Akiyama is powerful: Leben warns Bisping
Yoshihiro Akiyama, in both of his hands, has serious power, says Chris Leben, as a warning to Michael Bisping. At UFC 116, he admitted that Judoka rocked him badly.
In the middleweight bout between Leben and Akiyama, the former arguably produced the performance of his career by defeating Akiyama with still 20secs remaining on the clock. Believing he had secured a solid second-round victory, he left the Octagon. In 27 fights, only Anderson Silva has managed to knock Leben, yet, in Las Vegas, Akiyama came mightily close when he buckled The Crippler.
In October, Akiyama will be pitted against Britain’s Michael and the former is expected to headline UFC 120. Leben knows both men well. At UFC 89, Leben dropped a decision to Bisping. A record number on punches were landed on Leben by Bisping but it did not rock Leben. However, against the Japanese, the American admits he most definitely lost control of his senses.
Leben told The Daily Line, “Leaving the Octagon walking back, I turned to my coach, Burton Richardson, and said, ‘What was that, about halfway through the second round I finished him?”.
“He said, ‘No, Chris, you had about 20 seconds left in the third.’ That is a sign, definitely, I was rocked.
He added, “I really don’t remember a lot of the fight after the second round. It’s kind of a blur. I had a chance to go back and watch it yesterday, and definitely, my knees buckled, my legs gave, it was just one of those things where every time I get hit I wonder if I can hang on. I hung on, but he rocked me, for sure.”
Will he heed his warnings follow up at the UFC betting blog?
