On September 5th at the UFC Fight Night in Connecticut, Heavyweights Alistair Overeem and Ben Rothwell will square off in a bout featuring two once promising fighters who are trying to get their careers back on track.
Rothwell has been out of action since his August 2013 appearance and win over Brandon Vera. Rothwell was suspended for elevated testosterone use after that fight, and he is an average 3-3 in the UFC. Since 2008, Rothwell has neither won nor lost two fights in a row, alternating wins and losses for the last 6 years. At 32, Rothwell could still put together a run of productive fights, and he is a very big heavyweight, who has to cut weight to get down to the 265 lbs barrier.
Overeem is coming off a February win over Frank Mir where he won a UD. He was active throughout, but seemed to tire as the fight went on, and after his PED suspension, he has appeared to lack the explosive KO power that we saw him flash against Brock Lesnar.
Against Rothwell, Overeem is going to get his chance to show if he has any starch left. Rothwell has been known for taking a lot of punishment in his fights, and Overeem is going to get the opportunity to strike first in this one and work to take Rothwell out. If Overeem cannot knock out Big Ben or do significant damage in the first round, Rothwell may have a chance.
Overeem needs to get himself back in the title picture, or at least back into a positive career trajectory, and he needs a big win over the hard headed, hard to finish Rothwell in this fight.
Rothwell is going to have to show something he has failed to show in his previous ‘big’ bouts throughout his career. Rothwell has had trouble finding that second gear at times. He can settle into a match where he is taking punishment and be content to finish and coast his way to the end of the fight. Against Overeem, he should not allow a slow methodical pace where Overeem settles into striker mode. Rothwell would be better served in making this a sloppy, ugly match in the trenches and on the ground.
Also, someone should take an over-under on whether Rothwell pulls out before the fight, for any reason. He could pull out of the fight if he is not focused 100 percent.
