UFC welterweight stand out Josh Koscheck won’t return to action until sometime in early 2008 (January or February) UFCmania.com (www.UFCmania.com) learned today.
The four-time NCAA Division I wrestling All American was penciled in to fight at UFC 79 on December 29. However, he was informed earlier this week that plans had changed.
“I’m no longer fighting in December,” Koscheck told UFCmania.com this afternoon. “Now I’m told to be ready for January or February of next year.”
Pressed for a potential opponent “Kos” indicated that he has not been approached with any specific names.
He did say, however, “I’ll fight anyone. I want to fight the best guys at 170. The loss to Georges St. Pierre taught me a lot. I told [UFC President] Dana White before I even got into the lockeroom after that bout that I’d fight the next week if he’d let me. I’m itching to get back.”
Koscheck, of course, dropped a unanimous decision to St. Pierre at UFC 74: “Respect” back in August. “Rush” is now poised for a title shot against the winner of Matt Serra and Matt Hughes on New Year’s Eve weekend.
We’ll post the entire interview with Koscheck later on this weekend — he’s got some interesting things to say about his loss to St. Pierre, his future with the UFC (he’s finally completed his nine-fight obligation on The Ultimate Fighter contract from three years ago) and much more.
Stay tuned.
96 Comments »
First post just caught it as i checked again.. If Lidell won who would have been in the card with Koscheck?
St Pierre Will Get The Winner Of Serra Hughes
Who Will Koscheck Face
jon fitch?
Fitch and Kos are training partners and friends so I doubt it, even though that would be sick. Maybe Kos vs. Karo.
Koscheck vs. winner of Parisyan-Lombard match up is my best guess, but ultimately I wanna see a Koscheck vs. Hughes match to see which wrestler is the better MMAer
I want to see Kos vs. Karo, but they might give him Josh Burkman, I know they don’t like each other, but I guess they could give him one of a bunch of different guys. Diego v Kos 2 might still be a possibility.
I guess it’s really Diego v Kos 3, if you count the fight on the show.
jimbo read the article first before you post.
why not hughes v kos if hughes loses, prove who the better wrestler is.
I dont care! i want to see Mike Swick vs Luke Cummo that would be an awesome fight
Karo vs kos, that would be cool.
Kos will be welter wieght champ in late 2008. He is the most explosive fighter in MMA. In his loss to GSP he took no damage from the Physically larger GSP he will come back stronger than ever.
Fitch and Kos are on a collision course they will eventually have to face each other
[quote comment=”167938″]Kos will be welter wieght champ in late 2008. He is the most explosive fighter in MMA. In his loss to GSP he took no damage from the Physically larger GSP he will come back stronger than ever.[/quote]
LOL How is he gonna be the champ if he can’t beat GSP? I doubt he can even beat Hughes. Hughes and Kos are like mirror images, but Hughes is a lot stronger and more experienced.
[quote comment=”167819″]Fitch and Kos are training partners and friends so I doubt it, even though that would be sick. Maybe Kos vs. Karo.[/quote]
Training partners or not they are both after the belt. It may come down to it at some point. I brought this up weeks ago, they are running out of number 1 contenders. Diego drops down in weight, Hughes GSP Serra(who I can not imagine hang around for long at this weight)karo, kos and fitch. If fitch or kos taste gold or want to taste gold the reality maybe that they may have to fight.
i dont know what everyone was talking about, i thought kos and gsp looked very similar in size. i actually thought kos looked a little bigger, maybe it was just the fro.
what does everyone here think?
thought GSP looked bigger
I would of loved seeing Kos vs Karo, but that wont happen for a while.
Kos was an overated fighter, GSP should have had an imidiate rematch, he hasnt fought anyone before gsp that was in the top ten tier of MMA. Think of the road GSP had to the title.
I hope they get rid of KOS, send him to strike force.
It would be Serra Vs. Kos..
