- Joined
- Sep 24, 2007
- Messages
- 51,332
- Reaction score
- 21,310
BOL Hawk, but personally I am on Barboza here as I believe he is the better striker and his takedown defense will hold up. What's more, I believe that the deciding factor in this fight will be the leg kicks thrown by Edson. The Brazilian throws the type of thudding heaters that dig into the muscle fibers causing structural damage akin to Tong Po kicking a concrete pillar. A patient fighter, Edson will also take his time chopping the quicker MJ down which will take away both the speed and power of the Blackzilian wrestle-boxer. While I don't expect to hear MJ timidly confess to Henri Hooft in between rounds that "Edson rape me" -- I do anticipate those lk's to bring on about a similar physical pain and helplessness. Specifically, I think that Barboza's LK's will slow the athletic MJ markedly and potentially have him switching stances by about the seven minute mark if things go like I imagine. Consequently, if Edson gets those low leg kicks working it is just a matter of time until the HHK follows it.
Now, that's not to say that MJ doesn't have a chance as he has a similar style to Jamie Varner and could catch Barboza with a similar overhand right and then follow up with ground and pound to finish him off. However, I find that to be quite unlikely and even at odds of -155 I like Barboza. Finally, I believe that Edson is finally in his fighting prime and the way he was able to easily beat a game Bobby Green (who is very similar to MJ) signifies that the Brazilian is the rightful play here.
*Shuts PC and turns on Kckboxer for nostalgia*
Nuk Su Kau