12:42 AM EST

This has to be the most publicity UFC has ever gotten.
 
Brock Lesnar's UFC debut this Saturday Night continues to dominate the news regarding the MMA world.
On a week where there's a SuperBowl this Sunday, Lesnar is getting an amazing amount of press.
 
Lesnar was once again the top story on Yahoo!News today (see above).
 
NBCSports Mike Chiappetta wrote about Lesnar's debut, which you can read at this link: http://www.nbcsports.com/portal/site/nbcsports/menuitem.6f806e473b4cb158fb00ec22493c2d04/

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Is UFC ready for the Next Big Thing?

Saturday night's UFC 81 will help define heavyweight division in post-Couture era

By Mike Chiappetta
When Brock Lesnar began wrestling professionally in World Wrestling Entertainment, he went by the nickname "The Next Big Thing."

Dana White and the UFC wouldn't exactly be upset if they could market him in a similar fashion, but first, he has to get past ex-UFC champ Frank Mir in the first of two UFC 81 heavyweight fights that will help to re-shape the division in the post-Randy Couture era.

His arrival in the octagon on Saturday night will be a fascinating test case on just how quickly a top-level athlete can adapt to the rigors of mixed martial arts. Lesnar was a multi-time All-American and an NCAA champion wrestler while at the University of Minnesota, and after debating a run at the Olympics, he instead took a $250,000 offer to join WWE, where he eventually became one of its marquee talents. But after a successful run in the company, he became disenchanted with the travel demands and quit in March 2004. Just a few months later, Lesnar voiced an intent on playing professional football and signed with the Minnesota Vikings, but was later cut.

That led to his transition to MMA.

Lesnar has drawn all sorts of attention for his debut, but from all accounts, he is clearly committed to the sport. Though he has only been training for two years, he has spent time with the Miletich camp in Iowa before settling on the Minnesota Mixed Martial Arts Academy, a camp run by respected coach Greg Nelson.

Now, after a relatively short training period - and one official match, a K-1 Dynamite victory of Min Soo-Kim - Lesnar believes he's ready to be thrown into the fire.

"From a business standpoint, [UFC] wanted to get their best bang for their dollar," Lesnar said in a recent conference call. "But I don't want it any other way. I want to be tested right away. This is a business. It comes down to dollars and cents, and that's why ultimately I signed with this organization."

Mir also has a wrestling background as a onetime Nevada state champion in high school, yet he understands the distinction in credentials; he has no delusions about Lesnar's ability to control the location of the fight.

"Brock is a superior wrestler, so most likely the fight will be where he wants it to be," he said. "If he takes it to the ground, I'll fight him on the ground. If he wants to stand, we'll do that. I think the fight will be where he wants it."

Lesnar's wrestling prowess will lead to the most interesting chess game of the match. Precisely because Mir is a submission master, every time Lesnar scores a takedown, he will be putting himself into a danger zone.

So in that scenario, the match will become all about Lesnar trying to employ ground and pound while Mir pressures him with submission attempts.

One advantage Lesnar enjoys is the mystery around his abilities. His aforementioned match lasted only 69 seconds, and little could be gleaned from it. Of course, everyone knows his wrestling will be borderline unstoppable, but no one except his training partners know how advanced his striking and jiu-jitsu games are.

Mir tried to prepare by training with fighters and athletes with wrestling backgrounds, including Tommy Rowlands, a two-time NCAA champ and Olympic hopeful who is currently the top-ranked freestyle heavyweight in the U.S.

"One of the keys for me is not being stationary," Mir said. "Obviously he's stronger than I am. It doesn't take a genius to learn that. If I stand in one place, I'll get crushed. I have to keep the fight moving. If you stand still, that weight will bear down on you."

Because movement and conditioning will be so important, don't be surprised to see Mir check in around 250 pounds, which would be his lowest weight since beating Tim Sylvia for the heavyweight title in June 2004.

The Mir-Lesnar fight has been the one capturing the headlines, and no one knows how the UFC will benefit from the result, but it is most likely a win-win scenario for the organization. If Mir wins, he reasserts himself as a heavyweight force and moves up the ladder towards contendership. The 28-year-old is charismatic and well-spoken, and with an inspiring return from a career-threatening and even life-threatening motorcycle accident, he has the type of story the media can grab onto and fans can rally behind. If Lesnar wins, he brings huge name recognition to the casual crowd from his days in WWE. Physically, he is an immense presence, all muscles and power. If you are the type to believe that the UFC heavyweight champion should be the baddest man on the world, Lesnar certainly looks the part.

Unless the two spend all 15 minutes on the ground in a stalemate, the UFC stands to benefit greatly from the match.