BROCK LESNAR - FRANK MIR II: THE COMPLETE BREAKDOWN

Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir

Many consider Brock Lesnar an interloper. A fake fighter who is all talk and size. My opinion is that this could not be farther from the truth.

EVOLUTION:

What Brock Lesnar is, in my opinion, is a glimpse into the future.

In 1993 the sport was inhabited, for the most part, by out of shape McDojo instructers straight out of The Foot Fist Way or The Rex Kwon Do Academy. Next the sport started to bring in good athletes who were past their prime; Men such as Dan Severn. Then came cross trained fighters like Marco Ruas and Frank Shamrock who paved the modern Mixed Martial Artists - exceptional athletes who are skilled in Boxing, Thai Boxing, Wrestling, Jiu Jistu, etc...

BROCK LESNAR:

Brock Lesnar is the next step in the evolution of MMA. Is he more well rounded than GSP? No. Is he a smarter fighter than Randy Couture? No. There are lots of things that Brock Lesnar is NOT, but the one thing he is is arguably the highest caliber of athlete to ever set foot into the Octagon.

As an amateur Wrestler Brock went 33-0 as a High School senior. He then entered junior college and was a two time All-American and 1998 national champion. From there he attended Minnesota State and became the 1999 NCAA national runner-up and the 2000 NCAA nation champion. Simply put. Brock Lesnar is as good a Wrestler as has ever entered the world of MMA.

From there Brock joined the WWE as a means of paying his bills and is widely recognized as one of the fastest learners in the history of WWE developmental.

After leaving the WWE Brock decided to give the NFL a go. Having never played a down of College ball Brock blew away Minnesota Viking officials and won a spot on the teams practice squad with the promise that after one year he would likely make the teams main roster.

The point of all of this is that the future of MMA is not retired NFL stars, or high school stand outs. The future of MMA is NBA and NFl level athletes who forgo these other sports for a shot at the UFC.

Brock was one of the worlds greatest Amateur wrestlers, and so naturally gifted that he walked on to an NFL team with virtually no experience. Brock Lesnar is what the UFC will be in 10 years.

FRANK MIR:

Frank Mir is an exceptional fighter who has gotten a bad rap. Mir, like Brock, was a High School Wrestling Champion. Mir went on to become a BJJ prodigy perhaps unmatched in the Heavyweight division who ended up with the world title wrapped around his waist after only 9 professional fights.

After his first round submission victory over Tim Sylvia for the UFC Heavyweight belt, tragedy struck. On September 17, 2004, Mir was knocked off his motorcycle by a car. His femur was broken in two places, every ligament in his knee was severed. Word on the street was that Frank Mir would never fight again.

Whether his sprit was broken, his interest was lagging, or he returned too soon, the man who fought Marcio Cruz in 2006 was not the same Frank Mir. Cruz, a noted submission artist, handled Mir with ease. "Pe De Pano" took him down, bled him and beat him with vicious ground and pound. Next up Mir faced former Ultimate Fighter also-ran Dan Christison. Mir won the fight but showed up out of shape and suffered from fatigue for most of the fight. mir's third comeback fight was a dissapointing quick knockout to up and coming striker Brandon Vera. Everyone it semmed, from fans to professional MMA commentators, wanted Mir gone. Cries of washed up, has been, never was, etc...rang through out the internets.

The UFC, not quick to let go of an attractive and talented former champion (who incidentally was never beaten for the belt), gave him one more shot against Dutch kickboxer Antoni Hardonk. Mir came in looking better than ever and ran through Hardonk in just over a minute, winning via Kimura.

Despite returning from career threatening injuries with a 2-2 record, in the minds of fans Mir was still no more than a washed up dough boy who spent all of his considerable free time at "the Spearmint Rhino" strip club. Perhaps was also the thinking of UFC brass when they chose him to be the sacrificial lamb to incoming superstar Brock Lesnar.

Frank was the perfect whipping boy. A pretty boy former champion coming off a win who's cardio, and heart were heavily in question.

Despite his win over UFC champ Tim Sylvia, Mir clearly saw this as his biggest challenge yet and came in ready for a fight. Brock attacked early and mauled Frank for all but 2 seconds of the fight. Unfortunately for Brock, those two seconds consisted of the submission wizard snapping on a knee bar and forcing the submission. 

Casual fans and some hard cores saw a WWE wanna be shown up by a true Mixed Martial Artist. What the sports wizened veterans saw, however, was the birth of a star in Brock, and the re-emergence of what many saw as a lost talent in Frank Mir.

We all know what happened next. Couture left for a year, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira won the interim title over Tim Sylvia.

When Randy returned he brought about a final four style tournament to crown the true champion.

Randy fought Brock and lost, Mir fought Nogueira and won.

Tomorrow is the finale: Brock vs. Mir

OFFICIAL TKO REPORT PICK: BROCK LESNAR OR FRANK MIR?

The story the UFC is selling is that Frank is just now coming into his own with a striking game to match his submission skills.

The truth, as I see it, is that Mir's striking has improved. For the past year and a half Mir has become serious about MMA for possibly the first time in his life and is growing by leaps and bounds.

Unfortunately for Frank, Brock is as well. Even Mir admits that the knee bar that caught Brock with in the first match up (Brock's 2nd fight) was an elementary move. Brock has been growing for almost 2 years, and elementary moves will no longer catch him. He holds wins over MMA legends in Randy Couture and Heath Herring and is only growing more confident by the day.

Brock Lesnar is going to take Frank Mir down. This isn't an if...he will do it, and there is nothing Frank can do to stop him. This time there will be no restart to save Frank from tapping. This time Brock will attack with a controlled fury that will keep him on top of his prone foe until the final bell has won.

Can Frank win? Sure, he actually has a better chance than maybe anyone in the UFC. He could pull off an amazing submission and shock the world. The odds are though, that he won't.

Brock Lesnar will defeat Frank Mir by TKO in the 1st round.