Author: Maxwell Ogden

UFC 162: Frankie Edgar Proves He’s Threat to Featherweight Title with Win

UFC 162 was highlighted by the changing of the guard, as Chris Weidman did the unthinkable by knocking out Anderson Silva and taking his middleweight title. While the upset deserves the headlines it’s received, there was another deviation from the norm…

UFC 162 was highlighted by the changing of the guard, as Chris Weidman did the unthinkable by knocking out Anderson Silva and taking his middleweight title. While the upset deserves the headlines it’s received, there was another deviation from the norm worth noting.

With his first win at featherweight, Frankie Edgar proved he’s a threat to the title with a dominant victory over Charles Oliveira.

Edgar (16-4-1, 4 KO) defeated Oliveira (16-4-1) by unanimous decision in what was voted as the Fight of the Night. While the fight may have gone a full three rounds, Edgar was able to control the fight, landing powerful punches and protecting himself.

The sign of a champion.

There’s no question that Edgar is one of the UFC’s most popular fighters, but he had lost three consecutive fights before defeating Oliveira. Each of those bouts had been for titles, which thus displayed the sense of urgency for Edgar to win big.

With a bounce-back victory, it’s clear that Edgar is still a championship-caliber performer.

 

Adjusting to a New Weight

From April 10, 2010 to February 26, 2010, Frankie Edgar was the UFC lightweight champion. He defeated the likes of B.J. Penn and Gray Maynard, thus establishing a reputation as one of the best fighters in the world.

After Benson Henderson took his title and then defeated Edgar by split decision in their rematch, however, Edgar moved down to featherweight.

Edgar’s high-profile name led to a clash with UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo. Inexperienced against fighters at this weight, Edgar still managed to hold his ground, eventually losing to Aldo by unanimous decision in what was named the Fight of the Night.

Now that he’s fully adjusted, Edgar made it clear just how dominant he can be.

Not only was Edgar more agile, but he used his hands perfectly to deflect shots and land punches of his own. Active with his body, Edgar displayed the pop that he’d been missing in his previous three fights.

All in all, he had the look of a champion.

 

All-Around Brilliance

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Edgar’s victory at UFC 162 was his ability to pair aggressive offense with responsible defense. The proof is in the numbers in this instance, as Edgar displayed the all-around brilliance necessary to be a champion.

There wasn’t an area to look without being impressed.

Edgar landed 81 strikes during his three-round victory over Oliveira, landing 55 percent of his significant strikes. Defensively, Edgar allowed just 30 percent of the strikes thrown his way to come through and land.

Plain and simple, Edgar landed at will, and Oliveira simply couldn’t break the former lightweight star’s defensive wall.

Edgar will likely need to win at least one more fight until he truly deserves a second shot at Aldo and the featherweight title. With that being said, he entered the Octagon with something to prove and made a statement by thoroughly controlling a fight against a high-quality opponent.

With this win, Edgar thrust himself back into the title picture and made a statement that he’s here to stay in the featherweight division.

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Anderson Silva Knocked Out by Chris Weidman Due to Lackluster Effort

The unthinkable has transpired, as Chris Weidman knocked out Anderson Silva to win the UFC middleweight championship. While Weidman may have every right to celebrate this monumental feat, there’s one thing that we cannot deny.Silva simply didn’t look a…

The unthinkable has transpired, as Chris Weidman knocked out Anderson Silva to win the UFC middleweight championship. While Weidman may have every right to celebrate this monumental feat, there’s one thing that we cannot deny.

Silva simply didn’t look as if he were bringing a full effort.

Before we move forward, it’s important to note the historical nature of the feat Weidman has just achieved. Not only has Weidman become middleweight champion, but Silva has also been nothing short of brilliant leading up to this fight.

There’s a legitimate case to be made that Silva is the best UFC fighter of all time.

Unfortunately, we just didn’t see this fighter against Weidman.

From start to finish, Silva appeared to be more inclined to taunt than attempt landing strikes. From his endless trash talk to his consistent willingness to drop his gloves and dare his assignment to hit him harder, we saw it all.

In the end, it was just one taunt too many.

 

Effortless Defense

This isn’t the first time Anderson Silva’s in-ring effort has been criticized, as he’s been known to taunt opponents. While his world-class ability permits him to do just about anything in the Octagon, there comes a time when a fighter needs to focus.

During his match against Chris Weidman, Silva lost that eye-on-the-prize mentality.

