After years and years of discussions, rumors and talks, Alistair Overeem finally made the transition to the Ultimate Fighting Championship after signing earlier this year.
Overeem brought with him some of the most prestigious boxing skills the UFC has ever seen along with an enormous 6’5”, 263-pound frame.
However, that wasn’t all the Dutch “Demolition Man” brought with him as he carried arguably the most hype of any heavyweight in UFC history alongside of his opponent, Brock Lesnar.
Overeem lived up to that hype as he plowed through Lesnar just two minutes and 20-plus seconds into the very first round.
It was Overeem’s vicious and gruesome knees that not only finished off Lesnar, but forced him into retirement.
Following the bout, Overeem’s hype skyrocketed through the MGM Grand Garden Arena’s roof as he was quickly considered to be the “the next best thing” or “the future UFC heavyweight champion.”
While Overeem certainly deserves a substantial amount of credit for his performance in his UFC debut, he still has a long way to go in order to prove he’s worthy of wearing UFC gold.
To Overeem’s discredit, he defeated an opponent in Lesnar who hadn’t stepped foot inside the Octagon for over a year.
In addition, Lesnar battled out a disease known as diverticulitis which is also believed to have played a role in the deciding outcome of their bout.
It’s likely the Overeem hype is coming too fast and too soon as he’ll need to prove he can defeat the likes of Junior dos Santos who shares similar boxing skills.
Overeem will also need to prove he can compete against the Cain Velasquezes of the heavyweight division who have the tendency to overpower their opponents in both the stand-up and the ground.
While Overeem certainly deserves a great deal of credit, he may be receiving too much which leads fans to one major question:
Can Alistair Overeem live up to all the hype?
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