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DC via
Damn, it's hard to watch those DC vs Hendo gifs. lol
DC in the OWGP
- Thread starter Liquid Smoke
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Damn, it's hard to watch those DC vs Hendo gifs. lol
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Could you imaging if CroCrop landed that kick Jones did in their last fight? Whoa...
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Good question. I have it 50-50. Granted, I'm part of the school of thought that subscribes to the idea that Cro Cop legitimately deteriorated technically and physically after the OWGP and that we never saw anything near Cro Cop's best in the UFC.
Cro Cop's was your archetypical outfighting sprawl and brawler. Lightning fast, a good mover, and well rounded in the striking, he was not the kind of guy you could take lightly. At his best, his movement was a major problem, and his left straight was great at catching guys at range. Combine that with damaging body and leg kicks and of course his famous high kick, often well set up, he could KO guys from every angle. Cro Cop definitely has the experience edge at HW, he's faced Fedor, Noguiera, Junior, Barnett, Coleman, Mir, Overeem, Hunt, Igor, and Randleman as notable opponents. While DC has faced Mir, Silva, Barnett, and Stipe as notable opponents at HW.
Cro Cop's problem, other than a slightly shaky chin, was that he wasn't much in the way of an infighter. He didn't use the Thai Plum/clinch a lot, didn't have much in the way of inside boxing and generally preferred to stay at range, where he could do his best work. His jab also wasn't super active, it was more of a flicking range finder.
As I see it, DC's jab would dictate the outside and land often, but his forward pressure would see him the victim of leg kicks and straights by Cro Cop. Cro Cop would use his sidestep to counter and catch DC if he moved in too quickly or recklessly, but DC's patient work would see him getting in close and bullying Mirko on the inside as the fight went on (this is where DC would do his best work IMO). Mirko's TDD was top notch and he's the naturally bigger, stronger guy, so I see him stuffing one or two of DC's takedowns, but I don't think he can do it with consistency. Once on the ground, Mirko would survive. He survived Fedor's GNP and was good enough (at his peak) on the ground that he isn't getting subbed. I see him spending a fair amount of time on his back and then eventually scrambling up. Mirko's body kicks would make the semi-frequent appearances, doing good damage, but they wouldn't be high volume, since Cro Cop would be afraid of getting dragged in and dumped. DC has the bad habit of dropping his hands and head and getting caught with head kicks, which, as we all know, isn't something you can do against a guy like Mirko. I htink DC's chin is good enough that he can survive most of Mirko's arsenal but those head kicks are something that could do serious damage. Mirko slips in at least one head kick after setting it up, and DC survives, but is seriously shook for like a minute. Both guys have hte stamina to keep it going, so this goes all five. I see a close decision either way.
It depends on how the judges weigh Mirko's more powerful strikes vs DC's active grappling and higher volume strikes behind hte jab and on the inside.
Obviously the ring favors Mirko (better for movement) and the cage favors DC (better for grinding against the cage).
Cro Cop's was your archetypical outfighting sprawl and brawler. Lightning fast, a good mover, and well rounded in the striking, he was not the kind of guy you could take lightly. At his best, his movement was a major problem, and his left straight was great at catching guys at range. Combine that with damaging body and leg kicks and of course his famous high kick, often well set up, he could KO guys from every angle. Cro Cop definitely has the experience edge at HW, he's faced Fedor, Noguiera, Junior, Barnett, Coleman, Mir, Overeem, Hunt, Igor, and Randleman as notable opponents. While DC has faced Mir, Silva, Barnett, and Stipe as notable opponents at HW.
Cro Cop's problem, other than a slightly shaky chin, was that he wasn't much in the way of an infighter. He didn't use the Thai Plum/clinch a lot, didn't have much in the way of inside boxing and generally preferred to stay at range, where he could do his best work. His jab also wasn't super active, it was more of a flicking range finder.
As I see it, DC's jab would dictate the outside and land often, but his forward pressure would see him the victim of leg kicks and straights by Cro Cop. Cro Cop would use his sidestep to counter and catch DC if he moved in too quickly or recklessly, but DC's patient work would see him getting in close and bullying Mirko on the inside as the fight went on (this is where DC would do his best work IMO). Mirko's TDD was top notch and he's the naturally bigger, stronger guy, so I see him stuffing one or two of DC's takedowns, but I don't think he can do it with consistency. Once on the ground, Mirko would survive. He survived Fedor's GNP and was good enough (at his peak) on the ground that he isn't getting subbed. I see him spending a fair amount of time on his back and then eventually scrambling up. Mirko's body kicks would make the semi-frequent appearances, doing good damage, but they wouldn't be high volume, since Cro Cop would be afraid of getting dragged in and dumped. DC has the bad habit of dropping his hands and head and getting caught with head kicks, which, as we all know, isn't something you can do against a guy like Mirko. I htink DC's chin is good enough that he can survive most of Mirko's arsenal but those head kicks are something that could do serious damage. Mirko slips in at least one head kick after setting it up, and DC survives, but is seriously shook for like a minute. Both guys have hte stamina to keep it going, so this goes all five. I see a close decision either way.
It depends on how the judges weigh Mirko's more powerful strikes vs DC's active grappling and higher volume strikes behind hte jab and on the inside.
Obviously the ring favors Mirko (better for movement) and the cage favors DC (better for grinding against the cage).
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