Travis Browne: One Of Us Is Going Out
Rising UFC heavyweight prospect Travis Browne will step into the octagon this Saturday, August 17th, at UFC Fight Night 26 to face arguably the biggest challenge of his career in Alistair Overeem. The vaunted Dutch striker returns to the cage with something to prove after his devastating KO loss at the hands of Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva at February’s UFC 156.
Browne holds the undesirable distinction of having lost to the giant, losing by TKO last October after he badly injured his hamstring while throwing a kick. Browne got back on the winning track when he destroyed Gabriel Gonzaga with a series of brutal elbows at the TUF 17 Finale last April. He sits with an impressive 14-1-1 record, and a bout against the former Strikeforce champ Overeem will be a great gauge of his readiness to take on the true elite of the division.
Because of the magnitude of this bout, Browne has enlisted the help of some intense training methods. From the footage of his training courtesy of the UFC, it appears that Browne is focusing on agility and explosiveness to combat the heavy slugging power of Overeem. That could be a good strategy, as heavyweights will almost always have the power to knock their opponent out. Browne is well aware of this fact, and offered a prediction for the fight:
“I can guarantee you one thing. One of us is going out.”
He’s probably right, and the one who does the knocking out in Saturday night’s co-main event will most like face a top-level opponent next. Names like Fabricio Werdum and Daniel Cormier come to mind as great matches for wither Browne or Overeem should they win impressively at Fight Night 26. It should be a heavy-hitting exciting bout from Boston. Who is your pick to advance to the next level of the heavyweight ranks?
