Cagewriter - UFC

Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:15 am EST

Lashley is doing the right things

Brock Lesnar has arrived. He is the UFC heavyweight champ. So it's understandable that he's going to fight once every four or five months. It's probably not the wisest thing for a guy with that little mixed martial arts experience but it's to be expected in his newfound position. Another former WWE wrestler, Bobby Lashley, doesn't have the same luxury. He's only got one professional fight under his belt and needs to get on the fast track to pick up lots of in-ring experience. Lashley isn't messing around waiting for his early promoters to find fights to see he's moving around the country to gain experience. He's now signed on to fight for Palace Fighting Championship 12 at Tachi Palace Feb. 6 in Lemoore, California.

Chad Dukes from WJFK in Washington D.C. caught up Lashley just before the signing. The 6-3, 265-pounder answered the obvious question about Lesnar:

"Brock is doing an excellent job. It's going to be hard to knock him out," said Lashley, who like Lesnar has a solid college wrestling pedigree. "We're going to stay really active this year. Hopefully get a good 4-5 fights in this year. Then we should look for the big one. In a year, we'll look to take the next step."

You can listen to the interview here on Dukes' site.

Lashley crushed Joshua Franklin in his first fight last month. He was at his home for the holidays during this interview but was training with American Top Team in South Florida prior to his debut.

Coming from the world of make believe wrestling, Lashley knows there's a lot of resistance from veteran mixed martial artists but he doesn't quite understand it:

"(Lesnar coming over) is a great thing. Not to take anything from all the other fighters. (Brock and all the viewers from WWE) does so much more for everyone else. Some guys don't understand. That brings so much more money for the sport. If Bobby Lashley is a reason to watch so be it."

Lashley breaks down how he would fight Lesnar and also spoke about how ATT is trying to make him a well-rounded fighter.

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19 Comments

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  1. Darkness!
    1. Posted by Darkness! Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:45 pm EDT

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    I'm sure the Lesnar haters will jump all over Lashley too. But I've actually met Lashley, and he's a genuinely nice, humble guy... nothing like most pro athletes. Like how (as mentioned in the interview) how he helps up and coming fighters by sponsoring them through his nutrition company. When's the last time u heard of an mma fighter sponsoring another mma fighter, to help the other guy get recognition? And since he's only had 1 (very short) pro fight, I don't think we can judge whether or not he's good enough for the ufc yet. But it would be a huge draw- especially cuz of the crossover appeal of both fighters (cuz whether us hardcore fans like it or not, many, if not most, casual mma fans are prob. pro wrestling fans too). Plus, Lashley is exactly what the HvyWt. division should be: big, athletic guys, that actually look like athletes, with real credentials to back them up (like Lesnar, Gonzaga, Mir, etc.)... not just a bunch of overweight wannabe defensive linemen or biker looking guys (Sapp, Sylvia, etc.), who really can't fight, flabbing around the cage at 1 mph... personally, I'd bet that Lashley has a bright future in mma.
  2. Karl A
    2. Posted by Karl A Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:47 pm EDT

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    Whatsup Darkness? Not much to argue with in your comments. It'll be hard to bet against him until I see him in a fight or two.
  3. BearDown
    3. Posted by BearDown Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:23 pm EDT

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    Lashley said himself that he isn't ready for the UFC. He wants to gain more experience before making the "next step" as stated in the article. Dude is legit though. I had a chance to see him make history when he wrestled in college for MO Valley. Training with ATT and being hungry; I agree with you that he will have a very bright MMA future. His last fight showed some good things (showed great strength and striking power). He gets some good subs and defense under his belt and he could be a major force.
    BTW... How many times are we going to regurgitate the Lashley news? Why don't we wait till his next fight before throwing another dumb "Pro Wrestler" (that label needs to be dropped like yesterdays load) headline out there?!
  4. Dubya b
    4. Posted by Dubya b Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:12 pm EDT

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    Looks like another muscle head from ECW/WWF or whatever. Like Lesnar, he will probably run over some of the less technical types. Even though couture is very technical, he is also normally fighting at LHW. In boxing you have an intermediate weight class, called Cruiser weight, which is between LHW and HW.
    Regardless I am interested to see how Lesnar reacts to Mir the second time around.
  5. mmafan
    5. Posted by mmafan Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:46 pm EDT

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    Lashey appears pretty grounded and realizes the postion he's in. He seems to see"the big picture" and has wisely decided to pay his dues before he's ready to hit the big time. Gotta give him credit for that. I'm not saying Brock did or didn't deserve a title shot......I just appreciate Laslheys patience. Who knows?Maybe this time next year we'll all be talking about Lashley vs Lesnar!
    Dubya.....thanks for the boxing lesson in weight classes. although I prefer to get my boxing information from nutcracker!
  6. knuckle sandwich
    6. Posted by knuckle sandwich Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:09 pm EDT

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    I agree, Lashey seems light an intelligent dude with a lot going for him. This could be interesting in about a year or so....
  7. ANTHONY N
    7. Posted by ANTHONY N Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:00 pm EDT

