UFC Live Cruz vs Johnson Results

Ok, let's see how I did...

Dominick Cruz def. Demetrious Johnson (unanimous)
This was a lobsided decision, but I was very impressed with Johnson. That guy has an insane gas tank. He might give Clay Guida a run for his money. He couldn't handle Cruz's wrestling and size and that was the difference. If they ever make a 125 lb division, Johnson might dominate that. (1-0)

Stefan Struve def. Pat Barry (sub 2)
Barry never did get inside and made the massive mistake of going to the ground with Struve. The submission came quickly, despite a very impressive slam. Barry should have used his kicks more - they were working. (1-1)

Anthony Johnson def. Charlie Brenneman (TKO 1)
No question, Johnson was kicking Brenneman's ass, but this was an early stoppage. It was a massive head kick and Brenneman went down, but he was clearly not out. It should have gone a bit longer to see if Johnson could finish him. Fights shouldn't be stopped because a guy is in trouble; they should be stopped when the guy is DEFEATED. Johnson looked good. (2-1)

Matt Wiman def. Mac Danzig (unanimous)
Close fight. The first round was iffy, but I scored it the same way - 29-28 Wiman, with him taking the first and third rounds. Entertaining fight. Chosen as "Fight of the Night". (3-1)

Yves Edwards def. Rafaello Oliveira (TKO 2)
Oliveira looked good until he got caught. He was far more aggressive, with Edwards barely throwing any leather. He got a bit careless on a series of strikes and ate a big knee. He wasn't the same after that and Edwards caught him again with big shots, putting him down and eventually forcing the ref to step in. (4-1)

Paul Sass def. Michael Johnson (sub 1)
Yup - as predicted, the submission skills were the difference. Sounds like Johnson was overmatched. Dunno if he'll stick around long. (5-1)

Mike Easton def. Byron Bloodworth (TKO 2)
Sounds like this one was a war. (6-1)

TJ GRant def. Shane Roller (sub 3)
Didn't see it. Apparently, Grant was winning the fight, taking the first two rounds. Good for him. Nice feather. (7-1)

Josh Neer def. Keith Wisniewski (TKO 2)
Sounds like Neer carved up Wisniewski and the doctor had to stop it. (8-1)

Walel Watson def. Joseph Sandoval (TKO 1)
Lots of stoppages in the undercard. Sounds like it was a good night for those in attendance. Good night for me, too! (9-1)

NICE!!!

UFC Live: Cruz vs Johnson Picks

Is it my imagination or is there a UFC event every weekend these days?

Dominick Cruz vs Demetrious Johnson (bantamweight)
I know sweet FA about Johnson, other than he is tiny - even for a bantamweight. He's a wrestler, while Cruz is very well rounded. Both of these guys tend to go to decision recently. I'm gonna pick Cruz.

Pat Barry vs Stefan Struve (heavyweight)
I like both of these guys. On paper, Struve has a crazy advantage thanks to his reach. Both have KO power, but Bary has SERIOUS KO power. Struve's chin is questionable, though while Barry has yet to be KO'd (other than by fluke vs Kongo). I could see this as being a replay of Struve's loss to Travis Browne or Roy Nelson where the smaller guy finally gets inside and lands the big shot to the glass jaw. I also see Barry chopping down the giant with leg kicks. I'm picking Barry.

Anthony Johnson vs Charlie Brenneman (welterweight)
I like Brenneman, but I do not like his chances in this fight. Johnson is an up and comer who has shown great talent and would be contending for the title had it not been for an iffy loss to Josh Koshcheck and the phantom knee strike. Brenneman has the better record, but Johnson has tougher fights under his belt. Both tend to go to decision. Both are wrestlers, but Johnson has some striking pedigree as well. I'm picking Johnson.

Matt Wiman vs Mac Danzig (lightweight)
Could be an interesting fight. Both of these guys are far form having secure places with the company. Mid-carders, essentially, who show little threat for the lightweight belt. Wiman is popular, but has not won any of the big fights he's been in. Danzig is a TUF champ who showed lots of promise but then fell on hard times, losing 3 straight to tough competitors. He is 2-1 since then, including a loss to the same Matt Wiman. It was a controversial stoppage, though, with the ref stepping in to break up a submission despite the fact Danzig had not tapped or been rendered unconscious. Danzig will be looking for revenge, which should give him an edge. Still, I'm gonna pick the more well-rounded Wiman.

Yves Edwards vs Rafaello Oliveira (lightweight)
Edwards has been fighting forever. He's a journeyman who has never really impressed in the UFC. Oliveira has a fine record but loses all of his significant fights. Is this a battle of losers? Tough pick. I think I'll pick Edwards.

Michael Johnson vs Paul Sass (lightweight)
Johnson was a TUF competitor from whom great things were expected. So far, though, he has shown that he is a diamond in the rough at best. He has also shown he can be submitted. Sass has a perfect record, though he has only one UFC fight. He is a submissions ninja, with a penchant for triangle chokes. I'm picking Sass.

Mike Easton vs Byron Bloodworth (bantamweight)
Who? Don't know these guys. Mystery bantamweights. I can't wait for this season of TUF to be over so that we'll have some more recognizable faces in the division. Easton has a good record, including a win over the supposedly well-known Chase Beebe. Easton is a champion (UWC) while Bloodworth doesn't have a Wikipedia page and is an injury replacement. I'm picking Easton.

Shane Roller vs TJ Grant (lightweight)
Could be a good fight. Roller is a well-rounded wrestler who contended for a belt not so long ago, but seems to drop the ball in the really big fights. Grant is a Canadian with very well rounded skills, but has dropped some decisions lately at 170. He's dropping down in weight here, so who knows what kind of effect it'll have. If he cuts right, he ought to have a slight size advantage over Roller and ought to be able to nullify any wrestling. I'd give Grant the edge on the feet, so I'm picking Grant.

Josh Neer vs Keith Wisniewski (welterweight)
After two years away, Neer is back in the UFC, this time at welterweight. He has had success at that weight away from the UFC. Wisniewski is a nobody but has a TON of fights over a 13-year career. The guy has fought in just about every organization and even has a loss to Shonie Carter via spinning back fist! I don't lie his chances here, though, so I'm picking Neer.

Walel Watson vs Joseph Sandoval (bantamweight)
No idea. Watson is a submissions machine, it seems. Very tall for a bantamweight (5'11"). Sandoval is undefeated and has some power, it seems. I hate decisions, though, so let's hope Watson submits him. I'm picking Watson.

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)