Fighters Only

Issue 052

July 2009

STATISTICS

Nam: Cheick Kongo

Age: 33

Height: 6’4”

Category: Heavyweight

Record: 14-4-1

Fighting Style: Muay Thai

Fights out of: Liverpool, England

Active since: 2001

An imposing heavyweight of statuesque proportions, Cheick Kongo has positioned himself as one of the top fighters in his division. A Frenchman who divides his time between his home in Paris, France, and his training camps at the world-famous Wolfslair Academy in Liverpool, England, Kongo can boast former light heavyweight champion Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson and TUF 9 coach Michael Bisping as his training partners.

With three straight wins in the Octagon in less than a year, Kongo is 7-2-0 overall in the UFC with his most high-profile win coming in September of 2007 when he defeated Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic. Once described as a one-dimensional kickboxer, Kongo has steadily improved his wrestling and ground fighting to the degree where he is able to compete at the highest level of the sport. His last two wins have come via ground ‘n pound, signaling to future opponents that he is a threat in every range.

Height

Standing 6’4” tall, Kongo is rarely outsized by his opponents. Though his height may make him appear slender for a heavyweight, he weighs in excess of 235lb, with much of his mass packed into his powerful upper body.

Elbows

Kongo’s last two fights have ended with him smashing his elbows into his opponents’ skulls. He split open Mustapha Al-Turk’s head with some precisely delivered forearms, while Antoni Hardonk found himself trapped and battered senseless underneath Kongo’s weight. Kongo has taken the Muay Thai elbows he learnt in his kickboxing days and adapted them to fighting on the canvas, a factor his opponents should be wary of.

Legs

A tremendously powerful kicker, Kongo is more formidable with his leg strikes in the clinch range. His knees have been the downfall of more than one fighter, and his height makes it easier for him to launch them at his opponent’s head.