Who gets a title shot first Minotauro or Cro Cop? - Fight Forum - MMA - UFC - Boxing - K1

patMANpv · 04-23-2007, 11:16 PM

With the signing of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and the recent loss of Mirko Cro Cop, it made me wonder, which of these former Pride superstars will get a shot at the HW title first?

Cro Cop probably has to fight at least twice more before he sees a shot at the belt, a rebound fight and then probably another top contender fight.

Nogueira will most likely have to fight at least twice before a title shot also, his debut fight and then probably a top contender fight (like Cro Cop had).

With so many HW's vying for title shots who do you guys think will get the winner of Couture/Gonzaga?

Tim Sylvia (will most likely get a shot to get his belt back soon)
Andrei Arlovski (hard to keep this guy from a title shot after all he's done)
Mirko Cro Cop (will most likely get a shot at some point in the near future)
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (same as Cro Cop)
Brandon Vera (very talented and is one or two fights away from being in the title picture)

Which Pride defectee will get the first shot at UFC Heavyweight gold?

IrishRage · 04-23-2007, 11:44 PM

Vera should fight Big Nog first, Vera wants to prove himself for a title shot , Big nog wants to put a show on for the american fans and doesn't want a weak first fight . Cro Cop fights Tim Sylvia both are coming off of bad loses , whoever loses this fight will be in the basement and the winner will be on a rebound near the top . Arlovski gets the winner of Randy vs Gonzaga let the chips fall and you will have a bunch of wicked PPV fights ahead . Will this all happen who really knows but it makes sense for Ratings , fans , money etc .

Gooner · 04-23-2007, 11:56 PM

I thought Vera was going to LHW.

As for who will get the title shot after Gonzaga, it's impossible to say.
Depends on what match-ups they'll put up, and of course who comes on top from those.
I think Mirko/Nog could get a shot if he goes on to beat someone like Sylvia and AA. Obviously if AA or Sylvia would get wins there, they would be in line for another shot.

All I can say is, the UFC HW division is incredibly interesting at the moment.
Who'd have thunk it a while back?

patMANpv · 04-24-2007, 01:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gooner

All I can say is, the UFC HW division is incredibly interesting at the moment.
Who'd have thunk it a while back?

Ha Ha, no kidding! Less than 6 months ago we were stuck with Tim Sylvia as the HW champ, Andrei Arlovski pretty much out of the picture after back to back losses to Sylvia and no real distinct #1 contender.

Now we have a half dozen or more fighters who could all be considered #1 contenders and could easily win the belt on any given night.

Personally, I think with this recent set back to Mirko's title aspiration, Nogueira will get a shot at the title first. Or they could possibly meet up in a #1 contender match, winner getting a title shot, that would be awesome!

JDforce · 04-24-2007, 01:25 AM

i was thinking that a Kongo vs CroCop fight would be a great stand up battle

dsver1 · 04-24-2007, 01:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IrishRage

Vera should fight Big Nog first, Vera wants to prove himself for a title shot , Big nog wants to put a show on for the american fans and doesn't want a weak first fight . Cro Cop fights Tim Sylvia both are coming off of bad loses , whoever loses this fight will be in the basement and the winner will be on a rebound near the top . Arlovski gets the winner of Randy vs Gonzaga let the chips fall and you will have a bunch of wicked PPV fights ahead . Will this all happen who really knows but it makes sense for Ratings , fans , money etc .

totally agree, great match-ups! Nog vs. Vera is a great test for a new UFC fighter and a younger UFC-tested fighter. Cro Cop vs. Silvia is a great redemption match-up. AA should get the next title shot, but I'm still very disappointed in his UFC 70 performance. At least he owned up to it in his post-fight interview. He needs to come hard or not at all.

