It’s time to take our usual look at Saturday’s completed fight card and assign grades to each of the fighters involved in the big Atlanta card. How did Jon Jones, Michael McDonald, Rashad Evans and the rest of the stars of the event fare?
Read below to find out.
A+
Jon Jones: Jones said after the fight that this wasn’t the best performance of his career, and perhaps it wasn’t. But Jones still completely dominated yet another top light heavyweight, and that equals high marks in my book.
Jones has a wrestling background, but looking at his striking against Evans, you’d think he’d been a high-level kickboxer before making the transition to MMA. It’s simply stunning that Jones has only really been training his striking game for a little over four years. He used creative strikes, effective angles and his huge reach advantage to batter Evans from pillar to post for much of the fight.
Sure, he didn’t finish the fight, but that doesn’t matter one bit. He still made a great former light heavyweight champion look like he didn’t belong in the same cage. There’s something to be said for that, and it can be summed up in one word: greatness.
A
Michael McDonald: His fight against Miguel Torres was designed to, at least theoretically, turn McDonald into a bantamweight star and contender. He delivered on that in spades with his violent first-round knockout.
Travis Browne: This guy is 6’7″, 250 pounds, and he’s still able to execute moves like the spectacular double flying knee he used on Chad Griggs? That’s a dangerous combination. Browne is a potential heavyweight star in the making.
Brian Stann: Stann didn’t fight on the card, but he did participate in the Fuel TV coverage of the event. And once again, “The All American” proved that he’s a smooth, polished television presence with the ability to break down the important parts of upcoming fights and describe them in a way that is easily digested by the average fan. He’s a true asset for the UFC in every way.
B+
Rory MacDonald: MacDonald dominated Che Mills on the ground, but he had some difficulty in the striking game. That’s the only thing preventing him from earning an A for his performance as he’s still the best welterweight prospect in the UFC.
Ben Rothwell: Rothwell’s newly-slimmed figure proved that he’s been working hard to get in fighting shape, and his knockout of Brendan Schaub showed that he’s got the power to finish people in the heavyweight division. And his post-fight interview was one of the more memorable moments of the entire evening.
C
Rashad Evans: Evans was clearly outmatched by Jones, but he still landed a few power punches here and there. I wish he’d used more of his wrestling game, but he gave that up pretty quickly after realizing he was going to have a difficult time getting Jones to the ground. Evans should still be proud of his performance against the guy many now consider to be the best fighter in the world.
Mark Bocek: It wasn’t pretty, but his wrestling-match win over John Alessio did the job. Unfortunately it was one of the more boring fights of the entire card and it didn’t win him many new fans.
Eddie Yagin: Yagin was an unheralded fighter who was expected to lose to Mark Hominick. Instead, he outstruck the struggling former title contender for two rounds and scored the upset decision win. It wasn’t pretty, but it was exciting enough to earn Yagin a hefty Fight of the Night bonus.
Matt Brown: Brown’s win over Stephan Thompson was ugly, but it was effective. Brown endured nearly being knocked out twice in the first two rounds and earned a hard-fought decision win. We already knew Brown was tough, though, so we didn’t learn much about his game.
D
John Alessio: You have to feel for Alessio. The former title contender worked so hard to get back into the UFC, and then got stuck in a wrestling match against a better grappler. He outstruck Bocek on the feet but couldn’t do anything on the ground. I don’t expect Alessio to get his walking papers just yet, though, especially after taking this fight on such short notice. The UFC tends to reward fighters who help them out.
Stephan Thompson: “Wonderboy” had a ton of hype going into his fight with Matt Brown. He looked good when the fight stayed on the feet, but had extreme difficulty in blocking takedowns and the ground game in general. He’s still an incredible striker, but he needs to work the other aspects of his game if he wants to last very long in the UFC.
F
Chad Griggs: Griggs is a tough dude, but he had very little answer for Travis Browne on the ground. “Gravedigger” is planning a move to light heavyweight, which is a good move since he’s drastically undersized against other UFC heavyweights. I’m not sure how much success he’ll have against the light heavies unless he works on his ground game.
Che Mills: Joe Rogan hyped Mills as a fantastic striker, and he is. But he had nothing to offer once Rory MacDonald put him on his back. He’ll struggle with that issue against any wrestler he faces at welterweight, which limits his potential and how far he might be able to go.
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