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Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:30 am EDT

Are there more Brock Lesnars on the horizon?

By Steve Cofield

Brock Lesnar's explosion onto the mixed martial arts scene has been nothing short of incredible. Without much MMA training time, the guy has stepped in with two elite heavyweights, Frank Mir and Heath Herring, and more than competed. The UFC is now throwing him into deep waters against UFC heavyweight champ Randy Couture on Nov. 15. Is Lesnar an isolated case or could there be more guys moving over from the 'world of fake' professional wrestling?

Former WWE wrestler Bobby Lashley appears to have the same resume. He was a tremendous college wrestler and he's massive. Lashley also has the chops and personality to make him a crossover MMA star. Now the issue is whether he can actually win in the cage.

He wrestled in the WWE at 275 lbs. so he needs to shed a little weight to get down to the MMA heavyweight limit of 265. Like Lesnar, he was an collegiate champion. Lashley was the NAIA champ at 177 lbs. in 1997 and 1998. He hasn't actually had an MMA fight. He signed as a free agent with the fledgling American Fight League. That organzation has yet to hold a card or officially announce an event. The way Lashley answers the questions about the very iffy AFL. You get the sense his patience is wearing thin.

Lashley also speaks at length about trying to shed the 'fake wrestler' label. It sounds like he's an avid fan of MMA websites. I'm not sure how anyone can rip him yet. Let's see what the guy has. Maybe he can be another Lesnar. It's a great sign that he's gone headlong into the MMA world. He's training with one of the best gyms in the country, American Top Team in South Florida.

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23 Comments

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  1. depaul_fan
    1. Posted by depaul_fan Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:41 pm EDT

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    At least the guy isn't taking it lightly and is willing to work his way up...hey Kimbo, you listening???
  2. Hi There! I'm a Racist!
    2. Posted by Hi There! I'm a Racist! Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:54 pm EDT

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    Has anyone noticed that Cofield doesn't write anything original?
  3. chano
    3. Posted by chano Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:02 pm EDT

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    I would love to see him come up to MMA and stand with the real men.
  4. jtakeo11
    4. Posted by jtakeo11 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:43 pm EDT

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    Really??? Again, this is what you wanna talk about Cofield. Here is something you can write about: ALVAREZ VS. DIAZ. It has the potential to be the fight of the year. Go and take this and then write one of your little blogs about it so we can talk about something that actually matters.
  5. HAHA
    5. Posted by HAHA Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:49 pm EDT

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    lashley would prolly be aight in mma chano
    he is muscle head and can wrestle
    but i hope all these clowns dont try 2 join
    only those with impressive collegiate wrestling back ground i think can transfer over
    one look at lashly and lesnar and u kno these dudes can scrap
  6. Nutcracker
    6. Posted by Nutcracker Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:22 pm EDT

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    So in 97 Lashley was wrestling at 177 pds. and now is at 275 lbs.?? Ok Ok. Now i know I often rant on the roid thing, but is anyone going to tell me it was hard work and creatine that got him 100 pds of muscle in ten years??
    Why dont these guys go into boxing?? There is a lot of money to be made at HW if you can fight at the top level. Ok boys, I tee'd it up, now go apesh$t....
  7. HAHA
    7. Posted by HAHA Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:49 pm EDT

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    u have a good point HIC but 10 yrs is a long time tho
    when i first read that i was like damn 177 lbs now 275 HAHA
    maybe he jus ate alot creatined and lift weights all day
    or maybe he jus stick needles in his azz all day who knows
    i think they would get thrashed jumping in a boxing ring tho
    the top boxers have been doin it since they were kids
    u said u spar b4 so if they wanted 2 jus be newbies they could
    but as far as contenders there more of a chance in mma for them
  8. BearDown
    8. Posted by BearDown Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:23 pm EDT

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    BTW Lashley was a three time NAIA champ1996-97-98. Just to correct the error by Cofeild.
  9. idoleveryweek
    9. Posted by idoleveryweek Thu Sep 03, 2009 6:55 pm EDT

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    dont watch the WWE, but any guy with REAL fight/wrestling credit that is willing to learn the game and not be just a sideshow for ratings, the better. especially anyone that is the size of Lesnar!!
  10. BearDown
    10. Posted by BearDown Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:23 pm EDT

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    jtakeo11 ................. Who you got? ALVAREZ VS. DIAZ. Wait..... I know your going with Diaz so I'm going with Alvarez.
  11. jtakeo11
    11. Posted by jtakeo11 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:43 pm EDT

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    bear...i actually don't know. i love both fighters. depends on what the lines were but i'd probably put my money on alvarez. He's a nutball. clay guida type except way more skilled. but i wouldn't be shocked if diaz took him out. this will be a fight everyone will be talking about.
  12. BearDown
    12. Posted by BearDown Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:23 pm EDT

