"Lesnar, returning from a one-year layoff due to diverticulitis and other intestinal problems, scored an early takedown, but Carwin quickly scrambled to his feet, wobbled the champ with an uppercut, and then smothered him with dozens of additional blows to the head and body. On more than one occasion, referee Josh Rosenthal considered halting the bout, but Lesnar survived and waited out the round while in the clinch against the cage.
Although bloodied as he entered the second round, Lesnar scored a quick takedown, moved into half mount, and then improved to full mount. Rather than raining down blows, though, Lesnar moved into side control and secured the eventual fight-ending arm-triangle choke.
The ending to Lesnar's stunning comeback came at the 2:19 mark of the round.
"I just had to weather the storm," Lesnar said. "He's got some heavy shots. ... I knew he was getting tired. Each shot was less dramatic than the other. I thought, 'I'll just let him go.'"
While the former WWE star had riled UFC brass with an over-the-top post-fight interview at UFC 100, an edited version of Lesnar addressed a soldout UFC 116 crowd.
"This isn't about me tonight," Lesnar said. "This is about my family. This is about my doctors. This is about my training partners, my training staff. I am blessed by God. Ladies and gentleman, I stand before you a humbled champion.
"But I'm still the toughest S.O.B. around."
