In the wake of Randy Couture's defeat at the hands of PRIDE legend Antonio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira, there are a few topics of interest circulating among MMA fans as to what might happen next within the upper-echelon of the UFC's heavyweight division. Most notably, will the UFC remain steadfast on the idea of giving Cain Velasquez a shot at the winner between Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin? Did Nogueira's performance at UFC 102 help him raise his stock in potentially squeezing into title contention? Was Nogueira's performance an improvement over his performance against Mir because he was injury-free, or is Frank Mir simply that much improved?

To answer these questions, one would need to gauge how impressive Nogueira's performance was on Saturday night. After all, the UFC brass would still consider the younger, more explosive athletes in the division above an older fighter unless that older fighter happened to show spurts of his former self. The latter is what would describe Nogueira's performance against Randy Couture, and it was spectacular to watch for those of us who have seen the dominant Nogueira during his PRIDE reign.

What exactly was phenomenal about this bout? Most notably, Nogueira was much more nimble on his feet, and his boxing was as crisp as we've seen it in the cage. His length on the floor was used very effectively, and his Brazilian jiu-jitsu expertise worked to nullify anything Couture could muster on the floor while also putting himself into prime position to punish Couture. Of course, a dominating performance can also have a strange effect on fan opinions. Specifically, some fans have began to wonder whether it was Couture's age finally catching up with him.

I wouldn't cling to that reasoning. I would, however, believe that Nogueira was severely hindered by a staph infection and knee injury leading up to his bout with Frank Mir. While Mir has already stated that he's "disheartened" at Joe Rogan's comments during the UFC 102 main event regarding his bout with Nogueira and the injuries Nogueira sustained leading up to the fight, Rogan had a point and Mir needs to be reasonable. A lot of fans would rather argue that all fighters show up hurt to fights, but as evident in his performance against Couture vs. his performance against Mir -- there is a significant difference in the challenge that Nogueira's opponents actually face when he's healthy.

An injury-free Nogueira was the sole reason why he was so dominating in his victory, and it'd be a tough sell for anyone to try to convince me that it was because Frank Mir improved in his striking game substantially. While I believe Mir looked much better standing, it was evident that there were problems for Nogueira. No head movement, a stumble in his step, and an almost lethargic trance to his movements could only signify a tired Nogueira who didn't get the training he needed and likely had something significantly wrong. Nogueira should have pulled out of the fight, but the warrior inside him just wouldn't let fans down.

Now that Nogueira is back to getting the training he deserves and showing the fans a dominating performance against a very tough Randy Couture, what's next for him? Nogueira's future at the top really depends on how well he can maintain his current state of health. Barring staph infection, knee injuries, cuts, and any other injury, I think the UFC should definitely slot Nogueira into a title contention role following the Carwin vs. Lesnar fight. If Lesnar loses, push Nogueira into a title shot against Shane Carwin. If Lesnar wins, put Nogueira into the title fight immediately. This will allow Cain Velasquez to continue working to become a complete fighter, and it'll give him more time to build up the name that he could potentially become down the road for the UFC.

If Nogueira and Lesnar do meet in a championship title fight, can Nogueira actually contend with the much larger and stronger Lesnar? Nogueira contends that it'll likely need to be a war of attrition in which he sticks and moves to avoid Lesnar's power. He'll eventually tire out the behemoth on the feet, and in patented Nogueira form -- submit the giant in the late rounds. Seems like a lot of wishful thinking on the Brazilian's part, doesn't it?

While that gameplan could work, Nogueira seems to be forgetting one key element that Couture has publicly stated will always be a significant problem for his opponents, Lesnar's reach. If Nogueira intends to stand on the outside landing shots, he'll undoubtedly need to wade in Lesnar's reach. One blast from one of his massive meathooks could spell disaster, so the chances of defeating Lesnar standing become slim. Of course, Lesnar may simply overpower Nogueira on the ground and devastate him in quick fashion. We won't really know the huge strength difference until the fight happens, but one thing is for certain -- Nogueira will want to stay as far away from Lesnar as he can. Can he do it? Does the Brazilian submission master have one more David vs. Goliath match-up in him?

-- image via Sherdog.com