UFC 91: Couture vs. Lesnar

The marketing braintrust at the Ultimate Fighting Championship is calling this “The Biggest UFC Fight in History,” and that appears to be dead on.

The anticipation for Saturday’s main event is difficult to quantify. That alone is worth noting because, honestly, when’s the last time anyone got excited to see a 45-year-old athlete return to his field and perform? Footage of Michael Jordan playing pickup basketball doesn’t count. Meanwhile, Roger Clemens’ recent image decomposition wipes “The Rocket” out of the conversation, too.

So, that leaves us with “The Natural.”

Couture’s underdog reputation strikes a chord with everyman, even though everyman cannot possibly identify with the physical prowess Couture possesses at his stage of life. Heck, I just turned 30 and the aches of age have already become more pronounced. I strained a muscle in my arm a few weeks ago and it still hurts to pull that glass off the top shelf.

The point is, most men on the tail end of the target demographic are anxious to see if a wise, old lion has enough left to take down a hungry, young bear. Couture is the inspiration for every Joe who thinks, “Man, if I had a few months to train and some pads, I just might be able to whip those high school kids on the football field.”

The odds are not favorable, but “The Natural” has made a career out of feeding people their own words.

Forget Brock Lesnar’s inexperience and all the noise about him not actually deserving this heavyweight title shot. Please. This fight makes sense for all parties and has to happen now. The pay-per view numbers will prove it.

Lesnar is one of three men left for the 45-year-old Couture to fight before retiring, for real (Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Fedor Emelianenko being the others). It would be great to see Couture go against each of them, and the order isn’t important. A loss to any of those beasts wouldn’t knock any luster off his accomplishments.

On the other hand, it’s as good a time as any for Lesnar to fight Couture. He’s coming off a unanimous decision in which he gave a black and blue makeover to proven veteran Heath Herring, and the hype surrounding his talent is at a fever pitch. The former WWE star and MMA newcomer has proven he can survive in the cauldron.

When a phenom comes along like Lesnar, cartoonish frame and all, there’s no use in stunting his development by pulling on the reigns, or in this case, pitting him against blatantly inferior competition. It’s best to just let him go, see what he has against the best.