LAS VEGAS -- Brock Lesnar realized a bit too late that he should have let his performance alone make the statement. And the statement was this: He's big, he's bad, and he's the champ. There was no need for anything else, but he let his emotions get the best of him and taunted a bloodied man he'd already physically beaten, then badmouthed a major sponsor of his company and finally, flipped off the fans.
Soon after pulling off that trifecta and the heat of the moment wore off, he realized he'd gone too far. And for the record, he apologized.
Lesnar explained that coming from the entertainment business of WWE, hyping fights was part of his ordinary mindset, and it's the only part of his past job that remains.
"I have nothing against Frank," he continued. "The only thing I have against him is that he beat me. In the end, this stuff comes out because I'm just amped up."
Just to make sure Lesnar got the point, UFC president Dana White walked back into the champion's locker room shortly after his match, pulled him aside into the bathroom and let him know his conduct wasn't acceptable.
"Any fighter will tell you, you get emotional out there at times," White said. "You say stupid things you don't mean. What he did was so far over the top, I can't even describe it and put it into words ... He apologized like a real man would. He said, 'I'm embarrassed.' "
The win took some of the luster off Lesnar's otherwise dominant win over Frank Mir. Evening the score from their first go-round, Lesnar was able to stay out of Mir's submission traps until finding an opening that led to a series of hammer-like right hands that ended the fight. According to White, Lesnar could possibly next see the winner of the upcoming Shane Carwin-Cain Velasquez UFC 104 matchup.
Wild Night of Fights at UFC 100
Brock Lesnar, right, gets in Frank Mir's face after their heavyweight title bout at UFC 100 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas Saturday, July 11, 2009.
Las Vegas Review-Journal / AP
Brock Lesnar celebrates after defeating Frank Mir in their heavyweight title bout at UFC 100 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas Saturday, July 11, 2009.
Las Vegas Review-Journal / AP
Brock Lesnar celebrates after retaining the UFC heavyweight title against Frank Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Lesnar beat Mir by second-round TKO.
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Brock Lesnar pummels Frank Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Brock Lesnar tries to punch Frank Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Brock Lesnar grapples with Frank Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Brock Lesnar punches Frank Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Frank Mir tries to block a punch from Brock Lesnar at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Brock Lesnar tries to choke Frank Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Brock Lesnar kneels on top of Frank Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 7)
7-12-2009 @ 4:47AM
RIP Air McNair PSN: johnnynumber5 said...
This was UFC 100 and Lesnar was the main event and main draw ... not the best way to legitimize the sport IMO as his behavior was more fake wrestling ... looked like some serious roid rage to me (not saying he is roiding but seriously was crazy behavior.)
Let me just say that I haven't liked Lesnar up to this point because of his actions (taunting Herring after the fight -pointing, laughing and doing the lasso, making fun of Couture and tonight) before and after fights. The thing he doesn't understand is there is supposed to be mutual respect after a fight ... hell, you just dominated Mir and should have let his fighting do all the talking. No need to embarass him like that ... shake his hand and say good fight.
Not only were his actions deplorable (making light of a MAJOR sponsor, getting in Mir's face, flipping off the fans AND basically saying he was going to "get on top of my wife" was disgusting) and he should be reprimanded and have some of his purse deducted. Make him feel it in his pocket book.
The guy is a beast and I'm not sure who is going to be able to beat him in the UFC HW division. Now, I still wouldn't say he would be favored to beat Fedor at this point but would be heavily favored against any current UFC HW.
Outside of the UFC I would like to see him fight Overeem, Rodgers, Fedor, Barnett or Big Foot Silva. Carwin might be able to take him ... doubt it ... but you never know. Shane can punch pretty good but I don't think Velazquez could do it at all.
It kind if seem like all the UFC champions are pretty much unbeatable in their weight classes and could all hold the belts for a long time. Penn will dominate florian, GSP has dominated everyone other than that Serra fluke, Silva has dominated everyone, Machida looks pretty much unbeatable and Lesnar doesn't have an equal in the UFC. We could see some champions for a LOOOONG time.
Great night but Lesnar kind of ruined it for me. That shit will ruin the sport.
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7-12-2009 @ 11:11AM
jbsbbrown said...
Great comment, I feel Dana White should really take a good look at what he is doing to his UFC.
He is going to have his customers get turned off by people like this, i.e Don King. We watch these fights because we have the understanding of RESPECT after the fight. I say down with Brock,don't let him fight again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7-12-2009 @ 1:19PM
Ted said...
