Author: Andrew McCluskey

Cesar Gracie: Condit Versus Diaz Rematch Isn’t Happening

UFC 143 was highlighted by the controversial ruling in the main event featuring Carlos Condit and Nick Diaz for the interim welterweight championship. Condit fought a smart fight that involved circling and moving to avoid getting caught again…

UFC 143 was highlighted by the controversial ruling in the main event featuring Carlos Condit and Nick Diaz for the interim welterweight championship. 

Condit fought a smart fight that involved circling and moving to avoid getting caught against the cage, where Diaz does his best work. We’ve seen countless fighters get pressured against the cage by Diaz only to get peppered with hooks to the head and body. 

“The Natrual-Born Killer” wasn’t about to fall in to that trap and was able to land some solid counter shots on Diaz as he circled away from the cage. This strategy was enough to win him the decision.

That decision didn’t sit well with Nick Diaz or his fans. 

Diaz went on a post-fight rant, essentially announcing his retirement from the sport because he felt that Condit was simply “running away” and didn’t show up to fight. 

Whether you agree with Diaz or not, it seems as if a rematch would be the best plan for the UFC. 

That is what UFC president Dana White set in motion. There would be plenty of time to get a rematch in before current welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre returns from injury. Carlos Condit immediately agreed to another fight with Diaz. 

It appeared that we were all set for Condit versus Diaz part two.

However, it is now being reported (via mmajunkie.com) today that Diaz’s trainer, Cesar Gracie, has said a rematch is not happening.

Gracie failed to give a reason why the rematch isn’t happening. This seems like an incredibly strange mood considering this should be exactly what Diaz wants. A rematch with Condit would give him the chance to prove he is the better fighter as well as earn the title shot against St-Pierre.

So why is this fight not going down?

There are a couple of things we could speculate on.

The first would be that Diaz really does want to retire. This seems unlikely because his post-fight tirade seemed to be based more off of poor sportsmanship and frustration than it did a desire to actually stop fighting. Diaz has never been afraid to speak his mind, but it is hard to determine if he means what he says.

Still, Diaz is only 28 years old and is one of the best welterweights in the world. Even if he doesn’t rematch Condit, he is only a couple of wins away from another shot at the title. Retirement just does not make any sense.

The hot rumor today is that Diaz may have failed a drug test. 

The head of the NSAC Keith Kizer stated today (via sherdog.com) that they have at least one positive test from UFC 143.

“Thank you for the many email[s] and phone calls,” Kizer wrote. “I am still waiting for all the steroid and drug test results to come back. We did have at least one positive test. I will send out an email later today on that matter.” 

Again, this is pure speculation, but Diaz has a history with marijuana. 

Whatever the reason, the fans are going to be disappointed that we won’t get to see these two step in to the octagon together any time soon. Both fighters put on a great show, and many fans would love to see a rematch simply to see another incredible fight.

It is only a matter of time before the reason for Diaz backing out of fight comes out. Until then, we will just have to wait and see.

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UFC on FOX 2: Why Rashad Evans Needs to Beat Phil Davis

It is hard to fathom that a 16-1-1 fighter needs a win. However, it is the case for Rashad Evans. Evans is heading into this fight on a three-fight win streak since losing his light heavyweight title to Lyoto Machida. “Suga” Rashad has been w…

It is hard to fathom that a 16-1-1 fighter needs a win. 

However, it is the case for Rashad Evans. 

Evans is heading into this fight on a three-fight win streak since losing his light heavyweight title to Lyoto Machida. “Suga” Rashad has been working his way up the rankings looking to get another shot at the gold. 

He was set to take on Shogun Rua at UFC 128 until he was forced out of the fight due to an injury. His then-teammate Jon Jones took the fight and the rest is history. Two dominant title defenses later and we are now talking about Jones as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world.

Rashad at one point was reportedly set to take on Jones at UFC 140, but Evans was once again forced out of the fight and replaced by Lyoto Machida. 

Now he is set to take on one of the brightest young stars in the light heavyweight division in Phil Davis. 

Davis is a freak athlete with a NCAA Division I wrestling background. We have seen him dominate quality fighters while putting together his 9-0 record. Evans will certainly be the toughest test of his career, but he appears to be prepared for it.

