Legacies: Fedor, GSP, Silva
by Anthony Pace on Apr 11, 2010 7:01 PM EDT
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Following UFC 111 and the swarm of debate around Georges St. Pierre, I masterfully wrote at the awesome website MMAforReal.com:
My reflection on the pound-for-pound status has drawn me to one comparison above others, that of St. Pierre and Fedor Emlianenko. More than any other fighter on that list including BJ Penn and Anderson Silva, we’ve witnessed the Russian great take on his greatest challenges with an audacity not previously nor since witnessed. This characteristic is essentially the opposite end of the spectrum from where GSP’s recent criticism exists...
But it’s the fact that St. Pierre has chosen to forgo any risk in these last few fights that has drawn the ire of fans. Because he is capable of imposing his will in the fight, he makes them into wrestling matches and battles of "positional dominance". He doles out punishment, but it simply hasn’t been spectacular. It’s smart, but unpopular. The one thing that separates GSP from a guy like the un-beloved Jon Fitch is that the champ is at least constantly working toward a finish, unlike "The Human Blanket" Fitch.
And this brings me to Fedor. Setting aside his recent reputation as a "promotion killer", the Last Emperor has a cemented reputation as the greatest heavyweight and possibly the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. In what is basically an undefeated career, we’ve seen Fedor go tit-for-tat with true greats at their own game, always coming away victorious. He had a kickboxing match with Cro Cop and his hand was raised. He played in the guard of Noguiera and was victorious. It’s this willingness to throw caution to the wind, to say to a critic "I don’t care if he’s ‘better’ than me at something on paper, I’ll go in to his comfort zone and destroy him."
It might be reckless abandon, but it could be the difference between being on MMA’s Mount Rushmore and having a state park named after you.
Anderson Silva's performance against Demian Maia at UFC 112 brought me back to these thoughts, and it reaffirms my opinion of Fedor Emelianenko. I do believe that Anderson Silva is currently the best fighter in the world, and should he face the Last Emperor I'd pick the Brazilian. But, that dream scenario aside, once both fighters hang up their gloves I think Fedor's legacy will shine brighter.
Silva is doing things in MMA that have never been seen before. His performances are artistry, but like most great artists he has shown a tendency to become disaffected and cynical. Personally, I don't mind his antics and find them entertaining. But then again, I sympathize with his disaffection and especially his cynicism even though I have never succeeded in any endeavour as much as he does in MMA.
It is Fedor, however, that retains the most sterling reputation in this writer's mind. He has often been decried as a willing participant in freakshow fights, which can't be dismissed. But I tend to view his matches with Hong Man Choi and Zuluzinho more as easy paychecks in a post-PRIDE Japanese climate that was not so welcoming to MMA as it once was.
In his greatest challenges, against the great Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera and the horrifying Mirko Cro Cop he dove into the lion's den head first and survived. He brutally dispatched two UFC heavyweights that dominated their era, Andrei Arlovski and Tim Sylvia. And everytime he's seen danger--the atomic suplex from Kevin Randleman, Kazuyuki Fujita's iron fist, Brett Rogers' deisel aggression--he has stood his ground, tasted the storm, and had his arm raised when it's all over.
While Anderson Silva has effortless outings against the Demian Maias and Forrest Griffins of the world, I'll always think of Fedor's bloody nose, broken hands, bruised body and raised arm as the embodiment of MMA consummation.
The FanPosts are solely the subjective opinions of Bloody Elbow readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Bloody Elbow editors or staff.
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Even when Fedor is fighting weak opposition (which is frequent) he goes out there and fights. In that respect, he is better than Anderson Silva. Whenever he has a fight, he goes out there and FIGHTS and shows everyone why he is the best HW in the world. His management team may be a bunch of slimeballs, but he goes out there and gets the job done regardless of his opposition. That is how it should be done.