Well stated!
7-12-2009 @ 2:24PM
anoldfriend10 said...
Get over it! it was a fight, he rocked that big mouth and shut him up, as for his comment...Be a man! so what! this country has turned our men and boys into a bunch of cry babies! Its about time we have someone speaking from his heart instead of his pocket book! Budweiser should of paid him and to be quite honest, he did plug Budweiser for free! Get over it and start watching lifetime if you dont like it.
7-12-2009 @ 3:36PM
senbukan said...
excellent comment...I couldn't have said it any better myself. Lesnar is totally unprofessional and unethical. The sport is very rough; but crap like that makes people who are trying to ban it seem correct. Lesnar pissed me off so much, that if I ever see another fighter make an idiot out of himself (as well as the sport) and not get "serious" ramifications because of it, I'll never pay another cent to see these fights.
I've been training in martial arts for nearly thirty years, and have been teaching for over 25 years. Any person who had that behavior was immediately discarded---physically if needed. Brock needs his butt kicked, and good. And, it will happen. There's ALWAYS one better......
7-13-2009 @ 12:22AM
Bruce said...
I'm sorry, did someone actually refer to this new-age gladiator B.S as a SPORT??? Please! It's the WWF on drugs, which we need like a hole in the head. What's next: Christians vs. Lions?
As for Lesnar, please spare us the apologies. We don't want to hear that you're "sorry" you acted like an a-hole-- we want to see you act like a human being in the FIRST place! The only thing that would make him "sorry" would be if his check bounced!
7-12-2009 @ 4:50AM
RIP Air McNair PSN: johnnynumber5 said...
Lesnar's behavior was deplorable. He did it all in the octagon so the other stuff wasn't necessary. This is especially true at a flagship event like UFC 100 with lots of new fans watching. What a meat-head typical jock idiot. Unbelievable fighter but awful human being.
Let's seem him fight a guy like Fedor before we say he is the best HW in MMA. Make it happen DANA WHITE!
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7-12-2009 @ 6:40AM
RIP Air McNair PSN: johnnynumber5 said...
Just wanted to say my initial post (the long one) didn't take for some reason so O added another one that was much shorter.
Sorry for the double post.
7-14-2009 @ 4:50PM
yzzix said...
I know Dana White wants to get my pay per view dollar so I'm going to tell him how to do it. First off Brock Lesnar isn't a MMA fighter, he is a bully. Now I know I have offended some people but look at what he did after he supposedly beat Mir, he got right back in his face. I have watched all of his fights and here is his game plan. He outwieghs all of his opponents by considerable amounts, then he smothers them with his size. So we either need to create a new wieght class or we need to find a true mma fighter to fight him, that is the same size. Oh I know someone is going to say that there isn't any, and to this I say that if there is one, there are more. I remember the day Mike Tyson was unbeatable, and so does Buster Douglas. So getting back to my statement to Dana White. If you would like me to pay for a pay per view, find someone to knock that sore loser out and I will feel like I have gotten my moneys worth.
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7-12-2009 @ 10:02AM
Michelle said...
Keep your money...Change your channel...We won't miss you... Bye !!!!
7-12-2009 @ 11:59AM
neozoo said...
first off,
michelle i agree with your comments especially your later post on this thread.
secondly,
I KNEW ALL THE BROCK BASHING WOULD START
HE SAID HE WAS SORRY SO GET OVER IT
HE IS AN EMOTIONAL GUY THAT YES GETS A LITTLE CARRIED AWAY, AND YES I ALSO DIDN'T LIKE THE HERRING LASSO BIT.
BUT YA KNOW, MIR CAME ACROSS KINDA COCKY TOO.
THE DUDE IS A TOTAL MONSTER.
THIS IS ONLY HIS 5th MMA FIGHT....WOW!
for some reason people think that this hyped up behavior hurts the sport, what about football?
ohh, its okay in team sports only, huh.
and to the idiot who says brock left wwe cause he was getting beat by bigger guys, your kidding right.
anyways, read michelle's later post it's spot on.
7-12-2009 @ 1:25PM
Bestmiamifanever said...
Your so wrong. He uses his size to his advantage and your saying he isnt a real fighter. Its no different then someone using reach or speed to their advantage. Sure he has a mouth on hime but i enjoy it. Someone will beat him becuase they will tire him out. Hes bigger then everybody and he is also carrying more around to. Frank Mir wasnt anybody special before he beat Brock. There are better fighters out there that that loser Mir.
