UFC 109 Results

Ok, how'd I do?....

Randy Couture def. Mark Coleman (sub 2) - Ugh. As in ugh-ly. Coleman looked ridiculous in this fight. He was never in it. He should most definitely retire. If you get submitted by Randy Couture, you don't belong in the UFC. Sure, Randy won, but like I said earlier, this does nothing for his career. Coleman looked bad more than Couture looked good, you know? The UFC may try to parlay this into a title shot, but it would be a sham of a justification. Randy need sot beat someone in the top five to deserve that. (1-0)

Chael Sonnen def. Nate Marquardt (unanimous) - What happened? How did Sonnen dominate so easily? Marquardt didn't seem to have an answer for Sonnen's wrestling skills when we've heard from Sonnen himself that that was not the case when they trained together a while back. Not sure what the deal was here, but this REALLY hurts Marquardt's chances at a rematch with Anderson Silva. (1-1)

Paulo Thiago def. Mike Swick (sub 2) - Man, did Swick disappoint. He hasn't been the same fighter since his first loss. He doesn't let his hands go anymore and appears gunshy. He used to win by throwing punches in bunches, but now seems convinced he's Chuck Liddell and can win if he just lands one punch. He needs to snap out of this funk or he'll drop like a stone in the rankings. (1-2)

Demien Maia def. Dan Miller (unanimous) - The fans were booing, but this wasn't that bad a fight. Maia pulled it off. Don;t think this will get him a title shot soon, though. He needs to be more dominant. Look for him to fight Swick next, perhaps. (2-2)

Matt Serra def. Frank Trigg (KO 1) - Someone PLEASE send Trigg away. PLEASE. He sucks. End of story. (3-2)

Mac Danzig def. Justin Buchholz (unanimous) - Barely watched it. Danzig avoids the chopping block for now. Look for Buchholz to disappear, though. (4-2)

Melvin Guillard def. Ronnys Torres (unanimous) - I'd have to watch this fight again. I had Torres winning the first two rounds. Either way, I thought he looked pretty good. (4-3)

Rob Emerson def. Phillipe Nover (unanimous) - Didn't see it. (5-3)

Phil Davis def. Brian Stann (unanimous) - This was a beatdown. Stann was overwhelmed. Davis looked great, but not flawless. He had Stann mounted but couldn't finish and Stann could have easily escaped to a better position had he kept his wits. Too bad we didn't see the scores. I had it 30-25. (5-4)

Chris Tuchscherer def. Tim Hague (majority) - Didn't see it, but another loss does not bode well for Hague. At least this one went beyond 7 seconds and reached a decision. Hague apparently came on strong at the end but by then had already given up the first two rounds. Still, one judge gave Hague a 10-8 third, resulting in a the majority decision. (5-5)

Joey Beltran def. Rolles Gracie (TKO 2) - WTF??? Gracie loked great for the first round and then tired out and was USELESS. His stand-up was ATROCIOUS. It looked like Gracie was gonna submit Beltran in the first 30 seconds, but then he just went retarded. This guy has GOT to disappear. (5-6)

5-6...should have bet with my head and not my heart...

UFC 109 Predictions

Ok, so UFC 109 is this weekend - better get my picks in so you can all mock me later, right?

Randy Couture vs Mark Coleman - Oh man, this is what it's come to, eh? Sure, it's a fight between legends, but it'll do nothing for two guys who are supposedly looking to make themselves relevant again. Who cares if an old guy beats an old guy? How does that move you up the rankings? Randy has more to lose than Coleman, that's for sure. I'll pick Randy to win. Look for the loser to contemplate retirement.

Nate Marquardt vs Chael Sonnen - I don't see how Sonnen has earned this, but if the UFC wants to give him a push, this is certainly one way to do it. Marquardt is super talented and can beat anybody if he puts things together. I'll pick Marquardt.

Mike Swick vs Paulo Thiago - This could be the fight of the night. Expect these two to go fast and furious. Thiago has been impressive, but I like Swick too much to bet against him. Here's hoping he rebounds from his poor showing against Dan Hardy.

Demien Maia vs Dan Miller - Both of these guys are solid and have submission skills, but Maia is super dangerous on the ground and has beaten better fighters. If it gets there, look for him to eventually sink in a submission. Miller has to play it smart if he hopes to get the W. If Maia wins, look for him to get a title shot soon, possibly right after Marquardt.

Matt Serra vs Frank Trigg - Another battle between fighters who are looking at their best days in the rear view mirror. I can't believe Trigg is back. How many chances can the UFC give this guy? He has zero drawing power these days. Sure, he might beat the smaller Serra, but what does that do for the UFC? Here's hoping Serra gets the submission and Trigg retires for good.

