Lesnar, Velasquez Official for UFC 121
Brian Knapp Oct 23, 2010
The sport’s most bankable box office draw hit the scales before a
throng of boisterous followers and detractors, as his stoic
opponent looked on from just a few feet away.
Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar checked in at 264 pounds for his five-round title defense against the unbeaten Cain Velasquez (244) in the UFC 121 main event on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The eight other fighters booked for main card duty -- including co-headliners Jake Shields (170.5) and Martin Kampmann (170) -- also met their mandated weight requirements at Friday’s official weigh-in.
In just six professional fights, Lesnar has ascended to the top of
the heavyweight division. A four-time collegiate All-American
wrestler, he won a Div. I national championship at the University
of Minnesota in 2000. Lesnar submitted the previously unbeaten
Shane
Carwin with a second-round arm-triangle choke in the UFC 116
headliner three months ago in Las Vegas, as he returned to the cage
following a lengthy illness. Since entering mixed martial arts in
2007, the 6-foot-3 former World Wrestling Entertainment superstar
has piled up notable wins against UFC hall of famer Randy
Couture, former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir and
Pride Fighting Championships veteran Heath
Herring.
Velasquez has finished seven of his first eight foes, five of them inside one round. The 28-year-old last appeared at UFC 110 in February, when he blasted through beloved Brazilian Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in a little more than two minutes at the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia. A junior college national champion, Velasquez was a two-time All-American wrestler at Arizona State University. Victories against French kickboxer Cheick Kongo and former International Fight League standout Ben Rothwell anchor his resume.
UFC 121 “Lesnar vs. Velasquez” -- which also features a welterweight duel pitting the world-ranked Paul Thiago (170.5) against Diego Sanchez (170.5), a light heavyweight tilt pairing former champion Tito Ortiz (206) with Matt Hamill (203.5) and a heavyweight bout between “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 10 finalist Brendan Schaub (239.5) and Gabriel Gonzaga (254) -- will air live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. An hour prior, Spike TV will carry a pair of fights from the undercard: Court McGee (184.5) vs. Ryan Jensen (185) and Patrick Cote (185) vs. Tom Lawlor (185).
UFC 121 “Lesnar vs. Velasquez”
Saturday, Oct. 23
Honda Center
Anaheim, Calif.
UFC Heavyweight Championship
Brock Lesnar (264) vs. Cain Velasquez (244)
Jake Shields (170.5) vs. Martin Kampmann (170)
Tito Ortiz (206) vs. Matt Hamill (203.5)
Brendan Schaub (239) vs. Gabriel Gonzaga (254)
Paulo Thiago (170.5) vs. Diego Sanchez (170.5)
Court McGee (184.5) vs. Ryan Jensen (185)
Patrick Cote (185) vs. Tom Lawlor (185)
Michael Guymon (170) vs. Daniel Roberts (170)
Sam Stout (155.5) vs. Paul Taylor (155)
Dongi Yang (186) vs. Chris Camozzi (185)
Gilbert Yvel (249) vs. Jon Madsen (254.5)
Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar checked in at 264 pounds for his five-round title defense against the unbeaten Cain Velasquez (244) in the UFC 121 main event on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The eight other fighters booked for main card duty -- including co-headliners Jake Shields (170.5) and Martin Kampmann (170) -- also met their mandated weight requirements at Friday’s official weigh-in.
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Velasquez has finished seven of his first eight foes, five of them inside one round. The 28-year-old last appeared at UFC 110 in February, when he blasted through beloved Brazilian Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in a little more than two minutes at the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia. A junior college national champion, Velasquez was a two-time All-American wrestler at Arizona State University. Victories against French kickboxer Cheick Kongo and former International Fight League standout Ben Rothwell anchor his resume.
UFC 121 “Lesnar vs. Velasquez” -- which also features a welterweight duel pitting the world-ranked Paul Thiago (170.5) against Diego Sanchez (170.5), a light heavyweight tilt pairing former champion Tito Ortiz (206) with Matt Hamill (203.5) and a heavyweight bout between “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 10 finalist Brendan Schaub (239.5) and Gabriel Gonzaga (254) -- will air live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. An hour prior, Spike TV will carry a pair of fights from the undercard: Court McGee (184.5) vs. Ryan Jensen (185) and Patrick Cote (185) vs. Tom Lawlor (185).
UFC 121 “Lesnar vs. Velasquez”
Saturday, Oct. 23
Honda Center
Anaheim, Calif.
UFC Heavyweight Championship
Brock Lesnar (264) vs. Cain Velasquez (244)
Jake Shields (170.5) vs. Martin Kampmann (170)
Tito Ortiz (206) vs. Matt Hamill (203.5)
Brendan Schaub (239) vs. Gabriel Gonzaga (254)
Paulo Thiago (170.5) vs. Diego Sanchez (170.5)
Court McGee (184.5) vs. Ryan Jensen (185)
Patrick Cote (185) vs. Tom Lawlor (185)
Michael Guymon (170) vs. Daniel Roberts (170)
Sam Stout (155.5) vs. Paul Taylor (155)
Dongi Yang (186) vs. Chris Camozzi (185)
Gilbert Yvel (249) vs. Jon Madsen (254.5)
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