This weekend brings one of the most highly anticipated comeback fights the game of mixed martial arts has ever seen.  

Many questions are about to be answered as many eyes will be watching.

Brock Lesnar returns to the octagon looking to unify the UFC Heavyweight Championship.

Like the power of Greyskull, Brock has one half of the belt while Shane Carwin has the other.  

One of them will unite the belts and become the most powerful heavyweight in the world.

The stakes are high and everyone has an opinion, who wouldn’t want to be there?

Speaking of being there, if a fight fan does find themselves in Sin City this weekend, they may not realize UFC 116 is not the only fight show in town.  

Tuff-N-Uff Amateur Fighting Championships is doing their part to support women’s MMA by coordinating two eight-women championship tournaments.  

The tournaments begin friday, one day before UFC 116.

This provides MMA fans who are in Vegas an opportunity to take in one of the premier amateur organizations in the United States and perhaps even the world.  

Owned by recent Master’s Hall Of Fame inductee Barry Meyer, TNU is hands down one of the best places for an amateur fighter to cut their teeth.

Barry and his brother Jeff’s relentless efforts to provide a safe, competitive, and rewarding environment for fighters shine brightly in the respect they have earned amongst the elite in the MMA community.

Camps like Xtreme Couture, Wand Fight Team, and Greg Jackson’s don’t send their up and comers to just any amateur organization, they send them to Barry and Jeff Meyer.

It shines through in the show. 

All the planning, the hustling, and all the efforts shine through on fight night when the future talent of the sport is on display today.  

It just so happens, as mentioned before, fight night is Friday.

Always the biggest fans and supporters of women’s MMA, the Meyer brothers are bringing together some elite trained and downright scrappy ladies to compete for their 135 and 125 pound titles.

Sixteen warriors will look to showcase their talents against one another for a shot at those titles.  

That totals eight first round tournament matches for two titles Friday at the Orleans Hotel and Casino.

In the most anticipated matchup, two undefeated amateur fighters will hook them up and look to serve up a loss.  Both girls ended their last fights in under 25 seconds.  

Emily Peters-Kegan, a Disorderly Conduct fighter, will square off with Greg Jackson prospect Ashley Weakely.  

Many curious spectators will be looking on when these two crafty ladies get to throwing hands.

Their bout will be accompanied by many more well-matched amateur fighters.  

TNU always delivers only the best MMA matchups in a truly intimate venue such as The Mardi Gras Ballroom, where every seat is the best seat in the house.  

And as always, the fight fans in attendance can almost guarantee they will see some of the superstars of this sport.

On a UFC fight weekend of this magnitude, there is bound to be a small platoon of high profile superstars in town.

What do elite fighters do in the fight capital of the world when they themselves aren’t competing?  

They go catch the best amateur show in town; Tuff-N-Uff.

Never should a fight fan be surprised to bump into MMA elite at a TNU show.  Randy Couture, Wand Silva, Dana White, Joe Rogan, Stitch Duran… the list goes on.

One guaranteed guest in attendance will be Strikeforce Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos.  She will be taking in the fights and will sign autographs for fans Friday night.  

This is hands-down a prime example of the love felt for this organization across this sport.  Think about the magnitude of having a women’s mixed martial arts hero like Cyborg at an amateur event.

That’s a really big deal to these women competing.  

These women surely look up to the pinnacle of their mountain and admire a woman like Cyborg.  To have her in attendance at their amateur fights must really hit home for them.

What an honor for both Tuff-N-Uff and the competitors showcasing their skills in front of a pioneer of their craft.

If you can’t make it live, don’t worry fight fan.  

TNU has teamed up with Go Fight Live to bring this event straight into your home for a minimal PPV fee.  

So tickets start at $25 live in person and less than $10 PPV online at gofightlive.tv .

And just in case you’re wondering, your money goes to more than just TNU.  

