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By: Jason Amadi, MMATorch Columnist
Q: Todd Wayman asks: As heavy weights go Mirko Cro cop is on the small end of the scale. Has he ever thought about dropping down to the light heavy division? If not, WHY NOT? He would have a Great chance to make a real run in the division. What do you think?
A: Only now is the landscape of the heavyweight division changing in such a way that Mirko Cro Cop might be considered “too small” for that weight class. Historically, the most successful fighters in the division have been of similar build to Cro Cop. Aside from Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin, there aren’t too many guys cutting to 265 at all; and aside from Brock Lesnar, there isn’t anyone cutting to 265 who’s able to fight for more than five minutes without requiring cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
In his prime, Cro Cop was known primarily for not only defeating bigger fighters, but knocking them out in spectacular fashion. Who among us (aside from you, apparently) will ever forget him breaking the orbital bone of a much larger Bob Sapp? Cro Cop has never really appeared to be out of his element against larger opponents, and his style is better suited for plodding heavyweights than against a lightning fast fighter, like Rashad Evans for example. Cro Cop moves like a heavyweight and has heavyweight power, but faster fighters with power of their own have always been the stoic Croatian’s undoing.
Q: Just wanted to know why Fitch never gets interviewed? Is it because he’s a boring fighter?
A: I’m going to assume you’re asking about post-fight interviews here. The subject matter of post-fight interviews is usually about the finish, or the fighter’s thoughts on what took place. If you’ve watched more than one Jon Fitch fight, you’ve seen them all. As amusing as it would be to listen to Jon Fitch talk over the highlights of him utilizing conservative ground and pound and holding onto the back of his opponent, I’m sure the novelty would eventually wear off.
Q: Devon Kimbrel writes: After such a lackluster fight against "Lil Nog," is a Ryan Bader vs. Jon Jones fight still appealing to the UFC, or might they consider Forrest Griffin or Rich Franklin instead?
A: I’ve never understood why Ryan Bader vs. Jon Jones is so appealing to so many people. Just because both fighters are winning fights doesn’t mean that they’re on the same level, and frankly, we’ve seen enough of both fighters to know better. Jon Jones has steamrolled fighters just like Ryan Bader in his last three fights. Matt Hamill, Brandon Vera, and Vladmir Matyushenko are all good wrestlers with good striking (Brandon Vera is a step above Hamill and Matyushenko in that respect), and Jones put them all on their back within a few seconds and unleashed some of the most brutal ground and pound in the sport today. In Bader’s last three fights, he’s been taken into deep water and really struggled his way to all of his victories.
Moving back to your question, if it was on the UFC’s radar before, it probably still is. Bader’s performance at UFC 119 is pretty much what we’ve come to expect from Bader, and as long as he keeps winning, he’s going to be in the title picture. Whether or not that’s enough to actually defeat a fighter the caliber of Jon Jones remains to be seen.
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If you read MMATorch regularly, you know our columnist Jason Amadi is a great combination of two things: knowledgeable and opinionated. So he's the perfect person to lead a revival of our "Ask the Torch" feature at MMATorch.
If you have a question on MMA, send it to mmatorch@gmail.com. Jason will sort through questions we receive and answer them on a regular basis here at our website and on our apps.
You can ask the basic of questions about the sport or the rules. You can ask questions about its history or its future. You can ask for his opinion on a particular controversial topic. It's wide open.
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(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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