UFC Rio (134) Results

Hm. Think I took a bath on this one... Let's see.

Anderson Silva def. Yushin Okami (KO 2)
Honestly. What are these guys thinking? I'm big, I'm a wrestler, I think I'll stand and bang with Anderson Silva. Are you f***ing retarded? Think. We know wrestling works against Silva - why do people insist on standing back and waiting to be knocked out? Ridiculous. Waste of a fight. (1-0)

Mauricio Rua def. Forrest Griffin (KO 1)
Again, what was this guy thinking? Griffin should have taken down Rua fast and worn him out, but instead stands with another heavy hitter and gets put on his ass. Way to go. Anyone else think Forrest might retire soon? Although I'm not sure what else he'd do... (1-1)

Minotauro Nogueira def. Brendan Schaub (KO 1)
Schaub had Nogueira hurt but couldn't finish before getting caught. Schaub doesn't make the leap into the top echelon of the division, but still looked like he could hang with Nogueira. (1-2)

Edson Barboza def. Ross Pearson (split)
Finally an upset that paid off. Pearson pressed the action, but Barboza had the more effective strikes, I thought. I gave it to him on a thin decision. (2-2)

Stanislav Nedkov def. Luiz Cane (TKO 1)
Cane looked good early and had Nedkov on the ropes but did not finish and got caught. (2-3)

Thiago Tavares def. Spencer Fisher (TKO 2)
Fisher is in trouble, dropping too many of these fights. The stoppage may have been premature, what with Fisher taking no damage (though he was turtled), but he wasn't exactly lighting up Tavares. (2-4)

Rousimar Palhares def. Dan Miller (unanimous)
Palhares looked as good as you can without finishing a fight. He didn't seem to go for too many submissions but he beat the crap out of Miller for most of the fight and got either two 10-8s or an unheard-of 10-7 from one judge. (3-4)

Paulo Thiago def. David Mitchell (unanimous)
Didn't see it, but it sounds like Thiago dominated. (4-4)

Raphael Assuncao def. Johnny Eduardo (unanimous)
Assuncao didn't impress much, it seems, but got the nod in the end. The fight might have been closer than the scorecards suggested. These failed upsets are killing me! (4-5)

Yuri Alcantara def. Felipe Arantes (unanimous)
Whatever. (5-5)

Yves Jabouin def. Ian Loveland (split)
This fight was close, it seems, with Loveland providing wrestling while Jabouin looked for highlight finishes. Strangely, Jabouin gets the decision despite one judge giving all three rounds to Loveland. (6-5)

Somehow I missed the Erick Silva vs Luis Ramos fight in my picks. This had a wicked KO with Silva getting the win.

So, 6-5 is not terrible and better than I thought I was going to do, considering many of my upsets didn't pan out. I'm not gonna celebrate, though. :P

UFC Rio picks

So apparently this event is so cool that they aren't giving it a number? Whatever. (It's UFC 134) Let's get to the picks.

Anderson Silva vs Yushin Okami (middleweight)
It's nearly impossible to go against Silva these days, especially because few fighters in the division have the tools to beat him. Sonnen is at least one fight away, so Silva gets another sacrifice. Does Okami have a chance? Sure, if he presses the action. But I bet he gets KTFO before he gets close. I'm picking Silva.

Forrest Griffin vs Mauricio Rua (light heavyweight)
I hate betting against Griffin, but I don't like his chances in this one. Rua is coming off big fights while Griffin has been MIA promoting books and such. Still, I'll pick Forrest just so that I don't root against him.

Brendan Schaub vs Minotauro Nogueira (heavyweight)
Schaub has KO power and that's his key to victory. He won't outwrestle Nogueira and he certainly can't BJJ the guy. Can Nog get Schaub down? Maybe. But I think Nogueira is way past his prime these days and Schaub will connect. I'm picking Schaub in the upset.

Ross Pearson vs Edson Barboza (lightweight)
I like Pearson, but he isn't god's gift to MMA. Barboza is relatively unknown but TKO's guys with kicks! That's crazy. This ought to be a slugfest and I'm picking Barboza.

Luiz Cane vs Stanislav Nedkov (heavyweight)
Stanislov who? The guy hasn't fought in over a year and was rarely fighting before that. Great record, but you'd think he'd need more seasoning... Anyhow, he's a BJJ black belt and knocks guys out fast. But with the ring rust... Cane is dangerous but has underperformed in the past. He, too, is a BJJ black belt with KO power. Not sure where to go here. I'll pick experience and go with Cane.