[quote comment=”167879″]I dont care! i want to see Mike Swick vs Luke Cummo that would be an awesome fight[/quote]
That would be a cool fight to watch.
I am excited to see this full interview with Kos. BEcause last time mania did one with Kos it was an awesome read.
I would like to see Thiago Alves vs. Josh Koscheck, that would be an awesome fight to witness.
I would like to see Marcus Davis up there at this point now to
5-0 in his last 5 in the ufc.
[quote comment=”167938″]Kos will be welter wieght champ in late 2008. He is the most explosive fighter in MMA. In his loss to GSP he took no damage from the Physically larger GSP he will come back stronger than ever.[/quote]
Can you tell me what fight you saw, that I might have missed? Because I have never seen Josh explosive, I’ve heard a lot of nonsense but have never seen this exciting and explosive KOS that you talk of?
I just would like NOT to see Kos, don’t get me wrong he is an alright fighter but, but alright does not mean you are going to be champ in 08. It means when your contract is up your not going to be anywhere closer to the big payout.
I think the UFC and KOS will part ways, because of contract disputes. The only reason he is getting press is because the TUF show and the Fact that he is Marketable to Americans.
There’s a whack of welterweights that deserve more opportunity, than we’ve seen Kos get. Examples: Karo, Nick Diaz before he got tossed, Thiago Alves, Fitch and Luigi the list goes on and on.
why did my last statement disapear?
Jesse Canadian, I agree Marcus is among the list of guys that deserve more from the UFC and the people who cover it.
[quote post=”3528″]i dont know what everyone was talking about, i thought kos and gsp looked very similar in size. i actually thought kos looked a little bigger, maybe it was just the fro.
what does everyone here think? [/quote]
GSP is bigger, plain and simple.
if he told dana he’ll fight anyone, maybe that means he’s changed his mind about not wanting to fight fitch, maybe he’d do it now…i doubt it, i’m just thinking out loud…
[quote comment=”168391″]if he told dana he’ll fight anyone, maybe that means he’s changed his mind about not wanting to fight fitch, maybe he’d do it now…i doubt it, i’m just thinking out loud…[/quote]
I would assume that given AKA has three fighters at 170, they would expect at some point their top fighter(s) would face each other. Kos or Fitch should probably change camps.
[quote post=”3528″]I would like to see Thiago Alves vs. Josh Koscheck, that would be an awesome fight to witness. [/quote]
That def would be a nice fight. Alves is one of my favs.
[quote comment=”167819″]Fitch and Kos are training partners and friends so I doubt it, even though that would be sick. Maybe Kos vs. Karo.[/quote]
Kos vs. Karo would definitely solidify the # 3 contender position. I say do it.
how Kos got condtender status is beyond me?
contender*
[quote comment=”168145″]i dont know what everyone was talking about, i thought kos and gsp looked very similar in size. i actually thought kos looked a little bigger, maybe it was just the fro.
what does everyone here think?[/quote]
They’re the exact same height. I can’t quite remember from the fight, but didn’t Kos have a slight reach advantage? I remember thinking GSP should have the reach advantage, but it was either the same or Kos had the edge.
Josh Koscheck is overrated. He hasn’t beaten anyone good, and the fight with Diego shouldn’t count because he wasn’t at 100%. Granted a wins a win, but he doesn’t have an exciting win over anyone important enough for him to be considered in line for a title shot. And theres people thinking he can take it to Matt Hughes?? Yall are crazy. Hughes has 40-something wins with 6 or so losses, has defended a UFC title more than anyone else, and has a TON more experience than Koscheck. He [Koscheck] needs to fight some of the bottom top ten welterweights to establish himself as a factor in the 170 lb division. Alves, Burkman, Davis, Karo, Swick, or even that guy Davis fought at 75 [Paul Taylor]. Point being, Koscheck needs more experience before he can be considered a top UFC welterweight. Experience meaning wins over notable opponents. And Koscheck needs to finishing his fights.
