Stefan Struve: I am the man to hand Stipe Miocic his first defeat
Posted on September 18, 2012, 12:10 PM by Mike DrahotaKaryn Bryant of MMA H.E.A.T. interviews towering UFC Heavyweight Stefan Struve in anticipation of his UFC on Fuel TV 5 bout with Stipe Miocic. Miocic is undefeated heading into the September 29th bout from Birmingham, England. Sporting an impressive 28-5 record at a very young age, Struve is no doubt one of the 265 lb. division's top prospects. Struve is coming off a submission win over Lavar Johnson, and also took out Dave Herman earlier this year. Struve states his intentions to finish the main event bout very quickly,although it is scheduled for five rounds. Struve touched on his losses with humility, dissecting his mistakes in defeats to Roy Nelson and Junior dos Santos. He appears quite confident in his BJJ skills as a huge Heavyweight, and also maintains an advantage in the reach department. The video also shows some of his training routine from Dynamix Martial Arts in West Los Angeles, California. Struve closed by stating his intentions to one day rematch dos Santos, and also had respect for Cain Velasquez and Daniel Cormier. Thanks go to MMA H.E.A.T. for the in-depth interview of the rising star.
Comments
he will get ko'd in the first (karyn bryant curse)
If Struve can get it down and attempt some subs could get interesting
I don't see that happening. Miocic is a much better wrestler. It's only going to the ground if he shoots.
Struve pulled guard and started attacking with subs in his last fight, he might go for it again
Yeah...against Lavar Johnson, who is possibly the most one dimensional fighter at 265. I mean, the guy got completely outgrappled by Pat Barry. Stipe Miocic is high level wrestler lightyears ahead of Johnson in terms of grappling.
Struve has to get to the clinch to pull guard, and I don't think he wants to mess with that against Miocic, because has to come inside and give up his reach advantage to do so. If he does...well see below for what I think will happen.
i really believe stipe could be champ if he keeps this streak going. that dude is tough i was really impressed in the rosario fight
I don't see how not finishing Joey Beltran, beating Phil de Fries. Also del Rosario was out for a long time, no training after a car accident. Again. That don't impress me much. Isn't it a bit early to say this kid is in line to be a champ. Like said in the vid: Sean McCorkle, Chase Gormley and Christian Morecraf all had a perfect record before facing Struve. Why? Because the opponents they faced weren't all that.
Also it's funny Struve is 6 years younger. Not saying I don't see Stipe becoming a force. But with the opponents he faced it's too early too tell. Same for Struve. He fought JDS when he was a kid and he made stupid mistakes against Nelson and Travis Browne. He seems to be learning slowly, he's still just 24. But we won't know if he's force untill he faces a top 5 fighter like Werdum, JDS, Overeem, Cain, Mir and so on. People say he has a weak chin but he was poor at defending it and using his reach. Dude can actually take a lot of damage. But we'll see.
Hate this fight because I like both fighters. >.
rosario looked good as hell in that fight. he didnt look rusty at all . stipe was simply way tougher. both fighter had a ton of heart but stipe was capable of taking those kicks to the body. those would of dropped lesnar. anyhow both of these men can become champs. stipe is as tough as anyone in the division/ struve is as skilled he just made many early mistakes. stipe can beat any of the fighters u listed as struves past opponents. really if u judge stipes performances and not his past opponents the guy has an iron will. cain and jds better keep an eye out
Great matchmaking, should be an awesome fight. Really looking forward to this one.
If he could just master his reach and keep people at a distance he would be sick. He should just throw constant front kicks ala schilt to keep guys at bay since his ground game is good enough to not really have to worry about the takedown.
I think Struve is going to end up sprawled out on the floor like the NBA logo.
Technically, Miocic might be a little behind Struve with his striking, but he makes up for that by being much more powerful and explosive. He's just a much better athlete. He's also a much better wrestler, so he will be able to dictate where the fight takes place. I think Stipe will eventually land a big shot and end the fight.
Yup. What he said... With one caveat. If Struve ends up on his back with miocic in his guard it isn't a foregone conclusion. Those limbs are crazy long.
Struve has this one in my eyes. Miocic slows down vastly in his fights and his only chance to win this fight is by early knockout, and with struves proven rockhard chin, (possible the best in mma along with leben), there is no way miocic can KO him. Struve by UD