Last Saturday was the network television debut of the UFC in the cleverly titled “UFC on Fox.” In the main event, Junior Dos Santos won the Heavyweight Title by crushing Cain Velasquez with a hook and some ground and pound in a total of 64 seconds. On the undercard, Benson Henderson became the number one contender to Frankie Edgar’s Lightweight Title by defeating Clay Guida in a wild three round decision that was only seen by UFC fans loyal enough to seek it out on facebook.
That was the first problem with the telecast. I know that Dana White and the people who made the decision to air only one fight did not expect the main event to end so quickly, but Henderson-Guida was a virtual guarantee to be a fight of the year, much less the night, candidate. It turned out to be one of the best fights of the year and featured striking, grappling, and submissions. In short, it was the type of fight that shows the “mixed” aspect of mixed martial arts and would have provided a great introduction to casual/new watchers of the UFC.
The next problem was the use of Dana White as an analyst. I get that Dana is the most visible face and name for the company and loves the sport, but he is a promoter first and invested too much emotionally in the product to provide analysis. His breakdown of the Dos Santos-Velasquez fight was brutal and he ended up burying both men and making them look bad. He absolutely ripped apart Cain’s gameplan and took him to task for not rushing in for takedowns right away and grappling with Dos Santos. The fact is that that doesn’t work as a strategy, just look at when Velasquez chumped Lesnar last year when Brock basically tried that. Also, the fight was only 64 seconds long and Velasquez was using leg kicks to try to set up a takedown. You can’t just takedown someone of Dos Santos’ skillset in the first ten seconds of a fight. His defense is too good and you’ll eat an uppercut for trying to close the distance too poorly. The fact of the matter was that Cain just got caught. Junior threw a great lead jab to the chin and followed it up with a right hook over the top that caught him right around the ear. It wasn’t even something that Cain did wrong; it was just a great offensive boxing combination from Junior. A quick knockout like that doesn’t happen often and I would imagine that if the two were to fight ten more times, that wouldn’t happen again. Dana was upset that the company had invested a lot of time and money pushing Cain into the forefront of the Latino market in hopes of new gains. It was clearly intended to be Velasquez’s coming out party as a star and it ended poorly and in devastating fashion and Dana reacted poorly to it.
Just as bad as that was when he began to discredit Dos Santos. When saying Cain should have went for takedowns, he started ranting about how Junior is known to gas out in the late rounds and that Cain was stupid for not exploiting that. He said this at least twice in a minute and a half. Essentially Dana just said his previous champion was an idiot who lost to an inferior fighter. He completely no sold the fact that Junior is now 8-0 in the UFC and finished the previously undefeated Velasquez. He should have pushed this as “Holy Jesus, just look at how fantastic Junior Dos Santos’ boxing is. He managed to stop a guy that has never lost, much less been finished. He managed to keep Cain from closing the distance for a takedown and absolutely leveled him.” I imagine when he goes back and watches the replay of his analysis, Dana will be disappointed in himself for being too emotionally invested into his promotion of Cain for not adequately promoting Junior’s win, especially coming on the news that ten million of Dos Santos’ native Brazilians saw the fight live. Promotion in Brazil is the next big thing for Zuffa, so what better than a third Brazilian champion?
With that out of the way, let’s get a bit into what happens next for everyone involved in the main and co-main.
Clay Guida: Guida put on an exciting, spirited performance in a losing effort. I don’t know if he’ll get any closer than this to a title shot, but he has nothing to be ashamed of. He lost a close, but clear cut decision because Henderson is just a little better than him at everything and is evidently impervious to takedowns. Guida should get a fight with another top guy, perhaps with Jim Miller or Dennis Siver. Both those guys were close to title shots and a win for one them gets that person one or two fights away from contention. I was going to suggest Gray Maynard, but I think that he would beat Guida pretty decisively and that would push Clay out of the title picture and put Maynard in the “Jon Fitch” zone.
Benson Henderson: Ben Smooth looked outstanding in his takedown defense and ability to get out of submissions. He also displayed a fierce heart and some great offense. He has a date with Frankie Edgar on February 26, when the UFC goes to Japan (!!!). That fight should be absolutely insane and I would expect it to be the best one of the year. Both men have cardio for days and cut a wicked pace. Bendo has takedown defense on par with BJ Penn at his peak, as well as improving stand up that will be tested by Edgar’s solid boxing and wrestling abilities. I cannot wait for this fight.
Cain Velasquez: Not really too much to say about Cain’s performance, as it was such a short fight that one cannot really analyze it too much. I liked the way he was using leg kicks to wear Junior down to set up a takedown later, but (as insightful commentary from ESPN’s Bret Okamoto pointed out) he played Junior’s hands a little. He did this by not moving enough and instead providing a hittable target. A minute of fighting was not enough to get a takedown against someone of Junior’s status, but the leg kicks (I think) would have been effective in the long run if he hadn’t been caught. The thirteen month layoff following rotator cuff surgery couldn’t have helped either, as he came in a little heavier than usual. I imagine he’ll trim down a bit once he gets back into fighting regularly. As for his next opponent, I imagine it will be the loser of Lesnar/Overeem (esp. if its Reem), followed by the winner of Frank Mir/Minotauro Nogueira (esp. if its Mir). I think he beats both of those guys and ends up in a title fight by the end of next year/early 2013. He’s too good to just fall to the wayside and I don’t really see any heavyweight besides Dos Santos (and maybe Overeem if he gets hit and can’t get a takedown) really giving him trouble.
Junior Dos Santos: Junior looked amazing in this fight, especially considering that he tore his meniscus a week and a half before the fight. He threw an excellent left jab-overhand right hook to drop Cain and smartly followed it up immediately to get the finish. His next opponent is the winner of Lesnar/Overeem. If its Lesnar, I imagine it going the same way Junior’s fights with Carwin and Velasquez went. I don’t think Brock can get Junior to the mat easily, especially with such poor striking to set up a takedown. Lesnar also doesn’t respond well to getting hit and the case can be made no one at heavyweight is better at hitting people than Junior Dos Santos. If its Overeem, I think Junior has a tougher time because the Reem is such an excellent kickboxer. But Overeem has been knocked out by Chuck Liddell and Shogun Rua in the past, so someone of Junior’s power can finish him. Either way, it is the fight I would like to see and I think it would be pretty sick.
That’s it for this piece. Stay tuned over the next few days for some articles about Dan Henderson, Shogun Rua, and predictions for UFC 139.
Showing posts with label where do we go from here. Show all posts
Showing posts with label where do we go from here. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Friday, October 14, 2011
UFC 136 Thoughts, Where Do We Go From Here?
Despite another dreadful nite of Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan on commentary, UFC 136 proved to be an excellent card. From Joe Lauzon’s opening fight upset of Melvin Guillard to Frankie Edgar’s comeback win over Gray Maynard, UFC 136 had a little bit of everything.
