A Brand New MMA Thread

[Oorag]

The problem is that Couture hasn't shown himself to be dangerous on his back, which is where he'll almost certainly be. I think Couture's going to need to pull out some new BJJ expertise or knock Lesnar out on the feet before he gets taken down.

[GSP]

Randy will have the right gameplan at the time. I'm just not exactly sure what it is. Maybe submissions from the back will be a hole he's filled in to do the trick.

Wow, what an upset Saturday's upset was. I really was hoping Liddell was gonna stop Rashad, and that was before 'Sugar' started tweeking his nipples before the fight. WTF was that? Anybody? Did not foresee Evans KO'ing Liddell. Gotta love this sport for that, but sometimes upsets stink too. Damn.

[Analu]

[quote name='GSP' post='1509041' date='Sep 7 2008, 18.21']Wow, what an upset Saturday's upset was. I really was hoping Liddell was gonna stop Rashad, and that was before 'Sugar' started tweeking his nipples before the fight. WTF was that? Anybody?[/quote]
I'm just guessing, but I think Rashad was playfully imitating what GSP did before his fight with Fitch, which was to lick his fingers and tweak his nipples. MMA fans being what they are, there was apparently a lot of speculation on MMA message boards as to why the hell he did that. I bet Rashad knew we would catch this so just decided to mess around with us.

The Chuck fight was crazy. I almost fell asleep watching the first round. Then when he got cracked, the entire room was quiet for a good 5 seconds, followed by everyone putting their hands on their heads, looking at each other, and yelling "Oh my fucking God!" I'm not a big Chuck fan, but I wanted and expected him to win so we could see a NYE bout between him and Forrest. And I hope he's OK, but he really needs to stop using the excuse that he "just got caught". Rashad and the Jackson camp set him up to get caught with their gameplan, and Chuck fell for it hook, line and sinker. The look on Dana's face was priceless afterwards.

The fight I was most looking forward to was Yoshida vs Karo, so I was pissed when Karo pulled out. What's up with that guy? How do you get injured and withdraw from a fight the day of weigh-ins? He shouldn't have been doing anything strenuous the day of weigh-ins except for cutting weight, so unless it was a pre-existing injury that he somehow aggravated, something else must be going on with him.

Rest of the card was okay. I wasn't expecting much out of this card, so it wasn't a disappointment to me. Still can't believe how badly Chuck got cracked. That was about as clean an overhand right as I've ever seen, in boxing, MMA or anywhere else.

[Ser Barry]

If you throw a full bore right uppercut while holding your cock with your left hand then you don't deserve to win anything. His technique has gone to shit recently. Jackson is a great trainer but even I can work out that if you make Chuck come forward and use head movement then he will leave himself wide open. Money will keep Chuck in the game for a while more but he needs to move gyms and train with people who are going to push him.

Liver shot! Franklin looked really good at 205. He admitted himself that he needs to bulk up a little more but he seemed much more positive and energetic than his last few fights at 185, maybe the cut just became too much. Disappointed in Hammill's gameplan, I really think that his biggest fault is his arrogance.

Hendo did what he needed to do to win, a win he badly needed. Perfectly executed gameplan. Palahares lookes silly strong though and with his build surely someone could teach him to wrestle, at that point he becomes very, very scary.

Tim Boetsch shows that he is a world beater when he has time to prepare. Quiet at the back, he does Bruce Lee Kung Fu and comes in to Conan music, how could he not be a world beater?

Nate Marquadt showed awesome handspeed. I thought Kampmann would take that fight but Nate showed something I hadn't seen from him before. After the way he dominated Leites despite losing I think he is shaping up as a contender again.

I thought Kim won his fight 29-28. Not sure what was up with the crowd. Sherdog had it the same way. Matt Brown looked better than I expected.

[duckman]

[url="http://mmajunkie.com/news/5243/former-ufc-champ-evan-tanner-dead-at-37.mma"]RIP Evan Tanner[/url]

He was never my favourite fighter, but I respected his approach to MMA in general and how much he cared about his fans.

[Analu]

[quote name='duckman' post='1510507' date='Sep 8 2008, 17.09'][url="http://mmajunkie.com/news/5243/former-ufc-champ-evan-tanner-dead-at-37.mma"]RIP Evan Tanner[/url]

He was never my favourite fighter, but I respected his approach to MMA in general and how much he cared about his fans.[/quote]
Very, very sad news, and I was pretty shocked when I heard about it.

Tanner was the ultimate self-made, self-taught fighter and like many, I was a fan of his because of his huge heart, determination and how he literally made himself into a champion, despite not having the pedigree or being an expert in any one martial art.

It's actually affecting me harder than I thought, and I'm still a little shook up about it. I hope he worked out his inner demons and condolences to his family and friends.

RIP Evan

[Ser Barry]

RIP

[benderschweiz]

Evan Tanner always seemed like one of those people that wouldn't work as an old man. One of those "hope I die before I get old" rock and roll star types. The UFC should put something together for him on their next PPV or put him in the HOF. RIP

[GSP]

That sucks man. Just read that myself.

