Javier Mendez "When Cain WAS in his prime"

[Yung Dilla]

I stopped doubting Cain when he came back and wheel kicked Travis Browne after being out for a long time lol. That guy is a beast.

 

[Pancake Sprawl]

Honestly I think Cain has been damaged goods for years now. His body just can't take it, which is sad imo because I think skill wise, he's one of the best to ever do it (at least at HW).

Although I agree about certain things you have mentioned, I don't think I agree entirely about him being a front runner. I think of guys like Vitor and Overeem as front runners, not Cain. But perhaps you are right, but, for example, he was tagged and dropped a few times by Kongo and was still able to recover and implement his gameplan. I know its not the same as the Werdum fight, but, I think it shows that at least Cain doesn't crumble and lose everytime things aren't going his way.

oh i agree. i don't mean a front runner where he crumbles to the first sign of adversity, i just mean a front runner in that he'll always try to outpace you because he has to be leading the dance and he needs to be able to control the pace.

honestly, i think it comes down to inexperience. if Cain got to fight a bunch of guys, i think that he'd have learned people would try to do this to him. because the way Werdum beat him basically came down to Cain trying to keep up with Werdum instead of trying to slow Werdum down. like i said in my last post, he basically broke himself and all Werdum did was survive and jab him a bunch to get reactions out of him so he continually attacked even when he wanted to rest.

all Cain had to do was step back, instead of sit in the pocket or press forward, and let Werdum come to him, giving him time to catch his breath and slow the pace down. we also saw what happens when Werdum chases people when he got KO'd by Stipe. but that just isn't in his repertoire and i think it's because he didn't experience that type of savvy strategizing.

 

[One MMA Fan]

because the way Werdum beat him basically came down to Cain trying to keep up with Werdum instead of trying to slow Werdum down. like i said in my last post, he basically broke himself and all Werdum did was survive and jab him a bunch to get reactions out of him so he continually attacked even when he wanted to rest.

1. That damn altitude is a real factor.. jokes aside what he done with the brain fart to get there 2 weeks before was the worst thing he could do.

2. They screwed up with the gameplan to avoid the ground like it's lava was a mistake.. people like Travis and Volkov managed to stay on the ground with Werdum and not instantly die.. they took away half of his game and good tempo control time by mixing it up and getting that top position for a good 30 seconds at times of need.

3. Even so he still won that first round.. would have loved to see a rematch people have no idea how pissed Cain gets with this losses like the first JDS fight, would have loved to see that rematch and look in awe.. freaking Volkov bested Werdum the man ain't special he is an opportunist that indeed fights smart and at his strong points but that isn't greatness it's opportunity.

4. Front runner ? he has a steel cage on his spine.. you don't get that by quitting. The fact he is back again and again after those injuries/surgeries shows me again whats what.

 

[Pakman]

oh i agree. i don't mean a front runner where he crumbles to the first sign of adversity, i just mean a front runner in that he'll always try to outpace you because he has to be leading the dance and he needs to be able to control the pace.

honestly, i think it comes down to inexperience. if Cain got to fight a bunch of guys, i think that he'd have learned people would try to do this to him. because the way Werdum beat him basically came down to Cain trying to keep up with Werdum instead of trying to slow Werdum down. like i said in my last post, he basically broke himself and all Werdum did was survive and jab him a bunch to get reactions out of him so he continually attacked even when he wanted to rest.

all Cain had to do was step back, instead of sit in the pocket or press forward, and let Werdum come to him, giving him time to catch his breath and slow the pace down. we also saw what happens when Werdum chases people when he got KO'd by Stipe. but that just isn't in his repertoire and i think it's because he didn't experience that type of savvy strategizing.

1. That damn altitude is a real factor.. jokes aside what he done with the brain fart to get there 2 weeks before was the worst thing he could do.

2. They screwed up with the gameplan to avoid the ground like it's lava was a mistake.. people like Travis and Volkov managed to stay on the ground with Werdum and not instantly die.. they took away half his his game and good tempo control time by mixing it up and getting that top position for a good 30 seconds at times of need.

3. Even so he still won that first round.. would have loved to see a rematch people have no idea how pissed Cain gets with this losses like the first JDS fight would have loved to see that rematch and look in awe.. freaking Volkov bested Werdum the man ain't special he is an opportunist that indeed fights smart and at his strong points but that isn't greatest it's opportunity.

4. Front runner ? he has a steel cage on his spine.. you don't get that by quitting. The fact he is back again and again after those injuries/surgeries shows me again whats what.

althought I don't agree entirely with both posts and they're on the opposite ends of the spectrum, these are still two good posts.

 

[samfromhtown]

Hard to rule when from 2013 to 2019 you only have 4 fights, and 2 of those were way back in 2013.