"Adam Sandler is like in love with some girl, but then it turns out that this girl is actually a golden retriever or something."
by Earl Montclair on Apr 11, 2010 7:37 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
All I know is that GSP is looking very good after this weekend. The hate for him is almost gone for the Hardy fight and now BJ lost and everyone is pissed at AS. GSP’s stock has gone up even more.
by p123 on Apr 11, 2010 8:16 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
A lot of pointless observation
Here is the BE ranking of the opponents for the big three’s title defenses over the last three years:
- Fedor (Baddest Man on the Planet) – #5 Tim Sylvia, #2 Andrei Arlovski, #8 Brett Rogers, (and #12 Fabricio Werdum in June)
- Anderon Silva (MW Champ) – #13 Patrick Cote, #9 Thales Leites, #6 Damian Maia
- GSP (WW Champ) – #2 Jon Fitch, Unranked BJ Penn (#1 LW), #2 Thiago Alves, #6 Dan Hardo
Victories over currently ranked opponents:
Fedor - 6 wins
- #5 Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
- #8 Brett Rogers
- #10 Andrei Arlovski
- #18 Mirko Cro Cop
- #19 TIm Sylvia
Silva – 5 wins
- #2 Dan Henderson
- #5 Nate Marquardt
- #6 Demian Maia
- #16 Thales Leites
- #5 LHW Forest Griffin
GSP- 7 wins
- #2 Jon Fitch
- #3 Thiago Silva
- #4 Josh Koscheck
- #6 Dan Hardy
- #8 Matt Hughes
- #13 Matt Serra
What’s surprising is that my choice for #1 p4p fighter, Anderson Silva, has actually been facing the weakest competition of the three, while #3 on my list, GSP, has been facing the strongest and has the best resume over the last few years.
by John Nash on Apr 11, 2010 8:17 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Interesting.
The rankings aren’t the be all and end all, but they do give some insight into the strength of these three champions’ respective competition.
by Cannon Jacques on Apr 11, 2010 8:21 PM EDT up reply actions
How do you figure?
Ranked 5, 8 and above is better competition than 2, 5, 6 at MW and 5 at LHW?
Fedor has been facing the weakest, GSP the strongest, Silva in the middle.
You missed this line
over the last few years.Fedor hasn’t been fighting as much as the others lately, so a lot of his earlier opponents have fallen off the top 25 (Herring, Coleman, Hunt). But look at the last three years – Fedor has fought #5, #2, #8 and will be facing #12 at HW while AS has faced #13, #9, and #6 at MW.
Like the other guy said, that is not Silva’s resume over the last few years. Including Sylvia and Arlovski for Fedor and excluding Hendo and Franklin for Silva is heavy bias.
i dont know why you are doing things based on their current rankings
instead of where they were ranked at the time of the fight.
I'm like PacMan fightin you silly kids... throw ya Hatton the ring, and get knocked outlike Ricky did.
lol.
I did both. The list of title defenses over the last two years is based on rankings at that time.
by John Nash on Apr 11, 2010 10:17 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Why are you not including Franklin
Franklin is ranked #11 at LHW. Are you not including it because when they fought it was a middleweight fight?
Also if we are talking the past 3 years and title defenses than it needs to be changed
Fedor – #2 Arlovski, #8 Rogers because 1) The Sylvia fight was for the vacant WAMMA title so not a title “defense” and 2) as positive as I am that Fedor destroys Werdum a scheduled fight is not a title “defense”.
Anderson – Marquardt(dont know what if any he was ranked at 07/07/07), Franklin (Dont know where hw was ranked but he was 10/20/07), Hendo (again dont know rank but was 03/01/08), # 13 Cote, # 9 Leites, and # 6 Maia.
GSP – Serra (Dont know where he was ranked but it was high on 04/19/08), # 2 Fitch, unranked Penn, #2 Alves, #6 Hardy. (Koscheck was non title and Hughes was interim)
Hopefully I’m not coming off as a dick or anything but if were saying 3 years and title defenses then that is how it should be.
Fedor title is the “Baddest Man on the Planet”. I put that behind his name as partly a joke and partly because that’s what he’s defending.
Rich wasn’t included because he’s not ranked at the weight class they fought at – MW. If I include Rich, I have to list Sherk and BJ for GSP, but they’re ranked as LWs and fought GSP as MW. How does that work out?
I always work from three years from todays date. It’s about as an objective arbitrary date as I can choose from. AS is hurt because he fought Hendo (#4 at the time) in March of 2008. Come July and Fedor will lose a victory over the #5 HW.
Fair enough
I read your other reply about 2 years.
My whole point is if we went 3 years then you had to include Franklin, Hendo, and Marquardt(if he was ranked) in Silva’s thing. But now you cleared that up.
Big mistake on my part. Should read last two years.
I start with todays date 2008. I started with that because that’ when most the big UFC HW started fighting noteworthy competition. But still I missed Serra. For some reason I thought that fight was in March. But all that proves is GSP’s record is even more impressive.
