Overheem to fight in Dynamite on New Years Eve

Hopefully Strikeforce drops and strips the stupid ass of his belt. He can fight everywhere in the world, but not for his title. :shit: decent card though::

Tuesday, December 15, 2009
by Jordan Breen (jbreen@sherdog.com)


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With the biggest night in Japanese combat sports just over two weeks away, K-1 and Dream parent company Fighting and Entertainment Group announced seven new matchups for the 2009 installment of Dynamite at the Saitama Super Arena on New Year's Eve.

As anticipated, six of the new fights feature a Dream versus Sengoku theme, pitting fighters from Japan's two big-ticket promotions against each other.

A strong contingent of featherweight bouts will see superstar-cum-bad boy Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto taking on Sengoku champion Masanori Kanehara, Dream featherweight grand prix runner-up Hiroyuki Takaya facing Sengoku tournament second-placer Michihiro Omigawa and Japanese MMA's "Cinderella Boy" Hideo Tokoro facing 145-pound King of Pancrase Marlon Sandro.

Outside the featherweight division, Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem will take on durable Japanese heavyweight Kazuyuki Fujita. Veteran welterweights Hayato "Mach" Sakurai and Akihiro Gono will also square off, and 2004 Olympic judo silver medalist Hiroshi Izumi will look to get his first career victory against untamed pro-wrestler Katsuyori Shibata.

Announced K-1 action will feature long-time promotional standout and recent Strikeforce competitor Ray Sefo taking on boxer-turned-failed-MMA-fighter Yosuke Nishijima.

The thematic matchmaking was an expected device, as the rebranded Sengoku Raiden Championship opted to cancel its slated Dec. 31 card at the Ariake Coliseum in Tokyo after being unable to secure a network television deal to air the event live in Japan. Following the subsequent departure of executive Takahiko Kokuho, with the promotion's immediate future in a state of flux, parent company World Victory Road allowed for its talents to be loaned out for the annual Dynamite card.

The seven new fights bring the total of announced bouts to 14. FEG president Sadaharu Tanigawa stated that he was hoping for 18 or 19 fights on the card and wants to have the additional contests official by later this week.

 

Overoid will never fight in the US.

 

He's a joke, and he should've been stripped long ago. He's useless to Strike Force. This will be his 7th MMA fight since winning the Strike Force title without defending it. That doesn't include his K-1 stuff.

If Strike Force wants to be taken seriously, they have to get the belt off of this guy. Who cares how thin they are at heavyweight. Get the belt off of him immediately.

TFK

 

Agreed. They really should strip him, especially considering they have a guy widely considered the best HW in the world in Fedor. They should be promoting him as the champ. Rogers vs Fedor should have been for the title.

 

100% agreed, dumb move on their part.

 

They need to have a rule in place that says champs must defend twice a year.

 

he'll never have to. the guy is really famous in asia and i'm sure he makes pretty good money fighting in both k-1 and DREAM. plus, the heavyweight comp sucks balls in japan. he can engage in high profile fights against other roidheads like barnett. didn't tim sylvia recently sign w/ dream as well? ::

 

He is big in Japan, so I agree he never would have to fight over here again if he doesn't want to. But I am pretty sure Barnett would beat him.

 

Pretty sure? I really wouldn't pick Overeem against any real top HW. Sure he's looked good as of late but against who? He's fought nobody in MMA in quite some time. Buentello or Hunt are the best guy he's fought for years and they are not top HW's. In reality, he has lost to basically every top guy he faced, Belfort is probably his best win ever. I was at that fight and it was the most boring piece of shit I have ever seen. Overeem is one of the most overrated fighters in the sport right now.

 

He is basically overrated from his recent "transformation" alongside from a DQ win over a shot Crocop and a couple of meaningless K-1 wins.

 

Exactly. He's getting credit from beating bums in MMA and fighting guys in a completely different sport. K-1 is not MMA. Those fights mean jack shit as far as MMA goes. When Overeem beats a top HW I will be impressed.

 

I guess I stated it wrong. There is no way in hell I think Overheem beats Barnett.:: Fedor would probably stop him under two minutes if not one minute.

 

meaningless k-1 wins ??? I see you don't follow the sport much

 

Overeem career has taken a very disapointing turn. Sure he's juicing but I don't think it's the reason he doesn't defend his strikeforce title ( if you don't think guy's like Lesnar or GSP juice, or matter of fact, pretty much all of the top guy's do, you are very very naive ), I think he's happy making good payday's versus no hopers ( while Fujita isn't a no hoper, he's over the hill at this point and no more than a gate keeper ). He better step it up soon

 

I love K-1. But K-1 victories don't really translate into MMA success. I think this is what Bob was meaning. Poor way to say it though, I agree.

 

He may very well meant it in that way. In that case, my post was off base.

 

I did mean it that way. I didn't mean meaningless as to diminish his wins. I just meant that it is meaningless in an MMA context.

 

I just read over on Sherdog that Overeem was offered a fight with Arlovski instead of Fujita. Arlovski agreed, Overeem ducked him and instead gets old ass Fujita.

Overeem is a joke. He had a chance to face a guy who is worlds better than anyone he's fought as of late, IN JAPAN and he still turns it down.

People really need to stop caring about this guy, he's not interested in fighting anyone good.

 

Agreed, Arlovski/Overheem would have actually mattered or been interesting. Overheem has definitely gone into "joke" status.::

 

If Overeem is so bad ass like everyone seems to think these days, why not knock out chinny ass Arlovski and get a respectable win?

Overeem doesn't have the confidence in himself his fans have in him obviously.

 

Obviously not. I mean didn't he see the way Arlovski was absolutely demolished in seconds by Rogers?

I would have thought Overeem would see it as an easy win over a name fighter.

 

Overeem is claiming his management picks his fights and he has nothing to do with it. Sure bud, sure! ::