Where have you been?

 

I purposely got swine flu then infiltrated Brock Lesnar’s training camp and infected him. I’ll do anything to win a bet. In all seriousness, a bunch of things piled up and happened to coincide with an especially boring time for MMA. Whenever I sat down to post, I lost interest within minutes. A man can only make so many A-Team posts before he loses it. Anyways, I’m back and I promise I’m done with making fun of Rampage’s

acting career. At least until the trailer comes out.

 

What did you think of the Rua/Machida fight?

 

I thought Rua won it 3 rounds to 2. It was definitely closer than Rogan and Goldberg made it out to be. No matter what, a judge will always favor a strike to the head over anything to the body/legs. Machida countered many of Rua’s kicks with straight lefts to the head and that won him the fight. Personally, I don’t think he landed enough of the counters to overcome the quantity of the kicks, but I can see why the judges scored it that way.

 

Do you think a rematch will happen?

 

Odds are it will not. MMA is a crazy sport and promised rematches rarely happen. After Forrest Griffin defeated Rampage Jackson, it seemed likely a rematch would happen. Then Rampage went monster trucking and the thing was scrapped. Obviously that is an extreme case. What usually happens is another fighter impresses the hell out of everyone and becomes a more interesting opponent for the winner (of the initial fight). There is a perfect storm gathering for such a scenario right now.

 

Machida is kind of a solid draw now, but not nearly enough to carry a card with Ben Rothwell in the co-main event. The PPV numbers for UFC 104 will not be strong. This will lead the UFC to wonder whether it’s worth it from a business standpoint to trot out Machida/Rua for a second straight time (it also was not an exciting fight for mainstream fans who do not share Joe Rogan's enthusiasm for leg/body kicks). Forget about determining the real champion. It all comes down to money for the UFC (and all promoters).

 

With the weak PPV numbers on their mind, the UFC brass will watch a fight next month that will have the ability to alter the future of the Light Heavyweight title picture. If Randy Couture defeats Brandon Vera, I believe he will get the next shot at Machida. The only reason the UFC would have to pass over Couture for Rua is a sense of honor. So put honor on one side and on the other a guaranteed 700K PPV Buys.

 

Sorry, Shogun.

 

Wasn’t DREAM’s white cage awesome?

 

Yes, it was. It should be standard for all MMA events. In addition to the white cage, we should get rid of the ten point must system, Dan Miragliotta, and Strikeforce’s entire announcing crew other than Pat Miletich.

 

Is Alistair Overeem on steroids?

 

The latest is he wants to fight Fedor…in Japan. If he is on steroids, I wish he’d embrace it. Come out and say, “I’m taking enough steroids to light up Tokyo. I’ll tear off Fedor’s balls and feed them to his brother.” I’m much more interested in seeing if Fedor could defeat a roided out monster than anything else that’s out there. This is why MMA needs Vince McMahon. He’d be all over this.

 

Have you jumped on the Cain Velasquez bandwagon yet?

 

Nope. I think he’s the fifth best Heavyweight in the UFC behind Lesnar, Nogueira, Mir, and Carwin. He’s not big enough to give any of them problems and his stand-up remains average. I don’t see him packing on the pounds, so his striking will have to improve greatly, if he wants to be a serious threat for the title. I’m dubious about the prospects of that happening. Fighters either have the striking gene or don’t. I’ve seen nothing so far to tell me that Velasquez has it.

Lots more pictures here.

I don't blame Nelson for his approach. What a lot of fans do not understand is that competing on The Ultimate Fighter forces you to fight with little turnaround time. Nelson is a favorite to win the show and probably has to if he ever wants to be a UFC mainstay. He doesn't fit the mold of what a UFC fighter looks like (maybe some stupid tribal tattoos would help?). His style also doesn't lend itself to producing highlight reel finishes. The pressure to win the show is what made that fight lackluster. Why should Nelson take any chances? He has bigger things on his mind.

Another thing most fans do not realize is how the producers of the show influence the fight match-ups. They need the bouts to be engaging enough for viewers to tune in. I have no doubt that the Nelson/Slice fight was a direct result of producer meddling. It was a classic UFC win/win fight. If arguably the best fighter in the cast beats Kimbo, he instantly becomes recognizable to average fans. If Kimbo somehow pulls the upset, he sheds the overrated label. Either way, the UFC comes out well.

