As part of my review of the upcoming Strikeforce World Grand Prix tournament I’ll be review the second bracket of the quarterfinal matches which include bouts between Andrei Arlovski vs. Sergei Kharitonov and Josh Barnett vs. Brett Rogers.
Looking at this side of the tournament bracket one can’t help but be a little disappointed that none of the three big names, Fedor Emelianenko, Fabricio Werdum or heavyweight champ Alistair Overeem wasn’t included on this side of the tournament. I think what Strikeforce is trying to do is put together at least a couple of exciting fights early since they are able to book them.
Werdum vs. Overeem is great, the winner moves on to face Fedor or Silva. If Fedor wins then it’s a huge match, if he loses then the winner faces the guy who just handed Fedor his second straight loss. So while everyone is focused on the one side of the tournament, Strikeforce will have time to really push the winner of the other as a legitimate opponent having beaten two tough fighters to make it into the finals.
It doesn’t make it as exciting as the first few rounds, but I hope the Strikeforce PR machine can hype it into a successful pay-per-view.
Anyway, let’s examine the Arlovski vs. Kharitonov quarterfinal match.
Both men have something to prove, that they are still capable of competing at the highest levels of the sport and will both carry a little bit of National pride into the cage with them.
Arlovski is a Belarusian, while Kharitonov is a Russian. Two countries who split amicably from one another in the early 90’s when the Soviet Union and the Cold War ended. Both countries maintain good relationships but members of any two neighboring nations will always try to outdo the other. Look at the United States and Canada, throw a hockey puck between them and things can get ugly.
Arlovski is a former UFC heavyweight champion, which was eight fights and almost three years ago. He lost back-to-back title fights against Tim Sylvia but would then go on to rattle off five victories over some notable names such as Werdum, Ben Rothwell, and Roy Nelson. During that span he finished his UFC contract and went on to fight for Affliction and EliteXC.
His downward fall from notoriety began with his knockout loss to Fedor in Jan. 2009 at an Affliction show. It was a punch heard around the world and has set him into a three fight losing skid suffering defeats to Brett Rorgers by KO and to Silva by unanimous decision. Mentally the losses were very tough for the Belarusian who seemed to take the defeats as close personal failures.
Arlovski trained very hard for his fight with Silva, working on improving his boxing for the fight. I wouldn’t expect anything less from “The Pit Bull” and hope that his mind is in the right place when he enters the cage.
Physically both men match up virtually the same standing at 6 ft 4 in and both weighing in at 240-250 for their last fights. I expect Arlovksi to keep the fight standing and use his improved striking to end the fight.
Kharitonov at one time used to be ranked among the top of the heavyweight division but that was back in the day’s of PRIDE. He has faced some impressive names in the past like Overeem, going 1-1, Werdum, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.
In the last three years he’s only fought three times in mma, going 2-1. His last mma appearance was at the New Year’s Eve Dyanamite!! 2010 event where he earned a knockout win over Tatsuya Mizuno. The Russian fighter has been working on his boxing and kickboxing skills which has probably accounted for his few mma appearances. In the last two years he’s been trying his hand at K-1 and having some mild success this pat fall going 1-1.
Kharitonov brings in strong striking and submission skills into the fight against Arlovski. With his focus on his standup skills I could see him trading with his opponent on Feb. 12 but I think if he wants to be taken seriously he’ll look for anyway to win this fight. His few appearances over the past few years could hurt him in the long run as we’ve seen what “ring rust” can do to a fighter, especially when he steps into fight a tough opponent.
Arlovski over Kharitonov by unanimous decision.
I don’t know how excited fans will be to see Barnett vs. Rogers, the only significant thing about the bout is it will be Barnett’s first fight on American soil in over two years. He had been scheduled to face Fedor at the Affliction: Trilogy show but his positive steroid test ended that fight and the company as an mma promoter.
Barnett is the odds on favorite, and not just to win this fight but to make it into the finals. He’s been active in 2010, winning two bouts making it six victories in a row but the lack of highly ranked competition is probably over-inflating his status. Don’t get me wrong Gilbert Yvel, Pedro Rizzo, and Jeff Monson are all tough guys but they don’t match up to opponents like Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira and Miko “Cro Cop” Filipovi?, who have both beaten him in the past.
“The Baby Faced Assassin” brings in Rogers kryptonite in strong submission skills mixed in with some striking ability. If Barnett can survive Rogers initial onslaught then I see this fight going down like Barnett’s win over Yvel with him dominating from the top position.
Physically Rogers is the bigger fighter in height and weight but he lacks the skills at controlling an opponent like Barnett has. Rogers, who fights more like a bully in the ring, will have his work cut out for him if he hasn’t improved his takedown defense against Barnett.
Some fans may not be aware but Rogers took a fight outside of Strikeforce after suffering back-to-back knockout losses to Fedor and Overeem. After stopping ten straight opponents by (T)KO “The Grim” needed an easier opponent to help build his confidence and get him back among the higher ranked heavyweights.
Rogers faced Ruben Villareal in Canada for the Warrior one promotion earning a unanimous decision win. It was certainly a positive for him to get back into the win column and it showed that he’s capable of going three rounds against an opponent. But it was the first time he’s gone three rounds, having failed to score a knockout win against an opponent with a 18-19-3 record who failed to break into any of the big promotions.
Hopefully Rogers can find his confidence and his hands against Barnett or he’s going to have a disappointing night. I’m sure he’s hungry for a victory and would love another shot against Overeem or Fedor but he’s got to win to get it.
Barnett over Rogers via submission first round.