Throughout the history of mixed martial arts, there have been fights and fighters that have played a big role in expanding the sport. Whether it’s the fight between Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar or the rise of Conor McGregor, the sport has grown tremendously with them. However, no such list of entities that have taken the sport to a bigger audience can be complete without Brock Lesnar.

The former WWE champion had become a renowned face across the world in the early 2000s, thanks to the massive reach of the pro-wrestling giant. Regardless, Lesnar slowly became fed up with spending too much time on the road. He was getting tired of wrestling on 200 nights a year. Hence, he went to the WWE Executive Director Bruce Pinchard’s office.

Lesnar’s conversation with Pinchard was simple. “Hey, I’m quitting,” he said.

After a few short gigs in NJPW and even with the NFL, Lesnar ended up on the biggest stage in the mixed martial arts world at UFC. Even though Lesnar was a physical specimen and a former All-American, there were obvious questions regarding his performance against the big boys of the UFC. His first fight inside the Octagon ended up escalating those doubts.

Lesnar was up against Frank Mir. The former UFC heavyweight champ showed his opponent the value of being patient and having an excellent jiu-jitsu background. Mir ended up finishing Lesnar in the first round via a kneebar.

With a spoiled UFC debut in the bag, Lesnar put his head down and trained religiously. He even went on record saying that his next fight might as well be his last chance to save his MMA career.

Brock Lesnar displays patience and power to get his first UFC victory

Lesnar was originally scheduled to go against another former UFC heavyweight champ Mark Coleman. However, the latter withdrew from the fight due to an injury. The UFC replaced him with Heath Herring.

Right from the starting bell, Lesnar went forward at his opponent. After connecting with a vicious right hand in the opening seconds, Lesnar pounced on the opportunity. However, he made sure that he didn’t get too impatient like his UFC debut. Instead, he employed a more cautious but effective approach that allowed him to save his energy as well.

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The entire fight was capsuled into Lesnar taking Herring down and making him carry his weight. The former All-American also unleashed severe ground-and-pound. With a dominating display, Brock Lesnar had his hands raised for the first time in the Octagon.

While Lesnar’s UFC career wasn’t very long, he played a big role in bringing in a larger audience and attention to the sport. As a competitor, he did his best and even held and defended the UFC gold. Despite his short career, he has embedded his name in the history books of the sport forever.

He made a brief comeback against Mark Hunt at UFC 200. However, his win was overturned to a no-contest as he tested positive for an undisclosed banned substance. There were also plans for him to return against Daniel Cormier. Regardless, the plans never materialized and Lesnar now remains happily away from the sport.

SOURCE- UFC- YouTube