Alistair Overeem Interested in Boxing

Alistair Overeem is one of the top MMA heavyweights in the world and currently fighting for Strikeforce. He has an upcoming bout with Big Foot Silva in the semifinals of the Heavyweight Grand Prix, and he may only have one fight left with the promotion before his contract comes to an end. After that, Overeem has to decide what to do next.

In a recent interview with Boxing News in Poland, Overeem said he’s considering boxing next. “UFC or boxing,” Overeem replied when asked about his plans after Strikeforce. He went on to explain what he’s thinking.

“I’m always looking for a challenge,” Overeem said. “That came about in becoming a K-1 champion, something nobody ever did before. It would be cool to go to boxing and beat the main guy there. I know if you give me good preparation, good sparring partners — which, I can arrange, I can fix that — with my background already in kickboxing, my K-1 background, I’m sure I can break some bones.”

Given Reem’s versatility, I wouldn’t doubt his ability to succeed in boxing. However, if he thinks he’d be able to step into a ring and immediately beat Vitali Klitschko, I think he’s dreaming. The guy can fight, but that would be too much to ask for in his first bout.

Here’s a video of the interview (they start talking boxing around the 4:15 mark):

Two other interesting points from the interview were Overeem saying he thinks Antonio Silva will do both stand up and ground fighting against him. He says he doesn’t think a fight with Fedor is interesting anymore since Emelianenko has lost twice in a row. He also believes the match between Dan Henderson and Fedor is even.

Glove touch to MMA Frenzy for the story