Intellectual Poison

Not much chit-chat for now, here are my picks for tonight's UFC 110 fights.

Big Nog over Cain
Silva over Bisping
Sotiropolous over Stevenson
Bader over Jardine
Cro Cop over Perosh
Soszynski over Bonnar
Lytle over Foster
Reljic over Dollaway
Pokrajac over Te Huna

Not taking too many risks with picks tonight. Maybe taking Silva over Bisping is a risky call since Silva's lost three of his last four. But I think Silva's going to be just too damned much for the mouthy Brit.

Fight of the Night will likely be Lytle and Foster but might end up being Cain and Big Nog.
Submission of the Night will likely be Sotiropolous and Stevenson.
Knockout of the Night will be Silva and Bisping.

Either way, it should be a pretty decent night of fights. I'm most looking forward to Bader/Jardine, Lytle/Foster and Silva/Bisping with Big Nog/Cain a close fourth.

Labels: mma, prediction, predictions, UFC

Yessirreebob, it is that time again. Another weekend of UFC mixed martial arts awesomeness on tap for tomorrow night and then, hoodoggy!, the Super Bowl on Sunday. Add in a holiday for me on Monday and this is already shaping up to be a pretty darned good weekend!

But, as is my custom, I am posting my predictions for tomorrow night's fights (nicknamed the Geezers at Ceaser's given the age of the main event fighters, Randy Couture and Mark Coleman).

Couture vs. Coleman
Prediction: Couture by TKO in the 3rd.

Marquardt vs. Sonnen
Prediction: Marquardt by KO in the 1st.

Swick vs. Thiago
Prediction: Swick by TKO in the 2nd.
This fight is my early favorite for fight of the night.

Maia vs. Miller
Prediction: Maia by Submission in 1st.

Serra vs. Trigg
Prediction: Serra by Submission in the 3rd.
I hope Serra kicks his ass kicked but I don't see it happening.

Danzig vs. Buchholz
Prediction: Buchholz by Unanimous Decision.

Guillard vs. Torres
Prediction: Torres by TKO in the 2nd.

Nover vs. Emerson
Prediction: Nover by Submission in the 3rd.

Stann vs. Davis
Prediction: Davis by Unanimous Decision.

Hague vs. Tuchscherer
Prediction: Hague by KO in th 1st.

Gracie vs. Beltran
Prediction: TKO by Gracie in the 3rd.

Fight of the Night: Swick vs. Thiago.
Submission of the Night: Demian Maia.
Knockout of the Night: Nate Marquardt.

There now, that wasn't so hard. By the way these are the same picks I submitted in the UFC Fantasy game. I've been hovering just outside the top 100 out of around 20,000 players and expect this time I'll break into the double digits.

Update: So how'd I do? Not so well given the several upsets on fight night. But let's take a look at the scorecard.

Looks like I pulled an unimpressive 4-11 on the night. With Sonnen kicking Marquardt's ass, Thiago choking out Swick and Nover dropping his fight by decision, I got soundly thrashed. Oh well, lucky I didn't have money on the line. I will be better next time!

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

Some good fights coming up in the next couple of days with the WEC fights tonight and then a UFC Fight Night on Monday.

Not too much time to put too much into this one since we're supposed to be getting ready to go check out the Cyclocross races in Aptos.

Here we go.
Maynard over Diaz
Escudero over Dunham
Lawlor over Simpson
Sadollah over Blackburn
Leben over Silva (looking forward to seeing Leben back in action)
Lennox over Story
Tavares over Lentz
MacDonald over Guymon
Bradley over Dos Anjos (love the square hair, Raf)
Harris over Salter
Forbes over Catone

Fight of the Night to Maynard vs Diaz
Submission of the Night to Sadollah
Knockout of the Night to Lawlor

Check back to see how my calls go.

Labels: mma, prediction, predictions, UFC

Time to put my money where my mouth is, make my UFC 107 predictions public and see how I do after tonight's outstanding fight card is run.

Televised Bouts
BJ Penn vs. Diego Sanchez
Prediction: Penn
Reason: Sanchez is an animal and comes with a furious power but Penn is the kingpin in the lightweight division. I think this is going to be a great fight but I'm going with the champ.

Frank Mir vs. Cheick Kongo
Prediction: Mir
Reason: Kongo is pissed off at remarks Mir's said recently, he's going to come with some anger. But I think the basic fact is that Mir's jits is far better than Kongo's jits defense. I see a choke out or arm bar in this one.

Jon Fitch vs. Mike Pierce
Prediction: Fitch
Reason: Don't know Pierce but I do know Fitch and he is one of the toughest sumbitches in the fight game. He brings his A-game each time he fights and his A-game is pretty damned good.

Kenny Florian vs. Clay Guida
Prediction: Florian
Reason: I like Guida, everybody likes Guida but Florian is the better fighter. Period. Aside from Penn above, I think Florian is the class of the weight class.

Paul Buentello vs. Stefan Struve
Prediction: Struve

Preliminary Bouts
Alan Belcher vs. Wilson Gouveia
Prediction: Gouveia

Matt Wiman vs. Shane Nelson
Prediction: Nelson

Johny Hendricks vs. Ricardo Funch
Prediction: Hendricks

Rousimar Palhares vs. Lucio Linhares
Prediction: Palhares

DeMarques Johnson vs. Edgar Garcia
Prediction: Garcia

Kevin Burns vs. TJ Grant
Prediction: Burns

Update: I went 7-11 on my picks this time around and scored 173 points in the UFC Fantasy picks which was good enough for 112th place out of more than 20,000. Not too bad. And the fights were very, very good action almost all the way through the night. I wonder how Diego Sanchez's face is feeling today because looking at it post fight made me cringe.

Labels: mma, prediction, predictions, UFC

Another week, another UFC fight night. Tonight's fights feature one helluva a good car even without Brock Lesnar defending his belt against Shane Carwin. Now Brock Lesnar's fighting future is in jeopardy as he fights an intestinal disorder.

So here we go. Reasons given where I feel like it.

Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin
Prediction: Forrest by TKO
Reason: Call it ring rust, call it age catching up, I just don't think Tito's got "it" anymore where Forrest has been fighting some of the best fighters in the game. Besides, I think Tito's an asshole and don't want him to win.

Anthony "Rumble" Johnson vs. Josh "Kos" Koscheck
Prediction: Johnson by TKO
Reason: This fight could go either way as both are dynamic, strong, fast and powerful. But I think Rumble is going to out dynamic Kos. Should be a very, very fast and balls out fight.

Luis Cane vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Prediction: Cane by TKO
Reason: Cane is a scary sumbitch. Nogueira is no pushover but Cane's star is going up and I think he's going to use a TKO win over Nogueira to push his name into the title contention ring.

Phil Baroni vs. Amir Sadollah
Prediction: Sadollah by Submission
Reason: I make no bones about the fact I think Baroni is a clown. Yes, he's a decorated fighter and all but his flash and posturing is writing checks I don't think his skills are capable of cashing anymore. I think Amir is looking to get back on the winning streak and should pull it out tonight.

Paulo Thiago vs. Jacob Volkmann
Prediction: Thiago by TKO
Reason: Thiago is fast and dangerous and he looks meaner than a rattlesnake. I don't know Volkmann at all but I'm going to go with the known here.

Marcus Davis vs. Ben Saunders
Prediction: Davis by TKO
Reason: This is the hardest fight of the night for me to pick. I really like both fighters quite alot. Marcus Davis is an outstanding striker and Ben Saunders has great skills as well as alot of charisma. I'd just as soon neither of them lose but I'm going to go with experience over youth in this one and take Davis.

Kendall Grove vs. Jake Rosholt
Prediction: Grove by Decision
Reason: Grove is rising but Rosholt is going to be a very tough test for him. Another fight that could go either way.

Brian Foster vs. Brock Larson
Prediction: Larson by TKO

Fabricio Camoes vs. Caol Uno
Prediction: Uno by Decision

George Sotiropoulos vs. Jason Dent
Prediction: Sotiropolous by TKO

New feature of my predictions, I'm going to try and call the three awards as well.
Fight of the Night - Johnson vs. Koscheck
Knockout of the Night - Thiago over Volkman
Submmission of the Night - Sadollah over Baroni

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

Quick and ugly, here we go.

Couture over Vera, Swick over Hardy, Kang over Bisping, Brown over Wilkes, Pearson over Riley, Taylor over Hathaway, Etim over Gugerty, Osipczak over Riddle, Kelly over Silver, Gustafsson over Hamman, Winner over Delgado.

On the Bisping fight, I just want to see him lose some more. He's a douchebag, I like it when douchebags lose. And I like it when good guys like Randy Couture keep defying his age and win. That said, I see Vera making this a very, very tough fight.

And there are going to be some wicked fireworks in the Swick/Hardy fight. Both guys are fast with power. It might be over very quickly or it might become a slugfest battle royale.

Looking forward to chilling with some pals and watching the action later tonight and am trying not to see the spoilers!

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

I'm looking forward to this Saturday's UFC 104 tilt. Some great fights are on tap with Lyoto Machida leading the pack with a very tough opponent in Mauricio Rua. There are also some very interesting stylistic clash matches on tap as well (Bader vs. Schafer leaping out as one). There are also four fighters with perfect undefeated records putting them on the line (Machida, Velasquez, Bader and Gormley). Plus, as if you needed more awesome to seal the deal, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson is on the card and he's one of the most dynamic, fast and rising fighters in the game today. It should be an outstanding night of fights. Below are my predictions for how the night will shape up.

Because I'm running late, I'm posting what I've got for picks without reasons in the last few fights.

Summary: Machida, Cain, Neer, Fisher, Johnson, Hardonk, Sonnen, Rivera, Bader and Al-Hassan.

Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua
Prediction: Machida by TKO in Round 3
Reason: Machida is crafty, intelligent, strong and knows when to strike. He has thus far been uncrackable by any opponent. Rua is a great fighter but I don't think he's going to be the one to figure out how to take out Machida.

Cain Velasquez vs. Ben Rothwell
Prediction: Velasquez by Unanimous Decision
Reason: A fight of big, big boys. One a wrestling phenom who's newer to the MMA scene in Velasquez and one a seasoned vet with a load of experience and alot of hunger.