Even so, the pressure is still on Evans in this fight.

His matchup with Jones has been a long time coming. There is clearly a rivalry between these two fighters that the fans want to see settled.

While many have Evans as the favorite in this fight, the question needs to be asked:

What happens if he loses to Davis?

Well, from Davis’ perspective, it would be the biggest win of his career and put him in contention for a title shot at Jones. A Davis versus Jones title match would pit two of the UFC’s brightest young talents against one another, but it wouldn’t carry the same hype as a matchup against Evans.

Then we would need to look at what happens to Evans.

It would still be only the second loss of his MMA career and he still would be considered one of the best light heavyweights in the world, but it would be a major setback on his pursuit to the title. As it stands, Jones has ripped through every light heavyweight that has been put in front of him. There are only so many contenders that the light heavyweight division can muster up.

However, Evans doesn’t want to end up at the bottom of that list.

A loss to Davis not only would put “Mr. Wonderful” above Rashad in the rankings, but assure that a fighter like Dan Henderson is going to get a title shot before him. Even though Jones has taken out a large portion of the division already, challengers still remain.

It is entirely possible that we could see a rematch between Rua and Jones before a fight with Evans, if Rashad cannot pull off the win against Davis. It isn’t out of the realm of possibility that another rising star like Alexander Gustafsson could earn a shot before Evans.

The light heavyweight division is far too deep to just assume that Evans would still be at the top of the list if he loses to Davis.

Evans’ road back to the title could be just as tough as Jones’ title defenses. 

It is likely he would have to face the likes of Machida and Rua again. If he doesn’t take advantage of this shot at the title now, he may never get his chance again. 

Evans is a great fighter and a fighter that is worthy of being a champion. He fights in the best MMA organization in the world and in that organization’s deepest division. Chances at the title don’t come along very often.

His career won’t end with a loss to Davis, but his hopes of getting a shot at Jones anytime soon will.

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UFC on FX: 5 Things to Watch for During Guillard vs. Miller

The UFC makes their grand debut on FX this Friday.The event will be highlighted by an exciting lightweight matchup featuring Melvin “The Young Assassin” Guillard against Jim Miller.Both fighters have hit a stumbling block recently in their careers.Guil…

The UFC makes their grand debut on FX this Friday.

The event will be highlighted by an exciting lightweight matchup featuring Melvin “The Young Assassin” Guillard against Jim Miller.

Both fighters have hit a stumbling block recently in their careers.

Guillard was on his way up the lightweight rankings with five straight wins, including three finishes. That was until he ran in to Joe Lauzon at UFC 136. Guillard was submitted via rear-naked choke in the first round.

Miller was also on the doorstep of a lightweight title shot when he was matched up against former WEC lightweight champion Ben Henderson. Henderson was able to pull off the decision victory over Miller and is going on to face Frankie Edgar for the UFC lightweight championship.

Both lightweights will be looking to get back on track to a title shot, but they’ll need to get through one another first.

Here are five things to watch for during the main event.

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UFC 142: 5 Bold Predictions for Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes

UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo will defend his title against Chad Mendes at UFC 142. Aldo is coming off his second defense of the UFC featherweight title against Kenny Florian. Florian gave Aldo a challenge, but he didn’t have what it took t…

UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo will defend his title against Chad Mendes at UFC 142. 

Aldo is coming off his second defense of the UFC featherweight title against Kenny Florian. Florian gave Aldo a challenge, but he didn’t have what it took to get the job done. 

Chad Mendes will be one of the toughest challenges of Aldo’s career. Mendes is 11-0 coming into this fight and brings with him an elite wrestling base. He has no problem putting it on display, as he has wrestled his way to four unanimous decision victories in a row. 

Mendes is one of the best wrestlers Aldo will have faced, and it’ll be interesting to see how these two styles clash. 

Here are five bold predictions for UFC 142’s main event.

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The 20 Sickest UFC Knockouts of 2011

The sport of mixed martial arts brings together some of the most talented fighters in the world.Regardless of what discipline these fighters specialize in, there is nothing more mesmerizing in the sport than the knockout. Whether it is a punc…

The sport of mixed martial arts brings together some of the most talented fighters in the world.

