As reported several weeks ago, Zuffa purchased Strikeforce, adding another large stable of fighters to the UFC. Details are still sketchy about when and how Strikeforce will be absorbed, due to its existing deal with Showtime that expires in 2014. While a merger is a long ways away and Strikeforce is a clear second in established talent to the UFC, there are still several excellent fighters that could be transferred over that would lead to some exciting bouts. I am going to take this space to go over some of them, and discuss their likelihood of happening. For the sake of brevity, I am going to limit it to four fighters and the fights I’d most like to see. I’m going to leave out Dan Henderson, as he was a UFC fighter until recently and there aren’t many people he hasn’t went up against at this point.
Alistair OvereemThe ‘Reem is the man I most want to see inside the Octagon. There are several matchups that would be interesting. Here’s the list in descending order:
Vs. Cain Velasquez: This one is self-explanatory, as it pits the Strikeforce Heavyweight Champ against his UFC counterpart. Cain has never faced someone Overeem’s size that can actually strike and not curl up in the fetal position when hit, and Overeem hasn’t faced someone with the relentless pace and wrestling of Cain.
Vs. Junior Dos Santos: This would pit the best hands in the UFC Heavyweight Division against the reigning K-1 Grand Prix Champion. Junior can outbox most anyone, but he would have a tough time against Overeem’s size. It would be a great striking battle that would really test how good Junior really is.
Vs. Brock Lesnar: Two behemoths in the cage, plus Overeem wouldn’t gas out like Carwin did. It would be interesting to see what would happen when Lesnar gets punched by someone of Overeem’s power. Plus if he went for those half-assed takedowns around the ‘Reem’s chest, Alistair would have no problem using the standing guillotine choke.
Vs. Shane Carwin: Someone would get knocked out. Hard.
The odds of Overeem coming into the UFC: Near certainty. Alistair is on friendly terms with Dana White and since getting stiffed on his paycheck from K-1, is more willing to commit to the UFC’s contract demands. Also,, heavyweight is always the weakest division in the UFC, so they would be more than willing to bring in a beast like the ‘Reem.
Nick DiazDiaz is one of my favorite fighters of all-time and there are a bunch of fights I would love to see him in.
Vs. BJ Penn: Two of the best technical boxers and jiu jitsu practitioners in all of MMA, this would be exciting both on the ground and standing. BJ would love the challenge of a rangy fighter like Diaz, and it would be a tougher fight for Nick than he has fought in some time.
Vs. Georges St. Pierre: While I think GSP would clearly win this because of his superior wrestling, it would still be a dangerous fight for him. He hasn’t faced anyone with the excellent jiu jitsu of Diaz, plus his boxing is not as techincally sound as Nick’s is. Like I said, I would expect GSP to win hands down, it would be a more competitive and interesting fight than at least his last two or three defenses.
Vs. Dan Hardy: I think Nick would submit him in about two rounds, but this fight should happen for the shit talkng alone. It would be legendary.
Vs. Nate Diaz: Brother vs. Brother. Both men are crazy. Why not?
Odds of Diaz coming into the UFC: Toss up. Odds would say that he almost has to, otherwise who else will he fight? He seems to get along well with Dana White, but Diaz is a wild car and it’s damn nigh impossible to figure out what his plans are.
Muhammad “King Mo” LawalA former light heavyweight champion for Strikeforce, King Mo has some of the best wrestling in MMA and is still improving as a fighter. I’m not the biggest fan of his, but I would like to see him in the UFC to see just how good he is and can be.
Vs. Rampage Jackson: Evidently, these two don’t like each other very much. There is a clip on You Tube showing the two of them jawing at each other and it is both hilarious and awkward. I don’t know if the fight would go much differently than Rampage’s fight with Rashad Evans went, but I wouldn’t mind finding out.
Vs. Phil Davis: Two of the up and coming fighters in their weight classes, this would pit two men with similar experience and abilities against each other. I would give a slight advantage in striking to King Mo, but an advantage on submission grappling to Davis. This match would go a long way towards determining who else could be considered the future of the sport with Jon Jones.
Vs. Lyoto Machida: He already defeated one “cerebral” striker in Gegard Mousassi, but Machida is more elusive, more cerebral and a better striker and grappler than Mousassi. He is also a considerably better striker than King Mo. On the other hand, the only wrestler that Machida has faced was Rashad Evans, and ‘The Dragon’ made him look foolish. King Mo is bigger and stronger than Rashad, so it would be interesting to see how Machida fares.
Odds of Lawal coming into the UFC: Pretty good. He has decent name recognition in the sport and with the UFC marketing team behind him, could really become a mainstream star. Besides, there is no other promotion in America that he could fight and make a name for himself in and I don’t think he is embroiled in any disputes with Zuffa.
Fedor EmelianenkoAt one time the world’s best heavyweight, Fedor is at a bit of a crossroads in his career now. His best days are obviously behind him, but there are still a few dream matches that it would be worth seeing him in.
Vs. Randy Couture: A fight that fans have been clamoring for for nearly a decade, to the point that both men were made the cover athletes for EA MMA. This fight has lost a bit of its luster due to both men’s rankings within the heavyweight division being lower than they were several years ago, but it would still be exciting to see the two men who were at the top of the Pride and UFC promotions for years go at it.
Vs. Brock Lesnar: Another fight that would have been more intriguing a year or two ago, but it still holds some interest since they were both ranked number one in their weight class within the past year. Fedor was recently pounded by a larger fighter in Antonio Silva, but has historically fared well against bigger men. Lesnar is much more physically imposing than nearly everyone Fedor has been up against, but his skill level is lower than that of Antonio Silva and some of the other fighters Fedor has faced. For Lesnar, it would be the chance to beat someone other than Frank Mir and a much smaller and older Randy Couture and add an impressive name to his resume.
Odds of Fedor joining the UFC: Slim to none. Fedor and his management team have been engaged in a war of words with Dana White for years now over a wide range of topics. The chances of Fedor fighting in Strikeforce again are pretty slim, so I would say the chances of seeing him in the Octagon are pretty much nil.
There are several other fighters under the Strikeforce banner in every weight class that will be exciting additions to the UFC over the next few years. It is going to be both interesting and challenging to see how Zuffa absorbs such a large stable of fighters to their already massive roster.
No comments:
Post a Comment