Post-UFC 126 Thoughts

[Dizzy Darko]

Sorry for the absence, had to take some time away for personal reasons. I should be back posting more often now.

1) Anderson is a fucking man. Hate him for his performances against Maia/Leites, but when he is actually challenged he always responds. Andy had a broken rib and Chael Sonnen was on the juice and Sonnen still couldn't get the job done. I was hating on him a lot but when he is on top of his shit he is relatively unstoppable.

2) Dana has pretty much made it clear GSP-Silva is going to happen assuming GP gets past Shields (pretty much a lock IMO). Okami gets shafted again, but really, this is the biggest fight in MMA history and it needs to happen. My only worry is that GSP fights so safely and Anderson has no reason to hate him that the fight could be a boring technical decision. I don't think it's likely but it's possible

3) A fucking front kick KO, good god

4) Not sure what Vitor was doing out there. Anderson has shown a pattern of taking the first minute or so of a fight feeling out his opponent, being very patient. This is when Vitor should have pounced. Not sure if him playing it cool was by design or jitters but something seemed off.

4) Jon Jones absolutely tooled Bader. With that said he still has major holes in the stand up game. For all his flash, Bader still managed to land some decent shots. Jones also keeps his hands pretty low. Not sure if it's because he was worried about Bader's double leg or what, but I'll be studying his fights to see if there is a pattern.

5) Jones vs. Shogun for the title is insanity. I can't wait. I think Shogun will absolutely punish Jones standing but Jones has wicked clinch takedowns and Shogun's weakness is his takedown defense. Though he is still dangerous from the bottom. I think a 100% Shogun runs through the raw Jones but who knows if he has recovered.

6) Gotta feel for Rashad Evans. Waiting all this time for a guaranteed shot at the strap with Shogun because of Rua's knee surgery only to injure your own knee a little more than a month from your fight? And the guy that takes your place is your teammate? Yikes. If Jones were to win, look for Rashad to drop to Middleweight.

7) Rocha came out to "Ice Ice Baby", bitching. No way he deserved a 30-27 though, that judge is a ruh-tard.

8) Griffin/Franklin turned out to be what I expected. Griffin has little power but is the bigger man and can take an ass whupping. Franklin is much more technical in the stand up but is aging and really hasn't looked that good in any recent fights. Considering Franklin has never been finished by sub I didn't really see an outcome other than a decision. Though I thought the rust would kill Griffin, good for him. I'd love to see Griffin/Rampage II but if Rampage beats Thiago Silva I bet he will get the next title shot. Not sure who he fights next, Machida/Couture winner? Lil Nog if he gets past Ortiz?

That's all I got for now.

 

[A.E]

Good feedback on the night that was Dizzy, as usual.

I continue to be enamored at the fact Anderson Silva can literally do whatever the hell he wants in a fight. Is it any wonder Silva Steven Segal-kicks Befort in the face, FTW, only after training with Segal in the weeks leading up to this fight. You do bring up a good point, Silva will never make the first move to open a fight, he will feel out his opponent, and it was Sonnen who took this an advantage by coming right at him, as soon as the bell sounded. I really thought Belfort would bring a similar gameplan but for reasons beyond me, his camp felt that waiting out Silva was the way to go.

Silva vs. St. Pierre is becoming more and more evident and I look forward to seeing it happen. This fight will shatter the PPV buys mark, guaranteed. Winner would be, hands down, one the greatest active champion in all of MMA.

I am very excited for Jon Jones to be getting a title shot, I know him personally, I consider myself his biggest fan. I brought Jon and his former Manager to Fort Dix, not long his first UFC fight, way before most knew who he even was. Jon got to see how the Army uses MMA in hand-to-hand combat techiniques and it was an amazing weekend for us and him. I do think that this is still one fight too early for a crack at Shogun but a win would sky-rocket Bones to the top of the 205-pound world. Shogun was on a tear but lucky for Jon, he was sidelined with a knee injury and coming off a long absence. I don't think this will say much about Shogun's pending performance but the layoff certainly doesn't do any good for the momentum he had upon beating Machida's face in.

Jon is a near-prototype of Anderson Silva and like GSP, he's the blueprint for a well-rounded, amazing fighter. He does a lot, very well, extremely unorthodox, tough to gameplan against. Jon being so young is what worries me and I think he's still a year away from really discovering the patience and true defense that GSP discovered after he was stunned by Matt Serra. I will say; however, if anyone stands a chance at taking down Shogun, it's Jonny Bones. Jon is somebody Shogun has never fought before and he will be trying to study him as much as possible...which isn't easy to do, considering how few fights and how short each fight has been. If I am in Jon's camp right now, I am studying into why Shogun struggled a little bit, upon his initial entry into the UFC. Take a look into how Forrest Griffin finished him with a rear-naked and then look into how the hell old-man Mark Coleman took their fight into the 3rd round.

I've made no secret that I am no fan of Forrest Griffin & I am incredibly bored by his fights. Why Griffin vs. an aging Rich Franklin was a double-main event booking, I have no clue. I really thought Jones-Bader was the way more intriguing fight. But Forrest managed to prolong his career, as usual, by taking down another washed up former champion. The fight was a bunch of fumbling around the octagon, it lacked technique from both fighters, and in the end, the judges always favor Forrest. I won't sweat it tho, Forrest doesn't have the brightest future ahead of him, and judging by the sounds of his post-fight interview, he lacks confidence these days.