This is for anyone who missed Rustam Khabilov’s UFC debut on the TUF 16 Finale prelims. Vinc Pichel was the unfortunate soul to welcome the Russian to the Octagon on Saturday night. From the start.
This is for anyone who missed Rustam Khabilov’s UFC debut on the TUF 16 Finale prelims. Vinc Pichel was the unfortunate soul to welcome the Russian to the Octagon on Saturday night. From the start of the fight Pichel was out matched, and I think he knew it. In less than thirty seconds Khabilov had rag dolled Pichel with the first of many suplexes that would eventually knock Pichel out cold.
For those of you who don’t know, Khabilov is a Sambo practitioner. Not just any Sambo practitioner, but a Combat Sambo world champion. He is so good at what he does that he was awarded the highest sports title in Russia, the International Master of Sports in both Sambo and Hand-to-Hand Combat. When one thinks of the title International Master of Sports in Sambo, there is only one other man that comes to mind, and that’s Fedor Emelianenko.
Maybe I’m going a little over board with this, but I think Khabilov will be in the top 10 at Lightweight by the end of 2013, if he gets the step up in competition he proved he deserves. Pichel is by no means a high level Lightweight in the UFC, but the way Khabilov was able to control the fight and finish Pichel in less than two minutes and thirty seconds makes me optimistic for his future.
With the Lightweight division being one of the most stacked divisions in the UFC I think the Russian can become a top 10 fighter in a year or two if he fights and wins on a regular basis. I would like to see Khabilov matched up with John Makdessi, Mac Danzig, or possibly George Sotiropoulos. Leave me a comment and let me know how you guys feel.
I can’t wrap my head around that fact that Johnny Hendricks won’t be getting the next crack at the welterweight title. This isn’t the first time a fighter has had to wait for a title.
I can’t wrap my head around that fact that Johnny Hendricks won’t be getting the next crack at the welterweight title. This isn’t the first time a fighter has had to wait for a title fight, but this may be the most disturbing, seeing that Hendricks is the clear number one contender. Anyone that believes that Nick Diaz is more deserving of a fight with Georges St-Pierre is a fool, plain and simple.
Nick Diaz is coming off a loss in his last fight against Carlos Condit. People argue that Diaz should’ve been awarded the win against Condit, but he lost. In the history of the UFC, no fighter has ever been awarded a title shot while coming off a loss, with the exception of immediate rematches due to controversy or if there were no other options due to injury. Johnny Hendricks is on a five fight win streak and is injury free, so no one can say there aren’t other options for opponents. The controversial decision excuse doesn’t apply, because it’s not as if Diaz is fighting Carlos Condit. He chose to cry about his loss to Condit and then “retire” from MMA, and now his first fight back will be for the belt. Does this make sense to anyone?
The only reason Diaz was considered for a title shot in the first place was because at the time, he was the Strikeforce champion, and it was intriguing to see two champions fight each other. If Diaz wasn’t the Strikeforce champion, no one would think that he deserved to fight Georges St-Pierre. Before he came back to the UFC, he had beaten KJ Noons, Evangelista Santos, and Paul Daley; not the strongest argument that your next in line to fight the UFC champ. I agree that after beating BJ Penn at UFC 137, Diaz’s scheduled title fight with GSP was justified. Unfortunately for him, Condit stepped in as a replacement, beat him, and now that Penn looks like he should retire after loosing to Rory MacDonald, Diaz doesn’t have much of an argument that he still deserves a title fight.
The only angle that Dana White could be playing, is the pay-per-view buys. If I had to guess, I’d say that a fight between Georges St-Pierre and Nick Diaz would sell more pay-per-views than Georges St-Pierre and Johnny Hendricks. This would arguably create a small boost in revenue for the UFC and would be an understandable business move, but as a boss, it’s as if he is denying a hardworking employee a promotion, that he clearly deserves, just to make a few more bucks.
I respect Dana White for everything he does and the decisions he makes, but regardless of his reason for giving Diaz a title shot before Hendricks, I strongly disagree, and I don’t think it can be justified by anyone. If Dana White won’t reconsider, then I implore him not make the same mistake in the future, as I’m certain that the real MMA fans find this as baffling as I do.
Hector Lombard is coming off a vicious knock out of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace Rousimar Palhares, securing his first win inside the UFC and the biggest win of his career. Now in the aftermath we are.
Hector Lombard is coming off a vicious knock out of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace Rousimar Palhares, securing his first win inside the UFC and the biggest win of his career. Now in the aftermath we are left with the question of who to match the Cuban Aussie power house with next. Here are a few of my choices:
The winner of Stann vs Silva.