Regardless of what discipline these fighters specialize in, there is nothing more mesmerizing in the sport than the knockout. Whether it is a punch or a kick, we are always captivated by the striker that can stop a fight with a single strike.

2011 was one of the best years for the knockout in the history of the sport. The UFC, being home to the premier fighters in the world, was obviously home to the vast majority of these knockouts. With so many to choose from, it was hard to narrow a list down to just 20.

However, there were certainly some that stood clearly above the rest.

Without further ado, here is the list of the 20 sickest UFC knockouts of 2011.

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UFC 141 Fight Card: Why Alistair Overeem Is the Next UFC Heavyweight Champion

“The Reem” has officially arrived in the UFC.Alistair Overeem made his presence felt quickly, as it took him just about two and half minutes to finish former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar at UFC 141. Overeem delivered some vicious body ki…

“The Reem” has officially arrived in the UFC.

Alistair Overeem made his presence felt quickly, as it took him just about two and half minutes to finish former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar at UFC 141. Overeem delivered some vicious body kicks that crippled Lesnar before pummeling him with strikes to pick up the TKO victory.

This win has earned Overeem the right to face current UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos.

Dos Santos is currently 14-1 in his MMA career and 8-0 since joining the UFC. He just recently won the championship against Cain Velasquez at UFC on Fox 1.

Dos Santos has showed off some devastating boxing that makes for an exciting match up against Alistair Overeem’s world class kickboxing. That matchup is sure to have all MMA fans on the edge of their seats, waiting for the explosive finish.

When the day comes for those two to meet in the Octagon, only one man will leave with the belt.

That man will be Alistair Overeem. 

Overeem has the most versatile striking in the heavyweight division. Not only does he bring heavy hands and powerful kicks, but his knees from the clinch are unrivaled. The shots that Overeem delivered to Lesnar’s body had me wincing with each successful strike. 

Even though dos Santos has the ability to stop just about any fighter with one strike, Overeem has the tools to overwhelm him.

Overeem’s only loss at heavyweight was against Sergei Kharitonov back in 2007. Kharitonov was able to stop Overeem with a punch in the first round. Since then “The Reem” has been an unstoppable force, with 11 wins and one no-contest.

Junior dos Santos has faced some tough competition in the UFC, but Alistair Overeem is the most complete fighter he has been matched up against. 

No other heavyweight has the striking and grappling accomplishments that Overeem has on his resume. I don’t see this fight going to the ground, but if it did I have no doubt that Overeem could handle Dos Santos’ untested jiu-jitsu.

Dos Santos is going to be attacked from multiple angles and pushed back for the first time in his career. Overeem won’t be afraid to come forward against him and will looked to punish him in the clinch as he did with Brock Lesnar. 

The biggest factor in this fight will be Overeem’s preparation. 

Lesnar was a caliber of wrestler that Overeem had yet to face in his career. He prepared by bringing top-notch wrestlers in to his camp and adjusting his game plan accordingly. You could see how effective his low stance was against Brock and his wrestling.

The same preparation will be applied against dos Santos. 

Overeem realizes that dos Santos may be the toughest boxer he has taken on in the heavyweight division and will prepare accordingly. I expect Overeem to spend most of the first round finding the range and waiting for dos Santos to make the first move. If he can get him to commit to strikes, he can answer with quick counter shots or lock him up in the clinch.

The damage that Overeem can do in the clinch will be something that dos Santos has never had to worry about before. The closest he has come to having to worry about the clinch was Shane Carwin, but even then it was because of Carwin’s raw power at close range rather than his actual striking ability. 

Dos Santos has had some great tests in his relatively short MMA career. He has certainly faced fighters with deadly striking and fighters that are bigger than him. He has taken on great grapplers and submission artists.

However, he has never faced a fighter that is a perfect storm of all these traits.

Overeem will come in to this fight with a 20-pound advantage and an extra 4.5 inches of reach. It is clear that his skill set is unique to any of dos Santos’ other opponents.

Alistair Overeem is bringing everything he will need to the Octagon to beat Junior dos Santos, which is why when it is all said and done he will leave with the UFC heavyweight championship.

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