the best heavyweight fighter in UFC, especially because he has only had five fights. I'm not saying he will be a future hall-of-famer, but what I am saying is that he has been dominant in his fights, except for the kneebar by Mir.
After watching Saturday’s fight it is obvious that he is becoming a much better-skilled MMA fighter. You can argue that weight is not a skill…Alright, no problem. But if you have the weight, why not use it to your advantage?
In the first fight with Mir, Brock wanted to rush him and thought he could just beat him to death. This time around, he took his time. He wrestled with Mir and put him in a position where he couldn't really do anything in the first round. He tactfully used his weight to keep Mir on the ground and on the bottom.
I've read blog comments about Brock’s weight advantage that compare his weight to George St-Pierre's speed, claiming that Brock’s 265+ lb weight is an unfair advantage, similar to GSP’s quickness. I don't agree with that, but Brock by no means should be discredited for any wins just because he significantly outweighs his opponents. Quickness and weight are not really comparable in this situation.
Honestly, I can go on and on about why you shouldn’t hate Brock Lesnar. I can understand not liking him, but some of the reasons I have read seem like poor excuses for just not wanting to admit that he is very dangerous and can be really good.
This was not written to persuade people to like Brock. If you don't like him, you don't like him. I just ask, if you don't like him, at least respect him for what he does in the Octagon and don't make up bad excuses for why other people shouldn't like him.
If you want to see Lesnar vs Mir 2, it is currently on youtube:
I doubt the video will be up long, so enjoy while it last.
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