Bobby Lashley’s future
I’ve been asked a few times to comment on the future for former WWE superstar turned MMA fighter Bobby Lashley. Lashley is coming off a 1st round victory over Bob Sapp this past Saturday, and his MMA record now stands at 4-0.
As a MMA prospect, he isn’t thought of in the same realm as guys such as Brock Lesnar, Shane Carwin or Cain Velasquez. He doesn’t have the same freakish athleticism of Lesnar or the size of Lesnar or Carwin. He weighs around 255 on fight nights, but guys like Lesnar and Carwin have to cut weight to make the 265lb limit for the UFC. Lashley was a NAIA champion wrestler in college, but when you compare that to Division I caliber wreslters in Lesnar and Velasquez, or even a Division II champion in Carwin, that doesn’t seem overly impressive.
Guys like Lesnar, Velasquez and Carwin have ascended the ranks of the UFC quickly heavyweight division quickly because of their freakish athleticism and skills that are becoming more and more well rounded. Lashley trains with American Top Team, one of the best gyms in all of MMA, but has yet to show the skills that many MMA “top prospects” are already showing by their fourth professional fight. Lashley is just three months removed from struggling to a decision victory over journeyman Jason Guida, a guy that Lesnar, Carwin or Velasquez would smash in about 90 seconds, and at 32 years old, he’s running out of time to make an impact (Yes, I know that Shane Carwin is 34 years old, but he’s probably about one fight away from a UFC title shot and he’s much further along than Bobby Lashley).
Additionally, I’m not sure how serious Lashley is taking his new career in MMA. He recently appeared with TNA wrestling for a few shows and if he is trying to balance a MMA career with a pro wrestling career, his already questionable future as a heavyweight prospect will look even bleaker.
This isn’t to say that Lashley isn’t a talented fighter. He does have skills and is definitely a marketable guy. But does he belong in a conversation about MMA heavyweight prospects? I don’t think so at this time. A good place for him to go would have been “The Ultimate Fighter” season 10. We’ve all heard about Kimbo Slice being in the field, but there are some legit heavyweights in the cast. It would have been interesting to see how Lashley matched up with guys like Brendon Schaub, Roy Nelson or Darrill Schoonover. We could have gotten a real feel for where he was as a prospect, but for now, he’s not in their class either. He has time to show me otherwise, but he needs to start showing more very quickly before he is written off as just another pro wrestler trying to make it in MMA.
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- Shane Carwin vs. Cain Velasquez set for UFC 104??
- Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin possible for UFC 106
- Can UFC 121 Become the Biggest UFC Pay-Per-View of All-Time?
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