LAS VEGAS – So Brock Lesnar, in the parlance of pro wrestling, had gone straight heel.

After bludgeoning Frank Mir to retain the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight championship at the hyped UFC 100, the former pro wrestling star decided to put on a real show.

Lesnar ran around the octagon flipping off the Mandalay Bay Events Center crowd with both middle fingers. He shouted at Mir as the challenger sat on a stool trying to regain his equilibrium. Mir stood up and they went sort of nose-to-broken nose before Lesnar cackled with laughter.

In the post-fight interview, Lesnar encouraged the booing fans to “keep going” before continuing to taunt Mir.

No one and nothing was spared. Lesnar even turned his attention to the UFC itself, which paid him an estimated $3 million for the fight, pointing at the giant Bud Light advertisement in the middle of the octagon.

“I’m drinking a cooler full of Coors Light, Coors Light because Bud Light won’t pay me anything.”

Anything for the children at home, big guy?

“Hell, I might even get on top of my wife tonight.”  Read more... (1062 words, estimated 4:15 mins reading time)

The career: Punching guys in the face in the world of mixed martial arts.

The job candidates: Two wrestling state champions from St. Edward, two accomplished college wrestlers, two athletes looking for a way to turn their sport into a job.

The difference: Timing.

Six years ago, after he left Michigan State, Gray Maynard stumbled into his new life in a Las Vegas gym. For the latest generation of wrestlers such as Ohio State senior Lance Palmer, ultimate fighting is part of the plan.

Maynard and Palmer may wind up in the same place, but Palmer is starting his path much sooner

College basketball players have the NBA, college football players have the NFL, and now, college wrestlers have the adrenaline-stoked combat sport that combines the jabs and hooks of boxing, the takedowns and holds of wrestling and the kicks and attacks of judo and jujitsu.

For years, the booming world of mixed martial arts, led by its leading organization, the Ultimate Fighting Championship or UFC, has been populated by former college wrestlers, including big-name champions such as Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz. Former Ohio State national champion Mark Coleman helped introduce wrestling techniques to UFC as it entered the mainstream 13 years ago.  Read more... (1590 words, 1 image, estimated 6:22 mins reading time)