UFC 203: Alistair Overeem's Unlikely Journey to a Title Shot
Dutch kickboxer Alistair Overeem will face Stipe Miocic for the UFC Heavyweight Championship on Saturday at UFC 203, but his journey to a title shot is different than most expected.
When Alistair Overeem entered the UFC in 2011, he was immediately on the short list for a shot at the title.
At the time, he had the distinction of winning championships in both MMA and professional kickboxing, holding titles in Strikeforce, Dream, and winning the K-1 Grand Prix.
After demolishing former champion Brock Lesnar inside the first round in his UFC debut, the fight to make was one between himself and then champion Junior dos Santos.
Before the fight took place at UFC 146 however, Overeem failed a pre-fight drug test with testosterone levels that were extraordinarily high.
Indeed, after facing the question for years about how he had gone from a lean light-heavyweight to a man who could hold his own with the likes of Lesnar and Antonio Silva, it seemed that accusations of steroid use looked to derail what was becoming a fantastic career resurgence.
Instead of competing for the title in 2012, Overeem was left to watch as Frank Mir and Cain Velasquez competed for the belt.
When Overeem returned to competition in 2013, many wondered what state “The Demolition Man” would be in. Would he be as physically imposing on his opponents as he had been before? Would he still carry his incredible power?
Against Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, it appeared that Overeem was prepared to pick up right where he left off. That was, until Silva stunned the MMA world with a third round KO of Overeem after being controlled easily in the first two rounds.
Silva went on to compete for the title with a shot that was once again expected to go to Alistair. The Dutchman, meanwhile, was left searching for answers.
When he lost his next fight to Travis Browne in similar fashion, dominating the first few minutes but being brutally knocked out before leaving the first round, it seemed that any hopes of Overeem being the next dominant heavyweight champion were dashed.
A victory over Frank Mir was sandwiched between the loss to Browne and a TKO loss to Ben Rothwell. Once thought to be the most intimidating fighter in the heavyweight division, Overeem was floundering as his competition seemed to be sailing past him with ease.
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It wasn’t until the end of 2014 that Overeem finally began to turn the corner in the UFC. Victories over fellow kickboxer Stefan Struve and Roy Nelson followed.
In 2015, he finally faced Junior dos Santos inside the Octagon and became only the second fighter to ever stop the Brazilian with strikes. When he scored a second consecutive KO victory, this time over Andrei Arlovski, Overeem had finally put a run together at the right time to secure another title shot.
In Stipe Miocic, he faces a man very much his opposite. While Overeem has been a star under bright lights around the world, Miocic remains the humble individual who continues to work as a firefighter despite now having a successful MMA career.
In fact, it is not lost on pundits that the media was claiming that LeBron James and the Cavaliers were the ones who ended the championship drought in Cleveland when Miocic had actually accomplished the feat months prior when he won the UFC Heavyweight Title.
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Regardless, Overeem’s popularity is not expected to help him when he goes into Miocic’s hometown at UFC 203. At 9-2 in the UFC, the heavyweight champion is in the best form of his career going into his first title defense.
For “The Demolition Man” he has already faced more adversity than has been expected in his UFC career. If he is to win the heavyweight title, then it only makes sense that he has to overcome one more night of difficulties.