UFC 103 Results

Ok, how'd I do?

Vitor Belfort def. Rich Franklin (KO 1) - Although I had been pulling for Franklin and pegged him to win a decision, I could sense he was gonna get run over very early in the fight. There was this sense that this main event wasn't going to live up to the hype. Sometimes you can almost feel it - that the fight is going to end quickly and in a disappointing fashion. I don't say disappointing here because Franklin lost, but because of the way the fight ended. I mean, there really wasn't any action, and then, like GSP v Serra I, the fighter gets hit with a weird, top-of-the-head kind of glancing blow that stuns him enough that he's on the road to sleepyland. Did the fight make Belfort seem more dangerous? Not really, because he didn't really dominate or get to show his stuff. It was...unsatisfying. (0-1)

Junior Dos Santos def. Mirko Cro Cop (sub 3) - I'm officially done with Cro Cop. And he's done with MMA, as far as I can tell. He may still show up and get paid, but he shows very little heart or effort. And where are his legendary skills? I mean, he spends half his time backing up and pushing his opponent away. He rarely unloads and when he does he tends to miss. He seems to be intimidated by bigger more aggressive opponents. I get the sense he should try dropping to light heavytweight. Dos Santos looked ok, but I'm not buying into his hype yet. (1-1)

Paul Daley def. Martin Kampmann (KO 1) - This was a pretty massive upset. Kampmann was supposed to fight Mike Swick for the #1 contender's spot, but instead he gets new kid Daley and promptly sees his title hopes derailed. He won't get GSP anytime soon after that performance. Swick may actually have backed into the slot. Look for Daley to get a push and face another big name soon. (1-2)

Josh Koscheck def. Frank Trigg (KO 1) - And the UFC signed Trigg to a multiple fight contract? I bet they're second-guessing that decision now. Trigg got smoked and it'll take a big performance in his next fight to earn any credibility back, as far as I'm concerned. He wasn't exactly well-rounded back in the day, and now, at his age, he's practically a relic. I would love to see Koscheck and Matt Hughes go at it, if only to see one of them lose. :P It would be a great fight, though. (2-2)

Tyson Griffin def. Hermes Franca (TKO 2) - Please get Hermes Franca out of the UFC. That performance was pathetic. Was he high? With that purple hair, you never know. He basically didn't show up. I assume he was looking to counter in the first because he hardly threw a punch. The second started off better, but he still looked out of it, leaving himself completely exposed for the jab that led to the end. Terrible. (3-2)

UNDERCARD

Efrain Escudero def. Cole Miller (KO 1) - I was surprised by this result, and I think Miller was, too. Miller is a better fighter than that and he just got caught. I got the sense he knew right away he had blown a fight he expected to win. (3-3)

Tomasz Drwal def. Drew McFedries (sub 2) - McFedries may have dynamite in his hands, but he had oil in his lungs. No stamina whatsoever. As expected, once Drwal survived the first 2 minutes, he was in the clear. The rest was academic. (4-3)

Jim Miller def. Steve Lopez (TKO 2) - Didn't exactly end as expected. Lopez's shoulder looked pretty nasty afterwards. Shame to lose by injury like that. (5-3)

Nik Lentz def. Rafaello Oliveira (unanimous) - Lentz pulled it off though it was in doubt for a while. (6-3)

Rick Story def. Brian Foster (sub 1) - Weird finish with Story winning by arm triangle from within the guard. Missed most of this fight though apparently it was a doozy. (7-3)

Eliot Marshall def. Jason Brilz (split) - One of two fights not shown, I think. Sounds like it might have been a dull one with Marshall squeaking uot the decision. (8-3)

Vladimir Matyushenko def. Igor Pokrajac (unanimous) - The other one we didn't see. (9-3)

Rafael Dos Anjos def. Rob Emerson (unanimous) - Emerson is a nice guy but I don't think he belongs in the UFC. Dos Anjos looked decent and has likely earned a reprieve. (10-3)

Whoa: 10-3! That's pretty impressive. :) Maybe I can get that analyst's job after all!

Entertaining event. It didn't look like much on paper, but it delivered some good fights with a variety of interesting finishes.

UFC 103 Predictions

Ok, prediction time again. Let's see if I can do better than on the Fight Night this week.

