205 lbs: Herschel Walker vs. Greg Nagy
Odds: (-350 Walker /+250 Nagy)
The opening bout of the televised card is one of the most inexplicable fights you will ever see contested on United States soil. In a matchup that rivals the freakiest of Japanese freak shows, 48 year old former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL Hall of Famer Herschel Walker will make his Mixed Martial Arts debut against 1-1 Rage in the Cage veteran Greg Nagy. By all accounts, Walker is still in excellent physical condition, but at his age, is it even safe for him to be fighting, even against an opponent as unknown and under skilled as Greg Nagy?
Nagy, who is largely unknown, is 1-1 in his two appearances in Rage in the Cage against equally unknown opposition. It is clear that he was chosen because he is the easiest possible opponent for the elderly Walker who they were able to sneak past the notoriously stringent Florida State Athletic Commission. While he will enter the fight with an experience advantage in terms of number of fights, he will probably be seriously outmatched in terms of athleticism, even at Walker’s advanced age.
Walker’s age is only one of the troubling details about this fight, though. Not only is he making his MMA debut just short of his 50th birthday, but Walker has had a years-long struggled with Dissociative Identity Disorder, previously known as Multiple Personality Disorder. While no one can doubt his athletic pedigree, considering that on top of his hall of fame football career he was also a highly-ranked national competitor in Tae Kwon Do and a winter Olympian in the two-man bobsled, questions have to be raised by a man of Walker’s age and in his particular mental state making his MMA debut.
Picking a winner in this fight is almost a futile exercise. If Nagy wins, he just beat up an elderly, mentally-unstable legend. If Walker wins, he is still almost 50 and has no real future in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. No matter who wins, the fans of this sport, the sport’s reputation, and especially Strikeforce’s legitimacy have all been damaged. That said, Walker probably takes this one based on size and explosiveness. Expect him to control Nagy with wrestling, some sloppy strikes, and not much technique on his way to a decision win.
Fight Prediction: Herschel Walker via decision.
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(Seeing this is Walkers’s first professional fight Nagy @ +250 isn’t a bad bet)
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