Strikeforce: Sergei Kharitonov Trains for Andrei Arlovski

by Nick Thomas on Jan 21, 2011 11:47 AM EST in Strikeforce News

Sergey Kharitonov Sparring session at Golden glory

Feb 12th, live on Showtime from East Rutherford, N.J.:

Sergei Kharitonov (17-4) -120
Win Tatsuya Mizuno - KO (Knee) K-1
Loss Jeff Monson - Submission (North-South Choke) Dream 8
Win Jimmy Ambriz - Submission (Punches) Dream 6

Andrei "Pitbull" Arlovski (15-8) +105
Loss Antonio Silva - Decision (Unanimous) Strikeforce
Loss Brett Rogers - TKO (Punches) Strikeforce
Loss Fedor Emelianenko - KO (Punch) Affliction

Sergey Kharitonov - Calling out Andre Arlovski

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I find it shocking people think AA is going to walk through him. If the fight stays standing as I imagine it will, things end badly for Arlovski.

I wish they’d have matched up Barnett and AA instead, but I can see how they didn’t with the commission issues Barnett is facing.

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by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 11:55 AM EST reply actions

Sergei Kharitonov is a striker

And some people still think that Arlovski has mad boxing skills.

"I am very confident this fight can go either way"

by SpL on Jan 21, 2011 12:02 PM EST up reply actions

On their game

They are both phenomenal strikers. I think Sergei takes it, but Arlovski is blazing fast for a HW.

Andrei’s worst enemy is his head. He’s either doing really well, and then gets over confident/ overly aggressive, and gets clocked for it; or he’s far too timid from getting caught.

If he could find some measure of consistency, he’d probably be the world’s top HW right now.

But yes, it is preposterous that people think either man will walk over the other. They’re both extremely talented, and well matched.

You can read my work over @ http://www.headkicklegend.com/

"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
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by ElliotMatheny on Jan 21, 2011 3:32 PM EST up reply actions

People think AA is gonna walk through Sergei?

That’s news to me. Sure Kharitonov is far removed from his fight with Nog when everyone thought he was one of the brightest HW prospects, but even flashes of his old self against someone like Arlovski can net him a victory here given a) Andrei’s “chin” and b) Andrei’s low fight IQ (not that Sergei isn’t foolish himself at times). He’s still a solid fighter and he’s gonna be hell for Arlo if the fight stays standing.

by David Castillo on Jan 21, 2011 12:03 PM EST up reply actions

You'd be surprised at the number of people who are taking Sergei's loss at the K-1 WGP as evidence that AA is gonna maul him.

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 12:06 PM EST up reply actions

I think his recent K1 loss shows he might be on the decline.

Sergei got KO’d by Heart Jaideep, and if striking is his best area, he may have lost a step. In my opinion, the standup game is a wash. I know Andrei has a sambo background…does Sergei? I would imagine yes, but if neither fighter cares to go to the ground, it’s really a toss up.

Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?
George Carlin

by Snatchl on Jan 21, 2011 4:17 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs

Sergei is a good bet at -120

Dude hits HARD and he’s gonna bomb AA in the first round.

by nastyem on Jan 21, 2011 12:19 PM EST up reply actions

Kimbo slice hits hard 2, so does James Toney

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 12:36 PM EST up reply actions

kimbo hits like a girl and toney is fat.

by nastyem on Jan 21, 2011 12:45 PM EST up reply actions

so is Roy Nelson so is Fedor....ur point

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 12:49 PM EST up reply actions

i thought it was obvious that i was being facetious.

by nastyem on Jan 21, 2011 1:11 PM EST up reply actions

so was i

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 1:13 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs

Toney is very fat

by lolumad on Jan 21, 2011 1:12 PM EST up reply actions

Why do you find it shocking? He is not a very good fighter overall and was only overrated due to being the sexy contrast to Tim Sylvia’s ogre villain stature.

