Why taking it slow is the right approach for this heavy prospect

Standing at 6’1” tall and weighing in at a solid 255lbs, Pro Wrestler-turned mixed martial artist Bobby Lashley is an imposing physical specimen in the heavyweight division. He may be smaller than his UFC counterpart Brock Lesnar, but Lashley already holds almost as much ring time as the UFC Heavyweight Champion and is looking to keep his unbeaten streak alive before heading to the big leagues sometime next year.

While he is certainly a large, athletic person in his own right, Lashley faced a lukewarm reception to his mixed martial arts debut in 2008 on account of his previous affiliation with the high-octane, higher-glamour world of professional wrestling. As much as fans of the WWE might try to pass their idols off as legitimate combative sports athletes—drawing from the success of a very real athlete in Brock Lesnar—the fact remains that size and sheer athleticism alone has been shown time and time again to lead to eventual failure at the highest levels of professional mixed martial arts competition.

Comparing Lashley’s collegiate wrestling credentials to other accomplished fighters is well within the realm of fair speculation, and certainly accounts for much of his success over MMA veteran big man Bob Sapp last weekend at an Ultimate Chaos event in Biloxi, Mississippi. Having wrestled his way to amateur championships three times from 1996 to 1998, Lashley may not wield the same prestigious credentials as Lesnar, but an NAIA National Wrestling Championship is still something to brag about.

Combine this impressive base for any mixed martial arts fighter with an aforementioned intimidating physique and Lashley would already be a scary match up for many top-level fighters, but his best chance at becoming a champion someday lies in his continued development as a true mixed martial artist, and his steady, albeit low-profile victories to date will do much to bolster that end in the long run.

While Lesnar currently sits atop the heavyweight division of the UFC with a November 2008 victory over former champion Randy Couture, more questions remain about the confident goliath than ever before as he awaits a July rematch with the sole man to hold a victory over him in Frank Mir. Sporting a 3-1 professional record certainly pales in comparison to holding UFC gold, and Lesnar clearly has more experience fighting on the big stage than Lashley, but his headlong rush into the deep end of the UFC’s heavyweight division could make for a short reign at the top.

On the other end of the spectrum, Lashley, uncharacteristically unassuming for a former WWE competitor, made his mixed martial arts debut six months ago with a first round TKO victory over the unknown Joshua Franklin. The first round massacre was reminiscent of Lesnar’s professional debut against Min-Soo Kim in June 2007, but while Lesnar went on to jump right into the thick of the top ten in the heavyweight division shortly after, Lashley has been chipping away at lesser competition in an attempt to gain experience and shore up his defenses before taking on any world-class opposition.

While he dominated veteran Jason Guida en route to a Unanimous Decision victory in March, Lashley was almost choked unconscious by his much smaller opponent because of his lack of experience in tough positions. If his opponent had been Frank Mir, Lashley almost certainly would have experience a similar fate to Lesnar in only his second professional endeavor. By taking on an experienced-but-unranked opponent, Lashley discovered a glaring weakness in his game without suffering a loss.

Following a brutal first round submission of Mike Cook last month with a first round submission due to strikes against Bob Sapp last weekend, Lashley has built himself a perfect 4-0 unbeaten mark against some legitimately experienced competition. His dominating victories may not be on the same level as Lesnar’s destructions of Heath Herring and Couture last year, but they have given Lashley a degree of confidence that will be important for his first outing against a highly ranked heavyweight next year.

While it is unlikely that fans will see Lashley in the UFC before the end of 2009, that might be for the best, as the undefeated prospect has made it known that he would like at least two more fights before the end of the year. Lashley is taking a slow and steady approach to the top of the heap, maximizing his chances of getting there in the long run.

And when he finally arrives sometime in the next year or two with an unbeaten record and the confidence that comes along with it, everyone should take notice.