UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs Arlovski - May 8th

[waters44]

What heavyweight fights have we got on the horizon (other than this weekend)?

 

Also what happened to Gonzaga(sp?) - pretty sure he was a heavyweight and doing well when I was watching before (when i say doing well I really mean killing Cro Cop with his own move, i dont remember much else)?

 

Sorry I dont add any worthwhile posts to the MMA threads, I just have a load of questions and enjoying learning from you guys

[Egg Shen]

Gonzaga is as inconsistent a heavyweight as there is in MMA. He retired for a short while but returned to the same inconsistent form.

 

Todd Duffee is the guy they need to come back, its wide open for him to jump the line.

[wandshogun09]

Yeah, Gonzaga retired after losing to Brendan Schaub in 2010. He started fighting again not long after and went 5-2 since. Although to be fair, his two losses were to Travis Browne and Stipe Miocic. He is inconsistent in his own performances though. It's always hard to guess which Gonzaga will show up. But mostly, I think he's just found his level in the middle of the pack. The Cro Cop win was undeniably his career high point. Aside from that he's the type who will wreck most guys outside the top five, and falter every time he steps up. Still dangerous and you can't sleep on him, but he's become a gatekeeper.

 

As for Duffee, is he still under UFC contract? His last win was over Phil De Fries at UFC 155. That was December 2012. I looked up why he's been inactive so long and found this on Wikipedia;

 

After the De Fries fight it emerged that Duffee had fought with a serious, undisclosed injury sustained during his training camp and would be ruled out for much of 2013. He returned to training after successfully rehabbing the injury in September. However, 3 weeks into his return to the gym, after waking up with severe pains and numbness in his arm Duffee was diagnosed with an unknown affliction which was later revealed to be Parsonage Turner Syndrome. Despite initially being told by doctors that he wouldn't be able to return for at least two years, Duffee returned to training after six months and in September 2014 announced that he was ready to fight.

So he might be back soon. Still don't think he'd do much either competitively at the top of the division, or in terms of generating some interest at heavyweight. But he's another body to throw in the mix. Have to wonder if he'll pass the drug tests though. The bloke looked like a 265lbs bag of chemicals.

 

As for heavyweight fights coming up, there's some good ones.

 

After this Bigfoot vs Arlovski rematch, you've got Mark Hunt vs Roy Nelson in Japan on the 20th. You've got Cain Velasquez vs Fabricio Werdum for the title in Mexico in November. JDS should be cleared any day now as well. So look for a fight announcement for him soon.

[jimufctna24]

I am sad to say, I think Big Foot clips A.A and stops him early

 

They cut to a clip of Arlovski in 2005 during the show last weekend. I know appearances can be misleading, but Arlovki even looks a shell of his former self.

 

In 2005, Arlovski was much sleeker, and a lot more slicker with his foot work. Before he got caught by Sylvia in their second fight, the speed that he buzzed Sylvia to knock him down, was most impressive. Arlovski always suffered from a weak chin, and could be overly passive at times, but he should have been so much more. The shape he was in during 2005/2006 still stands up today, and have never seen a Heavyweight MMA fighter as light on his feet as A.A in his physical prime.

 

Against Schaub, he looked like a fighter who needs to call it a day. If I had never seen him in 2005/2006, I would have nothing to compare him to, but sadly I do.

[Egg Shen]

yeh ive found Arlovski to be a lot more flat footed recently, i dont know if if its a tactical change or if hes just slowed down but definitely doesn't have the bounce in his step that he used too.

[wandshogun09]

Yeah I saw the old clips of Arlovski the other night and I thought the same thing. He's slowed down, he's more of a plodder now. His chin was always suspect but at least he was quick, light on his feet and aggressive. Now he's more flat-footed, slower and gun-shy. He didn't even look in as good shape as usual against Schaub either, I didn't think. He was heavier which probably slowed him down even more.

 

Them old clips though, brought back good memories. The UFC heavyweight division was shit at the time but Arkovski was the one good thing they had. Even though he was fighting sub-par challengers like Paul Buentello and Justin Eilers, watching him just rip through them with his lion's mane swinging about was pretty cool.

 

When he looked like this...

