Brock Lesnar Taps Out of UFC 106 Due to Flu

In a UFC match that was certain to be filled with bloodshed, cuss words, and grimacing stare downs, Brock Lesnar, current UFC heavyweight champion, tapped out of UFC 106. Why? He has the flu.

Don't worry, UFC fans, according to Brock Lesnar's co-manager, he does not have the H1N1 Swine Flu. He's been dealing with respiratory issues, high fever, and fatigue. His sickness completely wiped him down and he has not been able to train for three weeks.

Brock Lesnar does not have the swine flu, but his opponent, Shane Carwin, did. From Carwin's Twitter page, "Looks like it is postponed till Jan 2. I had H1N1 myself and I understand how devastating it can be."

Lesnar was set to defend his title against Shane Carwin (11-0) on November. Many UFC fans were anxiously awaiting this match as Shane Carwin is one of the few UFC fighers over whom Lesnar does not have a size advtange. Carwin is nearly as big as Brock Lesnar, weighing in at a hefty 295 pounds (265 at fight time). Both fighters also have similar mixed martial arts training backgrounds: Carwin was a Division II and played football at Western College, and has a purple belt in Jiu Jitsu. Lesnar was a champion wrestler for the University of Minnesota, former WWE wrestler, before he began training in Mixed Martial Arts in 2007.

The match is tentatively postponed to UFC 108 on January 2nd, 2010 in Las Vegas, meaning Shane Carwin will not be given a new opponent. Two different fighters will compete in the main event round. Instead of Lesnar/Carwin, Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz will headline UFC 106's main event. While this match-up might not garner as much excitement and anticipation as the Lensar/Carwin duel, the Ortiz/Griffin Lightweight main event is a rematch of their April 2006 contest (UFC 56). In UFC 56, Tito Ortiz won in a controversial split-decision by the judges. Tito Ortiz is the season one winner of The Ultimate Fighter and Forrest Griffin is the former Lightweight Champion. Tito Ortiz has been absent from the UFC scene lately and Forrest Griffin put up little effort in his last match in August, where he was outdone by Anderson Silva.

UFC 106 is set to be held on November 21 in Las Vegas and available on Pay Per View.

UFC fans will have to wait until 2010 to see Brock Lesnar's barbarian antics, eccentric victory speeches, powerful jabs in the octagon again! It will surely be an event worth watching.