Rich isn't ranked in the top 20 of either division?
I'm like PacMan fightin you silly kids... throw ya Hatton the ring, and get knocked outlike Ricky did.
lol.
Rich Franklin should be on Andy's list he is top 25. , Is he not?
"When i get in there, in his face ,pressin the action,I'm RUFF NECKIN'EM,I'm throwin him around,I'm punchin him,hes punchin me, I'm eatin his shots and I'm Blastin him back in the face he's not goin to be able to handle it ." - Chris Leben on how his fight with Anderson Silva is gonna go.
Uh
under victories over currently ranked oponents it says that Fedor has six, but there’s only five.
"That's right I'm into hardcore crack, that's why my teeth are so bad"
Certainly, picking between Fedor and Anderson in terms of pound-for-pound supremacy is a subjective undertaking. Luckily, this book has yet to be finished. My feeling is that GSP has more upside than either of the other two. He’s still perfecting his craft at relatively young age, he fights in arguably the most talent-rich division in the top MMA promotion in the world. I don’t agree with the above characterization of GSP’s fight style. Granted, it’s not as flashy as Silva’s standup, but it can be just as devastating. Ask Fitch or the much larger Alves. They survived five rounds, but took a beating in the process.
Like I said, it’s all subjective. MMA fans are no different from other sports fans or other people in general. Judging legacies is based on opinion, and that will render numerous verdicts.
by Cannon Jacques on Apr 11, 2010 8:20 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
The only thing that really puts Fedor above all is that he hasn’t lost. That is just mind boggling. It like shouldn’t happen. He is almost a myth.
And Fedor doesn’t dominate like the other guys. He just gets the job done. Hard to compare them but I think Fedor is possibly 2 or 3 fights from being labeled as the greatest fighter ever.
If he can get by Werdum and Overeem which is very likely all he has to do is beat the current UFC HW champ and Im sold he can completely retire and I would never question his place.
fedor is already the greatest fighter in mma history
and theres no competition for it
by milk72 on Apr 11, 2010 9:44 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I don't get it.....
Not saying that Fedor isn’t great but I do question his level of competiton. Tim Sylvia and Big Nog got beat by Frank Mir. Arlovski lost to Pedro Rizzo and Rizzo lost to Couture twice. I guess my point is that Randy C and Frank Mir both got steam rolled by Brock and Mir got crushed by Carwin. Not saying that Sylvia, Big Nog and Arlovski are terrible or anything BUT I don’t think that they could have stood up to the top heavyweights in todays UFC at any point in their careers. Before anyone says that Mir beat Brock, remember he fought him twice and litteraly only won about 5 seconds of actual fight time and that was in Brocks 2nd mma fight. Not sayin that he didn’t “win” the fight but I believe they could fight 50 more times and Brock wins everytime.
I think anyone that does not question Fedor's competition at this point
suffers from serious fanboi afterglow. Fedor seems to be an awesome guy both inside and outside of the ring but he does not fight the worlds best competition. I think an argument can be made his management team prefers that so they can ‘sell’ him easier with the extremely impressive streak. If Fedor walks into the UFC and knocks out 3-4 top 5 guys there he can ride into the sunset as the best ever. If he continues to face guys he should easily beat there will always be questions.
"-i never said half the things i said." --Yogi Berra
I think part of perception that “Fedor is great because he beats you at your own game” comes from the fact that people consistently underrate how good he really is as a striker, and as a grappler. On the feet, he has deft head movement, and as quick on the draw as some of the more heralded “K-1 level” strikers in MMA. His power is phenomenal, and he’s kind of always had that one hitter quitter quality to some degree: I think now he’s just gotten better at counter punching, making it more pronounced.
As for his grappling, his top control is insane. He’s never displayed great guard passing or anything (he was hustling Herring on the ground, but Herring’s open guard was gawd awful), but he’s agile off his back. With Nog, I just think wrist control is a terrible choice to tie up someone like Fedor. I’ve never been sold on Nog as a premier jiu jitsu ace or anything, and he’s not accomplished outside of MMA other than getting knee barred by Ricco, but he’s still quality, especially in MMA where his once titanium chin contributed to his submission prowess.