*finish his fights
time to post the interview
my guess is he will fight either marcus davis or jon fitch, but i have a feeling fitch is gonna fight karo next with the winner getting a shot of the gsp vs serra/ hughes winner for the title that’s if karo wins in november which he should.
When is the interview gonna be put on the website?
Just to set this straight with some of you people on here,
JOSH KOSCHECK AND JON FITCH WILL NOT FIGHT.
They are teammates and best friends.
This goes for Mike Swick as well.
People keep saying Marcus Davis, as a guy who lives in Cincinnati, and has seen Marcus so many times, and I am a huge Marcus fan, but I dont think he would be able to beat Koscheck. Because Koscheck is the best pure wrestler in that division. Yes, GSP out wrestled Koscheck, but I still believe that Koscheck is bar none the best wrestler in that division.
I would like to see possibly Dustin Hazelett, a teammate of Marcus Davis, who is a BJJ instructor at Jorge Gurgel’s gym, face Josh Koscheck. Because if Koscheck finds a way to take down Hazelett, I believe that Hazelett will find a way to submit him. Hazelett is no joke, he would be a very tough person for Koscheck to face. People have not really heard nor seen a Dustin Hazelett fight, but the guy promises, and he has exciting fights bar none.
That or give him possibly Rich Clementi? Anthony Johnson? Anthony Torres (who I believe steriod suspension ended up being taken away) or like I said, Thiago Alves if they want to give Koscheck a fight other than Hazelett.
Make your call.
[quote post=”3528″]Yes, GSP out wrestled Koscheck, but I still believe that Koscheck is bar none the best wrestler in that division.[/quote]
haha that makes no sense. GSP just showed that there is at least one person better than Josh.
I don’t get the Kos bandwagon
[quote comment=”168328″][quote comment=”167938″]Kos will be welter wieght champ in late 2008. He is the most explosive fighter in MMA. In his loss to GSP he took no damage from the Physically larger GSP he will come back stronger than ever.[/quote]
Can you tell me what fight you saw, that I might have missed? Because I have never seen Josh explosive, I’ve heard a lot of nonsense but have never seen this exciting and explosive KOS that you talk of?
I just would like NOT to see Kos, don’t get me wrong he is an alright fighter but, but alright does not mean you are going to be champ in 08. It means when your contract is up your not going to be anywhere closer to the big payout.
I think the UFC and KOS will part ways, because of contract disputes. The only reason he is getting press is because the TUF show and the Fact that he is Marketable to Americans.
There’s a whack of welterweights that deserve more opportunity, than we’ve seen Kos get. Examples: Karo, Nick Diaz before he got tossed, Thiago Alves, Fitch and Luigi the list goes on and on.[/quote]
I dont understand why people dislike Koscheck. You can tell that the nerves effected him when he was the co-main event vs GSP. He has more potential than anyone and yes he is the best wrestler in ufc and wresteling is the best foundation to build off of in MMA. With every fight you can see remarkable improvements in his game. He is young hungry and will be champ in the UFC. Ufc will never part ways with Kos.
When Matt Huges lost twice to Hallman people never thought he would comback to be the most dominate champion in the UFC.
I cant wait to see Koscheck fight st Piere again he will smash him.
Koschek right now is like a young Hughes making his way up except that Kos has better striking and possesses knock out power
[quote post=”3528″]Koschek right now is like a young Hughes making his way up except that Kos has better striking and possesses knock out power[/quote]
haha.. yeah.. knockout power KOS = nonexistent
Muhamet,
Do you know what you’re talking about or are you just reading alot of hype and beleiving ti to be true?
Kos has beat no one in the top ten and never deserved to be in the same octogone as GSP.
He beat a guy just like himself, Diego. I’m not even sure they could be champion material in WEC, let alone the UFC.
Karo would school him. I say hold him for the loser of hughs and Serra. That way it gives credability to Serra or hughs a Sack to wrestle. Fitch would kill him friend or not.