Again, it must be noted that Rogan and Goldie were woeful on commentary. To be fair, it wasn’t as bad as UFC 135, but still really not good at all. The best (or worst) examples of this would be during the Nam Phan-Leonard Garcia fight and the Aldo-Florian one. Rogan was raving about the knockout power and all around skill of Leonard Garcia, but Garcia was getting the shit beat out of him for the bulk of the fight. He also said that “if you don’t like Leonard Garcia, then you aren’t a fan of MMA.” Slow your roll, Joe Rogan. Leonard Garcia is kinda neat the first time you see him fight, but after that it’s like learn to block and stop just throwing sloppy punches from your arms with no real power in a windmill fashion. After you see him brawl like that once or twice (like against Roger Huerta and Chan Sung Jung), you’ve seen it enough times. Against Phan it was tedious. It’s like watching a barfight without the probability of prison time for one of the combatants. To say not liking him is akin to not liking the sport is absurd. It’s not like watching Anderson Silva and being like “that dude ain’t shit.” If you can’t appreciate the skills of a champion, you probably don’t like MMA. To not like Leonard Garcia means you most likely actually appreciate the finer points of the sport. You know, the ones Rogan should be espousing.
The other fight Rogan was awful during was Aldo-Florian and this was due to his obvious bias for KenFlo. He kept talking about Kenny’s aggression and strong gameplan when all Kenny was doing was leaning Aldo against the fence and try (and fail) for a takedown. Leaning and failed takedowns are not aggression. Then they would separate, Aldo would block most of Kenny’s strikes and hit him with a few punches and kicks. It wasn’t until the fourth round that Rogan acknowledged any of Aldo’s offense, despite the fact Florian’s leg was bruised badly by the third round. The fact that Kenny went to his corner after the fight with his head down in shame while Aldo looked triumphant says all that needed to be said. It isn’t like Aldo was particularly outstanding (more on that later), but Rogan acted like he was getting dominated in a fight that he was pretty clearly winning. And of course Goldberg was Goldberg and spouted ridiculous things all night, like hyping up the destructive powers of a gassed Joey Beltran. I might have to write an article soon about how Rogan and Goldie need to go and all the damage they do to fights with their dreadful commentary, but let’s just go right into what’s next. I’m omitting the Phan/Garcia combatants because I don’t really know or care what either of them do next, even if they got Fight of the Night. I guess that isn’t fair since there are fights I enjoyed less than theirs, but the commentary telling me how great it was really turned me off. It wasn’t like it was a trainwreck like the heavyweight fights on the last card, the fight just meant nothing to me. But again, I digress.
Melvin Guillard: Man oh man did Melvin screw up in this one. He showed up in this fight far too cocky and it cost him. He landed a punch and then started dancing and showboating for his hometown fans. Then he got caught and submitted inside of a minute and now his championship aspirations are on hold for another year. Very disappointing showing for Guillard. I would consider either Gray Maynard or Jim Miller. Both guys were top contenders and are coming off losses. Maybe that and this humiliating defeat can get him back on track.
Joe Lauzon: Lauzon got the surprise win of the night by submitting Guillard. I think it was more of a fluke, but this puts Lauzon in a good spot. While he will never get a title shot, he always tries hard and could make a solid little run into the top ten. I would say put him up against a fringe top ten guy like Dennis Siver, but Siver fights in a few weeks. Nate Diaz makes sense, as a win for Nate makes him a fringe contender and a win for Lauzon puts him on the cusp of the top ten in the division.
Chael Sonnen: Sonnen utterly abused Brian Stann on the ground and actually finished an opponent for the first time since the Bush administration. His dominant win showed that Stann has no ground game whatsoever and that he probably wasn’t anywhere near ready to be included in the title picture. This was overshadowed by Sonnen’s ridiculous “loser leaves town” WWE themed post-fight interview. I’m not going to get into it too much because I can’t stand him and my brother already delved into why Sonnen is such a lowlife in an excellent post earlier this week. His next opponent will likely be Anderson Silva, unless Silva takes longer to recover from injury. I think it should take place in Brazil just because he has no business calling out Silva after he cheated and still lost, yet still gets to be a contender. If he gets to dictate fights and not be reprimanded by Zuffa for being a scumbag, at least make him fight in hostile territory. If the Silva fight doesn’t happen next, he should fight Dan Henderson in a title eliminator or fight Vitor Belfort, so the two most annoying fighters in the division (to me) can go at it and I can skip it.
Kenny Florian: Florian came up short again in a title fight, but it isn’t really fair to say he choked. Much like the BJ Penn fight, he ran up against a fighter with excellent takedown defense and superior striking. It’s not like he dropped a fight to Leonard Garcia or something. That being said, his gameplan was not good. It was the same one he used against BJ Penn to no avail: grind his opponent against the fence and work for takedowns. But just like Penn, Jose Aldo has some legendary takedown defense. I think Kenny should move back up to lightweight for a fight or two before calling it a career. Maybe a rematch with Sean Sherk or something like that. Either way, Kenny has nothing to be ashamed of. He has been one of the better fighters in the UFC over the past five years and despite never winning a title, he’s been smart AND exiciting in the cage and has a lot of wins by finish to his credit. Not a bad legacy at all.
Jose Aldo: I think it is pretty much set in stone Chad Mendes is his next opponent, so I’ll talk more about Aldo’s performance in this fight. He showed great takedown and striking defense, as well as crisp kickboxing. He still wasn’t as impressive as he should have been. His leg kicks were absolutely brutal and his punches busted KenFlo up. However, he didn’t use that killer instinct he showed in the WEC when he could have. There were points where Florian was absolutely hurt and Aldo didn’t follow up like he should have. Florian’s leg started to give out after a hard kick in the third round, but Aldo backed off instead of throwing another one or pouncing. In fact, much like in the Hominick fight Aldo didn’t use nearly enough of his leg kicks. He still won a clear cut decision, but his nonaggression was curious and disappointing to me. He has failed to truly impress since moving to the UFC, so hopefully the strong wrestling of Mendes forces Aldo to push the pace and action more.
Gray Maynard: Unlike Florian, Maynard did choke. For the second straight fight, he had Edgar on the verge of unconsciousness in the first round and failed to finish. And again, after the first round he had nothing left to offer Edgar. It wasn’t like he gassed out like the first time either. He just kind of stood around and got outworked until he was surprisingly finished in the fourth round after Edgar hit him flush on the jaw with four straight rights. He tried to argue the finish, but it was a good stoppage. This leaves him in a weird spot in the division. He should be able to beat the bulk of the division, but there’s no way he gets a rematch with Edgar in the next year or two. The only way that will happen is if he just starts finishing dudes left and right, which is unlikely. Welcome to being the new Jon Fitch, Gray Maynard. I could see him against Melvin Guillard, Jim Miller, or the loser of Clay Guida and Ben Henderson. If Edgar drops the title in his next defense or two, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Maynard back in the title hunt sooner rather than later.