This time the thinking ran into a problem because Nelson played it safe (as he should) and finished Kimbo with an underwhelming TKO. The UFC's win/win strategy is a poor fit for the first round of The Ultimate Fighter. They got greedy and wanted the quick ratings without putting Kimbo into a spot where he could lose to a virtual unknown. If the producers paid more attention, they would have realized Kimbo is better than at least half the others.

I think Kimbo has a future in the UFC with the right matchmaking. His biggest problem is his size. He's too small to compete with the giants in the Heavyweight Division, yet too big to make Light Heavyweight. I'm sure with the right diet and a big cut at the end, he could make the weight, but it would not be beneficial. He'd lose too much of his power and be drained for each fight from the cutting. At Heavyweight, he's never going to be able to keep the fights standing. The only answer is to consistently match him up with other small Heavyweights. He did a good job defending Nelson's initial takedown attempt, so maybe against an opponent of similar size he can keep it standing longer. There's no denying that his striking is fun to watch and pretty deadly.

Via his website, which you have to register with to actually see it.

It's easy to talk a big game when you're sitting on a movie set, but lets wait and see how he feels after the "A-Team" bombs. My guess is he comes crawling back to the UFC like all the others.

This episode does prove a very solid point. You should never hitch your wagon to a falling star. Rampage Jackson is an extremely likeable and talented fighter. The only problem is he's nuts. The UFC was given a clear indication of this when he mowed down a pregnant woman with his monster truck. They chose to back him anyway and even featured him on The Ultimate Fighter. Well, you get what you pay for.

In my opinion, the Jardine fight and Machida's destruction of Rashad Evans, scared Rampage. His skills have deteriorated and he knows there is a terrible beating coming to him, if he ever steps into the cage with Machida. This is just another stunt to avoid it.

Rafael Dos Anjos vs Rob Emerson

-Dos Anjos Wins by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Vladimir Matyushenko vs Igor Pokrajac

-Matyushenko Wins by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Jason Brilz vs Eliot Marshall

-Marshall Wins by Split Decision (30-28, 27-30, 30-27)

Brian Foster vs Rick Story

-Story Wins by 2nd Round Submission (Arm Triangle)

Nick Lentz vs Rafaello Oliveira

-Lentz Wins by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Steve Lopez vs Jim Miller

-Miller Wins by 2nd Round TKO (Shoulder Injury)

Tomasz Drwal vs Drew McFedries

-Drwal Wins by 2nd Round Submission (Rear Naked Choke)

Efrain Escudero vs Cole Miller

-Escudero Wins by 1st Round TKO

-That was a brutal preliminary card. The UFC should elect all of the fans who sat through those eight fights into the Hall of Fame.

-Franca would probably be a monster, if he took fighting seriously.

-Miragliotta sighting!

Franca looks totally out of shape. If Griffin can take this into the latter rounds, he should take over. Good jab by Griffin. Body shot lands for Griffin. Very slow start for Franca. A diving left connects for Griffin. Left-right combo for Griffin. Uppercut by Griffin. Solid leg kick for Griffin. Left lands for Griffin. Two inside leg kicks connect for Griffin. RNN Scores it 10-9 Griffin.

Griffin lands a jab. Franca charges in and lands a series of looping strikes. Griffin stands in and takes the shots. They're both trading and landing. Franca getting the better of it. Franca catches a leg. As it's held, they're both throwing punches, although most are partially landing at best. Griffin gets his leg free. Leg kick by Griffin. Griffin pushes forward and lands a hard right over the top. Lots of leg kicks for Griffin. France content to let them land. Inside leg kick followed by a right for Griffin. A right drops Franca. Griffin on top landing combinations. Franca moving around. Griffin continues to pour it on. He lands some flush shots and it's over. Franca went out for a second and the referee stepped in.

Diaz vs Guillard
-Diaz Wins by 2nd Round Submission
Quarry vs Credeur
-Credeur Wins by Unanimous Decision
Dollaway vs Silva
-Dollaway Wins by Unanimous Decision

Gina Carano will star in the new Steven Soderbergh movie "Knockout", which will begin filming in early 2010. She will play the main role, which Variety describes as, "a girl from the wrong side of the tracks who is given a second chance to use her skills for constructive purposes." Yeah, not the greatest pitch of all time, but with Soderbergh directing it will not flop. Apparently it will be an action movie and not require Carano to turn into Meryl Streep.

