Regardless of any opinions of the match ups, results, or overall excitement of the event; there’s no debating that UFC 155 answered a number of questions. Being one of only a half dozen of predictors to call an upset in the main event, I’m not all that surprised with Velasquez recapturing the title. There were however several results, some of them more shocking, that deserve a little more attention.
Todd Duffee is NOT overrated
Even with a seven second knockout under his belt, as well as six other first round knockouts, a number of MMA fans considered Duffee to be nothing more than over hyped fighter. Dispite back to back losses to Mike Russow and Alistair Overeem, arguments for counting out Duffee in his bout with Phil De Fries were feeble. Before the unbelievable comeback from Mike Russow, that fight was as one sided as a fight could possibly be. As far as the Overeem loss, can you really hold that against him? Overeem is arguably the second best heavyweight in the world. As to why anyone would think Duffee wouldn’t overcome the likes of De Fries is baffling, but he proved the nay sayers wrong by finishing De Fries only two minutes into the fight.
I don’t think anyone is making the argument that Duffee should be ranked in the top ten of the division, but he certainly deserves a step up in competition for his next fight. There are quite a few opponent options for Duffee, but the one that is really making a world of sense to me is Pat Barry. He’s a fellow heavy hitter coming off a recent knockout win of his own.
The suspension hurt Leben more than expected
Derek Brunson had less predictions pulling for him than Cain Velasquez did, but he was able to get the job done. Although Brunson had several impressive takedowns, the story of his success was more of a lacking performance on Leben’s part. To get straight to the point, Leben didn’t look like the old crowd pleasing brawler most people were expecting to return. When he was first taken down, Leben utilized a very active guard, but he tired quickly after. Joe Rogan even made a comment that it looked as if Leben had lost a significant amount of power in his punches, and Brunson didn’t seem discouraged even after Leben tried to unleash all his fury. Clearly, Leben didn’t stay as active in the gym during his suspension as most people assumed. Hopefully he will wise up and get back to training, because if his next fight is a letdown, the UFC could say farewell to the crippler.
Miles Jury will be a serious lightweight contender
This was the fight that the odds makers are kicking themselves for right about now. The heavily favored Michael Johnson didn’t amount a shred of offense and was dominated on the ground for fifteen minutes. This marks the second consecutive victory for Jury which was shocking impressive. I considered Johnson to be on the rise, but after seeing what Jury was able to do, I’ll be eager to see him compete again against another up and coming fighter.
Jury is truly a prospect in the lightweight division, and therefore should next face fellow lightweight prospect Abel Trujillo. It will make for the a most intriguing fight that will determine if Jury has what it takes to excel to the next level.
Perez needs a true test
While it’s true that I have been outspoken about the controversy of Perez’s “submission win” over John Albert, I can’t deny that Perez had an incredible display of determination and submission skills, both offensive and defensive. In his three UFC wins, Perez has demonstrated well rounded skills and is in dire need of a step up in competition. A few names come to mind, such as Ivan Menjivar,Mike Easton, or Scott Jorgensen. These three suggested opponents are either coming off a loss, a win over a no name fighter, or a win over a fighter that Perez has already beaten. Either of the three bantamweights would make for an intriguing fight with Perez, and it would give him the challenge of a higher level opponent that he deserves.
Wineland may be ready for a title shot
I was surprised when I found out that Brad Pickett wasn’t the favorite going into the fight against Wineland. I predicted Pickett submit Wineland after successfully taking the fight to the ground, but Wineland stuufed all takedown attempts, and did substantially better on the feet than I expected. Worst case scenario, I saw the entire fight going like it did in the third round. In that scenario, Pickett would’ve won a split decision. Nonetheless, I was wrong and Wineland looked sharp in his performance. I can’t remember seeing Pickett outclassed on the feet like that. Even Renan Barao didn’t pick him apart as well as Wineland did in that first round. Wineland has two consecutive wins over two top bantamweights, and has only lost to two elite fighters while in the UFC. At this point, Wineland is back in the top five of the division and could get the next shot at either the tiitle, or interm title, depending on when Dominick Cruz returns. However, he should at least fight the loser of Renan Barao and Michael McDonald.
– Ryan “Fight Freek” Poli