Barnett vs Kharitonov Preview; Which Would Do Better in the UFC?

Many people gave up on the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix once former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem withdrew due to injuries, and was released from the promotion soon after.

A lot of fans assumed he would run through the competition, and take over the UFC. 90 percent of people forgot about Antonio Silva, Josh Barnett, and the last man to defeat him (via KO) Sergei Kharitonov. 

Sergei Kharitonov vs. Josh Barnett is actually one of the biggest fights, that has occurred in the heavyweight division, ever. This truly has the potential to be fight of the year.

These are two seasoned veterans who have arguably more potential than any other fighters not signed by the UFC, and both could even run the heavyweight division in the UFC.

Josh Barnett defeated Randy Couture years ago to win the UFC heavyweight championship at UFC 36. He was stripped of the title soon after due to failing his drug test, and has not competed in the UFC ever since.

Since his time in the UFC, he has compiled a record of 17-4, defeating the likes of Semmy Schilt, Aleksander Emelianenko, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mark Hunt, along with many others.

Barnett has tons of talent, and maybe the most talented fighter in the heavyweight division, but the fact that athletic commissions would not license him has really hurt his ranking in the division, due to having to face fighters of a lesser caliber.

This fight with Kharitonov, with a victory, would solidify him with a top 5 ranking in the division, and would make him arguably 2-3 fights away from returning to the UFC (maybe fewer). 

Sergei Kharitonov is the best fighter in the world that the majority of fans had never heard of before his fight with Andrei Arlovski. On a poll prediction, over 70 percent of people actually picked Arlovski in that fight, and that 70 percent were very surprised when Kharitonov showed that he has some of the best hands in the heavyweight division.

Kharitonov is 18-4, and 17 of his 18 wins have come in the very first round. He has defeated the likes of Ninja Rua, Pedro Rizzo, Semmy Schilt, Alistair Overeem and Fabricio Werdum.

He has defeated many big names but has not received very much recognition because not many fans have seen very much of him. Since his fight with Arlovski, he has competed in a few boxing matches, as well as a kick boxing bout where he defeated Mighty Mo by KO. 

The betting lines have Josh Barnett as the favorite, but the margin is not very large. Who truly has the advantage in this fight? Let's take an in-depth look and see.

Stand Up

In the stand up department, this fight will actually be closer than many may think. This is MMA, not boxing or kick boxing. 

Barnett, is the type of fighter that likes to press his opponent against the cage, land some punches and take the fight to the ground, which is where most of his fights are finished. 

Kharitonov is a boxer, but he specializes in sambo. He has very exceptional hands but does not really throw many knees or kicks and also likes to press his opponents into the cage. He does not take the fight to the ground in many cases, but if he sees a good opening, then he very well may.

Barnett actually holds a two-inch reach advantage in this fight. When it comes to stand up, Kharitonov has mainly struggled against opponents with a longer reach, but in those cases the opponent also has very good stand up. 

In this fight, when it is toe to toe, that is where Kharitonov will shine. If Barnett pushes him to the fence, he can land some smart shots to set up the takedown, but if Sergei can prevent the takedown then Barnett could be in tons of trouble. 

The biggest downfall for Barnett in his stand up is the fact that he is a "stiff" striker. He doesn't possess very good head movement, and while he does have a good jab, he is not hard to hit, due to him always keeping his right hand low.

He does throw some kicks, but his style is just very predictable, and while he is easy to hit, he is also easy to make bleed. Fighting a guy like Kharitonov, you do not want to make any mistakes on the feet. 

Kharitonov has great hands, but he is also easy to hit. He focuses on finishing his opponent, and while a lot of the time he gets the job done, he also gets caught, like we have seen when he competed in kick boxing.

He is not a very good multi-tasker on the feet, which against Barnett could be bad because while Barnett doesn't have the greatest form in the world, he does have a lot of power, which we saw in his fight with Pedro Rizzo. 

Overall, both men are good strikers, but have totally different approaches on the feet. Barnett is the overall stronger fighter, but Kharitonov has much heavier hands. If the fight is pressed into the cage, Barnett could do damage, but odds are nothing serious.

It is pretty obvious that Kharitonov has the clear advantage in this department, but in MMA, it only takes one punch to end a fight, so you cannot count Barnett out in this department.

