[Gumzo]

Originally Posted by ajc1984

What makes you think Silva or anyone else can replicate what Fedor does?

Against Fedor Cro Cop couldn't plant his feet when striking since he was so afraid of the takedown. He spent the entire first round wheeling away from Fedor everytime he advanced and just throwing counter punches.

Against Silva he doesn't have to be so wary of the takedown, which will allow him to let go with his hands and feet and a bit more.

Good point. Silva is no Fedor. But Cro Cop won’t be aple to KO Silva and he will
gas after the first round. Silva will be very aggressive and Cro COp won’t be able to
fire off his favorite shots. Silva be decision or very late KO.

[Gumzo]

Originally Posted by Bosko

He doesnt. He has a fast recovery time but he`s been rocked many times.

Yehhh. But with his style he will get punched. Good chin = fast recovery.
Maybe not granite Jake Lamotta style

[lakerfan90717]

Originally Posted by Noobios

I agree except I think he'll knock Wanderlei and maybe even Nogueira out if he faces them. Good arguments. War Mirko!!!

Lol......CroCop CAN KO anybody. IF he lands. Does he have the skill necessary to land flush on WANDY?? I think not. WAND is as aggressive as they come and CC is not really used to that. He is used to guys standing in front of him waiting to counter his throws. WAND does NOT wait to counter........he is all over you all the time. Mirko has yet to show me that he knows how to handle that sort of imposition. Just my opinion.

WANDY is my fave fighter...........but anyone in the OWGP can win it. It'll be NOG or WAND tho IMO.

[TapoutMMA]

Originally Posted by Banderlei-Silba

Ok im saying Crocop can win the OWGP if he comes in good shape like the other guys are gonna. I could not include "if he comes in shape" on the thread name because its too long. So here is my theory:

First off, I think that Crocop will beat Wanderlei because although both have evolved since their first meeting, Crocop has improved more. His hands have gotten better for MMA and his submission defence and TD defence are awesome. He is gonna be the better striker on the feet, if it goes to the ground I can see Wanderlei having better striking if hes on top, with punches, knees, kicks, etc.

But besides the randleman fight where Crocop was already rocked, who has KO'ed or TKO'ed him from the top position with strikes? Also, I dont think Silva can submit him on the ground because of Mirko's extensive training with Werdum and other JJ guys.

On the feet, I feel that Crocop will throw occasional left kicks which will land and he will counterpunch silva's rushes. He could get rocked with punches but after the Hunt fight I dont think Silva has the technical and power punching to put Mirko away standing. If you look at slow motion in the Hunt-Mirko MMA fight you can see he took some SHOTS to the head and body. Crocop's TD defence is gonna be too much for Silva, cuz Fedor had trouble taking him down, Coleman coudlnt, neither could Randleman in the rematch. In the clinch he will be at a disadvantage against the wildness of Silva's punches and knees, but hey, hes a K-1 level striker, they can take alot of body shots before going down. It will go to the ground possibly, but I feel that not too much damage is gonna be done to him as we saw in his fights against barnett, Fedor. Eventually the UD will be granted to him after a rough and rumble affair.

Now, the Noguiera and Barnett fight is also gonna be a war, both guys can take a shot, and they are VERY hard to submit. If anything, Barnett could be submitted but because of his strenght, conditioning in the past fights, and knowledge of the submission game in MMA, I think this is also gonna be a decision, probably to Noguiera. If barnett does win, I dont think he can beat Crocop standing, maybe he will wear him down but Crocop will still land the more damaging strikes which would give points on the scorecards to him. Also as we saw, Barnett is gonna have a heck of a hard time taking Crocop down, but the new improved Barnett could.

If he does take him down, a TKO from Ground and Pound wont happen (stated before), plus Barnett is never known for KO'ing people (other than a few fights against C level fighters), he softens them up for the submission. Crocop is good at defending GnP and he aint no Mark Hunt to get submitted like that, he'll probably wait for ref standup or use his legs to push Barnett away and get up.

If Nog fights Crocop, this is gonna be harder for Crocop cuz of Nog's improved boxing abilities, but its nothing that Crocop hasnt seen before, i mean although he was backpedalling against Hunt the whole fight, he landed alot of shots, and Noguiera's standup defence isnt like Hunt's, so hes gonna try to take it down sooner or later, which with his wreslting I dont see happening. If he takes Crocop down, then he could very well submit him but I really dont see him taking Crocop down. Crocop is too strong and he wont be making that mistake again. This is the only element of Danger for Mirko, being submitted by Nog, but because of his strenght and toughness he would hold his guard as hard as he can and wait for a standup, he will not risk opening the guard. Noguiera is not gonna be flinging Crocop to the mat easily to gain sidemount because he isnt a very good upperbody thrower. If anything, I can see Crocop throwing Nog down if hes frustrated or worn down in the standup, so that he can score points with punches and standup if a sub is coming.

So there it is guys, I've put alot of money on Mirko to win this OWGP, IF and IF he comes in Shape he can pull it off. This is his last chance to be tourney champ and hes missing this, unlike the other 3 who are or have been champs in the past, so he would rather die than lose.

With all that said, WAR MIRKO!!!!

agreed, fuck the haters haha

[Bullitt68]

Originally Posted by positivebalance

As long as Wand uses Fedor's gameplan, which was pressing the fight, Cro Cop can't win other than flash KO. And chances to get a clean shot at Silva will be few and far between.

Wand and Fedor are two completely different fighters. Fedor's plan was to pressure Mirko in order to set up a takedown. Wanderlei has already said how he plans to stand with Mirko, so CC doesn't have to fear the TD like he did with Fedor. Plus, the "Fedor Plan" isn't a foolproof method; Mirko has faced guys who have tried pressuring him before, and only once has he lost, and that was to Fedor (I don't really count Hunt because he had the same game plan in their K-1 fight, but Mirko beat him that time. In their MMA fight, Mirko beat himself). In K-1, Hunt and Sapp had the game plan of pressuring Mirko, and they both lost; in MMA, Herring tried pressuring Mirko and lost; Aleks tried it and lost; and in their rematch, Randleman tried bumrushing Mirko and lost. There isn't some infallible game plan to beat Mirko, it just depends the style of fighter you are. Fedor won because he is the best strategist in MMA, and not only does he have the best game plans, but he is such a great and diverse fighter that he can execute them flawlessly, and Mark Hunt, the other successful combatant against Mirko using the pressure tactic, just has a steel head and was able to eat kicks without falling. Wanderlei is no Fedor and he doesn't have the chin of Hunt, so he doesn't just have to watch those two fights and then show up to beat Mirko.

And at this level of competition with this level of fighter, how can you say "he can't win" with any certainty?

[GerardoMGFC]

My money is with Mirko in this GP

[swoled_up1]

i think wandy is going to come out on top, WAR WANDY!!!!

[paulic_croboy]

I Do believe he can do it .. thought because both fights (semi's nd finals) are on the same night, he will have to go all three rounds with granite chin wandy, and will be too tired for either Minotouro or Barnett, who's fight will be tiring but no were as tiring as Cro Cop Vs Wandy ... ;) Lets Hope the LHK comes in early

[Hangton]

In my eyes he is the favourite

[toronto_boy]

I hope CC takes it,but my gut is telling me NOG will be the man of the hour!