What’s next for Brock Lesnar in the UFC?

At UFC 200, Brock Lesnar was able to implement his game plan to perfection. He used his 7″ inch reach advantage to stay away from the deadly power of Mark Hunt and he used his power combat wrestling game to put the “Super Samoan” on his back, where he’d spend most of the 1st and final rounds giving Lesnar a 29-27 score across the board. He did exactly what he was supposed to do and didn’t stray from the blueprint in the slightest.

Now, at 38, he’s having the time of his life. It appears that he’ll be able to go back and forth between the biggest mixed martial arts organization and professional wrestling promotion in the world because, as he so succinctly puts it, “Brock Lesnar does what Brock Lesnar wants to do.” In other words – he will be back in the UFC for more. So the question is, who does he face next? The correct answer would be “The Viper” himself – Randy Orton. Lesnar and Orton are currently scheduled for a high-profile battle at SummerSlam next month at the Barclays in Brooklyn.

We’re not sure how many dates Lesnar is required to work for WWE for the rest of the calendar year. Judging by the success of UFC 200 and Lesnar getting a high-profile victory to help further legitimize his WWE character and what could be the beginning of a working relationship between both promotions that would involve some talent trading (WWE is reported to have heavy interest in Paige VanZant) it wouldn’t be surprising to see Lesnar back in the Octagon before year’s end. So, who’s next for Lesnar in the UFC? Let’s take a look at four men who would be more than willing to be locked in a cage with “The Beast”.

Stefan Struve

Man would I have loved to be in the cage tonight with Lesnar.. #notimpressed

— Stefan Struve (@StefanStruve) July 10, 2016

As evidenced above by that tweet, Struve was not impressed by Lesnar’s performance after 4+ years away from the cage. Against Struve, Lesnar’s reach advantage goes away; he’d be giving up 3.5″ to the Dutch “Skyscraper” but he wouldn’t have to worry about that one-punch knock out power like he did against Hunt.

Struve was brutally TKO’d by Hunt a few years back but he does hold a win over the current champion, Stipe Miocic, which shows us that anything can happen in MMA, especially in the Heavyweight division.

While Struve may have been unimpressed with Lesnar’s performance this past Saturday night, I can guarantee you that Lesnar was salivating when and if he was told about it. This would be a great match up for him.

UFC 200 Highlights: Brock Lesnar vs. Mark Hunt

Winner of Andrei Arlovski vs. Josh Barnett

Barnett and Arlovski are currently scheduled to headline UFC Fight Night 93 in Hamburg, Germany on September 3rd. This would be the perfect fight to advertise as a Brock Lesnar eliminator bout where the winner would be rewarded a fight against “The Beast” on a date TBA.

If Barnett wins, you have a match that pro wrestling fans can truly get behind. One former IWGP champion against a former contender. An NCAA Division I Champion, who doesn’t appear to have lost a step by the way, against a master of catch-as-catch-can.

This fight sells itself, and Barnett will sell it even more with his silver tongue since Brock doesn’t like to do a ton of talking. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – it’d be a crime if these two don’t do battle inside the octagon. The clock is ticking.

If Arlovski wins you get to watch two former Heavyweight champion fan favorites slug it out. Arlovski is a much stronger counter wrestler than Hunt but Lesnar’s wrestling is on a different level than anyone in the division. Another intriguing match up. I’d love to see Lesnar bring in a striking specialist to help him with this one if it actually happens.

Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor’s stock may be down after getting blasted by Fabio Maldonado last month in Russia but luckily for the former PRIDE champ the fight went to a decision. The judges who scored it were appointed by the Russian MMA Union – which Fedor just so happens to be the President of so he was awarded a majority decision victory when it should’ve been a draw at best. Regardless, the amount of punishment Fedor took in that fight showed us that he still has plenty of fight left in him.

Lesnar versus Fedor will always be the fight that got away from the UFC. Sure, it may be 5 years too late but it’ll still draw better than any possible heavyweight match up out there. The threat of the KO is always there with Fedor and if the Russian legend continues to keeps his hands down like he did in his last fight, a Lesnar TKO is even a possibility. Fedor’s chin had to of lost at least a layer or two of granite in Russia last month and Brock would love to finally get the chance to test it and score another 2.5 million dollar pay day in the process.