Alistair Overeem and 10 Fighters Who Could Double as Bodybuilders

March is a slow month for major MMA events. Aside from the early stages of the Bellator tournaments (which have been thrilling so far), and a weekly dose of The Ultimate Fighter Live, there isn’t a lot of action for our fighters to take place in.

Fighters may be less active and in need of some extra cash. That made me think about what other jobs MMA superstars could take if they were hurting for some work.

Last month, my Bleacher Report cohort Nedu Obi presented you with an article on the 10 worst physiques in MMA. Today, I will present to you his antithesis. Here are the Top 10 mixed martial artists who could have had a career in body building.

DISCLAIMER: As it would be unfair to the mixed martial artists who aren't crossover athletes, former bodybuilders and world's strongest men like Mariusz Pudzianowski and Oli Thompson are not eligible for this list.

Alistair Overeem

The dramatic change in physique of Alistair Overeem has led many to believe that The Reem has been using anabolic steroids since his departure from the light-heavyweight division. Despite never failing a drug test, Alistair faces these accusations on a regular basis.

It is a testament to his physique that he must constantly endure those accusations. After all, people don't suspect the little guys to be juicing up without any real evidence.

Thiago Alves

With abs that make the cast of Jersey Shore jealous, Thiago Alves is a monster at 170 pounds. With Mike Dolce in his corner, it has been years since The Pitbull has had any trouble building weight.

Take a look at the guy and ask yourself how much science has to go into his workout in order to make such a drastic cut. Make no mistake about it: Thiago is ripped beyond belief and walks around near 200 pounds.

Drew McFedries

Although he had one of the least consistent UFC tenures in history (he had nine bouts in the Octagon and never won back-to-back performances), middleweight Drew McFedries always showed up in elite physical condition.

Of his 10 professional wins, "The Massacre" finished nine with strikes. With a two-fight streak on the independents, it's possible that we will see the 33-year-old Iowa native again someday.

Rousimar Palhares

At 5'8", middleweight contender Rousimar "Paul Harris" Palhares is one of the shortest fighters in his division. His proficiency with leg locks is rivaled only by his tremendously jacked upper body. Palhares is one of few men in the UFC who might literally be able to rip his opponents in half.

Palhares meets fellow surging middleweight Alan Belcher in May. The winner will likely find himself only one or two bouts away from a title shot.

Hector Lombard

Current Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard is undoubtedly the most impressive physical specimen within that organization. With a professional record of 31-2, he is also the most successful.

With an Olympic history and impressive bases in Judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Lombard has clearly spent the majority of his adult life in the gym. Looks like it has paid off for him in several ways.

Lombard is now a free agent and could potentially sign with the UFC sometime in 2012.

Nate Marquardt

How the mighty have fallen.

Nate Marquardt used to be in title contention in the UFC. After falling to Anderson Silva, he battled against the best in the division trying to earn a rematch. After losing bouts to Thales Leites (albeit controversially), Chael Sonnen and Yushin Okami, his chance at redemption would never come.

Marquardt's hope to score gold in the welterweight division were dashed when his TRT treatments left his levels outside of the acceptable range for a summer 2011 bout with Rick Story. He was immediately fired from the UFC and has yet to secure a fight since.

Marquardt is currently signed to Strikeforce and awaiting an opponent.

Ricardo Arona

While Ricardo Arona may go down in history as a footnote, his jacked physique is rivaled by few.

Arona has victories over Alistair Overeem, Wanderlei Silva and Dan Henderson. He would have secured a victory over Rampage Jackson via triangle choke, however, history would be written when Rampage lifted Arona into the air and made him the most famous powerbomb recipient in the MMA.

Arona reportedly met with Dana White in 2010 regarding a move to the UFC. Nothing ever came to fruition.

Cheick Kongo

French brawler Cheick Kongo has a habit of being a bad boy once the cage doors shut. Between his adventures in fence-grabbing, low-blow-throwing and shorts-grabbing, you can see why he is regarded as one of the dirtiest fighters in the heavyweight division.

Kongo stands tall at 6'4", and has the muscle definition of a statue. A tremendously imposing fighter, Cheick's physique is disturbingly impressive. Not only could Kongo enter bodybuilding competitions, he could win them too.

Phil Baroni

Although he has arguably the best physique of any fighter on this list, dual-division pugilist Phil Baroni has shown us why packing on enormous muscles isn't the best strategy for mixed martial artists. Needing more oxygen to pump through his chiseled frame than his less defined opponents, Phil commonly found himself gassed in the early stages of his fights.

Baroni is a veteran of the UFC, Pride, Strikeforce and EliteXC. With an overall record of 14-14, it's possible that Baroni would have done better if bodybuilding was his career of choice.

Todd Duffee

Maybe Todd Duffee chose the wrong career.

Arriving in the UFC with a record of 5-0, he scored the fastest knockout in history when he put Tim Hague to sleep in only seven seconds.

In his followup bout, Duffee dominated once-beaten Mike Russow for two-and-a-half rounds before falling victim to a one-punch knockout. Ultimately, that would end up being Duffee's final UFC performance to date, as he was released in 2010, reportedly for attitude-related issues.

Duffee has only fought once since his release. In his DREAM debut, he was knockout out by heavyweight Alistair Overeem in only 19 seconds.

That's OK, Todd. You still have your fastest KO record. Oh, wait. Nevermind.