By KTW
– Senior Editor

Mike Russow sucks out a KO over Todd Duffee

Updated (Sunday, May 30th):

The unthinkable happened in the third round, as Russow connected that right hook to Duffee’s ear and won in absolutely amazing fashion. The 24-year-old Duffee entered the fight with a 6-0 record and is the owner of the fastest knockout in UFC history, but Russow exposed him on Saturday night as a prospect who still has a lot of work to do. Russow was the first to admit that he didn’t look good in this fight, but he didn’t need to look good. He just needed to land one perfect punch, and that’s what he did.

(full article at mmafighting.com)

UFC 114 on May 29th will showcase a fight between a couple of rising stars in the heavyweight division. Both Mike Russow and Todd Duffee hail from the midwest and have each already made an impact in their short careers.

If victories were based on body type and physique, we would already be crowning Todd Duffee the winner of this match. He is a guy who appears to have muscles bulging out of his ears, with his bodybuilder-type physique. However, we all know that the majority of times fights are won based on skills and determination – something Roy Nelson has shown us, as someone who likes to rub his rotund stomach after each victory.

Todd Duffee will be fighting in his second UFC fight and looks to improve upon his perfect 6-0 record.  Fans all over the internet have been salivating for the chance to see him fight again, after being wowed by the fastest knockout in UFC history in his last fight at UFC 102.

Although Duffee was born in Evansville, Indiana – near the southeast border of Illinois – he actually grew up in Eldorado, Illinois.

The 6 foot 3 inch, 250 pound powerhouse has won all six of his professional fights by way of knockout – five in the first round.  Coincidentally, it was the last event either of these fighters participated in.

Duffee (24) has taken nine months to return to the octagon for a variety of reasons. Mainly, he wanted to finish his schooling and recently achieved a degree in international business. While attending school was foremost in his life, he still wanted to maintain his training regimen, but this meant changing training camps. We all know how important it is to find the right camp, one that fits with your own style, and it took some time.

He is trained as a boxer and recently earned his black belt in brazilian jiu-jitsu (bjj).  Todd Duffee has a well-deserved following after his last UFC performance.  And with the long layoff, the mystique of this chiseled fighter has grown even more.

Mike Russow, who is 12-1 with 8 submissions, also returns to the cage after a nine month layoff.  This will also be his second fight with the UFC after signing a multi-fight deal last summer.  At 33, Russow knows that every fight counts at a high level.  He looks to celebrate his signing with the world’s leading mma organization by going 2-0 in the UFC.

Russow, like Duffee, is one of the top up and coming heavyweight mma fighters in the world.  A native of Chicago, Illinois, his other profession is as a member of the Chicago Police Department as a police officer.

I suspect many mma fans throughout Illinois and Indiana will be fiercely tuned into this payperview event to see if these two guys can add their profile amongst the other heavyweight fighters seeking contender status.

For any police officer that works in the Chicago Englewood neighborhood, there’s no doubt of mental toughness, which for Russow transfers into his style of fighting.  Englewood, per capita, is one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in all of North America.  I, myself know this area all too personally, having had a cousin who was needlessly gunned down in this neighborhood.

Russow has a wide array of submissions, winning six of his eight submission wins with a different hold.

Russow, who stands six feet two inches and weighs in at 255 pounds, is a former high school state wrestling champ in Illinois (Bradley-Bourbonnais H.S.) at 275 pounds.  And while attending Eastern Illinois University, he ran into Matt Hughes who was a graduate assistant coach at the time.

Russow feels that it’s his time to shine, and the seven year veteran of the CPD would love to continue his steady climb to becoming a internet name amongst the mma online community.  In an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, Russow stated that he makes more money fighting than as a police officer, but refuses to give up being a cop.  He has dedicated himself full-time to his mma craft, and I suspect we’ll see the best Mike Russow on May 29th in Las Vegas.

Russow’s lone loss came to long-time veteran Sergei Kharitonov[#2].  Sergei is one of the top heavyweights in the world and, arguably, the best heavyweight not fighting with a North American mma organization.  Russow was clearly winning this match before succumbing to an armbar.

Russow trains in collegiate wrestling, jiu-jitsu, and boxing.  He’s very agile on the ground for a man of his size.  And in the Kharitonov fight, he put his all-around game on display.

In a recent interview (UFC.com) Russow talked about how he’s been preparing for his fight this Saturday.  “I’ve been working a lot with Andrei Arlovski back in Chicago, I worked a week in March up with Brock Lesnar, and then I’m finishing my camp up here at Lesnar’s camp, working with Brock, John Nance, and Chris Tuchscherer – there are a bunch of big guys up here.”

The fight below doesn’t start until five minutes into the video, if you want to fastforward.

The ratings for UFC 114 are expected to hit top viewing numbers and both Duffee and Russow expect to go out with a bang.  Win or lose, we’ll definitely see both fighting again in the UFC.  They are both very talented heavyweights as the division increasingly becomes the toughest in all weight divisions.

UFC 114: Rampage  Vs.  Rashad
Location: Las Vegas
Venue: MGM Grand Garden Arena
Broadcast: Pay-per-view

~Where To Watch Locally~

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