What’s the story?
Fighting out of The Netherlands, Gegard Mousasi is a well-rounded fighter with an impressive record of 41-6-2 (W-L-D) in MMA. He began training in Judo at the age of 8 years and started his MMA career in 2003.
With good striking and takedown defence he has successfully fought in Strikeforce, PRIDE, K-1, Deep and Dream before making his way to UFC. He was Dream middleweight and light heavyweight champion and former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, and now he is gunning for the middleweight title shot in UFC this year.
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Gegard Mousasi has many notable victories in his career and is coming off a four-match winning streak, avenging his loss by defeating Uriah Hall via a first round TKO in his last fight. Mousasi prefers to finish his fights either by knockout, TKO or submission and only has 6 wins by decision.
Also read: UFC News: Gegard Mousasi willing to fight Nick Diaz before getting middleweight title shot
He has also scratched the surface of pro kickboxing (8-0) and amateur boxing (12-1). Mousasi is the first and only person to hold two Dream titles. He is among the most dangerous fighters in his weight class and there is little doubt that he is enjoying the prime of his career.
The heart of the matter
In a recent interview with Daily Star, Mousasi talked about his goal of 2017:
I’m coming for my belt. I am in my prime, that’s all I can say. If they beat me, they beat the best Mousasi there is
He further continued:
I feel that if I fight smart, they cannot even touch me. They are fighting a guy who is experienced, who is smart and I’ve got the total package to beat everybody. All I am saying is I’m coming for the belt and it’s going to be mine in 2017.
The middleweight division is very tough and competitive. Mousasi believes that by the end of this year, the middleweight championship belt will be proudly around his waist and he certainly has recent performances to back his claim.
What’s next?
The interesting thing about the middleweight division is that it has lots of big names and many of them are in the running for a title shot.
With Yoel Romero knocking out Chris Weidman and becoming the #1 contender for the title, the fight between him and the champion Michael Bisping is going to shape the future of this division.
Sportskeeda’s Take
Looking at Gegard Mousasi’s career and his well-balanced fighting style, we certainly believe that he deserves a title fight in 2017.
He is in good shape and is determined to be the champion by the end of this year. But we don’t think that he is going to get the chance right away. He will have to continue his good form and win a couple more fights.
He is currently ranked #5 in the division and a decisive victory against any of the top four contenders will certainly put him ahead in the pecking order. No matter when this fight takes place, we would be eagerly waiting for it. 2017 very well could be Gegard Mousasi’s year.
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