Former wrestling star Brock Lesnar returns to his roots in the UFC this weekend
This Saturday (February 2), M&F February cover man Brock Lesnar will to step into the Octagon in what is quite possibly the most highly-anticipated UFC debut ever. He walked through his first MMA opponent, Min Soo Kim, by way of a brutal, one-sided, first-round strike fest. Now it's on to the bright lights—and pay-per-view tickets—of the UFC.
Unlike many first-timers in the cage, Lesnar, a former WWE star—half man, half mountain at 6'3", 265 pounds—isn't matched up against a tomato can or a mat-diver. Instead, he's going after a proven and dangerous fighter in former heavyweight champ Frank Mir (10-3). Mir, standing 6'3" and tipping the scales at 255, has dispatched UFC mainstays like Tank Abbott and Tim Sylvia. His win over Sylvia was particularly gruesome—Mir applied an armbar that broke Sylvia's arm and caused a stoppage 50 seconds into the fight.
Lesnar—who for some isn't far enough removed from his days of phantom punches and trash talk to be sharing the mat with Mir—isn't taking this opportunity lightly. The former high school wrestler has taken to his training like what he is: a man with something to prove.
"A lot of guys today are pussies, not wanting to put in the work," Lesnar (1-0) says in the February issue of Muscle & Fitness.
Lesnar has been training twice a day, four days a week in preparation for his meeting with Mir, and his workouts run the gamut from heavy lifting to wind sprints. Oh, and there's the small matter of practicing his "ground-and-pound," whereby one mounts an opponent and throws punches until the ref steps in or someone calls the cops.
Lesnar possesses the size and strength to become a UFC star but to be truly successful in any combat sport, one needs to have a deep-seated desire to assault people for a living.
"In the UFC, I've got the ideal job. I get paid to beat people up. What could be better than that?"
Uhh … check.
For the rest of our interview with Lesnar and an in-depth look at his training regimen, pick up the February issue of M&F, on newsstands now!
To see how Lesnar fares in his UFC debut versus Mir, catch UFC 81: Breaking Point this Saturday (February 2). For ordering information, contact your local Pay-Per-View provider. And for an exclusive look at Frank Mir's take on this weekend's cage match, visit www.flexonline.com.
