What fighter's not in Pride/UFC do you think could make an impact in Pride/UFC if they signed with either this year?

I'd have to say
Chris Horodecki-LW
Mike Pyle-WW
Melvin Manhoef-MW
Mikey Patt-LHVY
Antonio Silva-HVY

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Posted by hippysmacker

Chris Horodecki-LW

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...was the first name that leaped to my mind.

I'll get some of the obvious names out of the way...

155 lbs - "Kid" Yamamoto
170 lbs - Jake Shields
185 lbs - Matt Lindland
205 lbs - I can't think of any no-brainer 205s
Heavyweight - Jerome LeBanner


Some not-so-obvious names:

155 - Mac Danzig (KOTC)
170 - Akira Kikuchi (Shooto; K-1 Hero's)
185 - Zelg Galesic (Cage Rage)
205 - Yoshihiro Akiyama (K-1 Hero's)
HW - Ben Rothwell (IFL)

definately agree with bringing mike pyle in..
horodecki would be a great signing, if he was willing to leave the IFL

rob mccullough
jeremy williams (might be premature, but i think the guy has potential)
jeff curran

and plenty more japanese fighters, such as akira kikuchi, hatsu hioki, norifumi yamamoto,

I can't beleive I left off Lindland
I definately agree Kid would be a top 5 lightweight, but I always think of him as a featherweight. Zelg and Mac alreay signed with Pride though.

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Posted by AchillesHeel

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Posted by hippysmacker

Chris Horodecki-LW

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...was the first name that leaped to my mind.

I'll get some of the obvious names out of the way...

155 lbs - "Kid" Yamamoto
170 lbs - Jake Shields
185 lbs - Matt Lindland
205 lbs - I can't think of any no-brainer 205s
Heavyweight - Jerome LeBanner


Some not-so-obvious names:

155 - Mac Danzig (KOTC)
170 - Akira Kikuchi (Shooto; K-1 Hero's)
185 - Zelg Galesic (Cage Rage)
205 - Yoshihiro Akiyama (K-1 Hero's)
HW - Ben Rothwell (IFL)

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mac danzig is under contract with PRIDE.. he fights sakurai on the 24th
and zelg is also rumored to have been contacted by PRIDE.. not sure if that one is solid or not though

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Posted by hippysmacker

I can't beleive I left off Lindland

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Heh. Well, I gave you the benefit of the doubt and figured you were avoiding the real obvious guys...

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I definately agree Kid would be a top 5 lightweight, but I always think of him as a featherweight.

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Yes, I think he's always fought at 145, but I've only seen a couple of his fights.

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Zelg and Mac alreay signed with Pride though.

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Posted by ffforgottenx

mac danzig is under contract with PRIDE.. he fights sakurai on the 24th
and zelg is also rumored to have been contacted by PRIDE.. not sure if that one is solid or not though

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Hmm... I guess I should look at those Upcoming Events, then...

He signed with pride, but got injured right before his cage rage title defense. The rumor was he was gonna fight Cung Lee in pride.

Hirota, Endo, and Boku would all be top notch for the 155 class.

Kikuchi and Shields are obvious choices.

Poai Suganuma is also looking like a good prospect.

Have to agree with Meinhoff, it's a wonder to me that noone has picked him up yet.

IMO, Krzysztof Soszynski could make a impact in the UFC's HW division, might need a nickname though... Did farely well in TKO, and IFL, and I think he's pretty young... Worth checking out.

Roger Gracie after he's a little more refined, will be the biggest steal in MMA

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Posted by pv3Hpv3p

Have to agree with Meinhoff, it's a wonder to me that noone has picked him up yet.

IMO, Krzysztof Soszynski could make a impact in the UFC's HW division, might need a nickname though... Did farely well in TKO, and IFL, and I think he's pretty young... Worth checking out.

Roger Gracie after he's a little more refined, will be the biggest steal in MMA

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Apparently Bas said Krzysztof Soszynski is improving leaps and bounds and Bas feels he will be a contender someday.

Lindland IMO is the best unsigned guy

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Posted by Jeffanori-Gomi

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Posted by pv3Hpv3p

Have to agree with Meinhoff, it's a wonder to me that noone has picked him up yet.

IMO, Krzysztof Soszynski could make a impact in the UFC's HW division, might need a nickname though... Did farely well in TKO, and IFL, and I think he's pretty young... Worth checking out.

Roger Gracie after he's a little more refined, will be the biggest steal in MMA

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Apparently Bas said Krzysztof Soszynski is improving leaps and bounds and Bas feels he will be a contender someday.

Lindland IMO is the best unsigned guy

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Admittidly I'm a little biased because I'm Polish as well... But Krzysztof looks like a monster... Hope to see him making waves somewhere soon

WOINA POLSKA!!!

my picks are

Jake sheilds
Chris Hordecski
and of course Kid

i would also like to seee antonio silva but isnt he a super heavyweight i guess he could still fight in pride

Rory Markham, Frank Shamrock, Myself

The Law and Frank Shamrock!!!

Me...

shaolin ribeiro
kid
lindland
jake shields
antonio silva

IMO Ribeiro as gspfan mentioned could make the biggest impact except for maybe Lindland.

Other than those mentioned JZ Calvacanti should be an obvious choice. He would be a legit contender for both LW titles IMO.

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Posted by Stickan

IMO Ribeiro as gspfan mentioned could make the biggest impact except for maybe Lindland.

Other than those mentioned JZ Calvacanti should be an obvious choice. He would be a legit contender for both LW titles IMO.

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i think lindland makes an impact right away because he is a horrible match-up for anderson silva