Josh Barnett vs. Gilbert Yvel
In a fairly inexplicable heavyweight matchup, Top 10 fighter Josh Barnett, after turning down a potential matchup with Fedor Emelianenko, will face Gilbert Yvel, a long-time MMA veteran who is remembered as much for his inexplicable violence against referees as he is for his in-ring performances. Barnett -675 / Yvel +475
Yvel, a striker with years of experience in the fight game, has become largely irrelevant over the last couple of years. While he is a skilled heavyweight with good kickboxing and a lot of punching power, Yvel is completely overmatched by Barnett in every regard. Barnett is the superior striker with superior reach, has a massive weight advantage, is a far better wrestler, and is light years ahead in the submission game. Yvel’s best bet would be to keep the fight standing, where the gap is much closer than on the ground, but lacks the ability to prevent Barnett from taking him down. Even in a standup fight, Barnett has a clear advantage in every regard. There are only two questions surrounding this fight. Firstly, will Barnett submit Yvel or knock him out? Secondly, why did Barnett even take this fight instead of a showdown with Fedor?
Barnett by KO, round 2.