Frankie Edgar: As someone who didn’t really care for Edgar before this fight, all I can say is Jesus Christ. I don’t know how he survived the beating he took in round one, much less dominated the fight from that point on. His finish of Maynard after surviving that drubbing was the highlight of the night by far. I could run out of superlatives describing what went down. His next opponent will be the winner of Henderson/Guida, with Strikeforce Champ Gilbert Melendez lurking as well. While he would beat Guida, the Henderson and Melendez fights are tougher. Bendo is relentless and can match Edgar’s pace. Melendez, by all accounts, is an absolute beast with his wrestling and ground and pound. Either way, after Edgar’s performance against Maynard, I’ll be tuned in. And I won’t be surprised if Edgar pulls out another win either.
UFC 137 is in a few weeks. Keep a look out for some stories about the fighters on the card and predictions.
Again, it must be noted that Rogan and Goldie were woeful on commentary. To be fair, it wasn’t as bad as UFC 135, but still really not good at all. The best (or worst) examples of this would be during the Nam Phan-Leonard Garcia fight and the Aldo-Florian one. Rogan was raving about the knockout power and all around skill of Leonard Garcia, but Garcia was getting the shit beat out of him for the bulk of the fight. He also said that “if you don’t like Leonard Garcia, then you aren’t a fan of MMA.” Slow your roll, Joe Rogan. Leonard Garcia is kinda neat the first time you see him fight, but after that it’s like learn to block and stop just throwing sloppy punches from your arms with no real power in a windmill fashion. After you see him brawl like that once or twice (like against Roger Huerta and Chan Sung Jung), you’ve seen it enough times. Against Phan it was tedious. It’s like watching a barfight without the probability of prison time for one of the combatants. To say not liking him is akin to not liking the sport is absurd. It’s not like watching Anderson Silva and being like “that dude ain’t shit.” If you can’t appreciate the skills of a champion, you probably don’t like MMA. To not like Leonard Garcia means you most likely actually appreciate the finer points of the sport. You know, the ones Rogan should be espousing.
The other fight Rogan was awful during was Aldo-Florian and this was due to his obvious bias for KenFlo. He kept talking about Kenny’s aggression and strong gameplan when all Kenny was doing was leaning Aldo against the fence and try (and fail) for a takedown. Leaning and failed takedowns are not aggression. Then they would separate, Aldo would block most of Kenny’s strikes and hit him with a few punches and kicks. It wasn’t until the fourth round that Rogan acknowledged any of Aldo’s offense, despite the fact Florian’s leg was bruised badly by the third round. The fact that Kenny went to his corner after the fight with his head down in shame while Aldo looked triumphant says all that needed to be said. It isn’t like Aldo was particularly outstanding (more on that later), but Rogan acted like he was getting dominated in a fight that he was pretty clearly winning. And of course Goldberg was Goldberg and spouted ridiculous things all night, like hyping up the destructive powers of a gassed Joey Beltran. I might have to write an article soon about how Rogan and Goldie need to go and all the damage they do to fights with their dreadful commentary, but let’s just go right into what’s next. I’m omitting the Phan/Garcia combatants because I don’t really know or care what either of them do next, even if they got Fight of the Night. I guess that isn’t fair since there are fights I enjoyed less than theirs, but the commentary telling me how great it was really turned me off. It wasn’t like it was a trainwreck like the heavyweight fights on the last card, the fight just meant nothing to me. But again, I digress.
Melvin Guillard: Man oh man did Melvin screw up in this one. He showed up in this fight far too cocky and it cost him. He landed a punch and then started dancing and showboating for his hometown fans. Then he got caught and submitted inside of a minute and now his championship aspirations are on hold for another year. Very disappointing showing for Guillard. I would consider either Gray Maynard or Jim Miller. Both guys were top contenders and are coming off losses. Maybe that and this humiliating defeat can get him back on track.
Joe Lauzon: Lauzon got the surprise win of the night by submitting Guillard. I think it was more of a fluke, but this puts Lauzon in a good spot. While he will never get a title shot, he always tries hard and could make a solid little run into the top ten. I would say put him up against a fringe top ten guy like Dennis Siver, but Siver fights in a few weeks. Nate Diaz makes sense, as a win for Nate makes him a fringe contender and a win for Lauzon puts him on the cusp of the top ten in the division.
Chael Sonnen: Sonnen utterly abused Brian Stann on the ground and actually finished an opponent for the first time since the Bush administration. His dominant win showed that Stann has no ground game whatsoever and that he probably wasn’t anywhere near ready to be included in the title picture. This was overshadowed by Sonnen’s ridiculous “loser leaves town” WWE themed post-fight interview. I’m not going to get into it too much because I can’t stand him and my brother already delved into why Sonnen is such a lowlife in an excellent post earlier this week. His next opponent will likely be Anderson Silva, unless Silva takes longer to recover from injury. I think it should take place in Brazil just because he has no business calling out Silva after he cheated and still lost, yet still gets to be a contender. If he gets to dictate fights and not be reprimanded by Zuffa for being a scumbag, at least make him fight in hostile territory. If the Silva fight doesn’t happen next, he should fight Dan Henderson in a title eliminator or fight Vitor Belfort, so the two most annoying fighters in the division (to me) can go at it and I can skip it.
Kenny Florian: Florian came up short again in a title fight, but it isn’t really fair to say he choked. Much like the BJ Penn fight, he ran up against a fighter with excellent takedown defense and superior striking. It’s not like he dropped a fight to Leonard Garcia or something. That being said, his gameplan was not good. It was the same one he used against BJ Penn to no avail: grind his opponent against the fence and work for takedowns. But just like Penn, Jose Aldo has some legendary takedown defense. I think Kenny should move back up to lightweight for a fight or two before calling it a career. Maybe a rematch with Sean Sherk or something like that. Either way, Kenny has nothing to be ashamed of. He has been one of the better fighters in the UFC over the past five years and despite never winning a title, he’s been smart AND exiciting in the cage and has a lot of wins by finish to his credit. Not a bad legacy at all.
Jose Aldo: I think it is pretty much set in stone Chad Mendes is his next opponent, so I’ll talk more about Aldo’s performance in this fight. He showed great takedown and striking defense, as well as crisp kickboxing. He still wasn’t as impressive as he should have been. His leg kicks were absolutely brutal and his punches busted KenFlo up. However, he didn’t use that killer instinct he showed in the WEC when he could have. There were points where Florian was absolutely hurt and Aldo didn’t follow up like he should have. Florian’s leg started to give out after a hard kick in the third round, but Aldo backed off instead of throwing another one or pouncing. In fact, much like in the Hominick fight Aldo didn’t use nearly enough of his leg kicks. He still won a clear cut decision, but his nonaggression was curious and disappointing to me. He has failed to truly impress since moving to the UFC, so hopefully the strong wrestling of Mendes forces Aldo to push the pace and action more.
