Rivalries: Sergei Kharitonov

Sergei Kharitonov no longer has the luxury of time.

On the periphery of contention in the Bellator MMA heavyweight division, the 41-year-old Pride Fighting Championships veteran will meet Cheick Kongo in the Bellator 265 headliner on Friday at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Kharitonov owns a 3-2 record in the Scott Coker-led promotion, his wins over Chase Gormley, Roy Nelson and Matt Mitrione offset by losses to Javy Ayala and Linton Vassell. He last competed at a Modern Fighting Pankration event on Nov. 7, when he knocked out Oli Thompson less than three minutes into their encounter in the United Arab Emirates.

As Kharitonov makes final preparations for his showdown with Kongo, a look at a few of the rivalries that have helped shape his career:

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

Kharitonov opened fire on an all-time great when he faced “Minotauro” in the semifinals of the 2004 Pride Fighting Championships heavyweight grand prix before 47,629 fans at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Nogueira emerged from their encounter at Pride Final Conflict with a unanimous decision, as he handed the previously unbeaten Russian the first loss of his career. Kharitonov targeted the body with hooks from both hands but failed to give the Brazilian real pause. Nogueira snapped off jabs throughout the first round, executed multiple takedowns, progressed to dominant positions and even achieved full mount in the closing seconds. Kharitonov knocked down an off-balance “Minotauro” early in Round 2, only to be met with a treacherous bottom game from the longtime Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. Nogueira escaped to his feet, fed his counterpart a steady diet of jabs and answered his aggression with knees from the clinch, denying Kharitonov’s repeated attempts to alter the direction of the fight.

Alistair Overeem

“The Paratrooper” exacted a measure of revenge against Overeem when he put away the Dutchman with punches in the first round of their K-1 Hero’s 10 rematch on Sept. 17, 2007 at Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan. Kharitonov—who had succumbed to a volley of knee strikes from “The Demolition Man” a year prior at Pride 31—drew the curtain 4:21 into Round 1, evening their head-to-head series at 1-1. Overeem enjoyed some success with powerful leg kicks, overhand rights and knees from close range, but he could not keep the Russian at bay. Kharitonov wore down his rival with sustained offense, pinned him to the ropes with punches and forced him to retreat with a clubbing overhand behind the ear. He then sealed the deal with a chopping right hand that dropped the exposed Overeem onto the ropes and necessitated the stoppage.

Josh Barnett

The former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder backed up his bravado in the 2011-12 Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix semifinals, as he submitted Kharitonov with a first-round arm-triangle choke at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati. Kharitonov waved the white flag of surrender 4:28 into Round 1 of their Sept. 10, 2011 headliner. Barnett walked through some power punches, secured a takedown and moved immediately to mount. From there, the writing was on the proverbial wall. Barnett softened the Russian paratrooper with punches and elbows, cinched the choke, coaxed the tapout and moved into the tournament final. It remains one of only two submission losses—Jeff Monson was responsible for the other—on the Kharitonov resume.

Kenny Garner

Kharitonov closed out his two-fight series with the former M-1 Global champion in style, as he buried the American Top Team heavyweight with punches in the first round of their M-1 Challenge 59 rematch on July 3, 2015 at the Kazakhstan Sports Palace in Astana, Kazakhstan. Garner—who had been on the receiving end of a third-round technical knockout from Kharitonov some seven months earlier—bowed out 4:11 into Round 1. Kharitonov staggered the American with a clean right hand, leveled him with a follow-up left and gave chase with ground-and-pound. Garner somehow managed to regain his footing, only to be met with a series of uppercuts that sent him back to the canvas. Kharitonov then moved in for the kill, climbed to full mount and dropped punches until the referee had seen enough.