Mac Danzig vs Justin Buchholz - Danzig is a fine fighter but just hasn't lived up to his billing. He won TUF easily due to his superior experience (it wasn't fair, really) but that hasn't translated into much in the big show. He has lost his last 3 fights and 5 of his last 7. He hasn't beaten anyone of consequence (except maybe Mark Bocek). If he loses tomorrow, look for his name in the next round of UFC cuts. Fortunately for Danzig, I think he'll actually pull it off.

Melvin Guillard vs Ronnys Torres - Guillard had better knock Torres out in a hurry or he's in trouble. If this fight goes to the ground, it's over. I don't know much about Torres, but he has a sick record and can submit you in a variety of ways. Guillard has proven he knows jack about the ground game. I'm picking Torres in his UFC debut.

Phillipe Nover vs Rob Emerson - Normally, I'd pick Nover in a heartbeat, but he's been injured while Emerson has been amassing experience. Emerson was useless on TUF but has since shown some significant improvement and powerful hands. This is a hard one to pick. Nover is probably the favourite, but I'll pick Emerson.

Brian Stann vs Phil Davis - This fight features a couple of guys with heavy hands. It could end early, but Davis is also a proven wrestler and may choose to take it to the ground. If so, look for him to get the win. Stann has way more experience, though, and may be calmer than the newcomer Davis. Tough call, but I guess I'll take Stann.

Tim Hague vs Chris Tuchscherer - I don't like the Canadian's chances, especially coming off his 7 second KO loss last time out. I imagine Tuchscherer will win, but I won't bet against the Canadian guy. I'll pick Hague in an upset.

Rolles Gracie vs Joey Beltran - Beltran has more experience, but never EVER bet against a man named Gracie. I'll pick the inexperienced Rolles.

Ok, let's see how I do!

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 98 Results

Lyoto Machida def. Rashad Evans (TKO 2) – I was a little surprised at Lyoto’s power. I thought this might be another boring ground fight if Evans ever took him down, but the fight never got that far. Since both were counter-strikers, the fight got off to a ridiculously slow start. The second round saw more action, and Evans went down in ugly fashion, looking like he was out of it three shots before he finally hit the canvas. The new champ seems like a decent guy and I hope he defends for a while to return some lustre to the hot potato belt.

Matt Hughes def. Matt Serra (unanimous decision) – This one went just as I predicted. Aside from the brief fireworks at the beginning where Serra clubbed Hughes and almost pulled out a victory, this one was boring as hell. Hughes predictably lay on top of Serra for most of the fight, earning the UFC-style decision. The UFC really has to do something about their judging system, as Serra was by far the more dangerous fighter. Who wants to see Hughes’ boring brand of fighting? Wrestlers are given far too much credit in the current system.

Drew McFedries def. Xavier Foupa-Pokam (KO 1) – This one promised to be a short one and it delivered. McFedries knocked F-P into next week in a mere 37 seconds. Good thing, too, since McFedries is useless beyond his initial barrage.

Chael Sonnen def. Dan Miller (unanimous decision) – Pretty dull fight. Sonnen hasn’t been very impressive since his arrival from WEC where he was the middleweight champ.

Frank Edgar def. Sean Sherk (unanimous decision) – Not a terribly exciting fight. Sherk has become a pretty one-dimensional fighter and NOT as a wrestler. He has somehow convinced himself that striking is the way to go. I think it’s the way for the former champ to go out of the UFC. His striking pretty much blows, especially against guys with a reach advantage. Why Sherk doesn’t take advantage of the pro-wrestler UFC is beyond me. Does he forget how he beat Florian?

Brock Larson def. Mike Pyle (sub 1) – Pyle looked pretty good with his multiple jiu-jitsu submission attempts, but Larson survived and managed to get top position long enough to secure an arm triangle choke. I hope we get to see Pyle again, just to give him a fair shake – maybe against the likes of Joe Lauzon.

Tim Hague def. Pat Barry (sub 1) – The Canadian boy looked like he might get knocked out early, but survived and delivered some thunderous shots of his own before slapping on a serious guillotine (he’s 265lbs!!). Reminded me of Gabriel Gonzaga a little.

Kyle Bradley def. Phillipe Nover (TKO 1) – This was a dark match we didn’t get to see. Seems Nover got schooled.

Krzysztof Soszynski def.. Andre Gusmao (TKO 1) – Soszynski looked pretty good, taking some shots and delivering more in return. He keeps his head up when striking which tends to make him more accurate than his opponent and shows great confidence. He’s on a roll and I’m sure we’ll be seeing lots more of him. Let’s see how quickly the UFC tries to move him up the ladder.

Yoshiyuki Yoshida def. Brandon Wolff (sub 1) – another dark match we didn’t see.

George Roop def. Dave Kaplan (split decision) – Another untelevised dark match. Kaplan has been less than impressive in the UFC. Considering this guy looked awful on the Ultimate Fighter show, I’m not sure why he’s seeing so much action in the big show.

Overall, only an ok show. I had expected some long, dull, wrestling dominated fights, so it wasn’t a big surprise. UFC 99 (June 13) ought to be more exciting with lots of big bangers on the card.