Josh Neer vs. Gleison Tibau
Prediction: Neer by TKO in Round 2
Reason: Every fight I've seen of Josh Neer he's shown he's tough as nails and can never be counted out of any fight. I don't know Tibau too well but I'm going with Neer.

Joe Stevenson vs. Spencer Fisher
Prediction: Fisher by TKO in Round 3
Reason: Wow, this should be a great fight really. I'm not a big Joe Stevenson fan and I am a Spencer Fisher fan but both are good fighters and this should be a pretty dynamic fight.

Anthony Johnson vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida
Prediction: Anthony Johnson by TKO in Round 1
Reason: Johnson is one of the most exciting new fighters in the game

Preliminary Bouts:
Antoni Hardonk vs. Pat Barry
Prediction: Hardonk

Yushin Okami vs. Chael Sonnen
Prediction: Sonnen by submission (rear naked choke) in Round 2

Jorge Rivera vs. Rob Kimmons
Prediction: Rivera by Unanimous Decision

Ryan Bader vs. Eric "Red" Schafer
Prediction: Bader by TKO in Round 2

Kyle Kingsbury vs. Razak Al-Hassan
Prediction: Al-Hassan by TKO in Round 1

Update: I went 6 for 10 on my predictions which isn't too bad. There's an awful lot of controversy about Machida's win but these are the kinds of things that can happen if a fight is allowed to go to the judge's decision. I haven't seen it so I can't say one way or the other but many people who's opinions I respect and trust have said that Rua got robbed. But Dana White has already announced that there will be a rematch which should be epic!

Labels: predictions, UFC

Just finished doing my UFC: Ultimate Fighting Championship fantasy picks for tonight's event.

Short Summary: Franklin, Dos Santos, Kampmann, Kos, Griffin, Miller, Drwal, Miller, Oliveira, Story, Brilz, Matyushenko, dos Anjos.

Rich “Ace” Franklin vs. Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort
Prediction: Franklin by TKO in Round 2

Junior “Cigano” Dos Santos vs. Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic
Prediction: Dos Santos by TKO in Round 2

Martin “Hitman” Kampmann vs. Paul “Semtex” Daley
Prediction: Kampmann by TKO in Round 3

Josh “Kos” Koscheck vs. Frank “Twinkle Toes” Trigg
Prediction: Kos by Unanimous Decision

Hermes Franca vs. Tyson Griffin
Prediction: Griffin by Unanimous Decision

Efrain “Hecho en Mexico” Escudero vs. Cole “Magrino” Miller
Prediction: Miller by Submission in Round 2

Tomasz “The Gorilla” Drwal vs. Drew “The Massacre” McFedries
Prediction: Drwal by TKO in Round 1

Jim Miller vs. Steve Lopez
Prediction: Miller by Submission in Round 2

Rafaello “Tractor” Oliveira vs. Nick “The Carnie” Lentz
Prediction: Oliveira by Submission in Round 3

Brian Foster vs. Rick Story
Prediction: Story by Unanimous Decision

Eliot “The Fire” Marshall vs. Jason Brilz
Prediction: Brilz by TKO in Round 2

Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko vs. Igor Pokrajac
Prediction: Matyushenko by Unanimous Decision

Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rob “The Saint” Emerson
Prediction: Dos Anjos by TKO in Round 3

Update: I did pretty well in the fantasy league this time around scoring 172 points which was good for number 113 out of 18000 and change. And I picked 8 for 13 which is a bit above my average of just over 50%. It was a good night of fights too though there were a couple of questionable early stoppages.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

Contained herein are my predictions for tomorrow night's UFC 102 fights. Where I have strong feelings and/or knowledge I will provide my reasoning for making the prediction, if there's no reason then I'm going with either my gut or the bookies (likely the bookies).

265 lbs.: Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Prediction: Couture by decision
Reason: Couture is still going pretty strong and comes into fights both in the absolute best condition he can but also with a winning game plan. Time is catching up with Noqueria quickly.

205 lbs.: Keith Jardine vs. Thiago Silva
Prediction: Silva by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Jardine is tough as hell but Silva is a caged animal in the ring and I think his hyper-aggressive style is going to just be too much for Jardine to deal with.

185 lbs.: Nate Marquardt vs. Demian Maia
Prediction: Marquardt by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Maia is scary awesome on the ground but Marquardt's a cagey fighter who will have an answer to Maia's jiu jitsu. I think Nate will keep it off the mat and will wear him down with his better striking until Maia gets a little desperate and goes for a takedown when he'll get caught.

205 lbs.: Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Brandon Vera
Prediction: Vera by TKO Rd. 3
Reason: This fight will turn on how "on" Vera is. If he's on his game then Soszynski is going to have a very tough night. If he's off his game then Soszynski will pick him apart.

185 lbs.: Chris Leben vs. Jake Rosholt
Prediction: Rosholt by Submission Rd. 2
Reason: I like Chris Leben but he isn't evolving with the sport so much. He gets in the cage and throws fists and, sometimes, gets lucky with his heavy hands and knocks the other guy out. Rosholt is well aware of Leben's style and will have a plan to counteract it. He's got great wrestling and will use it to take Leben down and out.

185 lbs.: Ed Herman vs. Aaron Simpson
Prediction: Herman by Unanimous Decision
Reason: I don't know Aaron Simpson but I've seen a whole bunch of Ed Herman's fights. He's a tough dude with a good camp and a strong will to win. If he can do it, he will even if I tend to think Ed Herman, the person, is a bit of a douchebag.

265 lbs.: Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Prediction: Gonzaga by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Gonzaga's a monster, he's a great character who has big power, big skills and a will to win. I'm not familiar with Tuchscherer so we'll see what happens but I think Gonzaga's going to be fired up for this fight and he's like a pissed off bull.

265 lbs.: Mike Russow vs. Justin McCully
Prediction: Russow by Unanimous Decision

265 lbs.: Todd Duffee vs. Tim Hague
Prediction: Hague by TKO in Rd. 1

205 lbs.: Nick Catone vs. Mark Munoz
Prediction: Catone by Unanimous Decision

155 lbs.: Marcus Aurelio vs. Evan Dunham
Prediction: Aurelio by Unanimous Decision

So there we go. The rundown looks like this: Couture, Silva, Marquardt, Vera, Rosholt, Herman, Gonzaga, Russow, Hague, Catone and Aurelio. Check back to see how I ended up doing. And hey, if you're making predictions, leave a comment and I'll come and check yours out.

Update: I got 6 out of 11 fights correct on the winner and did quite well in the UFC Fantasy scoring in the top 100 (#90) with 167 points. Not bad but I would have been happier calling a few more fights the right way.

Labels: mma, UFC

BJ Penn vs. Kenny Florian
Prediction: Florian by TKO in Rd. 4
Reason: While I have great respect for BJ Penn and his natural talent, I think Kenny Florian is hungrier and has aggressively worked on every aspect of his game. Florian is the more complete fighter right now.

205 lbs.: Forrest Griffin vs. Anderson Silva
Prediction: Silva by Submission in Rd. 3
Reason: We all know why Forrest is being pitched against Silva. Forrest is going to fight him unlike Silva's last two opponents who wouldn't engage. Forrest is game and he works very, very hard to get in great shape but I think he's going to be over matched by an extremely talented striker in Silva. At least this fight won't be boring like Silva's last two.

170 lbs.: Amir Sadollah vs. Johny Hendricks
Prediction: Sadollah by Submission in Round 2
Reason: I don't know much about Hendricks but I do know a little about Amir Sadollah. He's a very tough, very game and very wily fighter who finds a way to win. He may be rusty but, if he can last through the first round, I expect he'll slip in a nice arm bar or guillotine choke for the win.

185 lbs.: Kendall Grove vs. Ricardo Almeida
Prediction: Almeida by TKO Rd. 3
Reason: Just taking the bookie's line on this one. I like Kendall and think he might end up pulling this out but the odds-makers are all pushing Almeida here and they usually know quite alot that I don't know.

155 lbs.: Kurt Pellegrino vs. Josh Neer
Prediction: Neer by Unanimous Decision
Reason: Josh Neer is a tough sumbitch, he's also experienced and unflappable. I don't give him too much of an edge over Pellegrino but I do give him an edge and think he'll pull out the win.

170 lbs.: John Howard vs. Tamdan McCrory
Prediction: McCrory by Submission in Round 3
Reason: I like Tamdan, he reminds me alot of my cousin, Eli. He's a tough kid with excellent ground skills.

170 lbs.: Matt Riddle vs. Dan Cramer
Prediction: Riddle by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: Matt Riddle has the size and skill to be a really good fighter. If he's been applying himself, I think the combo of his talent and youth are going to put Dan Cramer on his back.

155 lbs.: George Sotiropoulos vs. George Roop
Prediction: Sotiropoulos by Unanimous Decision
Reason: I'm not a fan of Sotiropoulos and I do rather like Roop. But every fight of Sotiropoulos I've seen, he's shown a very cagey and skilled fight game. Roop is tough and has a big heart but Sotiropoulos has the edge in skill.

170 lbs.: Danillo Villefort vs. Jesse Lennox
Prediction: Villefort by Unanimous Decision
Reason: Don't really know either fighter here so I'm taking the bookie's insights and putting them to work for me.

185 lbs.: Alessio Sakara vs. Thales Leites
Prediction: Leites by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: The oddsmakers are strongly in Leites' camp on this matchup. They have been known to be wrong but its hard to refute where they think this fight will go.

155 lbs.: Shane Nelson vs. Aaron Riley
Prediction: Nelson by TKO Rd. 2
Reason: I've flipped on this one, I had been taking Riley but I now think Nelson is going to work it and beat him. We'll see what happens on Saturday.

So there we go. The short version is Florian, Silva, Sadollah, Almeida, Neer, McCrory, Riddle, Sotiropoulos, Villefort, Leites and Nelson. Eleven picks, let's see how it rolls!

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

This is a compilation of all my UFC predictions so far. I've no idea how good or bad I've done yet so it'll be interesting to see. I used the Wikipedia UFC list of events to check my cards.