Advantage: Sergei Kharitonov 

Ground Game

Josh Barnett is known for his ground game. He is a submission wrestling specialist (catch wrestling), and is a BJJ black belt and has never properly trained in the art, but was granted the black belt based on his knowledge, and let's face it, Barnett is an extremely intelligent fighter. 

For Kharitonov, he is given praise as a great boxer, but of his 18 wins, eight of those have come by way of submission. His last loss was by submission to Jeff Monson, but Monson defeats the majority of his competition by submission.

After that fight, Sergei took a year and a half off and appears to be in the best shape of his life. 

Does Sergei have a good enough ground game to prevent being submitted by Barnett?

That is truly a hard question to answer. He went to decision with two of the best grapplers in MMA (Werdum and Big Nog). He always appears comfortable on the ground, but the big problem is that Barnett is stronger than those guys and he is best at chokes.

When an ace on the ground like Barnett locks in a choke, honestly it is virtually impossible to get out of that choke.

Lucky for Kharitonov, he has Jon Olav-Einemo to train with for BJJ, and he has also stated that he would like to enter some freestyle wrestling tournaments to test his wrestling ability in order to prepare for Barnett. 

The one good thing about Kharitonov is the fact that he is indeed remaining active and it appears that he is training the correct way for this fight. Barnett has done some pro-wrestling for organizations in Japan, and is always actively training, so Barnett will be properly ready for this fight as well. 

So, overall while Kharitonov does have a good ground game, Barnett just runs circles around him on the ground. Kharitonov is in no way, shape, or form in any true comparison to Barnett on the ground.

Yes, Kharitonov may have a good enough ground game to prevent submissions, but there is a high chance that Barnett could land a choke pretty fast if he gets Kharitonov to the mat.

Advantage: Josh Barnett

Cardio

Cardio can either win you, or cost you a fight. Many men have lost important fights because they did too much too early, and once they hit the later rounds, they had nothing left in them to get the job done. 

Barnett and Kharitonov are both very different when it comes to this category. Barnett has been to decision, or the later rounds multiple times in his career, while Kharitonov on the other hand in 22 fights has only been out of the first round twice; those were both decisions and he went 1-1 in those fights. 

Barnett has a good gas tank, but he has gassed out in a few fights that were big for his career. He has the tendency to bleed when hit in the nose, it is like a faucet which makes it tough for him to breathe.

Fighting a guy like Kharitonov, if caught in the nose and he starts bleeding, what will happen if this fight goes to the later rounds? That could be bad for Barnett, and also with the pace that Kharitonov sets about mid way into the first round, and busted up Barnett could be in trouble. 

Khartionov is used to facing strikers, or guys that didn't have the greatest grappling credentials, so he was able to display his striking skills and finish fights impressively and fast.

When he faced Werdum and Nogueira, his performance wasn't terrible, but later in the fights, he did indeed slow down, and the first bout with Overeem in Pride, being pinned down the way he was really tired him out, but he also dislocated his shoulder in that bout.

Kharitonov wasn't active from mid-2009 until the end of 2010. His cardio hasn't truly been tested since his return, but he appears to be in the best shape of his life and if he has his cardio in line, then he could truly take the advantage here.

There is one problem, the majority of fighters from the Golden Glory gym (not being disrespectful, just an observation) struggle on their cardios. But, you cannot base a fighter off of the guys/girls in his camp, because no fighter is the same. 

Overall for both men, cardio could become a serious factor. Both have had their struggles in the past. Kharitonov is the guy that finishes you quickly, while Barnett takes you down and has his way with you, by enforcing his ground and pound and eventually locking in a choke or finishing you with punches. 

If this is a very hard fought bout, and it reaches the third which fighter will have the cardio advantage? It truly depends on who has controlled the fight the first two rounds, and if either punches themselves out.

It is hard to give one an advantage, but Barnett does have the later round advantages. This one is a question mark, because no one really knows how good Sergei's cardio really is since his return.

Advantage: Even (maybe slight edge to Barnett)

Mental Toughness

A fighter's mentality is the most important part of his arsenal. In a tournament setting, you are really tested, and when fighting a top-caliber fighter, it really makes it harder. 

Both men have fought top-level competition throughout their careers, and while Barnett has more experience, both seem to have very good mental toughness.

