Brock Lesnar, the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s heavyweight champion, still is not healthy enough to train, his coach said on Monday.
Greg Nelson of the Minnesota Martial Arts Academy said Lesnar’s illness is real and that his withdrawal from his match against Shane Carwin, which was set to be the main event of UFC 106 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on Nov. 21, was because he could not train hard enough.
Doubt has surrounded Lesnar’s decision to postpone the bout since a video of his appearance at an NFL game surfaced on the Internet. Lesnar did not look flu-stricken in the video, prompting speculation his withdrawal was related to reasons other than illness. Nelson, though, insisted the decision is simply because Lesnar would get fatigued quickly and could not push hard in training.
“I’m not sure exactly what it is he has, mono or whatever, but I know that he was sick and couldn’t get a good, hard workout in,” Nelson said. “There’s a big difference between making an appearance and smiling and waving at a football game and going out and doing what he has to do in his training.”
The bout has not been rescheduled, though it is targeted for Jan. 2 at UFC 108 in Las Vegas. However, if Lesnar is unable to resume training soon, he likely will not be able to make that date and it would have to be pushed back into February.
By Kevin Iole,
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