I think all these guys who say “thier my friend I cant fight em” are idiots. Think about it this is a sport and a “GAME” its about the $$$ but sportsmanship is alive in MMA and people have to suck it up. After 3rnds give each other a hug if you want. It isnt like your gonna KILL the guy or something. And wouldnt you rather lose to a friend than someone else???
Of course its about the $$$ and making it worth thier while to wanna take food of a friends table. But if your at the top both guys are getting “FED” well so why not enjoy it and swing leather. If they were true friends and cared that much regardless of who wins they would split the $$$ evenly…
The only hole GSP has ever had in his game was how he kept his head up when he sprawled, and his nerves now that he’s learned otherwise he’s going to dominate the WW Division.
And he will always out wrestle, out box, out kick box, out grapple, out heart, and out class KOS!
Look on the bright side muhamed you will be able to see him on cable TV soon in strike force or IFL. or maybe where some of his design’s the next Wal-Mart line.
and my spelling will still suck
[quote comment=”168667″][quote post=”3528″]Yes, GSP out wrestled Koscheck, but I still believe that Koscheck is bar none the best wrestler in that division.[/quote]
haha that makes no sense. GSP just showed that there is at least one person better than Josh.[/quote]
It makes sense, GSP just came in better prepared and wrestlers are not comfrontable on their back, GSP surprised Koscheck and took him down. If it was a wrestling match Koscheck would win 9 out of 10 times.
R-Jo - My gut says Kos will never be champ. But never say never. I have already lost count of the UFC upsets we’ve seen since the end of 2006. It’s insane. There is no certainty in the sport.
If Kos is ever UFC champ, I think it’ll be after 2008. I believe he needs to develop his skills. GSP has been at martial arts since he was a kid. That kind of experience is hard to compete against. But who knows. If he keeps improving the way he has over the past three years, all bets are off.
How long will GSP hold onto the belt, assuming he gets it back? Depends on how badly he wants to hold onto it. I read Carlos Condit comment on defending vs. winning his belt. He said defending his belt was bigger to him than winning it. If he wins it, the real test for GSP will be defending the title.
[quote comment=”168110″][quote comment=”167938″]Kos will be welter wieght champ in late 2008. He is the most explosive fighter in MMA. In his loss to GSP he took no damage from the Physically larger GSP he will come back stronger than ever.[/quote]
LOL How is he gonna be the champ if he can’t beat GSP? I doubt he can even beat Hughes. Hughes and Kos are like mirror images, but Hughes is a lot stronger and more experienced.[/quote]
Except……Kos has hand speed. Call it “Hype” (whatever) Kos showed his worth against Sanchez. He was definately out EVERYTHINGed by GSP, but give him time. The fight game is 49% head, 49% heart and 1% skill. MATT SERRA IS THE CURRENT UFC WETLERWEIGHT CHAMP!!! (WHAT???) Event for event, as a D1 All American wrestler, Kos has proven he has the head and the heart. He’s seen more wars up to this point in his life than 3 other fighters. Stop watching Kung-Fu movies already.
[quote comment=”168514″]Josh Koscheck is overrated. He hasn’t beaten anyone good, and the fight with Diego shouldn’t count because he wasn’t at 100%. Granted a wins a win, but he doesn’t have an exciting win over anyone important enough for him to be considered in line for a title shot. And theres people thinking he can take it to Matt Hughes?? Yall are crazy. Hughes has 40-something wins with 6 or so losses, has defended a UFC title more than anyone else, and has a TON more experience than Koscheck. He [Koscheck] needs to fight some of the bottom top ten welterweights to establish himself as a factor in the 170 lb division. Alves, Burkman, Davis, Karo, Swick, or even that guy Davis fought at 75 [Paul Taylor]. Point being, Koscheck needs more experience before he can be considered a top UFC welterweight. Experience meaning wins over notable opponents. And Koscheck needs to finishing his fights.[/quote]
For reals.
