I've read a lot about the advanced rounds being where Cain would have his best advantage, dually argued as cardio being a Cain strength and dos Santos' apparently waning lethality after the first round.
While I'm not questioning the great cardio shown by Cain, I do have to wonder about a fighter who's never been in a late fight. Cain has two fights that required him to exercise his gas tank, both one-sided smashings of Big Ben and Cheik Kongo. Otherwise, his frenetic pace has overwhelmed most opponents before the first break, and Cain has walked off barely breaking a sweat.
Meanwhile, Junior has a similar finishing record, most dusted in the 1st, a few 2nd round finishes and one sided decisions. The last time he has seemed somewhat tired was after nuking Nelson's head for two and a half rounds. Since then, despite a spirited 3rd round stamp on Carwin and a cruising win against Mir where Junior became noticeably more dangerous as the fight continued, he is still haunted by a few tired breathes against the ever-game, but dominated Roy. I would argue that while JdS is the most dangerous 1st round heavyweight, his opponents that do pass into the second show the effects of his cardio sapping body shots than they ever affect him.
My question to you, is that if this fight does enter the 4th round tied 2-2, do you believe that Cain's cardio advantage will outweigh the punishment that Junior typically brings?
I think that this fight ends up as a early 2nd round KO for Junior, after hurting him in the first. Unlike many people it seems, I think that unless Cain wins big in the first round, that his cardio won't come into play as much into the later rounds as his fans and team are hoping, even in a close fight. The lead up shows an in shape Junior, and he has always been an astute body puncher, who limits the amount of engagements per round through distance and counter punching. I believe that unless Cain is chasing Junior, he will have a hard time approaching, which I detailed in the following thread if you want to check it out:
http://www.sherdog.net/forums/f2/problems-cain-can-push-jds-cardio-win-argument-2340979/
While I'm not questioning the great cardio shown by Cain, I do have to wonder about a fighter who's never been in a late fight. Cain has two fights that required him to exercise his gas tank, both one-sided smashings of Big Ben and Cheik Kongo. Otherwise, his frenetic pace has overwhelmed most opponents before the first break, and Cain has walked off barely breaking a sweat.
Meanwhile, Junior has a similar finishing record, most dusted in the 1st, a few 2nd round finishes and one sided decisions. The last time he has seemed somewhat tired was after nuking Nelson's head for two and a half rounds. Since then, despite a spirited 3rd round stamp on Carwin and a cruising win against Mir where Junior became noticeably more dangerous as the fight continued, he is still haunted by a few tired breathes against the ever-game, but dominated Roy. I would argue that while JdS is the most dangerous 1st round heavyweight, his opponents that do pass into the second show the effects of his cardio sapping body shots than they ever affect him.
My question to you, is that if this fight does enter the 4th round tied 2-2, do you believe that Cain's cardio advantage will outweigh the punishment that Junior typically brings?
I think that this fight ends up as a early 2nd round KO for Junior, after hurting him in the first. Unlike many people it seems, I think that unless Cain wins big in the first round, that his cardio won't come into play as much into the later rounds as his fans and team are hoping, even in a close fight. The lead up shows an in shape Junior, and he has always been an astute body puncher, who limits the amount of engagements per round through distance and counter punching. I believe that unless Cain is chasing Junior, he will have a hard time approaching, which I detailed in the following thread if you want to check it out:
http://www.sherdog.net/forums/f2/problems-cain-can-push-jds-cardio-win-argument-2340979/
