Overeem, nicknamed "The Demolition Man," retained his title with a technical knockout of Rogers 3:40 into the main event of Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery in St. Louis. The champion was in his first title defense since winning the belt in November 2007.
It was a one-sided affair from the start. Overeem (33-11, 1 no contest) exhibited the savvy, calmness and technical polish that comes with 45 bouts in mixed martial arts and 10 fights in K-1, kickboxing's top circuit, while Rogers (10-2) appeared tentative and willing to let his opponent attack first with low kicks.
When Rogers -- normally an aggressive, powerful striker -- tried to clinch barely a minute into the bout, Overeem easily threw him to the canvas and started throwing punches to his downed foe. Rogers never got off the ground again until the fight was over.
Overeem had Rogers trapped near the fence and kept up the pressure with bursts of offense until a flurry of hooks with 1:40 left in the round had Rogers turning away. The ground and pound assault continued with Rogers offering little resistance until referee John McCarthy halted the bout.
Statistics compiled by Compustrike showed Overeem landing all five of his leg strikes before the fight hit the mat. The champion battered Rogers on the ground with 49 strikes that included elbows and punches to the head, along with knees to the body.
Compustrike saw Rogers landing one of 14 strikes attempted.
Rogers and Overeem are No. 8 and No. 9 in the USA TODAY/SB Nation consensus heavyweight rankings.
After the bout, Overeem called for a bout with consensus No. 1 Fedor Emelianenko, who is already scheduled to face No. 10 Fabricio Werdum on Strikeforce's June 26 show.
"His management declined for him to fight me tonight," Overeem said. "Respect for Brett, because he stood up and he wanted to fight me like a man. I think now it's Fedor's turn."
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