Gray Maynard: Unlike Florian, Maynard did choke. For the second straight fight, he had Edgar on the verge of unconsciousness in the first round and failed to finish. And again, after the first round he had nothing left to offer Edgar. It wasn’t like he gassed out like the first time either. He just kind of stood around and got outworked until he was surprisingly finished in the fourth round after Edgar hit him flush on the jaw with four straight rights. He tried to argue the finish, but it was a good stoppage. This leaves him in a weird spot in the division. He should be able to beat the bulk of the division, but there’s no way he gets a rematch with Edgar in the next year or two. The only way that will happen is if he just starts finishing dudes left and right, which is unlikely. Welcome to being the new Jon Fitch, Gray Maynard. I could see him against Melvin Guillard, Jim Miller, or the loser of Clay Guida and Ben Henderson. If Edgar drops the title in his next defense or two, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Maynard back in the title hunt sooner rather than later.
Frankie Edgar: As someone who didn’t really care for Edgar before this fight, all I can say is Jesus Christ. I don’t know how he survived the beating he took in round one, much less dominated the fight from that point on. His finish of Maynard after surviving that drubbing was the highlight of the night by far. I could run out of superlatives describing what went down. His next opponent will be the winner of Henderson/Guida, with Strikeforce Champ Gilbert Melendez lurking as well. While he would beat Guida, the Henderson and Melendez fights are tougher. Bendo is relentless and can match Edgar’s pace. Melendez, by all accounts, is an absolute beast with his wrestling and ground and pound. Either way, after Edgar’s performance against Maynard, I’ll be tuned in. And I won’t be surprised if Edgar pulls out another win either.
UFC 137 is in a few weeks. Keep a look out for some stories about the fighters on the card and predictions.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
UFC 135 Thoughts, Where Do We Go From Here?
UFC 135 was last Saturday, and it was not a particularly exciting night of fights. Two really bad heavyweight fights in the middle of the main card sapped all the livelihood out of the night, especially coming after Nate Diaz’s first round destruction of Takanori Gomi. Even Koscheck’s likely ending of Matt Hughes’ career and Jon Jones’ clinical destruction of Rampage Jackson couldn’t really pump enough life into this card to make it memorable. Also, Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg were absolutely insipid on commentary. It was possibly the worst I’ve ever heard from them, and that’s saying something.
It started early, when Gomi winged a hook and slipped on the mat and fell, without a blow even coming near him. Rogan then proceeded to yell, “he’s rocked!” even though it was just a slip. There was more in this fight, which I’ll get to when I discuss Nate Diaz. During the Mark Hunt-Ben Rothwell tilt, Rogan lost his mind over a gassed Hunt putting an armbar on a gassed Rothwell like it was Nogueira submitting Bob Sapp. Then, while both men wheezed their way through limp punches and tired takedowns, Goldie and Rogan talked it up like it was the fight of the year. Their commentary during Jones-Jackson was also dreadful, as even though Jones was impressive, they made him out to be the lovechild of Thor and Anderson Silva. More on this in the Jones part of this entry. So now, lets get to it.
Nate Diaz: Diaz looked great in his return to the lightweight division, absolutely wrecking Gomi. I can’t tell if that was due to Diaz really improving that much since I last saw him or the fact that he had a huge reach advantage and Gomi has essentially been done as a fighter for years. Either way, his striking was crisp and his grappling looked good as well. These things have never been his problem. That would be defending the takedown and stopping wrestlers. This fight didn’t show if he has improved in that way. He is probably a fringe top 10 lightweight and a match with a top 10 fighter like Jim Miller could go a long ways towards determining whether or not Diaz should be in the title hunt in the next year or two. Right now he is behind Melvin Guillard and the winner of Ben Henderson-Clay Guida, as well as Strikeforce’s Gilbert Melendez, so a Miller fight would really establish him in the contender bracket.
Travis Browne: Browne looked utterly unimpressive in a win over the unknown Rob Broughton. Prior to the fight, he was receiving the Zuffa hype as someone to watch. Instead, he showed the massive gulf between the top of the division and everyone else. He is clearly not ready for anyone of actual importance (and I would argue that was obvious in his prior fights with Struve and Kongo as well), so I would say either set him up against the winner of Roy Nelson-Mirko Cro Cop, Mark Hunt, or Matt Mitrione should he beat Cheick Kongo. I think Mitrione would be best, as a fight between those two would actually move someone up the heavyweight ladder, whereas the other two are more water treading fights for has beens or guys the UFC want to push by beating recognizable names. Based on his performance on Saturday, Browne needs a real fight against another prospect to determine how much skill he really has and not an easy win over a name to push him into the title picture (hello, Brendan Schaub!).
Mark Hunt: Hunt somehow lasted through all three rounds and won a decision over Ben Rothwell in a fight that should have been stopped when Big Ben had to be carried to his corner between rounds because he was so gassed he couldn’t move. If you can’t walk to your corner on your own free will, you’re done and the fight should be over. I digress, however. Hunt somehow ended up being the guy with better cardio and improved his record to 7-7. He is not a contender and so he shouldn’t be treated as such. I think that he should fight the winner of Roy Nelson-Mirko Cro Cop. If it’s Nelson, it lets two fat guys have another slugfest that I think Hunt has enough power to win by knockout or Nelson could get to the ground and win by submission. If it is Cro Cop, it gives Mirko the chance to avenge his losses to Hunt in K-1 and PRIDE. Another option is putting him in against Brendan Schaub, as he is a slow moving enough target for Schaub to pick at and re-establish himself against. He also has enough punching power to test Schaub’s chin and make him learn some striking defense.
Matt Hughes: Retirement, like it should have been after BJ Penn blasted him last year. Despite Rogan and Goldie raving about Hughes’ improved striking and how he was taking it to Koscheck fight, there was no improvement and Hughes is still owner of some of the worst striking I have ever seen. It’s Jake Shields level terrible. Hughes was wobbly the whole round against Koscheck and couldn’t really block any strikes, nor absorb them particularly well. He was not particularly competitive in the fight and really should not do this anymore. There’s no shame in losing to Koscheck, a man whose last fight was for the title, but its clear that Hughes just doesn’t have “it” anymore.