UFC 100: 5 for 8
TUF 9 Finale: 5 for 8
UFC 99: 4 for 6
UFC 98: 5 for 8 (the Wilson/Larson fight didn't happen, Chris Larson was replaced by Mike Pyle at the last minute)
UFC 97: 5 for 8 (hmm, I'm seeing a pattern)
UFC Fight Night Condit vs. Kampmann: 4 for 5
UFC 95: 5 for 6
UFC 94: 5 for 9
UFC 93: Missed it entirely, woops.
UFC 92: 3 for 6
TUF 8 Finale: 4 for 10 (ouch)
UFC 91: 3 for 5
UFC 90: Missed it.
UFC 89: 3 for 5

That's all I've got so far.

The tally comes to a decent 51 for 84 or about 5 right for every 8 picks (see the pattern?). I need to start making my predictions based less on sentiment and more on the actual fight. I took Mir this last weekend because I think Brock Lesnar is a giant douchebag. Still, if I'd been putting money on my picks, I'd be up by a good bit by now.

The best part is that there are some good cards coming up soon, BJ Penn vs. Kenny Florian is in early August and then Couture vs. Nogueira in late August.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

As noted in the previous post, yesterday was a big, long day. A five hour photoshoot at a wedding, rush home, change, get some beer and chips, drive thru burger and then off to watch UFC 100.

But it was worth it. The fights were pretty great with some substantial highlights. The biggest being Dan Henderson knocking Michael Bisping out cold with an overhand right. Hendo didn't need to smash him one more time when he was down and out but he did and it just goes to show you, don't talk shit about Dan Henderson.

The Lesnar/Mir fight was kind of hard to watch because it was apparent early on that Brock Lesnar has grown into a better fighter in the 17 months since they last fought. Lesnar stalked Mir more, took his time, set himself up and then pummelled Mir into a bloody mess. Once in the middle of the ring and then again against the cage where Lesnar pretty much annihilated Mir with those short, nasty punches.

Lesnar's post fight antics will win him no friends though and he continues to show that he's not about the sport of MMA so much as he is about the ego of Brock Lesnar. Classless and ugly barely begins to cover it. He's an ass, a great and extremely dangerous fighter sure, but an ass. I hope Dana White does bring Fedor Emelianenko to the UFC because that would be a fight for the ages. And I'd take Fedor over Lesnar anyday.

The Georges St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves fight was impressive. Thiago Alves looked huge and the commentators opined that he probably had put on more than 30 pounds since the weigh-in the day before. He weighed in at 170 and they thought he was close to 205 at fight time. That's amazing! But, in the end, he couldn't counter GSP's takedowns and was dominated on the ground for five full rounds. Many people were expecting GSP to lose to Alves because of Alves' hyper-aggressive fighting style but GSP is an amazingly well-rounded fighter with great stand up, incredible takedowns and dominating wrestling. He is the complete package and its hard to argue that he's the best pound for pound fighter in the world right now.

I would have liked to see more stand up in the Fitch/Thiago fight as it turned into a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu chess match more than anything but it shows that Jon Fitch can fight on his feet or on the ground. He's a great fighter and he earned a well deserved win.

Overall, it was a great night of fights. I went five for eight in my predictions which isn't too shabby, I also came in 155th out of 24865 players in the UFC fantasy game. I need to stop going with my sentimental choices and go with the hard picks (I took Mir over Lesnar which was, in retrospect, stupid).

Labels: mma, UFC

Time for some predictions for the upcoming mega night of MMA fights at UFC 100. The short version: Mir, GSP, Hendo, Fitch, Bonnar, Jones, Miller, Dollaway. Picking eight fights. We'll see how I do next Sunday.

Brock Lesnar (c) (3-1) vs Frank Mir (12-3) - UFC Heavyweight Championship
Result: Mir by submission in Round 2
Reason: I expect this fight will be explosive as Lesnar's gotten exponentially better with each fight in the UFC. But I don't think he's even close to Mir's jiu jitsu and that'll be the difference. But then, Lesnar could also just overwhelm Mir with his hamhock sized fists and knock him out. It'll be a good fight either way but I'm pulling for Mir.

Georges St-Pierre (c) (18-2) vs Thiago Alves (16-3) - UFC Welterweight Championship
Result: St.-Pierre by TKO in Round 2
Reason: When Georges was still coming up he didn't have a strong mental game which is why he lost to both Matt Hughes and Matt Serra. Now he's very strong mentally and is one of the best fighters on the planet along with being an elite natural athlete.

Dan Henderson (24-7) vs Michael Bisping (17-1)
Result: Henderson by submission in Round 3
Reason: I'll be honest, I think Michael Bisping is a class-A douchenozzle. He's brash, arrogant and a jackass. I want Dan Henderson to pound his annoying ass into a bloody mess. Now, don't get me wrong, I think Bisping is a very talented and motivated fighter.

Jon Fitch (18-3-0-1) vs Paulo Thiago (11-0)
Result: Fitch by
Reason: I like Jon Fitch, I like his heart, I like his attitude and I like his toughness. He lost an incredibly hard fought battle to GSP. I don't know as much about Paulo Thiago but he's got a great record so he could stay perfect and beat Fitch but I'm going with the Fitch nonetheless.

Stephan Bonnar (11-5) vs Mark Coleman (15-9)
Result: Bonnar by TKO in Round 3
Reason: If Bonnar can survive the first couple of rounds, he should have the conditioning edge in the third round and be able to tee up and knock Coleman out of the fight.

Jon Jones (8-0) vs Jake O'Brien (11-2)
Result: Jones by TKO in Round 2
Reason: Hard to go against a guy rolling with an undefeated record. O'Brien no tomato can but I think Jones is going to take it to him.

Mac Danzig (19-6-1) vs Jim Miller (13-2)
Result: Miller by TKO in Round 1
Reason: Sorry Mac, you're about to be overwhelmed by a faster, stronger and just as talented fighter.

CB Dollaway (9-2) vs Tom Lawlor (5-1-1)
Result: Dollaway by submission in Round 2
Reason: I hope CB's been putting his off time to good use and improving the rest of his fight game. He's already a great wrestler but he should be able to develop into a great striker as well and with that wrestling strength he should be able to knock opponents out, eventually. For now, I think he'll rely on his strength and that's wrestling and making people say Uncle.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

Time to ake some predictions for this Saturday's TUF Finale. If you just want the short answers, here are my picks: Sanchez, Pearson, Johnson, Diaz, Lytle, Tibau, Dent, Osipczak.

Clay Guida vs. Diego Sanchez
Result: Sanchez by Unanimous Decision
Reason: I dig Clay Guida, I dig his energy, his enthusiasm for kicking ass and, yes, his wild head of hair thrashing all over the place. But I think he's just going to get out fought by Diego, who puts so much intensity into his fights that he could almost shoot laser beams from his eyes.

Ross Pearson vs. Andre Winner ("TUF" lightweight finale)
Result: Pearson by TKO in Round 3
Reason: I'll admit that I don't know too much about Andre, he was one of the quieter Brits on the show. I just think Ross Pearson is a tough, strong and full of heart little fighter who wants to win more than anything.

DaMarques Johnson vs. James Wilks ("TUF" welterweight finale)
Result: Johnson by TKO in Round 2
Reason: Wilks barely beat Frank Lester for the second time. That was Lester's 4th fight in 34 days. And Demarques is a superior fighter in every way. Demarques also has made no bones about disliking Wilks.

Nate Diaz vs. Joe Stevenson
Result: Diaz by Submission in Round 2
Reason: This may be blasphemy to say but I think MMA and the UFC have passed Joe Stevenson by. I've seen his last few fights and his game hasn't improved, his fighting hasn't changed. He's predictable and static. Besides, only a fool ever bets against one of the Diaz brothers, a fool who wants to get his ass kicked.

Kevin Burns vs. Chris Lytle
Result: Lytle by TKO in Round 3
Reason: This should, by all accounts, be a great fight. Both fighters like to bang, both fighters are tough as nails and this will likely win Fight of the Night honors. That said, I think Lytle's further along in the evolution of his fighting and will win it in the end.

Melvin Guillard vs. Gleison Tibau
Result: Tibau by Submission in Round 1
Reason: Guillard is a punk headcase. He doesn't have the mental capacity to compete in the UFC. He's a talented fighter to be sure but he's also an idiotic punk.

Jason Dent vs. Cameron Dollar
Result: Dent by Submission in Round 2
Reason: While I think Cameron Dollar has the skills to be a fighter, I just don't think he's got the heart to be one. Jason Dent is a smart fighter, using as much as he needs to win and not overtaxing himself beyond that. I expect he'll use his skills to get Dollar down and then catch him in an armbar to end it.

Frank lester vs. Nick Osipczak
Result: Osipczak by TKO in Round 2
Reason: Osipczak gave Demarques all he could handle in a three round war. While I like Frank Lester and give him major props for toughness, he's going to be outclassed by a much crisper fighter in Osipczak.

Update: Went five for eight on my predictions which isn't too bad but it could have been better. The fights were very good all the way around. My only wish is that Spike would have started showing the fights earlier and that people didn't post so many spoilers to Twitter.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

With another UFC event just around the bend it is time to put some predictions down on this weekend's UFC action. I've chosen six fights I feel I can make a reasonably informed prediction about.

Rich Franklin (24-4) vs Wanderlei Silva (32-9-1)
Prediction: Franklin by KO in Round 2
Reason: Against anyone not named Anderson Silva, Rich Franklin is a monster. Wanderlei is a legend but he's not Anderson.

Cain Velasquez (5-0) vs. Cheick Kongo (14-4-1)
Prediction: Velasquez by TKO in Round 1
Reason: I like Cheick Kongo quite alot but Cain Velasquez is one of the next big things in the heavyweight division. He's hyper aggressive and very, very strong. I think he's going to overwhelm Kongo.

Mike Swick (13-2) vs. Ben Saunders (7-0-2)
Prediction: Saunders by TKO in Round 2
Reason: I know Mike Swick is a very good fighter but Ben Saunders' star is rising, he's gotten better in each of this fights, he is a disciple of Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do style of reactive fighting and, sorry Mike, but that's cool. I expect an explosive fight and it could go either way but I'm taking Saunders. And only partially because I went to high school with another Ben Saunders.

