Alistair Overeem on UFC struggles: Sometimes you fall down, but I'm a champion who loves to improve

Stefan Struve is "not that impressed" by UFC on FOX 13 opponent Alistair Overeem.

Probably because the embattled Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) heavyweight is on the chopping block ahead of their 265-pound tilt on Dec. 13, 2014 inside U.S. Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona, following a dismal 2-3 run inside the Octagon.

But "sometimes you fall down," Overeem told E. Spencer Kyte (via UFC.com):

"You put in the work and you come back. I'm 34 years old. If I would be injured, yes, maybe, but I still love what I do - I love working and improving. I'm an athlete, I'm a fighter, I'm a champion - this is what I do. I think there's a couple different ways you can look at the results. These results are not good, I totally agree. Would I like to have other results? Of course I would like to have other results - I'm a winner. I like winning. I enjoy winning and I put in the work to win. However, winning is not just a matter of work; it's a combination of factors: it's your sparring partners, your coaches, your diet - it's the whole package, even your personal life. In that sense, it's a continuous building of a puzzle and I think that the puzzle is very good right now."

Very good? It will have to be great.

Each fight costs ZUFFA over $200k and Overeem -- who held championship gold in Strikeforce, K-1, and DREAM -- has failed to live up to the promotion's lofty expectations, following a technical knockout win over Brock Lesnar in his UFC debut way back in late 2011.

It's now or never.

Struve has his own share of issues that go beyond wins and losses, so there should be a greater sense of urgency from both fighters in Phoenix. Who gets the "W" and who gets the boot? We'll find out in less than two months.

For more background on their UFC on FOX 13 fight click here.