Mighty Mo Will Replace Andrei Arlovski in Final 16

As we reported earlier this week, former UFC Heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski will NOT be making his much discussed K-1 debut at the Final 16 this weekend.  Kombat.ro has now revealed that it will be Mighty Mo taking Arlovski's spot against Raul Catinas in the Final 16.  Kombat.ro has been a reliable source for fighter announcements in the past, so even though K-1 has yet to make this official (or even change their page to reflect the Ray Sefo/Ruslan Karaev swap), I would consider this a done deal.

Mo is a weird choice for this slot.  A few years ago, Mo had the knockout power and aggression to be a real player in K-1, as best shown by his stunning KO victory over Hong-Man Choi back in 2007.  But those days are behind him now.  He's 2-7 in his last 9, and is coming off a definitive KO loss to Sebastian Ciobanu in the semi-finals of the Bucharest GP. He's simply not the fighter he once was, at even at his best he only qualified for the Final 8 once, in 2004.

What he does have going for him is name recognition and popularity.  He's also American, and K-1 has made some efforts this year to establish an American representative - a smart move now that their shows are seen in America on HDNet.  So it's not entirely shocking K-1 would turn to him, even if he won't be a factor.

The big winner here is Raul Catinas - I see no reason Catinas does not take the win here, earning himself an unlikely spot in the Final 8.  This could be a breakout performance for Catinas, a rising prospect who has suddenly found himself in the spotlight.