Marcus Davis (16-4) vs. Dan Hardy (21–6)
Prediction: Davis by KO in Round 2
Reason: Dan Hardy's been talking trash and Marcus Davis is not someone you want pissed off at you. I expect Marcus Davis to tear into Hardy like a hungry pit bull and knock him out.

Spencer Fisher (22-4) vs. Caol Uno (25-11-4)
Prediction: Fisher by TKO in Round 3
Reason: Uno is highly experienced and highly regarded in the sport of MMA. But I think Spencer has his fight game on these days, he comes into fights in perfect condition, his hand speed is blazingly quick and he's got a knock you out instinct. Uno might end up upsetting him but I think Fisher will take the fight to him, take him out of his game and drop him.

Mustapha Al-Turk (6-4) vs. Mirko "Cro-cop" Filipovic (24-6-2)
Prediction: Cro-cop by KO in Round 1
Reason: A healthy Cro-cop with a chip on his shoulder is a damned scary thing. He's got something to prove and wants to erase that ugly, ugly KO by Gonzaga that knocked him down like a rag doll.

So there ya go. I've got Franklin, Velasquez, Saunders, Davis, Fisher and Filipovic. Who have you got?

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

Another big night of UFC action is coming up on Saturday the 23rd. This event will be UFC 98 featuring a championship battle between Light Heavyweight Champ Rashad Evans and Lyoto Machida, both fighters are undefeated in mixed martial arts competition (18-0-1 for Evans and 14-0 for Machida). Their styles are contrasting but both are superb fighters and this fight should be awesome. Hard as it may to believe, I'm looking more forward to the Hughes/Serra match on the undercard. And I'm hopeful that Matt Serra gets the sound ass-kicking he so richly deserves.

Anyway, without further ado, here are my predictions/wishes for the night's fights.

UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
Rashad Evans vs. Lyoto Machida
Prediction: Machida by KO in Round 2
Reason: I have the greatest respect for Rashad Evans, he's a star, he's a champion and a superb fighter. But Lyoto Machida is very hard to train for, he's elusive, he's technically precise and can hit like a sledgehammer. Either way, this is going to be a fantastic battle.

Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra
Prediction: Hughes by annihilation (KO) in Round 3
Reason: I dislike both Matts here but my dislike for Matt Serra is about fifty times more than for Hughes (who's main fault is his preachyness).

Dan Miller vs. Chael Sonnen
Prediction: Sonnen by submission in Round 1
Reason: Chael Sonnen's jui-jitsu game is very, very solid. Miller's a good fighter but I don't think the caliber of his ground game is up to Sonnen's. If the fight stays on its feet then Miller is likely to win but if it goes to the ground then Sonnen should be able to end it pretty quickly.

Sean Sherk vs. Frankie Edgar
Prediction: Sherk by KO in Round 2
Reason: Frankie Edgar's a good fighter but I think Sean Sherk is stronger and will overwhelm Edgar.

Phillipe Nover vs. Kyle Bradley
Prediction: Nover by TKO in Round 2
Reason: Nover's first impression on the MMA fans was fainting during the first show of The Ultimate Fighter season 8. He's since redeemed himself with some great fights showing a highly aggressive style, great power and a strong desire to finish his opponents. I don't know too much about Bradley but I think Nover's going to swarm him and knock him out.

Chris Wilson vs. Brock Larson
Prediction: Wilson by Submission in Round 2
Reason: Chris Wilson and his family were just robbed at gunpoint in Brazil. He and his family survived. No offense to Brock Larson but I'm pulling for the guy.

Drew McFedries vs. Xavier Foupa-Pokam
Prediction: Foupa-Pokam by TKO in Round 1
Reason: Every fight of McFedries I've seen he either annihilates the other guy or he gets annihilated. Makes for a good fight but not a really smart career strategy.

David Kaplan vs. George Roop
Prediction: Roop by Submission in Round 3
Reason: Dave Kaplan came off as a goof on the Ultimate Fighter, a drunk goof who thought he could take anyone's punch. He was proven wrong, getting knocked out in the bathroom of the house and then getting his ass kicked by Junie "White Trash and Proud of It" Browning. George Roop comes off as much more mature, much more dedicated to the sport and I don't think he's going to get away from his game plan.

Andre Gusmao vs. Krzysztof Soszynski
Prediction: Sosznski by TKO in Round 2
Reason: I don't know Gusmao, he's relatively inexperienced with a 5-1 record. I do know Krzysztof is a tough bastard with good striking and surprisingly good jui jitsu. I'm going with what I know and taking Krzysztof.

And there we go. Quick rundown is: Machida, Hughes, Sonnen, Sherk, Nover, Wilson, Foupa-Pokam, Roop and then Sosznski. That's nine called results, more than my usual predictions. Check back in on Sunday to see how I did and post your own predictions in the comments.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

The card for UFC 97 is stacked! Anytime a card includes Anderson Silva AND Chuck Liddell, you can pretty much guarantee that I'm there. Here's the way I see most of the fights going down.

These aren't all the fights but they are the fights I feel like I can make some kind of prediction on the outcome. I went 4-5 at the last UFC event so maybe I'm starting to get on a roll.

UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva (23-4) vs. Thales Leites (14-1)
Prediction: Silva by KO in Round 1
Reason: Silva's last "win" against Patrick Cote has been mocked, his performance derided. I believe Anderson Silva wants to silence his critics and stand alone as the best fighter in the world. He can do that by knocking Leites out in convincing fashion.

Chuck Liddell (21-6) vs. Mauricio Rua (17-3)
Prediction: Liddell by, wait for it, KO in Round 2
Reason: The Iceman knows how important this fight is, I think he's going to demonstrate more of his skills aside from his scary striking and, when the moment is right, is going to knock Rua out cold. At least I hope so.

Cheick Kongo (13-4-1) vs. Antoni Hardonk (8–4)
Prediction: Kongo by TKO in Round 2
Reason: Hardonk is excellent at the submission game but he takes a beating getting there. Kongo can dish out a serious beating in a short period of time.

Luis Cane (9-1) vs. Steve Cantwell (7-1)
Prediction: Cane by TKO in Round 2
Reason: I don't know Cantwell or Cane too well but I've done a little reading and the odds makers are going with Cane so that makes sense to me.

Eliot Marshall (6-1) vs. Vinny Magalhaes (6-4)
Prediction: Marshall by TKO strikes in Round 2
Reason: Since these two are both jiu-jitsu stars, this might turn into a war on the feet. In which case, the edge goes to Marshall as he's got the reach and Magalhaes doesn't particularly enjoy getting punched in the face since he's so purty.

Jason MacDonald (21-11) vs. Nate Quarry (10-3)
Prediction: Quarry by TKO in Round 1
Reason: I like both these fighters but think Nate Quarry's got a better game including some really devastating striking.

David Loiseau (18-8) vs. Ed Herman (14-7)
Prediction: Loiseau by Submission in Round 3
Reason: Both are fighting to stay in the UFC. I just see Loiseau wanting it more. Plus, I tend to think Ed Herman's a douchebag.

Matt Wiman (10-4) vs. Sam Stout (13-5-1)
Prediction: Wiman by unanimous decision
Reason: This fight could go either way, Stout is better on his feet but Wiman's a pretty game fighter and is better on the ground. I think Wiman may have the overall edge and squeak out a victory.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

Tonight's Ultimate Fight Night 18 has some very good and interesting matchups lined up. As has become my custom, I've come up with my predictions for the event. MMAMania has their predictions as well, pretty close to mine but a few differences to make it interesting.

Carlos Condit (22-4) vs. Martin Kampmann (14-2)
Prediction: Kampmann by TKO Round 1
Reason: No real reason, this fight could go either way. I just like Kampmann even if his picture reminds me of an old roommate of mine who turned into a skuzball.

Gleison Tibau (16-6) vs. Jeremy Stephens (14-4)
Prediction: Stephens by TKO Round 2
Reason: Stephens is a wild handful for anyone, he's about as hungry and aggressive a fighter as I've ever seen. He has the capacity to just overwhelm his opponents.

Ryan Bader (8-0) vs. Carmelo Marrero (10-2)
Prediction: Bader by unanimous decision
Reason: I doubt Bader will repeat his knockout performance from his last fight but its hard to go against someone with an 8-0 record even if I tend to think his fighting style is less than enthralling.

Junie Browning (3-0) vs. Cole Miller (14-3)
Prediction: Miller by KO Round 1
Reason: Less a prediction and more of a wish. Junie Browning represents what's wrong with MMA, he's a selfish drama queen and seeing him get his ass handed to him would make me smile. Plus, Cole Miller looks like a good pal of mine and I just like his style.

Tyson Griffin (12-2) vs. Rafael dos Anjos (11-3)
Prediction: Griffin by TKO Round 2
Reason: Griffin was a top contender not too long ago, he should be hungry to get back into the spotlight. I don't know too much about dos Anjos so I'm going with the more known quantity and calling it for Griffin.

Check back after the event to see what my scorecard looks like or leave a comment about why I'm completely wrong about my predictions.

[Update: Not bad, I went 4 for 5 on my predictions and nailed Bader's decision. I got Miller's first round win over Junie too. It was a pretty good night of fights overall.]

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

Aside from losing power midway through the fights, UFC 95 was a good fun night of quality fights. The surprise knockout of Koschek was impressive, brutal and still might have been called a moment early.

Main event:
Diego Sanchez (19-2) vs. Joe Stevenson (29-9)
Prediction: Sanchez by TKO in Round 2.
Result: Sanchez by unanimous decision.

Undercard:
Dan Hardy (20–6) vs. Rory Markham (16-4)
Prediction: Hardy by unanimous decision
Result: Hardy by KO in Round 1.

Nate Marquardt (27-8-2) vs. Wilson Gouveia (12-5)
Prediction: Marquardt by TKO in Round 1
Result: Marquardt by TKO in Round 3

Demian Maia (9-0) vs. Chael Sonnen (21-9-1)
Prediction: Maia by submission in Round 2
Result: Maia by submission in Round 1

Josh Koscheck (12-3) vs. Paulo Thiago (7-0)
Prediction: Koscheck by TKO in Round 2
Result: Thiago by TKO in Round 1

Paul Kelly (8-1) Vs. Troy Mandaloniz (3-1)
Prediction: Kelly by TKO in Round 1
Result: Kelly by unanimous decision.