RIP Evan

[Myshkin]

Ah man, this really sucks. Evan Tanner was probably my favorite fighter. Yeah he wasn't the best, but he had such an awesome attitude (and hair), you couldn't help but root for him. RIP.

[Oorag]

An Ultimate Fight Night and the premier of the next season of the Ultimate Fighter are coming up this Wednesday. I'm really looking forward to this next season, and half of that is just to see the Black House trainers in action. The Fight Night card looks like this:

[b]Nate Diaz vs. Josh Neer [/b] - This the start of Neer's third run in the UFC. He's lost to a few mid-tier guys, including Nick Diaz, and has beaten Joe Stevenson, Melvin Guillard, and Din Thomas. Diaz is a human lasso, though, and I think he'll once again sink in a pretty quick submission.

[b]Houston Alexander vs. Eric Schafer [/b] - Schafer hasn't beaten anyone of any real consequence, while Houston has shown that he at least has knock-out power and aggression on his side. Here's hoping that he's worked on his defense and ground game.

[b]Mac Danzig vs. Clay Guida [/b] - This is the fight I'm most looking forward to. Danzig looks pretty bad-ass at lightweight, while Guida is a challenge for anyone. Guida fights are always exciting, so I'd like to see more of him, but I'd also like to see Danzig make a title run. Maybe it's the TUFer in me, but I'll pick Danzig to win via submission.

[b]Joe Lauzon vs. Kyle Bradley [/b] - This looks like a tune-up fight for Lauzon after his loss to Florian. This is only Bradley's second UFC appearance besides his loss to Chris Lytle. Should be an easy submission win for Lauzon to put him back on the winning side.

[b]Ed Herman vs. Alan Belcher[/b] - A battle of gatekeepers, I think I'll go with Herman because he's recently gotten two nice stoppages before he got fed to Maia.

[b]Wilson Gouveia vs. Ryan Jensen[/b] - I'm going to pick Gouveia, since he's from a good camp, and his recent loss was to Goran Reljic, who is probably a rising star.

Preliminary Card
[b]Drew McFedries vs. Mike Massenzio [/b] - Probably a tune-up fight for McFedries, fighting a newcomer to the UFC after his crushing TKO of Marvin Eastman. He also looked good against Kampmann before succumbing to a surprise submission.

[b]Alessio Sakara vs. Joe Vedepo [/b]- Sakara is 3-4-1 in the UFC, and I'm pretty surprised he's still around. Maybe it's because his fights are so fast, win or lose. I'll pick the newcomer, who's got a decent record against other no-names.

[b]Rob Kimmons vs. Dan Miller[/b] - Miller was apparently the IFL Middleweight titleholder. I don't recall if I've seen him or not. The IFL had some decent fighters, so I'll pick him.

[b]Jason Brilz vs. Brad Morris[/b] - Morris lost his UFC debut to up-and-comer Cain Velasquez, while Brilz has a great record of stoppages against no-names. No way for me to pick, really.

[Cuellar]

Awesome!

There are a ton of great fights on the card (at least in my eyes). Not a lot of big names, but very recognizable TUF fighters...

[Ken Stone]

At this time tomorrow I should be in an Omaha bar some where getting a pre-fight buzz going with my buddy from Kansas City. I have a question for people who have been to a live UFC event. I noticed that the fights start at 4:45 but the Spike broadcast doesn't start until like 7:00 I think. Isn't the Spike broadcast live? If it is then how do they fill that time? Will there be a lot of time between matches or something?

My Picks:

[b]Nate Diaz[/b] vs. Josh Neer - I love Nate Diaz and wonder if we will see a bit more stand-up from him. Also it is interesting that he is undefeated yet still seems about 5 victories away from contender status.

[b]Houston Alexander[/b] vs. Eric Schafer - The UFC just renewed Alexanders contract for 5 more fights so he better win this thing. The crowd is going to explode when he enters the ring.

[b]Mac Danzig[/b] vs. Clay Guida - Tough call, but until Guida cuts his hair I can't pick him. Let's face it, he is basically fighting blind. Why give yourself that sort of disadvantage before the fight even starts?

[b]Joe Lauzon[/b] vs. Kyle Bradley - Joe is another fighter I like a lot. The fight against Florian was good for him, even though he lost.

[Analu]

[quote name='Ken Stone' post='1520515' date='Sep 16 2008, 09.48']I noticed that the fights start at 4:45 but the Spike broadcast doesn't start until like 7:00 I think. Isn't the Spike broadcast live? If it is then how do they fill that time? Will there be a lot of time between matches or something?[/quote]
Prelims, Ken.


