Andrei Arlovski: 'I got my ass kicked, it's that simple'

Hang on a minute here. He gets knocked out on his feet and everyone is saying he needs to focus more on his wrestling and groundwork?

Roach being his striking coach is ok as long as he mixes in with a top Muay Thai trainer and fixes his head movement.

It is so common for everyone to jump all over a fighter following a big KO but its not like he was dominated for round after round in any of his losses.

I think the question marks over his chin are harsh also, both the Fedor and Rogers KO’s would have knocked out ANY heavyweight on the planet inc Big Nog.

You can’t help but wonder with as many KO’s on his record so i understand but if you break them down individually, the only one that is suspect is the Sylvia 2 fight even with that he had his body weight coming forward.

I look at Fitch vs GSP or Sherk vs BJ as better indicators that a particular fighter is never going to be at the very top level, not flash KO’s… down to heavy hands with small gloves.

Arlovski has still got a great deal of talent, is young enough and hungry. I think he can still one day be the top heavyweight in the world.

People are jumping on him because he’s had two thumping KO losses in a row, surely that should raise the question in his head, “Am I good enough to stand and trade all the time or should I mix it up”?

AA’s way too predictable now, Freddy Roach has blown so much smoke up his ass that he believes he’s Iron Mike Tyson circa 1988, when the reality is his boxing skills aint all that. Coupled with his suspect chin, it’s a recipe for didaster at the moment.

Lets face it Rogers wasn’t in anybodys top 20 and that is an embarassing loss to have. I disagree that the punches Rogers hit him with were anything special.

AA definitely needs to mix his game up and put more emphasis on his world class sambo skills, otherwise people are just gonna stand and trade knowing they’ll get one through eventualy which’ll doubtless result in a KO. If he wants to persist in being a boxer he has to train better defence, learn to avoid a punch and get better footwork so he’s not such a sitting duck.

LMFAO, MMA weekly have Brett Rogers at number 10 in the heavyweight rankings now.

I loved it!

What wouldn’t they attack? He just KO’d the former number 2 and is unbeaten?

Coz he would beat Kongo, Herring, Carwin, Dos Santos, Werdum, Overeem, Velazquez wouldn’t he???

good postr NIck J: I dont think Andre has as bad of a chin as its being made out. Like you said, those shots from Fedor n Grim would have Ko’ed a FOCKING grizzly Bear!~

Im sick of atching him box…He doesnt even kick box anymore. Where’s ther Sambo at? When is the last time he dropped for a leglock? His athelticism gave him an amazing sprawl. If you can sprawl that good, then you must be able to wrestle…where is the wrestling? whats wrong with a little G n P every now n then?

He needs to9 get his stuff together. He is wasting his career being 1 dimensional, when he doesnt have to be!

So which of those guys you have listed have just beaten someone ranked 2? Or ever for that matter?

Oh and yes he would have a shot at beating all of those fighters. The only one i would write hime off with is Overeem but even then no-one gave him a shot at AA and look what happened.

Stop hating.

Disagree with you about the chin John but totally agree with the rest.

Sorry john that was aimed at attackdog, you posted just before me.

Yeah agree with your points tho mate.

I’m not hating just being realistic. You’re just being plain daft if you think he’d trouble any of those guys I listed, sure he’d have a “shot” but nothing more than a punchers chance. What’s all this talk of AA being ranked 2 in the world?

Barnett is clearly the #2 heavyweight in the world, and its a shame that he doesnt get enough love on this site. Barnett is a rare bread of being absolutely HUGE at heavyweight, yet having very technical skills to go along with it. He can wrestle with anyone, yet he is more technical then most wrestlers when it comes to the ground game. His technical ability is severely underrated. Look when he fought the Jodoka, Pawel Nestula (who is a legend, technique-wise)…Barnett won that fight matching Nestula’s technique. He didnt win that with striking or power…he submitted him….that shows a lot about how skilled he is.

IMO, TODAY, I would favor Barnett against every single heavyweight in the world except Fedor of course!

I dont remember the last time I saw Arlovski throw a hook or an uppercut! Its always the same thing…jab, straight.

