Former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia claims MMA’s premier promotion was ‘afraid’ to match him with Brock Lesnar.WWE superstar Lesnar joined the UFC in October 2007, shortly after Sylvia had his belt snatched from him by Randy Couture.The UFC kept Lesnar well away from Sylvia, according to the former heavyweight championGettyHe made his debut on the same card as ‘The Maine-iac’ in February 2008, and despite Sylvia offering to welcome Lesnar to the UFC, the promotion opted to square him off with Frank Mir instead.Sylvia claims their decision was motivated by concerns that he would derail Lesnar’s hype before it had even got going.“When I was the heavyweight champ, we found out what they brought Brock Lesnar in [for],” Sylvia told the JAXXON Podcast.“He was getting [$300,000 to show and $300,000 to win] and money per pay-per-view buy, so every fight he was making over a million dollars back then. “My contract was 100 and 100, so $200,000 on the win, I made maybe 40 or 50 in sponsors. Brock is getting a million, and he’s a nobody.“So like, ‘Hey man, we want this contract. Why is he getting it?’“[The UFC said] ‘Oh, he’s a bigger name than you.’“‘How the f*** is he a bigger name?’ Because of wrestling. Ok, let me fight Brock. If I win, I get his contract. “If I lose, I’ll go back, I won’t say a word, I’ll take my 100 and 100.“[The UFC replied] ‘No, we’re trying to build him, we can’t do that, it won’t be a good fight for him. We’re afraid for that fight.’”Sylvia is a two-time UFC heavyweight championGettyMir went on to submit Lesnar with a knee bar in the opening stanza to get ‘The Beast Incarnate’s’ career off to a disastrous start, while Sylvia was beaten by Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira for the interim heavyweight title in the UFC 81 main event.Sylvia claims the UFC told his handlers that they wouldn’t be renewing his deal following the defeat, despite the fact that he had won six of his last eight fights.Five months later, he was snapped up by MMA upstart Affliction and was paid $1milliion to fight the great Fedor Emelianenko.At the peak of his powers, the towering 6ft 8in fighter was one of the best heavyweights in the world and carried serious power in both hands.During an impressive run with the UFC stretching from 2002 to 2008, Sylvia defeated Jeff Monson and Andrei Arlovski (twice), en route to two separate reigns as UFC heavyweight champion.After leaving Dana White‘s company, though, his career took a steep, unforgiving decline.Lesnar went on to win the UFC heavyweight title, while Sylvia’s career took a turn for the worseUFCWhile Lesnar went on to avenge his loss to Mir and lay claim to the UFC heavyweight title in 2008, Sylvia stopped taking the sport seriously as his weight ballooned out of control.He hung up his gloves in 2013 while riding a three-fight skid, and closed out his career at super heavyweight as he was no longer able to make the 265lbs limit.