Both Brian Stann and Wanderlei Silva are brawlers that would provide an exciting stand up war with Lombard. The only problem is the two are fighting at Light Heavyweight at the moment. If Brian Stann wins he has stated that he is going back down to Middleweight, where as Wanderlei Silva is looking to stay at Light Heavyweight. Personally I think Stann is going to win this so there won’t be a problem, but if Silva gets passed Stann it will show he still has a chin. Remember money talks and Wanderlei is a company man, if Uncle Dana comes knocking, Wanderlei will answer the call.
The winner of Boetsch vs Phillipou.
Lombard vs either Boetsch or Phillipou could potentially be a number one contender fight. If Boetsch wins there could be a rematch in the making with Lombard, both fighters entered injured in their first encounter; thus causing an uneventful bout. If Phillipou wins in impressive fashion a battle with Lombard would be perfect. Both men are exciting and would potentially be a good match ups for Lombard.
Chris Weidman.
Chris Weidman is an option, but don’t expect this one to happen. I don’t see the UFC throwing Weidman their current golden boy against Lombard. Lombard poses too many threats to Weidman, and after an unimpressive bout with Boetsch I don’t see the UFC jumping to give Lombard a title shot if he beats Weidman. Not to mention Weidman is coming off of an injury, as well as the destruction of his home by Hurricane Sandy. It’s been a rough couple of months for Weidman and I think the UFC will give Weidman a tune up fight upon his return.
The loser of Bisping vs Belfort.
Hector Lombard in his post fight interview with Karyn Brant called out Michael Bisping for his next fight. I think this would be an interesting fight, and it probably would have turned into a war. There’s just one problem, and that’s Vitor Belfort. Vitor almost stole Jon Jones’ title in his last fight by way of arm bar, and is now scheduled to fight Bisping in what is possibly a number one contender’s bout. I don’t see Bisping getting past Vitor, and if this happens rather than letting Lombard fight Vitor; I would like to see Lombard fight Bisping. Let Vitor have another shot against Anderson Silva, he earned it for stepping up on short notice against Jones. However if Bisping wins, a bout with Belfort is sure to cause fireworks. Both men are more than willing to stand and bang, and the winner would be one step closer to a title shot.
Volkov vs Hale Just as I predicted, Volkov went on to defeat Hale by Unanimous Decision to take the Bellator Heavyweight belt home to Russia. Volkov used his effective striking to pick the much stronger.
Volkov vs Hale
Just as I predicted, Volkov went on to defeat Hale by Unanimous Decision to take the Bellator Heavyweight belt home to Russia. Volkov used his effective striking to pick the much stronger Hale apart from a distance. As I said before, Hale’s only chance was to land a big right hand. The punch landed, and Volkov took it and recovered like the champion he is. The Russian beat the American to the punch on all occasions, everytime Hales stepped forward he ate a stiff jab from Volkov. The Russian went on to take the decision 49-46 on all the judges score cards.
Vizcaya vs Hermansson
This was a great fight that was unexpectedly put on the main card. These two Middleweights showed immense heart as they battled it out for the full 15 minutes. Both showed great grappling skills as well as decent striking skills. As the final bell rang, the judges saw a split decision victory in favor of Daniel Vizcaya.
Taylor vs Vedepo
Taylor was the better fighter on all levels in this Middleweight contest. Vedepo had no answer for the out side trip of Taylor. Taylor showed some great skills on the ground, repeatedly attempting submissions on the over matched Vedepo before knocking him out with a Brian Stan-esque hammer fist. This calls for a step up in competition for Taylor, he showed phenomenal power. Be sure to watch out for this up and comer.
Herrig vs Vidonic
I was wrong on all accounts in this fight. Vidonic looked like a rag doll that entire fight. This did not stop her from trying to push the pace, or quitting in the entire 15 minute beating she took. The kick boxer showed some phenomenal takedowns and great striking, this relative new comer destroyed the #10 ranked women’s fighter at 115lbs. Herrig took the decision, winning the fight on all three judges score cards. Bellator is looking to start a women’s 115lb tournament, don’t be surprised if you see Herrig in the women’s tournament.
Dustin Poirier vs. Jonathan Brookins It would be a mistake for Brookins to keep this fight standing. He may not have a definitive advantage on the ground, but it will level out the playing.
