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1.How do you think, how peak Aleksander Karelin and peak Teddy Riner would do in MMA HW division without special training?Could each of them became the champion? Who would do better and who likely win in MMA fight between them?
2. Same question, but WITH training (if they go to MMA from childhood)?
3. Who in history of all sports potentially could ouwrestle Karelin in openweight? and Riner? Maybe Shaq, some sumo wrestlers?

No judo player has really wowed MMA, have they? Aside from Rousey, who might be a special case of many things aligning. A lot of Olympic stars at HW have done sort of poorly. Nastula, Yoshida.

I feel like a wrestling shot is immediately more effective in MMA. Plus, a huge amount of judo techniques are compromised without a gi.

Judo hips are better for learning punching, perhaps.

Karelin was surely on more banned substances than this judoka.

cbr, only one I can think of who made any real impact was Lombard... Was an Olympian and is a good fighter, but not the best in the world at either.

Lombard was very good but never reached the top of the UFC mountain (he's had some success there). Rousey was at the top of the sport for a while. Karo Parisyan was very good for a while but underachieved. Its mostly been Japanese and other asian fighters that have come out of judo. They were all great fighters in the Japanese market but only Dong Hyun Kim seems to have had any consistent success in the the West (the UFC in particular). Even then he's been good enough to beat many people but not good enough to beat the top guys.

Fedor had a Judo background.

Karelin was a complete monster, the best ever in Greco-Roman, but it's always hard to say how someone will transition to MMA.

Dong Hyun Kim might actually be the best example

Akiyama and he. Their striking is beautiful. Nutso divisions, there is no shame in not being able to reach the pinnacle.

Lombard is a physical specimen, it's hard to know what to credit to judo. His hips are surely intelligent as heck, I don't know if he has the finesse of Kim or Sexy.

Sentimental favorite is Nakamura. Not any fighter ever has faced more of a murderer's row over the course of their career than Nakamura. Look at his first 20 or so fights, through Pride & the UFC! Dude is 190 pounds of chub.

Jasen777 wrote:Fedor had a Judo background.

Karelin was a complete monster, the best ever in Greco-Roman, but it's always hard to say how someone will transition to MMA.

I don't know about that. Fedor is a Sambo artist. I don't know if he also studied judo or if they lump him in as a judo artist because sambo was influenced by judo.