Mir – Lesnar Fight Brings New, Broader Audience
Published by on February 9th, 2008 in Almanac

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The fight between Frank Mir and Brock Lesnar may prove to be a significant event in MMA history, one way or another. It was indeed the first time a competitor who was both an Olympic wrestler and a pro wrestling champion had ever competed in the UFC.

It was not his experience with the WWE, but his background in amateur wrestling, that was a significant skill employed by many successful MMA fighters, among them former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Randy Couture. If there was anything that made Lesnar a therat, it’s that he was “legitimate” in that one major component of a mixed martial artist’s repertoire.

But the driver behind interest in this fight was Lesnar’s heavyweight title in World Wrestling Entertainment, and the fans who were familiar with him from that area of endeavor. And it drove the betting on the fight as well. Lesnar wound up a -175 favorite at the online sportsbook BetUS.com, dspite the fact that it was Mir who was the seasoned MMA combatant who had in fact been the UFC’s heavyweight champion, while Lesnar was the newcomer.

But the public often drives betting odds, and in this case the public that was “getting down” on the fight consisted largely of those who were obviously impressed by Lesnar’s exploits in the choreographed world of pro wrestling.

Interest within the wrestling community was considerable, since one of their own was looking to conquer new territory. While it can be safely said that an appreciable amount of interest in MMA came from fans of professional wrestling, it was readily apparent that Lesnar’s involvement was bringing even more fans over, and it had its effect.

On his blog, WWE television announcer Jim Ross wrote:

“All my friends that attended the UFC 81 event said without question that Lesnar was the ‘star attraction’ of the night and that most fans were there to see him, especially many of the celebs in attendance,”

Lesnar lost his fight Mir, but perhaps mixed martial arts in general, and the UFC in particular, won. That’s because even though everyone by now is aware of the sport, if Lesnar’s participation brought some people closer to the action and create some fans, the long-term benefits of that will accrue.