But then came the lack of action. A time period where Fedor fought an excellent, but much lighter fighter in Matt Lindland and a giant striker in Hong Man Choi with little in the line of ground skills. So what do we believe in, the 27-1 overall MMA record or the recent lack of action?
Hard to say. Still, if we see the guy that was fighting in PRIDE not too long ago show up to take on Sylvia this is what to expect. source: mmafighting
First, one of the strongest guys pound for pound in the game. Second, one of the most well- rounded fighters in the heavyweight division. Along with this, Fedor possesses excellent takedowns and takedown defense to go along with above average technical striking skills, power on his feet, and submission skills (from the guard and otherwise).He’s also a ground and pound nightmare. And the heart, toughness, cardio, calm demeanor, and ability to put together a fight plan and execute it have always been there as well.
Whereas Fedor has never been a very big heavyweight, Tim Sylvia stands 6-foot-8 inches. So he’s very big, and along with that size possesses ridiculous power on his feet. But if that was the entire story on him he never would’ve amassed a 24-4 record with 16 (T)KO’s while fighting some of the best that the heavyweight division has to offer.
In the end, Sylvia has very good technical striking skills to go along with tremendous heart, toughness, and cardio. He also has very strong takedown defense, a skill that will be of use in this fight. In terms of ground skills, he’s improved, even if his submission defense would seem to be a relative weakness.
But that only comes to play if you get him to the ground.
Prediction: How do you make a prediction regarding a fighter that you really haven’t seen fight in a couple of years? Answer: You make a decision as to whether you’re going to analyze him as we saw him in his prime or guess that he’s lost skills since then. In this case, let’s go with the Fedor Emelianenko we’ve always been impressed with; the guy that always seems to come up with the right game plan and executes it to perfection.
That Fedor Emelianenko would take some punishment on his feet against Sylvia. But eventually, despite the big man’s strong takedown defense and excellent size, would probably get the fight to the ground. There he might wear Sylvia out.
But this one could go Sylvia’s way via knockout, even if we do see the best Fedor we’ve ever seen. Still . . .
Fedor Emelianenko wins via decision in a very close fight.