Rich Franklin vs. Vitor Belfort

Belfort is making his much-anticipated return to the UFC. The "Phenom" is trying to recapture some of his previous glory, but the UFC is not making it easy for him. Franklin may not seem super dangerous, but you can't knock the fact that he wins. Sure, he looked bad against Anderson Silva (twice) but who hasn't? The Dan Henderson fight was close, and Hendo certainly didn't dominate Franklin. Can Vitor knock out Franklin? I don't see it. As a result, I see Franklin getting a decision win.

Mirko Cro Cop vs. Junior Dos Santos

Dos Santos has looked dangerous while Cro Cop has been lacklustre to say the least in his UFC fights. As always, if Cro Cop can get the KO, he wins, but if it goes to a decision, I wouldn't bet on him. Hate to say it, but I'll take the younger Dos Santos to get the nod and the questions to heat up as to the relevance of Cro Cop in the UFC.

Martin Kampmann vs. Paul Daley

Don't know much about Daley. He's taking the fight on short notice, replacing the injured Mike Swick. Kampmann has been impressive, except in his loss to Marquardt. At welterweight? I'll take Kampmann nine times out of ten - except against GSP.

Josh Koscheck vs. Frank Trigg

I can't believe I'm gonna do this. I'm taking Koscheck. The guy comes off as a complete douche, but he's younger and faster than Trigg and I see Trigg getting a rough welcome in his UFC return. Trigg will be used as a stepping stone after this.

Tyson Griffin vs. Hermes Franca

Can't say I have much love for Franca after his positive drug test. Griffin has been impressive. Good speed and big heart. I'll take Griffin.

UNDERCARD

Efrain Escudero vs. Cole Miller - Efrain is undefeated but Miller is a tall, smart guy and has beaten some big names while Escudero is unproven. I'm picking Miller.

Drew McFedries vs. Tomasz Drwal - McFedries is dangerous as hell...for one round. Then he runs out of gas. Drwal is dangerous as hell, too, with many short fights on his resume, including some submissions. I'll take Drwal by submission in a short one.

Jim Miller vs. Steve Lopez - Don't know much about Lopez, other than he's been out of action for a while and this appears to be his UFC debut. That means nerves. That means a win for the more experienced Miller.

Rafaello Oliveira vs. Nik Lentz - Who? Oliveira has an impressive record, but Lentz has the better fight experience, I'd say. I'll pick Lentz.

Rick Story vs. Brian Foster - Foster has a good record, but Story has been a champ and has fought in the UFC at least once. I'll take Story.

Eliot Marshall vs. Jason Brilz - I like Marshall. Seemed like a decent talented guy on TUF. Brilz has a crazy record, though and has beaten some impressive names. This is tough. Marshall is much taller and should enjoy a reach advantage. Both are submission guys. Both have UFC experience. Against my better judgement, I'm gonna pick Marshall 'cause I like him.

Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Igor Pokrajac - Both guys have great records, but Vlad has faced the tougher guys and has been inside the octagon. I'll pick Matyushenko.

Rob Emerson vs. Rafael Dos Anjos - The loser may be out of the UFC. Or, rather, should be. Dos Anjos has lost both of his UFC fights, while Emerson has a less than impressive record and is getting face time thanks to his TUF appearance. Sure, he won a couple of UFC fights, but not impressively and has been dominated more often than not. I'll pick the unknown Dos Anjos.

Holy crap that's a lot of fights. Thirteen! I can't imagine ALL of the prelims will be shown in the one hour pre-PPV free telecast on Spike. It's a good move by the UFC, though.

UFC Fight Night results

Ok let's see...

Nate Diaz def. Melvin Guillard (Sub 2) - I had this one pretty much figured. Guillard gave Diaz fits at first with his power, but got cocky. What a moron. He started off playing it smart, even when he was taken down, but clearly got away from the game plan when he tried a silly possum game and missed, stumbling into Diaz's guard and the easy finish. You'd think a guy with that many fights would be smarter. Guillard's a buffoon. (1-0)

Gray Maynard def. Roger Huerta (split) – I had this one 29-28 Maynard, but apparently two judges wanted to run Huerta out of the UFC as emphatically as possible and didn't give him a single round. Good fight, though. (2-0)

Carlos Condit def. Jake Ellenberger (split) – I was surprised this was split. Condit got smashed in the first round, but I thought he clearly won the next two. Still, I wasn't very impressed with him and don't expect him to get far in the UFC. (3-0)

Nate Quarry def. Tim Credeur (unanimous) - Fight of the night. These two guys laid into each other. I was surprised by Credeur's stand-up and I bet Quarry was, too. Quarry demontrated he had superior power, though, and that made the difference. He still has to work on passing guard. (4-0)

