Why Bobby Lashley Isn't In The UFC
by Kelvin Hunt on Jun 29, 2009 11:52 AM EDT
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PrintOur bubby Zak Woods over at WKR asks the questions why Bobby Lashley isn't in the UFC after destroying Bob Sapp:
How is it that two men with nearly identical resumes are in such different places within their career? WKR already touched on the issue of timing and Lesnar's brighter star in the WWE, but that doesn't change the fundamental skill sets of each fighter of which Lesnar and Lashley appear identical.
It is not like the UFC doesn't need more athletic heavyweights (hell, they just need more capable heavyweights) thus the question remains how can one be a champion while the other be in the minors?
Lashley just spoke with some other friends of ours at ProMMA.info and pretty much answered the question:
I think this fight game is a learning progress. The guys in the UFC have plenty of fights under their belt and they’re incredible fighters so I think what I’m trying to do is fight in these organizations and build myself up and get my ring rust in and get some fights under my belt so that I feel really comfortable. And when I feel really comfortable I take that step up to the UFC, Strikeforce, Affliction, whichever one it is and then start fighting the big boys. I don’t want to go into those organizations as another fighter working my way up. I want to go into those organizations as a serious contender for a title when I make it over there.
Also, not to mention that he isn't Brock Lesnar and they have don't share identical resumes since Lesnar is a NCAA wrestling champ. Whereas Lashley was a NAIA champ, and being a former college athlete myself, there's a pretty big difference in competition. I think Lashley's taking the right approach in that he has a lot of holes in his game that he's working on right now. There's no sense in trying to fight with guys that have a significant advantage in terms of experience and skills. Plus, if Lashley strings together some wins and beats a couple of semi-credible opponents, he'll have more leverage at the bargaining table so to speak. He's stated that he wants to fight in the UFC, so when the time is right I'm pretty sure both will come to terms and make it happen since they have had dialogue in the past.
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I should of written this down but I just said it in the podcast so I will repeat it here.
Lesnar may be more athletic than Lashley but Lashley is still way more athletic than the rest of the UFC HW division
watchkalibrun.com
Melvin Guillard
Is probably more athletic than most of the UFC LW division…and has way more experience than Lashley…so being athletic only counts for so much.
http://www.mmaforreal.com
by Kelvin Hunt on Jun 29, 2009 12:48 PM EDT up reply actions
That true but
Your question is why he is not in the UFC. He may be more athletic than anyone on the UFC HW roster but you still have to come in and be able to compete at a high level and do it in an impressive fashion.
Now if you are asking why the UFC don’t sign Lashley and bring him in very slowly until he ready to fight the Lesnar’s and Velasquez, I would have to say that is a big risk that would not do both sides any favors at this time. Keep in mind, he struggled to win a decision against a guy who flamed out as a light heavyweight on TUF. Jason Guida came in as an overweight light heavyweight in that fight, and had fits with him despite the fact that he had a significant size advantage over him. That is not a strong indication on how well you’ll do against the lower level talent in UFC.
Also, after that fight, he said the pre-fight trash talk about his pro wrestling background got to him. It also bothered him in that fight against Mike Cook, based on him not touching gloves with him before finishing him off. You can’t come on the big stage in that state of mind. Especially with the combination of Octagon Jitters and the crowd being possibly hostile to you based your pro wrestling background.
by The Bronzeville Bully on Jun 29, 2009 2:00 PM EDT up reply actions
look
the ufc doesn’t want to be label as the wwe’s cuckold bro, where ex wrestlers come in and fight. sure you have guys like lesnar that you can’t pass up on, but most of those pro wrestlers are fraud when it comes down to training for mma. ie kurt ‘’pain killer’’ angle. in lashley’s case the ufc would sign him in a heart beat but they are doing the right thing in letting him get ring experience. if he continues to win great, if he losses a lot of fights no ufc contract and nothing to lose for the ufc
Also, Lashley was MUCH lighter than Lesnar when wrestling… Lesnar was a s.c. “true heavyweight”
Bloody hell.
Also
Not to mention that we haven’t seen Lashley use like any standup in his fights…does he have power in his standup?
http://www.mmaforreal.com
Also
I am still wondering if Lashley’s head is in the right place in terms of his MMA career? Not to say he is not hundred percent committed to the sport, but recent actionsgot me thinking otherwise. He probably eventually decided to stay away from the pro wrestling to focus more on his MMA career, but one of the reasons he did was because both TNA and him could not come to an agreement over the scheduling. Plus, I am surprised that this has not been discussed enough, but realistically what did this fight against Bob Sapp do for his career? Let’s not sit here and pretend Sapp was represent a step up in competition for Lashley.
by The Bronzeville Bully on Jun 29, 2009 2:14 PM EDT reply actions
Good points. I think that, overall, it was a decent progression for his first 6 months in the fight game. But I’d definitely expect to see him kick it up a notch in the next 6 months. I’m thinking that from just a pure marketablity standpoint, though, that an organization with a real television deal will snatch him up soon.
Oh
We all here at MMA4Real were saying that the Sapp fight didn’t do anything for his career.
http://www.mmaforreal.com
Brock literally broke Heath’s face with one punch on the way to a dominating win and put away Randy Couture. Lashley had trouble putting Jason Guida away and Sapp’s grappling ability has always been inversely proportional to his size.
But Bobby’s handler’s have his career on the right track. He’s been allowed to build up his career slowly like prospects are supposed to. Zuffa will eventually sign him if he keeps winning on the regional circuit.
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