Is Lesnar the next big thing in MMA?

• By MATT RAMSAY
• Special to 2theadvocate.com
• Published: Aug 1, 2008 - UPDATED: 4:20 p.m.

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After the Ultimate Fighting Championship revealed the Pay-Per-View numbers for UFC 81, the UFC found that close to half of the 600,000 PPV buys had never purchased an UFC event before. Was it a coincidence that this was Brock Lesnar’s debut in the UFC? A lot of people including the UFC don’t seem to think so.

Brock Lesnar was born in Webster, S.D. a town of less than 2,000 people made up of only 1.5 square miles. He is your stereotypical farm boy, a self-proclaimed redneck who currently lives on a 47-acre ranch in Minnesota.

Lesnar made it to the big time transitioning his high school and college wrestling to the entertainment of professional wrestling with the World Wrestling Federation.

He found his niche in the small town in his senior year, wrestling in high school where he went undefeated in his senior season with a record of 33-0. Lesnar also played football in high school and received several scholarship offers.

After attending Bismarck Junior College in North Dakota where he won the National Junior College Championship, Lesnar transferred to the University of Minnesota where he was the National runner-up in 1999 and won the National Championship in 2000 as a heavyweight. Lesnar finished up his overall collegiate wrestling career with an impressive record of 106 wins and only five loses.

After college, Lesnar entered the World Wrestling Federation in 2002 and was an instant success. He made it to the big time and went onto become the youngest champion in WWE history. Lesnar found fame and fortune being the three-time WWE champion. He had matches with notable wrestlers such as Hulk Hogan, Kurt Angle, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Steve “Stone Cold” Austin.

After traveling 280 days a year, many of them abroad, Lesnar began to miss his family. He tried to work a deal with WWE chairman, Vince McMahon, but negotiations fell through, and he walked away from his lucrative seven-year, $45 million-a-year contract.

Lesnar decided to pursue one of his childhood dreams of playing pro football. After not playing any organized football for more than a decade, Lesnar was invited to the National Football League where he ran the 40-yard dash in a mind-boggling time of 4.75 seconds. Keep in mind that Lesnar was weighing-in around 295 lbs at the time.

Lesnar stunned critics by making the practice squad and appearing in pre-season games for the Minnesota Vikings.

Lesnar’s pro football career ended when he was cut by the Vikings for missing practices due to a motorcycle accident in which he broke his jaw and leg.

After recovering, Lesnar began looking for a new challenge and career path. He decided to use his wrestling background and try his skills at Mixed Martial Arts.

Watching fellow wrestlers Randy Couture, Matt Hughes, Dan Henderson, and Mark Coleman not only win but dominate; Lesnar knew he could do well in the heavyweight division of MMA.

Lesnar’s first MMA fight was with Min Soo Kim in a K-1 MMA event. Lesnar won, with Kim tapping out due to strikes. It was an impressive debut being that Lesnar overwhelmed the experienced Kim in only one minute and 10 seconds in the first round.