They are donating a portion of their proceeds to the Las Vegas Boys and Girls Club whom they have close ties with through their youth MMA program.

All in all, the weekend in Vegas will be electric.  

The fans, the fights, the ring girls, ohhhhh the ring girls.

This one-two Vegas combo of TNU on Friday and UFC 116 on Saturday will be enough to pimp slap even the most hardcore MMA fan.

Don’t miss it.

This article originally published at Hurtsbad.com .

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Like most fans of mixed martial arts, I’m beginning to salivate with Brock Lesnar’s return to the octagon at Ultimate Fighting Championship 116 only a few days away.

Not only will his Saturday night clash with Shane Carwin unify the UFC’s heavyweight belt, but it will be a new test for the former professional wrestler.

In “the Engineer,” Brock will be facing an opponent with the natural size and physicality to neutralize his biggest asset to date—brute strength.

The native South Dakotan also possesses shocking quickness for a monument his size, but he didn’t really need it while pulverizing the comparably weaker opposition offered by Heath Herring, Randy Couture, and Frank Mir.

Against Carwin, who hails from Colorado and is about three years older, Lesnar may need to showcase a different tool from his arsenal lest he absorb his second career defeat to a fellow giant—one who’s demonstrated better striking proficiency thus far in his career.

Finally, one last jolt of juice was added when Fedor Emelianenko tapped Fabricio Werdum’s leg last weekend.

The seismic upset at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum means the winner of UFC 116′s main event will be the world’s No. 1 ranked gladiator at 265 pounds.

However, that last development raises a very interesting question about the state of the organization’s heavyweight ladder.

Before Vai Cavalo—the English translation, “Go Horse,” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it—caught “the Last Emperor” in his lethal triangle armbar, the UFC’s biggest brawlers had been ticketed as the new generation of elite 265-pounders without much resistance.

And for good reason.

Lesnar, Carwin, Cain Velasquez, and Junior dos Santos have all been thoroughly impressive while stringing together recent victories.

Each seems to possess a well-rounded game, capable of out-wrestling his adversary or stuffing any attempt to take the issue to the ground.

On their feet, each packs a wallop and everyone except the champ has shown one-punch power.

Something tells me Brock Lesnar has that thunder; it’s just a matter of landing it.

Collectively, the quartet has showcased a mixture of size, strength, fluidity, and speed that’s only been evident in the best and brightest of the division’s history.

Of course, there’s more to a fight than obvious natural gifts.

We’ve seen time and again how the mental aspect of the sport is an equally crucial element. The greats must own a mental toughness that approximates their physical prowess if not surpasses it.

Not every tough guy comes equipped with a noodle that can wrap itself around the concept of getting up after a knockdown, let alone a knockout.

Especially when it’s authored by an apparently equal or superior antagonist.

There’s also the matter of the commitment, dedication, and determination necessary to deal with the pressure that comes from wearing a target on your back.

The rub for the UFC is that such a mentality typically requires a larger sample size than any of the Big Four boasts before it manifests itself.

Lesnar is only 4-1 as a pro, Carwin is undefeated at 12-0 as is Velasquez at 8-0, and Cigano has been vanquished once in 12 contests.

Granted, even the smallest sample—Brock’s five career trips to the cage—would be sufficient to get an accurate read on a warrior’s mental state if they were against five rugged athletes.

But that’s where the leap of faith for all four becomes even blinder.

There isn’t a ton of substance in the 37 engagements that constitute the entire cumulative body of work.

Lesnar’s key victims have already been named (Mir and Couture).

The Engineer gets bonus points for Gabriel Gonzaga and Mir. Velasquez can pound his chest to the tune of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cheick Kongo.

JDS actually has the thickest quality portfolio with wins over Gonzaga, Mirko Filipovic, and Werdum. That’s ironic considering he seems to be gazing up at the others in the rankings.

But even the assemblage of quality can be boiled down further.

