Fedor fought Nogueira and couldn't do in six rounds what Mir did in less than 2. I think Mir is an even match for Lesnar right now. But it's now or never. Mir is at his peak and Lesnar is going to get better in the next couple years.

I think Mir would beat Fedor, and I think Lesnar would kill Fedor.

Lesnar/Mir will get more pay-per-views buys, pull down a higher gate, and garner for more mainstream press than Fedor/Arlovski at the Affliction show in late January, but for those of us who are die hard MMA fans, this is the match that, at least for the time being, determines who is the top heavyweight fighter in the world. Although Fedor's recent resume isn't as distinguished as most of us would like it to be, he's still considered by most MMA pundits the finest heavyweight in the world, and Andrei Arlovski, a former UFC champion who is perhaps the most dynamic striker in the heavyweight division currently (and a decorated sambo practitioner himself), will be Fedor's first great test in a quite awhile.

Unfortunately, the factionalism, politicking, and bickering in MMA often prevent the fans and the sport as a whole from having truly undisputed champions. Separate of his possession of the newly-created WAMMA heavyweight championship, Fedor has long been the de facto heavyweight champion of MMA so it will be interesting to see if he leaves Day of Reckoning still the emperor of the division.

But what's going to be even more interesting from this fan's perspective is, assuming Fedor defeats Arlovski, how long Fedor holds onto his de facto crown. Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir each hold a half of the UFC heavyweight championship. Once the title is unified, will that champion still lag a step or two behind Fedor in the eyes of MMA fans and pundits? Things will become most complicated if Fedor defeats Arlovski and Brock defeats Mir. Assuming the outcome of Mir/Lesnar is in Brock's favor, Lesnar's resume will include wins over heavyweight gatekeeper Heath Herring, a 45-year-old Randy Couture who at the time sported more than a year of ring rust, and Frank Mir, who before beating Minotauro had not looked like a top-tier heavyweight since submitting Tim Sylvia in the summer of 2004 (which was before his devastating motorcycle accident).

Would such a resume put Lesnar ahead of Fedor in the world heavyweight rankings? In my opinion, no, it certainly would not. Fedor has a career of convincing victories over quality opponents and has as great of a skillset as any MMA fighter in any weight class ever, but I don't think the factors that will ultimately decide where Lesnar and Fedor would rank (assuming they both win their respective upcoming fights) in the eyes of many will necessarily be skill-related or even resume-related. I think it could very well come down to how much credibility people lend to a virtual free-agent like Fedor in comparison to the UFC heavyweight title (and really, the UFC brand name) and how much people buy into the ever-growing Lesnar hype which is forever being stoked by Dana White and many others. If people are convinced that a Lesnar victory over Mir is a delivery on the hype (personally, I don't think by any stretch a victory over Mir would make Lesnar even a top five heavyweight), then he may very well leapfrog Fedor in the eyes of many.

Of course, should Fedor lose or should Lesnar lose (or both), this all goes out the window, but hey, it's fun to think about.

Sorry to go on so long, Mark. Love the blog, and thanks for giving us a venue to express our opinions.

In response to the poster above...

hahahahhahahahhahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahaha...*cough*...hahahahahaha!

Yes, and I am indeed rolling on the floor as well during that laughter. You should go into comedy man, really you should.

Seriously, a couple things:

First, the TKO Mir received was a poor refereeing call. Mir was winning the fight and I think he had a good chance to take the fight but Nog has NEVER been knocked out...stunned yes, knocked down yes, but NEVER out. He was not given time to get into guard or respond in any way to Mir's assault by the ref (I replayed the call MANY times just to be sure there wasn't something I missed), so I call foul. That said, Mir should be a good match-up against Lesnar, who is a decent fighter but not great in any way except size. I see a cap on Heavyweight coming in a year or two once his appeal and any reasonable opposition dries up. That is if he doesn't get knocked out with an injury, as the really big (size wise) athletes are prone to do.

Second, people always talk trash about Fedor and yet he repeatedly backs up his title of best fighter in the world and one of the best ever (fit to stand with Gracie, Couture, Rutten, and Severn). Bottom line, until he walks into a ring and DOESN'T back up his ranking anyone talking trash about him or his ability is just blowing smoke.

Third, if they don't do a rematch between Griffin and Evans I will be shocked and dissapointed. Forrest always improves after a loss and a rematch between those two would be epic.

UFC 92 was a disappointment. Premature and lopsided bouts. Pity.

You won't see a Griffin v. Evans rematch any time soon. Jackson deserved a rematch more and I don't think he would've been given one even if he was healthy mentally. There was a definitive winner in the Evans fight, so Griffin will need to win a couple fights before getting another shot.

C. Smith- that's a good breakdown of the heavyweight situation. Fedor, in my opinion, stays at the top until he loses. At least for another 18 months or so. As long as he fights Arlovski-caliber guys on a regular basis, he can stay there.

i think that if ANYONE thinks forrest deserves a rematch they don't know to much about mma.When he fought rampage and won i thought to myself...this is the first Don King move i've seen the ufc make.I've watched that fight over and over again and still can't believe the judges gave the fight to forrest.Usually you have to beat the champ...but more and more i see Dana spoon feeding certain fighters easy fights to keep their rankings up...As you and everyone else saw how good forrest is when he got his ass spanked by a guy who really hasn't fought a top 5 guy ...I know what some people will say...he knocked out chuck right.....he's one of those fighters that's had some spoon feeding..i'd love to see him fight fedor...love to see all 25 seconds of him again getting his ass spnked.Mark my words....when it comes to the top 5 fighters FORREST IS DONE!!!!!!!!

Lesnar is another Kimbo, he just has a bigger entity behind him.

If Lesnar can beat Mir 2.0, it will be by boring decision or questonable knockout.

On the other side of the spectrum, Fedor will beat Arlovski, who isn't who he used to be.

Finally, if Lesnar did bear Mir, and Fedor beat Arlovski, and somehow Trump and White arranged the biggest cross-promotional event ever, Fedor would beat Lesnar, no doubt.

Look at Lesnar when he fights.

No finesse', no real style; rough jabs, haymakers, improper Neanderthal fight stance, lumbering movements. If you made him in an MMA video game, he would just be the default character and you'd just have to make him big, strong, and fast, slap a penis sword on his chest and give him a blonde crew-cut.

Well, Fedor is big, strong, and fast, but he also is very, very skilled; and would finish Brock within the seond round any way he wanted.

Watching the replay, there was a point when Nog's arms went limp. The follow up shots rewoke him.

Rampage should get Evans next. Griffing should get Liddel.

Nog couldn't intelligently defend himself; ref made the correct call. Nog's finest days are behind him -- too much cumulative damage. Look at Nog's face after the stoppage -- he was clueless. Good call for fighter safety.

If Mir brings his A-game, he will stop Lesnar.

In response to Justin Brewer, Brock Lesnar has a distinct difference than Kimbo Slice. He is a Div I NCAA National Champion wrestler. Brock is a underrated stiker. He knocked out Randy Cotour, knocked Frank Mir down twice, and broke Heath Herring's orbital bone with a powerful right striaght. I'm not saying he is better than Fedor. Fedor would most likely beat Brock. But, Brock is no pushover. And how can you say he has no finnesse? The man has rocked every single person he has fought with accurate and well-timed strikes...all striaghts, not "haymakers."

What bars get the PPV's around here?