by DirtyML on Jan 21, 2011 12:25 PM EST up reply actions

I Agree the loss to Jaideep was a BAD loss. I know it was K-1, but striking is supposed to be Sergei’s strength. I dont believe he is that skilled, hes not very athletic. His only chance in this fight is to land a big shot and AA chin. I personally believe this will start the comeback trail for AA with a KO over Sergei

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 12:32 PM EST up reply actions 2 recs

Dude is a K-1 tournament champion

I am sorry but despite what has been said that loss isn’t as bad as people say and it was an early stoppage to boot. Sergei looked good until he ate that K-1 knee. AA can win this bout but Sergei should have the advantage standing.

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 12:38 PM EST up reply actions

I totally disagree, AA is way to athletic and fast for Sergei. Like i said obviously Sergei can land a big shot with AA chin being questionable but i think AA will work him

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 12:39 PM EST up reply actions

Maybe two years ago

But I am pretty sure Fedor robbed his soul. He’s looked like hot ass lately. Sergei has been training for K-1 exclusively. Not a good match up imo.

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 12:42 PM EST up reply actions

Your crazy man. Arlovski was winning that Fedor fight until he made a horrible decision.

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 12:45 PM EST up reply actions

Honestly, I hate when people say this sort of thing

There was some light skirmishing for around 2 minutes where Arlovski looked sharp, then Fedor knocked him unconscious with one punch.

by lolumad on Jan 21, 2011 1:57 PM EST up reply actions

Greasy George says: Winning half a round with Fedor...

…is AA’s greatest accomplishment. Just joking! But seriously, yo, it’s nuttin’ to write home about. that was a 15 minute fight, homeboy. He lasted three. Greasy George, out!

by greasy george on Jan 21, 2011 2:10 PM EST up reply actions

And Foreman was winning his fight against Ali......

ended kind of similar as well….

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by ChillMike on Jan 21, 2011 2:06 PM EST up reply actions

AA is better every where......i could also see AA subbing him

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 12:47 PM EST up reply actions

Who was the last person AA sub'd?

Tim 6 years ago? He has three career subs to Sergei’s 8. Like I said, maybe two years ago, Fedor robbed his soul. He was looking alright against Fedor until he ate a deathblow, and since then he’s been massacred. Sergei would look just as good against Big Country and Rothwell too. You are sleepin’ on my boy here. He looked out of shape and disinterested against Monson but I don’t think that fight tells the whole story of his career. We’ll see.

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 12:56 PM EST up reply actions

Sergei will be humbled in this fight

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 1:10 PM EST up reply actions

You keep saying Fedor robbed his soul...let's not lose touch with reality

AA was doing well against Fedor, got over aggressive, and was KTFO’d for it.

His next fight, vs. Bigfoot, he looked tenative, sure, but soulless?

I think Andrei has a good chance to get into the finals if he gets through Sergei.

Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?
George Carlin

by Snatchl on Jan 21, 2011 4:24 PM EST up reply actions

forgetting the smashing at the hands of Rogers.

AA has been awful and I think it’s mental since the Fedor loss.

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 4:48 PM EST up reply actions

One thing I noticed is that Sergei is very flat-footed, and Arlovski is not. However, you never know where Arlovski is mentally these days. I am going with Arlovski to win this one though.

I won't jump off the bandwagon just because you lost.

by chrisbboy82 on Jan 21, 2011 1:08 PM EST up reply actions

Thats the only question is Arlovski head. I believe he is in full blown MMA mode, training with JJ. he will make the finals, and people will be talking about him agian

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 1:12 PM EST up reply actions

I really hope so. When he was on that five fight win streak before fighting Fedor beating up Heavyweights like Rothwell and Nelson (he also beat Werdum as well), I knew that he was back. After Fedor though, he just lost it again.

I won't jump off the bandwagon just because you lost.

by chrisbboy82 on Jan 21, 2011 1:14 PM EST up reply actions

i dont think he could process...that he made the biggest mistake of his life(at least his fight career)...he was controlling that fight until then

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 1:16 PM EST up reply actions

What....

