Mixed Martial Arts - Rashad Evans vs Michael Bisping

[zelticgar]

Leben impressed me a lot. That was an excellent fight. I was very surprised at Martin's conditioning but i gues he has not gone deep into fights that much. Too bad, he would have been one win from a title shot if he won that fight. Besides Couture-Silvia i give that fight of the year consideration.

I think the Quarry-Sell fight was one of the top 4 or 5 fights of the year as well. I actually liked round 1 with no announcers. They should do that more often. Sell deserves another fight. That guy always entertains but he really needs to learn how to sit on a lead. He has the worst head movement of any fighter i've ever seen. He is the most hittable guy around.

My predictions for UFC 76 -

Liddell - Early round 2 knockout

Griffin - upset decision. Griffin is a slow starter so i see this one going similar to the way his fight with Ortiz went. He'll give up the 1st round and come back to win the 2nd and 3rd.

Fitch knocks Sanchez out. Hopefully with a flying knee in round 1.

Tavares - Griffin will be the fight of the night. I have Tavares winning by submission. I'd like to see the winner of this in line to fight Florian, Nate Diaz or Spencer Fisher. Could be a setup to lightweight title shot in 08.

[Oorag]

It was nice to see Leben finally win a fight. I can't remember the last time I saw that. Apparently he had the option of fighting Mike Swick as the main event, but instead chose to fight Martin. Looking at the Wikipedia site, apparently Gray Maynard had a 9 second KO on the undercard. They could have played the entirety of that fight instead of Rogan's spinal implant dumbshow.

[Horus Ex Machina]

Interesting news: Kurt Angle to sign with the IFL

[Horus Ex Machina]

Well, well, well. What do I know about MMA! I went 1-4 people! Shockingly Shogun's loss didn't make me cry,... much. :cry: After the latest performances of Shogun and Ninja Rua, I can now say so much for the vaunted cardio of Chute Boxe. These guys were gassing after 1+ rounds and it wasn't like they were running around there in the octagon so you can't blame it on the cage. At least Shogun didn't come in tonight looking as fat as he was during the promo footage is all I can say as far as him saving face. Thank God that he was my third favorite fighter after A. Silva. Piss poor performance by Shogun and great coming out party for F. Griffin, who has shown incredible improvement in his last two fights, and was amazing in looking for the stoppage all the way to the last seconds AND GETTING IT! Credit must go where credit is due, b/c Shogun got tonight!

Jardine? WTF? Has Chuck Liddell suddenly forgot how to be a kickboxer? When we finally saw some kicks out of Liddell in the waning seconds of the fight I was saying "where have those been for the last two years"? Chuck saw first-hand how judicious use of kicks can take over a fight and it was too little to late by the third round.

Rampage(my second favorite fighter) is sitting pretty now since he will avoid the entire Chute Boxe camp which has given him so much trouble in the past. So who does he fight now? Who deserves to be the #1 contender. I think it's down to 3 fighters IMO: Jardine, Griffen, and H. Alexander in no particular order. Jardine has now beaten the former LHW champ making Alexander's victory over him take on more significance. And now Forrest has beaten Shogun making Jardine's two most recent victories look huge. And Houston has now cemented his status as a KO artist by beating Sakara in simalar fashion to the way he took out Jardine. So who gets the next shot? And is Liddell vs. W. Silva an even more compelling matchup seeing as how both fighters are now coming off of back-to-back losses?

Tavares vs T. Griffin was fight of the night easily. Tyson Griffin seems to be in the FotN groove and all his fights are always back and forth "could have gone either way" types of matchups.

Machida showed more agression than I've ever seen out of him, but something tells me that he would be better at MW, which won't happen since his teammate A. Silva is the MW top dog.

Diego showed tremendous heart and great class in another great fight vs. Fitch. Sanchez could have squeaked out a decision but you definitely can't knock the judges for giving it to Fitch and I'm happy that the fans stopped booing Diego in the face of his humility. Fitch looked super, and now the question is, can he beat GSP? I think that he'd run into similar problems that Koscheck did against GSP and so I think that noone looks ready to stop Rush when he gets back the title.