That puts me at a pretty solid 5 for 6 on the night with the upset coming in the Koscheck/Thiago fight. That uppercut followed by the thundering left was impressive in the extreme. Not sure if Kos was done but damn, nonetheless!

And, with all due respect, Joe Stevenson is a boring fighter to watch. I've seen him fight several times in the last few months and his game is tired. He needs to either improve his fighting or move on to a new promotion.

As for the next upcoming show, UFC 96 Jackson vs. Jardine, I'm just not overly interested in the main event. There are some good fights on the undercard but I don't see the event being a must-see. The Gonzaga/Carwin fight is the biggest draw to me. I will admit to looking forward to seeing Pete Sell lose again but that pretty much goes for the entire Serra camp, I want them to fail, fail and then fail some more.

Labels: mma, results, UFC

With UFC 95 coming up (Feb-21-2009 9pm ET/PT on Spike TV), I thought it was time to put my prediction stake in the ground again and see if I can improve my numbers, I'm currently running at just over 50% right calls and very, very few bullseyes (that's calling the round and way the fight ends).

Main event:
Diego Sanchez (19-2) vs. Joe Stevenson (29-9)
Prediction: Sanchez by TKO in Round 2.
Reason: Sanchez is dropping down to 155 for the first time. He was an animal at 170 who overwhelmed many of his opponents with his intensity and relentless attack. I expect he'll be even more dominant at 155. And, honestly, I've not been much impressed with Joe Stevenson in his last several fights.

Undercard:
Dan Hardy (20–6) vs. Rory Markham (16-4)
Prediction: Hardy by unanimous decision
Reason: This is a tough call, I'm not overly familiar with either fighter.

Nate Marquardt (27-8-2) vs. Wilson Gouveia (12-5)
Prediction: Marquardt by TKO in Round 1

Demian Maia (9-0) vs. Chael Sonnen (21-9-1)
Prediction: Maia by submission in Round 2

Josh Koscheck (12-3) vs. Paulo Thiago (7-0)
Prediction: Koscheck by TKO in Round 2

Paul Kelly (8-1) Vs. Troy Mandaloniz (3-1)
Prediction: Kelly by TKO in Round 1
Reason: Kelly's a beast who brings a full head of steam into the octagon. I just get the sense that he's going to overwhelm Mandaloniz.

One of these days, I'll have to compile all of my predictions and get a real scorecard pulled together.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

What an interesting night of fights. No knockouts until the second to last fight of the night when Lyoto Machida silenced his critics with a big, big time knockout of Thiago Silva with one second left in the first round.

And then Georges St. Pierre dominated BJ Penn for four straight rounds until his team threw in the towel. GSP was bigger, faster, stronger and just too much for BJ to handle.

There was, this morning, some controversy from the BJ camp. Call it VaselineGate if you like but it wouldn't have changed the outcome either way.

So, how'd I do on my predictions?
Results courtesy of MMAMania. Click the link for round by round breakdowns of the action.
Georges St. Pierre defeats BJ Penn via technical knockout (doctor stoppage) at the end of round four
Lyoto Machida defeats Thiago Silva via knockout (punch) at 4:59 of round one
Jon Jones defeats Stephan Bonnar via unanimous decision
Clay Guida defeats Nate Diaz via split decision
Karo Parisyan defeats Dong Hyun “Stun Gun” Kim via split decision
Jon Fitch defeats Akihiro Gono via unanimous decision
Thiago Tavares defeats Manny Gamburyan via unanimous decision
John Howard defeats Chris Wilson via split decision
Jake O’Brien defeats Christian Wellisch via split decision
Daniel Cramer defeats Matt “No Regard” Arroyo via split decision

I pulled a mediocre 5 for 9 on my predictions but did land the big ones with Machida and GSP.

Labels: mma, predictions, UFC

There is an outstanding night of UFC action on tap this evening. Still not sure if I'm going to be able to watch the event but here are my predictions.

Georges St. Pierre vs. BJ Penn: St. Pierre via TKO in Round 3
Reason: Its much harder to step up in weight class and BJ's conditioning is always a question mark. The deeper this fight goes, the more likely St. Pierre wins it. Plus, St. Pierre has gotten better and better and better with each successive fight, his physical attributes combined with his confidence makes for a very daunting opponent. But then, BJ Penn is a very dangerous opponent with superb jui jitsu and better striking than I think many give him credit for. It should be an excellent fight either way.

Lyoto Machida vs. Thiago Silva: Machida by TKO in Round 2
Reason: Thiago Silva is a rabid pitbull in the ring, he comes at his opponents and usually can overwhelm them. But Machida's style runs perpendicular to most others. He is elusive and patient and has no problems waiting to pick his shots. Machida's technical skills are nearly perfect.

Stephan Bonnar vs. Jon Jones: Jones by TKO in Round 2
Reason: I like Stephan Bonnar but he's coming off a long layoff from injury, he's going to be a little rusty while Jones is hot to make a name for himself.

Nate Diaz vs. Clay Guida: Diaz by submission in Round 2
Reason: This has greatness written all over it. Guida is fun to watch, win or lose. He brings high intensity and relentless attack. Diaz is a tough son of a bitch who fights smart and has outstanding jui jitsu.

Karo Parisyan vs. Dong Hyun “Stun Gun” Kim: Stun Gun via TKO in Round 2
Reason: Unless Karo refound his heart, he's going to get his ass handed to him. There's no question about Kim's heart, he wants to kick ass. Parisyan has the skills to win but those panic attacks he's spoken of make his heart questionable. We'll see if he's worked out the mental kinks.

Jon Fitch vs. Akihiro Gono: Fitch by KO in Round 2
Reason: Jon Fitch is aching to wipe away the memory of Georges St. Pierre schooling him. Gono is a very good fighter but Fitch is a cut above and is going to bring his A game into the Octagon. Still, this could go to Gono if Fitch is over-aggressive.

Manny Gamburyan vs. Thiago Tavares: Gamburyan by TKO in Round 1
Reason: Tavares is no joke and he could easily win this fight but Gamburyan is a very, very strong and very, very driven fighter with outstanding striking and a big heart. This could also be fight of the night style battle.

Chris Wilson vs. John Howard: Don't know either fighter well enough to make a call.

Jake O’Brien vs. Christian Wellisch: O'Brien by TKO in Round 1
Reason: I don't know much about Wellisch but I've seen O'Brien fight several times and he brings it. I'm not really strong on this prediction without more info on Wellisch but I'm taking Jake here.

Matt “No Regard” Arroyo vs. Daniel Cramer: Arroyo by TKO strikes in Round 3
Reason: Cramer's a real fighter despite his pretty face. He takes the game seriously and comes ready to kick some ass. But I tend to think Arroyo has the edge in skill and the ability to finish. I could be wrong though, we'll just have to wait and see.

Labels: mma, prediction, UFC

Wow, what an excellent and exciting night of fights. No submissions and lots of knockouts!

The Mir win over Nogueira was the house favorite of the night. Frank Mir looked poised, confident and very, very dangerous.

Rashad Evans had to work for his knockout win over Forrest Griffin but when it came, he hammered Forrest and it ended quickly. A new light-heavyweight champ has been crowned and Rashad looked excellent in the fight.

The other fights on the card were also pretty good. Rampage's wicked knockout of Wanderlei Silva was impressive and it looks like Rampage may be back on the path of utterly destroying his opponents again. Scary and fun to watch.

Cheick Kongo pretty well dominated Al-Turk with his sharp striking and then finished him with heavy elbows on the ground to cut him open and get the knockout. Another impressive win.

Overall, I split on my predictions going 3 for 6 calling Rampage, Dolloway and Hamill and missing on Mir, Evans and Kongo. I wasn't too bummed about my weak record because the fights were highly entertaining and it was a good night for the UFC.

And 2009 will bring many more excellent events starting with Franklin vs. Henderson in Ireland on January 17 and Penn vs. St. Pierre on January 31.

Labels: mma, UFC, wrap-up

Tonight's UFC 92 The Ultimate 2008 is one of the most anticipated nights of mma fighting in the entire year. The card is STACKED!

Here are my predictions:

Main Event:
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin (16-4) vs. Rashad Evans (12-0-1)
Prediction: Tough call, Forrest is as tough as anyone but Rashad is pretty impressive. I'll go with Forrest in a decision.

Main card (Televised):
UFC Heavyweight Champion Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira (31-4-1) vs. Frank Mir (11-3)
Prediction: Never bet against Nogueira, the guy is like an ass kicking machine. Noqueira by TKO in Round 3.

C.B. Dollaway (7-1) vs. Mike Massenzio (11-2)
Prediction: I'd like to see C.B. start winning some fights and he's got history with Mike. C.B. by submission in Round 2.

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (28-7) vs. Wanderlei Silva (32-8-1)
Prediction: Rampage has lost to Wanderlei twice in the past. I expect Rampage will be as motivated as he's ever been. Rampage by KO in Round 2.

Cheick Kongo (12-4-1) vs. Mustafa Al-Turk (6-3)
Prediction: If this fight stays standing then Cheick wins but, as it is likely to do, if it goes to the ground, he's toast. Mustafa by TKO in Round 2.

I'm not going to get too much into the undercard that won't be televised but I will call Matt Hamill vs. Reese Andy. Hamill is very powerful and has been working on his standup. I'm seeing Hamill with a TKO in Round 1.

There ya go, check back tomorrow to see how I did this time after my last not so awesome calling job.

Labels: mma, prediction, UFC

Alrighty, first off, props to Ryan Bader for showing some very solid stand up and knocking Vinny down and out with a partially blocked punch. Very impressive. And way more interesting than his last fight against Eliot Marshall.

Let's see how I did on my predictions from the other day. Overall, I called 5 of the 10 fight outcomes which is a failing grade. I got a couple of the means of victory correct but none of the rounds right. I did not hit it out of the park.

Let's check the scorecard and see how I did.
155 lbs.: Phillipe Nover (155) vs. Efrain Escudero (156)
Prediction: Nover by TKO in Round 2
Actual result: Escudero by unanimous decision.

