Maximum Fighting's McKee Time to defend June 29.2010

[keithlewis]

Time for McKee to defend

Super-skilled wrestler can't be shelved any longer

Seven years and four months.

Flip the pages on a calendar - it will take a while - but it has been that
long since Antonio McKee suffered a loss.

The reigning MFC lightweight champion is a consummate pro and an
intellectual fighter, but also a title-holder currently wearing an
undefendable belt. The one opportunity McKee had to put his championship on
the line came at MFC 22 but his foe, Carlo Prater, came in overweight and
the five-round bout was changed to a three-rounder. McKee still scooted away
with a clear-cut decision but it was not what he nor MFC wanted out of the
night.

So what lies ahead for the organization's first 155-pound champ? Honestly
speaking, there would appear to be only one showdown in the works for McKee.
Because of his spectacular skills as a wrestler (which go hand-in-hand with
a phenomenal cardio gas tank) McKee is incredibly difficult to match up.

Selection of his opponent is critical and McKee is not an easy target. In
the fight for the title, the only time McKee was ever in the slightest
amount of trouble came when Derrick Noble was able to land strikes from the
outside, in particular a cracking blow near the end of Round 1. But in tight
it was McKee's world and a dominating conclusion ensued.

Match McKee against a striker and he's going to put his wrestling to use,
pretty well exclusively to grind out a verdict as evidenced by 18 of his 22
wins coming by way of decision. That rationale leads one to assume that a
clash between McKee and fellow veteran Yves Edwards wouldn't be a good mix.
Edwards, who is coming off a first-round mowdown of Noble at MFC 24, might
get one chance to flatten McKee with a strike before he's scooped up,
dropped on his back, and smothered. McKee isn't going to risk getting
clipped on the chin and will neutralize Edwards to the point a dreary, dull
decision.

So as McKee pointed out while sitting ringside at MFC 25, about the only way
to force him into an exciting fight is to put him against a slick submission
fighter.

McKee won't want to mess around on the mat, fearing he could get caught in a
trap which would make him more inclined to keep the fight on the feet. McKee
does have a couple of TKO victories to his credit and is definitely the kind
of guy who pushed into a sticky situation would come out swinging. In an
interesting turn, a more aggressive showing in the ring by McKee may well
spark a fight-first-wrestle-second mentality in the combatants he trains,
specifically former MFC light heavyweight champion Emanuel Newton.

If anyone currently in the MFC stable has a shot against McKee, it would
seem to be newly signed Brazilian Luciano Azevedo. Not yet a brand-name
product, Azevedo has the jiu-jitsu repertoire - 12 of 16 wins via submission
including five tapouts under the pressure of his triangle choke - that would
take away most of McKee's rival ground game, forcing both fighters to settle
the issue throwing punches, kicks, and knees. The fight could very well wind
up on the ground but it's unlikely that a dull stalemate would result since
McKee doesn't own the mat in this fight - it's Azevedo's world down there
too.

A tilt with Azevedo is a likely occurrence though the MFC is looking at a
few other options including a talent search to the Far East in exploration
of mining more lightweight talent. Whatever way the matchup bounces, it's
long overdue that McKee defend his belt.