"I got offered to fight for the championship belt but that would mean I had to wait, because of course (Junior) dos Santos is fighting (Cain) Velasquez Nov. 12, it's going to be a great fight, then probably these guys are going to need some healing time, relaxing time, so November plus six months, that will probably be May. I'm a fighter, I like to be active, so then some names came rolling out and Brock Lesnar was among them and I think it's a dream match-up. The fans wants to see it; I want to see it. I'm very excited about this fight, so I immediately said yes."

-- Now former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem tells MMA Fighting his upcoming fight against Brock Lesnar at UFC 141 on Dec. 30 in Las Vegas, Nevada, is a "dream match-up." After 61 combined career bouts between kickboxing and MMA, "The Reem" has finally made his way to the world's largest fight promotion and he'll debut against the man who is easily the biggest draw in the entire sport. Sure, he had to turn down a heavyweight title opportunity in the process but as he confirmed, a win over Lesnar will earn him a spot opposite the winner of Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos anyway. Ultimately, Overeem has set himself up in an extremely desirable position: A five-round main event big money pay-per-view fight against the biggest draw in the sport that could lead to championship fight against a man who will have either won or defended that belt on network TV in front of what could be the largest audience to ever watch and MMA bout. Giving up kickboxing seems almost small in comparison to that scenario, no?