7-12-2009 @ 3:05PM
medic1039 said...
Brock smothering Mir is no different than GSP smothering Alves. Every fighter does what it takes to beat there opponent. Alves would have beat "Frenchy" if the fight stayed up on their feet. Mir's only chance was the submission game and he couldn't counter the ground and pound. I don't condone Brock's post fight actions, he was ticked off and it reflected negatively on the sport. But Mir got what he deserved. The only reason some people call him a bully is his size. There are bullys in the 155 lb class also (BJ Penn). Stop hating on Brock, Dana White will take care of him.
7-12-2009 @ 6:21PM
RIP Air McNair PSN: johnnynumber5 said...
I can't wait for Lesnar to lose so all you wanna be MMA fans who are really just WWE casuals will fade into obscurity like Lesnar eventually will.
DONT YOU PEOPLE GET IT!!
HIS BEHAVIOR WAS UNACCEPTABLE. SAYING SORRY DOESN'T EXCUSE WHAT HE DID LAST NIGHT.
This guy is single handedly destroying the UFC brand and image. Why do you think Dana White scolded him so bad???
You guys who just excuse his behavior are all officialy called LESTARDS - especially Michelle.
7-12-2009 @ 10:11PM
jeffm309 said...
I think that the smaller fighter can beat him easily!I thought that Mir was going to use all of his TRUE FIGHTER skills and we all know he has them! I thought that Mir would have a strategy or "game plan" for this man.OK he is bigger but not better! So Mir should have move fast,get in punch,get out or better yet,kick and get out.In a mean time stay away but take him apart.Make him tired and frustrated,use your head and don't get in a clinch with him.He is NOT better but just bigger and he smothers other opponents.Last night we saw that he has not any ground skills and have no idea what to do except punch and smother.New game plan would work like a charm!True fan Amela M
7-12-2009 @ 6:29AM
out of the cellar said...
I always thought Lesnar was an amazing fighter that took a lot of flack from the fans. True he got his shot before he should have, but he's pretty impressive.
Having said that, it's obvious that he's going to have to be reined in as much as possible by the UFC or he will continue to embarrass them. His behavior and attitude are the reasons UFC will continue not to be sanctioned in my home state of NY. Too bad. Brock, get your act together and stop acting like a goon. This is the UFC, not the Bloods or Crips.
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7-12-2009 @ 11:14AM
HI CMA MAN said...
Brock needs to grow up and act like a champion. He is big and strong, BUT, he will meet his match and get his azz kicked in time. He was a foul mouthed wrestler, and when he was wrestling bigger wrestlers, he got his azz kicked, thus, he left WWE. I personally feel that WHITE should take some of Brock's purse away to teach him a valuable lesson in life, which is, to be respectful of other fighters, promoters and most importantly the FANS that pay to keep this wanna be sport a game.
7-12-2009 @ 12:24PM
neozoo said...
the things that ny is fighting has nothing to do with post fight hype, otherwise why don't they just bar TO (terrel owens)from stepping foot in the state.
it has more to do with what hendo did than what brock says.
i love hendo, but the extra shot he gave bisping does more to give mma the blood sport image than hyped up post or pre fight ramblings.
would you question hendo's classiness? probably not. but he knew bisping was out as soon as he connected, so was it classy to give him that extra shot. oh but that's okay because bisping is a dick and hendo is a quiet supposedly humble guy. true mma fans hopefully realize which is really worse for the image of the sport.
brock is a mainstream character that brings new people to mma and is great for the ufc.
and now fedor vs brock starts, wow!
like i said before this is only his 5th mma fight and we are talking about a fight with fedor, amazing. not only is that fact amazing brock is amazing.
7-12-2009 @ 6:55AM
selliott21 said...
I concur entirely. This was the first UFC match I have ever watched. Everyone said Lesner was going to win, so I was considering rooting for him. He is the poster child for poor sportsmanship. He wouldn't even bump fists to begin! The ref should have stopped the fight earlier. Talking smack to Mir was classless, spitting at the camera was juvenile, as was flipping off the fans. He should go back to WWE - I was under the impression UFC was supposed to be a SPORT until I saw that match!
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7-12-2009 @ 3:40PM
medic1039 said...
I guess none of you treehuggers have ever been mad at someone or ever been in a "real" fight. This was a "fight" for Brock instead of a MMA match which led to his actions. Ask yourself, how would you control your emotions given the same circumstances.