Doggy Bag: Rumor Edition

I saw a poll recently on Sherdog.com that asked which Strikeforce fighter would do the best against fighters from the UFC. I was thrilled to see my favorite fighter K.J. Noons on the list, but was shocked to see he came in second to last place. People always talk about how great Nick Diaz is and how he should be in the UFC, but he got scorched by Noons, and will get his a-- handed to him again when they rematch in October. Why do people sleep on Noons' hands? Is it because he had a freak loss to Crazy Horse [Charles Bennett]? I'm not saying the guy could beat Frankie Edgar or B.J. Penn, but I think he's the most dangerous fighter in Strikeforce and is obviously more of a threat than Nick Diaz, who had almost five times as many votes on your poll.
-- Noonsfan1983

Greg Savage, Fight Week producer and radio host: I have to agree with you on one thing right off the bat, I think K.J. Noons is a pretty darn good fighter when he is fighting at 155 pounds, but I think he may have fallen victim to peoples’ view on his takedown defense and ground game. He can undoubtedly throw hands with anyone in the lightweight division, but I am among those who feel he would have all kinds of trouble with big-time wrestlers like Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard, as well as former champion B.J. Penn and up-and-comers like Evan Dunham.

That is not a swipe at Noons as a fighter; he is an exciting guy to watch, but he is still a bit one-dimensional. A man like Fedor Emelianenko or Alistair Overeem would definitely be major additions to any company’s heavyweight division and Gilbert Melendez would be the lightweight who would do the best should he transition to the big show, at least in my opinion.

As for Nick Diaz -- whom I’d pay to watch fight just about anyone -- we have a slate of fights from his UFC days to look back upon, and unless he has found a way to keep his fights standing against the same wrestlers, I wouldn’t expect much to change should he make his way back to the Octagon.

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