All that athleticism, how bout he mix in a high kick every once in a while!

Arlovski should take ABOut 3 months off….Go train in Holland and come back refocused and ready to use a diverse, and well rounded assualt that he does have in his repertoire, just neglects to use…He is kind of like rampage in that regard minus, the Un-ROCKABLE Chin! !!!!

I need to see Yvel vs. Arlovski!!!!!!!!

I agree John, Barnett is number 2 and doesn’t get the credit he deserves. Can’t wait for Barnett v Fedor!

DEFINITELY BROTHER! AS the biggest Fedor cocksucker known to man, Barnett worries me! He sure as hell isnt going to be armbarred like half the people that have lost to Fedor.

I think Fedor will finally have to unleash his G n P, which is the most grueling G n P that I have ever seen in mma. He wont be able to submit Josh without stunning him 1st.

This fight is going to be awesome and it is easily my most anticipated fight of 2009.

Yeah think Fedor has to unleash the GnP, cant see him submitting an old pro like Barnett. Easily the most anticipated fight this year.

Barnett just doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. He was heavily criticised on here for his “wet blanket” gameplan on Yvel, but what was he supposed to do against such a dangerous striker? He was smart and didn’t fall into the trap so many wrestlers do and think coz they’ve got a KO under their belt that they’re suddenly Iron Mike Tyson. It wasn’t pretty but it was smart.

Great point about the Yvel fight. i DONT GET WHY HE WAS CRITIZED, I sure as hell didnt knock him for that dominant performance.

Like you said, Many stupid wrestlers with good hands fall into the trap of wanting to strike with supperior strikers…Happy Barnett didnt do that, and I worry that Cain will fall into that trap against Kongo. Not only is Yvel a Brutally nASTY Striker, but the guys is just tough as nails over all. He never gets Ko’ed or TKO…he is a warrior, yet everyone bashed Barnett for not being able to finish him for so long in the mount n I dont get it! Barnett shouldnt be bashed for that, Yvel should be praised for his toughness.

People hate on Barnett so much, that they Bash a dominant performance like the Yvel fight, and its sad to see.

I really pray to be able to see Yvel vs. Arlovski at Affliction 3. Problem is, that its a very scary fight for the pitbull and its not even being mentioned….Its just a fight that popped into my head that I want to see.

Speaking of fights that popped into my head that I want to see. I think this one would be great in about 1 year:
MOusasi vs. Overeem!

The convo has evolved since i last posted so will keep it very brief. Almost universally Alovski was ranked number 2 prior to the Rogers fight so for Rogers to scrape into the top ten is fair enough IMO.

Who has a win over a top tenner???

Santos has beaten only Werdum (number 7 at time), Kongo – Cro Cop (5 at time), Carwin – GG , Cain no-one, Herring no-one. What i am saying no-one has had as big of a win as Grim so he should get his props.

I am a big fan of Barnett also but can’t see Fedor having any problems with him. But i could see it going to UD with like you say John, some nasty G&P messing up his ‘babyface’.

Yvel vs AA would be ace but I kinda think he’ll want an easier fight to boost himself a bit first, Yvel is a huge potential banana skin!

Moussasi vs Overeem would be the business too. There’s some great potential non UFC matchups out there at the moment. Exciting times for MMA.

AA was universally top 5 but defo not 2! AA has been on the slide for a while IMO since he suddenly stopped training anything apart from boxing. He hasn’t had a decent win over a top tenner since he beat Werdum and that was over two years ago.

If Rogers had just KO’d Fedor there could be an argument for him getting top 10 but there’s just way too many HW’s out there who are clearly better, just weren’t lucky enough to catch AA on a bad night coming off a massive KO.

NIck J: you make a great point about Grim’s status in the rankings. Never really looked at it that way!

Attackdog: I also worry about him wanting a lessor opponent to bounce back from. but from his interviews, he seems to be in the right frame of mind, and eager to get back in there and prove himself, so we’ll c!

