UFC on FX 1 Results

Man, just watched 5 hours of live fights on free tv. Sweet!

Jim Miller def. Melvin Guillard (sub 1)

Pretty much what you'd expect. Melvin couldn't KO Miller so Miller got the sub. Melvin really needs to work on sub defence...really...again. (1-0)

Josh Neer def. Duane Ludwig (sub 1)

Ludwig had the better of the stand up but once it went to the ground, it didn't take long for Neer to lock in a guillotine. If it had stayed standing, I think it would have been a different story. (2-0)

Mike Easton def. Jared Papzian (majority)

Fast-paced but largely ineffective striking. The fact that neither guy went down says less about the granite in the chins and more about the lack of real power. The fight stayed standing, so it came down to who the judges thought got the better shots in. From my point of view, Easton got some good shots, but Papzian got more shots and at least comparable quality shots. Close, but I might have given it to Papzian 29-28. As it was, it was 29-28, 30-27, 29-29 Easton. (3-0)

Pat Barry def. Christian Morecraft (KO 1)

Morecraft almost got the submission, but Barry defended well, and once it was on the feet, Barry had the edge. After a couple of big shots, Barry managed to get the W and avoid the axe. I expect Morecraft to get his walking papers. (4-0)

Jorge Rivera def. Eric Schafer (TKO 2)

Nice to see Rivera win his swan song fight. He has surprised me in the past and he did again. Schafer appeared to suffer from the weight cut and had nothing left in the tank after a dominant first round. Once Rivera got on top, it was over, as Schafer turtled and offered no resistance. (4-1)

Khabib Nurmagomedov def. Kamal Shalorus (sub 3)

Shalorus got clipped in the first and was not the same thereafter. Between rounds he was confused about what round was ahead, a clear sign he was out of it. H eventually tapped out to an awkward rear naked choke - again, perhaps indicative he was not all there. (4-2)

Charlie Brenneman def. Daniel Roberts (unanimous)

No sure how one judge gave it 29-28 - this was one way almost all the way. Roberts did try a couple of nice submissions, but Brenneman dominated. Strange reffing, as Herb Dean insisted on standing them up even though Brenneman was working. (5-2)

Fabricio Camoes def. Tommy Hayden (sub 1)

Hayden was doing alright, but Camoes was too much. (5-3)

Daniel Pineda def. Pat Schilling (sub 1)

This was a mismatch. Schilling had a decent record (5-0) but was clearly untested. Pineda took advantage and schooled the UFC newcomer. (6-3)

Nick Denis def. Joseph Sandoval (KO 1)

The Canadian made a big splash. Caught Sandoval with some crisp shots and then finished with some crazy standing elbows. (7-3)

Not bad, I guess.

UFC on FX 1

Only have about 15 minutes, so I don't have time for a full analysis of this relatively thin card; I'll just tell you who I like rather than making studied picks.

Jim Miller over Melvin Guillard
Josh Neer over Duane Ludwig
Mike Easton over Jared Papzian (I guess)
Pat Barry over Christian Morecraft (loser goes home)
Eric Schafer over Jorge Rivera
Kamal Shalorus over Khabib Nurmagomedov
Charlie Brenneman over Daniel Roberts
Tommy Hayden over Fabricio Camoes
Daniel Pineda over Pat Schilling
Nick Denis over Joseph Sandoval

UFC 136 Results

Let's have a look...

Frankie Edgar def. Gray Maynard (TKO 4)
Looks like Maynard had Edgar in trouble in the first once again and, yet again, could not finish him. Edgar clipped Maynard in the fourth and managed to get the job done. (0-1)

Jose Aldo def. Kenny Florian (unanimous)
Florian was game, but Aldo was better. (1-1)

Chael Sonnen def. Brian Stann (sub 2)
Big win for Sonnen puts him right back in the title picture. (2-1)

Joe Lauzon def. Melvin Guillard (sub 1)
So much for Guillard's title run. A loss to a guy who is arguably just outside the top ten is a big setback. A loss in under a minute? Fuggetaboutit. (3-1)

Nam Phan def. Leonard Garcia (unanimous)
Phan came out of the right side of this one. LOTS of punches thrown. (4-1)

Demian Maia def. Jorge Santiago (unanimous)
They stayed on their feet until Maia decided to wrestle Santiago to the ground. Not a very interesting fight. (5-1)

Anthony Pettis def. Jeremy Stevens (split)
Decent stand up fight. But Pettis was better. (6-1)

Stipe Miocic def. Joey Beltran (unanimous)
Upset special! (7-1)

Darren Elkins def. Tiequan Zhang (unanimous)
Looks like Zhang couldn't get the KO shot he hunts for. (7-2)

Aaron Simpson def. Eric Schafer (uanimous)
Looks like Shafer may be on his way out again. (8-2)

Mike Massenzio def. Steve Cantwell (unanimous)
Loser goes home? (8-3)

Lots of decisions in this one. Not a very entertaining night, it seems; at least on the undercard. Still, 8-3? I'll take that!