How can you say that, Fedor knocked him unconscious! You can’t judge a fighter to be winning handily based on two minutes of what was more or less footwork. Neither fighter was landing anything of substance, and then one was knocked out.

by lolumad on Jan 21, 2011 2:00 PM EST up reply actions

The tentitive Pit Bull that fought Bigfoot get knocked the fuck out by Sergei.

I know he’s far removed from his Pride days but unless the Unisol version of AA shows up I don’t see him winning this one

This fight for the fish is a fight to the death!

by doonerthesooner on Jan 21, 2011 1:16 PM EST up reply actions

AA or sergei?

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 12:38 PM EST up reply actions

AA, there was no Sergei vs Sylvia conversation that I can recall.

AAs greatest accomplishment was beating Tim Sylvia(or Werdum depending on revised history) and he got his title shot by beating Eilers and Buentello.

This is the same guy that got KTFO by Pedro Rizzo and Ricco Rodriguez.

Kharitonov is going to beat him badly.

by DirtyML on Jan 21, 2011 2:36 PM EST up reply actions

I said I find it shocking AA was being picked.

Not Sergei. Think we got it crossed there. I agree with you. I think AA at his best was a supreme HW though.

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 4:10 PM EST up reply actions

That is oen big dude.

by CVD on Jan 21, 2011 12:05 PM EST reply actions

one big dude ^^

by CVD on Jan 21, 2011 12:06 PM EST up reply actions

Hard to tell anything from the video

I have no idea how hard they are sparring. Arlovski seems to be the more technical striker, but that didn’t do him a lot of good against Fedor or Rogers.

Should be an interesting fight. I can’t wait for the HW Tournament.

by GaryMario on Jan 21, 2011 12:31 PM EST reply actions

Rogers caught him...that simple. AA wins that fight 9 out of 10 times.

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 12:33 PM EST up reply actions

Rogers caught him?

Are you trying to say that was a fluke?

Andrei flicked out a lazy lead kick, and moved straight backwards while Rogers charged in and got clipped with some bombs. Nothing flukey about that.

If you don’t take your opponent serious, you make him a serious opponent.

You can read my work over @ http://www.headkicklegend.com/

"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates

by ElliotMatheny on Jan 21, 2011 3:37 PM EST up reply actions

If Rogers gets through Barnett, we may see a rematch

or if AA and Grim both lose, we may also see a rematch.

Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?
George Carlin

by Snatchl on Jan 21, 2011 4:26 PM EST up reply actions

All good matchups IMO.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to see Barnett/ Arlovski, though. That’s always been a great matchup.

The way this tournament is structured is brilliant IMO. Instead of matching the higher seeds against the lower ones, in hope of building up the big matchups, they’re cutting the middle man, and matching the fighters against similarly ranked opponents.

You can read my work over @ http://www.headkicklegend.com/

"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates

by ElliotMatheny on Jan 21, 2011 5:46 PM EST up reply actions

Are you srs?

You can’t tell that they’re sparring hard?

They’re not going balls to the wall, Chute Boxe style, but they are throwing hard. Probably around 60-70% i’d say.

You can read my work over @ http://www.headkicklegend.com/

"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates

by ElliotMatheny on Jan 21, 2011 3:34 PM EST up reply actions

Another good ol'

Russian vs Belorussian fight.

Why I never joined a frat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-KNVrZaN8M

"Don’t quote old fucks to me" – Brent Brookhouse
"A samurai would bite your cock off if you tried that shit on the battlefield." - Kid Nate

by Chris Barton on Jan 21, 2011 1:18 PM EST reply actions

Wasnt implying that all Asian fighters were bad.. simply was stating it felt like a local show turney with no big names.

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 1:21 PM EST up reply actions

That's what you should have said

because, intentional or not, that’s what it implied. No worries, though.

