Feared UFC heavyweight striker Cheick Kongo is undoubtedly a talented part of the suddenly-stacked division, but he has consistently failed to put together the string of wins necessary to enter the title picture.
Following a devastating loss to Frank Mir, Kongo began his rebuilding process with a win over Paul Buentello at the first UFC Live on Versus show. He hoped to continue that momentum with a win over undefeated Travis Browne at UFC 120.
Would Kongo continue his effort to become a true force at heavyweight? Or, is it Travis Brown’s time to shine?
The result follows:
Cheick Kongo and Travis Browne fought to a unanimous draw (28-28, 28-28, 28-28)
*Story of the fight: Since Kongo was docked a point for grabbing Travis Browne’s shorts during a clinch, the draw scoring means that Kongo won two of the three rounds.
Neither fighter ever got a rhythm truly going. Browne was able to rock Kongo with some reckless shots in the first round, but he was never able to put enough together to score a finish. As his ongoing fatigue coincided with the more technical Kongo’s increasing comfort, he ended up slipping behind in the latter two rounds. Kongo’s assault did not spur serious damage–and his repeated grabbing of Browne’s shorts resulting in a penalty–but he clearly had the offensive advantage for the second and third rounds.
Still, Kongo seemed content to connect occasionally, and he thus never put himself in a true position to win the fight. His failure to put anything serious together hardly indicated his worthiness of a ranking atop the division.