GeorgeXVX · 04-24-2007, 02:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IrishRage

Vera should fight Big Nog first, Vera wants to prove himself for a title shot , Big nog wants to put a show on for the american fans and doesn't want a weak first fight . Cro Cop fights Tim Sylvia both are coming off of bad loses , whoever loses this fight will be in the basement and the winner will be on a rebound near the top . Arlovski gets the winner of Randy vs Gonzaga let the chips fall and you will have a bunch of wicked PPV fights ahead . Will this all happen who really knows but it makes sense for Ratings , fans , money etc .

i agree with this.... I think if Vera can stop Big Nog he is next after AA. If Big Nog beat Vera i think Big Nog should fight the loser of Gonzaga and Randy for number 1 spot. I think Werdum should fight Mir.... If Cro Cop fights Tim the winner could fight Big Nog too to make an interesting match and super hard road to the top for big nog. If Vera loses to Nog and Cro Cop loses to Tim i would love to see them go at it. Cro Cop wants Vera SOOOO bad and i think Vera is talented enough on his feat not to get blasted instantly and has a way better ground game then mirko.... would be a great fight. I would also like to see Gonzaga get a rematch with Werdum to get back that lose.... people also forget about Herring in this picture.... and Kongo.

Heatwaves · 04-24-2007, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JDforce

i was thinking that a Kongo vs CroCop fight would be a great stand up battle

That is actually a great idea! I love that matchup!

Because of similar styles it will probably be the only Kongo fight that I'd enjoy watching.

Heatwaves · 04-24-2007, 02:53 AM

Here's how I see the next few months at HW:

Couture v. Gonzaga -- (a given)
Arlovski v. Vera -- (for the next title shot)
Sylvia v. Herring -- (Big guy vs. Big guy. Either Timmy gets quickly back on the road to a title shot, or Heath re-establishes himself as a contender)
Cro Cop V. Congo -- (a fun fight of similar styles. Cro Cop either does what's expected or Cheick gains much needed credibility)
Nog v. McCully -- (They always throw a beatable opponent to heralded veterans)
O'Brien v. Werdum -- (Big challenge for the young, talented and single-skilled O'Brien. Step one on the ladder for Werdum or he becomes the next Assuerio Silva.)

Nimmy · 04-24-2007, 03:00 AM

i dont think they deserve a shot just yet, with the depth of the division i reckon they should all have to pay thier dues and the guys who have won 2 - 3 fights on the trot deserve a shot first

OGIE · 04-24-2007, 07:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nimmy

i dont think they deserve a shot just yet, with the depth of the division i reckon they should all have to pay thier dues and the guys who have won 2 - 3 fights on the trot deserve a shot first

That's the way it should be but sales at the gate will decide.
I'd love to see CroCop against Tim.

My GnP is Sick · 04-24-2007, 07:21 AM

This is how I would like to see it go down in the next few months...

Couture v. Gonzaga- Should be a great fight 2 guys with similar styles
Arlovski v. Vera- Same thing here 2 guys who like to stand and bang, a year ago I would have give the win to AA in this fight with out thinking twice, but he has lost some of that killer instict he used to fight with...
Sylvia v. MIR- I'm not a Sylvia fan, but he keeps calling for this fight I say let him have it already... Hopefull MIR can get back into his arm breaking form by then...
Cro Cop V. Congo- Is anyone thinking Forrest/Bonner 1 here? I think this could look pretty similar to that fight...
Nog v. Cruz- Just because it will be Nog's 1st fight and they usually don't throw guys right into the picture.
Herring v. McCully- Both coming off a win, but not ready for title contention just yet.
O'Brien v. Werdum- These guys are at the bottom of this divison at the moment, but a few wins and who knows...

Gooner · 04-24-2007, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by My GnP is Sick

This is how I would like to see it go down in the next few months...

Couture v. Gonzaga- Should be a great fight 2 guys with similar styles
Arlovski v. Vera- Same thing here 2 guys who like to stand and bang, a year ago I would have give the win to AA in this fight with out thinking twice, but he has lost some of that killer instict he used to fight with...
Sylvia v. MIR- I'm not a Sylvia fan, but he keeps calling for this fight I say let him have it already... Hopefull MIR can get back into his arm breaking form by then...
Cro Cop V. Congo- Is anyone thinking Forrest/Bonner 1 here? I think this could look pretty similar to that fight...
Nog v. Cruz- Just because it will be Nog's 1st fight and they usually don't throw guys right into the picture.
Herring v. McCully- Both coming off a win, but not ready for title contention just yet.
O'Brien v. Werdum- These guys are at the bottom of this divison at the moment, but a few wins and who knows...

Good list.

But comparing a possible Crocop-Kongo fight to Forrest-Bonnar I is far-fetched imo.
CC and Kongo are both great technical kickboxers. They're quick and accurate ,and CC is a calculating counter-striker. I very much doubt that they would have an out-of-control brawl like Forrest and Bonnar did.