Or this or Belcher is seriously overrated. I mean, Belcher has no TDD, and dont have a excellent guard, he said Yushin would be afraid, but Belcher that will be afraid of throwing leg kicks, because he is afraid of beign takendown. Exclude Tim Boetsch fight that is a lucky comeback. In his last 10 fights he only lost to Anderson and Sonnen, that would easily defeat Belcher. And he also beat Marquardt that is better than Belcher in everything
Okami's striking wasn't looking too good against Buddy Roberts, I think he might have even gotten dropped. While he dominated Roberts once he got it to the mat, if Belcher can avoid the clinch then he will most likely have a significant advantage. This fight will probably be based on whether or not Okami can get Belcher in the clinch. Even if Belcher has improved his TDD and clinchwork, Okami has a very stiffling clinch game and it could be a drawn out boring match. I got Okami by UD but a Belcher win will not surprise me at all, especially if he can avoid the clinch
Okami fan here. From their first fight, you can conclude this: -Okami will fight exactly the same: slow pace, pawing right jab, occasional left hand; powerful clinch and takedowns; rinse and repeat as necessary. Okami might even be more gunshy now since the back-back KO losses. -While Belcher, in my opinion, had more room for growth since then and will be a different fighter. He will still need to avoid the clinch though!
welcome to sherdog TS. i suggest you read for a year or so before posting. fact is, MOST PEOPLE rate Okami exactly where he should be; better than almost everyone in the world, almost but not quite as good as Franklin, and although i hate the "g" word, a perennial gate keeper. and that's exactly what he is. Belcher is coming off a big win and has a chance to make the wave folks have been waiting for since about 2007. and he's going up against the strongest opponent he's ever had. many folks want Belcher to win. that doesn't mean they're disrespecting Okami. EVERYONE knows this is the biggest test he's ever faced. that means they're RESPECTING him, not underrating him. sure there are a few that are over-the-top in their rooting for Belcher / against Okami, and therefore saying stupid shit like "Okami sux". probably the same % of people that think we never landed on the moon and GWB was a great President. we get that obnoxious % of folks in any debate on the webs. your job as an intelligent poster is to not take those small # of people seriously.
Okami did seem more tentative on the feet against Roberts. Obviously it was due to him getting TKO'ed two fights in a row, but you could tell he wasn't as comfortable on the feet and it gave Roberts a chance to land on him a few times. Different matter once he got it down (although Roberts showed off some decent TDD initially). I think Belcher will find success on the feet if Okami still has that doubt in his mind and comes in tentative. I also think it's extremely harsh to call the Boetsch fight a lucky comeback and try to discount it. Yeah Okami dominated those first two rounds, but Tim came out unbroken in the 3rd and put it on him and got the finish, there was nothing lucky about it. It's not like he closed his eyes and started swinging. He got told exactly what was needed by his corner and went out and did it. To try and rubbish that is a bit poor really. I'm in two minds on this fight, really. Currently leaning towards an Okami UD, mind.
good analysis. and i don't know how Belcher closes the gap and turns the fight ugly and not get smothered, either in the clinch or on the ground.
dont really see what belcher can do to win. hes improved but he still doesn't have the power to get Okami off him. and people say Belcher has gotten better but i dont see it. hes basically the same fighter just able to put it all together better. while Okami has gotten significantly better at striking. also Belcher has the tendency to point fight when standing up. he will hurt a guy and than do nothing and reset and "spar" again. Which makes it really advantageous toward a guy like Okami. Someone like Hector would blast Okami and KO him though.
He got tagged a few times, but I don't think he got dropped. To be fair Roberts had a fairly unique striking style that Okami probably wasn't used to. With that said I hope Okami steps his game up for the rematch, he will need it.
Okami is underrated, true. Wouldn't say Belcher has no TDD, in fact his TDD is pretty good actually, not good enough to stop Yushin from taking him down over and over though. Belcher went from underrated to overrated really quick since he started posting. A year ago I only seen a few Belcher fans, now it seems like every other poster is a fan of his. It's disgusting.
Maybe it was a slip or something, maybe Okami went for a takedown and ate a punch so he got momentarily dazed? I could have sworn that Okami got dropped, or very close to it. Maybe not... idk might have to watch the fight again.
I really think the Silva fight took something out of Okami. Very good fighter, but he's got to stay composed and active the whole fight, his game is built on control and consistency. I never did think too much of Palhares, but Belcher did make him look particularly bad. Still think this is Okami's fight to lose, but it isn't that hard to picture him doing it.
I agree Okami is underrated especially around these parts. But you seem to have not watched Belcher's fights.
Belcher has great bjj background. i can't forget that fight when Okami was dominating Tim Boetsch until he got dropped by uppercut. Okami has weak chin i guess. to sum up, Belcher has higher chance to beat Okami in this fight.
