Ultimate Fighting Championship will hold a public press conference today (Nov. 11, 2011) to officially announce UFC 141: "Lesnar vs Overeem," which will take place at the end of the year (Dec. 30, 2011).
The conference will begin at 5 p.m. ET live from the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California, although the fight event will be taking place in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Scheduled to attend will be UFC president Dana White, as well as the headlining fighters of the evening, Brock Lesnar and Alistair Overeem, who will be battling for the right to challenge for the UFC heavyweight title.
Lesnar is the former UFC heavyweight champion. The ex-WWE superstar and national champion Minnesota wrestler lost his title last year to current champ Cain Velasquez. He's had a much publicized battle with diverticulitis which was (hopefully) finally cured with surgery earlier this year.
His opponent, Alistair Overeem, is one of the scariest heavyweights on the planet. The Dutch kickboxer has not lost an MMA fight since 2007 and left Strikeforce as the promotion's heavyweight champion. In his spare time, he also won the single night K-1 Heavyweight Grand Prix to become a kickboxing champion last year.
We'll have complete updates of the UFC 141 press conference after the jump:
Brian Hemminger here. The press conference is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. ET.
5:05 p.m. We're getting started
Dana White: The winner on Saturday night between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos will fight the winner of Brock Lesnar and Overeem.
Alistair Overeem: The rib injury happened before the Werdum fight and I aggravated it during the Werdum fight and that forced me to withdraw for the tournament. I've had a scuffle since then but I'm very happy, very proud to join the UFC family and I'm ready to get it on.
Brock Lesnar: It took about six hours (after surgery before I felt 100 percent)
Brock Lesnar: I was just looking to feel better. I avoided the surgery for as long as I could and it was just a major decision. When you've got to go under the knife and have some of your intestines removed, it's a big deal. Hindsight 20/20, I'm back and I feel good!
Brock Lesnar: Alistair's done a lot of good things overseas and I think he's had a lot of fights and it's an honor for me to get in the Octagon and kick his ass.
Brock Lesnar: I weigh about 278 right now. Sorry for the disappointment. It's the real deal.
Dana White: It's very exciting. I've said for a while now, the UFC's heavyweight division has never been more exciting, it's never been better. Now with the addition of Alistair Overeem, we've got three great heavyweight fights lined up now.
Alistair Overeem: I'm too busy training to go catch sharks and horses so I have to go buy them.
Alistair Overeem: I'm fighting out of Xtreme Couture, I'm not sure I'll stay there but for now I'm very happy there. They welcomed me with open arms.
Dana White: When we went through that whole mess when he was sick, as long as he's healthy and gonna have a normal life, and now that he's back, imagine the heavyweight division with Brock gone? It would suck. I'm more than happy to have Brock back. We've got to go fight by fight and see what happens.
Alistair Overeem: I have about 10 times as much experience (as Brock Lesnar). I'm gonna tear this guy apart piece by piece.
Brock Lesnar: I'm happy for ya (to Overeem). I'm just here for the show.
Brock Lesnar: It's a free country. He can train where he wants. It ain't really gonna matter I don't think.
Dana White: I think this fight is gonna have a lot of buzz behind it. People are gonna know where it is. There's this gap from mid December with people going on work. We couldn't go on Saturday because New Year's in Vegas is crazy and the hotels are booked.
Alistair Overeem: The UFC offered me a title shot straight away but I want to stay active. I'd have had to stay inactive for 4-6 months so they came up with a solution to fight Brock on New Year's Eve and I immediately said yes.
Alistair Overeem: It's gonna be a very exciting fight. Two of the best athletes in the world. I'm gonna slightly for Cain. I think he's more well-rounded. Better cardio, better conditioning.
Brock Lesnar: My prediction? I'm gonna have to go with Velasquez
Brock Lesnar: We're BFFs now (Brock and Junior from working together on The Ultimate Fighter).
Dana White: It's big. Having the best heavyweights available fighting in the UFC is a big deal. This is the best time ever for the heavyweight division. It couldn't be more exciting.
Brock Lesnar: I don't think it gets much better than Pat Barry. He's a guy that's helped me out extremely. We're bringing a bunch of guys in, probably no-name guys. I'm just trying to build my confidence in my stand-up and be a well-rounded fighter and come back and win this fight and then win the UFC heavyweight championship back.
Alistair Overeem: It's not that much different than any other fighter. I have my cardio routines. What Brock does is pretty straightforward. I'm gonna be prepared.
Brock Lesnar: When I fight Cain again, when I cross that river, we'll do things differently. I'll try to slow the fight down a little instead of running and gunning the fight.
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