By Mark Vester

In response to a story I submitted two weeks ago on former heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison calling out UFC fighter Chuck Liddell, I received an interesting email from a mixed martial arts fighter with some opinions on how that particular fight would play out.

We had an email debate on the subject, and the MMA athlete in question allowed me to use his quotes on one condition.  I had to give him my word that his name would be kept anonymous. The only thing I can say is this particular MMA fighter has seen action in the UFC on more than one occasion, with success, and he has been successful in Japan and Brazil. For the sake of not being labeled as an MMA Uncle Tom or blackballed from future payday opportunities, he asked that an alias be used, and I decided to call him "MMA Fighter X."

This was a strange debate indeed. I, the boxing guy, was picking Liddell to beat Morrison, who I view as a way past his prime fighter. On the other end, MMA Fighter X is telling me that I'm crazy; Morrison would knock Liddell out cold.

"A lot of people are picking Liddell to win because of the popularity of the UFC. Everybody is on a UFC kick. I'm an MMA guy and I'm telling you that Liddell would not win this fight. I've sparred in the gym with light heavyweight boxers and I've sparred in the gym with MMA fighters who were light heavyweights. There is a big difference in punching power and accuracy. These guys (boxers) are trained for years to do one thing right, punch. Morrison is a very big puncher. He doesn’t have to land clean to win. If he caught Liddell with just a glancing blow with a pair of 4-ounce gloves, he would still knock him out," he said.

"A lot of people don't realize how hard it is to become a successful professional boxer. It's very, very hard and not too many amateurs or Olympic athletes make it in the pro ranks. It's much harder to become a good boxer, than it is to become a great mixed martial arts fighter."

I then asked about the scenario of Liddell taking Morrison to the ground, an unfamiliar area for the former heavyweight champ.

"Liddell is not going to take the fight to the ground. That’s not his fight. He lives by the gun and dies by the gun. Liddell has a lot of pride. For him to take Morrison to the ground is like sending a message that he's scared to fight Morrison on his feet. Liddell is not scared to fight him on his feet and that's why he won't win."

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