Better late than never: Rockhold's Problem

[krelianx]

Rockhold went into the fight with Romero with a sound gameplan. Keep the range with the 1-2, throw the inside leg kick, circle and get out when Romero explodes. Wear him out progressively, and increase pressure accordingly.

The problem was that this strategy requires someone with very good lateral and head movement, someone quick and mobile. Like Whitaker. Rockhold is long and lanky, has good range, but his head movement and footwork is not particularly brisk. He is prone to getting hit more than usual.

Romero started to realize he could plow through the 1-2 combos, and started to connect more in round 2. Rockhold stayed in gameplan, hoping Romero would soon blow his wad before he could catch him. But Rockhold just wasn't quick enough. It was the right plan against Romero, just not the best for Rockhold to execute. He didn't make a mistake, he just came up short.

I think Rockhold is going through a similar problem to Weidman's: he forgot that he is a pressure first fighter, who dominates in top control and pushing the pace. He is not a reactive fighter, like Anderson, who can play defensively, since he doesn't take pressure well, and is not the most graceful in movement or reflexes. He needs to take a more aggressive approach, and get himself in the positions he needs to be.

 

[Frode Falch]

He need to ditch the aggressive striker style.

He got the tools to fight like gsp or fitch

 

[AimedWithV]

Rockhold went into the fight with Romero with a sound gameplan. Keep the range with the 1-2, throw the inside leg kick, circle and get out when Romero explodes. Wear him out progressively, and increase pressure accordingly.

The problem was that this strategy requires someone with very good lateral and head movement, someone quick and mobile. Like Whitaker. Rockhold is long and lanky, has good range, but his head movement and footwork is not particularly brisk. He is prone to getting hit more than usual.

Romero started to realize he could plow through the 1-2 combos, and starting to connect more in round 2. Rockhold stayed in gameplan, hoping Romero would soon blow his wad before he could catch him. But Rockhold just wasn't quick enough. It was the right plan against Romero, just not the best for Rockhold to execute. He didn't make a mistake, he just came up short.

I think Rockhold is going through a similar issue that Weidman did: he forgot that he is a pressure first fighter, who dominates in top control and with pressure. He is not a reactive fighter, like Anderson, who can play defensively, since he doesn't take pressure well. He needs to take a more aggressive approach, and get himself in the positions he needs to be.

I partially agree with you.
I think he more required tighter defense than head/legs movement.
His defense is extremely lazy, and has always been.

And he's differently pressure fighter than Weidman: Weidman's takedowns are more consistent and better.
Rockhold puts insane grappling pressure, but he lets the course of the fight decide HOW he gets to the ground. That's because unlike Weidman, he doesn't have wrestler's mentality.

 

[krelianx]

I partially agree with you.
I think he more required tighter defense than head/legs movement.
His defense is extremely lazy, and has always been.

And he's differently pressure fighter than Weidman: Weidman's takedowns are more consistent and better.
Rockhold puts insane grappling pressure, but he lets the course of the fight decide HOW he gets to the ground. That's because unlike Weidman, he doesn't have wrestler's mentality.

Rockhold doesn't pursue the takedown as aggressively, that's right. But this is where he needs to get better, at getting the fight in the range and position he needs. This involves getting more assertive with the takedown pursuit and with pressure in the cage, and not only to use his kickboxing in reach awaiting a reactive chance. His defense won't improve without his changing his reflexes and motor skills, which won't happen. He needs to pursue the takedown.

Unfortunately, he also doesn't like getting hit too much, so making him into a dirtier, grittier fighter might not be easy either...

 

[AimedWithV]

Rockhold doesn't pursue the takedown as aggressively, that's right. But this is where he needs to get better, at getting the fight in the range and position he needs. This involves getting more assertive with the takedown pursuit and with pressure in the cage, and not only to use his kickboxing in reach awaiting a reactive chance. His defense won't improve without his changing his reflexes and motor skills, which won't happen. He needs to pursue the takedown.

Unfortunately, he also doesn't like getting hit too much, so making him into a dirtier, grittier fighter might not be easy either...

Yeah, probably his stay at Hooft's shows that he cannot change that much...

He can use his nasty middle kicks and elbows (he has good ones) to close the distance, clinch, tie up, and with his BJJ level, just throw both him and his opponent to the ground.
He's dangerous from the bottom and has good sweeps.

Might sound funny, but maybe he should take Ronda Rousey's approach

 

[ufc_vs_pride]

Luke Rockhold does what arlovski does, backpedaling to the cage without no defenses. Both of them always gets KO by doing this

 

[krelianx]

Yeah, probably his stay at Hooft's shows that he cannot change that much...

