Whenever Overeem fights it feels like an event; the best striker in the heavyweight division has that gravitas to him that not a lot of heavyweights have. Now he’s looking to get back in the hunt and salvage his reputation among the elite of the division. He’s got a tough out in Travis Browne, someone who was close to getting into the title hunt himself before a torn hamstring (and Bigfoot Silva’s fists) derailed that thought.
Fight Breakdown – The key to this fight will be whether or not Travis Browne can get Overeem to the ground. Because the longer this stays standing the worse it’ll get for Browne. He has power in his hands, and enough to plant Overeem, but he’s going to have to a shot to give one from Overeem and that’s a dangerous game to play.
His best bet, and probably his game plan, is to grind this fight out. Overeem has great takedown defense but he doesn’t have a good gas tank. If Browne can push him against the cage, avoid the clinch and make Overeem work hard to defend the takedown for two rounds he has a shot in the third at finishing him. Browne can’t go after a fight of the night or something special; this has to be bowling shoe ugly, the type that the crowd will crap all over, because to stand and trade with Overeem is a bad game to play. He has to keep pushing forward and keep Overeem from planting his feet; he needs Overeem to be always moving, unable to plant and throw with significant power. The more he makes Overeem use his arms only, not his entire body, to throw strikes the better.
Overeem is the best striker in the heavyweight division, bar none, and Browne is in for a rude awakening if he thinks he can out-strike a K-1 World Grand Prix title holder. That isn’t happening … it’s where Overeem will want the fight, as well. It’s the advantage he has over nearly every heavyweight in the game; the ability to end it all with one strike. Browne is a good striker … but he’s not good enough to hang with Overeem for 15 minutes. Nor is his chin good enough to take the sort of punishment that Overeem can throw at him. Overeem’s hands are deadly and he’s got a great clinch game using the Thai Plumb. Throw in some magnificent head kick knockouts and Overeem could finish this at any point.
Why it matters – Browne was a great prospect who was looking good against Bigfoot Silva before he tore a hamstring. Could he fight for a title? At heavyweight the path is shorter because the talent pool isn’t very deep and a big win here puts him conceivably one win away from the winner of JDS/Cain.
For Overeem a big knockout here and he’s a fight away from a title as well. The key in understanding Overeem is in understanding that Zuffa really loves the guy for his aesthetics: he’s built like Superman, has charisma in spades and is the guy that people imagine what the heavyweight champion of the world looks like. It’s the one thing the UFC shares with the WWE; they want their fighters to look a certain way and if you had to pick one person the UFC wants on a poster with a title it’s Overeem.
He’s a superstar in the making, someone you can put on talk shows and have people marvel at how he’s put together, and has the bonafides to back up the look. He’s a genuine badass, someone who’s highlight reel is awe-inspiring, because he’s put together a terrific streak of wins in the heavyweight division.
Prediction – Overeem