Thiago Tavares vs Spencer Fisher (lightweight)
Could be fight of the night. Both of these guys were impressive a few years ago, but have fallen on hard times since. I expect this to go to decision with Fisher getting the nod.

Rousimar Palhares vs Dan Miller (middleweight)
Both of these guys have black belts in BJJ but Palhares is on a different level. His kneebars and ankle locks are sick. Can Miller avoid them? We'll see. I'll pick Palhares.

Paulo Thiago vs David Mitchell (welterweight)
Thiago was a rising star not so long ago, but has lost two in a row - usually signifying a must win match. Mitchell is a submissions guy who won a decision in his UFC debut. I think he's being thrown to the wolves here, though - I'll pick Thiago.

Raphael Assuncao vs Johnny Eduardo (featherweight)
Assuncao is a bit of a name, though he has lost a few recently. Eduardo is a nobody but has a string of victories and is used to fighting in Brazil. Neither of these guys blows me away. I'll go with the upset again and pick Eduardo.

Yuri Alcantara vs Felipe Arantes (featherweight)
This is getting ridiculous. The UFC featherweight division is so thin that neither of these guys has a profile on the website. Alcantara has a sick record and finishes guys fast. Arantes doesn't even appear on Wikipedia. Fuck that guy, I'm picking Alcantara.

Yves Jabouin vs Ian Loveland (bantamweight)
Loveland has been doing well recently and has some power, but gets submitted easily. Good thing for him, Jabouin is a striker, too. Jabouin really needs a win. Since I hate going against Canadians, even transplanted ones, I'll pick Jabouin.

UFC 133 Results

I didn’t get a chance to get my picks in for this one, but let’s recap anyway.

Rashad Evans def. Tito Ortiz (TKO 2)

This was one of those fights where one guy had nothing to gain and everything to lose. Unlike many of those past fights, though, the guy still won. Rashad dominated Ortiz for the most part – the exception being the seemingly tight guillotine choke from which Evans escaped. Ortiz was given this fight thanks to a late notice injury. Frankly, he did not deserve it otherwise. Sure, he beat Ryan Bader but that was more of a Matt Serra-like fluke. Ortiz simply is not in the same class as these top guys he’s been allowed to fight. Hell, even Bader is overrated and has flaws. I’m not sure where Ortiz goes from here, but based on his Bader win and popularity, he’s likely to be given at least one more decent fight.

Vitor Belfort def. Yoshihiro Akiyama (KO 1)

No way Akiyama deserved this fight. With the exception of his loss to Anderson Silva, Belfort has been a monster while “Sexyama” has been mediocre at best. Getting submitted by Chris Leben should not get you into Belfort’s sights. But the division is pretty thin and good fights are scarce. The right guy won and won in highlight reel fashion.

Brian Ebersole def. Dennis Hallman (TKO 1)

I would have been tempted to pick Hallman in this one, but he has disappointed me in the past. Both of these guys have insane records, but haven’t really made splashes in the UFC. That seems to be changing for Ebersole who now has had a couple of impressive wins.

Constantinos Philippou def. Jorge Rivera (split)

I would have been tempted to pick the rejuvenated Rivera, but he, too, has disappointed me in the past. I didn’t watch this fight too closely, but what I did see of it led me to believe the right decision was made. In fact, Rivera survived to a decision thanks to some generous refereeing, I believe.

Rory McDonald def. Mike Pyle (KO 1)

Wow. McDonald is looking impressive. Good for the young Canadian. Let’s hope he gets some bigger fights.

Alexander Gustafsson def. Matt Hamill (KO 2)

Despite a decent record, Hamill has been unimpressive of late. His retirement announcement on Monday seems to confirm that his heart just wasn’t in it anymore. Congrats to him for making the UFC and having a decent career, but, yes, it was probably the right time and the right decision.

Chad Mendes def. Rani Yahya (unanimous)

Didn’t watch it too closely, but this appeared to be the right decision.

Ivan Menjivar def. Nick Pace (unanimous)

Didn’t see it.

Johny Hendricks def. Mike Pierce (split)

Didn’t see it. Good for Hendricks, but the split makes me wonder how impressive he was. He’s usually pretty stellar.

Mike Brown def. Nam Phan (unanimous)

Surprised this one wasn’t on the main card, considering how weak the card was and the names involved. Looks like this one was a blowout, though. Not sure Phan is ready for former champs yet.