Dustin Poirier vs. Jonathan Brookins
It would be a mistake for Brookins to keep this fight standing. He may not have a definitive advantage on the ground, but it will level out the playing field just enough for him to have a chance of emerging as the victor. Both Poirier and Brookins are purple belts in jiu-jitsu, but the striking of Poirier is far superior to that of Brookins. The only way I see Brookins winning is by submitting Poirier, which isn’t too likely, but still possible. I don’t see Brookins getting Poirier down to even make the fight more evenly matched, it’s more likely that Poirier will avoid any takedown attempt and pick Brookins apart on the feet, eventually earning himself a TKO victory.
Melvin Guillard vs. Jamie Varner
It’ll be interesting to see how Guillard performs after being knocked out by the “Cowboy” at UFC 150. Prior to that fight, Guillard had never been knocked out, so this could potentially throw him off his mental game. Even though Guillard has come back from less than adequate performances to finish tough opponents, such as, Dennis Siver, Evan Dunham, and Shane Roller; having a strong performance after his first knockout loss will be his biggest challenge to date. Guillard’s strong points are obviously his striking and aggression, but Varner has excellent boxing that he mixes with his wrestling, which he used to get the better of Ben Henderson and Joe Lauzon until Varner succumbed to a submission in both fights. Because the word jiu-jitsu probably isn’t even in Guillard’s vocabulary. Varner to take Guillard down at will and hold him there without any fear of being submitted. After seeing Varner destroy Edson Barboza, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was able to finish Guillard, but it’s more likely Varner out wrestles Guillard for all three rounds.
Pat Barry vs. Shane del Rosario
Both of these fighters are outstanding kick boxers, but when it comes to actual credentials, del Rosario takes the cake. Even if their striking skills are dead even, del Rosario will have the advantage just based on the reach advantage he possess. Chances are that this fight will be a stand up war, but if the fight does go to the ground, del Rosario has a more advanced jiu-jitsu game than Barry. The common opponent they share is Lavar Johnson, where Barry fell victim to his knockout power, but del Rosario submitted him by armbar in the first round. Del Rosario’s second fight back since his layoff should be substantially better than his first, and he should be successful in out striking Barry to get a unanimous decision win.
Mike Ricci vs. Colton Smith
Smith is good with his wrestling, but that’s about all he has in his arsenal. Eddy Ellis was gave Smith much trouble while on the feet and was close to knocking him out, but Smith was able to get the fight to the ground and take control. Ricci has better technical striking than Ellis, and far better ground skills, including superior takedown defense. Ricci will stick to a simple game plan as he avoids the take down attempts and pick Smith apart with his striking. Smith tends to fade as the fight goes on, so Ricci should get the knockout victory in the third round.
Roy Nelson vs. Matt Mitrione
Mitrione is fairly well rounded, but Nelson has too many advantages to not walk away the victor. The striking between the two will be closely contested, but Nelson has the one punch knockout power that Mitrione has only showcased against lower level competition. Mitrione has been improving in his grappling, but Nelson will have a significant advantage in the ground game. No matter where this fight takes place, Nelson will have the advantage and achieve victory be knockout, submission or decision.
Reuben Duran vs. Hugo Viana Viana only has six professional MMA fights, and every one of them has gone to a decision. He has yet to finish any of his opponents, and for that.
Reuben Duran vs. Hugo Viana
Viana only has six professional MMA fights, and every one of them has gone to a decision. He has yet to finish any of his opponents, and for that reason, it doesn’t seem very likely that he will finish Duran. On the other hand, Duran has finished seven of his eight fights, with three coming by knockout, and four by submission. If the fight doesn’t see the final bell, it should be Duran who gets his hand raised. Duran lost a close split decision to elite bantamweight, Takeya Mizugaki, and then submitted Francisco Rivera just two months later. Most of his wins come in the first round, so I’m not to concerned with any potential conditioning issues after being absent for eighteen months. Duran will look to finish early, and lock up a submission before the first round ends.
Mike Rio vs. John Cofer
What we have here, is a fight between two wrestlers. I could debate which of the two is the better wrestler all day, but the fight will be determined on who has the superior skills in the other aspects of MMA. When it comes to jiu-jitsu, they both seem even matched, but I can’t help but think that Rio has a slight edge. He’s won multiple fights by rear naked choke, including the one he secured to make it on the fifteenth season of The Ultimate Fighter. Cofer is a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and has three submission wins of his own, all which are chokes as well. The wrestling and jiu-jitsu will be nearly even, but Cofer’s striking has been more impressive than Rio’s, and that will give him an advantage every second the fight is on the feet. Cofer should feel more comfortable in this fight after having his official UFC debut, and over dangerous opponent, Justin Lawrence. Rio has been on the sidelines healing from two broken ribs and may not have been training as diligent as he could’ve been. Cofer has enough going for him to increase the odds of getting his hand raised, and should win unanimous decision.