Cro Cop has been a shell of himself since his dominant days in the PRIDE Fighting Championships. After Napao’s crushing head kick gave Mirko a taste of his own medicine, Gonzaga’s essentially played punching bag to the better heavyweights he’s faced.

Kongo was manhandled by Mir and didn’t exactly overwhelm an aging Paul Buentello his last time out.

The former can also be said about Minotauro’s date with Mir.

As for “Captain America,” well, he’s always been a more formidable light heavyweight. Couture is no chump on any scale, but he was a serious player at 265 by default more than anything.

When all that dusts settles, you can make a very strong argument that the high esteem reserved for the UFC heavyweights rests almost entirely on the back of Frank Mir.

Lesnar made his biggest bones against Frank as did Carwin.

Velasquez’ largest W came at the expense of a fighter whose reputation suffered very little damage despite getting demolished by Mir.

Only dos Santos remains outside the circle and he’s the lowest on the four-man totem pole.

Obviously, the athletic arena follows no transitive property; comparing fighters based on common opponents and extrapolating from there is an exercise in subjectivity that flirts with irrelevance.

Still, it warrants mention that the shiniest pelts on the wall can eventually be traced back to one individual.

If Frank Mir was the superstar most of us believed him to be, then everything is at it seems.

If not, the UFC heavyweight division might be a house of cards that will crash and burn in the slightest breeze.

Luckily, one thing is etched in stone—finding out which it is will be a whole lot of fun.

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It’s not a secret that the Heavyweight Division in the UFC was not the most entertaining division for some time.  

Some people used to say it lacked depth, some other people used to say that no matter how strong the division was, and who the Champion was, as long as Fedor Emelianenko remained outside of the UFC ranks, there was no way to assess who the real Top Heavyweight in the World was.

Starting with Frank Mir’s motorcycle accident, forcing him out of the game for a long time while being the undisputed Heavyweight Champion, the Heavyweight Division started tumbling.  

For some time the Heavyweight Division was in “limbo”, according to fans and bloggers, and Randy Couture leaving the UFC because of contract disputes didn’t make things anymore interesting. 

Then a big announcement was made—Brock Lesnar signs with the UFC.

After an awesome run of Interim Championship fights, a grueling unification match between Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir, and the rise of new talent among the heavyweights, now we can honestly say, it is the top heavyweight division in the World.

Saturday July 3rd, Brock Lesnar will face one of these rising stars, Shane Carwin.

And so, I would like to share, with all of you B/R readers, my opinions on how I think this fight will break down.

My prediction for this fight is based merely on a comparison made with all the previous Brock Lesnar fights and opponents.

And this is how it goes…

Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir I

In this debut fight Lesnar is facing one of the top Jiu Jitsu players in the world, and is also coming back to claim his belt.  A belt he never actually lost.

A lot of you will agree with me that Lesnar lost this fight by a rookie mistake.  One would think, coming against such a strong jiu jitsu opponent, he would’ve been trained a little better in jiu jitsu defense, but no, clearly that wasn’t the case.

After taking Mir down with ease, and beating him down like a puppy on a ragdoll, the action is stopped by the ref due to alleged blows to the back of the head of Frank Mir, something many of us never agreed on. The fighters were then brought back to their feet after a one point deduction without warning against Brock Lesnar.

We all know how that ended, kneebar locked, Frank Mir ruins Brock Lesnar’s debut.

How does Brock Lesnar matchup against a versed jiu jitsu player?

Not good, minus-one point for Brock.

Brock Lesnar vs Heath Herring

Heath Herring, a Sambo and Muay Thai player, comes into this fight with a 50/50 record inside the UFC, having lost his first and third fights, and winning his second and fourth fights, with all four fights going the distance.

Herring, the not-so-happy recipient of that infamous New Year’s Eve Kiss, was coming into this fight the underdog, although Lesnar had lost his previous fight.