Rafael Natal def. Paul Bradley (unanimous)

Another decision. Looks like the undercard kinda sucked. Didn’t see this one.

Hm. Think I might have gone 8-2 in this one had I got my picks in. Darn.

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 on Versus 4 Results

What a crazy event this turned out to be. There were some really great fights with spectacular finishes, but the big news was Nate Marquardt not being medically cleared and being cut from the UFC. What the heck did he do? Other fighters have tested positive for drugs and not been banned, so what could possibly be the reasoning here? We'll find out Tuesday, supposedly.

Let's get to the results:

Rick Story vs. Nate Marquardt (no fight)
This fight didn't happen, as I've said. Instead we got Charlie Brenneman filling in for Marquardt at the last minute.

Charlie Brenneman def. Rick Story (unanimous)

Brenneman had seen his own fight disappear when TJ Grant got hurt. Wonder how Story felt about this? And remember - Story was himself a late replacement for Anthony Rumble Johnson. Story had nothing to gain from this fight and everything to lose. As is the custom in these UFC situations, the guy with everything to lose did in fact lose. This put Brenneman on the map but seriously derailed Story's title aspirations. Despite the victory, Brenneman did not look good. He took Story down a couple of times and laid and prayed his way to the decision. He benefited from a generous ref who did not stand them up despite a lack of action. This is one area where the game has to change. Oh, and since the event took place in Pennsylvania, there were newbie refs for some fights - and it showed. One ref was simply awful, allowing one fighter to take too much abuse and he is the same one who let Brenneman steal his fight.

Cheick Kongo def. Pat Barry (KO 1)
Wow. CRAZY ending. Barry had this fight sewn up, charged in for the kill and got caught by Kongo for the massive come from behind KO. It was shocking, really, that the fight had not been stopped sooner. Kongo was clearly not defending himself, with his hands at his sides and wide open for abuse, but Barry woke him up with punches instead of putting him away. The ref did in fact put his hands on Barry when he was pummeling Kongo as if to stop it, but quickly took them off. I dunno...as soon as a ref puts his hands on a fighter, that ought to be it. The fighter is actually SUPPOSED to relent at that point. But the ref was Dan Miragliotta - the same guy who let the Lesnar-Carwin fight go, allowing Lesnar to recover and win the fight. Barry should have won this fight - but he didn't. Like Sell-Smith, this will be on the highlight reels forever. (0-1)

Matt Brown def. John Howard (unanimous)
This fight was boring as hell. Not sure what the heck Howard was thinking - he tried to take Brown down and gassed out in the process. Stupid. Brown got the win that he desperately needed, but, like Brenneman, he did not impress. He'll probably keep his job, though. (0-2)

Matt Mitrione def. Christian Morecraft (KO 2)
Great fight, as anticipated. These guys threw bombs and Mitrione proved he is a force to be reckoned with. He put Morecraft on his ass a few times but the ref let it go (he really should have stopped the fight sooner). This was the same ref as the Brenneman-Story fight, though. Let's hope Mitrione sees better opponents in the future. Pat Barry, maybe? (1-2)

Tyson Griffin def. Manny Gamburyan (majority)
Did not see it, but after a slow start it seems Griffin dominated the fight. (2-2)

Javier Vazquez def. Joe Stevenson (unanimous)
SURELY Joe Daddy will be cut after this. I mean, come on! He has not evolved since TUF and has shown he cannot hang with the big boys. Apparently he was dominated in this one. This loss means he is 3-7 in his last ten. That's disgusting. (3-2)

Joe Lauzon def. Curt Warburton (sub 1)
Apparently Lauzon put on anopther sick clinic. Dunno how he looked so bad against Sotiropoulos, but let's hope this is the beginning of a comeback. (4-2)

Rich Attonito def. Daniel Roberts (unanimous)
Apparently Roberts gassed and could not recover. (4-3)

Charles Oliveira def. Nik Lentz (sub 2)
We might see a rematch or no contest out of this one as the end apparently came as a result of an illegal knee that the ref missed. That allowed Oliveira to get the rear naked choke to finish what was till then a very entertaining fight, I hear. (5-3)

Ricardo Lamas def. Matt Grice (TKO 1)
Maybe the weight cut hurt Grice. (5-4)

Michael Johnson def. Edward Faaloloto (KO 1)
I hear Johnson looked decent. (6-4)

Meh. A winning record, but not so great. I hope I get to see some of those undercard fights on Unleashed.