In recap the two main events leave me shaking my head saying WTF? Oh and three guesses as to which is the only fight I got right tonight.

[Stego]

Liddell let the drugs and alcohol get to him, I think. He's done forever. Time to retire.

Shogun looked like he didn't even belong in the ring after a round or so. Major disappointment. Cro-Cop part deux.

The lesser named fights were much more enjoyable.

[Horus Ex Machina]

Shogun looked like he didn't even belong in the ring after a round or so. Major disappointment. Cro-Cop part deux.

It's starting to look that way. Where's the f'ing ice cream and cheesecake? I need to eat my feelings. :cry:

[zelticgar]

i was 2 - 2 on predictions although i did call Griffin over Rua and also called Tavares Griffin as FOTN. I just got the winner wrong.

We should start getting a prediction thing going on prior to the cards. we can start keeping track and whoever has the best percentage can be the king of ASOIAF MMA.

At 205 it creates all kinds of questions. I think the big winner in this scenario may be Tito Ortiz. I think prior to this month he had a slim shot of ever getting a crack at the 205 title but now you've got Griffin, Jardine and Alexander all under consideraton. Now the winner of Ortiz-Evans will also be in that mix. My guess is that Silva will end up fighting Alexander for a title shot and then the winner of Ortiz Evans will fight Jardine or Griffin for the 2nd shot. I can't think of anyone else in the mix at 205 right now but something tells me i am missing one or two other guys.

[Horus Ex Machina]

i was 2 - 2 on predictions although i did call Griffin over Rua and also called Tavares Griffin as FOTN. I just got the winner wrong.

Interestingly enough, so did Tito. BTW where were you on the 5th main card fight?

We should start getting a prediction thing going on prior to the cards. we can start keeping track and whoever has the best percentage can be the king of ASOIAF MMA.

Good idea, but everyone has to keep track of thier own stats.

At 205 it creates all kinds of questions. I think the big winner in this scenario may be Tito Ortiz. I think prior to this month he had a slim shot of ever getting a crack at the 205 title but now you've got Griffin, Jardine and Alexander all under consideraton. Now the winner of Ortiz-Evans will also be in that mix. My guess is that Silva will end up fighting Alexander for a title shot and then the winner of Ortiz Evans will fight Jardine or Griffin for the 2nd shot. I can't think of anyone else in the mix at 205 right now but something tells me i am missing one or two other guys.

Lyoto Machida. And noone else really.

Interesting point brought up by Rogan on Pride fighters. They come in alot lighter b/c they don't cut weight, which also means what weight they do have is alot of bodyfat.

Also here are the BRAND NEW COMPUSTRIKE STATS for yesterdays fights. Welcome to the 21st century MMA!

[benderschweiz]

Rampage can't be very scared of either Silva or Shogun from what they've shown recently. Him and Dan Henderson look to be quite a bit better than anyone else in the UFC at 205.

I want to see Henderson vs. Anderson Silva after Rich Franklin dies at UFC 77, but I wonder if Dan will bother dropping down. Anyone read what he's planning?

[Analu]

Wow, I'm in shock. I don't even know what to say, except that now we're never going to see Liddell vs. Wand. And I can't even convey my disappointment in Shogun's UFC debut.

Another piss-poor showing by a widely acclaimed PRIDE fighter (not to mention my favorite fighter in all of MMA). I couldn't believe what I was seeing during the fight. Who would've thought it would be Griffin that submitted Shogun? I sure as hell didn't. Also never thought I'd see the day that Shogun gassed out in the 2nd round. Especially since he's used to fighting those 10 minute 1st rounds in PRIDE. Me and my buddies were just looking at each other in disbelief, thinking he was trying to trick him into something. Only explanation I can come up with, other than being out of shape, is that Griffin's size played a part in it. Shogun couldn't or wouldn't use his Thai clinch because of Forrests' reach and height and Forrest stufffed every single one of his shoots. Didn't know he could sprawl like that. Big ups to Forrest. He deserved to win.

