When Alistair Overeem failed his surprise drug test last week, it threw yet another UFC card into disarray. Overeem was scheduled to challenge UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos in the main event at UFC 146 on May 26.
Overeem, who had a testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio of 14:1, has requested that his “B” sample be tested too, and is scheduled to appear before a Nevada State Athletic Committee hearing later this month. But it would be a very big surprise if they decided to grant him a license to fight in the state at this point.
Former heavyweight champions Frank Mir and Cain Velasquez, set to meet on the under card, were both mentioned early on as potential substitute opponents by Internet speculators. However, Dana White tweeted that “Mir-Velasquez will happen” on Friday, so that would seem to remove both former champions from the equation.
Meanwhile, on the Internet, support continues to grow for New Zealand native and former K1 kickboxing standout Mark Hunt. On the Mixed Martial Arts Underground, one of the most popular sites on the web with serious MMA fans, a recent thread supporting him as a replacement has exploded.
Yahoo cage writer Maggie Hendricks reported that a Twitter campaign using the hashtag RallyforMarkHunt has flooded UFC executives Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta with requests to name Hunt as a replacement opponent.
This weekend, UFC color commentator Joe Rogan even weighed in, starting his own thread on the MMA Underground to express support for Hunt getting the title shot:
There are some wise people on this board, and I support this movement.
Style wise that might be the most exciting match up. Either way, even if Hunt doesn’t replace the reem I would still love to see this matchup down the road, especially considering how good Hunt looked against Kongo.
Has anyone started a twitter bomb campaign for this?
There will be objections from some quarters that Hunt is a less-than-deserving candidate, given his 8-7 MMA record.
But a lot of very knowledgeable fighters and fans seem convinced that he would make the most exciting possible fight for Dos Santos, providing a real-life “Rocky Balboa” story in the bargain. At the very least, he might force the young champion to show other facets of his game than we have seen in his fights so far, when he has been able to rely on superior striking to steamroll everybody in his path.
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