By Brian Botelho

The Anticipation for this fight has been building since October 2009, when Lesnar had to pull out of the first scheduled fight due to illness. This will be Lesnar’s first fight back following his long bout with diverticulitis.  The build up for this fight jumped to another level after Carwin dispatched Frank Mir 3:43 in the first round at UFC 111 winning the interim belt.  The fight between Lesnar and Carwin is expected to take place on July 3^rd 2010 unofficially; nearly nine months after the initial fight was to take place.  UFC president Dana White has billed the fight as, “a heavyweight championship fight with two real heavyweights”.   This could not be more true.  One trait that these fighters share is their enormous size, which has no doubt been a factor in their success.  Both of these men weigh in at the heavyweight limit of 265, meaning that they cut weight to get there, and Lesnar has one inch on Carwin at 6’3”.  The days of a heavyweight champion weighing 225 or 230 seem to have come to an end.  It is just too difficult to give up 30+ pounds to this new breed of heavyweights that are truly gigantic.

Lesnar Broke into the UFC scene in a larger than life way with a very controversial loss to the former champion Frank Mir.  Lesnar was caught in a submission but before that he exhibited his power and size in a way that Mir may not have been able to overcome without help from the referee.  From his first fight in the octagon Lesnar has added an insane workout routine along with training standup and BJJ to his immense size and NCAA champion wrestling background.  Prior to his illness Lesnar seemed to be an unstoppable force.  Sporting 4XL gloves and the widest back I have ever seen.  Lesnar’s physicality in the octagon has been unmatched.

Shane Carwin’s rise to his current title shot was not as publicized as Lesnar’s.  He’s a soft spoken engineer out of Colorado; a long way from the former charismatic WWE wrestler.  Carwin has become known for two things to date: He has never let a fight make it to the second round and he also has hands the size of cinder blocks, wearing a 4XL glove as well.  Carwin has shown that he is beyond heavy handed in his undefeated career with impressive knockouts of Gabriel Gonzaga and more recently Frank Mir.  Carwin was also a division II national wrestling champion.  This along with his size have many thinking that he will be able to nullify Lesnar’s ground and pound game and be able to stand and strike where Carwin seems to have an advantage.

As in any fight there is infinitely more to it than how fighters match up on paper.  ‘A punchers chance’ could not be more appropriate than with these two massive guys.  One solid punch on the button from either can put down anyone in the sport of MMA.  Lesnar’s work ethic and confidence in his abilities have never been an issue.  If Lesnar shows up healthy and in shape this could be a great fight.  I think the defining factor in this fight will be whether Carwin can match Lesnar’s strength and wrestling ability.  If these two aspects are nullified and the fight stays standing Carwin may indeed get the KO and unify the heavyweight title.