- Joined
- Jun 21, 2013
- Messages
- 4,652
- Reaction score
- 1,226
There are very very VERY few fighters that fight in their 40's as they did in their prime age. Kongo should definitely be recognized more for his longevity.
- Gave Vitaly Minakov a tough fight in 2014. Kongo was 38 years old, an age where his decline should have began at Heavyweight. Unlike DC, Kongo has been fighting for almost 20 years (since 2001). Definitely has some miles on him.
- While the legends were getting fights with their elderly counterparts, Kongo was taking on the young dogs of the Bellator Heavyweight division (Sakai, Spartan, Tim and Tony Johnson, etc) and beat them all decisively.
- Guys like Frank Mir, Chuck Liddell, and Bigfoot Silva are probably on TRT. However, they all look like shells of their former selves. Goes to show that TRT is not some magic pill for aging fighters unless their body responds well to steroids (Vitor Belfort). Kongo seems to have evolved his fight game while the others haven't and looks like he hasn't missed a step since his UFC days.
- Rampage was chosen over Kongo due to their connection. However, Kongo had a bigger claim to a tournament spot. Current Rampage has no business being in the Bellator title picture, sorry. Kongo wasn't even given an alternate spot. It went to tournament loser, Roy Nelson, for some reason. I have heard from the grapevine that Bellator doesn't particularly like Kongo or his fighting style and its very obvious. He fought his way tooth and nail back to the top.
Dude is CTE-proof and his current run is extremely underrated. His age and politics clearly against him and he's still Bellator's best heavyweight.
- Gave Vitaly Minakov a tough fight in 2014. Kongo was 38 years old, an age where his decline should have began at Heavyweight. Unlike DC, Kongo has been fighting for almost 20 years (since 2001). Definitely has some miles on him.
- While the legends were getting fights with their elderly counterparts, Kongo was taking on the young dogs of the Bellator Heavyweight division (Sakai, Spartan, Tim and Tony Johnson, etc) and beat them all decisively.
- Guys like Frank Mir, Chuck Liddell, and Bigfoot Silva are probably on TRT. However, they all look like shells of their former selves. Goes to show that TRT is not some magic pill for aging fighters unless their body responds well to steroids (Vitor Belfort). Kongo seems to have evolved his fight game while the others haven't and looks like he hasn't missed a step since his UFC days.
- Rampage was chosen over Kongo due to their connection. However, Kongo had a bigger claim to a tournament spot. Current Rampage has no business being in the Bellator title picture, sorry. Kongo wasn't even given an alternate spot. It went to tournament loser, Roy Nelson, for some reason. I have heard from the grapevine that Bellator doesn't particularly like Kongo or his fighting style and its very obvious. He fought his way tooth and nail back to the top.
Dude is CTE-proof and his current run is extremely underrated. His age and politics clearly against him and he's still Bellator's best heavyweight.
Last edited: