Author: Jeremy Botter

Alan Belcher Says Michael Bisping Is a Professional Point Fighter

Alan Belcher’s first-round win over Rousimar Palhares at last Saturday’s UFC on FOX 3 card was the biggest of his career.From a purely athletic perspective, it was an important fight for Belcher. Palhares was, or is, one of the most terrifying guys in …

Alan Belcher’s first-round win over Rousimar Palhares at last Saturday’s UFC on FOX 3 card was the biggest of his career.

From a purely athletic perspective, it was an important fight for Belcher. Palhares was, or is, one of the most terrifying guys in the division, especially when it comes to submissions. Belcher didn’t just beat Palhares; he took everything Palhares could give him on the ground and still escaped to finish the fight.

The fight also proved that Belcher is deserving of consideration against the top guys in the division. If not for a highly-disputed loss to Yoshihiro Akiyama back at UFC 100 — a fight just about everyone else in the universe besides the three judges sitting cageside figured Belcher won — the Biloxi native would have a 7-fight win streak against increasingly tough competition.

So what’s next for Belcher?

The top of the middleweight division is becoming increasingly crowded. Champion Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen fight in July, and new signee Hector Lombard faces Brian Stann in August, with the winner likely earning a title shot.

Though Belcher called out Silva after defeating Palhares, it looks like he’ll have to wait awhile before getting his shot. Never fear, though — Belcher has the perfect next opponent in mind: 

I think a fight with Michael Bisping makes a lot of sense. I mean, Boetsch looks like a beast at 185, and I’ve got to admit, he looks pretty scary. The other guys in the division, in my mind, I’ve already beat them so many times, and I know everything about them, and I know they don’t have anything really threatening. Boetsch has got some pretty powerful tools, and is a pretty scary dude.

Bisping, of course, is getting to be a professional point fighter, and he’s kind of hard to beat like that. That fight would be a nice payday, and a big fight for the media, so I’m kind of leaning towards that one. It would make sense, and the fans would love it. I can almost feel the energy I would get from the fans if I put him to sleep.

I’ve got to admit, this is an intriguing idea. If Bisping isn’t in the title picture — and it’s a shame if that’s actually the case — then pairing him up with Belcher in a contender’s bout later this year would be just about the perfect fit.

Does Belcher have a point when he says that Bisping is becoming a professional point fighter? Sure. Bisping finished Jorge Rivera last year, and he finished an exhausted Mayhem Miller in December, but for the most part, Bisping has been content to ride out decisions. He’s been highly effective in that role, to be sure. But that style hasn’t helped him earn any title shots in a promotion that values entertainment almost as much as they do winning. Just ask Jon Fitch how that philosophy worked for him.

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Chael Sonnen’s UFC Middleweight Championship Reign Gets Better Every Day

There are very few things in the MMA world more entertaining than Chael P. Sonnen.I understand that he’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s OK. If you’re the kind of dude who goes Hulk Smash every time Sonnen opens his mouth, you’re probably not the…

There are very few things in the MMA world more entertaining than Chael P. Sonnen.

I understand that he’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s OK. If you’re the kind of dude who goes Hulk Smash every time Sonnen opens his mouth, you’re probably not the target audience anyway. 

Sonnen isn’t targeting mixed martial arts fans. He’s targeting mainstream fans, and he’s done so very successfully.

Jim Rome, who hosts one of the largest sports radio programs in North America, calls Sonnen the undisputed king of sports trash talk. Coming from Rome, that’s quite a compliment, considering that Rome’s empire was built on the back of a legendary TV interview with former Rams quarterback Jim Everett in the mid 1990s.

The point is, Sonnen’s one of the few MMA fighters to get regular play on sports television and radio. He’s obviously doing something right.

On The MMA Hour on Monday, Sonnen continued a storyline that’s one of the oldest in the pro wrestling storyline book—pretending he’s the world champion despite losing in his title fight. 

I am the champion, so I will always have my belt. Will Anderson bring his fake belt? Yeah, he most likely will, and I think it’s embarrassing he has to do that. I think what he’s doing is he’s seeing the influx of new viewers the FOX deal got us, he went out to do his level best to misinform the new viewers into believing he’s champion, and he went out and got himself a fake belt. I think it’s embarrassing. I would never do that. I think it’s shameful. I think it’s disrespectful to everything that I’ve done and I’ve earned in the sport, but he continues to do it. So I’m going to destroy him once and for all, finally, on July 7, live and only on pay-per-view.

I find this very hard to believe, but there are people out there who take Sonnen quite literally when he says things like this.

Case in point, I have a buddy who called me yesterday and said, “Chael isn’t actually the champion, is he? Anderson beat him.”

I shook my head and gently explained that no, he is not the actual world champion. He asked me why, if he’s not actually the champion, does he go around saying he is?

Here’s why.

At the end of the day, it’s better for your bank account if you anger people so greatly that they will gladly pay $54.95 to watch you lose to the reigning champion. Without his mouth, Sonnen would’ve had a difficult time scoring a title shot when he did, and do you really think we’d be discussing this rematch two years later? Do you think this rematch would be one of the most anticipated fights in UFC history? 

The answer is no.

Sonnen is earning his paycheck each and every time he does media, and he’s turning Silva into a bigger star in the process.

UFC 148 will be Chael P. Sonnen’s crowning achievement, even if Silva knocks him out in the very first round.

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Dominick Cruz, Urijah Faber and the Biggest Canceled Fights in UFC History

The injury bug struck the UFC again on Monday. Bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz—who had been scheduled to defend his title in a rematch with Urijah Faber—was forced to pull out of the fight due to an ACL injury.Cruz’ injury comes as a di…

The injury bug struck the UFC again on Monday. Bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz—who had been scheduled to defend his title in a rematch with Urijah Faber—was forced to pull out of the fight due to an ACL injury.

Cruz’ injury comes as a disappointment to everyone who wanted to see him scrap with Faber for a third time, but it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to anyone. The UFC has been plagued by the injury bug for years, with shredded knees, strange diseases and broken bones all playing a part in derailing highly-anticipated main events.

Let’s take a look at some of the biggest UFC fights that were either canceled or postponed due to injury or illness.

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UFC 148: 3 Replacement Fighters to Face Urijah Faber

The UFC’s unfortunate string of injuries continued with Monday’s news that Dominick Cruz has suffered a knee injury and is out for his scheduled UFC 148 bout with Urijah Faber.The story was first reported by PhyteGurus.The news comes as a real disappoi…

The UFC’s unfortunate string of injuries continued with Monday’s news that Dominick Cruz has suffered a knee injury and is out for his scheduled UFC 148 bout with Urijah Faber.

The story was first reported by PhyteGurus.

The news comes as a real disappointment, as his rematch with Faber was one of the most anticipated fights of the summer. The pair have been highlighted each week on The Ultimate Fighter: Live, and while the rivalry hasn’t really reached the heated levels we were promised before the season, it’s still been an intriguing thing to watch.

One real question that the UFC must seriously consider: With Cruz likely sidelined for a year or more, do they need to create an interim championship? I’m in favor of the idea, but only if the interim champion will defend the belt and not wait for Cruz to return to action. 

The UFC will likely attempt to find a replacement opponent for Faber. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the three best candidates for the job.

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UFC on FOX 3 Results: Breaking Down the Winners and Losers

UFC on FOX 3 was structured differently than the previous two network television installments. The two prior cards were heavy on superstars, but light on memorable action. With the third broadcast, Joe Silva and the UFC took a different approach: …

UFC on FOX 3 was structured differently than the previous two network television installments. 

The two prior cards were heavy on superstars, but light on memorable action. With the third broadcast, Joe Silva and the UFC took a different approach: book four fights with stars that might not be household names, but were almost guaranteed to put on action-packed fights.

And it delivered in spades.

From the Facebook fights all the way to the big Fox card, the entire card was chock-full of excitement. Let’s take a look at the biggest winners and losers from the entire night.

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UFC on FOX: Can Jim Miller vs. Nate Diaz Be New Version of Griffin vs. Bonnar?

The April 9, 2005 bout between Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar was a historic moment for the UFC. It was the culmination of Zuffa’s last-ditch effort to make an impact with an audience that extended beyond the hardcore fans who had been followi…

The April 9, 2005 bout between Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar was a historic moment for the UFC. 

It was the culmination of Zuffa’s last-ditch effort to make an impact with an audience that extended beyond the hardcore fans who had been following the sport for years. After several years running failing events and building up debt, UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta and his brother Frank were strongly considering selling off the company. 

But the Fertittas took a chance on the reality show. They paid for the production of the first season. If it failed, they’d sell the company, concentrate on their Las Vegas casino empire and never look back.

It wasn’t a failure. A dramatic season filled with watchable characters led to high ratings for the show. The cherry on top came at the finale, where Griffin and Bonnar faced off in one of the most legendary fights in MMA history.

It wasn’t pretty, but it was one of the most thrilling fights you’ll ever see. And it helped launch the UFC to heights the Fertittas and Dana White could have never imagined in 2004. It also helped turn Spike into a destination network for male programming.

Can Saturday night’s fight between Jim Miller and Nathan Diaz do the same thing for the FOX shows that Griffin vs. Bonnar did for Spike? Miller’s trainer Mike Constantino thinks so, telling MMAFighting’s Mike Chiapetta that he’s expecting a great fight:

“For some odd reason, deep down inside I feel like it’s going to be the second coming of Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar for the masses,” he said. “The first wave of the crazy ‘wow’ was Ultimate Fighter. Now you have FOX television, and something is telling me it’s going to be one of those great type of fights.

“It just has all the makings to be one of those fights,” he continued. “They’re both hard to submit, they both have good standup, they both have good cardio, teams, coaching, everything. It’s a great fight, so competitively matched up.”

It will be tough for Miller and Diaz to live up to the legacy Griffin and Bonnar created that night in Las Vegas.

For starters, they’re completely different fighters. The chances of Miller participating in a wild slugfest with Diaz over the course of five rounds are slim to none. He’s a smart fighter and realizes that slugging things out with Diaz is a recipe for disaster. 

Ultimately, this is not 2005. The UFC has grown exponentially from those uncertain days. It has consistently permeated the outside edges of the sporting world for quite some time now, and it has made bigger splashes when there are highly-anticipated fights to promote. We’ve seen commercials featuring UFC stars during NFL playoff games.Seven years ago, that was unthinkable.

Could Miller and Diaz put on a memorable fight that attracts new fans to the sport? Sure. In fact, I think that’s probably going to happen.

But it won’t do what Griffin vs. Bonnar did, and that’s okay. It doesn’t have to.

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