Title Writing: I Coulda Been A Contender 4 "Alistair Overeem"

Hello,

This is the fourth article in a weekly series meant to track and profile the top contenders to the title in each of the UFC's seven weight classes. Last week I covered the 145 and 135 pound divisions. Today I'll be profiling heavyweight Alistair Overeem, who makes his UFC debut tomorrow evening against Brock Lesnar.

A Brief History

Alistair Overeem is currently one of the most popular fighters in the world, despite spending almost the entirety of his career fighting in Europe and Asia. His popularity comes largely from his physique, which is befitting of a Greek god. He is 6'5 tall and weighs in around the heavyweight limit of 265 pounds, nary a speck of fat to be found on him. It was not always this way, however; as Overeem was largely considered a middling fighter during the first half of his career, fought almost entirely in the light heavyweight class. He began fighting MMA in 1999, at the age of 19, for Dutch promotion "It's Showtime". He was very active in his first calender year, fighting seven times in three different organizations. After going only 4-3 in those fights, he reeled off a string of six consecutive first round stoppage victories, making a name for himself in Europe and earning a chance to fight in the premier MMA organization in the world at the time, Pride.

Overeem would win his first three Pride fights, against largely unrecognizable opponents, while continuing to fight for various European promotions. After extending his winning streak to 12 he got his second big break: An invitation to the 2003 Pride middleweight Grand Prix. Overeem was 24 years old, with a record of 16-3, when he stepped into the cage to battle Chuck Liddell in their first round match up. Overeem would lose the fight by knockout, starting off a stretch of 15 bouts that would see the Dutchman go a pedestrian 8-7. Despite victories over Vitor Belfort (twice) and Sergei Kharitonov, Overeem just could not beat top competition consistently, falling to the likes of Lil Nog, Fabricio Werdum and Shogun Rua.

Then, in June of 2007, everything would change. No longer happy with the prospect of cutting a large amount of weight to make the 205 pound limit, Overeem made the jump to the heavyweight division and committed himself to competing in kickboxing at the highest level. At the time it must have seemed crazy. Overeem did have good striking; after all, he trained at one of the top kickboxing gyms in Europe, but he also had more victories by submission than by KO or TKO. On top of that, his chin was considered suspect. He had been stopped eight times by TKO or KO in his career, more than Chuck Liddell ever was. After suffering yet another KO loss in his second bout at heavyweight, this time to a guy who he had already beaten, Sergei Kharitonov, things weren't looking good for the new Overeem.

He hasn't lost in MMA since.

The Birth of "THE REEM"

It turns out the move up to heavyweight and the renewed focus on kickboxing would not only bring out the best in Overeem, it would serve to protect his chin. A great fan post from Stiff Jab this week provides some detailed insights into how this happened, picking up the story right around the time of the second Kharitonov fight. Using his length and new found bulk to protect himself, Overeem transformed into a destroyer with pinpoint precision. Around the same time, he began to travel with a film crew, recording his experiences both in and out of the ring. After an undefeated 2008 competing strictly in MMA, Overeem announced his intention to become the most feared man on the planet by knocking out top kickboxer Badr Hari in just over two minutes in a K-1 at Dynamite!! 2008. Overeem's rise to the top of the combat sports world would continue, albeit slowly, in 2009, once again going undefeated in MMA competition and making it all the way to the semi-finals of the years most prestigious striking event, the K-1 World Grand Prix.

In 2010 he would finally explode to the top. After three years of filming, the first episode of a new documentary titled "THE REEM" was released on May 14th, the day before Alistair was to defend his Strikeforce heavyweight championship against Brett Rogers. To say the documentary has been a success is an understatement. If you've never seen it, head over to the website, start with the prologue and watch the entire thing before tomorrow night. The doc follows Overeem from his successful defense of the Strikeforce belt to his run through the 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix to the present day. There have been a few questions surrounding Overeem's weight gain and I believe he would be under much heavier scrutiny from fans and media alike if his documentary didn't exist. The unprecented behind the scenes footage reveals Alistair to be a genuine, well spoken guy. If Barry Bonds is the poster child for how not to deal with accusations of performance enhancing drugs, Overeem is the poster child for how to deal with them. The most recent round of questioning came up after he was not licensed for this fight after he failed to meet the 24 hour deadline to provide a urine sample after being randomly selected for testing by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Not only did he miss the deadline, he missed it by hundeds of hours. He had a very valid excuse: He left America to travel back to his home in Holland to tend to his ailing mother, but in the pro sports world the benefit of the doubt is rarely given, especially in the case of PEDs. No matter for Alistair though, as he talked his way through a hearing with the AC and was able to gain a license after agreeing to numerous rounds of testing before the fight and in the following six months. Never mind the fact that he was able to avoid being tested for weeks, now he will be "the most tested athlete in the world", as UFC president Dana White put it at yesterday's press conference.

Great Expectations?

Overeem is entering the UFC as a 31 year old fighter. As the sport of MMA continues to grow it will become increasingly rare to see guys begin their UFC careers past the age of 30. It is becoming a young man's game, especially at the highest levels. Jon Jones just ripped through the light heavyweight division at the young age of 24. Dominick Cruz, Jose Aldo and Junior Dos Santos are all 27 or younger. Georges St. Pierre, Frank Edgar and Anderson Silva are the only champions over the age of 30 and St. Pierre and Silva's time at the top is certainly closer to the end than the beginning. Overeem will be fighting his 48th professional MMA fight tomorrow. Even though he is a dramatically different fighter now then he was when he started, the wear and tear of a decade of fighting will surely wear on anyone.

The good news is that the UFC heavyweight division is not stacked with great fighters and Overeem likely needs no more than two good years to cement his place as one of the greatest heavyweights of all time. A victory over Lesnar will set him up against Dos Santos, a fight I see Overeem winning. As champion his stiffest test would likely come from either Cain Velasquez or Daniel Cormier, wrestlers who could take Overeem out of his element but neither man has proved themselves beyond a shadow of a doubt just yet. Indeed, the fight tomorrow is his biggest both in terms of stage and stake. A win in his UFC debut will not only validate the past four years of training but it will also set him up to hold the UFC heavyweight title for a good few years.

Thanks for reading. Comments and criticism is welcomed below.