Finishing a mainstay like Stefan Struve in such emphatic fashion would give any UFC heavyweight a tremendous shot in the arm, especially a prospering contender like New Zealander Mark Hunt. With his highlight-reel knockout of Struve at UFC on…
Finishing a mainstay like Stefan Struve in such emphatic fashion would give any UFC heavyweight a tremendous shot in the arm, especially a prospering contender like New Zealander Mark Hunt.
With his highlight-reel knockout of Struve at UFC on Fuel TV 8, Hunt not only earned his way into the promotion’s official top 10 heavyweight rankings (No.9) for the first time, he also stretched his winning streak to a division-best four straight victories.
Hunt, a man who lost his sixth straight fight in his promotional debut at UFC 119 in 2010, has pocketed a pair of “Knockout of the Night” bonuses in two of his last four fights, gaining a reputation as the division’s most captivating fighter along the way.
Since every fighter’s only as valuable as his or her last fight in the UFC, Hunt must have certainly punched his ticket for a main-event bout in his next outing by breaking Struve’s jaw.
Here’s a peek at five possible fights for “The Super Samoan” to take next.
Watching eight straight fights end in judges’ decisions would bore any crowd, even the notoriously respectful fans at Japan’s Saitama Super Arena. Thankfully, the lull that ensued between the first and 10th fights of the UFC on Fuel TV 8 came to&n…
Watching eight straight fights end in judges’ decisions would bore any crowd, even the notoriously respectful fans at Japan’s Saitama Super Arena.
Thankfully, the lull that ensued between the first and 10th fights of the UFC on Fuel TV 8 came to a sudden halt when heavy-handed New Zealander Mark Hunt knocked out Stefan Struve.
Minutes later, Wanderlei Silva, a man who primarily made his bones fighting in Japan, put on a display of violence alongside opponent Brian Stann that was last seen in an MMA fight when Don Frye and YoshihiroTakayama wildly slugged it out at Pride 21.
Following a feel-out process that lasted roughly 30 seconds, Silva and Stann fearlessly engaged in several chaotic exchanges in the first round, each man nearly losing consciousness in the process.
It became blatantly obvious early in the first round that neither Silva nor Stann intended to grapple or point fight. Both fighters unleashed several reckless combinations, each barrage as ferocious and entertaining as the last.
Then, late in the second round and in quintessential Silva fashion, “The Axe Murderer” landed a beautifully timed overhand right-left hook combination that flattened Stann and opened the floodgates for a vicious finish.
A fighter who’s always thrived once he smells a hint of blood, Silva zeroed on the wounded Stann like a hungry lion and dropped four consecutive looping punches on “The All-American’s” jawline to finish the job.
In a matter of minutes, the fans at the Saitama Super Arena morphed from sleepy onlookers to electrified spectators.
Half of the fighters who partook in the bouts that went to a judges’ decision at UFC on Fuel TV 8 can say they walked away winners. But those fighters still can’t ignore UFC president Dana White‘s propensity to cut boring fighters and keep ones of the exciting variety.
At night’s end, it was difficult to tell whether or not fighters like Struve and Stann secured their spots on the UFC’s roster with their valiant efforts in defeat.
One thing is certain, however: Fighters like Diego Sanchez and YushinOkami, who each earned decision wins, must expect to move up the ladder at a much slower pace than guys like Hunt and Silva.
Just as he’s quick to pull the plug on a presumably boring fighter’s career, UFC president Dana White has a propensity to give exciting fighters second chances. One of those explosive fighters, volatile heavyweight Mark Hunt, got his opport…
Just as he’s quick to pull the plug on a presumably boring fighter’s career, UFC president Dana White has a propensity to give exciting fighters second chances.
One of those explosive fighters, volatile heavyweight Mark Hunt, got his opportunity from White in the midst of the most miserable and self-destructive stretch of his career.
A former standout in K-1, Hunt went on a four-year winless drought that spanned from July 2006 to February 2011. In that stretch, Hunt lost six straight fights, astoundingly dropping five by submission and one by KO.
But amazingly, five losses into his losing streak, White offered Hunt a contract and a fight with Sean McCorkle at UFC 119.
At the time, White’s move appeared foolish, especially considering how Hunt appeared content simply collecting paychecks in his waning days in Japan.
Three fights later, however, Hunt, a star in his early days in the Pride Fighting Championships, once again stands of on the brink of fighting the world’s best.
But Hunt isn’t the only seemingly down-and-out fighter who received a second chance from White.
Here’s a look at three other fighters who took similarly strange paths to success in the UFC.
Getting choked by current teammate Phil Davis at UFC 112 in 2010 triggered a transformation in light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson. Since tasting his only defeat, Gustafsson has amped up his his training and linked up with Davis and his te…
Getting choked by current teammate Phil Davis at UFC 112 in 2010 triggered a transformation in light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson.
Since tasting his only defeat, Gustafsson has amped up his his training and linked up with Davis and his team at Alliance MMA to improve his overall game and shore up some of his grappling deficiencies.
The move paid major dividends for Gustafsson, who followed up his loss with Davis with six straight victories, including convincing decision wins over Thiago Silva and Mauricio Rua.
But the surging Gustafsson can’t punch his ticket for a title shot until he locks horns with arguably his most dangerous opponent since Davis—former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi.
Making his much-anticipated debut against “The Mauler” in his home of Stockholm, Sweden, at UFC on Fuel TV 9, Mousasi will enter the tilt having lost just one fight in his last 22 outings.
With top-flight striking chops and a submission game to match, the grizzled Mousasi could derail the meteoric rise of Gustafsson.
