Will Liddell Shoot?

Photo: Josh Hedges/Ufighting.com

Chuck Liddell is a devastating striker.

Few would disagree and can argue with his one punch KO power. But with two straight losses in fights that remained purely in the standup realm, one wonders if Chuck Liddell will utilize his wrestling ability to takedown Wanderlei Silva in their bout tonight at UFC 79. Liddell was a successful wrestler at the Cal Polytechnic Institute and has the capability to take the fight to the mat. Much earlier in his career he took down Jeremy Horn in their first fight, but more recently in his bout with Alistair Overeem in August 2003, Liddell was eating some big shots from Overeem and thus took down the Dutch fighter to the mat before finishing him on the feet. Additionally, in his first bout with Randy Couture, Liddell actually tried taking Couture at one point during the fight after the standup was not working for “The Iceman.”

Photo: Sherdog.com. Liddell reversing Couture in their first bout in June 2003. Couture grimaces in pain as his toe gets caught in the fence.
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In the earlier part of the decade, before Liddell had a long list of knockout victims under his belt, he would have perhaps been more prone to take fighters to the ground. When this fight was in the works last year, we asked BJJ trainer Eddie Bravo, who has worked with Liddell, his perspective on a hypothetical fight between Liddell and Silva. “About 5 years ago (now about 6) I asked Liddell if there was anyone out there that would make him revert back to his wrestling days use his takedowns, and back then he said Silva”, commented Bravo. “I’m not too sure if he feels the same way now, but I’m sure if Silva rocks him he won’t hesitate to take him down.”

Photo: Sherdog.com. Liddell in a rare position in the Octagon–on top landing some ground and pound versus Couture. May not be as fan friendly, but perhaps the wisest strategy against Silva from the standpoint of simply securing a win.
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But with two defeats in a row in strictly standup fights, Liddell may heavily contemplate the notion of taking the fight to the ground with Silva. In fact Liddell said after his loss to Keith Jardine in September, he was planning on going for takedowns during their bout at UFC 76. “I was actually planning on taking a couple of shots out there and I never did”, Liddell said after the fight. “But that’s probably the only thing that I didn’t do that I should have.”

We’ll see on tonight if Liddell has a similar plan in mind and if he decides to follow through on it.

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