UFC 136 Edgar vs Maynard III Picks

Here we go again!

These two put on a good show, so I'm not complaining. Who's gonna win? Let's find out.

Frankie Edgar vs Gray Maynard (lightweight)
Third time's a charm, right? So by that rationale, Edgar ought to take this... These guys are pretty evenly matched, with Edgar having the edge in speed and Maynard the edge in power. What will be different this time? Probably not much. Maynard could certainly fight smarter. He had Edgar at his mercy last time out, but instead of finishing off the champ with precision punches and elbows or even a choke, he threw punches in bunches and tired himself out without doing enough damage to end the fight. Lots of guys make this mistake when they have a guy on the ropes. If he fights smarter, I have Maynard taking it. If not, Edgar will take the decision. I'm picking Maynard.

Jose Aldo vs Kenny Florian (featherweight)
It's hard to go against Kenny. He's a smart fighter and knows what he has to do to win. But this is only his second fight at featherweight and he is taking on a very game champ. They are both BJJ/Muay Thai/boxing guys, with Aldo having the edge in power and Kenny having a slight reach/size advantage. Can Aldo knock out Kenny? Can Kenny choke out Aldo? Honestly, I don't like Kenny's chances here. He doesn't have featherweight speed. I could see him gassing or getting caught by a big punch. I'd like to pick him, but it wouldn't be smart. I'm picking Aldo.

Chael Sonnen vs Brian Stann (middleweight)
These two are very evenly matched as well, but Sonnen is the smarter fighter and has more to prove. ...But he hasn't fought in a year. Stann has two fights this calendar year alone. Impressive as they were, they were both against guys willing to bang. I don't see Sonnen being that stupid. He'll take Stann down and work him from there. Stann has proven in the past to have trouble off his back. A year ago, I would have picked Sonnen hands down. Now I'm not so sure. A year off is a long time. Still, I'll pick Sonnen.

Melvin Guillard vs Joe Lauzon (lightweight)
This ought to be interesting. A true clash of styles. Guillard is lightning fast with incredible power. Lauzon is a tactician with great submissions skills. Can Lauzon get Guillard to the ground? If he does, he takes it. If he doesn't, he's toast. I could see Lauzon getting KTFO or taking it easily by submission in the first round. I like Lauzon, while Guillard still comes off as a child in a man's body. I'll pick Lauzon.

Leonard Garcia vs Nam Phan (featherweight)
The rematch. Garcia got the decision the first time while Phan got robbed. He deserved the decision, but somehow the judges saw it differently. It was an ugly fight and this one probably won't be much prettier. Garcia is a wild man. He throws looping punches with abandon. Phan will be more technical and the winner will likely be determined by which judges are sitting octagon-side. While Phan did well on TUF he is hardly a top-notch fighter. He has lost his last two fights, 4 of his last 5, 5 of 7, and 7 of 11. Garcia, for his part, is hit and miss, but at least has faced decent opponents. He just can't beat any of them. His claim to fame is a controversial (again) win over the Korean Zombie as well as a KO win over an over-ripe Jens Pulver. So who takes this one? Let's go with Phan for fun.

Demian Maia vs Jorge Santiago (middleweight)
I like Maia. As long as he takes the fight to the ground. Recently, he has been relying a bit too much on his standup and taking fights to a decision. Santiago lost to Brian Stann the last time out and seems to have trouble inside the octagon in general. He has also lost fights to Diego Sanchez and Manvel Gamburyan (a 0:21 KO!). He has a lot of experience, but Maia is a top-notch BJJ fighter and I sense Santiago isn't quite up to his level. I'm picking Maia.