Here’s a glimpse at three reasons “The Dreamcatcher” is being overlooked against Gustafsson.
In a light heavyweight scrap that could have easily gone to either man or been deemed a draw, Lyoto Machida did barely enough to nip Dan Henderson in the co-main event at UFC 157. But because of the generally passive nature in which Machida prevai…
In a light heavyweight scrap that could have easily gone to either man or been deemed a draw, LyotoMachida did barely enough to nip Dan Henderson in the co-main event at UFC 157.
But because of the generally passive nature in which Machida prevailed in this defacto title eliminator, questions will linger regarding whether or not “The Dragon” deserves a rematch with champ Jon Jones.
After all, if Jones gets past Chael Sonnen in April, he’ll have handled every opponent he’s faced, including Machida, who “Bones” choked to sleep at UFC 140 just over a year ago.
UFC president Dana White all but called the tilt a title eliminator, so Machida surely can’t shoulder any blame for executing a safe and simple game plan, regardless of how much the fans griped.
From the get-go, Machida stayed in constant motion, moving his head and wisely circling away from Henderson’s notoriously venomous right hand.
Machida‘s elusiveness frustrated “Hendo,” forcing the 42-year-old to consistently measure and paw before lunging with looping haymakers. Henderson managed to successfully close the distance a few times using low kicks, only to watch Machida brilliantly counter his blitzes with nifty footwork and clinch work.
The Dragon capitalized on Hendo‘s frustration and scored with kicks and knees to the body, high kicks and several left and right straights. Machida also tagged Hendo with a few front kicks, one of the flying variety, which landed flush on Hendo‘s chin late in the third round.
Machida also matched the two-time Olympian’s wrestling prowess, scoring a trip takedown in the waning seconds of the first round before surrendering a takedown out of a scramble late in the third.
He may not have pocketed a $50,000 “Fight of the Night” or “Knockout of the Night” bonus, but Machida successfully baited Henderson into fighting under his terms. In doing so, The Dragon made one of the sport’s most lethal fighters look one-dimensional.
How you scored the first round, (that was) tough to score. Lyoto gets the top position and drops a few bombs before the end of the round. The second round was eh. And the third round, neither one of them did anything the last three-and-a-half minutes. So, it’s anybody’s fight. I gave it to Machida, barely.
With Rashad Evans coming off a loss and Phil Davis and Alexander Gustaffson each in the midst of training camps for other opponents, Machida remains the lone deserving challenger to face the winner of the Jones vs. Sonnen fight in April.
Although he didn’t leave the Honda Center with a seal of approval from the fans, Machida left with something much more valuable, at least according to White’s sentiments—another ticket to the big dance.
Dan Henderson’s one of the toughest guys in the sport. You don’t knock Dan Henderson out when you’re in there. Lyoto took some big shots from Dan. Dan took some big shots from Lyoto. It wasn’t a barn burner. It wasn’t the most exciting fight you’ve ever seen. You won’t be writing stories about this fight until the end of the time, but, you know, Lyoto won the fight. He beat the No. 1 contender. He beat Dan Henderson.
His name may not land at the top of the welterweight contender’s list just yet, but Robbie Lawler sure returned to the UFC in style with his thrilling TKO win over perennial contender Josh Koscheck at UFC 157. In his first fight with the UFC since…
His name may not land at the top of the welterweight contender’s list just yet, but Robbie Lawler sure returned to the UFC in style with his thrilling TKO win over perennial contender Josh Koscheck at UFC 157.
In his first fight with the UFC since 2004, the exceptionally heavy-handed Lawler shrugged off takedown attempts from the former NCAA wrestling champion for the better part of four minutes before swiftly and violently turning the tables.
In a sequence that’s rarely seen in MMA, Lawler began thumping Koscheck with punches from a front headlock position. “Ruthless” then unleashed a furious barrage of looping punches that flattened Koscheck and left him temporarily dazed and on the verge of unconsciousness.
Referee Herb Dean recognized Koscheck‘s vulnerable state and quickly stepped in to minimize the damage.
It was just the second time in Koscheck‘s 24-fight pro career that he suffered a loss via form of knockout.
Lawler, a middleweight the majority of his career who fought Renato Sobral at a catch weight of 195 pounds in Strikeforce, hasn’t fought at 170 pounds since getting KO’d by Nick Diaz at UFC 47.
Josh is a game opponent but I felt very strong at 170. When he took me down and he was on top of me he did not feel heavy at all. I felt like as soon as I got back to my feet I was going to stop it, so eventually that’s what I was trying to do. But I felt great.
Often criticized for being one dimensional, Lawler went the extra mile to prepare for Koscheck, relocating from Iowa to the American Top Team MMA Academy in Coconut Creek, Fla.
Lawler credited American Top Team coaches Ricardo Liborio and Conan Silveira for facilitating in his transformation.
I was getting a lot of good work with my wrestling up in Iowa, training. But I needed more all-around game—the striking (and) the jiu-jitsu at a high level—and I had a lot of good coaches down at ATT to work with. They pushed me. Everything was smart (and) everything was precise. I had a great training camp.
In arguably the deepest weight class in the promotion, UFC president Dana White has landed yet another entertaining contender to compete with the division’s top dogs.
The road won’t get any smoother for Ruthless in the near future, however. Lawler could soon find himself pitted against an opponent like Demian Maia, Nate Marquardt or Erick Silva.
But regardless of whom he draws next, Lawler made one thing clear: Given an opening, he can deliver a vicious knockout in an instant.
Watching eight straight fights end in judges’ decisions would bore any crowd, even the notoriously respectful fans at Japan’s