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    jtakeo11 ....... I actually was waiting for this fight to happen but was unsure how they would react with Alvarez fighting in the Dream tourney. I haven't seen odds for it yet either. I'm sticking with Alvarez because I think Diaz's style plays right into Eddies strengths. Diaz loves to throw a ton of irritating punches but Alvarez is a good counter style guy. It will be a good fight. Any word on what they did to Noons? They took the title away but did they kick him out?
  13. Under
    13. Posted by Under Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:11 pm EDT

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    Lesnar is like a bear. Couture is going to have his hands full caging this one on the 15th of Nov, but you know he'll do it. Look at how he handled Gonzaga and Sylvia.
    Big variable is.... Wrestling... Can Couture, a ground and pound wrestler, come up with a new strategy, or.... out point Lesnar in the grappling game. How is he going to beat Lesnar? Barring cuts or injury, Couture will win without a doubt.
    All American wrestlers already proliferate in MMA. Maybe second only to Ju-jitsu. This question has already been answered. The real question is whether MMA has enough money to pay the best wrestlers more than Pro Wrestling and what strategy is Couture bringing to his fight with Lesnar.
    Any takers?
  14. MJ touched hearts and kiddies private parts
    14. Posted by MJ touched hearts and kiddies private parts Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:52 pm EDT

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    HIC, your point was the first thing that came to my mind. The guy has put on 100lbs in 10 years and is built like the proverbial. Im sure that it was just good ol' fashioned hard work in the gym, and nothing illicit or illegal injecting into his body.
    Bear down, thanks for the correction on Cofield. Yahoo thought about hiring a " Cofield corector ", but firstly no one wanted to work 80 hours a week correcting all of his gaffes, and secondly, they couldn't find a masochist or moron anywhere on the planet, and pay them enough to read every piece of crap that he plagiarises.
  15. E.L.
    15. Posted by E.L. Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:51 pm EDT

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    100 pounds in ten years is nothing to worry about. If the dude had gained the 100 lbs. in less than 2 years....Then we have to question it. Apparently HIC doesn't know anything about Fitness and such. There are books that can prove that you can gain 100 lbs of muscle or more in less than 10 years. You're just an idiot HIC.
  16. Tony C
    16. Posted by Tony C Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:57 pm EDT

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    I know nothing about the guy, but 100 lbs is probably a bit of an inflated number. Wrestlers cut a lot of weight so his walking around weight would have been at least 200lbs I'm sure (likely more like 210). That is still obviously a heck a lot of muscle to put on, but 100 lbs is a bit inflated I'm sure.
  17. Wreckinball
    17. Posted by Wreckinball Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:43 pm EDT

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    Big, strong, fast and intelligent. All these things together will make him a champion. Listen to the man talk. He doesn't come off like some meat head like Brock does. He's not saying he's gonna run through people and just being as all out a$$. I see a very bright future for this kid and can't wait to see it unfold.
  18. MJ touched hearts and kiddies private parts
    18. Posted by MJ touched hearts and kiddies private parts Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:52 pm EDT

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    We are not talking Jared from Subway 100lbs here, E.L. This guy is cut, and would be lucky to have 10% body fat.
    Thanks for clarifying that we might have to question him gaining 100lbs in less than 2 years. Im questioning it over 10 years, let alone 2 years.
    Im sure he just ate right and cut out the fried foods and full cream milk. If you believe that, ive got a great bridge in San Francisco that you might be interested in buying off me.
  19. Dubya b
    19. Posted by Dubya b Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:12 pm EDT

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    I don't know what the facination is with trying to get muscle bound wrestlers into the UFC, when they should be combing Brazil for top level BJJ guys. Wrestling isn't and has never been a fighting style.
  20. BearDown
    20. Posted by BearDown Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:23 pm EDT

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    Who cares how he gained size? Really? So what. Fact of the matter is the guy has his head on straight, putting in work @ ATT and has a great plan to get where he needs to be. Do work Lashley and let the haters hate and the losers woryy about losing.
    Dubya b.........."Wrestling isn't and has never been a fighting style."
    Don't really understand the basis of your statement?
  21. jtakeo11
    21. Posted by jtakeo11 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:43 pm EDT

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    Bear....i havent heard or read anything about noons. all i know is he's a giant poon and is running faster than usain bolt, trying to avoid diaz.
  22. Parrot
    22. Posted by Parrot Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:57 pm EDT

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    He's clearly on roids, don't forget he joined the WWE in 2005 at 275lbs so thats a 100lbs in 7 years. Yanks are so dumb nearly all your athletes cheat. Look at your american footballers there like ripped at 280lbs and they still need body armour unlike rugby players!
  23. arrogant bastard
    23. Posted by arrogant bastard Thu Sep 03, 2009 2:51 pm EDT

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    That extra muscle will work against him in MMA. Bigger muscles require more oxygen and fighters wear down faster. 230lbs is as heavy as you need to get to fight a 5 round HW championship fight. Prediction: Couture KO's Lesnar in 4th round after Brock runs out of steam.

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