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    I'm not so quick to jump on the Lashley bandwagon. As far as I'm concerned, Brock is a crock. He will lose to Mir. Lashley will never amount to ANYTHING in MMA. They guy is not built for the sport. Tons of muscles, maybe some brains as well, but DEFINATLY not made for MMA. Brock took everyone by storm, and just like a storm he will dissipate into nothing. Frank Mir (God I hate him) will defeat Lesnar and reign supreme for '09...Unfortunatly.
  8. HD guy
    8. Posted by HD guy Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:45 pm EDT

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    I hope Lashley can make it. I live here in Colorado Springs, and met him at the USOC before he was a big name Pro....He is a really nice dude. He is also one heck of an athlete. He didn't make the Olympic team but he sure gave those guys a run. He has great natural athleticism and if he gets into the right camps with the right people he will be great someday.
    By the way, his real name is Franklin Lashley, and he has a supplement shop less than 10 miles from my house.
  9. MeetyourMMaker
    9. Posted by MeetyourMMaker Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:06 pm EDT

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    ANOTHONY N, I hope (and think) you are completely wrong. When you are super athletic like Brock and Lashley and your base is one of the most important aspects of the game(wrestling), AND you are training your ass off in every other part of the sport, you can't help but be successful. Brock could very well beat Mir. Actually I think the odds are pretty much 50/50 with Mir's improved striking.
    Lashley's first fight wasn't very telling with it being only 41 seconds and a very bad camera angle but it's possible that he could be even more successful than Lesnar since he's training with ATT.
  10. Shaun
    10. Posted by Shaun Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:44 pm EDT

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    the ufc should bring in Lashley in the next few years after he wins some more fights..
  11. BearDown
    11. Posted by BearDown Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:23 pm EDT

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    ANTHONY N ........... = pity.
  12. Ican2
    12. Posted by Ican2 Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:39 pm EDT

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    Hey!!! there taking over....I'd like to see Lashley do just that take four to five fights then jump in the mix...Or just jump into the mix against guys like herring, gonzaga, or the low level guys like Dan the can't fight evanson...I think lashleys streangth and athleticism should make him a force from jump street..bing on he HW'ts..I always was impressed when I watch two heavies going at it as fast and hard as the tiny guys ...I think this will be the new face of the MMa big man a huge powerful and agile HW...
  13. Wreckinball
    13. Posted by Wreckinball Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:43 pm EDT

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    I think what makes Bobby standout is that he's not full of himself. He knows where he stands. He's not some meathead jacka$$ like Brock. I hope Frank breaks Brocks arm so we don't have to hear about him for awhile.
  14. Count Di amon
    14. Posted by Count Di amon Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:37 pm EDT

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    Well so far so good for Lashley. Its really hard to judge anybody after 1 fight or even 3. Give him about 5-10 fights, some wins and losses and depending on how well he handles those before we make a determination. But so far impressive and I too hear he's a great guy. I was a fan of his when he was on WWE though so when I heard he made the jump to MMA I was really excited. Fortunately he knows that he's still new so he has a lot of room to grow. Best of luck to him and I hope he keeps winning!
  15. Darkness!
    15. Posted by Darkness! Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:45 pm EDT

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    Anthony N-
    so, is there anybody u DO like... maybe a Liddell or Kimbo fan?
    : p
    u were exactly one of the ignorant "bah- he was a pro wrestler" a$$holes I was talking about jumping on the guy before u even have a chance to see him fight. So why don't u like Mir? He wasn't even a pro wrestler- he's most known as a jiu-jitsu fighter; but has worked hard on his striking, and I think it showed against Nog. I didn't really care much for Mir from what I saw on TUF- he kinda came off as too laid back, almost arrogant frat-boy like. But the more interviews I've seen and read since just before 92, the more and more he seems like just a naturally easy going laid back guy, centered from his martial arts training. In short- Frank Mir is a perfect example of what the martial arts lifestyle should look like- clean, laid back, respectful, generally decent. Not a self sleep deprived hoodrat running from the cops in a truck with ur pic. painted on it (smart move, btw), or drunk driving on new year's eve and thinking ur gonna get away with it just cuz u fight for the ufc... those kinds of guys are NOT martial artists- Frank Mir is.
  16. Chocolat
    16. Posted by Chocolat Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:13 pm EDT

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    I like how Anthony N said he's not on the Lashley bandwagon but bashed his entire career, before it really start, in the next sentence. I think Lashley has learned already that if he goes into UFC he's just going to be used as a money maker, and at least wants to be good at the sport before he is made into a money man.
    And Darkness, I wouldn't judge how Mir was on the show to his regular psyche. I remember it being said somewhere that a lot of things he said were edited, and basically what was show of him was nothing more than the producers wanted us to see of him. I've heard him commentate on WEC and happen to find him extremely knowledgible and serious about the sport.
  17. Ican2
    17. Posted by Ican2 Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:39 pm EDT

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    What I cant get passed is seeing that scum bag Trump raising anybody's hand in a ring or gon..Him and his sillt assed hair and pink fa@ boy tie..WTF lamer...Give me a break...Now there's a guy who will make a circus outta the fight game for a buck ot two...
  18. Parrot
    18. Posted by Parrot Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:57 pm EDT

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    I guess drug testing is lacking in mma, if anyone thinks this guy is not juiced you need to wake up!
  19. Parrot
    19. Posted by Parrot Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:57 pm EDT

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    I guess drug testing is lacking in mma, if anyone thinks this guy is not juiced you need to wake up!

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