Is Alistair Overeem the Man to Stop Semmy Schilt?

For the past two years Alistair Overeem has been rampaging through K-1, scoring a highlight reel of KO's to rival that of many a K-1 great.  Last night he added another dominating win to his resume, but this one was somehow different.  In his one round destruction of Ben Edwards, Overeem looked like a different fighter.  He showed improved boxing, and a more well-rounded game.  He looked, in short, like a true kickboxer.

While his previous outings have been impressive, Overeem has often relied on a combination of size, aggression, and raw strength to bully his opponents into defeat.  The performance last night was more nuanced and precise.  Take a look at that first knockdown, which comes from him reading Edwards's punches and counter-striking successfully.  Overeem avoids the combo, then when Edwards fires again, Overeem knows where the opening will be, and sneaks in a tight, hard shot to drop him.  The second knockdown again comes from simple, good boxing.  Watch as Edwards throws strikes just before this knockdown - Edwards throws, then takes a moment to bring his guard back up, leaving his chin exposed after each punch.  Once again, Overeem reads this, allows Edwards to throw a punch, then quickly hits a devastating counter right to put him down.  Edwards shows incredible heart to get up, but from there it's essentially over, and Overeem only needs to land another solid shot to put him away.

Compare this to the first Hari fight, or the Teixeira slaughter last year, and you can see a more advanced display of technique from Overeem.  And that makes him a huge threat to the nearly unstoppable champion Semmy Schilt.  To beat Schilt, a fighter needs to combine the technical skills to land on Schilt, with the power and aggression to make those shots count.  Last night, Overeem may have shown the exact combination of skills needed.

Tomorrow we'll find out how the brackets work out, but right now, it will take a big upset from one of the other fighters to stop an Overeem v. Schilt showdown in the Grand Prix.  And that showdown could finally prove what most kickboxing fans have felt for some time: that Alistair Overeem is much more than just an MMA fighter trying his hand at K-1 - he's one of the elite kickboxers in the world.

Watch the full fight: