After this weekend’s UFC 146 card in Las Vegas, there will be a lot of shifting in the heavyweight division rankings. A champion will either defend or lose his title and a new number one contender will be declared. As for the other fights on the card, a win could be huge in propelling the victor up the ladder in the division.
A loss however will do the exact opposite. No one knows this better than Roy Nelson. Nelson has been mediocre as of late, compiling a 1-3 record in his last four fights with his only win coming from a TKO win over Mirko “Cro Cop” in a fight that saw Nelson get battered midway through only to use his size to hold “Cro Cop” down and finish the fight.
His losses, however have gained him the most notoriety as he was blasted by the current champion, Junior dos Santos, number one contender, Frank Mir, and Fabricio Werdum. Nelson was beaten up badly in this fights showing little in the way of a coherent game plan or offense in general.
Now he fights Dave Herman in a very exciting match-up, as both men are known to be brawlers. Nelson has gone through two opponent changes leading up to this fight and will hopefully come in to the Octagon ready to fight back.
If he loses, however, I believe that the UFC will have no choice to cut him. Even if the fight wins all three bonus awards for the night by some impossible odds, Nelson hasn’t proven himself to be at the highest level of this sport when it comes to fighting the most talented in the division. Sure, he has only fought contenders, but how many times do we need to see him get cut, beat down, battered before the UFC decides that he isn’t their responsibility anymore?
Next, his physique. At first it was funny and yes, he was winning his first few fights in the Octagon so his physique, though comical, could be let go and forgotten about as he seems to carry himself like a great fight anyway. That is until the losses started piling up.
He has shown a noticeable weight drop since, but with such tremendous resources in the MMA world to get fighters in the best shape possible, why wouldn’t Nelson lose that weight and drop to light-heavyweight instead of battling it out with guys naturally twice your size and losing? If he doesn’t want to drop then why not take a page out of Frank Mir’s book and power lift?
Of course, Nelson would have to work extensively on losing any and all excess weight to make this method effective but again, resources. Lose the weight, do some squats, and come in a bulky heavyweight with a tremendous chin, great power, and a slick ground game. That sounds like a contender to me. Not someone who makes a living getting beat up with pigtails in his hair and a rotund midsection around his waist.
Nelson needs this win Saturday as much as he needs to show the UFC brass that his physique is changing and he’s taking that aspect of the game seriously. If not, Roy may have to take his act elsewhere before he learns any lessons.
Original Story:
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May 27, 2012