If he wants Yvel John he cant stand there and trade with him, do you agree?? He has to utilise all his weapons and look to employ his sambo and work a submission. A top striker like Yvel will inevitably find the target and when he does it will be lights out for AA. As you said yourself Yvel is tough as old boots and certainly wont be afraid of a tearup, he’d welcome it!

If you could guarantee me that AA wasn’t going to just use his boxing then i’d make him a strong favourite, but he seems obsessed with trying to be a boxer.

yeah, if he stands with Yvel, he will get put to sleep, sooner or later. Yvel can withstand Andre’s strikes, but Andre cant withstand Yvels.

If He boxes he loses, if he fights mma he beats Yvel. Simple as that!

He needs to continue to evolve his boxing, but needs to get back to using his clinch and ground game. At this point, it is a mental question more than anything. He needs to go see St. Pierre’s hypnotherapist so he can “drop his bricks.” LOL

Andre will be back. He just needs a couple easy fights to get his confidence back. Still a big fan.

his chin may not be the best, but what’s really upsetting me is the fact that he didn’t box, he came out and stood right infront of him and threw kicks!

Good point RoB. Arlovski has a lot of weapons with his hands, but for a while now he only throws that jab-straight right-leg kick combo. It’s a tight, safe combination, but come on man, mix it up a bit and throw some power shots!

I know AA has a background in Sambo, but how would he do if he just started ground fighting his next few fights? I imagine the first fight he does that with would really throw his opponent off.

Anderson Silva actually has an incredible chin. Watch his fight in Cage Rage against Jorge Rivera. The two of them clinch and Anderson pretty much just goes go on take your best shot. He let Rivera blast once or twice to make a you can’t hurt me statement. It was sick.

really Rob, because Scott Smith supposedly hits hard, so why when he hit Diaz cleanly, Diaz didn’t drop? I could go on, but what’s the point! Chuck used to be able to take a punch to…

Yeah, Silva’s chin is superb. He still didn’t seem too eager to give Cote’s right hand a crack at it though.

At least he’s consistent. Anyone seen the pattern? Get KTFO, come back too soon and lose again. He’s a good man for losing 2 in a row.

I reckon he wasn’t too enthused to fight Cote and by putting on a snoozefest he was pretty much throwing a hizzy fit and f**kin’ the toys out of the pram. At least they’re giving him the big fights now.

I still think he could have demolished both Cote and Leites at any given moment had he really wanted to.

yeah A.S’s chin is excellent, but it’s mostly because he’s seeing all the punches coming and he doesn’t keep his head in one place..
Andrei needs better defense and not worry so much about being so technical, I wanna see him grow his beard and hair out again and just throw hard leather like he did back in his best UFC days, the punch he KO’d Buentello with was beautiful!..

Yeah, he could have. With Cote, I think he took a glancing right and realized this guy had a serious bomb, but that’s it… so why walk into it. I’m the champ, you come to me. Cote wasn’t cooperating and the fight stunk.

Plus he’s never kept his chin down or uses any real head movement. He’s all about the footwork and handspeed. There’s definitely holes in his game. He should join one of the big camps.

I’m of course back to talking about Andrei.

Andre’s biggest flaw might be head movement, or a lack thereof.

I know someone who doesn’t have head movement problems(Miletich)! ;)

either way the charm about HW has always been that any fight can end with 1 or 2 punches, and Rogers came pretty fast forward with a left and a right hook which is smart cause the secret to knock somebody out is to get your opponents (I don’t know the words) head in motion with your punches so that the brain shuts off..

btw last time i checked Rogers had 10 wins – 9 of them coming by KO/TKO so ANdrei’s not alone, and it’s not like it’s easier to absorb punishment in the first 30 secs, only thing is that nobody really gets hit clean two or three times with the chin exposed like that right away..

I agree Jeremy and RobH! im going to sleep now i need to stop myself from going on and on about the same things again..

I dont remember the last time I sawe Arlovski throw a hook or an uppercut!

All that athleticism, how bout he mix in a high kick every once in a while!

Arlovski should take ABOut 3 months off….Go train in Holland and come back refocused and strong!!!!

I need to see Yvel vs. Arlovski!!!!!!!!