From what I’ve seen his biggest weapon is his top game which would be a lot harder to pull off against bigger guys if he ever got them down to begin with.
Uhtred Ragnarson -I think Gus is his worst stylistic matchup at 205. Volkan is trouble for anyone. Shit luke might even be better than ever without the weight cuts. Look at cowboy masvidal, and gastelum...MR31 -205 is not a deep division. He'd probably work his way up to the top 3 or 4... so he'd pretty much be in exact same spot he's in now.
This. He's a great fighter, but the highest level guys will give him trouble. Ouzdemir and Gus both would be VERY tough matchups for him.
Gus would humilate him till he decided to sleep him with an uppercut.
Uhtred Ragnarson -Of course look would be able to get Whittaker down, he's the best grappler in the division and has a very solid gas tank. And of course Luke is a dangerous striker, his kicks and right hook would cause Whittaker a lot of problems. It would be an extremely competitive fight, but I'd expect Luke to come out on top.Brabatross -Uhtred Ragnarson -SexiestManAlive - Luke is extremely talented for sure and has height so he wouldn't exactly be undersized. Especially since Jones is basically removed completely at this point.That being said his chin wouldn’t hold up imo. Even last night, that flurry Branch hit him with in the first round almost finished him. Gus or any tall strong striker can definately KO him
What would help him is DC never fighting him, Rumble retiring, Jones getting a lengthy suspension
Maybe an improved an easier weight cut would make his chin more durable in the long run perhaps?
None the less, I still fundamentally agree with you here. Luke's striking has a lot of holes, most notably his hands and technical boxing knowledge (or rather lack thereof). I can't see him surviving more than a few minutes with someone like Gussy. He'd get merc'd.
Rockhold is a dangerous striker and could stop Whittaker at any point, and Rockhold is also a much better grappler than Whittaker and wouldmwost likely be able to get Whittaker down and cause a lot of damage.
Dangerous striker? Are you serious? He was getting lit up last night, the guy's striking isn't improving. It's deteriorating. And if Yoel Romero (arguably the p4p best wrestler in MMA right now) had trouble taking down Whittaker - who had a busted leg - I highly doubt Rockhold will be successful in that department.
The fact of the matter is Luke wouldn't be able to take down Whittaker, and he'd be forced to stand with him. Luke's biggest issues are his inability to establish distance with his hands (see last night), and his inability to take a shot. Whittaker hits like a mack truck and explodes from the outside like no one else in MMA. He takes this easy. First or Second round, as Schwabbi says, we're going sizzler.
Brabatross -Uhtred Ragnarson -Of course look would be able to get Whittaker down, he's the best grappler in the division and has a very solid gas tank. And of course Luke is a dangerous striker, his kicks and right hook would cause Whittaker a lot of problems. It would be an extremely competitive fight, but I'd expect Luke to come out on top.Brabatross -Uhtred Ragnarson -SexiestManAlive - Luke is extremely talented for sure and has height so he wouldn't exactly be undersized. Especially since Jones is basically removed completely at this point.That being said his chin wouldn’t hold up imo. Even last night, that flurry Branch hit him with in the first round almost finished him. Gus or any tall strong striker can definately KO him
What would help him is DC never fighting him, Rumble retiring, Jones getting a lengthy suspension
Maybe an improved an easier weight cut would make his chin more durable in the long run perhaps?
None the less, I still fundamentally agree with you here. Luke's striking has a lot of holes, most notably his hands and technical boxing knowledge (or rather lack thereof). I can't see him surviving more than a few minutes with someone like Gussy. He'd get merc'd.
Rockhold is a dangerous striker and could stop Whittaker at any point, and Rockhold is also a much better grappler than Whittaker and wouldmwost likely be able to get Whittaker down and cause a lot of damage.
Dangerous striker? Are you serious? He was getting lit up last night, the guy's striking isn't improving. It's deteriorating. And if Yoel Romero (arguably the p4p best wrestler in MMA right now) had trouble taking down Whittaker - who had a busted leg - I highly doubt Rockhold will be successful in that department.
The fact of the matter is Luke wouldn't be able to take down Whittaker, and he'd be forced to stand with him. Luke's biggest issues are his inability to establish distance with his hands (see last night), and his inability to take a shot. Whittaker hits like a mack truck and explodes from the outside like no one else in MMA. He takes this easy. First or Second round, as Schwabbi says, we're going sizzler.
He’s an amazing grappler. He’s not a great offensive wrestler. I’m not convinced he’d get Bobby Knuckles down.
He would definitely struggle.
The Bisping fight did to Rockhold what the RDA fight did to Pettis. Both were great fighters. But they had deficiencies.
Rockhold does not have great hands, a great chin, or great offensive wrestling and his footwork is suspect. He possesses amazing weapons in his BJJ, defensive wrestling, and kicks. But, guys like Gus would eat him up at LHW.
VectorWega -trollHe could be a good gatekeeper for either division.