Jake Rosholt's Challenge

by Luke Thomas on Nov 4, 2008 2:06 PM EST in MMA News

He's got lots of time to work through this issue, but it's also worth acknowledging where he is at this point in time:

In his most recent win over Chad Jay on March 15, he showed, as expected, excellent wrestling, with quick takedowns, reminiscent of Georges St. Pierre. He has natural punching power and strong ground-and-pound, which has led to three of his four stoppage wins, with the fourth coming with a guillotine submission.

His stand-up game clearly has holes, particularly when it comes to defense.

But whenever Jay connected, he couldn’t follow up because Rosholt could take him down at will. In his four matches, he said that any time he’s wanted to take a fight to the ground, he’s been able to.

There is potential in his stand-up because of his power, but he needs to work on footwork and combinations, and at the same time, not on being too reliant on his boxing when he doesn’t need to be, a mistake a lot of wrestlers who learn boxing make.

But the Thiago Alves vs. Koscheck match on Oct. 25 in Chicago was a wake-up call to national champion wrestlers: At some point during their career, someone will come along that they can’t take down, so wrestling alone will not get you MMA championships.

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Osterneck is no joke. Rosholt could be in for a real test tomorrow night.

by Kid Nate on Nov 4, 2008 2:23 PM EST reply actions

Indeed…Osterneck was supposed to fight on that Carolina Crown event in NC last month…but pulled out to take this fight in the WEC.

http://mma4real.net/

by Tha Realness on Nov 4, 2008 2:39 PM EST reply actions

One bone to pick Luke

How much time has he given himself to work through the issue? he becomes a UFC fighter thursday morning. No more easy fights. I think the WEC signing blew up in his face, and its a shame. I would have liked to have seen him get to 9-0 or 10-0 before making the jump to a bigger promotion. Or even fight in Japan first. Take some of the pressure away and fight fighters who can’t handle his wrestling. I fear Jake might be another story of what might have been.

by Nick Travaglini on Nov 4, 2008 2:52 PM EST reply actions

I think that’s a reasonable concern. There’s certainly a risk he could be thrown into the deep end too early, but I also trust (generally speaking) the ability of Zuffa to nurture this kid’s development and not over expose him (to the extent possible). TUF has taught them on the job how to better handle up and coming prospects and I am comfortable believing those lessons will be applied to Rosholt.

by Luke Thomas on Nov 4, 2008 2:59 PM EST up reply actions

Rosholt...

is getting overlooked a little bit here. Osterneck is a good test, but Rosholt is an absolute blue-chip stud.

Contributing Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.

by Brent Brookhouse on Nov 4, 2008 3:04 PM EST reply actions

Rosholt should make the Jon Fitch trip to Thailand for muay thai before he gets exposed on his feet.

by DirtyML on Nov 4, 2008 3:09 PM EST reply actions

Rosholt is going to bomb Osterneck. I have seen Jake fight a few times and he is no joke. He simply overpowers every opponent and imposes his will similar to Randy. He actually reminds me a lot of Randy. Dude is huge for 185 too..

by lbk on Nov 4, 2008 3:57 PM EST reply actions