Imagining an MMA Hall of Fame: Borderline Candidates, Part 1

---

Alistair Overeem
“The Demolition Man” It’s Showtime (1999, 2000); Rings (1999-2000, 2000, 2001); 2 Hot 2 Handle (2000, 2001-02, 2002, 2002, 2003, 2004); M-1 Global (2002); Pride Fighting Championships (2002, 2002, 2003, 2004-06, 2006, 2006-07); Inoki Genome Federation (2003); World Cage Fighting Championships (2006); Strikeforce (2006, 2007, 2010, 2011); K-1 (2007, 2009, 2010); Dream (2008, 2009); Glory World Series (2008); Ultimate Fighting Championship (2011-Current)
***
CASE FOR: After ballooning from light heavyweight to heavyweight, Overeem became one of the sport’s most dominant figures. He won the Strikeforce and Dream heavyweight titles and the 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix in kickboxing at the same time, to boot. Overeem’s destruction of Brock Lesnar sent him back to pro wrestling, and he also bested the likes of Fabricio Werdum, Vitor Belfort, Igor Vovchanchyn and Sergei Kharitonov over the years. CASE AGAINST: Performance-enhancing drug accusations encircled Overeem after he transformed his body, and a failed drug test in 2012 seemingly confirmed it. He also tended to whither when opponents fought back hard, losing 10 fights via stoppage over the years. VERDICT: Should he go in? No.