It was no contest from the beginning.  Lesnar knocked down Herring with a lightning fast right hand, and from then on it was all Lesnar. 

Many people pointed out Lesnar’s inability to finish this fight was a clear sign that Lesnar was not a definitive force in this weightclass.

I disagree, for in my mind it was just a matter of time and training.

Not trying to take anything away from Herring, the truth is that he wasn’t really cutting it in the UFC, having lost three out of five fights, it’s not a good sign coming from a guy that has won most of his fights by submission.

At this point, it’s clear to me that strikers will not necessarily do well against Brock if they don’t have a good wrestling base to deal with his takedowns and top control.

So, even though Lesnar gets his first win in the octagon, he still has zero points in my book, which is not one, after the first fight he was minus-one.

Brock Lesnar vs Randy Couture

The biggest fight in the UFC’s Heavyweight Division so far. 

Randy Couture defends his title again after defeating Gabriel Gonzaga.  Couture is the first actual wrestler that Lesnar faces in the UFC.  The crowd roars as Randy goes toe to toe with this behemoth of a human being, avoiding any serious damage on the ground, landing some strikes, getting back up, pressing Lesnar against the cage.

Still, Brock in my book takes the round by a narrow margin, but the electricity in the air was palpable, as Randy Couture wasn’t being manhandled by Lesnar, he was actually in the fight.

Brock ends up winning the fight in the second round by TKO, but despite defeating one of the greatest fighters in UFC history, many started asking themselves how he would perform against a true wrestler who could withstand his power and size.

I would’ve given Brock two points for a win over Captain America, but since Randy gave him such a hard time in the first round, Brock has one point in my book.

Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir II

The rematch everyone was waiting for.  The two fighters going at each other mercilessly in every single pre-fight interview, one of which cost a little ear tug from president Dana White to Frank Mir, for expressions no professional athlete should make.

Now, this fight brings a couple of  questions to the table.  Has Brock Lesnar trained to defend Mir’s legendary jiu jitsu?  Will he be able to dominate Mir like he was doing before the action got stopped by the ref due to the blow to the back of the head?

Before the first fight, Joe Rogan commented that Dave Terrel had predicted that if Mir was to submit Lesnar, it would be with a leg lock, which proved to be true.  Many people say that wrestlers are more susceptible to leg locks.

If you take a look at the fight, not a minute into the fight, they swing, they clinch, and immediately Mir goes for a leg lock.  I think this was a huge mistake, for I would’ve kept the fight standing up for as long as possible.  As soon as I saw how Lesnar reacted I said, “yes, they have trained him to defend from Frank’s submissions.”

Lesnar goes to deliver a disastrous beating to Mir, unifying the Heavyweight Title.

Lesnar versus a jiu jitsu fighter now?

A lot better.  Lesnar is now plus-three in my book.

After analyzing all of Lesnar’s fights in the UFC so far, the only conclusion I could reach is that out of all the styles he faced in the octagon, the wrestler gave him the hardest time.

I would not dare to try and take credit away from Randy Couture, but the truth is that the weight, height, and strength difference was too much.  Randy still gave Lesnar the hardest time.

Now, looking forward to Saturday’s event, one would have to ask, how will Brock Lesnar deal with another wrestler, almost as huge and powerful as he is, but with a lot of KO power behind his hands, like Shane Carwin? 

And let’s not forget, Brock’s chin is yet to be tested.

My guess is…

He won’t, he can’t.

I see Shane Carwin winning this fight by TKO before the second round ends. 

And don’t get me wrong, I’m a Lesnar fan, I have actually made money on every single one of his fights, including the first one in the UFC. 

I just think Carwin will win…

Thanks for reading and please leave a comment.  Remember this is an open community of writers and readers, and we all have the privilege to read and write here.  If you disagree, please do so with respect to other people’s opinions.

You can follow me on Twitter @acordero2010 .

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Courtesy of :Bleacher Report – UFC