Valentijn Overeem vs. Chad Griggs
Valentijn Overeem (29-25)
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 239 pounds
Wins: 11 knockouts, 17 submissions, 1 decision
Losses: 9 knockouts, 15 submissions, 1 decision
Chad Griggs (10-1)
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 229 pounds
Wins: 9 knockouts, 1 submission, 3 decisions
Losses: 0 knockouts, 1 submission, 0 decisions
Fight Information:
The older brother of the Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, Valentijn Overeem is riding a three fight win streak, including a victory over K-1 legend Ray Sefo in his Strikeforce debut in February.
He had lost six of his previous eight fights going back to 2004, but appears to have reinvigorated his career along with his younger brother.
His opponent in this fight will be up-and-coming Strikeforce heavyweight Chad “Grave Digger” Griggs who has surprised experts by winning back-to-back fights as an underdog in Strikeforce.
He made his debut against former WWE superstar Bobby Lashley as a +550 underdog, but crushed him and moved on to defeat Gian Villante in his second fight for the promotion.
Fight Prediction:
In a fight which could determine an alternate for the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament, look for Chad Griggs to continue to surprise as he gives a beating to the much more experienced Overeem.
Griggs and his Elvis-like sideburns will need to keep the fight on the feet to be at an advantage, but he has shown the ability to do that in the past.
Chad Griggs by knockout, Round 2