Overall, I agree that Fedor’s legacy will stand out in its own way, but I refuse to overlook the fact that nobody is consistently fighting top tier competition in the fashion that GSP is. At the end of the day legacies are determined by who you fought, and the HW division just doesn’t offer the type of high end challenges as consistently as the lower weights do.
Good article though. Rec’ed’d.
I think people are confused by Fedor’s technical approach to things. It looks so damn untechnical people are like hes a bum.
Fedor’s style Sambo is his game. Also that Russian shit which emphasizes on scrambling is the other part of hisgame.
His whole style is very technical. Just that its not pretty. Anyone know the Russian thing I am talking about. Its like fake continous fighting but flowing fluid and keeping it going.
Fedor uses a casting punch from Sambo. One of the most deadly fearsome punches known to man. Known for being too strong for its own good.
Fedor says it himself anyone can study his techniques. He did the scientific research and uses it. Anyone could. He just does it and does it better than anyone else.
You dont win 30 fights in a row not being technical .
Fedor is confusing to us. It took me a long time to understand him and his game/
No one in MMA transitions like Fedor
We're just a million little gods causin' rain storms, turning every good thing to rust.
by Anthony Pace on Apr 11, 2010 10:21 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 2 recs
Ridiculous article on multiple counts mostly considering the fact that Fedor doesn’t fight in the best division in his weight class while GSP and Andy have cleaned out their’s. The fact that people continually like to put Fedor in conversations that he doesn’t belong in amazes me, as long as he continues to cherry pick who and where he fights and keeps ducking the best HW’s he has no legacy aside from some old Pride fans still living in the past.
What should be considered
is time. Fedor’s biggest victories are often said to be too long ago and he hasnt been challenging himself. The big problem is that there hasnt been any real challenge since he beat up Cro Cop. Enough time has passed by now that new fighters have developed, gained experience and now pose a legitimate threat to him. It takes time to develop these threats, particularly at HW.
Fedor annihilated the “first wave” of talented HWs and should he move to UFC he would be taking on the “second wave.” I believe that defeating the second wave is where true legendary status lies for Fedor, or any fighter for that matter. That’s something nobody has ever done. Beat down the top contenders of 2 different decades.
By comparison that would be like Hughes destroying GSP, Fitch, Alves, and Koscheck. Had he done that, Hughes would most definitely be the best.
GSP and Anderson on the other hand are only now wrapping up their first respective waves. The contenders need to be given time to develop. Maybe in 2 years there will be a new batch that pose new problems to these current champions.
I don’t actually believe any of these three have done enough to be Greatest of All Time. Mostly because there has been very little time since the sports inception, and also because these guys are still fighting. How can you call a song the greatest ever written before you’ve heard the end?
The title will go to whoever goes on to beat that second wave. And hell, it might not be one of these fighters. You just have to wait.
How do you pick anderson to beat fedor? Fedor has great speed and power, he would take anderson down whenever he wants to, and anderso is not that good from his back. The strenght is also a big factor, Fedor may be 230-235 but he has the strenght of a man at 265, plus that he moves like a lighweight.
I just don’t see how anderson would win this fight
Really?
Anderson is an amazing striker and if there was anyway he’d win it’d be through the stand up. Fedor has speed and power, but Anderson also has power and faster speed. I also honestly think that Anderson is more technically sound then Fedor, and as far as taking Anderson down while I do agree that if it Anderson ended up on his back he’d be in trouble I don’t think Fedor is guaranteed to take him down whenever he wanted at all. I think Anderson would find his range, I’m pretty sure he has the reach advantage, and pick Fedor apart from the outside all night long.
"That's right I'm into hardcore crack, that's why my teeth are so bad"
GSP will take on any challenger.
Fedor won’t.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Bit of jingoism here? Are we discrediting the eight years Fedor took on the best you could throw at him, whilst never losing? Come on now, Fedor doesn’t duck anyone. Say what you will about his management, but I doubt his pissing his knickers over Lesnar or Carwin, considering his void of emotions.
We're just a million little gods causin' rain storms, turning every good thing to rust.
by Anthony Pace on Apr 12, 2010 2:49 PM EDT up reply actions
As of April 12, 2010, this is clearly not the case.
How long did it take Fedor to mix it up with CroCop anyway?
