I have never seen anything like Fedor's takedowns. They are unique. The timing, speed, and effectiveness are second to none IMO. Ofcourse guys like coleman have stronger takedowns, but the timing and coordination employed by Fedor are unmatched.
I will go out on a limb and say that he has the best takedowns in the heavyweight division.. he can be in the middle of a punching motion and immediately follow it up with a takedown, without previously planning it. His processor is so quick that he can annalyse a situation in a fraction of a second and take advantage of it by carrying out ammazing takedowns and make his opponent look like he has no takedown defense at all, just like he tossed Nog around like a rag doll.
People often talk about his punching power and ground and pound, but his takedowns are simply amazing.
"Tyson, impressive as they have been, even Yokoi (another judo guy) tossed Mino aswell.
Mino is not the best takedown guy so i dont think he's a good measurement of that.
Remember that Coleman and Randleman took Fedor down."
Actually, after i posted what i said, that fight (Nog against Yokoi) came back to my memory; even Ricco had some pretty easy looking takedowns against Nog. So actually after thinking of it more i agree with you. I was just so impressed after his fight with Nog. However, i do maintain that he has some of the best timing for his takedowns... and thats probably why he makes many of them look so easy. Thats why a great takedown artist like Kevin Randleman has trouble sometimes... he just rushes in and keeps trying, however Fedor times them perfectly and rarely misses and thats what impresses me.
I think that Noguiera (sp?) tends to give up the takedown so he can ensure that he lands in guard. He wants to be on the ground anyways, and most people will be in more trouble with Nogueira under them (as opposed to the danger folks like Yokoi, Henderson, or Ricco will pose to Nogueira from the top.)
Since Nogueira gives up on the takedowns, I think it seems like he gets "man-handled" a little bit more on his feet. JMHO.
I gotta say Fedor's takedowns were impressive. He was throwing Noguero(sp?) around like a doll. But damn Noguero took some serious shots and kept standing.
WHile Ricco and Yokoi took Nog down from the clinch, NOg also took them down, and even threw RIcco from the clinch. Fedor was whipping him to the mat with ease all night.
Fedor "swings for the fences" on his feet and tries to hit the back of his opponent's head (not the chin). The worst thing you could do against Fedor is back straight up (that would put your chin in perfect range for one of his bombs). Fedor trains to immediately go into the clinch from a hook that someone steps inside of. He'll let his hook wrap around the back of his opponent's neck and then start working the clinch.
One common Fedor combo involves a long, looping rear hook where he steps forward with his rear leg. The intent of this hook is for clinching, not for KOing the opponent, but he could certainly suceed if his opponent sat there for the hook.
"i dont recall he has ever been stuffed once ever. "
Thats another thing I forgot to mention in my original post. Although I have not seen all of his fights, I don't recall him ever missing a takedown in the fights I've seen.
Yea i think Fujita did defend a takedown. Fedor's takedowns are unique because of he he uses the fighters momentum more than any other. Its definitely a quality from his Judo training.