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Will we see a new-and-improved Andrei Arlovski on Saturday night?
By Zach Arnold | May 14, 2010
Andrei Arlovski did an interview with Loretta Hunt earlier this week to talk about his fight with Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva on Saturday night in St. Louis for the Strikeforce promotion.
This is a very difficult fight for Arlovski and he can’t afford to lose. That said, he should have the speed advantage against the incredibly shrinking Bigfoot and he has a real chance of making this fight a real war, if not outright win. Here are a few quotes from his interview with Sherdog:
What has it been like switching between different training camps over the last year to try to find a new way to train and develop strategy for fights?
“You know, like my manager, he’s like every time like repeats, things happen for a reason, but I don’t like this reason because obviously I lost two of my last fights and I kind of went down in the ratings.
I’m very excited because after my loss to Brett Rogers I had the opportunity to train with Greg Jackson for the first time. After that I came back to Chicago, I trained until the New Year. I have a couple of weeks off. After that I went to American Kickboxing Academy, it’s like a thank you all the guys who let me train like Bob Cook and all the guys, they were all nice to me and after that I came back to Chicago in a couple of days and I went to Greg Jackson to work in New Mexico and I was very excited, you know, I learned a lot and it’s since that fight on June 6th my training schedule changed a lot.
I’m very excited with my training schedule.”
After your last two losses, how depressed were you and how did you fight off the depression?
“It’s kind of embarrassing but I went to a sports psychologist and it happens but of course anybody that don’t like to lose but obviously it happened and I lost two of my fights and it’s kind of put me down with my ratings, with my opportunity with my contract, obviously I shut many doors for myself because of two losses but I look still forward and I have a lot of energy, a lot of things in my mind and I’m just ready to go, you know it’s just going to be another fight. For this fight I trained hard for this fight and I just want to fight. I mean right now I have only like what’s very important for me. I train hard, I’m focused and more disciplined because my biggest problem was I lost two of my fights, I’m talking about Emelianeko and Rogers, before I even step in the ring and the Octagon, I lost in my mind and I did some stupid flying knees and I didn’t take serious(ly) Brett Rogers and the result is he knocked me out… and I just have to be more disciplined, I have to stick with my game plan, I have to follow the instructions of my trainers and I hope, I hope now that I’m more disciplined and now I’m more like paying more attention to what my trainers told me.”
“All of my mind is on May 15th against Bigfoot (Silva). He’s dangerous, he’s tough, he’s not a joke at all, and I have to take this fight very serious.”
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, Zach Arnold | 9 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
What’s sad about Arlovski is the most obvious.
While he’s a highly skilled, lethal offensive force & physical specimen, his chin is made of fine bone china & always has been.
Somewhere out there on YouTube there’s video of either a kickboxing match or a very early MMA fight that he loses by getting knocked spark out. Then there’s the Pedro Rizzo loss, the second Tim Sylvia fight, Fedor, Rogers & probably a couple of others that I can’t think of off the top of my head.
Fights that aren’t just stoppages, but fights where he’s rendered unconscious!
Unfortunately, all the training camps & visits to the sports shrinks in the world aren’t going to change that.
That’s why I always thought it was just silly when Freddie Roach would speak of Arlovski having some serious success in the boxing ring.
Sure, “The Pit Bull” displayed some skills in his training vids taken at the Wild Card & in the first minute or so against Fedor, but c’mon…
I think he could probably make for some entertaining four rounders if matched right, but that’s all given his chin issues.
All that said, I like Arlovski & enjoy watching him fight. And, tomorrow’s fight is one that I see him winning’ most likely via KO.
Once a guy gets KO’d like 5 times, I lose all faith in their ability to be a top tier fighter. This goes for Arlovski and Overeem.
Overeem has never been a world beater and isn’t going to start now. Arlovski will always be a flashy fighter with some skills, but a weak chin that will keep him back from being elite.
With you on Arlovski, dude just can’t take a punch.
But with Overeem – I don’t really remember him getting KTFO’d as soon as a clean punch lands the way AA has in the past. With Overeem – I think with the exception of Liddell and Shogun II (I’ve never seen the Hoffman KO), it was more a function of him gassing out and basically quitting and getting finished with punches – not outright lights out/can’t absorb a punch. Even the Sergei K fight was more of him being totally gassed out and then eating a blatant shot to the back of the head and flopping down to quit.
Shit he’s taken some pretty heavy shots from the K-1 guys and not gotten KO’d. I think his one fight it was the old 2x in 1 round TKO.
I thought that the Liddell loss was also in which stamina rather than a glass jaw factored into the equation (possibly from excessive weight-cutting, since he’s a natural heavyweight?) – he started off strong, then got tagged by a few shots and didn’t have any gas in the tank to pull through. It wasn’t a one-and-done KO.
He did always seem to have stamina issues at 205. All of his good wins at that weight were via submission with a guillotine choke.
He’s a plodding fighter now but he has the ability to explode in spurts. HE should be too much class for Rogers. I see him softening Rogers up with some bodywork, knees and punches then putting him away when Rogers drops his hands.
I think this is going to be a terrible fight that looks a lot like Arlovski/Werdum. I think Andrei will be hesitant and Silva will tie him up and make this a snoozer.
What exactly about being intelligently aggressive and setting a pace in the standup will he learn from Greg Jackson?
Sounds like he has too many coaches in his ear. That’s a sure sign that a guy is lost.
Silva by decision.
“Will we see a new-and-improved Andrei Arlovski on Saturday night?”
No.
It would have happened a long time ago.
Most people are what god gave them.
Its very unusual for anybody, even a fighter, to defy their nature!
To clarify, he’s got a darn good chance against bigfoot.
I dont bet money that I dont have.
But I reckon if I did that he wins via experience over the physical advantages of his opponent.
Short answer no.