ESPN Covers Brock Lesnar UFC Comeback
While it may not have been on of the top stories or given on ???The Lead??? on the crawl, but the ???Worldwide Leader in Sports??? actually had a MMA segment during Wednesday???s ???SportsCenter??? telecast. With the conference championship games coming up on Sunday, the NFL obviously trumped everything else. Even the pussy sport of tennis took up some airtime with highlights of the Australian Open. But ESPN could not totally ignore the fastest growing sport in the world.
While they may have went as mainstream as they could by making the well-known Brock Lesnar the subject of the story, it was a quality segment with a live interview of the injured UFC heavyweight champion and league president Dana White.
???Let???s make it clear. I???m still the UFC heavyweight champion,??? Lesnar said emphatically. The 32-year-old has been out since October with ended up being diagnosed as diverticulosis, a severe case of diverticulitis. He narrowly avoided surgery that would have resulted in his colon being removed, necessitating a colostomy bag and the end of his career and a completely different quality of life.
Since then, Lesnar has put back 30 of the 40 pounds that he lost in the hospital and has dumbfounded doctors by his recovery. ???Basically the doctors said he got a lottery ticket,??? White added. ???It???s a miracle.???
So when will we see Lesnar back in the Octagon now that he has medical clearance? Well, before that happens, an interim heavyweight champ will be named at March???s UFC 111 in New Jersey. Shane Carwin, who Lesnar was scheduled to defend the belt against in November, will face Frank Mir. The winner will then take their shot against Lesnar (4-1), most likely in Australia this August.
To the average sports fan, they may have made a trip to the bathroom during this interview. But for the rest of us, not many stories are bigger than the champ ??? who was cut down before his prime by a freak medical condition ??? coming back to kick some ass. The outspoken Lesnar may be MMA???s most recognizable face right now and his return can only be good for the growth of the sport ??? at least on ESPN.
While it may not have been on of the top stories or given on ???The Lead??? on the crawl, but the ???Worldwide Leader in Sports??? actually had a MMA segment during Wednesday???s ???SportsCenter??? telecast. With the conference championship games coming up on Sunday, the NFL obviously trumped everything else. Even the pussy sport of tennis took up some airtime with highlights of the Australian Open. But ESPN could not totally ignore the fastest growing sport in the world.
While they may have went as mainstream as they could by making the well-known Brock Lesnar the subject of the story, it was a quality segment with a live interview of the injured UFC heavyweight champion and league president Dana White.
???Let???s make it clear. I???m still the UFC heavyweight champion,??? Lesnar said emphatically. The 32-year-old has been out since October with ended up being diagnosed as diverticulosis, a severe case of diverticulitis. He narrowly avoided surgery that would have resulted in his colon being removed, necessitating a colostomy bag and the end of his career and a completely different quality of life.
Since then, Lesnar has put back 30 of the 40 pounds that he lost in the hospital and has dumbfounded doctors by his recovery. ???Basically the doctors said he got a lottery ticket,??? White added. ???It???s a miracle.???
So when will we see Lesnar back in the Octagon now that he has medical clearance? Well, before that happens, an interim heavyweight champ will be named at March???s UFC 111 in New Jersey. Shane Carwin, who Lesnar was scheduled to defend the belt against in November, will face Frank Mir. The winner will then take their shot against Lesnar (4-1), most likely in Australia this August.
To the average sports fan, they may have made a trip to the bathroom during this interview. But for the rest of us, not many stories are bigger than the champ ??? who was cut down before his prime by a freak medical condition ??? coming back to kick some ass. The outspoken Lesnar may be MMA???s most recognizable face right now and his return can only be good for the growth of the sport ??? at least on ESPN.
