Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery took place this past Saturday and the only significant storyline coming out of it: Alistair Overeem. Sure we saw Jacare Souza win another fight and the first "young" Gracie win a big fight, but Overeem had everyone talking about the Dutchman. It was Overeem's first exposure to American audiences on an American fight card since 2007. Whatever your thoughts are about Overeem over that span, the one thing that is for certain, he is a much improved fighter.
One thing that has not changed is the fact Fedor Emelianenko remains the best fighter in the world. Alistair Overeem claims Fedor has ducked him, and while the validity of that statement may be up for debate, the fight has been talked about for years.
Back to Saturday night, Overeem dismantled Brett Rogers in quick fashion. It appeared Rogers was hesitant to let his hands go and perhaps rightfully so. The two came near each other and Overeem literally flung Rogers to the mat. The end was about a minute or so afterwards thanks to Overeem's ground and pound.
Granted, Fedor has beaten every man he has ever stepped inside a ring/cage with. What makes us think a proposed fight with Overeem would go any different? For one thing, Overeem has heavy hands and is a muscular fighter who can move around well on the mat. At the end of the day, Fedor is no pushover for obvious reasons. Fedor does not get nervous in a fight and has his own heavy hands and superb grappling background to rely upon. I would give Overeem as good a chance to defeat the mammoth legend as anyone else, but how can you pick against The Last Emperor?
As for Brett Rogers, give the man credit. While he may not have had a laundry list of quality opponents starting out, he took a HUGE step up in his past two fights. Obviously, he lost both fights, but he is still a newbie in the sport as far as some are concerned. His camp has talked about wanting to get a lot of experience under his belt around the world so I hope he does just that. With more training/experience, Rogers could become a top heavyweight in the future.
Source: 411 Mania
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