MMACrossfire - OK maybe I’m being harsh. Kos could be champion eventualy.
Since GSP has lost it once, I think he’s figured it out. Think what he must of went through mentaly when he found out the matts where facing each other.
who do you think would of got Serra’s spot? think of the Canadian rating for TUF? (talks of Canadian UFC card in Jan.)
The amount of positive press he loss, $$$, and when gsp was on tuff he acted with clas and sanity.
If GSP can’t hold on to it, thats fine cause he proved he can get to it over and over. Either way comparing Kos to GSP should not even be happening at this point maybe like you say “after 2008″
why do you think the interview is not out yet?
Kos testing the watters maybe?
boost his public appeal? I’ll give him that, He can promote him self and his fights very well his agent doesn’t have to work to hard.
I hope he gets the loser of the Hughes-Serra fight. I love Koschek but i Love pierre even more. I think Pierre is number 1 and Kos number 2 in that division.
[quote comment=”168746″]The only hole GSP has ever had in his game was how he kept his head up when he sprawled, and his nerves now that he’s learned otherwise he’s going to dominate the WW Division.
And he will always out wrestle, out box, out kick box, out grapple, out heart, and out class KOS!
Look on the bright side muhamed you will be able to see him on cable TV soon in strike force or IFL. or maybe where some of his design’s the next Wal-Mart line.[/quote]
Im not saying Kos is a better fighter than GSP today but he will be and he has a hell of lot more heart. When Serra was landing punches from the top position GSP tapped out because he has no heart. When Koschek got caught with Fickets knee and then rear naked choke after dominating him, he never tapped he was choked unconscious and I actually think that’s crazy when your caught in a tight inescapable submission live to fight another day. But that just shows he gives everything he has with each bout. Kos has never been knocked out or stopped by anyone. I guess we will just wait and see
correction hes obviously been stopped but never knocked out.
and koscheck didnt make any excuses after his loss GSP on the other hand made about 101 excuses after losing to serra and the sad part was he made those excuses after he said he had no excuses kinda sounded like Tito a little.
Muhamet,
We will have to see,
But Kos has the I cant look inferior complex, that is why he didn’t tap.
GSP Knows he can run the Gauntlet again, why permenantly injure your self.
I want to see Josh Koscheck vs Marcus Davis
Marcus Davis would be a fighter I see going after the belt in late 2008 or early 2009. The Guy has a slick ground game and has a great standup. Marcus is Championship material.
For those of you who dont know, Koscheck was only 75 percent the night he fought St Pierre I know him personnaly and I know what injuries he fought with that particular evening the big difference between Josh and ither fighters is they would be quick to blame it on the injury, Josh will not come out publically and state what he was going through and will just take the loss and say St Pierre was better that night, but I guarantee barring there are no injuries next time St Pierre will have more problems than he will be able to deal with and the game plan will change, KOS did not expect this guy to wrestle so he trained for a stand up war , he will be ready for wherever he wants to take the fight next time around! !
Let’s see if he is offered the Karo Fight for UFC 78
Kerry,
He wont tell us the real reason, does that make him a liar?
[quote post=”3528″]I would like to see Marcus Davis up there at this point now to
5-0 in his last 5 in the ufc. [/quote]
YES Jesse Canadian MMA, Marcus Davis get no love from anyone (and no, that wasn’t a Rich Clementi shout out). When is the UFC going to match Marcus up with a fighter we have heard of?
[quote post=”3528″]How long will GSP hold onto the belt, assuming he gets it back? Depends on how badly he wants to hold onto it. I read Carlos Condit comment on defending vs. winning his belt. He said defending his belt was bigger to him than winning it. If he wins it, the real test for GSP will be defending the title. [/quote]
Hey, that is the first time I have ever seen GSP and Carlos Condit in the same paragraph. THAT is a fight to see in about 2-3 years! Condit appears to be ready for the UFC, but hopefully they will keep him around in the WEC a bit longer so he can defend the belt several more times and build that all important factor, confidence. He is young and has great skills both standing and on the ground.
