Almost 90% of the mainstream's post-UFC 100 coverage has focused on Brock Lesnar and his post-fight rant/verbal beat down of Frank Mir. Much of that coverage has focused on Lesnar as the Villain, how he is now the most hated man in sports, and could of been the ultimate heel. Yet all of the talk, analysis, conjecture and opinion fails to address one very important point, where does the hate originate from? 

Maybe I missed something but my experience with casual fans and Brock Lesnar is not one of universal scorn (he is no Jack Johnson or Aaron Pryor my friends). The WWE fans who buy his pay-per views don't hate him nor does the mainstream audience that bought or watched UFC 100 out of curiosity. Lesnar to them represents an anchor, something that is familiar and already quantifiable, as they dive into an unfamiliar and foreign sport. Put it this way, Lesnar is the easy thing for newcomers to understand and that's alright with such a complex sport as MMA. 

However, do these people absolutely despise Lesnar?

Not at all.

Actually a better question is whether they even have a reason to hate him because I sure as hell can't think of any. 

What actually happened on Saturday night was the mainstream soaking up the bizarre spectacle that was Lesnar's rant amidst a chorus of boos. The story became attached to the tirade itself not the source that precipitated Lesnar's speech. The hate and vitriol that everyone is now discussing doesn't come from Lesnar's comments, it comes from a different source, the actual fans of mixed martial arts. This constituency's feelings and opinions have been co-opted into a convenient narrative by outsiders and detractors. Ultimately the mainstream's discussion of villainy fails because it fails to address the offended party. Now whether the offense is justified or not is whole other story. But I for one don't believe UFC 100 was the birth of next Jack Johnson.