Alistair Overeem Planning Summer Return Against Junior Dos Santos
Former Dream and Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem has certainly turned his fortune around in recent times. He levelled his UFC tally to 3-3 with a December 2014 knockout win over Stefan Struve, and extended in to the plus with a decision win against Roy Nelson at UFC 185 in March.
Widely considered as title material before signing with the promotion, “The Reem” hasn’t had an easy ride with the UFC. Now riding a two-fight win streak, he looks ahead to a potential fight with former heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos. Check out what the Dutch kickboxer told BloodyElbow:
“Actually, my management is talking (with the UFC), and I hope to hear about it this week. About Junior, I can say it’s a great fight and it only sounds logical to me because he’s not booked for a fight, I’m not booked for a fight. Who else is there? There’s not really any option available.”
“I just see myself as the better fighter, but still, Junior is still a special case. He’s a former champion, he’s very tough, and you saw that on his last fight against Stipe (Miocic). He can take a lot of punishment and even if someone is pushing the pace, he can survive that. In every way, it’s a very exciting fight and a very challenging fight personally.”
Overeem’s planned return date is said to be between July and August. “”The Demolition Man” was originally slated to face “Cigano” at UFC 160, before dropping out and getting replaced by Mark Hunt. Perhaps now is as good a time as any considering both are free to duke it out? Overeem was then quizzed on who he thinks will win between Jon Jones and Anthony Johnson at UFC 187:
“He has done it over and over and over again. Indeed I have trained with both, and Jon Jones is more versatile. Anthony Johnson is very explosive, very athletic, but he’s not versatile. Besides his hands, he has nothing else. He has his hands, and he’s very fast and explosive. Besides that, he has nothing. Jon has the submissions, has the wrestling, takedowns, and he has the mind.”
“He’s been proven, and he fights differently on each of his fights. He’s stopping his opponents in (their style) of fighting. His last victory against (Daniel) Cormier was amazing. He took Cormier down and dominated him. So uhh, Jon Jones! “
We’ll see how accurate that prediction is come May 23rd, but back to Overeem; can he find the form that saw him go unbeaten for six years, or have his best years passed him by? Whatever the case, a fight with JDS would be a spectacle for sure.