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Fedor himself is not scared of anyone and will fight any man on earth, but unfortunately for us Fedor doesn’t make his own fights his management does. But the second they offered him Brock/Carwin/JDS/Cain/etc do you really think he would turn it down? No, he would accept the fight just like he has every other time and proceed to dismantle whoever they put in front of him
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
I don’t believe that Fedor lets his management make decisions that shape his career to that extent. He isn’t a simpleton. “Management”, “taking his time”, “shuckin and duckin”, whatever you want to call it, Fedor is nowhere near competition with the baddest possible challengers of the HW division of 2010.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Nowhere near competition with the HWs of 2010? what do you base that claim on? I’m going to just go ahead and assume you’ve seen all of Fedor’s fights, so what makes you think that any of the HWs of today have the qualities necessary to beat him? It’s not like any of them play into Fedor’s weaknesses because he’s never shown that he even has any, whereas he has shown that he can convincingly defeat the best grapplers, strikers, jiu-jitsu players, etc that have been put in front of him.
and I believe it is mainly his management that decides who he fights and when. Fedor has stated before that he doesn;t watch MMA and that he competes and fights purely as his occupation. He is a partner in M-1 so it would not surprise me in the least that he relies on their management and what they see as best for him to guide his career.
I know this article has been mentioned on BE before and i know it’s not perfect but I believe it gives a pretty fair look through all the hype and hate down to the numbers of what Fedor has done in the past few years, for those who think he’s washed up or past his prime and can;t hang with the best in the world
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
oops didnt post it lol
http://www.mmamania.com/2010/4/2/1401775/the-numbers-behind-fedors-current
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
JDS, Cain, Carwin, and BROCKLESNARRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Those guys are all big, strong, fast and technically proficent in either boxing, wrestling, or both. With the exception of JDS, they are all professional athletes who have been honing their skills since before they were teenagers. their combined records are 35-2, with 26 KO/TKO, 7 submissions.
Carwin would pin him against the cage or mat and batter him with cinder blocks until he gets the KO. Brock would smother him like no tomorrow. Dos Santos would KO him with a sharp counter. I’m not sure about Cain, but the guy is fast as hell, has a hard head and a bottomless gas tank.
Fedor is not washed up or past his prime, but since he had some trouble dealing with an athletic, but poorly trained and inexperienced Brett Rogers, it is fair hypothesize that he would lose to one of the new top dogs that have emerged within the last 18 months.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Fedor is nowhere near competition with the baddest possible challengers of the HW division of 2010
the new top dogs that have emerged within the last 18 months.
I agree, the best of the HWs are now in the UFC. Which is why I’m sure you were so happy he was fighting in Pride from 2001-2006, which had the cream of the crop of HW and he faced they best they offered. And you must have been practically ecstatic when he decided not to take the easy road in 2008 and sign with the UFC who only had 1 of the top 6 HWs under contract (and that one was Big Nog a man he had beaten badly twice) but instead decided to challenge himself by signing with Affliction where 4 of the top 6 HW would reside, and he would have a chance to be signed to back to back contests against the #2 HW in the world (unfortunately one fell through, but heh he tried).
But beyond that you’re right, for the last 4 months he’s been ducking the very best HWs.
Those two #2 challengers rose to prominence more from a power vacuum than by stepping over piles of battered contenders. Arlovski was there because he was the only guy not to lose recently and Barnett’s #2 status was a fucking joke and everybody knew it.
Fedor has beaten every great HW of the 2006 era. Not doubt about it, none at all. I care about 2010.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
I don’t see how he had trouble with Rogers at all, Fedor is known for bruising and cutting easily so don’t allow the marks on his face after that fight to sway your opinion of it. Fedor clearly won round 1 10-9 and finished rogers in the 2nd so I don’t see how the rogers fight validates your argument at all.
With Fedors amazing Sambo skills I don’t think Brock could take Fedor down to be honest, and on the feet he would obviously be at a huge disadvantage as Fedor is IMO one of the best stand-up fighters in MMA.
Carwin does have extremely heavy hand but Fedor has been hit cleanly by some of the best and stongest in the business (granted maybe not as strong as carwin but who’s to say) and hasn’t been knocked down let alone knocked out. Fedor would never be stuck up against the cage like Mir was and if gonzaga could rock carwin Fedor would put him away quick with his great accuracy and heavy hands.
JDS is not even close ot ready for a challenege like Fedor and while his boxing is very good and he’s a fantastic prospect and my favourite UFC HW he would get tooled on the feet by Fedor and taken down at will.