This could turn out to be a major blow to Women's MMA. Even if it's only moderately decent, Carano will be offered many other roles. With her out of the picture, interest in WMMA will drop to subterranean levels.

In other news, Cyborg Santos is set to star in "My Father The Hero II".

Credit to MMAJunkie for getting Vera to say all these dumb things.

"[Winning titles in two divisions] is always the ultimate goal. Everybody's always like, 'You're crazy. Why would you do that? Those guys are huge.'"

Actually, they're like, "You're not even that good. Why would the UFC ever put you into a title fight? Yeah, you're an idiot."

Vera said he's used to the doubters, but he likened the challenge to a scene from the 2004 movie 'Troy.'

Yup, not winning me over with that reference. Troy? At least pick a movie people liked.

"The only way I can explain it to everybody or people who think I'm crazy or whatever – my parents thought I was crazy when I first told them I wanted to fight in the UFC – is my most favorite scene in the movie, I think it was 'Troy,' when the little boy went into the tent, and Brad Pitt was in there with two women and said, 'They are calling me for war,'" Vera said. "(The boy said), 'He's a big man. I wouldn't want to fight him.' Then Brad Pitt told the little boy, 'That's why the world will never know your name.'

I have a better comparison. You're "The Ultimate Fighting Turtle". As soon as the fight begins, you retreat inside your shell until it's all over.

"But the 205-pound division is so stacked right now, it really doesn't matter who they put me up against.  It's going to be a good fight, no matter what."

No, it's not.

• Couture needs to move to 205 lbs permanently. UFC Heavyweights have grown a ton in recent years. Maybe at a younger age, Couture could negate some of the size differential, but not anymore. I'm mostly talking about strikes, because his wrestling background allows him to hold his own when grappling. He just can't take the force of the strikes anymore from bigger opponents. That's why Nogueira kept dropping him. He was never seriously hurt. It's simply a matter of the strength behind the strikes. Going along with this, his strikes don't have as much behind them, which also puts him at a disadvantage. Yes, it's fun to see a smaller opponent fight a bigger guy, but Couture has already done that multiple times. It's time for him to enter the final phase of his career and it should be at Light Heavyweight, where he'll be the bigger fighter and can afford to take some strikes without being thrown totally off-balance.

• The UFC should really push for the move because they need Couture to remain a viable contender. He's one of their top paid fighters and they can't afford to have him losing. At Heavyweight, the odds are stacked against him. Even against an inferior opponent, he runs the very real risk of taking a random strike, falling from the force, and getting TKO'd on the ground. At Light Heavyweight, I don't see him going down unless it's a true Knockout punch.

• Going along with the weight change theme, Demian Maia is a Welterweight. I'm sure he can submit most of the Middleweights, but the contenders are basically small Light Heavyweights who cut to Middleweight. Maia is a small Middleweight who should be cutting to Welterweight. The Welterweight Division could use him too. It's awful right now.

• Couture's corner was a mess. At one point, someone even said, "Only one person talk at a time". You'd think they would have had that sorted out prior to the fight.

• It's safe to say that Nogueira's injuries prior to the Mir fight were a major factor in the outcome. It's also safe to say we need to see Nogueira/Mir II. Scrap the Mir/Kongo fight that no one cares about and lets see how the second bout sorts out. It would also give the UFC a legit title contender to face the Lesnar/Carwin winner.

• Please put Vera in the cage with a fighter who will try to tear his head off. I'm tired of watching him dance around, kick his opponent in the leg, and act smug. He's one of the most overrated fighters in the sport and it's time he stopped getting the Bisping treatment. Put him in with someone no one wants to fight. Someone who will force him to fight. Someone named Luiz Cane.

• The Herman and Tuchscherer referee and ringside decisions were horrible. If a fighter falls to the ground, clutches his knee, and screams in pain, stop the fight. If a fighter gets kicked in the balls and throws up for five minutes, stop the fight. Fans might boo and the fighters might get mad, but it's for the best. Herman and Tuchscherer took excessive punishment. It's the referee's and ringside doctor's job to keep fighters from taking unnecessary harm. They failed in both cases at UFC 102.

• I also think it's time they changed the rules and allowed referees to deduct points for accumulated fouls. If a fighter pokes someone in the eye then later kicks him in the balls, the referee should be allowed to deduct a point for accumulated fouls. It should not matter that they were two different violations.