And 4 out of his 5 wins were against the same two fighters

 

[One MMA Fan]

And 4 out of his 5 wins were against the same two fighters

And what would you have done if you were match making in those times. Not have the rubber match with JDS ? who in his right mind would have denied that fight when it was going down.

Before he got another crack at the tittle he had to win one and he murked Big Foot when it meant something when he still had a chin and didn't get brain surgery. Then it was a drought period in HW and the freaking Nr. 1 tittle contender turn out to be Big Foot after he finished Overeem and broke his 11 or 10 fight winning streak and stole his fight basically.

Love me them people that parrot that statistic but have 0 memory of how the landscape looked at the time.

 

[samfromhtown]

And what would you have done if you were match making in those times. Not have the rubber match with JDS ? who in his right mind would have denied that fight when it was going down.

Before he got another crack at the tittle he had to win one and he murked Big Foot when it meant something when he still had a chin and didn't get brain surgery. Then it was a drought period in HW and the freaking Nr. 1 tittle contender turn out to be Big Foot after he finished Overeem and broke his 11 or 10 fight winning streak and stole his fight basically.

Love me them people that parrot that statistic but have 0 memory of how the landscape looked at the time.

 

[One MMA Fan]

Oh got no real answer, cute thanks for playing.

 

[samfromhtown]

Oh got no real answer, cute thanks for playing.

I'm not saying he shouldn't have fought them. It just isn't very impressive. I won't blame someone for injuries, but I don't think he has anywhere near the claim some say he has as far as legacy goes at HW. Lets see if he makes it to fight Francis, if he can beat him, and if he can stay healthy. History suggests that is doubtful.

 

[egg so skeleton]

lol @ all the negativity this guy gets

You know injuries happen in MMA, right? Sometimes they accumulate and ruin a career, like in almost any other sport. Do you accuse Dominick Cruz of training like a caveman? He's always injured too. Or is it because you've seen little snippets of Cain's training regimen that you feel completely justified saying shit like this?

And let's not pretend that if Cain didn't rematch JDS for a third fight, people wouldn't still be calling for it today. They were 1-1 for fuck's sake.

 

[Lawblaw]

UFC champion Francis Ngannou. I remember it like it was yesterday.

he said almost.. almost meaning winning the UFC belt two times and successfully defending it a couple of times

 

[That209]

Cain is old and gone grey. His prime was like 5 or 6 yrs ago already. Its not anything to hide. Dont mean he cant whup that ass.

I know a guy that’s like 33 and has a full head of grey hair. It happens.

 

[HHJ]

I know a guy that’s like 33 and has a full head of grey hair. It happens.

Im 38 and im lucky. No grey hairs on head,and maybe one or two on the beard. No baldness yet either. Alot of my friends not so lucky ehehe.

I know dudes it happened to in 20s

 

[TapMachine]

Athletic prime != fighting prime. Cain may very well be entering his fighting prime right now, we'll just have to wait and see.

Also, Cain via clobbering.

 

[Patman]

Fucking wasted his prime training like a caveman.

This. He thinks injuries are inevitable when you train as hard he does, so he doesn't do anything to correct it. His world-view is just awfully skewed. Plenty of fighters and athletes train like maniacs and rarely get hurt (see Alexander Karelin). You just have to train smart.

 

[SpamuraiSensei]

Nganno was some pretty scary power. Is this the same Cain that beat JDS the second and third time around? If not... well he has a long night ahead of him.
We'll know soon enough.

Cain atm is one of those fighters that "could have been" but we'll never know because the guy couldn't stay healthy.

He also lost to Werdum in his prime.. So he's not really GOAT heavyweight status either way.

 

[dfoster]

I stopostdoubting Cain when he cane back and wheel kicked Travis Browne after being out for a long time lol. That guy is a beast.

His striking was more fluid in that fight than any other

 

[Patman]

and fighting rematches.

This too. He had a 5-fight run of: JDS, Bigfoot, JDS II, Bigfoot II, JDS III.

Though it wasn't really Cain's fault.

• I would've liked to see him fight Carwin, but JDS beat him.
• The first Bigfoot fight was a tune-up (both guys coming off losses), but someone like a young Stipe would have been a funner fight.
• I would've liked to see Cain fight Frank Mir, but JDS also beat him (setting up the rematch).
• I would've liked to see Cain fight Reem, but Reem stupidly lost to Bigfoot (setting up Bigfoot rematch).
• I would've liked to see Cain fight Hunt, but again JDS beat him to set up the rubber match.

I still think would've UD'd or ground and pounded these guys to a finish, but his resume would have looked so much nicer if it was littered with all these other names.

 

[Rikishii]

BUMP

 

[Rikishii]

The point is, Cain doesn't have the chin for francis. And it's pretty likely francis will be the hardest hit he's ever taken. Also likely the francis will land a big shot early as that's his MO.