[quote post=”3528″]The fight game is 49% head, 49% heart and 1% skill[/quote]
And 1% somehow gets lost in translation…
[quote post=”3528″]why do you think the interview is not out yet?
Kos testing the watters maybe? [/quote]
Probaby because Mania needs to translate the phone conversation into text so we can read it.
[quote comment=”169304″][quote post=”3528″]I would like to see Marcus Davis up there at this point now to
5-0 in his last 5 in the ufc. [/quote]
YES Jesse Canadian MMA, Marcus Davis get no love from anyone (and no, that wasn’t a Rich Clementi shout out). When is the UFC going to match Marcus up with a fighter we have heard of?
[quote post=”3528″]How long will GSP hold onto the belt, assuming he gets it back? Depends on how badly he wants to hold onto it. I read Carlos Condit comment on defending vs. winning his belt. He said defending his belt was bigger to him than winning it. If he wins it, the real test for GSP will be defending the title. [/quote]
Hey, that is the first time I have ever seen GSP and Carlos Condit in the same paragraph. THAT is a fight to see in about 2-3 years! Condit appears to be ready for the UFC, but hopefully they will keep him around in the WEC a bit longer so he can defend the belt several more times and build that all important factor, confidence. He is young and has great skills both standing and on the ground.
[quote post=”3528″]The fight game is 49% head, 49% heart and 1% skill[/quote]
And 1% somehow gets lost in translation…
[quote post=”3528″]why do you think the interview is not out yet?
Kos testing the watters maybe? [/quote]
Probaby because Mania needs to translate the phone conversation into text so we can read it.[/quote]
It will be up hopefully tomorrow. Sunday and today I am slammed. Apologies for the delay.
[quote comment=”168654″]Just to set this straight with some of you people on here,
JOSH KOSCHECK AND JON FITCH WILL NOT FIGHT.
They are teammates and best friends.
This goes for Mike Swick as well.
People keep saying Marcus Davis, as a guy who lives in Cincinnati, and has seen Marcus so many times, and I am a huge Marcus fan, but I dont think he would be able to beat Koscheck. Because Koscheck is the best pure wrestler in that division. Yes, GSP out wrestled Koscheck, but I still believe that Koscheck is bar none the best wrestler in that division.
I would like to see possibly Dustin Hazelett, a teammate of Marcus Davis, who is a BJJ instructor at Jorge Gurgel’s gym, face Josh Koscheck. Because if Koscheck finds a way to take down Hazelett, I believe that Hazelett will find a way to submit him. Hazelett is no joke, he would be a very tough person for Koscheck to face. People have not really heard nor seen a Dustin Hazelett fight, but the guy promises, and he has exciting fights bar none.
That or give him possibly Rich Clementi? Anthony Johnson? Anthony Torres (who I believe steriod suspension ended up being taken away) or like I said, Thiago Alves if they want to give Koscheck a fight other than Hazelett.
Make your call.[/quote]
My Call…..
Reality: 3 fighters competing at 170=eventual showdown unless 1 fighter wins the title and the others decide not to compete anymore. Fitch, Kos, and Swick all want UFC gold around their waists. Do the math, friends or not if they want to compete in the top level @ 170, they all will have to deal with the reality of facing each other. FRIENDS OR NOT.
Do I honestly care who the better wrestler is in that Division or all MMA?
NOPE, Nobody has ever took Kos down via single or double leg takedown in the UFC except for who? Oh yeah.
How can you compare Kos’ Fickett fight and GSP vs Serra. Kos didn’t tap from the choke because he was rocked by a huge knee. Kos had no idea what was going on. Let’s see Kos get mounted after an array of huge shots and continue to eat bombs, then we can measure his heart.
Well said jordan!