Why I never joined a frat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-KNVrZaN8M

"Don’t quote old fucks to me" – Brent Brookhouse
"A samurai would bite your cock off if you tried that shit on the battlefield." - Kid Nate

by Chris Barton on Jan 21, 2011 1:51 PM EST up reply actions

He will bury AA.

by wilberdp on Jan 21, 2011 1:38 PM EST reply actions

why?

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 1:43 PM EST up reply actions

now i'm not trying to be a hater

i’m not – i’m stoked for this tourney.

but it does amaze me how, in the excitement for this cool tourney, people seem to be forgetting how weak the “right hand” side of this tourney really is. i guess the idea is that whoever gets out of that side will be a credible challenger, but if they’re only fighting each other, i’m not sure how the math adds up there.

and i am aware how good AA used to be, but the reality is, he is on a 3 fight losing streak, and has looked utterly awful since the first three minutes against fedor.

i think it is also a reflection of how weak the heavyweight division is in general. remember buentello, who gave struve all he could handle in the ufc, then lost to tim sylvia. outside of the top 5-8 guys in the world, and some promising prospects, there’s a steep drop off.

and while i’m being a troll, let me say that what i’m most excited about this entire tournament is seeing overeem against better opponents. for me, that guy is still a bit of a unicorn from an mma standpoint, his kickboxing accomplishments notwithstanding. beating werdum and fedor would give him a pretty good claim on the #1 hw spot (which to me is still fedor – one submission loss doesn’t erase all he’s done).

by Clifford J on Jan 21, 2011 1:51 PM EST reply actions

I have Cain as the number one and I can't really qualify it.

That being said I’m with you about the Reem and Timmy could still be a top ten guy if you ask me.

This fight for the fish is a fight to the death!

by doonerthesooner on Jan 21, 2011 1:54 PM EST up reply actions

Are you shitting me?

Sergei, Rogers, Arlovski, and Barnett are all elite HW’s.

Whoever wins that side of the bracket is a top 10 HW, easy.

You can read my work over @ http://www.headkicklegend.com/

"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates

by ElliotMatheny on Jan 21, 2011 3:40 PM EST up reply actions

Rogers isn't elite and I'm not sold on AA either.

And Barnett hasn’t fought a high level opponent in years so I’m not convinced he’s still got it either.

This fight for the fish is a fight to the death!

by doonerthesooner on Jan 21, 2011 3:52 PM EST up reply actions

HW is thin

All of these men are top 25 HW’s.

Rogers, despite being flattened by Fedor & Reem, is still a solid HW. Arlovski was on top of the world, not too long ago. Barnett is on a solid streak right now as well. And Sergei did decent in K-1, looks to be in much better shape now.

Anyone complaining about this tournament is foolish.

You can read my work over @ http://www.headkicklegend.com/

"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates

by ElliotMatheny on Jan 21, 2011 5:49 PM EST up reply actions

This

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 4:12 PM EST up reply actions

Barnett has beat 2 top 20 fighters in his whole career Minatauro and Monson......Couture but hes not a true HW

….

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 7:34 PM EST up reply actions

You're looking at his whole career through today's top 20

which is pretty ridiculous. Unless you don’t think guys like Alex, Semmy, Gan, Bobby Hoffman, Yuki Kondo etc weren’t “top 20” or otherwise solid, highest level competition when he fought them. If that is the case I would suggest you have a lot to learn about the sport.

by Urijah Bieber on Jan 21, 2011 9:33 PM EST up reply actions

Aleks E- Once agian, over-hyped Pride fighter. Who did he ever beat besides Kharitonov………Eric Pele, James Thompson, Pawel Nastula. No i dont think he was any good.

Gan McGee- Really,….agian really.

Hoffman- was good in early 2000…is that really a quality win

Semmy- In MMA has never been much of a force…K-1 is a different story.

Yuki Kondo- Is a natural Middleweight

by Hath32 on Jan 21, 2011 11:45 PM EST up reply actions