UFC 106 - Forrest wins, Koscheck still a douche

Ok, so I didn't get my predictions in for this one. My bad. Busy, busy and all that jazz.

I was looking forward to this event, though, as it featured one of my favs, Forrest Griffin, in a redemption fight - the opportunity to not only avenge his split decision loss to Ortiz in the first fight, but also to redeem himself in the eyes of fans who saw him run from the cage after his loss to Anderson Silva.

Here are the results:

Forrest Griffin def. Tito Ortiz (split) - Another debatable result, but, frankly, I thought Forrest won. Maybe it was my rose coloured glasses, but I thought that despite being taken down a couple of times, Forrest was FAR more active in the stand-up and got the best of the exchanges. It does bring up that age-old question of the importance/weight one should place on takedowns. I have always thought they were overrated and, let's face it, contribute to the legend of Randy Couture. A takedown should score points, but not more than a couple of solid shots to the face. It's what a fighter does AFTER they take down an opponent that matters. If they can get punches through, pass, and inflict damage, that's one thing, but laying a praying is b.s. Ortiz just didn't do enough in my book to outweigh Forrest's sustained action. Besides, they weren't exactly clean, skilled takedowns. They were pretty sloppy and Forrest just kinda fell. I would have picked Forrest in this one.

Josh Koscheck def. Anthony Johnson (sub 2) - I really wanted Johnson to knock uber-annoying Koscheck into next week. But c'est la vie. Koscheck did drop another couple of notches in my eyes, though, after blatantly faking an eye injury when Johnson threw a potentially illegal knee that connected with Koscheck's arm - AND NOT HIS HEAD. Johnson was deducted a point for the "foul", but replays showed Koscheck was just stalling for time, like the bitch he is. Way to bring MMA down to the level of soccer, you douche. Hey fighters: there's no point in faking injuries in a fight - you'll lose more respect than you gain when replays show you faked it. Seriously: f**k you, Kos.

Paulo Thiago def. Jacob Volkmann (unanimous) - Not the most exciting pairing, but what with all the injuries and backing out, the UFC bumped this to the main card. Thiago looked good, though.

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Luiz Cane (TKO 1) - Little Nog looked good. Cane is no slouch and Nog took him out with extreme prejudice. The light heavyweight division just got more complicated. Wonder if the UFC will have Couture face the other Nogueira after his loss to big bro?

Amir Sadollah def. Phil Baroni (unanimous) - Much like Ortiz, Baroni had nothing after the first couple of rounds. He gassed badly and Sadollah just kept scoring and scoring. Not sure I'm drinking the Sadollah Kool-Aid just yet, but I'm sure the UFC will be testing him in the near future, so we'll see what he can do against better competition.

Ben Saunders def. Marcus Davis (KO 1) - This was a disappointment, but no surprise. It was a terrible match-up for Davis. Saunders is decent, not great, but his reach advantage was just too much. For a muay thai guy, reach is everything. Davis just couldn't handle it. He didn't get inside, which is where he had to be to inflict any damage. Staying at distance just allowed Saunders to soften him up before bringing in the big knees and taking Davis out.

Kendall Grove def. Jake Rosholt (sub 1) - Grove won, but didn't look great. Rosholt was slapping him around until Grove slipped on a triangle choke from his back. Grove is a talented kid, but he has a hard time standing and banging. If Rosholt had just stayed on his feet, it might have been a different outcome.

Brian Foster def. Brock Larson (TKO 2) - Brock Larson continues to underachieve in the UFC. What's up with this guy? Highly-touted, great record... but just doesn't seem to live up to the hype and can't beat anyone of consequence. Disappointing.

Caol Uno & Fabrico Camoes (majority draw) - Sounds like it was a stinker. Didn't see it. Two judges had it for Camoes, but since he had a point deducted, it was 28-28 on those scorecards. One judge had it 29-27 for Uno with the point deduction. Looks like Uno stunk the joint up again. He needs to go away.