Silva was toying with Weidman, taking blow after blow, specifically to his eyes and jaw. When Weidman geared back and flashed his power, however, Silva could barely remain on his own two feet.

Just like that, arrogance cost Silva his title.

Had Spider been emotionally and mentally invested in the fight, we may not be having this conversation. Unfortunately, we’ll never know what could’ve been, as Silva decided to taunt and ridicule, lacking the slightest form of focus on the prize at hand.

Not only did that cost Silva, but it also forced some to question his superstar legitimacy—don’t ponder for too long, as it genuinely doesn’t make sense.

 

Recent Examples

When it comes to Anderson Silva’s fights, his ability to escape with his back against the wall puts any opponent he faces in trouble. With that being said, there are recent fights that have taught us just how close one can come to defeating Silva.

Just ask Chael Sonnen.

Sonnen took Silva to the brink during their first fight, dominating until the Brazilian caught him with a triangle armbar in the fifth round. Roughly two years later, Silva again appeared to be disengaged, and Sonnen capitalized by dominating the first round.

Sonnen proceeded to lay a brutal beatdown in the second round and quiet the critics.

This time around, Silva simply didn’t have an escape route that he was able to follow. Instead, his showmanship and arrogance in the Octagon ended up being his undoing.

We can’t help but wonder—what would this fight have looked like if Silva gave 100 percent?

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Jones vs. Sonnen: Title Fight Is Chael Sonnen’s Final Chance at Legitimacy

After months of anticipation, the UFC will finally host a light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon “Bones” Jones and Chael Sonnen. This will be at UFC 159, which starts 7 p.m. Saturday. The main card starts on pay-per-view at 10.As much reven…

After months of anticipation, the UFC will finally host a light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon “Bones” Jones and Chael Sonnen. This will be at UFC 159, which starts 7 p.m. Saturday. The main card starts on pay-per-view at 10.

As much revenue as this fight may generate for the UFC, this is Sonnen‘s final chance at legitimacy.

Sonnen has become one of the greatest mouthpieces in all of professional athletics. From his witty metaphors to his bashing of Brazil and all the way down to his praise for the opposition, Sonnen has become something of a villain.

A villain that has a cult following.

The question is, what has Sonnen done to warrant his status as an MMA superstar?

There’s no question he makes for good TV, as Sonnen can get under anyone’s skin. That was never more apparent as when he made Anderson Silva come out of his often silent shell.

Until he puts his fists where his mouth is, however, Sonnen will be unable to stake his claim as what all strive to be—a champion.

 

The In-Ring Story

Since joining the UFC in 2009, Chael Sonnen is 5-3 in eight fights. Four of his five wins have come by decision, while all three of his losses have come via TKO or submission.

In that time, Sonnen has won two UFC middleweight title-eliminator fights and gone 0-for-2 in matches with a title on the line.

In his most recent victories, Sonnen has defeated the likes of Michael Bisping by unanimous decision and Brian Stann by submission. In his most recent losses, however, he’s lost by submission and TKO to Anderson Silva with the middleweight belt on the line.

Most recently, Silva pummeled Sonnen with knees and punches to pick up a second-round win.

This beckons the question that every outsider might be asking. If Sonnen‘s most recent fight was a loss, what exactly makes him the right contender for the light heavyweight title?

To put it simply, it all fell into place.

 

Does He Deserve This?

For the first time in company history, the UFC was forced to cancel an event after Dan Henderson went down with a torn MCL in his right knee. To clarify, UFC 151 was not cancelled because of Hendo’s injury.

It was because one of Hendo’s possible replacements, Chael Sonnen, was turned down by Jon “Bones” Jones.

Sonnen offered to fight Jones on eight days’ rest, but Jones claimed that he didn’t train to fight Sonnen. In turn, the UFC forfeited the event and Jones was scrutinized on an international stage.

The true question is, what other than offering his services did Sonnen do to earn this fight?

Sonnen hasn’t fought a UFC light heavyweight fight since UFC 55 on October 7, 2005. For what it’s worth, Sonnen lost via submission during that fight.

Once again, Sonnen‘s status as a deserving contender is called into question.

The truth of the matter is, if Henderson had never been injured, this wouldn’t even be a conversation. Sonnen‘s charisma always makes for entertainment, but in terms of his in-Octagon production, there’s no reason to label him as the top contender.

A win would prove his legitimacy and bring validity to his trash talk. A loss would severely damage Sonnen‘s legacy.

As Sonnen would likely tell us, no one remembers second place.

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