He can use his nasty middle kicks and elbows (he has good ones) to close the distance, clinch, tie up, and with his BJJ level, just throw both him and his opponent to the ground.
He's dangerous from the bottom and has good sweeps.

Might sound funny, but maybe he should take Ronda Rousey's approach

Ha! Well, Rockhold has a very good single, and he has super strong legs, so if the man can time a well executed double he would be hard to stop. I don't see him as a upper body clinch takedown fighter though. Particularly not in a division with guys like Romero and Weidman!

 

[krelianx]

Luke Rockhold does what arlovski does, backpedaling to the cage without no defenses. Both of them always gets KO by doing this

Yet, he's afraid to get anyone in his face. He doesn't like getting hit, so he runs back and ducks and dodges. He would have better luck closing in and making it dirty. But Mr. PrettyFace don't like ugly fights.

 

[TheWobbler]

To slow down yoel you have to hit him or make him work......luke did neither. Hardly none of his shots got through

 

[krelianx]

To slow down yoel you have to hit him or make him work......luke did neither. Hardly none of his shots got through

Hardly any, you mean.

 

[PapaBherd]

I agree, particularly the last part. He's way too complacent with that check hook when it isn't even that good to begin with. It's pretty telegraphed, and he doesn't have the corresponding footwork to maximize its effectiveness.

 

[MCS]

Mostly agree. Luke's not got the tools to be like Anderson. The right counter hook was his downfall as it missed and Yoel landed over the top with his power hand. Worked in SF against Jardine and others, and pressing forward to land a liver kick or a head kick, his best offensive weapons, worked against Costa, but require a heavier output against fighters who won't timidly back down towards the cage.

 

[machina1]

Rockhold went into the fight with Romero with a sound gameplan. Keep the range with the 1-2, throw the inside leg kick, circle and get out when Romero explodes. Wear him out progressively, and increase pressure accordingly.

The problem was that this strategy requires someone with very good lateral and head movement, someone quick and mobile. Like Whitaker. Rockhold is long and lanky, has good range, but his head movement and footwork is not particularly brisk. He is prone to getting hit more than usual.

Romero started to realize he could plow through the 1-2 combos, and started to connect more in round 2. Rockhold stayed in gameplan, hoping Romero would soon blow his wad before he could catch him. But Rockhold just wasn't quick enough. It was the right plan against Romero, just not the best for Rockhold to execute. He didn't make a mistake, he just came up short.

I think Rockhold is going through a similar problem to Weidman's: he forgot that he is a pressure first fighter, who dominates in top control and with pressure. He is not a reactive fighter, like Anderson, who can play defensively, since he doesn't take pressure well, and is not the most graceful in movement or reflexes. He needs to take a more aggressive approach, and get himself in the positions he needs to be.

Well written sir, it is nice to read something here to not be only a troll attempt, but a true analysis of a fight strategy.

 

[OzoneX]

Better Nate than lever.
http://natethesnake.com/

 

[Razor T]

I wouldn't be surprised if Rockholds chin has gone. If Bisping can knock you out as easy as he did then your on a slippery slope.

 

[Kertol]

He needs to get back his killer instinct too

 

[Blonde Mousasi]

Rockhold needs to bring in Jason Parillo and focus on his boxing defense. Especially if he plans to go up to 205. If he thinks MWs hit hard, wait til he feels the heat from someone like Teixeira, Gus, Oezdemir, Manuwa and so on....

 

[Buster C]

It seems like a mental problem— Luke just isn’t realistic about his strengths and weaknesses. He had a reach and kicking advantage over Yoel, but didn’t capitalize. Yoel had the clear speed advantage, so Luke’s best bet for success would’ve been to keep him at kicking range, wear him down with kicks, then get more aggressive with the clinch and power kicks after Yoel slowed down.

I have to believe that Hooft laid out a better strategy, including more varied strikes, than Luke used. For example, that check hook has become Luke’s go-to counter, and he continued to use it against Yoel despite little success. To begin with, it’s risky for a southpaw against a faster southpaw, because it requires you to pivot toward your opponent’s power hand. Luke used it enough so that it was just a matter of time before Yoel guessed right and caught him.

 

[Filthy Phil]

Mostly agree. Luke's not got the tools to be like Anderson. The right counter hook was his downfall as it missed and Yoel landed over the top with his power hand. Worked in SF against Jardine and others, and pressing forward to land a liver kick or a head kick, his best offensive weapons, worked against Costa, but require a heavier output against fighters who won't timidly back down towards the cage.

This. He relies on his check-hook waaay too much. It gets very predictable, especially since he leans back with his chin up while doing it.

 

[smiles mma]

Post fight everyone is acting like Luke's only shot was to out grapple yoel.
Pre fight everyone thought yoel needed to do the grappling