 

 

Just a wild caveman knocking fuckers out left and right. He was great to watch. Those days are over sadly. I can't see him returning to that form but I'd love to see one or two more vintage Arlovski KOs (I mean him dishing them out, not on the receiving end) before he's done.

 

I can't see past Bigfoot catching him and laying him out, especially when he's got 25 minutes to find Arlovski's chin. But I'll be rooting for Double A on Saturday night.

 

[Dai]

Has all the talk about Jon Jones moving up disappeared completley? After a couple of Cormier matches and another Gustafsson fight, if he stays undefeated, he could freshen up the heavyweight division a lot.

 

 

As for Jacare, Im suprised no-one mentioned how gassed he looked in Round 3. After two rounds of complete top control, he was gassed pretty bad in Round 3. Just rewatched that round, and he had slowed down considerably during the standup. To be fair, even Florian mentioned it, and Im sure its something Rogan wouldnt have done so. Mousasi even managed to quickly standup after being taken down, despite not even getting close to doing so for the first two rounds. Even for the finish, Mousasi was on his way back up to his feet. Im sure its something that wont go un-noticed by Weidmans camp if/when they fight.

[wandshogun09]

I think the Jones to heavyweight talk has died down now because the 205 division has got a lot more interesting with Cormier, Gustafsson and Rumble breaking out of the pack as potential threats. The Jones/HW stuff picked up steam because people felt there was no-one at 205 who could even test Jones. That's not the case anymore, at least for a while. I think it's inevitable he moves up eventually though.

 

Jacare definitely slowed down. But then, Weidman has slowed down in a few fights himself. He looked good over five rounds against Machida though. Jacare has faded before in fights as well. It's something he'll have to work on. But as far as guys in the division with the tools to trouble Weidman, he's the guy, in my opinion. I'd still favour Weidman though. I think Jacare would have trouble in the clinch with Weidman, and struggle to take him down. On the feet I think Weidman is better, but Jacare has power so Weidman would have to watch himself. The ground is where Jacare has the advantage but, like I say, I'm not sure he can get Weidman there. It's an interesting fight.

[Egg Shen]

Has all the talk about Jon Jones moving up disappeared completley? After a couple of Cormier matches and another Gustafsson fight, if he stays undefeated, he could freshen up the heavyweight division a lot.

 

 

As for Jacare, Im suprised no-one mentioned how gassed he looked in Round 3. After two rounds of complete top control, he was gassed pretty bad in Round 3. Just rewatched that round, and he had slowed down considerably during the standup. To be fair, even Florian mentioned it, and Im sure its something Rogan wouldnt have done so. Mousasi even managed to quickly standup after being taken down, despite not even getting close to doing so for the first two rounds. Even for the finish, Mousasi was on his way back up to his feet. Im sure its something that wont go un-noticed by Weidmans camp if/when they fight.

yeh he definitely slowed down but judging by the pressure he put on Mousasi in those 3 rounds i imagine they were both fucked. Its definitely something Weidman could exploit though.

[Noah Southworth]

We might get one Jones fight at Heavyweight, perhaps a novelty fight like Anderson Silva vs. James Irvin that goes head-to-head  with the competition, but whether we'll see any more depends on how well he performs with the extra muscle and weight on; it doesn't a take much extra mass to affect a fighter's performance and Jones' peak weight might be where he's at now. There's also the factor of how well his chin holds up against a heavyweight punch. Jones may take a few shots and decides he'd rather slug it out at 205. I think we might get that one fight but I wouldn't be too shocked if he tries it once and decides it's not his best weight to fight at.

[Egg Shen]

speaking of heavyweights, Brendan Schuab/Travis Browne is set for 181.

[Dzeko10]

Not really looking forward to this card will probably watch the main event the next morning. The Japan card the week after looks so much better, I noticed in the fight night cards coming up the content is so weak.

[jimufctna24]

speaking of heavyweights, Brendan Schuab/Travis Browne is set for 181.

For those of you who hate Schuab, that should be a dream

 

Browne should polish Schaub off.

[Noah Southworth]

 

speaking of heavyweights, Brendan Schuab/Travis Browne is set for 181.

For those of you who hate Schuab, that should be a dream

 

Browne should polish Schaub off.

 

I want Browne to elbow Schaub so hard that his elbow comes out the other side of Schaub's head.

[jimufctna24]

Ha ha

 

I am really indifferent to Schuab.