Crossover and novelty fights have become big business. Jake and Logan Paul have led the way with other online personalities like KSI, and they are also finding success and notoriety from their efforts.
Chad Ochocinco has already dipped his toe in the combat sports pool with an exhibition boxing match in 2021 on the undercard of Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Logan Paul. Now, the 46-year-old all-time great wide receiver-turned-online personality is looking to have a high-profile MMA bout.
His opponent is former Pittsburgh Steelers star, two-time All-Pro, and Super Bowl champion James Harrison. In case you’re not a professional football fan and that name doesn’t ring a bell. Here is a look at Harrison.
The fight is supposed to occur in New Orleans on Super Bowl weekend.
Size isn’t everything in combat sports, but it’s impossible not to see what figures to be a massive size and strength difference. Ochocinco spoke to Hall-of-Famer Shannon Sharpe about the fight on his podcast, and the two predictably had a humorous exchange over the subject.
Ochocinco said his groundwork was “impeccable,” “similar to that of Khabib [Nurmagomedov].”
Ochocinco and Harrison exchanged some trash talk as they watched some of the action from their days as opponents on the gridiron.
Here is a look at their back-and-forth on X captured by Bleacher Report:
Ochocinco drew with Brian Maxwell in his only official match in combat sports. The fight was a boxing match, and while he earned a draw, Ochocinco was knocked down by a nasty right cross.
Take a look:
From a pure toughness standpoint, Ochocinco will always check the box. He played 11 seasons in the NFL, took hits like this one, and kept producing.
Ochocinco is also always in fantastic shape from a lean muscle standpoint, so perhaps that will speak to his wind.
Harrison is also 46, but he went viral a few years ago when, at 42, he posted a video of himself pushing nearly a ton on a sled.
When Harrison played, he was considered one of his era’s hardest-hitting and ferocious defensive players.
The man respectfully known as Deebo, in homage to the iconic villain played by the late Tommy Lister in Friday, has inspired highlight reels like the one below.
Make no mistake about it. Ochocinco and Harrison are elite athletes capable of doing things at 46 that most humans aren’t able to do at 26–let alone in their 40s. Still, discussing this fight from a technical standpoint would be silly.
Should this fight come to fruition, it’s important to approach it with a different mindset than you would when watching the seasoned MMA professionals in Salt Lake City, Utah, at UFC 307 on a Saturday.
