I remember the first time I laid eyes upon Brock Lesnar. It was during his emergence in the WWE when he was “crushing” guys left and right. He looked like the monster he was billed as. Since then times have changed, and he has moved around in the pursuit of wealth. From the pro wrestling ring, to the NFL, and now the UFC, he has gone where the money was, and has reaped the rewards. Now, however, his MMA ride may be slowly coming to an end.
Lesnar is a massive heavyweight who has become one of the UFC’s biggest stars. His bouts against Frank Mir, Randy Couture, and Cain Velasquez pushed Pay Per View numbers through the roof, cementing Lesnar as an important draw for the company. And while some hardcore fans may not like the way he has exploded to the top during a brief MMA career, there’s no argument against the idea of him being a polarizing figure that brings attention to the sport. Still, the question is: How much longer will he stay within the world of mixed martial arts before removing himself from it in the pursuit of money?
Alistair Overeem is the next opponent on the docket for Brock and represents an imposing challenge. He has the strength to possibly avoid the bull rush takedowns that Lesnar employs, as well as the striking that has proven to be Lesnar’s Achilles’ heel. It will be interesting to see if Lesnar has developed far enough to be able to control where this fight takes place. His last few bouts have shown where his weaknesses lie, and it’s hard to forget the images of Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez drilling him with shot after shot against the cage. Those beatings would have taken a toll on any man, and one wonders how well Lesnar will come back from those experiences.
Along with this, Lesnar has had a well-documented bout with Diverticulitis. This debilitating disease resulted in him having to take extended time away from the cage to recover. At 34 years of age, that time away from training and competing is very detrimental, especially for a fighter who can still be considered “new” to the sport of mixed martial arts.
As the year closes out, questions will begin to swirl about the intentions of Lesnar within the sport of MMA. If he suffers another defeat at the hands of Overeem, his time in the cage will most likely be done. Recently, rumors begin to mount that Lesnar is looking to return to the WWE, since he has allowed his likeness to be used for the upcoming video game WWE ’12. Although that logic may be a stretch, I wouldn’t be surprised it happens in 2012. We all know that Lesnar is concerned with financially supporting his family first, through the best means possible, and after December those means may very well be away from the Octagon.