I hope Guida destroys Danzig, as I didn't like Mac much during TUF, and now I really dislike him after the remarks he made about Rampage

[benderschweiz]

This Fight Night card seems pretty good, always look forward to Guida fights. From the hype it sounds like this season of TUF will be better than the last few as well. Hopefully they'll give a lot of airtime to the coaches as Nog brought in all the Black House guys and Mir brought in Hendo, Aurilio, and Maia.

UFC 91 is going to be great with Couture vs. Lesnar and Rampage vs. Silva. I loved the first two Rampage vs. Silva fights and I'll gladly watch another.

[url="http://mmajunkie.com/news/5296/quinton-jackson-preparing-for-ufc-91-fight-with-wanderlei-silva.mma"]http://mmajunkie.com/news/5296/quinton-jac...erlei-silva.mma[/url]

[Oorag]

[quote name='benderschweiz' post='1520707' date='Sep 16 2008, 14.10']UFC 91 is going to be great with Couture vs. Lesnar and Rampage vs. Silva. I loved the first two Rampage vs. Silva fights and I'll gladly watch another.[/quote]
Ah, very cool! It must be hard to lose your title and then have to face someone who's beaten you twice before. On the other hand, if Jackson can beat Silva, I bet that would go a long way to restoring his confidence and momentum.

[polekat]

[quote name='Oorag' post='1518627' date='Sep 15 2008, 09.55']An Ultimate Fight Night and the premier of the next season of the Ultimate Fighter are coming up this Wednesday.[/quote]

Dammit! Don't they know America's Next Top Model is on tonight?!

:leaving:

[Ken Stone]

For TUF 9 they should have 8 Ring Girl prospects living in the house with the guys. Sure it would be a disaster but it would be an entertaining disaster.

[GSP]

Shit Ken,

that would be hilarious!

BJ, what did Danzig say about Rampage that got your riled? I hadn't heard about that.

[Horus Ex Machina]

[quote name='Ken Stone' post='1520515' date='Sep 16 2008, 14.48']At this time tomorrow I should be in an Omaha bar some where getting a pre-fight buzz going with my buddy from Kansas City. I have a question for people who have been to a live UFC event. I noticed that the fights start at 4:45 but the Spike broadcast doesn't start until like 7:00 I think. Isn't the Spike broadcast live? If it is then how do they fill that time? Will there be a lot of time between matches or something?

My Picks:

[b]Nate Diaz[/b] vs. Josh Neer - I love Nate Diaz and wonder if we will see a bit more stand-up from him. Also it is interesting that he is undefeated yet still seems about 5 victories away from contender status.

[b]Houston Alexander[/b] vs. Eric Schafer - The UFC just renewed Alexanders contract for 5 more fights so he better win this thing. The crowd is going to explode when he enters the ring.

[b]Mac Danzig[/b] vs. Clay Guida - Tough call, but until Guida cuts his hair I can't pick him. Let's face it, he is basically fighting blind. Why give yourself that sort of disadvantage before the fight even starts?

[b]Joe Lauzon[/b] vs. Kyle Bradley - Joe is another fighter I like a lot. The fight against Florian was good for him, even though he lost.[/quote]
[b]Nate Diaz[/b] vs. Josh Neer - The last stand for MFS?

[b]Houston Alexander[/b] vs. Eric Schafer - The UFC has to love Houston. He cool, explosive, and happy just to be fighting. That said, they gave him a fight that he should win. If he drops this one, he will come close to losing credibility with even the fanbase that he won with his first two big wins.

[b]Mac Danzig[/b] vs. Clay Guida - I'll just ditto Ken Stone. What I don't get is why he doesn't just tie it back? Even female fighters do this!

[b]Joe Lauzon[/b] vs. Kyle Bradley - J-Lo has a good fight to get back on a roll, but it seems that there are a few guys on this card who should be fighting one another.

[quote name='BJ Penn' post='1509109' date='Sep 8 2008, 01.33']The Chuck fight was crazy. I almost fell asleep watching the first round. Then when he got cracked, the entire room was quiet for a good 5 seconds, followed by everyone putting their hands on their heads, looking at each other, and yelling "Oh my fucking God!" I'm not a big Chuck fan, but I wanted and expected him to win so we could see a NYE bout between him and Forrest. And I hope he's OK, but he really needs to stop using the excuse that he "just got caught". Rashad and the Jackson camp set him up to get caught with their gameplan, and Chuck fell for it hook, line and sinker. The look on Dana's face was priceless afterwards.[/quote]I was the one guy in the room openly celebrating when Chuck got ktfo'd. I'm not a Chuck fan and never will be and there is no matchup that I wanted to see less than Forrest vs. Chuck. That said, I am intrigued in this new Rashad vs. Forrest matchup; even as I'm certain that most of the MMA fanbase isn't. But what this does say is that this ain't pro wrestling, and when you try to set up the matchups to build to potential big PPV blockbusters, you might get burned.

The only surefire way to script any matchup is just to give a guy the titleshot w/out making him fight his way to it. Rashad and his monkey-wrench suit me just fine.