Cain isn’t even worth discussing because he throws pillows as evident in all of his fights aside from the nog fight, and the chances of him taking Fedor down i would say are slim to none
I’m not saying by any means that Fedor is unbeatable or invincible but nothing he has ever done has given the slightest indication that guys like Brock, JDS or Carwin could beat him. Theres no precedent since he has never been defeated, we can’t see what his weaknesses are or ways to beat him. He’s beaten feared strikers in Cro Cop/Schilt, Powerful wrestlers in Coleman/Randleman, Crafty grapplers in Nog and Babalu. Fedor can hang with any fighter in the world on the feet and if he gets you down (which theres a very good chance of since he’s on of the best Sambo practitioners in the world) his ground and pound is devestating. and recently we’ve seen him becoming a very proficient counter puncher where his power really shines through (Rogers, Arlovski). My Question is aside from the fact that they are strong, powerful and athletic, what flashes of genius in them or flashes of weakness in Fedor have you ever seen that gives them a realistic chance at beating him?
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
But of course we’ll never know, Fedor has to decide between Werdum and Bigfoot Silva.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
wow I really expected more of a compelling response than “Raw Power” because as we’ve seen that doesn’t stop Fedor ( I think When Randleman dropped him on his head there was some raw power behind that don’t you?).
I also think you’re giving this new crop of HWs a bit (or a lot) too much credit, Brock is 4-1 with a loss to an overrated mir, wins over a washed-up Herring who he couldn’t finish, a tko of a 45-year old undersized couture who gave brock all he could handle in the 1st round, and then Mir again.
Carwin hasn’t really beat anyone of great importance aside from possibly Napao (who had him rocked) and Mir (who i still think is overrated)
JDS is coming along nicely but as I stated before he’s nowhere near ready for a shot at Fedor.
These guys may be the cream of the crop but how much of that is due to facing the best competition in the world and how much of it is due to racking up numerous wins over middle-tier HWs?
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
At least these guys are obliterating the mid teir than being mid teir themselves. When you crush the mid teir with impudity it makes you upper teir.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Cain just flatlined Big Nog 2 months ago, in case you haven’t heard. Nog is somewhat good, from all accounts.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
As much as it pains me to say this as Nog is one of my all-time favourite fighters, he has looked less than stellar lately and a win over him doesn’t launch cain into the upper echelon of HWs IMO.
I’m actually pretty surprised you picked cain to defend out of all the HWs we’ve discussed as he is the once with the least likely shot at beating Fedor. He doesn’t have an advantage in any area over Fedor, not even size like Brock or power like Carwin.
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
The heavyweights of today are better than the heavyweights of yesterday. the same can be said about LHW, MW, WW, LW, and so on. Fedor is a relic from the era of Matt Hughes and Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva. Their divisions evolved and they got left behind in the dust. It happened to Big Nog, and it’ll happen to Fedor.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Yet it hasn’t seemed to happen yet as he’s still unbeaten and is still facing only top 10 competition.
and i think it’s very debatable that Nog, Fedor, Cro Cop, Barnett, Kharitonov, Aleks, Mark Hunt, Monson, Tompson, Arlovski, Randy, etc is a weaker division than Lesnar, Carwin, Cain, JDS, Kongo, Nelson, Mir, Struve, etc.
if the HW division of 4-5 years ago was to fight the HW division of today my money would be on the old school.
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
I give Cain, JDS, and Lesnar the best shots. Carwin has power but he has no head movement which is no problem when facing the other plodding HWs but for Fedor I would think it would look like a speedbag. In addition he telegraphs his punches. Not good against a guy with a great ability to slip and counterstrike.
Lesnar and Cain would either throw Fedor around like a rag doll or get dropped on their feet unable to handle someone with so much speed and power.
JDS I give the best shot, he has great striking and reach so he might be a more effective Arlovski, which could be trouble for Fedor (I guess we’ll know more if Fedor fights Overeem).
I agree that JDS is the best bet as he has sound boxing technique and decent TDD, but I think Fedor would be able to take him down at will and once it hit the ground it would be over for Junior. I also think that Fedor’s stand-up would be a fair deal better and power between the two would be similar.
I also agree with you that Fedor standing with Carwin would lead to Fedor unloading on him and putting him away.
and am I the only one that thinks it’s not guaranteed that Lesnar and even Carwin could take Fedor down?