Main card (Televised):
205 lbs.: Ryan Bader (205) vs. Vinicius Magalhães (205)
Prediction: Vinny by submission in Round 1.
Actual result: Bader by TKO (strikes) in Round 1.

185 lbs.: Wilson Gouveia (189) vs. Jason MacDonald (184)
Prediction: MacDonald by TKO (strikes) in Round 2.
Actual result: Gouveia by submission in Round 1.

170 lbs.: Kevin Burns (171) vs. Anthony Johnson (171)
Prediction: Who knows but its going to be good! But I'll go with Johnson by TKO strikes in Round 2.
Actual result: Johnson by TKO in Round 3.

155 lbs.: Junie Browning (156) vs. Dave Kaplan (156)
Prediction: Kaplan by KO strikes in Round 2.
Actual result: Browning by submission in Round 2.

Under card (May not be broadcast):
205 lbs.: Krzysztof Soszynski (202) vs. Shane Primm (205)
Prediction: Krzysztof by TKO strikes in Round 1.
Actual result: Sosznski by submission in Round 2.

205 lbs.: Eliot Marshall (203) vs. Jules Bruchez (205)
Prediction: Marshall by submission in Round 2.
Actual result: Marshall by submission in Round 1.

205 lbs.: Kyle Kingsbury (205) vs. Tom Lawlor (204)
Prediction: Lawlor by TKO strikes in Round 2.
Actual result: Lawlor by unanimous decision.

155 lbs.: Shane Nelson (156) vs. George Roop (153)
Result: Nelson by submission in Round 2.
Actual result: Nelson by split decision

155 lbs.: Rolando Delgado (155) vs. John Polakowski (152)
Prediction: Polakowski by TKO strikes in Round 3.
Actual result: Delgado by submission in Round 2.

The fight of the night, for me, was Escudero/Nover or Burns/Johnson. The Browning/Kaplan fight was okay but I don't think it should have gotten fight of the night honors.

Labels: mma, scorecard, TUF, UFC

The finale of The Ultimate Fighter season 8 is tonight and so I thought I'd put up my predictions and thoughts.

Main event:
155 lbs.: Phillipe Nover (155) vs. Efrain Escudero (156)
Nover has got to be the favorite here. He's a very nice guy outside of the octagon but he becomes a crazed animal in it and he's got the skills to knock out pretty much anyone. I like both Phillipe and Efrain but I don't think Efrain is going to be able to withstand Phillipe's barrage.
Result: Nover by TKO in Round 2

Main card (Televised):
205 lbs.: Ryan Bader (205) vs. Vinicius Magalhães (205)
If Ryan Bader wins this match then he will be the limpest winner of TUF ever. He's got no stand up and no submissions, he's a wrestler. His fights are boring as hell. Vinny is a world champion brazilian jui jitsu. Either way, this is likely to be a quick fight without much action until Vinny submits Bader.
Result: Vinny by submission in Round 1.

185 lbs.: Wilson Gouveia (189) vs. Jason MacDonald (184)
Gouveia came in overweight and gives up 20% of his pay to MacDonald. He's already at a pyschological disadvantage and Jason MacDonald is an excellent all-round fighter.
Result: MacDonald by TKO (strikes) in Round 2.

170 lbs.: Kevin Burns (171) vs. Anthony Johnson (171)
This should be an explosive fight. Anthony Johnson is an electric fighter who has a tendency to overwhelm his opponents. Its also a rematch in which Johnson lost the first fight because of a bad call by the ref (he was given a TKO but replays showed he got poked in the eye before the onslaught that ended it).
Result: Who knows but its going to be good! But I'll go with Johnson by TKO strikes in Round 2.

155 lbs.: Junie Browning (156) vs. Dave Kaplan (156)
Junie Browning is a tool. He's got some good fighting skills but he's a complete ass of a human being. Dave Kaplan tried to show off his "iron" chin against Nover and got knocked the fuck out. I expect Kaplan to have a better game plan this time around and not give up his chin like an idiot. Maybe Junie shows something beyond his toolishness, maybe not. Either way, I expect Kaplan to knock him out.
Result: Kaplan by KO strikes in Round 2.

Under card (May not be broadcast):
205 lbs.: Krzysztof Soszynski (202) vs. Shane Primm (205)
Result: Krzysztof by TKO strikes in Round 1.

205 lbs.: Eliot Marshall (203) vs. Jules Bruchez (205)
Result: Marshall by submission in Round 2.

205 lbs.: Kyle Kingsbury (205) vs. Tom Lawlor (204)
Lawlor is rocking the Evan Tanner memorial beard. He also came across as a funny, likable and good guy on the show. Kyle came across as kind of an asshole. Sorry, Kyle, but I think I'm going with Tom Lawlor in this one just because I like him better. (Note, I spared you all the full pic of Tom in his speedo. You're welcome.
Result: Lawlor by TKO strikes in Round 2.

155 lbs.: Shane Nelson (156) vs. George Roop (153)
Roop is a fighter with a big heart, he won a fight during the season with a broken hand but I tend to think Shane has a more complete game and will win this via submission.
Result: Nelson by submission in Round 2.

155 lbs.: Rolando Delgado (155) vs. John Polakowski (152)
Mr. Huggybear with Crazy Hair Polakowski was everyone's friend and is a genuinely nice, if slightly creepy and cloying, guy. Delgado took a rash of shit for his fifteen minute roundabout explanation of how he got his black belt in Brazilian jui jitsu but he took a hell of a fight to Junie Browning before losing.
Result: Polakowski by TKO strikes in Round 3.

Labels: mma, TUF, UFC

The Ultimate Fighter is just about done for another season and, after skipping last week, they decided to double stack this week and run back to back episodes with two fights in each episode. That means there's pretty much nothing but the confidence talk leading up to the fights and then the fights themselves.

The confidence talk is when each fighter is interviewed by someone off-camera and gets to say why they will win. Sometimes they talk trash about the other fighter, sometimes they just say they'll win because they have more heart and blah, blah, blah. I tend to find the confidence talk and trash talk to be boring as hell and I can fast forward right through it.

The first semi-final fight was between Eliot Marshall and Ryan Bader, two light heavyweights. Marshal is a Brazilian jui jitsu black belt and Bader is a two time national champion wrestler. What could have and should have been a good fight basically consisted of Bader laying on top of Marshall and doing almost nothing for fifteen minutes. It was one of the worst and most boring fights I've ever seen on the show. Bader won because he controlled the fight but if he wins the show, he'll be the lamest winner of all time. His fighting style is to bore people to death.

The second semi-final fight was between George Roop and Phillipe Nover, two lightweights. Nover was the guy who fainted during the initial introductions and caused Dana White to nickname him Faintin' Phillipe. But, after his utter annihilation of Dave Caplan (sp?), White was singing his praises. Roop seriously messed up his hand a few days before his last fight and basically won his last fight one-handed. Roop was over-matched by Nover and the fight ended pretty quickly by a kimora submission that looked horribly painful and nearly broke Roop's arm.

I didn't watch the second episode yet because I needed to get to bed earlier than I have been. But the fights in the second episode should be pretty good with Krystoff fighting Vinny and Junie fighting Ephraim. I kind of hope Junie gets the snot beat out of him but I don't think it will happen, he might lose but he won't get the ass-kicking he really needs.

I'm seeing the final as.....dammit, I just went to the TUF site to do a spell check and saw who won and what the finals are going to be. That sucks. Oh well.

Labels: mma, TUF, UFC

Well, the good news is that it was a good night of fights. Gonzaga was fun to watch, Florian was fun to watch and, yes, Couture/Lesnar was fun to watch even if the outcome wasn't quite what I'd hoped for.

Thanks to Manuel, his wife and his sweet and funny little boy for having me over.

The Quarry/Maia was over very quickly and Maia pretty well dominated because the fight went to the ground, he got a very solid body lock figure four and could take his time alternating between punches and working the rear naked choke in.

Gonzaga/Hendricks fight wasn't really much of a question. Gonzaga overpowered him from the start and ended it with his fists though he could have chosen to submit him too.

The Florian/Stevenson fight was quite a bit faster than I expected and Stevenson was much more aggressive than I expected. But he underestimated Florian's ground game (perhaps the result of his recent promotion to a black belt in Brazilian Jui Jitsu). I wonder whether Kenny finishing him via rear naked choke (they had an outstanding close up in the replay!) was by opportunity or choice since the rear naked is usually Stevenson's go to move.

The Hazelett/McCrory fight had one of the most painful to watch submissions I've seen in a while. And they replayed it many times. How Tamdan McCrory's arm didn't snap or tear some tendons is beyond me. Plus, Dustin Hazelett's beard thing looked really stupid. But he's a good fighter.

Alrighty then, now to the main event. Couture vs Lesnar was everything it was hyped to be. Lesnar and his meathook hands came out throwing, Couture stayed composed and stuck to his plan. I would give Lesnar the first round by a little bit. In the second round, Couture cut Lesnar over his eye and it was obviously annoying him when he landed a glancing blow behind Couture's left ear that dropped him. He pounced and pounded and the fight got called. Maybe a little too soon but maybe not. Lesnar's the real deal. He showed a lot of class in victory which he hasn't shown to this point. It made the win easier to stomach and will make the heavyweight division a rather interesting one for sure.

It was a very good night of fights and I enjoyed the heck out of it. I went 3 for 5 on my fight predictions so I can't complain too much.

Labels: UFC, wrap-up

Time for some fight predictions for tomorrow night's UFC 91. I'll be watching and the UFC's president, Dana White, is predicting upwards of a million PPV buys which I don't see happening but I do think this will easily break previous UFC sales records.

Couture vs Lesnar - this is a tough one to call but I'm going to go with Randy to win this. Lesnar is getting better and better in each fight but The Natural has been playing this game for a long time and is one of the most savvy fighters ever to grace the Octagon. Brock Lesnar is an impressive physical specimen and an outstanding athlete. He's strong, fast and big. But he has yet to have his chin tested in an MMA match. I don't think he's going to enjoy getting punched in the face by Randy at all. And who knows what will happen if/when he gets cut.
Prediction: Couture by TKO strikes.

