If this is true, then Khamzat will lose

[Copper Burner]

To me, it doesn't look like he has insane physical strength, he's very technical with his wrestling and very good at flowing with positions, very good at taking the back and attacking the neck in various ways. Also, very fast at getting to the legs, most guys he fights doesn't even have the time to react before he is in on them.

Insane physical strength at 185 would be guys like Paulo Costa, Vettori, Brunson, Romero for instance.

Fair points, however It depends on what you call insane physical strength. Some people would say if Costa has a bigger bench or squat than Khamzat he is stronger. But if Khamzat has insane grip strength and better muscle endurance he is the stronger man in the cage imo. Similar to time under tension type of strength which guys like Randy Couture are known for. They are a nightmare for guys like Costa to fight, which is why I'm picking Khamzat in this fight.

 

[DarthChen731]

Actually not a bad thread though / based on some valid observations to push a decent hypothetical

Meh it's total subjective speculation

 

[Truk]

Rockhold did

But Rockhold is handsome, that really affects Costa's ability to concentrate. Won't be a problem this time.

 

[wisdom blows]

Holland is 9-5-1 in the decade of the 20's. He's 4-5-1 in his last 10. Not to denigrate him, but just for context.

yeah then top 5 MWs should’ve been able to steamroll him then, no? Instead he fought them hard for 5 rounds. Khamzat did it in 120 seconds.

 

[Reach Finesse]

Im hoping his new coach taught him head movement

 

[Poatan Power]

yeah then top 5 MWs should’ve been able to steamroll him then, no? Instead he fought them hard for 5 rounds. Khamzat did it in 120 seconds.

that's as much or moreso a commentary on the stylistic matchup than skill gap, imho. If you're insinuating that Khamzat beating Holland quickly indicates how much better he is than everyone else, it doesn't quite match up with how he went 15 minutes with a lightweight and basically won by the skin of his teeth.

Which is why I brought up Holland's record...I don't think how he beat Holland leads us to a decisive conclusion about Costa. Holland and him don't have much in common stylistically. they aren't built alike, they don't train alike, don't have the same training background/style... anyway, we're soon to find out.

 

[cburm]

Everyone sees costa as an elite striker..

He did well vs romero but was terrified vs izzy.. khamzats striking has looked just as good if not better.

 

[Paul E Gensinger]

sea level cain < passionate khamzat < full camp mendes

Fixed Nose Duplessis
28 Yr Old Fedor
Not Shell Shocked Woodley
Good Knee Usman

 

[FloydMayweatherMMA]

The analysis is solid: Fighter who has a problem sticking with a gameplay MINUS coach who we have seen have the ability to force said fighter back into the gameplay PLUS grudge match versus opponent who will be looking to take him out of the gameplan = potential worrisome outcome for Khamzat.

That's not analysis.

 

[Givvee]

Fair points, however It depends on what you call insane physical strength. Some people would say if Costa has a bigger bench or squat than Khamzat he is stronger. But if Khamzat has insane grip strength and better muscle endurance he is the stronger man in the cage imo. Similar to time under tension type of strength which guys like Randy Couture are known for. They are a nightmare for guys like Costa to fight, which is why I'm picking Khamzat in this fight.

I'm not talking about bench or squat, that is completely irrelevant. Costa's ability to just simply stand up and get back to his feet shows his strength. Randy had insane physical strength, even at 45 years old he was able to clinch and even push back the 60+ lbs heavier Brock Lesnar.

 

[wisdom blows]

that's as much or moreso a commentary on the stylistic matchup than skill gap, imho. If you're insinuating that Khamzat beating Holland quickly indicates how much better he is than everyone else, it doesn't quite match up with how he went 15 minutes with a lightweight and basically won by the skin of his teeth.

Which is why I brought up Holland's record...I don't think how he beat Holland leads us to a decisive conclusion about Costa. Holland and him don't have much in common stylistically. they aren't built alike, they don't train alike, don't have the same training background/style... anyway, we're soon to find out.

Vettori is a wrestler, no? Why couldn’t he get it done? Also, Burns is a Lightweight like Strickland and Whittaker are Welterweights. Really sick of that narrative. Burns made his mark in this sport at WW, and couldn’t make it to LW now if he tried. He also almost punched out the then WW p4p king Usman. Burns is a much better fighter p4p than Costa. We can also point to Khamzat ragdolling top 10 MW Hermansson in a wrestling match. I mean, if Poatan fans can use his kickboxing matches against Izzy, why can’t we use Khamzats wrestling match too?

 

[Poatan Power]

Vettori is a wrestler, no? Why couldn’t he get it done?

Chain wrestling against the fence, chain wrestling in the open mat, power doubling center cage... those are all different styles (typically). Khabib and GSP were both phenomenal wrestlers, but they were nothing alike stylistically. That was my point. Khamzat hasn't faced someone stylistically like Costa, and, on the other end, Costa's 80% TDD has been against guys who wrestle nothing like Khamzat. It's hard to extrapolate.

Also, Burns is a Lightweight like Strickland and Whittaker are Welterweights. Really sick of that narrative. Burns made his mark in this sport at WW, and couldn’t make it to LW now if he tried. He also almost punched out the then WW p4p king Usman. Burns is a much better fighter p4p than Costa.

I don't think I have much argument here other than Khamzat is fucking huge for WW, can't make weight, and is what I'd call a true MW size wise. Burns was cutting pretty hard to get to LW, he's more of a true (short) WW being 5'9-5'10. He also fought Khamzat at 36 years old. Costa is 32 and 6'2"and fucking huge compared to Burns. As far as the spectrums go, Khamzat/Costa are at the opposite end than Burns. My point? Costa has a lot more tools than Burns for grappling Khamzat, imho. It isn't to denigrate Khamzat's win so much as to say there are styles/attributes that dictate how fights play out.

We can also point to Khamzat ragdolling top 10 MW Hermansson in a wrestling match. I mean, if Poatan fans can use his kickboxing matches against Izzy, why can’t we use Khamzats wrestling match too?

Khamzat and Hermansson is a really good indicator at how good of a grappler Khamzat is. No argument there.

 

[weaponzero2k2]

You're going to be in for a surprise on fight night.

What part of Khamzat's insane physical strength combined with elite grappling capabilities do you not understand?

Khamzat is going to bully Costa.

let me rephrase....I don't think he will keep him down ....and I think he will gas by round 3 and get tko/ko'd