i only got into mma fairly recently, probably may 12 mths or so ago, but i really like it. cro cop will be fighting in a couple of days here in australia, and i hope he does well. great name too, sounds like a machine. he was one of my favourite fighters when i discovered the sport, probably coz of his amazing kicks. i don't know too much about him but from what i gather most of his success came away from the ufc? he doesn't seem to of been that great in the ufc itself. any other cro cop fans on this forum? what do you think his chances are against rothwell? there is always talk of cro cop having lost his desire, i hope he has found it. if he loses i don't think he'll get many more ufc fights.
You're a few years late....Crocop is finished as a fighter...You should've been a fan back in 2002.. Crocop should've retired in 2006 , or hell..even in 2005 (after his loss against Fedor Emelianenko).. The problem with this guy isn't necessarily his age....It's his head... (like Golota or Tyson..) Crocop used to be cocky...(some would even say arrogant & pretentious)...Very confident , today ? He's fighting scared...In his latest fight , against Junior Dos santos , Crocop was surviving.. Not aggressive...no killer instinct , it was terrible. And it's not just in the UFC. He looked like **** even in japan (against Hong Man choi , Overeem)...Looked like **** , even in the fights he won ! (against Al Turk , Sanchez , Hong man choi ). Last time Crocop had a solid performance was against Josh Barnett & Wanderlei Silva. I'd personally love to see him "back"...But it's not likely to happen. I wouldn't be surprised to see him lose against his next opponent (Ben Rothwell)... Of course anything is possible...but as long as he's mentally "not there"...not sure of himself...perturbed & fighting scared...nothing is going to change. He needs his confidence back. All the trainers in the world won't be able to help him if he can't do something about this problem. So to answer your question:¨ Prime crocop vs rothwell = KO or TKO in the first. 2010 crocop vs Rothwell = Either Rothwell by UD or TKO...or Crocop by UD
cro-cop was a machine in Pride and is a very talented fighter though with alot of fighters in UFC they fight beyond there prime as this is all they know how to do and lets face facts it pays well. I have cro-cop for the win though. He will need to keep his distance and use his leg kicks very well.
What boxingcar said.....100% He is one of my favourite fighters - he just lost the will some where - its natural I guess - in his prime the only person better was Fedor and perhaps Noguiera.
what is his ground-game like, does he ever submit people? are there any other current fighters who like to end their fights by a head-kick?
if you discovered the sport 12 months ago, how on earth could crocop be one of your favourite fighters?? 12 months ago he was still shot to ****,has been for years. im passed caring about crocop,he should retire and quit hurting his legacy even further. jeff beck,a true musical artist! 'you had it coming' is fooking top.
No...Well he submited Randleman once (in the rematch)...speaking of Randleman...Their first fight was one of his worst , most brutal defeat. It almost ruined his career...But then he had the will to go on...(i think his motivation was to take the belt from fedor)... His 2nd worst defeat was against Gonzaga....And i think that one drained his motivation...Today he keeps saying that he'll keep on going till he gets the ufc belt but i wonder if he even believes it himself... At his best ....."prime" Crocop had a fantastic submission defense...He did brilliant on 2 occasions against a top class grappler (Josh Barnett)..He even used to dominant Barnett on the ground. He even did great against Emelianenko (even though he lost the fight)...But his ground/defense was really impressive there too. (most opponents who are confronted to Fedor end up with a smashed face)...Ultimately , his ground defense wasn't enough to help him win the fight because Fedor's workrate was too much for him. (he just kept on attacking , changing positions...etc..nonstop) Crocop got subbed once though...against prime Nogueira. (no shame there)..But that was in 2003...It's only after training with Fabricio Werdum that he developed solid ground defense. In nutshell...Crocop did everything in his power to beat Fedor Emelianenko...to grab the pride HW belt....That was his ultimate dream , it was supposed to be the crowning achievement of his career but it never happened. And things never were the same after that.. He made a final effort in the pride gp...and that was it. Even before going to the ufc , he kept talking about a possible "rematch" for nye against Fedor...but time went by...and both went their ways.. If you're really interested..i highly suggest you to watch the crocop documentary about the pride hw title fight 2005. (that's right...they even made a whole documentary about it...that's how important the fedor fight was..) here's part 1 [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qf6YecV7K_0[/ame] part 2 [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAiyO1RLuJ0[/ame] part 3 [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51WXloJ1qlk[/ame] part 4 [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUodlNwv3gk[/ame]
crocop was known for his striking following his transition from k1, he developed his mma skills whilst fighting in pride not beforehand. he developed fairly good submissions but his ground game has never been his 'forte' he is certainly no noguiera on the ground but he developed fairly well. and yes, peter aerts k1 [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEDHx790b88[/ame]
As for the head kicks... Most of the best in the kicking department are in K1... In the HW category...some of the most impressive are: Glaube Feitosa (still active today) [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQylRNuMXFI[/ame] Andy Hug (died in 2000) highlight [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRLR4LYlJL4[/ame] Here's andy hug vs Crocop [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ym5JvmfOOO0[/ame] [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BehPNBAFHlE[/ame]
well, i often found that his name kept cropping up in things i read, so i watched a lot of his old fights, and was impressed. jeff beck is my favourite guitarist, he has a new album out in april.
Prime crocop was undeniably ****ing awesome...now it's a different story. Tell you what though....Maybe a miracle will happen against Rothwell ? (let's say he finishes the guy highkick KO style...vintage crocop)...not only would it be great , but it would probably reboost his confidence.
Rothwell is a perfect opponent for Cro Cop to see if he has anything left. I like Mirko to win a wide decision here.