UNDERCARD:

Brian Stann def. Steve Cantwell (unanimous) – Another decision. I thought Cantwell might get a submission, but since it went the distance, it isn't surprising that Stann got the nod. (4-1)

Mike Pyle def. Chris Wilson (sub 3) – I guess I picked Wilson. Oops. Should have known not to bet against a guy who trains with Griffin and Maynard. (4-2)

CB Dollaway def. Jay Silva (unanimous) – Ugh. Oh well, didn't get my wish. I knew the odds were long. Dollaway won and may stick around. Yay. (4-3)

Jeremy Stephens def. Justin Buchholz (TKO 1) – Stephens will stick around for a while after this, I guess. Like I said, Buchholz's fights don't last, one way or the other. He may be on his way out. (4-4)

Mike Pierce def. Brock Larson (unanimous) – This was a shocker. Gotta see this. Yet another decision. Might have been a very boring fight for those in attendance. (4-5)

Ryan Jensen def. Steve Steinbeiss (TKO 1) – Finally got one right on the undercard. Geez. (5-5)

Sam Stout vs. Phillipe Nover didn't happen because Nover suffered some sort of seizure before the fight. Bummer. Hope he's alright, but he needs to get that checked out and fixed. That's twice now.

So, perfect (4-0) on the main card and a disgusting 1-5 on the undercard. Well, at least I can pick the big boys right.

UFC 103 picks tomorrow!

UFC Fight Night - Diaz vs Guillard

Fight Night tomorrow night. Guess I should get my picks in quick.

Ok, here goes:

Nate Diaz vs Melvin Guillard – Diaz has to be way smarter than in his previous fights. Fortunately, Guillard is a banger with not much of a game plan, so it seems he may have been hand-picked to get Diaz back on track. I’ll pick Diaz.

Gray Maynard vs Roger Huerta – Much has been made of the fact that Huerta is on his way out of the UFC and MMA to pursue acting, so it seems likely that his heart isn’t 100% in this. If that’s the case, this might be an easy night for Maynard who is on a roll and on his way to a title match someday. If he beats Huerta, look for him to get a shot sooner rather than later. I’ll pick Maynard.

Carlos Condit vs Jake Ellenberger – Jake who? Condit is a former WEC champ who is being groomed by the UFC, likely the reason he’s facing a no name on the main card of a Fight Night. Ellenberger has a respectable record and a fair number of KO/TKOs, but I don’t know him from Adam, so I’ll go with Condit.

Nate Quarry vs Tim Credeur - I like Quarry, so I’ll be pulling for him. Credeur seems like a decent guy but his fighting style isn’t exactly flawless. He ought to give Quarry headaches if it goes to the ground (being more well-rounded), but I sense Quarry will pick him apart and get the TKO. I’ll pick Quarry.

Steve Cantwell vs. Brian Stann – This is actually the third time these two have fought, having split previous stoppages. Stann has power, but Cantwell has submissions and since these two are familiar with each other, I don’t expect Cantwell to get caught again. I’ll pick Cantwell.

Chris Wilson vs. Mike Pyle – Tough call. Wilson beat Rory Markham while Pyle lost to him. Pyle has some tough fights, though, including a loss to Rampage Jackson and a win over Jon Fitch. He also trains with Forrest Griffin and Gray Maynard, so you know he has a work ethic. I’m leaning towards Wilson…

CB Dollaway vs. Jay Silva – Sweet lord, why is CB Dollaway still in the UFC? Someone must STILL think his TUF loss was a fluke. I hope he loses just so that he can go somewhere else to get some experience. He doesn’t look like much, but I’ll pull for Silva. I sense he’s a sacrificial lamb, though.

Sam Stout vs. Phillipe Nover – I like Nover, but bet against a Canadian? Not if I can help it. Besides, Stout has way more octagon experience than the TUF alumnus, so I’m figuring this could be a quick one. Stout.

Jeremy Stephens vs. Justin Buchholz – Stephens doesn’t really turn my crank. I’ve been underwhelmed by his performances, despite some highlight wins. Buchholz’s fights don’t last and he seems to have a more impressive win/loss profile than Stephens, with some submissions thrown in. I’ll pick Buchholz.

Brock Larson vs. Mike Pierce – Brock was supposed to make a run in the UFC. Pierce is being fed to the lions, I suspect. I’ll pick Larson.

Ryan Jensen vs. Steve Steinbeiss – Yikes. Neither of these guys has an impressive history. I’ll pick the more experienced Jensen.