Fabricio's name is rarely mentioned among the top five in the heavyweight division. And, surely, some question whether he deserves a spot in the top ten. Why? Well, he is not a intimidating striker nor a formidable wrestler. And he was let go by the UFC after Junior Dos Santos knocked him out.
However, let's take an objective look at Werdum's record. He is 14 and 4, with victories over Alistair Overeem, Fedor Emelianenko, and Bigfoot Silva. All three of those men are top ten heavyweights, if not top five. Fabricio has also bested Gabriel Gonzaga twice, Mike Kyle and Brandon Vera. Also, keep in mind that, of his 14 victories, 12 have come via submission or TKO. Those, my friends, are damn good stats.
Yes, JDS knocked Werdum into the next dimension when they met at UFC 90. But that is the ONLY time that Werdum has been KO'd. His other three losses came via decisions.
Fabricio is arguably the most highly-skilled grappler among the big boys. He is a two-time world champion in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and two-time champion of the prestigious Abu Dhabi World Submission Wrestling Championships. And, in recent years, Werdum's muy thai has improved notably. Lately, in fact, he has been training at King's MMA with Anderson Silva.
In the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix, Werdum is a dark horse. Almost nobody expects him to win it, much less get past Overeem in their upcoming title fight. However, "Vai Cavalo" has shown us that he deserves to be in the position he is in. And, if Alistair is not extremely careful, he'll find himself red-faced and tapping, just like Fedor.
No comments:
Post a Comment