Tatame is reporting that Antonio Rodrigo Minotauro Nogueira will face Frank Mir as the main event fight of UFC 119 which is scheduled to take place from the Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana on September 25. There was talk of a rematch between the two, and it looks like it’s happening now.

Mir’s path to a shot at Brock Lesnar’s title went through Nogueira who was easily overmatched and stopped for the first time in his career. Noguiera’s camp however, insisted that the former Pride fighter had been battling staph and that the victory was a fluke.

Mir has since fallen away from the championship title, as a loss to former number one contender Shane Carwin seems to have pushed him at least a few fights(and victories) from a chance at the title. A win over Nogueira seems to be somewhat suspect as “Minotauro” seems to certainly have lost a step, but it would start the ball rolling forward for Mir.

A win by Nogueira would convince many MMA fans that the Brazillian fighter can still compete at the highest levels of the UFC, and after his defeat at the hands of number one contender Cain Velasquez, many are wondering just how good Big Nog’ is still.

UFC 119 is slowly starting to shape up, with word coming out that Lil’ Nog will face Ryan Bader and that Sean Sherk will face Evan Dunham. We’ll bring you more as it comes out.

Former Strikeforce Lightweight Champion Josh Thomson thinks that UFC champion Brock Lesnar only has a puncher’s chance of beating Cain Velasquez, who is a teammate of his at AKA in San Jose. Thomson, who’s coming off a submission victory over Pat Healy despite breaking two ribs early in the bout, recently used Facebook to express his thoughts on the upcoming(though there’s no date decided) heavyweight bout:

“Cain is wrestling every day with this years NCAA Div 1 national champ from MO. who is about 280lbs and let me tell you that Cain coming off a knee surgery 4wks ago is getting takedowns just fine as well as not losing any. Cain is a better wrestler/striker/MMA fighter than Brock but like you said, Brock is bigger with a huge punch. That is the only chance I give Brock though is a punchers chance cuz I don’t see him holding Cain down “IF” he can get the takedown.”

Lesnar vs. Velasquez should be an interesting fight, with MMA fans lining up to tout the virtues of both fighters. No official word on when it will take place, with UFC hoping for September but Lesnar seeming to want to take some time to be with family, and for farming. We’ll keep you up to date.

Former Strikeforce Lightweight Champion Josh Thomson thinks that UFC champion Brock Lesnar only has a puncher’s chance of beating Cain Velasquez, who is a teammate of his at AKA in San Jose. Thomson, who’s coming off a submission victory over Pat Healy despite breaking two ribs early in the bout, recently used Facebook to express his thoughts on the upcoming(though there’s no date decided) heavyweight bout:

“Cain is wrestling every day with this years NCAA Div 1 national champ from MO. who is about 280lbs and let me tell you that Cain coming off a knee surgery 4wks ago is getting takedowns just fine as well as not losing any. Cain is a better wrestler/striker/MMA fighter than Brock but like you said, Brock is bigger with a huge punch. That is the only chance I give Brock though is a punchers chance cuz I don’t see him holding Cain down “IF” he can get the takedown.”

Lesnar vs. Velasquez should be an interesting fight, with MMA fans lining up to tout the virtues of both fighters. No official word on when it will take place, with UFC hoping for September but Lesnar seeming to want to take some time to be with family, and for farming. We’ll keep you up to date.

The UFC's first fight card in Indianapolis is still without a main
event.

MMAjunkie.com's Dann Stupp first reported on Monday
that both Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin had been
approached prior to their UFC 116 headlining contest (won by Lesnar)
about the possibility of returning to action at UFC 119, which takes
place Sept. 25, to face top contender Cain Velasquez.

UFC president Dana White has since informed multiple outlets that the
Lesnar vs. Velasquez bout will not take place at UFC 119, though he has
yet to name an official date for the heavyweight title fight.

UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar has barely had a chance to catch his breath after defeating a game number one contender in Shane Carwin at UFC 116 and already the UFC is indicating they would like the champ to fight in UFC 119 which is planned for Indianapolis’ Conseco Fieldhouse on Sept. 25. Lesnar would face undefeated new number one contender Cain Velasquez with less than a three month turn around.

The Dayton Daily News is reporting that UFC officials told both Lesnar and Carwin prior to their fight that the winner would likely face Cain Velasquez at UFC 119, baring any injuries. While Lesnar’s face was bashed up good, there doesn’t seem to be any serious damage but he has expressed an interest in taking time off to be with family.

Lesnar vs. Velasquez could be an even bigger draw than Lesnar vs. Carwin was simply because of the amount of mixed martial arts insiders who believe that Velasquez will one day be champion of the UFC heavyweight division. In any case the fight is a dream for the UFC to market, as seems to be the case whenever former Lesnar, a former professional wrestler, is involved.

UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar seems slightly more humble than usual after his submission victory over Shane Carwin. It could be that the near loss in the first round has changed the fighters outlook, or more than likely it’s just a matter of time before he builds the hype for the upcoming fight with Cain Velasquez.

UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar seems slightly more humble than usual after his submission victory over Shane Carwin. It could be that the near loss in the first round has changed the fighters outlook, or more than likely it’s just a matter of time before he builds the hype for the upcoming fight with Cain Velasquez.

UFC president Dana White has already told mixed martial arts fans that the next heavyweight title shot belongs to highly touted fighter Cain Velasquez, who will face UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar later this year. Now word has come out, via MMAJunkie that the winner of Junior Dos Santos vs. Roy “Big Country” Nelson will get the first shot at whoever wins that bout.

UFC 117 will feature the match up to decide the next number one contender on Aug. 7 from Oakland, California. Looks like the UFC heavyweight picture is slowly getting clearer although there’s no word on where Shane Carwin goes from here.

UFC 119 could have a major championship headliner.

Following his UFC 116 title-unification victory over interim champion Shane Carwin, undisputed heavyweight champ Brock Lesnar now could meet top contender Cain Velasquez in the main event of September's UFC 119 event.

Prior to Saturday's event, Lesnar and Carwin both were told by UFC officials that the winner - health permitting - tentatively would meet Velasquez at UFC 119. That's according to a report from MMAjunkie.com's Dann Stupp in his weekly Dayton Daily News "MMA Insider" column.

Shane Carwin may have been defeated last night when he took on UFC champion Brock Lesnar but he certainly gained even more respect from the MMA community. Carwin can certainly punch with more power than almost any other heavyweight but his cardio certainly came up short. Carwin, however, disagrees and let fans know that his cardio was fine but that it was cramps that caused him major problems(via his website):

The game plan last night was to be patient and let the fight come to you. When I had him in trouble the ref keep saying he was going to stop it and then towards the end of the 1st my body began to seize up. In between rounds I could not move my legs and had what felt like a whole body cramp. My cardio was fine but my body was not. What can you do? You have to stand up and face your opponent.

Heading into the second I knew I need to finish the fight or I was going to be in trouble. Much like the Champion he is I am sure Brock was thinking the same thing. I had zero take down defense as my legs were dead to me and the rest is as they say history.

Carwin has been gracious in his previous victories and he was no different in defeat, acknowledging that Lesnar fought like a warrior. Lesnar is slated to fight Cain Velasquez, and it’s too soon to guess on Carwin’s next opponent, but expect to see Carwin in the heavyweight title hunt shortly.