I went a whopping 1-4. I don't even know what to make of the UFC and MMA in general right now. The Jardine and Forrest wins have thrown all my expectations out of whack. Still stunned.

The whole card was pretty bad, IMO. Fight of the night was probably Thiago-Griffin, and I actually thought Tavares won it with the number of submission attempts he made. Also thought Diego should've won since it looked like he had Fitch in trouble more than Fitch had him. Bah. I know nothing about MMA

[zelticgar]

BTW where were you on the 5th main card fight?

I had no idea about that fight. i know nothing about either guy. This Machida guy has an impressive resume though. He's beaten some legit guys, BJ Penn, Rich Franklin, Stefan Bonner... It will be interesting to see him in the mix of 205 fighters. The other guy still out there with a legit claim to contender status is Jason Lambert. That makes the list of potential 205 fighters to face off against Rampage pretty long -

Alexander

Jardine

Ortiz

Evans

Griffin

Silva

Machida

Lambert

Liddell

Throw in Henderson and you've got a deep pool of guys. I'm really curious to see how they handle this.

___________________

My thought on the Pride fighters is that they need more time to adjust to the cage and the environment. I think there are other factors at play as well. The UFC fighters are clearly better than most people thought. I also wonder about a guy like Rua. I wonder if steriods factor into any of these guys training. Roids are pretty common in the UFC where testing is agressive. i wonder how rampart they were in Pride?

[Ser Barry]

We only got to see four fights over here but it was a pretty great card none-the-less.

Liddell looked so slow. He looked like a one-trick pony wading in mediocrity syrup. Surely Jardine should get the Wandy fight now?

Forrest managed to combine his earlier style with the sharper tactics he showed against HR and he looked good. Shogun was a big let down. Again, gassed? WTF??

Fitch looked huge compared to Diego but he really did not do much to win the fight. He should have dominated completely but Sanchez kept so busy and Fitch looked like he just wanted to do enough, which he pretty much admitted post-fight. I gave it 29-28 Sanchez but whatever, it was close.

Griffin should be on every card. Great fight.

I think the winner of Ortiz/Evans gets the next title shot. I think they lose.

[GSP]

Well, the PRIDE fans shouldn't be too dejected about the 205ers. I mean, Jackson sits the top of the heap after moving over from the orginization doesn't he? Only thing now is, he's gotta be thinkin 'have I gotta worry about Forrest, he just stomped a guy who stomped me'. Wow, hats off too Forrest, my heart wins over my head and I couldn't be happier.

I also thought Tavares deserved the decision over Tyson Griffin. Yes, Griffin spun out of a lot of submission attempts and managed to stay on top a lot, but Tavares had him in trouble a number of times (after that flying knee (however much he wants to claim he didn't feel it) and from numberous submission attempts from the bottom and standing from his back). Mouse under the eye or not, when can one say that Tyson ever had Tavares in any trouble? I don't think Tyson deserved his decision over Clay Guida either. They give too many points for takedowns and positioning in my opinion. If you aren't doing squat with it, what's it worth?

I think the UFC's gotta have a Jardine/Griffin 2 to figure out the future title shot contentions. Both those boys just raised their rankings in the division big time, to be sure.

I read that Diego is either gonna powerlift to put on muscle weight or drop to lightweight. I think that's a good move. Anybody else notice how huge Fitch looked compared to Diego? I'm no Diego fan by a long shot but he rushed in like a lion, and got stuffed. Fitch was simply too big and powerful for him. I'm looking forward to a GSP/ Fitch fight. That should be interesting.

[Horus Ex Machina]

My only hope is that Shogun didn't invite Anderson Silva to his wedding. The last thing that I can take right now is to see Silva gas against Franklin. If that happens I will really be pissed.

