Contributor: Ben Kohn
I apologize in advance to any readers for the briefness of this article in comparison to my others. I have a really hectic schedule and wanted to make sure to get this in on time. Enjoy!
This is the fight that intrigues me the most on this card for one simple reason. These are two heavyweights who have seen career resurgences yet in totally different stages of their career. Mark Hunt is 38 years old and was barely even remembered when he lost to Sean McCorkle by straight armbar in the 1st round of their UFC 119 back in 2010. Now it is 2013 and rallyformarkhunt aside, people are actually talking about Mark Hunt challenging for a title in the near future. Is that idea not the craziest thing in HW history? Mark Hunt challenging for a UFC HW title in 2013, it has a nice ring to it no? 3 wins with two by badass KO’s with a stinking gasfest in between, Mark is on the cusp of contendership with a win over Struve and that is just crazy to me.
Stefan Struve is 24 years old and has seen a career that was the same story of gathering a few wins and losing when he needed a big win. Now he enters this fight riding a 4 fight win streak and all 4 by stoppage. Winning this fight will give him the longest win streak at HW right now. Struve has finally filled out his immense 6 foot 11 frame and reports are that he is actually cutting weight now. This is a fight that will change the dimensions of the UFC HW division and I for one cannot wait for this fight.
Striking: Well I think we all know where Hunt wants this fight to take place. Mark Hunt is a former K-1 GP champion and holds wins over kickboxing greats like Stefan Leko and Jerome Le Banner. His power and chin are his greatest weapons although for man his size, he throws his lunchboxes very swiftly and smoothly. He can throw his kicks pretty damn hard as well but he primarily uses his hands to great effect. Hunt’s size and low center of gravity are what allows him to generate such huge amounts of power and at 5 foot 10 and just barely under the HW limit, he really packs a wallop.
Struve is nicknamed “Skyscraper” and for damn good reason. He is by far the tallest HW on the UFC roster and has just recently started filling out that frame muscularly. The added muscle will be a big help for him in the fight as he has been bullied around a big in the best both on the feet and in the clinch. Struve also will have a 10 inch reach advantage over Hunt to boot so this will be a fight between the tallest HW and the shortest HW. The craziest dynamic is that while normally, striking would be a nightmare for the shorter fighter, it is exactly the opposite in this case. Struve should do everything in his power to get this fight down to the ground quickly or else Hunt’s game changing power will come into play. Struve has spoken about keeping Hunt at range with long jabs and kicks and although he has shown more maturity and higher fight IQ, Struve can still tend to end up in wild brawls when he gets tagged. Getting into one with Hunt is a disaster waiting to happen. Struve needs to get it to the ground ASAP and I am sure he knows that as well. The question is simply if Hunt can keep this fight standing and make this a dirty brawl because if he can, Struve is going to sleep. Edge goes to Hunt.
Clinch: This is tricky because of the size difference. Being the stockier fighter with more power, shorter arms, and better striking, I would give the clinch to Hunt. However, in his fight with Johnson, he pulled guard to avoid striking with Johnson and risking getting hit by him. I can easily see Struve doing so again in this fight and bringing the fight to his world. Edge goes to Struve in the clinch solely on his willingness to pull guard.
Takedowns: To be honest, I cannot give either man the edge here because neither of them have takedowns at their disposal. Both of their styles are centered around either standing, or with Struve, getting taken down/knocked down and subbing the guy from his back. I cannot give either of them any sort of edge in this category.
Grappling: This is Struve’s path to victory plain and simple. He cannot stand with Hunt and, while only a purple belt, has shown remarkable skill off of his back capitalizing on his incredibly long limbs. His guard in particular is just downright nasty to get tangled up in and should Hunt end up there, he needs to get the hell out as fast as possible. Edge clearly goes to Struve here.
Chin: Mark Hunt’s chin is ridiculous and the amount of punishment he can take seems to be inhumanly possible. Struve on the other hand has been knocked out rather spectacularly in each of his 3 UFC losses. Struve putting on mass will probably help him with his punch-taking abilities and has the heart of a champion as seen in his comebacks from absolutely brutal beatdowns in the past but this area clearly goes to Hunt.
Cardio: In his fight with Rothwell, Hunt gassed harder than a fat guy after the Super Bowl. However that fight took place in Denver for some retarded reason (what the hell was the UFC thinking putting 2 huge HW’s in a fight at altitude?!?!?!). Hunt’s other UFC haven’t lasted long enough to see how his cardio is although he seemed totally fine in his fight with Chris Tucshchshsuhseeresrsrrrsssde7$. I won’t be foolish and try to make the argument that his cardio is on par with Struve who is just a machine it seems and never seems to tire. Edge goes to Struve.
If I was picking purely without emotion, I would probably pick the safer pick and take Struve. He is younger, much bigger, and has a better ground game. But when you fight against Mark Hunt and the army of doom, you cannot pick logically. I must therefore side with my supreme overlord and master, MARKU HUNTO!!!!!!
MARK HUNT BY ROUND 1 KO!!!!!! FTW
-Ben can be reached at [email protected]
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