UFC Live on Versus Picks

Rick Story vs. Nate Marquardt (welterweight)
This ought to be interesting because it marks the debut of Marquardt at welterweight - the same division as his training partner, GSP. If Marquardt wins, he'll move up the ladder quickly and could be in line for a title shot soon. Would he fight GSP? It would probably be a good challenge for the champ. Story is good, but I'm gonna pick Marquardt.

Pat Barry vs Cheick Congo (heavyweight)
Congo kinda sucks. His stand up is decent, but his ground game is atrocious. Good thing for him that Barry has no ground game either. In fact, Congo might look to take Barry down. Congo will enjoy a massive size advantage and it remains to be seen if Barry can get inside and hit the big guy. If these guys were the same size I'd pick Barry in a heartbeat. But with this size differential? It's tough. I think Congo will squeeze out a boring decision, but I hate pulling for that, so I'll pick Barry by TKO.

John Howard vs Matt Brown (welterweight)
I like Brown, but he's not really an elite MMA guy. He's a scrapper who would put on a good show in smaller promotions. He's a bit outclassed in the UFC. But he has a size advantage in this fight, which might make the difference. ...But I don't think so - I'll pick Howard. If Brown loses, he'll get cut for sure.

Matt Mitrione vs Christian Morecraft (heavyweight)
This ought to be fun. Both have significant power. Surprisingly enough, I'd say Mitrione is in better shape, so if he can get this past the first round his odds of winning increase. Morecraft finishes fights quick but we have yet to see Mitrione get knocked done. I'll pick Mitrione.

Manny Gamburyan vs Tyson Griffin (featherweight)
I was a fan of Manny's until he pulled the ultimate douche move in the Cox fight (striking when the opponent went to touch gloves). He's talented but small and does not have the best chin. Tyson was looking great for a while with some big wins and having lost only to champions. But he has lost three in a row, including one to has-been (and overrated) Takanori Gomi. Tyson needs this one badly or he might get cut. This fight also marks his return to featherweight. It could be a really good fight with two evenly-matched fighters who usually put on a good show. If Griffin tries to wrestle, Gamburyan might use his judo to throw Griffin around. Tough call. I'll pick Griffin.

Joe Stevenson vs Javier Vazquez (featherweight)
Another fight that features a move in weight class. This time it's UFC darling Joe Stevenson dropping to featherweight. Surely this is Joe Daddy's last kick at the can, his last chance to remain at all relevant. The guy has lost 6 of his last 9 fights, including 3 in a row and 5 of 7. Nice guy, but not UFC material - not anymore. The UFC must be in his corner, throwing him a bone in the form of Vazquez who has lost 3 of 5. I can't say I like either fighter in terms of UFC potential, but for this fight I'll pick Vazquez by submission.

Joe Lauzon vs Curt Warburton (lightweight)
Not sure what's going on here. Maybe Warburton is on the way up and Lauzon need a rebound fight, but I don't really see how this fight was put together. Lauzon has far more experience and having him fight a British guy form the Wolfslair is a bit of a mismatch. Warburton has a puncher's chance, but otherwise I see Lauzon ending this in the first by submission.

Daniel Roberts vs Rich Attonito (welterweight)
Two guys whose specialties are BJJ and wrestling. If that means a stand up war, I'll pick Attonito. But I see Roberts getting the advantage and taking this to the ground where he has the edge. I'll pick Roberts.

Nik Lentz vs Charles Oliveira (lightweight)
Boy I hope this one is on TV. This could be another great one. Lentz has a crazy record, but Oliveira has insane BJJ (even though he is only a brown belt). If it goes to decision, it'll be Lentz for sure. If not, it's Oliveira by submission. I hate rooting for decisions, so I'll pick Oliveira.

Ricardo Lamas vs Matt Grice (featherweight)
Yet another featherweight debut - this time it's Grice. Lamas looks but so does Grice. Grice is a wrestler but has a number of submission wins, usually by guillotine. I'm gonna pick randomly and go with Grice.

Michael Johnson vs Edward Faaloloto (lightweight)
Johnson is a former TUF finalist, losing to Johnathan Brookins. Johnson looked ok, but not great. Faaloloto is a nobody who somehow managed to get a UFC fight. Maybe it's 'cause he trains with Chris Leben? Who knows. The UFC site has him listed at 5-1 while Sherdog (and every other site) has him at 2-1. So he's a bit of a mystery and quite unproven. He looks decent, but he's so raw that I can't pick him. I'll pick Johnson.