Mark Hunt file photo: Sherdog.com
One guy hasn’t won an MMA fight in more than four years and the other guy’s best win is over Jonathan Ivey. That’s the best way to sum up the Hunt vs. McCorkle fight, but there is hope for a suitable scrap. Mainly because these two formerly overweight heavyweights have trimmed down to make the 265-pound limit and put in serious training camps.
However, unlike Hunt, McCorkle has never fought world-class competition. To make his chances even slimmer, he hasn’t shown much upside on the regional scene. The drop in weight will undoubtedly help along his athleticism, but his wrestling and striking won’t get any better. While Hunt is no dynamo either, everyone knows this man can hit unbelievably hard.
McCorkle doesn’t have the wrestling to avoid a slugfest. Even a sloppy, out of shape Hunt has way too much for him in exchanges. A moderately in-shape version of Hunt puts him to sleep in short order. Either way, McCorkle is outmatched, and his hopes rest entirely on hitting a takedown -- something he had trouble doing against less than stellar competition.
It’s no secret that this fight is basically a contractual obligation to Hunt that the UFC is fulfilling. Wisely, they’re giving him a sub-UFC caliber opponent to see whether or not he has anything left and how willing he is to commit himself to fighting again. Hunt will hold up his end by starching McCorkle in violent fashion.