Yeah it can happen quick too. Whether by Knockouts, Injuries, Mileage etc… Wanderlei as mentioned went from beating Rampage twice and Dan Henderson to then after Cro Cop destroyed his chin getting KO’d by them. Night and day difference between the versions of him.
Look at Tony Ferguson and that video comparison that just came out.
2019 Tony moved completely different than the shell of 2022 Tony that couldn’t even do his warm ups lol. Night and day again.
Makes it tough to do comparisons as you have to be specific when comparing fighters who have such high highs and low lows.
Arc of a career is definitely a “thing”. Oddly though, I think that it doesn’t matter what version of Chuck and Rampage meet (as long as they are in their primes); I think Rampage was just built to beat Chuck. That was two brutal beatings. I forgot that Wand and Rampage even fought a fourth time (totally different topic)
A roided Wand is still too small. I’m guessing Alex doesn’t have to starve himself and can be on gear. He would be a jacked 230. Wand had decent takedowns and ground game so he could win. His wild looping punches are Taylor made for Alex straight long punches
Huge difference. He went from beating hall of famers to split decision win over Yoshida, loss to Arona and a RAZOR thin win (I was a fan at the time and remember thinking “ah fuck, this is two in a row” after that fight) and then getting flatlined against Mirko. A guy who he had fought to a draw earlier. In 2002 when he and Mirko fought Mirko was having maybe his best year in kickboxing.
Pereira might KO him with ease off that left hand and massive reach but then again when Wanderlei used his brain (rare but possible) he could get inside on Pereira and do damage.
I’d favor Pereira just a touch due to size and reach.
When Cro Cop had no ground game and was afraid to get taken down? Yeah, well aware. You saw how it went when Cro Cop knew how to defend a takedown, right?
Pereira is a very limited champion at this point. Any top 20 wrestler in his division beats or gives him a tough time. If he learns TD defense though, he’ll be very difficult to beat
The rules were negotiated by Mirko and K-1 and there were re-starts written into the rules (different than normal Pride rules) and Mirko and K-1 didn’t want judges. Also, three 5 minute rounds rather than the normal 10 then 5. Those were rules asked for by…not Wand. Wand just agreed to fight under whatever rules.
I’m aware of the rules. I think you’re playing dumb. Mirko made him look like a jobber in 2006. Any time after 2003 cro cop finishes him, Silva couldn’t even finish cro cop on the ground when he had no ground training. In kickboxing or MMA, cro cop schools him. Lol at arguing otherwise
Quick stand ups, Wand only got one takedown outright. The first round he took him down off of a high kick. Some thoughts:
It was primarily a stand up fight. There were 5 three minute rounds. The ref stood them up in the final round due to the stand up rules. At 15:12 the exact same head kick that turned out the lights in their 2nd fight is thrown. 15:56 the commentator says that Mirko came in at 222 lbs. At 19:00 he says that Mirko outweighs Wand.
Exciting fight. Rewatching it reminded me of how much dog Wand had in him and comparing that fight to his reflexes in the 2nd fight, not even close. He is less of a fighter. Of course Mirko is far better at MMA by then too.
Wand is maybe my favorite fighter of all time but this is a bad matchup for him. It would go like the CroCop fight. A technical guy takes him apart, his wide punches would be countered.