Josh Koscheck: He didn’t get a lot of love from the announce crew, but Kos looked pretty good coming in after an injury layoff and on two weeks notice. Granted it was against someone he should beat, but he did it efficiently and without a scratch. More surprising was how gracious he was in his post-fight interview, a rarity for him that deserves a mention. He’s in a weird position in the division, as he is now a gatekeeper. He would have to crush some people to get another title shot and even then I wouldn’t give him much of a shot against GSP. Unless he is moving up in weight like he suggested, I think that if both GSP and BJ Penn win at UFC 137 that he should go against Penn. Otherwise, a match with Thiago Alves might make sense. It would pit two top ten guys who aren’t really near a title shot against each other in a rematch of a fight where Kos came in on short notice and lost a decision a few years ago.
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson: Rampage showed some decent striking defense and takedown defense against Jones, but that was about it. He didn’t really land any significant strikes and proved to be too slow and short of range to compete against the champ. He requested Shogun Rua for the UFC’s Japan card early next year, and I’m inclined to go for that fight. If Shogun doesn’t get hurt against Hendo in November, then the UFC should go with it. It’s a nice PRIDE throwback for the Japanese fans and would be a thrilling slugfest. Win or lose for Rua, they should do this fight because I would not give Shogun a chance in a rematch against Jones if they were to lock up again in the next year. If Shogun is unavailable, I think a fight with Rich Franklin or Little Nogueira would be the best, as they all like to mix it up and throw strikes. Rampage’s style is based on brawling and he hasn’t been against anyone that showcases that skill since he fought Jardine two years ago. Part of this is Jackson’s fault for being stagnant and too slow at this stage to force brawls, but part of it is that the UFC has put him up against guys who lay and pray (Rashad, Matt Hamill) or use distance and counterpunching (machida and Jones). Rampage needs a brawl to resolidify himself in the eyes of fans, as a pay per view draw for the company, and regain the luster he had from knocking out Liddell and Wanderlei.
Jon Jones: Jonny Bones turned in an efficient, workmanlike performance in his dominating win over Rampage. Still, despite what Rogan and Goldie were saying, it was not a perfect win by any means. On the positive front, he combined the strategies used by Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans to win. He used leg kicks to cripple Rampage’s lead leg and clinch grappling to tire him out. He also used his superior range and speed to avoid any damaging blows. It was a victory that was on par with GSP’s one sided beating of BJ Penn a few years back. Now that I think of it, I am going to write something up in the next week or two comparing that fight with the Jones one. Now, for the negative.
For starters, it was not “flawless” like Rogan gushed or “Anderson Silva like,” as Goldie put it. Rampage managed to avoid a lot of Jones’ strikes and blocked a lot of the headkicks that Rogan was going nuts over. Rampage also stuffed all but two takedowns. If he wasn’t so slow and lacking in range, he could have punished Jones for these things. As for the Silva comparison, its absurd. Silva’s striking may as well be laser guided, its so precise and deadly. Jones has very good and unique striking, but it isn’t on par with that of Anderson’s. No one’s is. Also, Jones turned his back and ran away from more than one exchange and Silva doesn’t do that. Running is weak, and the announcers never even called him on it. Second, Jones fights cheap. In the first round, he kneed Rampage in the nuts twice and neither he nor the ref stopped. At the end of the third, he and Rampage were tangled up and Jones tossed him to the mat a couple of seconds after the bell rang. Goldie called it a “diss;” I call it cheating. He also threw push kicks to the knee cap, which are legal but dickish (even when Anderson does them, I don’t approve).
Part of the reason Jones is so dominant, a large part really, is that he is huge for a light heavyweight. I’m not going to get into detail here, as my brother already did so in an excellent blog post earlier this week. I’m just going to use it as a segue into his next opponent, which has already been announced as Rashad Evans. He is going to use that massive advantage in conjunction with Greg Jackson’s game planning and experience training Rashad to beat a hole into him. Rashad may be fast enough to avoid some of the things that got Rampage and Shogun into trouble, but he is not big or strong enough to stop Jones. Lyoto Machida has the best chance to do so, as he is really the only fighter in the division that can force Jones to fight his style and not the way that Jonny Bones would like to.
That does it for this post. UFC 136 is in 10 days (!?!?). Expect predictions soon, as well as a couple of other posts I have done or will have done soon.
It started early, when Gomi winged a hook and slipped on the mat and fell, without a blow even coming near him. Rogan then proceeded to yell, “he’s rocked!” even though it was just a slip. There was more in this fight, which I’ll get to when I discuss Nate Diaz. During the Mark Hunt-Ben Rothwell tilt, Rogan lost his mind over a gassed Hunt putting an armbar on a gassed Rothwell like it was Nogueira submitting Bob Sapp. Then, while both men wheezed their way through limp punches and tired takedowns, Goldie and Rogan talked it up like it was the fight of the year. Their commentary during Jones-Jackson was also dreadful, as even though Jones was impressive, they made him out to be the lovechild of Thor and Anderson Silva. More on this in the Jones part of this entry. So now, lets get to it.
Nate Diaz: Diaz looked great in his return to the lightweight division, absolutely wrecking Gomi. I can’t tell if that was due to Diaz really improving that much since I last saw him or the fact that he had a huge reach advantage and Gomi has essentially been done as a fighter for years. Either way, his striking was crisp and his grappling looked good as well. These things have never been his problem. That would be defending the takedown and stopping wrestlers. This fight didn’t show if he has improved in that way. He is probably a fringe top 10 lightweight and a match with a top 10 fighter like Jim Miller could go a long ways towards determining whether or not Diaz should be in the title hunt in the next year or two. Right now he is behind Melvin Guillard and the winner of Ben Henderson-Clay Guida, as well as Strikeforce’s Gilbert Melendez, so a Miller fight would really establish him in the contender bracket.
Travis Browne: Browne looked utterly unimpressive in a win over the unknown Rob Broughton. Prior to the fight, he was receiving the Zuffa hype as someone to watch. Instead, he showed the massive gulf between the top of the division and everyone else. He is clearly not ready for anyone of actual importance (and I would argue that was obvious in his prior fights with Struve and Kongo as well), so I would say either set him up against the winner of Roy Nelson-Mirko Cro Cop, Mark Hunt, or Matt Mitrione should he beat Cheick Kongo. I think Mitrione would be best, as a fight between those two would actually move someone up the heavyweight ladder, whereas the other two are more water treading fights for has beens or guys the UFC want to push by beating recognizable names. Based on his performance on Saturday, Browne needs a real fight against another prospect to determine how much skill he really has and not an easy win over a name to push him into the title picture (hello, Brendan Schaub!).
