Chad Griggs is fast becoming a cult favourite among Strikeforce fans and the no-nonsense heavyweight looks to make it 3-0 in the promotion in Dallas as he faces Valentijn Overeem. Griggs won the hearts of the fans when he hammered an exhausted Bobby Lashley on his debut for the promotion before landing a stunning TKO of Gian Villante in February to put himself on standby to enter the heavyweight tournament if needed. It doesn’t look as if Griggs will get that opportunity but the slugger from Arizona will be bringing his infamous mutton-chops to the cage this weekend hoping to further raise his stock by taking out the brother of the champion. Valentijn Overeem may not have had as successful a career as his brother and training partner Alistair, but ‘The Python’ was also handed a qualifying bout to put himself on standby to enter the tournament, facing fellow kickboxer Ray Sefo in February. Overeem needed just under two minutes to figure out Sefo, taking him down and forcing a tap with a tame-looking neck crank. The experienced veteran holds career victories over the likes of UFC legend Randy Couture and by taking out Griggs on the weekend Overeem will surely be the go-to guy if a tournament semi-finalist suffers an injury.
The Verdict: ‘The other Overeem’ may not enjoy the same profile as his brother, but Valentijn remains a dangerous striker with a decent grasp of applying submissions….but not of defending them. ‘The Python’ is a far more refined striker than Griggs but the latter will be looking to turn this into a brawl not a kickboxing contest. ‘The Grave-Digger’ comes out full throttle against fellow stand-up artists and this fight should be no different as Griggs gets in Overeem’s grill from the opening bell and tries to bully his way to a stoppage. Griggs, (T)KO, 1st round.
By Steve Davies
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