Florian vs Stevenson - personal feelings aside (I tend to think Joe Stevenson is a bit of a douchebag) I think Kenny is going to win this fight. He's fast, strong and very talented. Stevenson is really well experienced for his age but I just don't see him winning. Plus Kenny Florian has, oddly enough, sharp elbows that are like bony knives.
Prediction: Florian by TKO strikes.

Gonzaga vs Hendricks - Gabriel Gonzaga nearly kicked Mirko Cro Cop's head clean off, he's a monster with heavy hands and outstanding jui jitsu. I don't know much about Hendricks but I'm going with the known monster and giving the fight to Gonzaga via TKO in the second.
Prediction: Gonzaga by submission, possibly a rear naked choke.

Quarry vs Maia - I am a fan of Nate "Rock" Quarry. He had spinal fusion surgery and has returned to the Octagon and had several very exciting and great wins. I don't know Maia very well but he's supposed to be an excellent fighter and will give Quarry everything he can handle. But, in the end, I think Quarry will handle him.
Prediction: Quarry by TKO strikes.

The next four fights are fighters I have little to no knowledge of and can't make any kind of a prediction one way or the other.

Brown vs Thomas - Any fan of the UFC has seen Matt Brown on a recent season of The Ultimate Fighter. He's a tough guy, he likes to fight and he will absolutely bring it. Don't know much about Thomas but he's got a good record (which is different on different MMA sites) and is a good wrestler.
Prediction: Brown by knockout.

There it is. I doubt I'll be spot on but you never know. I'd like to see Couture win primarily because I like him and I tend to think Lesnar is too raw, too new and hasn't earned a shot at the heavyweight title after a mere three professional fights. Plus there's the whole fact that he comes from the WWE and its circus sideshow idiot mentality. Sorry, I absolutely hate "professional" wrestling because it isn't a sport, its a soap opera on steroids.

I'll report back in after the fights with a scorecard tally and fight reflections.

Labels: mma, prediction, UFC

The UFC's next big event is UFC 89 and will broadcast for free on Spike TV on Saturday the 18th. There are some decent fights but the overall card is pretty weak with fewer fights than normal and fewer "name" fighters.

But let's do a quick predictions rundown.

Bisping vs Leben - Bisping by TKO strikes. Unless Leben gets another Terry Martin thunder punch to knock Bisping cold, Bisping just has the more complete all around game.
Jardine vs Vera - Jardine by TKO strikes. Jardine punches harder and wants it more.
Sokoudjou vs Cane - Sokoudjou by strikes. I don't know Cane at all but I've seen Sokoudjou a few times and he's explosive and dynamic and this should be a good fight.
Taylor vs Lytle - Taylor by strikes. I watched the Davis/Taylor fight again last night and was very impressed with Taylor's striking. I don't think Lytle can stand with him.
Kelly vs Davis - Davis by strikes. He's explosive, incredibly strong and has superb recovery ability if he does get tagged, yes, you can consider me a fan of "The Irish Hand Grenade".

The other fights on the card involve fighters that I've not seen fight enough to make a prediction one way or the other.

Check back after the fight to see I scored. Also, feel free to leave a comment with your fight predictions as well.

Labels: fight night, mma, UFC

The first rule of the Diaz brothers, Nick and Nate, is: You do not fucking mess with the Diaz brothers unless you are prepared for an absolute all-out war. That's Nate on the left and Nick on the right.

Nick Diaz is a black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu and Nate, his "little" brother, is a brown belt. Nick fights in Elite while Nate is a rising star in the UFC.

They're from Stockton, California and they are not guys you want pissed off at you. And you damned well better not talk shit about them and then duck fights against them when they are offered or become available.

Why do I like watching the Diaz brothers fight? Because they are always working, always punching you, always looking for an armbar, triangle, guillotine or one of the more exotic submissions. They fight smart but they also fight with alot of heart and attitude. Plus Nate has a bit of showupmanship (that is, he's a showman who'll show you up if you're the fighter he just beat) that isn't so much a smackdown as it is entertaining).

Knowing one of the Diaz brothers is on the card almost guarantees a quality fight to watch. I'm glad they're not my neighbors and I for damned sure wouldn't want them pissed off at me but I always look forward to watching them get into the octagon and try bring an ass-whooping down on someone.

Labels: fued, mma, UFC

In the history of nicknames I don't think there is any worse or more appropriate nickname than the one bestowed upon Karl Rove by George Bush, Turd Blossom. It succinctly encompassed Rove's evil powers of turning a debate from one of substance into one of useless intangibles. He made people look at a flower made out of a turd and pretend it was worthwhile.

But, in the course of watching a fair amount of MMA (mixed martial arts) fighting and a predominance of that being UFC, I have come across a large assortment of nicknames, some good and some just bad and annoying enough to make me cheer against that fighter. Here's a rather out of date (last updated in 2002) list of some UFC nicknames. Here's a much bigger list.

Here's a list of names and some reasons why they are either good or bad.

On the good nicknames column, you'll find:
Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell - one punch knockout power puts his opponents on ice, perfect name.
Chris "The Crippler" Leben - an iron jaw and great knockout power makes him a crippler. Need proof, go watch his fight against Terry Martin. He could have also gone with "Rebound" as his nickname because that's what he does too.
Randy "The Natural" Couture - the guy is a freak, in a good way. He's in his mid-40's now and still ranked in the top ten fighters on the planet. I hope he doesn't squander his few remaining years in legal squabbles with the UFC.
Rich "Ace" Franklin - not sure if this is because he resembles Jim Carrey's Ace Ventura or whether he's just the top dog in the deck. Either way, its short, sweet, memorable and fits him well.
Spencer "The King" Fisher - works on multiple levels. Plus he has a tendency to royally kick his opponent's asses.
Marcus "The Irish Hand Grenade" Davis - he's an explosive fighter with an explosive nickname, works for me.
Ed "Short Fuse" Herman - I don't like the guy but he's got a pretty cool nickname.
Nate "Rock" Quarry - of course he's going to be called Rock. I guess its just lucky he's got hard hands and throws them well.
Roger "El Matador" Heurta - great nickname and it fits him. He's a passionate and dangerous fighter.
Diego "Nightmare" Sanchez - this guy had an amazing run of ruining other fighter's records and giving them nightmares. The nickname also fits his fighting style which can be described as balls to the wall.
Jens "Little Evil" Pulver - he looks evil, he's a small guy but he fights like a demon possessed and I kind of like him.

On the bad nickname column you will find such annoyances as:
Josh "The People's Warrior" Burkman - you are not my warrior and I'm a people ergo your nickname is stupid.
Tito "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" Ortiz - Beach and Bad Boy do not go together.
Matt "Handsome" Wiman - dude, you're not that pretty.
Matt "The Terror" Serra - the only terror I get from Matt Serra is when he doesn't shut that yap of his up.
Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski - given how awful his last couple of fights have been, his nickname should be changed to "The Yapping Poodle". Pitbulls don't duff through rounds and incite a crowd to booing because your fight is so boring.
Kenny "Ken Flo" Florian - any comparison to Jennifer Lopez should be avoided. Kenny is a great fighter, he deserves a great nickname.
Joe "Daddy" Stevenson - um yeah, I want to fight my father. Just stupid and pointless.

I've had a few nicknames over the years but most don't stick for too long. Generally folks call me Erik if they call me at all. When I had a broken eye orbit and had to wear a pirate eye patch my pals called me Patch for a bit but most of the time, if someone uses a nick with me it'll just be E. Maybe because I make everyone so ecstatic all the time? No, probably not.

Got any nicknames you love or hate? Or a nickname you wish you had? Let's hear them in the comments.

Labels: mma, nicknames, UFC

John McCain is a creepy, jowly nutter. His grasp of the universe is tenuous, the shaking of his jowls when he turns his head too quickly is tremorous, his attempt to blame high gas prices on Barack Obama is ridiculous and he shows more and more everyday just how much worse we could get after Dubya goes away. His grasp of reality and his willingness to lie knowing that people know he's lying is very difficult to even consider overlooking. And then there is his desire to occupy Iraq indefinitely despite the Iraqi and American people wanting the end the war as soon as we can and bring our troops home.

If the election were between McCain and a slightly retarded goat, I'd go with the goat. Luckily his opponent's Barack Obama, a guy who looks more and more presidential, more and more like the obvious clear choice for everyone regardless of political affiliation (he, I wrote affliction first).

I kind of expect an absolute landslide crushing of McCain by Obama. I'm starting to think most other people do to. But over-confidence is a good way to get a kick right upside the head, just ask Brodie Farber.

Labels: election, knockout, mma, president, UFC

Everything's already been said about the free UFC Fight Night event over the weekend where Anderson Silva, the best fighter in the world at 185 pounds, moved up to 205 to see if he was as good there.

Short answer is yes, yes he is just as good. He's bigger, he still strikes sharply but with more power and he looks damned near unbeatable. Really impressive first round knockout victory over James Irvin, who is most assuredly no slouch.

It was a good fight and quick enough to watch a couple of times in succession thanks to Tivo. But the slo-mo replays make me really wish for a HD-Tivo setup. But that won't be happening anytime soon.

And oh yeah, Jesse Taylor's return to the UFC was marred by a little thing called the Peruvian Necktie as performed on him by one CB Dolloway. Still a pretty good fight and I think we'll see more of both moving forward.

Labels: fight night, mma, UFC

The latest season of The Ultimate Fighter culminated in a fight between the finalist and the semi-finalist he'd already beaten coming back for another fight due to drunken rampage by the other finalist. If that didn't make sense then good, its not really supposed to.

The finalist who got booted, Jesse Taylor, will be back. He's a character, he's a really good fighter and now his return can be hyped up. If he does reasonably well then we'll likely see a rematch of the supposed to be finale of Amir against Jesse.

I have to say that I thought Amir took the fight-off and repeat of the semi-final in stride. I would have been pissed off about it really. He just beat CB and now CB gets another chance at winning the show even though he had been eliminated? Kind of bogus. But that's what has to happen when the unknown happens.