Mark Hunt: Hunt somehow lasted through all three rounds and won a decision over Ben Rothwell in a fight that should have been stopped when Big Ben had to be carried to his corner between rounds because he was so gassed he couldn’t move. If you can’t walk to your corner on your own free will, you’re done and the fight should be over. I digress, however. Hunt somehow ended up being the guy with better cardio and improved his record to 7-7. He is not a contender and so he shouldn’t be treated as such. I think that he should fight the winner of Roy Nelson-Mirko Cro Cop. If it’s Nelson, it lets two fat guys have another slugfest that I think Hunt has enough power to win by knockout or Nelson could get to the ground and win by submission. If it is Cro Cop, it gives Mirko the chance to avenge his losses to Hunt in K-1 and PRIDE. Another option is putting him in against Brendan Schaub, as he is a slow moving enough target for Schaub to pick at and re-establish himself against. He also has enough punching power to test Schaub’s chin and make him learn some striking defense.
Matt Hughes: Retirement, like it should have been after BJ Penn blasted him last year. Despite Rogan and Goldie raving about Hughes’ improved striking and how he was taking it to Koscheck fight, there was no improvement and Hughes is still owner of some of the worst striking I have ever seen. It’s Jake Shields level terrible. Hughes was wobbly the whole round against Koscheck and couldn’t really block any strikes, nor absorb them particularly well. He was not particularly competitive in the fight and really should not do this anymore. There’s no shame in losing to Koscheck, a man whose last fight was for the title, but its clear that Hughes just doesn’t have “it” anymore.
Josh Koscheck: He didn’t get a lot of love from the announce crew, but Kos looked pretty good coming in after an injury layoff and on two weeks notice. Granted it was against someone he should beat, but he did it efficiently and without a scratch. More surprising was how gracious he was in his post-fight interview, a rarity for him that deserves a mention. He’s in a weird position in the division, as he is now a gatekeeper. He would have to crush some people to get another title shot and even then I wouldn’t give him much of a shot against GSP. Unless he is moving up in weight like he suggested, I think that if both GSP and BJ Penn win at UFC 137 that he should go against Penn. Otherwise, a match with Thiago Alves might make sense. It would pit two top ten guys who aren’t really near a title shot against each other in a rematch of a fight where Kos came in on short notice and lost a decision a few years ago.
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson: Rampage showed some decent striking defense and takedown defense against Jones, but that was about it. He didn’t really land any significant strikes and proved to be too slow and short of range to compete against the champ. He requested Shogun Rua for the UFC’s Japan card early next year, and I’m inclined to go for that fight. If Shogun doesn’t get hurt against Hendo in November, then the UFC should go with it. It’s a nice PRIDE throwback for the Japanese fans and would be a thrilling slugfest. Win or lose for Rua, they should do this fight because I would not give Shogun a chance in a rematch against Jones if they were to lock up again in the next year. If Shogun is unavailable, I think a fight with Rich Franklin or Little Nogueira would be the best, as they all like to mix it up and throw strikes. Rampage’s style is based on brawling and he hasn’t been against anyone that showcases that skill since he fought Jardine two years ago. Part of this is Jackson’s fault for being stagnant and too slow at this stage to force brawls, but part of it is that the UFC has put him up against guys who lay and pray (Rashad, Matt Hamill) or use distance and counterpunching (machida and Jones). Rampage needs a brawl to resolidify himself in the eyes of fans, as a pay per view draw for the company, and regain the luster he had from knocking out Liddell and Wanderlei.
Jon Jones: Jonny Bones turned in an efficient, workmanlike performance in his dominating win over Rampage. Still, despite what Rogan and Goldie were saying, it was not a perfect win by any means. On the positive front, he combined the strategies used by Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans to win. He used leg kicks to cripple Rampage’s lead leg and clinch grappling to tire him out. He also used his superior range and speed to avoid any damaging blows. It was a victory that was on par with GSP’s one sided beating of BJ Penn a few years back. Now that I think of it, I am going to write something up in the next week or two comparing that fight with the Jones one. Now, for the negative.
For starters, it was not “flawless” like Rogan gushed or “Anderson Silva like,” as Goldie put it. Rampage managed to avoid a lot of Jones’ strikes and blocked a lot of the headkicks that Rogan was going nuts over. Rampage also stuffed all but two takedowns. If he wasn’t so slow and lacking in range, he could have punished Jones for these things. As for the Silva comparison, its absurd. Silva’s striking may as well be laser guided, its so precise and deadly. Jones has very good and unique striking, but it isn’t on par with that of Anderson’s. No one’s is. Also, Jones turned his back and ran away from more than one exchange and Silva doesn’t do that. Running is weak, and the announcers never even called him on it. Second, Jones fights cheap. In the first round, he kneed Rampage in the nuts twice and neither he nor the ref stopped. At the end of the third, he and Rampage were tangled up and Jones tossed him to the mat a couple of seconds after the bell rang. Goldie called it a “diss;” I call it cheating. He also threw push kicks to the knee cap, which are legal but dickish (even when Anderson does them, I don’t approve).
Part of the reason Jones is so dominant, a large part really, is that he is huge for a light heavyweight. I’m not going to get into detail here, as my brother already did so in an excellent blog post earlier this week. I’m just going to use it as a segue into his next opponent, which has already been announced as Rashad Evans. He is going to use that massive advantage in conjunction with Greg Jackson’s game planning and experience training Rashad to beat a hole into him. Rashad may be fast enough to avoid some of the things that got Rampage and Shogun into trouble, but he is not big or strong enough to stop Jones. Lyoto Machida has the best chance to do so, as he is really the only fighter in the division that can force Jones to fight his style and not the way that Jonny Bones would like to.
That does it for this post. UFC 136 is in 10 days (!?!?). Expect predictions soon, as well as a couple of other posts I have done or will have done soon.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
UFC 134 Thoughts, Where Do We Go From Here?
UFC 134 was a huge success for the world’s premier MMA organization. Featuring a raucous Brazilian crowd and a main card in which nearly every fight featured a finish, the night provided one of the most exciting UFC events this year. PRIDE vets Minotauro Nogueira and Shogun Rua reminded fans of their glory days, while Anderson Silva continued to show that he fights on a level that no one else can even see, much less reach. Without rambling too much, I’m just going to delve into what I think should come next for some of the fighters on the card and my thoughts on the fight they just had.