[quote comment=”168991″]For those of you who dont know, Koscheck was only 75 percent the night he fought St Pierre I know him personnaly and I know what injuries he fought with that particular evening the big difference between Josh and ither fighters is they would be quick to blame it on the injury, Josh will not come out publically and state what he was going through and will just take the loss and say St Pierre was better that night, but I guarantee barring there are no injuries next time St Pierre will have more problems than he will be able to deal with and the game plan will change, KOS did not expect this guy to wrestle so he trained for a stand up war , he will be ready for wherever he wants to take the fight next time around! ![/quote]
Why would Kos need to publicly admit an injury when he has personal friends like yourself to share the information. Good friend you are. ” Out wrestle me?” If Kos wants to succeed in this sport at the top level, (Since you know him personally be a friend and share this information with him) He needs to drop his ego and respect whoever he fights in any aspect.
Kos is a one trick pony still. His “improved” standup still looks terrible to me. His backup plan is to takedown then GnP, which is being anticipated by most of his opponents now. He is not very good at BJJ. Thats my 2 cents. I’d LOVE to see him take Karo and see where he stand around that level of competition but as far as the elite in WW such as Hughes, Serra, GSP, he is out of luck.
[quote comment=”168145″]i dont know what everyone was talking about, i thought kos and gsp looked very similar in size. i actually thought kos looked a little bigger, maybe it was just the fro.
what does everyone here think?[/quote]
I felt the same way. When Rogan said he couldn’t help but notice how big GSP looked compared to Kos, I was a little surprised. They’re very comparable in size. It’s not like seeing Sherk and Florian standing toe to toe.
But I think GSP is probably a little bigger walking around because he looks much tighter at 170, while I suspect Kos cuts less since he looks softer. Still, St. Pierre has said that he doesn’t cut much and people think he’s bigger than he is, so maybe these two guys are about the same size. It hardly matters though, because both these guys are probably strong as oxes.
Wrestlers have good tendon strength and the soft tissue is very deceptive. Even if Kos is slightly smaller, he could easily be stronger than GSP. Then again, St. Pierre, with the jits background, has had time to build up his tendon strength too so who the fuck knows?
[quote post=”3528″]Kos is a one trick pony still. His “improved” standup still looks terrible to me. His backup plan is to takedown then GnP, which is being anticipated by most of his opponents now. He is not very good at BJJ. Thats my 2 cents. I’d LOVE to see him take Karo and see where he stand around that level of competition but as far as the elite in WW such as Hughes, Serra, GSP, he is out of luck. [/quote]
I agree with all of that, cept that part about Matt Serra being a part of the Welterweight elite. Yeah he’s the champion and mad props to him when he ko’d GSP, but at the same time, he just doesn’t strike me as an elite, seeing the rest of his career. I mean, he was on the freakin comeback tour TUF after having decision after decision in all his fights. But everything else is good.
If Gsp gets the belt back, he wont have it long, Nothing against his talent but that nerves, he beats himself
[quote comment=”169324″][quote comment=”168654″]Just to set this straight with some of you people on here,
JOSH KOSCHECK AND JON FITCH WILL NOT FIGHT.
They are teammates and best friends.
This goes for Mike Swick as well.
People keep saying Marcus Davis, as a guy who lives in Cincinnati, and has seen Marcus so many times, and I am a huge Marcus fan, but I dont think he would be able to beat Koscheck. Because Koscheck is the best pure wrestler in that division. Yes, GSP out wrestled Koscheck, but I still believe that Koscheck is bar none the best wrestler in that division.
I would like to see possibly Dustin Hazelett, a teammate of Marcus Davis, who is a BJJ instructor at Jorge Gurgel’s gym, face Josh Koscheck. Because if Koscheck finds a way to take down Hazelett, I believe that Hazelett will find a way to submit him. Hazelett is no joke, he would be a very tough person for Koscheck to face. People have not really heard nor seen a Dustin Hazelett fight, but the guy promises, and he has exciting fights bar none.
