Originally Posted by Triple
Barnett didn't knock him out; Yvel tapped because he couldn't get out from under him. Even though Yvel lost, he was doing almost as much damage to Barnett from his back as Barnett was doing to him from the mount. The problem with Yvel is that he is off and on; but when he's on, he destroys people.
You are correct, no KO. My mistake. I just remember him laying on his back, taking shots without defending himself.
His odds against UFC heavyweight strikers-- Kongo, Cro Cop, Dos Santos-- would be very good. I'm surprised he and Mirko never met in Japan, actually.
Don't all HW fighters with heavy hands have the ability to destroy people when they are "on"? No big revelation there.
Lashley is the one you find "possibly" impressive among this list of accomplished fighters..?
I say "possibly" with Lashley, as he has the speed that many HW fighters lack. Big, fast, HW fighters intrigue me, as they are not the norm. Same as Lesnar - his quickness/speed are intriguing. Just my own curiosity, I suppose.
Besides Lesnar, who does White employ that would make a better match than those outside of the UFC?
Shane Carwin? He has ONE win over a top 20 contender in Gabriel Gonzaga, putting him in the same boat as Brett Rogers.
See punchers chance, also very good wrestling. Gabriel Gonzage was relatively unknown until he unloaded the head kick on Cro Cop which put him against guys like Couture and Carwin. Carwin could very well end up in the same situation...
Cain Velasquez? He has ONE win over a top 20 contender in Cheik Kongo, putting him in the same boat as Brett Rogers.
Great wrestling, sometimes shaky striking. Not sure on the chin though, as I remember Congo stunned him a couple times in their fight. Do I think he can beat Fedor? Not sure, but I think it would be a good fight, and one I would like to see. Cheik Kongo is another one of those on / off fighters. He looked alright against Cro Cop, yes?
Junior dos Santos? He has ONE win over a top 20 contender in Fabricio Werdum, putting him in the same boat as Brett Rogers.
Worthy of a fight with Fedor off of a KO of Werdum? IMO, no.
Mirko Filipovic would fight Fedor anywhere, UFC or otherwise.
I would watch this fight every time. But, iirc Cro Cop is signed with the UFC, so it won't happen.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira had three shots already and couldn't capitalize.
No interest to me.
Five years ago a match with Randy Couture might have been competitive...
Same as Nogueira.
What I'm saying is, there isn't much of a talent gap between heavyweights inside the UFC and outside of the UFC.
I don't really disagree with this too much. I have said that I think the HW division overall (worldwide) is weak.
And besides that, Fedor doesn't have to prove anything to anyone; it's the number 2, 3, and 4's who should be pursuing him, not the other way around.
If Fedor doesn't fight either Rogers or Overeem in his first fight with Strikeforce, I will take all his talk about showing himself to be the best in the world as BS. He said he wanted to prove he was the best. If Lesnar was his best chance to prove it, then opportunity lost. Now he must take on the best of the rest, I suppose. He has probably 2 good fights in either league, but which 2 are the better fights? I would lean toward the UFC, since Lesnar would defend the belt. [See Overeem - champ since '07, but no title defenses due to injury. Yet has managed 3 or 4 fights in Japan?]
I also think Fedor vs Cain Velasquez or Carwin would be a good fight. I would also like to see Fedor vs Mir in a ground fight, but that's just me.
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