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
I think Lesnar and Carwin and Cain as well will get Fedor down a couple of times. I don’t however think they would do much with it.
You guys act like because Lesnar can hold Mir down he can do that to everyone in the division. ROFL!
You did see Lesnar Randy right?
I have Fedor as the favorite against all the top UFC guys. So does the betting community.
I think Fedor has a high probability of knocking out Carwin. I think Lesnar is Fedor’s toughest match up as Lesnar will only look to do one thing. Lesnar might get armbarred Koed or win with GNP or LNP his way to decision.
JDS will be on his ass. Systema over JDS boxing distancing .
Cain would be interesting. Would get Koed though.
Fedor fears no man. He doesn’t fear anything I can guarentee you that. Maybe if he needs a little more time to work on strategy the man does not have any fear.
If Brock Lesnar or Shane Carwin were outside of the UFC he would be fighting them next. He is not ducking anybody. His handlers are responsible for the bullshit. I can see them having reason to fear Fedor losing but I know Fedor doesn’t fear anyone or anything including losing.
You don’t get eyes like that from fear man. Have you ever seen anyone with that kind of look? I mean seriously this is Fedor we are talking about not GSP this man is only borderline human.
GSP wont take on Anderson.
And dont give me the excuse well he wants to build up muscle and Silva is bigger blah blah blah. GSP walks around at 195 he would have to cut weight to make middleweight. Even if Silva walks around at 215 thats 20 lbs. Fedor routinely fights larger men and in his last fight was out weighed by 30 lbs and probably more on fight night since Rogers probably cuts a little weight.
by xbuckeyex05 on Apr 12, 2010 10:26 PM EDT up reply actions
GSP would fight Silva without hesitation at 170, and he would win.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
I feel for Canada because it’s going to be a national tragedy for our northern neighbor the day that fight goes down.
I dont doubt he would win, but im just saying its not like he is doing everything to fight the best, he could EASILY move up. Thats what I respect so much about BJ, I dont think hes the greatest but he will do anything to fight the best.
by xbuckeyex05 on Apr 12, 2010 11:24 PM EDT up reply actions
not that BJ has anything to do with this.
by xbuckeyex05 on Apr 12, 2010 11:27 PM EDT up reply actions
Anderson said he would go to 170, why should Georges move?
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Finally I agree with you UberNoober,
I also see no need for GSP to move up, especially considering Anderson will move down, and I also see GSP dictating that fight and beating Anderson decisively
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
At least we can agree on something!!
Anderson fights best when people run directly into his fists.
Keep Firing, Assholes!
I like things that don't make sense.
Also if you think GSP was gunshy against Hardy watching him bitch out against Silva is just going to make people call him a pussy even more. They shouldn’t make that fight.
I don’t think he was gunshy at all I think he knew he would dominate the fight in any way he wanted so he chose not to fuck Dan Hardy up and just transitioned circles around him and looked for subs. Kind of the same thing that Anderson did when matched up with a clearly inferior opponent, except GSP embarrassed his opponent and not himself.
and seriously I don’t know if you’re a GSP hater or just a severe Anderson lover but all the insulting of Georges is getting ridiculous. You claimed in another post to want to have a position writing for BE yet you can’t even check your bias at the door and recognize one of the p4p best and best WW of all time for what he is, an incredible and dominant fighter, who has had far more challenging opponents than AS might I add.
Green Jacket, Gold Jacket, who gives a shit?
i don't like the argument that
fedor kickboxed cro cop, he got in nog’s guard etc. another way of characterizing this argument is: the majority of his opponents have been very one-dimensional and fedor proved that being a well rounded mma fighter can beat a one trick pony at their own game in an mma fight.
Yeah, you don’t like it, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.
by David_ on Apr 12, 2010 1:04 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I thought this was funny
We're just a million little gods causin' rain storms, turning every good thing to rust.
I’m not the biggest Fedor worshiper. I just think he is a great fighter; but not in the bandwagon with most.
And he does not always fight the best opposition. (Though sometimes it’s the best available to him at the time)
But after watching GSP and Silva fight the last couple PPV’s I have so say at least Fedor goes out there to beat opponents and finish fights. He doesn’t seem worried about pointing his way to victory. He puts himself in danger to unquestionably defeat his opponents. Gotta give him that. (I still thin Brock would destroy him though)
"A champion is someone who gets up when he can't." - Jack Dempsey
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