Anthony Pettis vs Jeremy Stevens (lightweight)
Could be fight of the night. Pettis is the former WEC lightweight champ and might have been UFC lightweight champ had he not dropped the ball against the always tough Clay Guida. Stevens is always game, always shows up to fight - he just tends to come out on the short end of decisions against top-flight competition. Pettis is definitely top flight. I'm picking Pettis.

Joey Beltran vs Stipe Miocic (heavyweight)
Beltran is hit and miss. You never know what you're going to get. He isn't fancy, but he's tough. But...Stipe who? Exactly. But guess what: this guy is a former Golden Gloves champ and NCAA Div I wrestler. He's also 6-0 with KO wins and a submission by LEG KICKS. His resume seems weird, though, with wins over guys named Gregory Maynard (not Gray), Jeremy Holm (not Horn) and Paul Barry (not Pat). Assuming this isn't a gag, this guy could prove to be very tough. Let's hope for fireworks. I've never been a big fan of Beltran's, so I'm gonna go with the dark horse upset special here and pick Miocic.

Tiequan Zhang vs Darren Elkins (featherweight)
Elkins is a wrestler with KO power and submission skills. Very dangerous. Zhang finishes guys fast and has only one loss - by decision. This could be over quick. Zhang has some wrestling in his background but he is definitely a submissions guy. If Elkins tries to take this to the ground, it could get very interesting. I'll pick Zhang.

Aaron Simpson vs Eric Schafer (middleweight)
Both of these guys are mid-carders looking for a break. Both tend to lose against top guys but have otherwise been impressive. Schafer is getting a second chance with the UFC as an injury replacement after being cut a year and a half ago. Simpson is 5-2 in the UFC and in no immediate danger of being cut, it seems. So will desperation lead to a win for Schafer? I don't see it that way. I'm picking Simpson.

Steve Cantwell vs Mike Massenzio (middleweight)
I'm not quite sure why this fight is on the card. Cantwell has lost three in a row and is dropping down to middleweight. Massenzio is often cannon fodder as well, having lost 3 of 4 and 5 of 7. I assume the loser goes home in this one. I don't like the looks of either of these guys but Cantwell is a former WEC champ and Masenzio has a loss to CB effing Dollaway on his resume. I'm picking Cantwell.

Too bad I'm gonna miss this event due to Thanksgiving. Most of the card looks great.

UFC 132 Results

Another UFC event on a long weekend means yet another MISSED UFC event. Sorry, but the cottage takes precedent and there's nowhere to watch the event anywhere nearby. Too bad - I thought this might be a good event and it looks like it was.

Dominic Cruz def. Urijah Faber (unanimous)
This division has seen the belt change hands a lot, but Cruz is finally giving it a bit of stability. His win over perennial contender Faber clearly establishes him as the top dog. Faber represents a troubling trend in the UFC, as far as I am concerned. How many title shots is this for him? Sure, I understand it's at bantamweight, but, still, he seems to get title shots every other fight. Deserved? I dunno... He lost this fight cleanly according to the judges (50-45, 49-46, 48-47) but I'm not sure how Cruz would have won that first round. "Dancing around" was not a judging element last time I looked. In the second and third rounds Faber seemed to get the more significant strikes in and even a couple of takedowns, but at least two of the judges saw Cruz having the edge. If the scores are announced with one judge having it 50-45 and no one knows who won until the announcer actually says the guy's name - you have a problem. This fight ws definitely closer than 50-45. (1-0)

Chris Leben def. Wanderlei Silva (KO 1)
Wow. Quick fight. Just what the fans wanted, but perhaps a little TOO short. Wanderlei doesn't have the chin to stand up to guys like Leben anymore. Is he done? Maybe. He still represents a bit of a stepping stone for up-and-comers but he's no longer anywhere near the top. Leben took a hard shot and then gave it right back to Wanderlei in spades. (1-1)

Tito Ortiz def. Ryan Bader (sub 1)
Huh. I didn't give Ortiz much of a chance in this one, but he caught Bader and then threw on the guillotine. Bader looked hesitant and surprisingly smaller than Ortiz. Bader might have won had it lasted longer than a round, but that's what you get in MMA. Ortiz will wanna parlay this into some kind of title contention, but I think this just goes to show how ridiculous it was for Jones to get a title fight after beating Bader. Bader is good, but not that good. (1-2)

Carlos Condit def. Dong Hyun Kim (TKO 1)
Condit is climbing the ranks. He looked pretty good here, though it was a short fight. He has power, for sure. Nice flying knee. (2-2)

