Kongo Talks UFC Belt, Herring Fight and Brock Lesnar

Cheick Kongo is ready for Heath Herring at UFC 82. (MMAWeekly.com photo)

French mixed martial arts fighter Cheick Kongo (21-3-1) has only one goal: to win the UFC heavyweight belt.

On Saturday, Mar. 1 in Columbus, Ohio, he'll get the chance to move one step up the ladder towards the championship when he fights Heath Herring (27-13-1) at UFC 82: Pride of a Champion. Currently, Kongo is the -175 favorite in the Bodog Sportsbook, with Herring the underdog at +145.

"No matter who I fight and how much dangerous he is, I fight whoever is on my way," Kongo tells Eurosport-Yahoo. "In March, it will be Herring's turn and I'll come to win."

"I have one and only goal," he explains. "To win the UFC belt, get this title, and be the next heavyweight champion and I'm working towards that. It won't be easy, but the best is yet to come and I'm ready."

Another fighter out for the title in the UFC heavyweight class is Brock Lesnar (1-1-0), but Kongo doesn't think the former pro wrestling star is more dangerous than any other opponent. "Lesnar's a tough opponent," he says, "as physically as impressive as me. He can as big a danger in the UFC as anyone of the other contenders. No more, no less."

Bet on UFC 82 odds in the Bodog Sportsbook. All lines subject to change.