In the second part of BloodyElbow.com‘s interview with Alistair Overeem, the UFC heavyweight discussed various topics such as heavyweight champs Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum, and rooting for Conor McGregor even if he’s bordering on ‘too much’ and should be the underdog against Jose Aldo.
If you missed the first part where Overeem talks about the ‘very bad’ move to Blackzilians, along with intentionally losing weight, check it out here.
Anton Tabuena: Are you still continuing your ‘The Reem’ documentary?
Alistair Overeem: Yes. Definitely. The next episode will probably air around two months from now. We’ve deliberately set up a bit of a break, just to reset a little bit and see what happens. A lot of people seem to have missed that documentary and I get questions about it daily.
I think it’s very good. I feel now there is a bit of momentum and it gets more interesting. That is the deal I had with the team, we would do it, but it needs to be interesting at all times. Let’s not just do it to do it. I feel now is a good time to start again.
Anton: Cain Velasquez, he’s been criticized for being injured a lot. Do you think he is doing something wrong?
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Alistair: To be honest, I have no idea what he is doing. I do know at that gym, AKA, they train very hard so maybe it’s overtraining. It can also be just bad luck. Accidents can happen at any time. I’m just very happy, *knocks on wood* that it hasn’t happened to me, and I’ve had my fair share of luck too. That stuff happens, and it’s not in his best interest because he’s now coming off so long of a layoff, and he’s fighting Werdum who is in a winning mode and is in the flow. I can see Werdum catching Cain. I see Werdum winning that fight, because Werdum, he’s clever. He’s training and doing his thing, and he’s in shape.
Anton: Yeah, I was really surprised when I saw him knock out Mark Hunt.
Alistair: Mark Hunt is a very strong tough guy. Actually, Mark Hunt is the strongest opponent I’ve ever faced. I’ve never felt anyone that strong in my life. So for him to do that to Mark Hunt, that’s an achievement.
Anton: Have you been told about the Reebok deal since it was announced?
Alistair: No, I have staff that takes care of the paperwork, so I just get briefed by my staff. It’s coming to effect in July, that I know, but rather than that, I don’t know. I’ve just been focusing on training and my daughter.
Anton: Do you think it could be better for you?
Alistair: I’ve not been briefed on it, but if I go back to the UFC, some things that they push through with are good, some things are not so good. But overall, and I tend to take two steps back to look at the whole picture. They’ve managed to create the UFC into a global brand and a global sport, and that is something beautiful. If some sponsors are not happening, we’re still traveling the world, fighting all over the place. So they’re doing something right and they’re doing something wrong. It’s always going to be like that. That’s life. Go back to the life thing, ups and downs.
Anton: Is it true that you’re bringing in Sergei Kharitonov to train with soon?
Alistair: Yup. I’m organizing training camp in Thailand. I like Thailand, and like I said, I love coming to Asia with the whole vibe, food, temperature, and climate.
Anton: Who do you think will win, Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather?
Alistair: Pacquiao! I’m going to tell you why. It’s because I like his whole behavior more than Floyd Mayweather’s behavior with money, gold, and no respect. I’ve met Pacquiao once, and he was very nice, very humble.
Anton: Do you think Ronda Rousey will ever fight Cris Cyborg?
Alistair: I think that fight will come… eventually. I don’t know when, but I think Ronda Rousey will win.
Anton: Jose Aldo vs. Conor McGregor?
Alistair: Well in that fight I kinda like Conor, even though he’s a little bit… on the edge of ‘too much’. And I also like going for the underdog, and that’s why (I’m rooting) for Conor McGregor.
Anton: I’m kinda surprised that Aldo is a dominant champion and yet a lot of people have it at 50-50.
Alistair: Well that’s because he talks. He’s a barking dog and you would say ‘ooh that must be dangerous!’ but maybe he bites, maybe he does not. Still, he’s going into that fight as an underdog. Aldo has won all of those years, but still, Conor McGregor is getting into his mind. If he keeps doing that, and I guess he will, then it can be 50-50 when he’s not fighting with his brain when he gets emotional.
And Brazilians tend to have that weakness, they get emotional. You can easily get them upset and get them out of their comfort zone. They’re clever too and very gifted athletes but they have that emotional thing, which we Europeans also have a little bit of.
Follow me on twitter — @antontabuena
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