Is Overeem Overrated?

Alistair Overeem is argued by some critics as the best heavyweight fighter in the mixed martial arts world as well as the best pound for pound fighter to date, but are his accolades up to the opinions of those who sing his praise?
Overeem currently holds the Strikeforce Heavyweight title, K1 Heavyweight title, Dream Heavyweight Interim title, and has just come off a dominating performance at the K1 World Heavyweight Grand Prix. All of these amazing stats are sure to put him directly at the top of the totem pole for the best heavyweight fighter of all time, and best ever, right?

Let's analyze his career here brief and recently. Alistair has not seen a loss since September of 2007 in the mixed martial arts world, and December of 2009 in K1. While he holds the title and remains undefeated in his weight division for the ADCC grappling championships in Abu Dhabi, his notable wins fail to impress even the most tough critics.

Overeem's recent string of wins inside the cage have been against opponents who struggle to break the top 25 of their weight class and fail to even reach the top 10. Alistair has run through the likes of: Mark Hunt, Todd Duffee, Tony Sylvester,  and Lee Tay-Hyun to name a few. To plead his case, not all wins came through the meat claws he calls fists, he has submitted opponents via Keylock, RNC, and Kimuras.

His largest obstacle in reaching the top is the organizations he has been competing for. The UFC clearly has the best fighters in the world, and draws the largest number of top contenders seeking a title. Alistair's continued competition overseas and in Japan have led to his settlement into the American and San Jose based organization Strikeforce, where CEO Scott Coker allowed the 'Demolition Man' to compete wherever he pleased.

Now that Zuffa has bought out the rights to Strikeforce, we will see where his career heads in the near future. But for the time being he must win the Strikeforce Heavyweight World Grand Prix in order to climb the world rankings. If Overeem loses and bows out early, he will no longer be touted by some as the best in the world, and might look to fall outside the top ten in the world.

He must secure a dominating win inside the Grand Prix, and defend his belt again before I will give the benefit of the doubt. He must take out the best in the world and do it in dominating fashion for him to earn the respect that the Japanese give him, and with a win over Fabricio Werdum, it will put him will on his way.