Jared Papazian vs. Tim Elliot
Papazian’s fights are unpredictable. He was supposed to get destroyed by Mike Easton, but instead he made it a back and forth fight all three rounds. Based on his performance against Easton, most predictions had him defeating Dustin Pague, but instead, he was submitted in the first round. Elliot has good Muay Thai skills, and he isn’t afraid to throw unorthodox strikes while fighting. This style of striking gave current number one flyweight contender, John Dodson, more trouble than anticipated. In fact, Elliot’s loss to Dodson was controversial and many people thought he should’ve gotten the nod. Cardio shouldn’t be an issue for either fighter, so it’s all about who breaks first. It’s likely that Elliot will use unorthodox strikes to catch Papazian off guard, and he will be successful in throwing off his timing to win the fight on the feet. If takedowns are a factor in this fight, that will be another advantage for Elliot as well. Whether the fights stays on the feet of goes to the ground, Elliot does enough to win himself a unanimous decision.
Johnny Bedford vs. Marcos Vinicus
Bedford is coming off a year long layoff, but after Vinicus’ fight with Wagner Campos, I’m confident that Bedford will be the superior striker and wrestler, even if the layoff has a negative affect on his performance. Vinicus was outclassed by Campos for over two rounds until he landed that one lucky punch and put Campos on wobbly legs. From there, he when in for the kill and threw a plethora of punches until Herb Dean stopped the fight. If Vinicus has a performance like he did in the first two rounds against Campos, Bedford shouldn’t have any issue controlling the stand up, avoiding the takedown, and finishing Vinicus just like he was able to finish Louis Gaudinot.
Vinc Pichel vs. Rustam Khabilov
Both fighters will be making their UFC debut in this fight, but Pichel may not feel octagon jitters due to his time spent on The Ultimate Fighter. Pichel undefeated in his professional MMA career and has all of his seven wins by knockout or TKO, but he showcased his submissions skills on The Ultimate Fighter by submitting John Cofer with an arm triangle. Khabilov on the other hand, is a world champion in Sambo so this should be a classic striker vs. grappler match, with Pichel trying to keep the fight standing and Khabilov initiating a takedown. One this to note, is that Khabilov is twice as experienced as Pichel and has faced a higher level of competition as well. In his fifteen professioanl MMA fights, Khabilov has only lost once, and it was by split decision. There’s always the chance that Pichel could throw that one heavy shot and connect with Khabilov’s chin, but it’s more likely that Khabilov uses his Sambo skills, control the fight, and win a unanimous decision.
TJ Waldburger vs. Nick Catone
Waldburger has a dangerous jiu-jitsu style, with the ability to submit just about anybody. He tapped both Mike Stumpf and Jake Hecht in a combined time of just under five minutes, and even gave the experienced MMA veteran, Brian Ebersole, a run for his money by constantly attacking with submission attempts off his back. Ebersole may have been able to avoid getting submitted, but Catone won’t be as fortunate. Catone doesn’t possess the submission defense that Ebersole does, and Waldburger has comes closer to submitting him than other jiu-jitsu savvy fighters he’s faced, such as, Chris Lytle, Dennis Hallman, and Claude Patrick. Catone has been submitted only once in his professioanl MMA career, but he’s never faced an opponent who will attacked off his back as aggressively as Waldburger. The majority of Waldburger’s wins don’t go past the first round, but as we‘ve seen in his fight with Brian Ebersole, if the submission doesn’t come, he will continue to work for the submission even until the final seconds of the fight. Catone is a strong and experienced wrestler, but his wrestling will not stifle the jiu-jitsu of Waldburger, and he will eventually force Catone to tap.
Mike Pyle vs. James Head
Ever since dropping down to welterweight, Head has gone 2-0, defeating Papy Abedi and Brian Ebersole. Head’s victories really showcase his ability to compete with good strikers as well as talented grapplers, but Pyle has done the same in defeating John Hathaway, Ricardo Almeida, and Josh Neer. Both Pyle and Head have showcased there Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but it will be the wrestling of Pyle that will give him a significant edge on the ground. Not only is Pyle ranked higher in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but he has far better takedowns which will let him put the fight where he wishes. In his fight against Brian Ebersole, Head was taken down multiple times by the superior wrestler, but it was his striking that ultimately won him the fight. Pyle’s striking is considerably better than Ebersole’s so Head will not be able tee off on Pyle the way he was able to against Ebersole. Head may have a slight advantage in the striking, but the gap in their ground game is much bigger, and for than reason, Pyle has the better chance on getting the win.