George Sotiropolous def. Jason Dent (sub 2) - Dent is a gamer, but Sotiropolous is a very talented fighter who would be a big threat in the UFC if he could get a few things polished.

I think I would have been 5-4-1 in this event... At least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

UFC 105 Results

Yeah, yeah, I know: that was SO two events ago - but I have been super busy and didn't get around to putting in my picks or discuss the event, so... But, you know, I did make some quick picks via email to a friend of mine, so let's discuss:

Randy Couture def. Brandon Vera (unanimous) - I had picked Couture. I thought it would go much as it did - since Vera was much taller and had a significant reach advantage, I expected Couture to take the same approach as he did against Gonzaga - just hug him up aganst the fence and squeak out the win. He did. Vera got in a few good shots in the second which won him the round, but Couture dictated the tempo in the first and third and the ref let him. Had the ref separated them more often, it might have been a different result, but... Vera was upset by the decision, but, geez, man - move your ass. You can't be pinned for 3/4 of the fight and expect to have made an impression. (1-0)

Hardy def. Swick (unanimous) - I had picked Swick. He got stunned early and didn't let his hands go as much as I thought he would. I expected a trade war at some point with Swick getting the big shot, but it just didn't happen. Swick seemed out of step for most of the fight and Hardy was able to counter punch effectively. He earned the decision, though I can't say the same for a title shot. Hardy hasn't faced anyone of established significant calibre (Swick is still new to 170) so why get the GSP fight? You'd think Hardy would have to dethrone Fitch or Silva or Koscheck first. Or even Parysian or Diaz for Pete's sake! Sure, Davis is a tough guy, but he wasn't exactly getting love from the UFC either in terms of marquee match-ups. (1-1)

Bisping def. Kang (TKO 2) - I had Kang, figuring he'd find a way to submit the Brit. It looked good early, with Kang dominating the first and even putting Bisping down with a solid punch, but that all disappeared in the second. Not sure if conditioning was a factor, but Kang was a different man in the second round and Bisping put him away with some pretty straight forward ground and pound. A disappointing loss for Kang. (1-2)

Brown def. Wilks (TKO 3) - I can't believe I picked Wilks. I quite like Brown, but I thought he'd be susceptible to submissions. Wilks never really got the chance. It was close at times, but Brown is a tough mutha and took it to Wilks. Good for Brown. (1-3)

Pearson def. Riley (TKO 2) - I picked Pearson and he didn't let me down. It was hard to decide what to make of him after the TUF competition where he looked so good to start and then kinda faded (though he won the show by the narrowest of margins). He looked good here, though. Big win over a game opponent. (2-3)

Hathaway def. Taylor (unanimous) - I picked Taylor. I'd have to see this to believe it. Taylor's a tough guy and it would take a tough guy to decision him. (2-4)

Etim def. Gugerty (sub 2) - I picked Etim. He's a very skilled guy and I didn't know much about Gugerty (didn't have time to research). Would like to see this one. (3-4)

Osipczak def. Riddle (TKO 3) - I picked Riddle. Would like to se this one, too. Both of these guys show flashes of brilliance but are inconsistent. Both likeable guys. (3-5)

Siver def. Kelly (TKO 2) - I picked Kelly who is a tough mammajamma, but Siver is impressive. Gonan keep my eye on this guy. (3-6)

Gustafsson def. Hamman (KO 1) - I picked Gustafsson who had an impressive record. Man, was this ever a knockout from hell. Look for this guy to be back in the UFC soon. (4-6)

Winner def. Delgado (KO 1) - I picked Winner, who has been impressive, while Delgado is talented but flawed. Winner nearly toook Delgado's head off with a monster shot that had Delgado in dreamland before his head hit the mat. Wow. (5-6)

So 5-6 on picks off the top of my head. Not sure I would have picked differently had I had time to think about it, so I'll have to take the heat.