The finale was not the fight of the night. I'd have to give that one to Spencer Fisher against Jeremy Stevens. I have become a big fan of Spencer Fisher and his lightning punches. The guy is a great fighter and provides a good fight regardless of who's fighting against. I would have liked to have seen Matt Brown vs Matt Arroyo. And I did enjoy seeing Diego Sanchez kick some ass over Luigi Fiorvanti.

Next weekend is the Pay-Per-View light heavyweight championship fight between Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, the champ, and Forrest Griffin. I'd like to see the fight but I'm not seeing myself drop forty five or fifty bucks for it. Let's see who else is on the card. Okay, some Melvin Guillard, some Cole Miller (Jay's UFC twin), some Josh Koscheck, and some Tyson Griffin. Not a bad card at all and I'm sure some of these fights are going to be solid.

I'll be curious as to what the next season of TUF brings, I like how the show keeps evolving to improve itself and provide more balanced fights and less focus on the annoying house drama. Actually, my idea was to keep the current regular show format but add another half hour behind-the-scenes at the house show for the viewers who want more background (and their girlfriends/wives who get squeemed out by the fights themselves).

Amir is a different kind of Ultimate Fighter and I'm going to enjoy watching his future fights. I think he will be able to go as far as he chooses to go.

Labels: finale, the ultimate fighter, TUF, UFC, ultimate fighting

Last night was the special extended episode of The Ultimate Fighter before the big finale show that would see the coaches fight for the Light-Heavyweight title as well as the two show winners fighting for the show crown.

After the opening credits, the show jumped straight into one of the most anticipated matchups of the season, Amir against CB "He of the permanent smirk". I've got nothing against CB, he's been a good fighter, is big, strong, fast and dominated his fights. But Amir was the underdog and I just have a tendency to go for the underdog.

It was a great fight. Really. Two and a half rounds of back and forth fighting. Amir's stand-up was better than CB's and CB's ground game was just a little better than Amir's. But Amir impressed me throughout the fight, his flying knees, his combinations, his aggression and absolute iron jaw. Also, he was totally unfazed by a nasty gash under his eye and blood going everywhere.

CB, on the other hand, who'd looked so powerful in his previous fights, didn't look overwhelming, didn't strike fear into Amir's heart and, as the fight wore on, showed that his conditioning wasn't quite what it could have been. In other words, he gassed out and his pace of fighting slowed considerably. He was still throwing big punches but they were telegraphed and Amir was able to slip many of them without trouble.

In the end, Amir was able to catch CB in an arm bar and force him to tap out or risk getting his arm broken or ligaments torn. It was a great fight.

Plus, big props to the UFC for the way they showed the fight. The first two rounds of the fight were shown without a break, five minutes of fighting, a fade to black and then back to five minutes more of fighting for the second round. It was a great way to show the fight and I almost felt guilty using my 30 second advance on my Tivo to get right back to the action. Almost.

After CB's defeat, the show switched gears to what happened after the fighters were released from the house for a couple of days. Jesse Taylor, the other finalist and renowned nutter, partied too hard and his ego got too inflated. He kicked out a limo window and then freaked out a bunch of women in a bar. All of which might have been forgiven but when security showed up, he got aggressive and started shouting that he was a UFC fighter. Which, as anyone who's got a passing knowledge of UFC President Dana White, is a serious, serious breach of decorum. He ended up getting booted out off the show and out of the UFC.

Kind of a shame but he should have known better and should have kept his shit tight instead of getting drunk and stupid.

After Jesse's ejection, there was no one to fight Amir in the final so they brought back CB and Tim, who'd been beaten by Jesse to get to the final. They would fight to see who would advance to the final. What I thought was going to be a fairly one-sided match, with CB dominating Tim, turned out to be one of the best fights of the season. It went the full fifteen minutes and stayed mostly standing up where Tim demonstrated some surprisingly effective and quality striking. In the end, CB was able to eke out the victory and rematch with Amir for the final.

One hell of a great night of MMA! I'm looking forward to the finale not just for the CB and Amir rematch but because it'll also see Forrest and Rampage squaring off for the title. Rampage is a great show and a fantastic fighter, Forrest is almost always underestimated and always, always comes in to a fight in superb condition and has a great big heart. It should be a kickass fight too!

Labels: mma, the ultimate fighter, TUF, UFC

Most people who know me in real life know that I'm a pretty big fan of MMA (mixed martial arts) and the UFC (that's Ultimate Fighting Championship) in particular. I used to enjoy boxing years ago but it always struck me as a half-sport and, in light of my MMA knowledge, its actually more like a third or quarter sport in the overall category of pugilistics.

Why?

Because boxers stand in front of each and throw punches. There are no kicks, there are no elbows, there are no takedowns, there are no grapples, there are no submissions and there are no muay thai clinches.

I heard some idiot on the radio the other day saying that any MMA fighter who stepped into a boxing ring would get pwned by a decent boxer. Which is utter and complete bullshit. I'm not saying all MMA fighters could stand in with a boxer but I am saying that many MMA fighters could have easily become top-ranked boxers. The same does not hold true for many boxers. If a boxer steps into the octagon against a decent MMA (i.e. fighting MMA style) fighter, he will get his ass handed to him nearly everytime.

MMA stands for mixed martial arts. That means more than one discipline is required to compete. Most fighters train in at least three areas, striking, grappling and submissions. And to be a top fighter they need to be excellent in at least one of those disciplines and usually two.

What's all this leading up to? UFC 82 on Saturday Night. The main bout of the evening is a monster, Anderson "Spider" Silva against Dan "Hollywood" Henderson to unify the UFC and PRIDE light heavyweight titles. Silva has buzz-sawed through any and all competitors put before him including an astonishing total ass-kicking of then-champ Rich "Ace" Franklin. Silva is tall and lean but very, very strong and has incredible precision with his strikes and clinches where his knees are incredibly dangerous. Henderson is a PRIDE champ who held both the Light Heavy and Heavyweight belts simultaneously. He's tough as nails, a superb Olympic wrestler who can also stand and bang with almost anyone. He's also never been knocked out in a fight.

It should be a war and I'm looking forward to watching it. The other fights on the card are also pretty good too. Especially Herring vs. Kongo, Sakara vs. Leben and, most especially, Fitch vs Wilson.

I hope the UFC can get their ducks in a row because there's been an awful lot of pissed off fighters in their corral who gripe about being underpaid and under-respected by Dana White (the UFC's president and chief promoter) and the brothers (whose name is escaping me at the moment). The news about the signing of Bud Light as a major sponsor for the next three years is a very good sign though and I hope the additional money trickles down to the fighters.

Labels: boxing, fighting, mma, UFC

The perfect season didn't end so perfectly for the New England Patriots. They fell to the New York Giants to put a period and not an exclamation point on an undefeated season. Instead of a scary 19-0, they end up at 18-1 and are Super Bowl XLII runners-up rather than the champions.

There are plenty of reasons why they lost but I think the biggest is that the Patriots behaved as if the game was a foregone conclusion. As if nothing could possibly upset the applecart that is a perfect season so late in the game. But it appears someone forgot to tell the Giants they were supposed to be the footnote

Well that and the perceived mentality that playing the game was an afterthought and merely a formality. I'm sure that's now how the Patriots really felt the game was but that's certainly the feeling I got over the last couple of weeks.

And I'm sure the Giants came in feeling pissed off and ready to smash the Pats in the mouth. Especially after nearly beating them in week 17 a few weeks ago.

It wasn't inevitable but it felt like the Giants were alot hungrier, played alot harder and ended up winning. The perfect season fades into a footnote on the Giants huge upset Super Bowl victory.

The other big event this weekend was the debut of wrestling "champion" Brock Lesnar in the octagon competing in an MMA match for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He took on Frank Mir, a legendary fighter with insane submission skills. And Lesnar got submitted. I'll look forward to actually seeing the fight when it gets rebroadcast but I couldn't justify dropping fifty or sixty bucks on it. And Tim Sylvia was winning his fight with Nogueria when he got submitted. That'll be a good fight to see too. Why did I want Lesnar to lose? Simple, that haircut he sports is the worst thing I've seen since Mark Cuban started doing his homage to Canseco's bowlcut.

The bummer about the Monday after the Super Bowl (aside from my teams having been eliminated weeks ago) is that football is done for the year now. Which leaves us with hockey (which I like to watch) and basketball (which you cannot pay me to watch). The sports are slim pickings for a few months until baseball kicks back into gear.

Labels: baseball, football, mma, sports, UFC

Sad news to report that Chuck Liddell was knocked out tonight by Quinton "Rampage" Jackson in the first round of the UFC 71 title fight. Which is pretty amazing considering how Chuck was buzz-sawing through his last few fights.

But Rampage is a different style of fighter and sometimes one style just beats the other (given fighters of reasonably close talent, training and conditioning, of course).

Nothing against Rampage, I just have been a fan of the Iceman for a long time now. I like how he carries himself, like how he trains and love how he fights. The fact that my wife used to sort-of know him a long time ago in SLO is just kind of a cool tidbit.

Labels: Iceman, knockout, UFC

Last night's UFC Fight Night featured a bunch of pretty good fights and the title match of Mirko Cro Cop against Gabriel Gonzaga was unreal. Great fighting and a stunning, HOLY-SHIT finish with Gonzaga, the larger man, throwing a high kick and connecting cleanly, dropping Cro Cop like a rag doll (and bending his ankle and knee all over the place which looked nauseating on replay).

But damn, that was amazing. Jaw droppingly quick.

And much better than the Orlovski fight where he sandbagged the third round.

Also, I might as well add that this season's Ultimate Fighter, the lightweights (that's 155 pounders) is good fun. The coaches (BJ Penn and Jens Pulver) fought once before and are fighting again at the end of the season. The fighters themselves are a bunch of fucking nutcases. Almost all of them are loony, Dana King, the prez of the UFC puts it to little man syndrome. The rock harder because they have to.

And the season has been good and entertaining. If you're into that sort of thing and I know plenty of people are thoroughly appalled by the UFC and the general glorification of fighting.

Hate to say it but men are going to fight whether you put it on television or not. It is man's nature to fight. Not all men have to fight but all men, on some level, identify with the clear win/loss dichotomy of the ring.

Anyway, the quickie turned into a not-so-quickie. Sorry about that.

Labels: fighting, TUF, UFC