News and notes from around the MMA world …

- There are a ton of UFC 81 articles out there, most of which surround Brock Lesnar.

Lesnar wants to fight for the competition.
Both Lesnar and the UFC have a lot riding on UFC 81.
Mir’s comeback trail leads to Lesnar.
Dana White compares Frank Mir to B.J. Penn.
Mike Coughlin previews Frank Mir vs. Brock Lesnar.
Dave Meltzer has last minute weigh in notes.

- Shogun says he’s fighting Chuck Liddell next.

- Dana White asks Randy Couture to be a man.

- Mark Cuban thinks the The Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act of 2000 will have to be adhered to by the UFC eventually.

Talking Points

Is Brock Lesnar the real deal? That question will be answered tomorrow evening when he does battle with Frank Mir. As you can tell by the links I posted above, most of the publicity surrounding this battle have to do with Lesnar and whether he can hang or not. If my prediction is right, then he will show that he’s the real deal. Frank Mir himself has stated in the past that he believes that if it lasts the full three rounds, he won’t be able win the decision. But he does think that he will get the better of the stand-up as well as be able to beat Lesnar on the ground. On the Countdown To UFC 81 show, there were highlights of Mir putting on sick submissions. If Lesnar’s strength is going to be his wrestling, wouldn’t taking Mir down mean that he’ll be set up for submissions? I think it comes down to a matter of who is in shape. Lesnar is going to be much stronger than Mir and Mir’s shot is to tire out Lesnar, weaken his defense, and get a submission locked on. If Lesnar outlasts him from a stamina standpoint, Mir is most likely going to tire out and his submissions will be far weaker. And if Lesnar outlasts him, I see Lesnar simply laying on top of him and pounding him. I think the first round will be important from Lesnar’s perspective in that it will be his first five minutes in the big time. He’ll be wide eyed and finally in the octagon for real. If he lasts the first five minutes, I think he’ll win the fight. Mir’s chance is to weaken Lesnar enough to be able to put him in a hold. Lesnar’s a big man and won’t be easy to maneuver.

There is an interim championship match, but it’s not the focus of the show. Tim Sylvia is facing Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Both men are battle tested, but one would think Sylvia’s size would be too much for Nogueira. That’s definitely going to be an issue, but Sylvia’s style is going to be a bigger issue. Randy Couture laid out the blue print in how to beat Sylvia. Get in close, use your inside strikes, take him down, be quicker and don’t be afraid to take a punch to land a punch. Nogueira’s wrestling isn’t as strong as Couture’s and he may not be as crafty a boxer as Couture either. So it’s going to come down to whether or not he’ll be able to frustrate Sylvia enough to where he’ll be able to use quickness to take him down. On the ground is his best bet, but Sylvia doesn’t go down easily. Sylvia also has good ground defense and utilizes his size to keep his foe away from him as far as possible. I don’t think Sylvia will be able to knock him out. But I do think he’ll be able to fight his fight and beat Nogueira by decision after five rounds. And if that’s the case, it’s going to be a boring match.

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