The Day After: Brock Lesnar's MMA Debut
Posted by Caleb Newby on 06.03.2007
Brock Lesnar defeated Min Soo Kim Saturday evening at K-1's Dynamite!! USA event in just over a minute. Where does the former WWE superstar fit in the current MMA heavyweight landscape and what can we take from his dominate victory?
The Fujita scale is used in the scientific community when classifying the intensity of a tornado much like the Richter scale is used when measuring earthquakes. An F-0 tornado will merely tip over the doghouse while putting more sticks and brush on your lawn while an F-5 tornado (the highest on the Fujita scale) gives up to 300 mile per hour winds capable of flinging cars and homes alike though the air. Perhaps it's fitting Brock Lesnar's finishing maneuver in the WWE was named the "F-5", as after witnessing Lesnar's quick MMA debut at K-1's Dynamite show, Brock resembled a tornado.
In just one minute and nine seconds Lesnar passed his first test on his way to becoming a credible contender in the MMA landscape. It's far too early to crown Brock a champion-to-be yet at the same time it's difficult not to be impressed. Facing South Korean Judo expert Min Soo Kim (2-5) Lesnar was the favorite, though an uncertain one. While Kim has struggled in his combat career away from judo he was in possession of one invaluable advantage over the Minnesota collegiate wrestler: experience. And as Jonnie Morton proved earlier in the evening, having even one fight under your belt is a valuable thing when stepping inside the MMA arena.
Many experts anticipated Lesnar to come out victorious through his superior wrestling and takedowns though the possibility of Kim catching Lesnar in a submission remained a very real possibility. Even with his record Kim's experience and Judo presented a challenge to Lesnar… on paper at least. Instead what we saw was a very intense, agile, powerful and explosive athlete in Lesnar stepping up in the spotlight during his MMA debut. From the moment the bell rang it was obvious Brock was going to take the fight to his opponent. As soon as Kim attempted a leg kick he found himself thrust on his back by a driving takedown, something resembling a cross between an Edge spear and a NFL lineman drill.
Once on the ground we witnessed, as expected, Brock's excellent ground control courtesy of his amateur wrestling background. What wasn't expected was the ferocity and speed of Lesnar's ground and pound. After masterfully passing Kim's half guard to mount and unleashing a flurry of strikes to Kim's face, Kim tapped out already having had enough. And just like that, Brock became an undefeated mixed martial artist with an impressive stoppage.
Where does the former WWE champion go from here? In the post fight interview Brock expressed his desire to get a heavyweight title shot… presumably in the UFC. There's nothing wrong with shooting for the top after an impressive performance though Brock is far from ready to face the Fedor's, Couture's, and Barnett's of the world. Fortunately for Lesnar the heavyweight landscape in MMA isn't the deepest out there and someone with his name value will draw in money. Imagine Brock facing someone like Cheick Kongo or Assuerio Silva. There are no shortages of mid tier heavyweight talents out there and adding Lesnar to the mix automatically increases profile.
In the end, no matter what direction he chooses to go in the near future, one thing is for certain. Brock Lesnar will sell tickets and get people talking. How far will he go in his career? It's too early to say but maybe, just maybe, the "Next Big Thing" will live up to his name.
