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A superb article has been posted by Brian Murphy of the PIONEER PRESS discussing Brock Lesnar's second foray into the Octagon tomorrow night at UFC 87 against the very capable and dangerous Heath Herring.

 

To read the entire story,along with an excellent series of pics,  CLICK HERE

 

This is one of those stories you'll want to look back on in a year or so. Highest recommendation.

 

Brock Lesnar's evolution from NCAA champion to wrestling showman, Vikings wannabe to mixed martial artist, makes him a brand name in the Ultimate Fighting Championship circuit.

 

His inexperience makes the 6-foot-3, 286-pound heavyweight an enigma entering his second fight with the premier combat sport organization.

 

Lesnar's tussle with Heath Herring on Saturday night at Target Center is the featured bout in UFC 87: "Seek and Destroy," the first pay-per-view event the wildly popular UFC has scheduled in the Twin Cities.

 

In the dog-eat-dog competitiveness of mixed martial arts, high-profile victories can catapult careers. Lesnar simply needs traction.

 

The former Gophers wrestler lost his UFC debut in February to Frank Mir, whom Lesnar outfought only to be outfoxed by the more experienced combatant. Defeating Herring (28-13-1) is imperative for Lesnar, who must prove he can win in the Octagon before conquering boardrooms.

 

"I think I'm still marketable as a fighter, but nobody wants to get behind a guy that's losing," he said. "It's kind of a must-win — a crucial fight to pursue this career."

The pressure is intense. This essentially is a home fight for Lesnar, a South Dakotan who lives with his wife and stepdaughter in Maple Plain and trains at the Minnesota Martial Arts Academy in Brooklyn Center.

 

Friends and family, plus a worldwide television audience, will watch and judge.

"I like the pressure," Lesnar, 31, said last month. "Any athlete, to perform at his peak level, is going to have to feel some pressure."

And demonstrate resolve.

 

Lesnar, hyped as the UFC's next great heavyweight, was devastated by his loss to Mir. He will have to learn from his mistakes to defeat Herring, an 11-year combat sport veteran.

 

Lesnar needed less than two minutes to submit Min Soo Kim on the K-1 circuit June 2, 2007. That got him noticed by UFC officials, who signed Lesnar to fight Mir, a former heavyweight champ.

 

Seven seconds into the bout, Lesnar attacked Mir and pummeled him to the canvas. An inadvertent blow to the back of Mir's head cost Lesnar a point, and the referee stood up both fighters.

 

Lesnar tagged Mir with a right hand that put him on his back again and was poised to finish him off. But Lesnar left himself vulnerable when Mir caught him in a knee bar and submitted him.

 

By all accounts, Lesnar led for all but 10 seconds of the 1-minute, 30-second fight.

 

"My inexperience showed in that last fight and will show a lot less in this fight," he said. "I've got 15 minutes to win a fight and not one minute. I think you'll see me come into this fight a lot more calm, collected and a little more precise and not so reckless."

Lesnar said his stand-up skills are much improved, though his game plan against Herring is obvious: ground him and grind him.

 

"Any animal likes to fight on his own terrain, and that's where I like to be on the mat," Lesnar said.

 

The 2000 NCAA heavyweight champion was 106-5 in four years of collegiate wrestling, finishing his career at Minnesota as a two-time All-American and two-time Big Ten Conference champion.

 

In 2002, Lesnar joined the World Wrestling Federation, forerunner of World Wrestling Entertainment. He became a three-time champion and featured character in the scripted showdowns and soap-opera story lines that define pro wrestling.

 

Lesnar put his WWE career on hold to try out for the Vikings during 2004 training camp. He appeared in two exhibition games but was cut after missing practices because of injuries.

 

Lesnar joined another wrestling circuit in Japan but tired of the hype and vagabond lifestyle and decided to shift gears again to mixed martial arts.

 

"This is real. I'm here to win fights, not to entertain," he said. "That will come through as you try to win. That's the major difference."

 

Victories create title shots and sell sponsorships, but the UFC only can offer opportunities Lesnar must earn.

 

"MMA is a sport; UFC is a business," said David Bradley Olsen, Lesnar's Minneapolis-based agent. "His charisma is unmatched, which he showed as a wrestler. They know that, and they want to exploit it.

 

"The only way they can exploit it is if he wins. He can have all the charisma in the world, but if he doesn't beat good fighters, that gets him nowhere."

 

Lesnar still needs to fulfill expectations at the elite level of mixed martial arts, but he is finished searching for a fulfilling profession.

 

"It just feels like I finally found my home. You know what you want to do. Some people go through life and not find it," he said. "I've found it."

 

 

 

BROCK LESNAR FILE

 

 Born: July 12, 1977, Webster, S.D.

 

Residence: Maple Plain, Minn.

 

Class: Heavyweight

 

Height: 6 feet 3

 

Weight: 265 pounds

 

Trainers: Greg Nelson, Eric Paulson and Marty Morgan

 

MMA record: 1-1

 

UFC record: 0-1

 

He said it: "My main goal is let's be smart and let's win this fight. I need to get a victory."

 

UFC 87: "SEEK AND DESTROY"

 

When: 9 p.m. Saturday

 

Where: Target Center, Minneapolis

 

Tickets: $50-$600, available at arena box office or Ticketmaster

 

TV: Pay-per-view, $44.95, on major cable outlets

 

Main bout: Welterweight championship between George St-Pierre and Jon Fitch

 

Featured bout: Brock Lesnar vs. Heath Herring in heavyweight division

 

Also on the card: Roger Huerta, of St. Paul, vs. Kenny Florian in lightweight bout