Dennis Siver def. Matt Wiman (unanimous)
I heard this one was controversial, but I don't get it. Wiman CLEARLY won the second round, but other than that, all he did was go for weak takedowns. He got one at the end of the first and midway through the third, but Siver was FAR more active on the standup. Takedown attempts should not count for anything, especially if it's a weak ass single leg. This was the right decision. (3-2)

Melvin Guillard def. Shane Roller (KO 1)
Guillard just looked way faster. This is one of those "yeah you're good - WEC good. Welcome to the UFC" kind of fights. (4-2)

Rafael dos Anjos def. George Sotiropoulos (KO 1)
Quick fight. Disappointing for George who was in the title hunt. He just got caught. (4-3)

Brian Bowles def. Takeya Mizugaki (unanimous)
Didn't see it. (5-3)

Aaron Simpson def. Brad Tavares (unanimous)
Didn't see it. (5-4)

Anthony Njokuani def. Andre Winner (unanimous)
Winner looked pretty one-dimensional. You won't win too many MMA fights that way. He hasn't grown since TUF. (5-5)

Jeff Hougland def. Donny Walker (unanimous)
Both of these guys looked good. Good fight. We'll see them again. (5-6)

Good event, but man did I get creamed. Surprising results.

UFC 132 Picks

Not a lot of time, so just quick picks:

Cruz

Wanderlei

Bader

Condit

Siver

Guillard

Sotiropoulos

Bowles

Tavares

Winner

Walker

This actually looks like a decent event. Too bad I'll miss it this cottage weekend.

UFC Live - Fight Night for the Troops

Ok, once I catch up with this I can go back to making predictions - stay tuned.

This event actually turned out pretty well, with some upsets and surprises to keep it interesting. Glad I didn't pick this in advance.

Melvin Guillard def. Evan Dunham (KO 1)
Upset of the night, for sure. Guillard has crazy punching power, but has long been known for having a weak ground game and game plan. Smart fighters look to get him off his feet and submit him. Dunham didn't really get the chance, I guess, as he got caught early and Guillard put him out. Afterwards, it was somewhat comical to hear everyone fawning over the victor who has done little to earn a spot in the upper echelons of the UFC's lightweight division. And yet it seems a title shot may not be that far off if Guillard can get another big win. Me? I'm not convinced.

Matt Mitrione def. Tim Hague (KO 1)
It took Mitrione exactly one second longer to get his win than it did Guillard. Mitrione keeps looking pretty good on his feet, but he has yet to face decent opposition. We Canadians love Hague, but I think he has proven yet again that he simply does not belong with the sharks. If he gets invited back it'll be simply to stuff a Canadian card.

Mark Hominick def. George Roop (KO 1)
The shortest fight of the night. Hominic stalked Roop and put him on his ass fast. Roop simply looked outclassed. If he is supposed to be a somebody in the featherweight division, then Hominic has certainly earned his title shot. He looked great.

Pat Barry def. Joey Beltran (unanimous)
Am I the only one who thought Beltran won this fight? I had him winning the first two rounds relatively easily due to Barry's lack of action. Beltran did himself no favours when he collapsed at the end of the fight from leg kicks. Still, he was CLEARLY the more active fighter, landing more strikes throughout and I felt he should have gotten the decision.

Matt Wiman def. Cole Miller (unanimous)
The wrong Cole Miller showed up, I guess. Miller has been hot and cold, looking great in some fights and terrible in others. Wiman, on the other hand, looked terrific, with crisp stand-up and he generally controlled the fight as Miller withered.

Yves Edwards def. Cody McKenzie (sub 2)
Most folks probably can't decide if McKenzie loked good or terrible. He was getting pummeled on his feet and didn't look much better on his back, but whenever the fight was on the ground he looked insanely dangerous. he did everything he could to drag Edwards down and at times looked like he was going to pull off the submission; but one miscalculation cost him the fight. Edwards sunk in the rear naked and McKenzie went out. Still, it was the Fight of the Night.

I didn't see any of these other fights.
DeMarques Johnson def. Mike Guymon (sub 1)
Rani Yahya def. Mike Brown (unanimous) - Brown loses AGAIN.
Waylon Lowe def. Willamy Freire (unanimous)
Charlie Brenneman def. Amilcar Alves (unanimous)
Chris Cariaso def. Will Campuzano (unanimous)