It's a damn shame Yoel is 41 years of age

[Alanf7]

Such a shame that we have to see old man Yoel against prime Luke and not a prime Yoel. Hope Yoel pulls it off. Fighting at this level at in your forties is extremely hard to do, and Yoel has been doing an amzing job while doing it.

It's a damn shame he didn't start mma ealier and we haven't seen him compete in MMA at his physical prime, that would have been one of the scariest fighters ever.

 

[Frankie Baby!]

He was knocking everyone silly previous to the Whittaker fight, it's not like he's been lookin like BJ Penn. He's fine, even though I think Rockhold is gonna win.

 

[jeff7b9]

He seems to be in his prime. He just went toe to toe with the champ in a close fight.

He didn't even start competing at the elite level of MMA until his late 30s and hasn't looked his age yet.

Shit, I would imagine most 25 year olds would kill to be in his shape.

 

[VVarhead]

He seems to be in his prime. He just went toe to toe with the champ in a close fight.

A 41-year-old is surely not in his prime, lmfao.

 

[Flokk]

A 41-year-old is surely not in his prime, lmfao.

He is on Sherdog!

 

[Dozer .]

Fuck it! Let him KO Rocksalt and become a champion!

 

[Sansnom]

Yoel is slow and is going to gas as usual.

Whittaker Vs Rockhold would have been much more exciting.

 

[riitzni]

The juice is worth the squeeze.

Yoel might be old but his tainted supplements never age. We heard the same shit with Anderson 'defying Father Time', that's usually because they're using. This isn't a MMA thing, this is a professional athlete thing.

 

[Alanf7]

He seems to be in his prime. He just went toe to toe with the champ in a close fight.

He didn't even start competing at the elite level of MMA until his late 30s and hasn't looked his age yet.

Shit, I would imagine most 25 year olds would kill to be in his shape.

Nah he's defo not in his prime, nonetheless he's still elite. It's just a shame we have never seen him compete whene he was at his physical prime, that would have been even more of a monster.

 

[jeff7b9]

A 41-year-old is surely not in his prime, lmfao.

Age is but a number.

Yoel didn't hit the MMA scene in his early 20s and doesn't have the mileage typical of a 41 year old fighter. If he has a bit of help from modern science, paired with his recent experience at the upper echelon of MMA and it is very possible he is the best fighter he has ever been right now, or damn close.

 

[Thepaintbucket]

The UFC wasted some of Yoel's best years that is what's sad.

 

[Huligani]

Yoel is slow

The fuck? He is the most explosive athlete in the middlweight division BY FAR.

 

[VVarhead]

Age is but a number.
Yoel didn't hit the MMA scene in his early 20s and doesn't have the mileage typical of a 41 year old fighter. If he has a bit of help from modern science, paired with his recent experience at the upper echelon of MMA and it is very possible he is the best fighter he has ever been right now, or damn close.

Mileage has nothing to do with a person's physical prime. You're using the wrong word, I get what you're saying, but he's not in his physical prime at 41.

Mileage of course affects your performance, but it doesn't affect the time that your physical prime lasts. You might look worse after taking sustained beating, but that doesn't mean you're not in your prime.

 

[jeff7b9]

You guys are very hung up on numbers. Most of the middleweight top 5 is in their mid-late 30s, same with HW and very close at LHW.

You think Yoel's Prime was when he was 25 -29 even though he had never had a pro MMA fight and who knows if he even knew how to throw a proper punch?

His first fight was when he was 32 and he didn't get to test himself against top talent until the last few years.

Physical Prime and fighting Prime are not the same thing.

 

[Rampage_Jackson]

A 41-year-old is surely not in his prime, lmfao.

Couture was. Vitor peaked late. Some guys peak late, especially in MMA. I also wonder how natty Yoel is.

 

[TheRassler]

wish Vitor and Yoel were young killers again...

 

[VVarhead]

Couture was. Vitor peaked late. Some guys peak late, especially in MMA. I also wonder how natty Yoel is.

Guys, you're definitely not grasping the actual scientific meaning of "being in your prime". Just because your skills peak that doesn't mean that your actual body peaks.
You're not in your prime at 41 years of age. Period.

 

[Byron Pechorin]

Has any athlete of any physically intensive sport been in their prime at age 41?

 

[Fatback96]

It's gonna look a lot like Rockhold vs Jacare.

 

[VVarhead]

As long as they don't have joint injuries or brain damage, everything else can be addressed to optimium condition through modern training methods. So I don't see why not?

Physical prime has nothing to do with actual developed skills or how trained or well-built you are. It basically concerns the timeframe in which your body is most effective overall, but that doesn't mean you're most effective during your prime.