Alistair Overeem is widely regarded as one of the greatest heavyweights to have ever competed in the sport of MMA. 'The Reem' has fought in various promotions the world over, including the UFC where he’s spent about a decade.
Overeem continues pursuing the coveted UFC heavyweight title. On that note, one of the most memorable moments of his career came in his UFC debut.
In his first UFC appearance, The Demolition Man faced none other than former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. Fans can watch Alistair Overeem’s fight with Brock Lesnar in the video embedded below –
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Brock Lesnar had previously missed out on a considerable amount of time from active MMA competition due to his battle with the deadly disease diverticulitis.
After his first bout with diverticulitis, Lesnar managed to return to the octagon and become the first fighter to defeat the then-undefeated KO artist Shane Carwin in a professional MMA fight.
Brock Lesnar unified the UFC heavyweight title with a second-round submission win over Carwin at UFC 116 in July 2010. Lesnar then dropped the title to Cain Velasquez who defeated The Beast via first-round TKO at UFC 121 in October 2010.
Following this, Lesnar fought another battle with diverticulitis. The WWE megastar did, however, choose to return to the UFC. It was in this comeback fight that Lesnar faced Alistair Overeem.
Alistair Overeem made a huge statement in his UFC debut by knocking out Brock Lesnar
The Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem matchup took place at UFC 141 on December 30th, 2011. Overeem started off the fight smart, keeping his base low in order to better defend Lesnar’s ferocious takedowns.
Brock Lesnar did manage to land a crisp jab that cut Alistair Overeem above his right eye. Nevertheless, that didn’t deter Overeem from stalking his foe and tactfully cutting off the octagon with his brilliant footwork.
Furthermore, Alistair Overeem successfully defended a single-leg takedown, which proved to be a pivotal moment in the fight. Having proven that he can defend Lesnar’s takedowns and keep the fight on the feet, Overeem hunted for the finish.
Clinching up and repeatedly targeting Brock Lesnar’s body with knees, Alistair Overeem systematically broke down his opponent. And the end came at the 2:26 minute-mark of round one when Overeem landed a beautiful body kick and followed up with a few ground strikes. The referee waved off the fight and Overeem was declared the victor via first-round TKO.
Presently, Alistair Overeem is on a quest to win the UFC heavyweight title, with an important step in his quest being that he first ought to get past Alexander Volkov.