[Voland]

Wtf, seriously wtf =( First Ninja Rua gasses hard and then Shogun goes the same way. Don't these people fucking train their Cardio? I hate to think that 'roids has anything to do with it as some seems to think at other forums. =( Sooo disappointed =( Good for Forrest though, he's a great fighter and funny as well.

As for Chuck...he looked kinda old. No defense whatsoever against those leg and body kicks. RIP Wandy vs Liddell...although considering Liddell's fight and Chute Box fighter's cardio it might be for the best.

Sanchez looked pretty good in his submission attempts. Fitch was just too good.

now I don't even know what to look forward to anymore. Fedor? Still have faith (how can you not) but he hasn't been that convincing in his last fights. Still, if anyone can recoup some of the lost Pride glory, other than Henderson and Rampage of course, it's him.

Wonder if Dana is afraid to sign him now that almost all of the top Pride contenders he's brought in has been defeated.

[Horus Ex Machina]

DBL POST

[Horus Ex Machina]

I caught this on a Sherdog thread, apparently it's from Wandy's website:

This is taken from Wanderlei's web site -

Wanderlei says he would like to fight with Forrest Griffin

http://www.wanderleisilva.com.br/sit...pdf_button.png http://www.wanderleisilva.com.br/sit...rintButton.png http://www.wanderleisilva.com.br/sit...mailButton.png

Wanderlei Silva was an outstanding personality at UFC 76, taken place on September 22. Wanderlei was invited by Dana White to attend the event and challenge Chuck Lidell, in case the latter won. But it was a sad night for both Lidell and the Brazilian Shogun, who lost their fights.

What Wanderlei has to say about the event: "UFC took place in a very good gymnasium, very large; here these events have been growing continuously. This week I worked a lot on the event advertising making use of my popularity that is big here. Just to give an idea, we had an autograph session that gathered about 500 people, on a huge line. The warmth of my fans was very nice. I realize that everyone is anxious about my first fight, including myself. I've been training very hard, every day, with a lot of focus. My responsibility towards Brazilians has grown a lot due to the results of the last fights. This is also very motivating to me. It is important for the sport to bring joy to the fans and this becomes the fighters' responsibility.

Lidell's fight had a direct relationship with me because Dana White had said I would challenge him if he won. I was disappointed with the defeat because Lidell's opponent is good, he has his merit but was not so qualified to defeat him. I believed Lidell was going to win and I was disappointed with the result. I hoped to perform against him in December and now I will have to wait for another name. It was a balanced, hard fight; I think Lidell should have prepared better in view of the importance of this combat.

As to Shogun, I didn't manage to see him; I only watched the fight. I was very sad, both as a Brazilian and as a personal friend; I was cheering a lot for him. I was very frustrated with the defeat, it was unexpected. I thought it would be an easy fight for him. I hope he comes back, training hard and next time show his potential. MMA has greatly evolved and we should be tuned to such innovations, realizing that this sport is more and more specific and scientific. It does not take only a heart to win a fight any longer. Shogun has the talent and it all depends exclusively upon him. He will figure out what went wrong and will not make the same mistakes next time. Yesterday he was not the Shogun who I know. I hope he continues bringing joy to this fans including myself, for I am also his fan."

As to a name to face in December: "I'd like, in view of the last event and also as a vengeance for my friend, to fight with this Forrest Griffin. I guess it could be a good name for me."

Interesting that Forrest called out Shogun, and now Wandy wants to call him out. That would really be a war. I guarantee that win or lose Wandy will bring it. This fight needs to happen. Jardine deserves the title shot.

[VikingBeard]

I hear a lot of people want Houston to have the title shot. The guy has fought twice. Hardly deserves to be up for the title. I'd like to see him go up against some better competition first.

[zelticgar]

I read in a couple of places today that it looks like Jackson wont fight until next year. It was also mentioned in a couple of articles that the winner of Ortiz - Evan may get the shot. One of those guys will need to make it convincing if they are going to get a title shot. I'm guessing Alexander will go up against Jardine, Machida or Lambert before they give him a shot.

[GSP]

Silva/Griffin, I'd love to see that!