That or give him possibly Rich Clementi? Anthony Johnson? Anthony Torres (who I believe steriod suspension ended up being taken away) or like I said, Thiago Alves if they want to give Koscheck a fight other than Hazelett.
Make your call.[/quote]
My Call…..
Reality: 3 fighters competing at 170=eventual showdown unless 1 fighter wins the title and the others decide not to compete anymore. Fitch, Kos, and Swick all want UFC gold around their waists. Do the math, friends or not if they want to compete in the top level @ 170, they all will have to deal with the reality of facing each other. FRIENDS OR NOT.
Do I honestly care who the better wrestler is in that Division or all MMA?
NOPE, Nobody has ever took Kos down via single or double leg takedown in the UFC except for who? Oh yeah.
How can you compare Kos’ Fickett fight and GSP vs Serra. Kos didn’t tap from the choke because he was rocked by a huge knee. Kos had no idea what was going on. Let’s see Kos get mounted after an array of huge shots and continue to eat bombs, then we can measure his heart.[/quote]
I believe Josh Koscheck said, that even if Fitch was a champion he would not find him, sorry I dont have the link right now, but that is what I believe he said.
I agree,it is more than bound to happen, but I think they would be relucant to fight one another.
I think the last paragraph you mentioned, was not aimed towards me but if it was, I never mentioned Fickett/Koscheck at all.
The reason why, I say Koscheck is the best pure wrestler in that division is because, if he takes you down, he will lay and pray on you, because he is freakishly strong while holding you down, and thats why he has a huge advantage over alot of the welterweights, that has been the style that wins fights for him.
Koscheck to me is a very boring fighter, and its hard to watch his fights, even though I am a fan of him, I find it hard to get excited for a Josh Koscheck fight, because he really is a one dimeinsonal fighter that relys only on his wrestling, and Georges exposed that.
So what, GSP took down Koscheck? It was bound to happen one day. GSP surprised Koscheck and everybody else when he took him down, so what Koscheck got beat at his own game? Like I said before, wrestlers do not like being on their backs, it is like a fish out of water, I have stated that times a plenty.
I think a Koscheck/Liaudin fight should be the match they make for UFC 80 in England.
[quote comment=”169254″]Kerry,
He wont tell us the real reason, does that make him a liar?[/quote]
not at all, I would say if you were to ask he will tell, but he is not going to go out and publically say what his injuries were and let everyone call him a asshole, that is making up excuses, so if you want to know than ask but dont expect him to open up that can of worms, it is much easier in this day and age to just not go there and come back healthy and kick some ass, then deal with the repercussions of everyone sayinh he made up an excuse!
Where’s the rest of the interview already????
looks like kos will fight parisyan since lambard cant get his visa to come over to the states
I think gsp and kos are similar in size its just that gsp has very broad shoulders, much wider than kos giving him the illusion of size. He might be a little more muscular than kos though I think there close. Kos May have been a better wrestler than gsp at one time but for the life of me I couldn’t see it when they fought. Kos had great difficulty taking gsp down and gsp got kos down very easily, I don’t know. MAYBE on a wrestling mat with wrestling rules kos would win but kos isn’t the same wrestler now than he was back then, I wouldn’t be surprised if gsp out wrestled him 9 out of 10 times right now. What you were in the past means shit if your not practicing at the same level constantly. Even if kos had a slight edge with his wrestling this is MMA and gsp is a master at going for the transition from stand up to the take down, so he would nullify his wrestling anyway. Kos, fitch and karo are the number one contenders after gsp so they need to find out who’s best, if they want the gold they’ll HAVE to fight each over. The top guy of these three should get a title shot after gsp gets his.
does anybody know the chuck vs wandi will happen because i have a interview with chuck trainer saying its going down in december
http://www.mmanews.com/ufc/Liddell-Trainer-Says-Silva-Fight-Is-On-For-December.html
so…. does anybody know when we will be able to read this con