In MMA, some fighters are good at getting in their opponents' heads and some opponents have an unstable mindset and allow their opponent to get into their head and it has ultimately cost them their fight, and this problem has really put a damper on many fighters' careers.

It would in all honesty be hard for either to break the other's will in this fight. With the strength that each possess mentally, they both actually are two of the mentally toughest guys in the sport.

The only time either have had their mindsets messed with and it did effect them, was when both became injured in a fight, and honestly a serious injury will do that to most.

The mentality of both men shouldn't really be tested in this fight, while yes, it may be a tough fight, both should be able to remain calm through out this bout.

Advantage: Even 

Fight Prediction

As discussed earlier, both men have their areas of expertise where each really stick out, and in all actuality, there are really only three possibilities on how this fight could finish. 

This could be a basic Josh Barnett fight. Remember, though, all fights start standing, and sometimes it ends based on who connects first. 

This fight could start partially slow, with both men sizing each other up and Barnett getting an early takedown, and like he did with Rogers, he could either work for position or use early ground and pound.

The problem with using ground and pound early is the fact that he could indeed gas himself out, which would cost him in the later rounds. But, he could keep this typical with his superior wrestling and finish Kharitonov with a choke in the second round and move on to the finals. 

This could also be a flash fight. Kharitonov could do what he does best and that is finish a fight within the first five minutes. He could come out with a fast pace and press Barnett into the cage and score a solid knockout victory.

Barnett is a hard fighter to finish, but he also hasn't faced a good striker like Kharitonov since his Pride days when he faced Mirko Cro Cop and was finished by Cro Cop.

This could indeed turn into a fight like that, and that would not only put Kharitonov into the finals, but it would also boost him high in the top ten rankings.

One thing that people overlook and that this fight could become is a classic chess match. That means that the fighters respect each other so much that each are afraid to make a quick move in fear of being finished by the other. In most cases a fight like this would go to a decision.

Neither fighter really falls into the category that would do this, but in MMA anything can happen, and this is actually a good possibility. 

Making a pick on this fight is truly a tough call, the brain says Barnett, but when you think about his past with strikers, it makes you realize how good of a chance Kharitonov has. 

Prediction: Barnett via Decision (Wouldn't be surprised if Kharitonov scored an early KO/TKO)

What Each Would Provide to the UFC Heavyweight Division

It originally appeared that once the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix was over, we would not see Sergei Kharitonov anymore, working for Zuffa. Now that it appears that Golden Glory and Zuffa are now in agreements, we may indeed see the ultra-talented Russian on the UFC roster in the future. 

No matter who Josh Barnett defeats, or how impressive he may look, he is the last person that anyone would have originally expected to be signed by the UFC, due to his remarks about the UFC President Dana White and also his past with the company.

At the UFC Fighter's Summit, it appeared that all of that was behind both men, and with a good run in the Grand Prix that we may indeed see Josh Barnett back in the UFC in the future. 

What threats do both men offer to the UFC Heavyweight division, and also could either become champion?

Sergei Kharitonov, is a well rounded fighter, that specializes in boxing. He is a lot like Junior Dos Santos in many ways, but is more known for finishing fights earlier. Two best fights for him would indeed be Junior Dos Santos, and also Shane Carwin.

With an improved ground game, Sergei could defeat any heavyweight in the world. He definitely has the potential to be a UFC champion, but in all actuality it is hard to see actually becoming reality. 

Josh Barnett may be the best fighter in the world who is not signed by the UFC. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion (never lost the belt was stripped). He has a who's who list of victories and also has a good chin.

His wrestling may be some of the best in the world, and he could truly dominate any heavyweight with his wrestling, not because of his technique, but mainly because of his size and strength.

He could actually win this tournament and go on to fight someone and win the Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship of the World and then go to the UFC to face the Champion and win.

He is a very talented fighter, and it is nearly impossible to finish him, but if there is a man on a short list of people to finish him, Kharitonov is definitely on that list. 

Styles make fights, and while Kharitonov may indeed defeat Barnett, there is no doubt that Barnett would have the more success of the two if they were put in the UFC. 

Expect a classic war on Saturday night between two legends of the sport, with the winner of this facing the winner of Antonio Silva and Daniel Cormier, for the chance to be crowned the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion!