Mirko Cro Cop vs. Jerome LeBanner DREAM 4 fight scheduled

[Warchief]

Pride FC 2006 Open Weight Gran Prix Champion Mirko Cro Cop (23-6-2) will fight decorated K-1 kickboxing champion, Jerome LeBanner (3-1), in a heavyweight bout slated for DREAM 4 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on June 16, according to MMA-ID.

Cro Cop most recently recovered from back-to-back losses inside the Octagon (Gabriel Gonzaga and Cheick Kongo) to take out Tatsuya Mizuno with ease during the inaugural show for DREAM last month. He has vowed to put together at least three consecutive wins and return to the UFC as early as January 2009 to redeem himself.

However, a rematch with Fedor Emelianenko on New Year’s Eve possibly stands in his way, as well as the French-born, LeBanner.

LeBanner has not competed in mixed martial arts since 2006. And although his MMA experience is limited, his kickboxing resume is not. In fact, he’s been in against the best, including Ernesto Hoost, Peter Aerts, Semmy Schilt, Mark Hunt and others.

Cro Cop and LeBanner have actually competed against one another during a K-1 event in 1996, which the Croatian won via unanimous decision. Expect a similar bout: Striking, striking and more striking. It would be a total shock if this match hits the canvas.

DREAM 4 will also feature other fights and the second round of the middleweight grand prix. Stay tuned for more details.

Source

Added By Ramma:

MMA-ID (MMA ID), proud sponsor of Mirko Cro Cop, has learned in the last few hours that Cro Cop will be facing dynamic heavyweight striker Jerome LeBanner. The bout is scheduled to take place at DREAMS 4 on June 16 in Saitama, Tokyo. LeBanner is 3-1-1 in mixed martial arts, last competing in 2006.

Earlier this week we were able to visit Cro Cop at his gym and witness his training. The rumors of Cro Cop's next opponent being a K-1 star have been strong and Cro Cop was definitely preparing for a southpaw! Unfortunately we couldn't get Mirko to talk too much about his upcoming opponent; when we asked specifically about LeBanner our answer was a mystic grin and "Oh, that one would be good, right?". All other questions about potential opponents were met with a "no comment". But that's all it took to get the gears turning and after some phone calls, we can now confirm that Cro Cop/LeBanner is scheduled for DREAMS 4 in what is sure to be full of explosive action!

Source - CROCOP

[fredro32]

Boy they are really getting him ready for that potential showdown with Fedor.

[Gmunit]

good fight IMO, it'll be interesting to see 2 guys who've competed in K-1 (Kickboxing) against each other then in MMA too

anyone know if this has happened before?

[Mirko45]

Hunt/Cro Cop was a K1 rematch

[Warchief]

Originally Posted by fredro32

Boy they are really getting him ready for that potential showdown with Fedor.

Hope Mirko take this match. so may face Fedor again on New Years eve, as he always wish.

[Ramma]

Originally Posted by Gmunit

good fight IMO, it'll be interesting to see 2 guys who've competed in K-1 (Kickboxing) against each other then in MMA too

anyone know if this has happened before?

Hunt vs. Cro Cop in K-1 and then in PRIDE.


I am being honest... I think Jerome is probably going to beat Cro Cop. Simply put, this is a bad match up for him right now. It is like when he had the rematch with Hunt (even though he dominated the whole first 10 minute round). This is going to be a kickboxing match and LeBanner has been focused on that one art for quite some time. Cro Cop's striking skills (both admittedly by him and Remy when they sparred) have suffered due to having to worry about training BJJ, TDD, etc.

This is going to be a tough fight for Mirko, no doubt about it. Unless Mirko decides to not be so damn stubborn and take LeBanner down, winning via submission or strikes.

Using his newly discovered clinch is an option too. For those that don't know, clinches are not legal in K-1.

[The Sundance Kid]

I hope Mirko can pull it out, he should..


But......

[Gmunit]

Originally Posted by Mirko45

Hunt/Cro Cop was a K1 rematch

DUH

don't know how that slipped past me

[mmhmm]

I love CC, but LeBanner?!! Jerome is going to destroy him. People are saying CC ducked Sergei, which is comical. Sergei would be a WAAAAAAAY easier fight than JLB. Aleks ran through Sergei. But JLB??? Uh oh...there goes CC fighting for the UFC again. I wanted to see JLB sign with the UFC so he could headline their first event in France and destroy Kongo.

[DonFrye]

I'm ready for this. It will be nice to see where CroCop stands after training specifically for a guy like LeBanner, who is one of the very best of all time. After that, maybe Jerome can get in there with Timmy.