Brendan Schaub: The Nogueira fight exposed Schaub for what he is - a very green prospect that can’t fight when he is pressured. In the early goings of the fight, he did well when he was the one forcing the action, wobbling and stunning Minotauro. However once Nogueira stalked him and started to unload, Schaub went down hard. His lack of basic striking defense and a questionable chin have now made his presumed path up the heavyweight rankings more of an “if” than a “when.” I mean, this was only the third knockout win of Big Nog’s career; he is not known as a power puncher. This loss should move Schaub further down the card, where I would expect him to fight Roy Nelson if Nelson loses to Cro Cop. The loser of Cheick Kongo and Matt Mitrione is also a possibility.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: Big Nog turned back time and provided the real emotional highlight of the night. Nogueira, despite looking a bit heavy and moving sluggishly, was able to whip the hometown crowd into a frenzy with his knockout of Schaub. As much as I would like this to be his last fight, as it provides a perfect final chapter in his storied career by winning in his first fight in Brazil, he still has a few interesting fights left. I would put him up against the winner of Cro Cop and Nelson, as a Cro Cop rematch would be a neat nostalgia fight and Roy Nelson is only dangerous if he lands a bomb early in a fight. More importantly, a fight with either man keeps Nogueira away from being on the receiving end of another brutal knockout. If his ability to walk through some of Schaubs’ punches was not an aberration, there are two fights that could be made. A match with the winner of Mitrione and Kongo could set him up for a contender’s fight sometime next year, or a rematch with Frank Mir could set up either man for the next title shot against Velasquez-Dos Santos. Potential fights with Overeeem and Lesnar are also ideas, but at this stage in his career he could get creamed by Overeem and a Lesnar fight is truly a toss-up. Not to continue rambling, but I think the Nelson-Cro Cop winner is the best option. I love Nogueira, but he needs to win a few fights to show that he is recovered from his injuries. Still, with a 4-2 mark in the UFC, it wouldn’t surprise me if he was pushed into the title picture one more time.
Forrest Griffin: Retirement. Forrest did not look good at all in losing to Shogun Rua, in terms of performance or effort. He took a nice punch to the face and when he shot for a takedown, just kind of got pushed over and mauled. He didn’t try to stop it. In his last two fights now, Forrest has looked lethargic and tentative. He also has looked like he has no desire to be fighting. Typically, Forrest has some kind of emotional reaction after getting pounded, but it didn’t really seem like he cared either way that he was pasted by Shogun. The combination of all of these things is dangerous to his health. What’s the point of fighting if you no longer have it in you? For years, tenacity and desire were the hallmarks of his style and with those traits missing, Forrest has nothing to offer in the Octagon. He doesn’t need money and has a successful career as an author, he might as well just hang them up. If he decides to continue, I don’t really know who he should face. He can’t beat top ten level fighters anymore and I have no real interest (and would hope Forrest doesn’t either) in seeing someone like Alexander Gustaffson shoot up the rankings by beating the snot out of him.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua: Shogun showed why he was always considered a top flight light heavyweight by finishing Griffin quickly. For years, Shogun Rua has had the best finishing instincts of any fighter in MMA. If he senses you’re hurt, he pounces and he finishes. This finish was impressive due to the fact that he is still clearly not 100% and may never be. His footwork and movement was not good, and his feared leg kicks never came in to play. For the reason of his knees, he may never again reach a title shot. He would have a very tough time defeating a Jon Jones or Rashad Evans, or even Phil Davis, since his balky knees would make sprawling and takedown defense damn nigh impossible. That’s why he should fight some people who are not primarily grapplers. If Rampage Jackson loses to Jon Jones, he would be an ideal opponent for Shogun. So would Dan Henderson, as although Hendo is a wrestler he is not afraid to stand and trade punches for three rounds. I personally would like to see him fight Rogerio Nogueira, as Little Nog has been stuck facing lay and pray guys like Ryan Bader and this would give fans the opportunity to see why signing Rogerio to the UFC was a big deal. Plus, it would be a rematch of their classic 2005 fight, my favorite match of all-time. Regardless, I think that if Rampage wins against Jones, you do Hendo vs Rua on the UFC’s Fox debut for number one contender after Rashad Evans. If Rampage loses, that is the fight to make for early next year.
Yushin Okami: Okami was tooled hard by Anderson Silva and basically showed why he wasn’t given a title shot earlier. His only offense was a first round clinch where he ate more knees to the body while landing a few weak uppercuts. After receiving a head kick and knee to the chest to end the first round, Okami was done. The second round consisted of him getting floored by a jab (twice!) while Silva taunted him in the hopes of getting Okami to swing. Okami didn’t swing and stood there terrified until Silva finally put him out of his misery. He now gets to be the Jon Fitch of the middleweight division, only not as good. If I had to match him up with someone, I would hold onto him until early next year for the UFC’s rumored trip to Japan and put him up against Wanderlei Silva. He is of no threat to Silva’s considerably weakened chin and it would be a throwback to the PRIDE fights of Wand versus some random Japanese dude. Besides, it isn’t like either man is going to be contending again anytime soon. Silva, because he’s done as a title contender and Okami because he can’t be beating potential contenders in boring fashion with no chance of getting another title shot while Anderson reigns supreme at 185 lbs.
Anderson Silva: The Spider only furthered his legacy as the greatest of all time by humiliating Okami. Having the opportunity to watch someone like Silva, who is so fluid and graceful and natural with everything he does, is a real treat for a fight fan. He is on a whole different level of existence as a mixed martial artist. I cannot overstate this enough. Prior to this fight, Okami had only been finished once. He took Okami’s best option (the clinch) and withstood it easily to the point of breaking Okami’s will. This was only furthered in the second round when he put his hands to his side, avoided punches with simple head movements, and floored Yushin with a jab. I guess he fights the winner of the upcoming Brian Stann-Chael Sonnen fight, but is there really any doubt that Anderson will knock out or submit Stann (who is a decent striker with average ground abilities) or finish Sonnen again? Other than that, there’s Mark Munoz and Chris Leben, and neither of those guys stand a chance. Belfort’s destruction is too recent. There’s Dan Henderson, but Silva beat him decisively once already and Hendo is much more competitive as an undersized light heavyweight than he is at middleweight. I think Silva has one more fight that he needs to do before he should just retire as the sport’s most dominant fighter ever and that is GSP at a catchweight. They are the two most dominant men in the sport and have both cleared out their divisions, Anderson more than GSP (who still has Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit left). They are also the two biggest global stars in the UFC, with GSP a god in North America and Silva becoming a huge name in Brazil and the rest of South America over the course of the past year. There is no better time than right now to do this fight and once GSP wins a lackluster decision over Diaz, the UFC has no choice but to pull the trigger on this. Who else would fans be interested in seeing GSP face off against? And who else could believably stand a chance against Silva? Even if I think Silva would crush him, there’s enough intrigue in the two squaring off that I wouldn’t put it past GSP to defy the odds and win. So, I’ve already rambled enough here. It’s time for GSP or bust.
Any thoughts, comments, whatever? Feel free to leave them on facebook or the comment page here.
