Lesnar, who trains in Minnesota and should have a large hometown contingent of fans in attendance, is actually favored by the oddsmakers in this one despite only having two MMA bouts under his belt and one of them being a loss in the UFC against Frank Mir.
Herring on the other hand is coming off of one of his best wins against Cheick Kongo, who knocked out Mirko Cro Cop previously. Herring came into the Kongo fight in the best shape of his life after a close loss to current heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira and looked like a completely different fighter and a true title contender.
This is an interesting fight from many perspectives. First of all, Lesnar vs. Herring might be decided by whether or not Lesnar can survive on the ground. He made a huge mistake and left his leg out against Mir leading to a submission in stunningly easy fashion. Herring can submit Lesnar at UFC 87 with ease if he makes a mistake because he's good on the ground.
Another factor will be Herring's takedown defense. Herring is a big guy who can come close to match Lesnar's immense physical power but his takedown defense is little bit flawed as evidenced by the Kongo fight. Lesnar has come out like a madman and used his championship wrestling skills learned at the University of Minnesota to take his first two opponents down.
Herring is a great striker, however, who can throw heavy kicks with ease. Lesnar vs. Herring could be decided by a devastating kick to the face of Lesnar if Lesnar gets careless trying to take Herring down.
Overall, this will easily be one of the most exciting fights of the night and perhaps the year. Lesnar is raw but very strong and talented and Herring is an unpredictable, let-it-all-hang-out type of fighter who can make any fight exciting. The crowd will be buzzing at UFC 87 for this fight perhaps more so than the title fight and that should make for a great atmosphere.
source: associatedcontent.com
