Izzy is just overrated striker

[ragreynolds]

I don't even think this was a case of Sean being a better striker than Izzy, but rather that he's simply a bad match-up for him. It's something that gets said a lot, but it's true: styles make fights. In some ways, this Izzy vs Strickland fight reminded me of Anderson vs Chael 1. Chael was literally outstriking Anderson and even knocked him down, but no one would ever claim that Chael was a better striker than Anderson. It was simply that his style was hard for Anderson to deal with. That constant forward pressure, giving him no room to strike. Guys like Anderson and Izzy struggle with that sort of in your face pressure. Izzy is a counter striker, and that works great when a guy is throwing lots of wild shots at you. But when someone is simply walking you down and throwing sharp, crisp jabs and straights, you're going to have a rough time managing to counter the way that you're used to.

 

[storeybuckle]

Yes, Izzy is overrated, all his opponents were bums, MW division is shallow crap… ye we get it. Very original take, happens only ten times after any UFC event where the champion gets defeated.

You nailed it! Very typical of Sherdog! That’s why I take most things with a grain of salt that is said here. SMH!

 

[Gotosleepho]

Everyone who loses is overrated.

 

[mirko>anyone]

Adesanya did not really have an off-day, Strickland was just better.

Constant pressure, pushing Adesanya back against the cage, walking him down, it was GLORIOUS.

oh....one more thing.... is Dreyga2000 a.k.a. Dreyga-Whatever-His-Name-Has-Changed-to-This-Week alive??? Is he on suicide watch after his beloved weirdo Adesanya got the f'ing brakes beaten off him? F that guy.

He was pretty silent after Aljo lost too.


Wonder why???

 

[storeybuckle]

Adesanya did not really have an off-day, Strickland was just better.

Constant pressure, pushing Adesanya back against the cage, walking him down, it was GLORIOUS.

oh....one more thing.... is Dreyga2000 a.k.a. Dreyga-Whatever-His-Name-Has-Changed-to-This-Week alive??? Is he on suicide watch after his beloved weirdo Adesanya got the f'ing brakes beaten off him? F that guy.

I have to agree, and this wasn’t just one punch that changed the fight. It was a domination

 

[J Danger]

This thread is going as expected

 

[Bowel-forged Stool]

Forrest Griffin would have whooped dat ass at 205

 

[MileHigher]

There are levels to striking in MMA and Sean showed that he is at a much higher level than Izzy offensively & defensively

Sean proberly expected Izzy to be at a high level of striking when they fought but it seemed that Sean was at a level that far exceeded Izzy

You don’t know what you’re talking about. Watch all of Izzy’s fights and watch all of Sean’s then tell me who’s a much better striker. That fight alone isn’t proof of Sean Strickland being a much better striker. That is recency bias at its finest.

I was rooting for Sean, and he looked great. Calling him a better striker is absurd though, much less calling him a much better striker. That’s simply ludicrous.

 

[MileHigher]

Well obviously when you are that big of a favorite then lose like that you were overrated. Not sure how this is even debatable. He was massively overrated it’s just a now proven fact.

You clearly don’t know how betting odds work or what the word fact means.

 

[Deleted member 110072]

He's good but his game has always been quite narrow and has become narrower, the kind of fighter who looks amazing when things go to plan and less so when they don't.

 

[HoelHomero]

Only 80 fights? That's an average kickboxing record.

Says the keyboard warrior, join date 2022
<Lmaoo>

 

[Poatan Power]

trying not to participate in recency bias, however

comparing his striking to prime Anderson is overrating it. But he's still got very elite kickboxing for MMA.

Anderson might have had better BJJ once it hit the ground but Izzy has far superior takedown defense compared to Anderson

Huh? Anderson had a 70% TDD to Izzy's 77%. That included Andy giving up 5/7 in his final stent as a UFC fighter against DC and Weidman in his late 30's. They're both pretty master class.

 

[WolverReem]

Says the keyboard warrior, join date 2022
<Lmaoo>

Izzy was a failed kickboxer. Never a top striker until he fought MMA guys who can't strike

 

[kumitechamp]

You clearly don’t know how betting odds work or what the word fact means.

Sure I do. I know almost no one gave Sean Strickland a chance before the fight. They makes those lines to entice betting. They had to give such huge payout to get people to bet their money on Strickland. This happened because Izzy was in fact overrated.

 

[HoelHomero]

Izzy was a failed kickboxer. Never a top striker until he fought MMA guys who can't strike

80 pro kickboxing fights is no joke, go get em tiger. Easy for you to say they're noth
That was the point of my statement, Izzy's quality as a fighter was never for discussion for me, are you perhaps a bit challenged?

 

[MileHigher]

Sure I do. I know almost no one gave Sean Strickland a chance before the fight. They makes those lines to entice betting. They had to give such huge payout to get people to bet their money on Strickland. This happened because Izzy was in fact overrated.

You said massively overrated. And you said that it’s a fact. Neither are true.

My opinion (not fact), is that Israel at most was slightly overrated. More than that though Sean Strickland has been underrated.

Styles make fights people. An upset doesn’t necessarily mean anyone sucks or was overrated. Shit happens. These reactionary takes that _________ was never any good are idiotic. This is still the guy who finished Alex Pierera not too long ago, the guy who is arguably the scariest man in the sport.

 

[WolverReem]

80 pro kickboxing fights is no joke, go get em tiger. Easy for you to say they're noth
That was the point of my statement, Izzy's quality as a fighter was never for discussion for me, are you perhaps a bit challenged?

Kickboxing is about who you fight, not how much. He lost every major title fight he had in kickboxing. Lost to Simon Marcus in Glory, Alex Pereira, and Wilnis. This myth Izzy was some top elite kickboxer is only something MMA fans think. 80 kickboxing fights isn't that much compared to some fighters who have hundreds and major titles

 

[kumitechamp]

You said massively overrated. And you said that it’s a fact. Neither are true.

My opinion (not fact), is that Israel at most was slightly overrated. More than that though Sean Strickland has been underrated.

Styles make fights people. An upset doesn’t necessarily mean anyone sucks or was overrated. Shit happens. These reactionary takes that _________ was never any good are idiotic. This is still the guy who finished Alex Pierera not too long ago, the guy who is arguably the scariest man in the sport.

I’m not saying he was never any good. I’m saying he was never a vastly superior striker to Sean Strickland and he was a matter of fact rated as such by almost everyone.

 

[djason1988]

Yes, the world kickboxing champ with a 75-5 record is an "overrated" striker. Nah fam, strickland was just a shit match up for him. Izzy's style relies heavily on feints and misdirection, and it just didn't work on sean.

 

[Sincere Guy]

I normally hate the "he was overrated" talk after a fighter loses but I think this one is actually true. We aren't dealing with a one-off loss.

- Had an incredibly competitive fight with Gastelum where he got hurt
- Had an incredibly close fight with Yoel and could have lost a decision
- Got completely shut down by Jan and lost a decision
- Had a very close rematch with Whittaker and skated by with a decision
- Had an uneventful fight with Cannonier
- Got Ko'ed by Pererira
- Almost got TKO'ed by Sean and lost a decision

Yet despite all of that, the UFC hyped him up as the greatest MW of all time and better than Anderson Silva. I just never saw that. Anderson wasn't losing or having close fights during his return. You'd get the occasional boring match from Anderson but you could tell he was bored and still played with his food. Meanwhile, Izzy was having close fights and even losing. They aren't even in the same category.

Izzy is very good. Even great. He's not however a GOAT and the pattern was there that he was beatable and extremely overrated by the promotion and fans.