Brendan Schaub: The Nogueira fight exposed Schaub for what he is - a very green prospect that can’t fight when he is pressured. In the early goings of the fight, he did well when he was the one forcing the action, wobbling and stunning Minotauro. However once Nogueira stalked him and started to unload, Schaub went down hard. His lack of basic striking defense and a questionable chin have now made his presumed path up the heavyweight rankings more of an “if” than a “when.” I mean, this was only the third knockout win of Big Nog’s career; he is not known as a power puncher. This loss should move Schaub further down the card, where I would expect him to fight Roy Nelson if Nelson loses to Cro Cop. The loser of Cheick Kongo and Matt Mitrione is also a possibility.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: Big Nog turned back time and provided the real emotional highlight of the night. Nogueira, despite looking a bit heavy and moving sluggishly, was able to whip the hometown crowd into a frenzy with his knockout of Schaub. As much as I would like this to be his last fight, as it provides a perfect final chapter in his storied career by winning in his first fight in Brazil, he still has a few interesting fights left. I would put him up against the winner of Cro Cop and Nelson, as a Cro Cop rematch would be a neat nostalgia fight and Roy Nelson is only dangerous if he lands a bomb early in a fight. More importantly, a fight with either man keeps Nogueira away from being on the receiving end of another brutal knockout. If his ability to walk through some of Schaubs’ punches was not an aberration, there are two fights that could be made. A match with the winner of Mitrione and Kongo could set him up for a contender’s fight sometime next year, or a rematch with Frank Mir could set up either man for the next title shot against Velasquez-Dos Santos. Potential fights with Overeeem and Lesnar are also ideas, but at this stage in his career he could get creamed by Overeem and a Lesnar fight is truly a toss-up. Not to continue rambling, but I think the Nelson-Cro Cop winner is the best option. I love Nogueira, but he needs to win a few fights to show that he is recovered from his injuries. Still, with a 4-2 mark in the UFC, it wouldn’t surprise me if he was pushed into the title picture one more time.
Forrest Griffin: Retirement. Forrest did not look good at all in losing to Shogun Rua, in terms of performance or effort. He took a nice punch to the face and when he shot for a takedown, just kind of got pushed over and mauled. He didn’t try to stop it. In his last two fights now, Forrest has looked lethargic and tentative. He also has looked like he has no desire to be fighting. Typically, Forrest has some kind of emotional reaction after getting pounded, but it didn’t really seem like he cared either way that he was pasted by Shogun. The combination of all of these things is dangerous to his health. What’s the point of fighting if you no longer have it in you? For years, tenacity and desire were the hallmarks of his style and with those traits missing, Forrest has nothing to offer in the Octagon. He doesn’t need money and has a successful career as an author, he might as well just hang them up. If he decides to continue, I don’t really know who he should face. He can’t beat top ten level fighters anymore and I have no real interest (and would hope Forrest doesn’t either) in seeing someone like Alexander Gustaffson shoot up the rankings by beating the snot out of him.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua: Shogun showed why he was always considered a top flight light heavyweight by finishing Griffin quickly. For years, Shogun Rua has had the best finishing instincts of any fighter in MMA. If he senses you’re hurt, he pounces and he finishes. This finish was impressive due to the fact that he is still clearly not 100% and may never be. His footwork and movement was not good, and his feared leg kicks never came in to play. For the reason of his knees, he may never again reach a title shot. He would have a very tough time defeating a Jon Jones or Rashad Evans, or even Phil Davis, since his balky knees would make sprawling and takedown defense damn nigh impossible. That’s why he should fight some people who are not primarily grapplers. If Rampage Jackson loses to Jon Jones, he would be an ideal opponent for Shogun. So would Dan Henderson, as although Hendo is a wrestler he is not afraid to stand and trade punches for three rounds. I personally would like to see him fight Rogerio Nogueira, as Little Nog has been stuck facing lay and pray guys like Ryan Bader and this would give fans the opportunity to see why signing Rogerio to the UFC was a big deal. Plus, it would be a rematch of their classic 2005 fight, my favorite match of all-time. Regardless, I think that if Rampage wins against Jones, you do Hendo vs Rua on the UFC’s Fox debut for number one contender after Rashad Evans. If Rampage loses, that is the fight to make for early next year.
Yushin Okami: Okami was tooled hard by Anderson Silva and basically showed why he wasn’t given a title shot earlier. His only offense was a first round clinch where he ate more knees to the body while landing a few weak uppercuts. After receiving a head kick and knee to the chest to end the first round, Okami was done. The second round consisted of him getting floored by a jab (twice!) while Silva taunted him in the hopes of getting Okami to swing. Okami didn’t swing and stood there terrified until Silva finally put him out of his misery. He now gets to be the Jon Fitch of the middleweight division, only not as good. If I had to match him up with someone, I would hold onto him until early next year for the UFC’s rumored trip to Japan and put him up against Wanderlei Silva. He is of no threat to Silva’s considerably weakened chin and it would be a throwback to the PRIDE fights of Wand versus some random Japanese dude. Besides, it isn’t like either man is going to be contending again anytime soon. Silva, because he’s done as a title contender and Okami because he can’t be beating potential contenders in boring fashion with no chance of getting another title shot while Anderson reigns supreme at 185 lbs.
Anderson Silva: The Spider only furthered his legacy as the greatest of all time by humiliating Okami. Having the opportunity to watch someone like Silva, who is so fluid and graceful and natural with everything he does, is a real treat for a fight fan. He is on a whole different level of existence as a mixed martial artist. I cannot overstate this enough. Prior to this fight, Okami had only been finished once. He took Okami’s best option (the clinch) and withstood it easily to the point of breaking Okami’s will. This was only furthered in the second round when he put his hands to his side, avoided punches with simple head movements, and floored Yushin with a jab. I guess he fights the winner of the upcoming Brian Stann-Chael Sonnen fight, but is there really any doubt that Anderson will knock out or submit Stann (who is a decent striker with average ground abilities) or finish Sonnen again? Other than that, there’s Mark Munoz and Chris Leben, and neither of those guys stand a chance. Belfort’s destruction is too recent. There’s Dan Henderson, but Silva beat him decisively once already and Hendo is much more competitive as an undersized light heavyweight than he is at middleweight. I think Silva has one more fight that he needs to do before he should just retire as the sport’s most dominant fighter ever and that is GSP at a catchweight. They are the two most dominant men in the sport and have both cleared out their divisions, Anderson more than GSP (who still has Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit left). They are also the two biggest global stars in the UFC, with GSP a god in North America and Silva becoming a huge name in Brazil and the rest of South America over the course of the past year. There is no better time than right now to do this fight and once GSP wins a lackluster decision over Diaz, the UFC has no choice but to pull the trigger on this. Who else would fans be interested in seeing GSP face off against? And who else could believably stand a chance against Silva? Even if I think Silva would crush him, there’s enough intrigue in the two squaring off that I wouldn’t put it past GSP to defy the odds and win. So, I’ve already rambled enough here. It’s time for GSP or bust.
Any thoughts, comments, whatever? Feel free to leave them on facebook or the comment page here.
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