Strikeforce ‘Fedor vs. Silva’ Preview

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Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix (Reserve Bout)
Ray Sefo vs. Valentijn Overeem

The Matchup: Give this much to Sefo -- the former K-1 superstar is giving MMA a try despite long odds, and he turns 40 on Feb. 15. Unbeaten in two appearances, he has knocked out Korean trial horse Min Soo Kim and taken a second-round injury win over Kevin Jordan at a September 2009 Strikeforce Challengers event.

Sefo’s debut bout against the Korean went as expected, with Kim venturing into a head kick for highlight-style defeat, but the win over Jordan revealed plenty of holes in his game. In the opening round, Sefo’s ground game was exposed as predictably wanting, with Jordan mounting and thumping him prior to quitting in the second after injuring his right knee on a takedown attempt. Sefo has trained at Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts -- about as good a camp as one could hope for given his background -- in Las Vegas in an attempt to make the transition.

Overeem -- not to be confused with his younger brother, Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem -- is an old-school MMA veteran, fighting readily overseas in foreign promotions and with many big names on his record, losing to most. Interestingly, he is the same guy that once guillotined UFC hall of famer Randy Couture and has 16 wins by submission, yet is vulnerable to submissions against better fighters. His bouts almost always take less time than one would need to cook a pizza. In fact, he is almost always done in the first round.

The Pick: Sefo is a great stand-up fighter with awesome strikes, but that translation into MMA has a big drop-off with the threat of a takedown. Overeem has a ton of experience, and while he is definitely on the downside of a long career, years of sparring with tough fighters in Holland and in the ring in various fights should have him prepared. He will come in and pick the right moment to force a clinch and a takedown, working over Sefo en route to a first-round submission.

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