Author: SethF

Strikeforce Challengers 16: Do you Like Decisions? Because You’re Acting Like It.


These guys know what I’m talking about.

With all of the MMA available this weekend, you had to expect to sit through at least a few decisions. Maybe even a few overreactions to a subpar performance. Last night, Strikeforce Challengers 16 delivered on your expectations. Fans at the ShoWare Center in Kent, Washington sat through six straight unanimous decisions, with every fight on the televised portion of the card ending this way. Yet despite the lack of stoppages, most of last night’s fights were still pretty entertaining.

Fodor vs. Terry was a very entertaining scrap, with both lightweights landing hard shots throughout the fight. However, whenever the fight went to the ground, Caros Fodor clearly controlled the action, earning him the decision. The AMC Pankration prospect improved to 11-3, with four consecutive victories under the Strikeforce banner. Excuse me for pointing out the extremely obvious, but Fodor really deserves a step up in competition.


These guys know what I’m talking about.

With all of the MMA available this weekend, you had to expect to sit through at least a few decisions. Maybe even a few overreactions to a subpar performance. Last night, Strikeforce Challengers 16 delivered on your expectations. Fans at the ShoWare Center in Kent, Washington sat through six straight unanimous decisions, with every fight on the televised portion of the card ending this way. Yet despite the lack of stoppages, most of last night’s fights were still pretty entertaining.

Fodor vs. Terry was a very entertaining scrap, with both lightweights landing hard shots throughout the fight. However, whenever the fight went to the ground, Caros Fodor clearly controlled the action, earning him the decision. The AMC Pankration prospect improved to 11-3, with four consecutive victories under the Strikeforce banner. Excuse me for pointing out the extremely obvious, but Fodor really deserves a step up in competition.

If you’re looking to avoid overreactions to a performance that shouldn’t have surprised anyone, you may want to avoid any forum discussing Ryan Couture for the rest of the day. Ryan Couture lost for the first time as a professional last night to Matt Ricehouse, and looked pretty raw while doing so. If I didn’t know better, I’d say Ryan Couture looked like a guy with only two professional fights to his name getting his first real step up in competition.  Matt Ricehouse improved to 5-0, but much like Ryan Couture, looked like a work in progress.

Naturally, the internet is handling a fighter with elite pedigree, but only two professional fights to his credit looking rough around the edges as rationally as possible. And by “as rationally as possible”, I mean they’re saying he’s a bust who will never amount to a decent fighter because he doesn’t look like Randy at this point in his career. Makes sense if you think about it. As our readers who follow the NFL can tell you, neither of Archie Manning’s sons amounted to anything after rough starts to their careers. Oh wait…never mind.

Also of note, Lorenz Larkin outpointed Gian Villante, Jason High out-everythinged Quinn Mulhern and Julia Budd outwrestled Germaine de Randamie on their ways to unanimous decision victories. By the way, Zuffa’s first ever women’s MMA fight had the fans booing pretty much the entire time. So if you didn’t get to watch Budd lay on Germaine de Randamie for three rounds, you more than likely missed the beginning of the end for women’s MMA in Zuffa. That’s the most unfortunate aspect of the less than exhilarating bout.

Full results, courtesy of MMAFighting.com:

 Showtime Bouts
Caros Fodor def. James Terry via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Matt Ricehouse def. Ryan Couture via unanimous decision (29-28 3x)
Lorenz Larkin def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (29-28 3x)
Jason High def. Quinn Mulhern via unanimous decision (30-27 3x)
Julia Budd def. Germaine de Randamie via unanimous decision (29-28 3x)

Preliminary Bouts
Derek Brunson def. Jeremy Hamilton via unanimous decision (30-27 3x)
Eduardo Pamplona def. Jerron Peoples via first-round TKO
Trevor Smith def. Keith Berry via second-round technical submission

Tickets to UFC 134 Sold Out in 74 Minutes

Turning into a shadow is far less surprising when someone who trains with Steven Seagal does it. Props: UnfilteredMMA.com

With all of the hype that UFC 134 has been riding, one had to assume that tickets would sell pretty quickly. According to MMAjunkie.com, tickets to the event sold out in only 74 minutes yesterday afternoon. The arena where UFC 134 will take place, the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, can accommodate nearly 17,000 fans. In addition to UFC 134, Dana White has announced that the UFC plans on booking multiple events in Brazil next year.

UFC 134 marks the UFC’s first visit to Brazil in over a decade, and first visit to Rio de Janiero. The last event to take place in Brazil, UFC Ultimate Brazil (October 1998 in Sao Paulo), saw Frank Shamrock defend his middleweight title against John Lober and Vitor Belfort punch out Wanderlei Silva. The event also saw Pat Miletich defeat Mikey Burnett to become the organization’s inaugural welterweight champion.

The official fight card for UFC 134 after the jump:

Turning into a shadow is far less surprising when someone who trains with Steven Seagal does it. Props: UnfilteredMMA.com

With all of the hype that UFC 134 has been riding, one had to assume that tickets would sell pretty quickly. According to MMAjunkie.com, tickets to the event sold out in only 74 minutes yesterday afternoon.  The arena where UFC 134 will take place, the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, can accommodate nearly 17,000 fans. In addition to UFC 134, Dana White has announced that the UFC plans on booking multiple events in Brazil next year.

UFC 134 marks the UFC’s first visit to Brazil in over a decade, and first visit to Rio de Janiero.  The last event to take place in Brazil, UFC Ultimate Brazil (October 1998 in Sao Paulo), saw Frank Shamrock defend his middleweight title against John Lober and Vitor Belfort punch out Wanderlei Silva. The event also saw Pat Miletich defeat Mikey Burnett to become the organization’s inaugural welterweight champion.

The official fight card for UFC 134 after the jump:

Main Card

Anderson Silva vs. Yushin Okami (for middleweight championship)
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Forrest Griffin
Brendan Schaub vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Ross Pearson vs. Edson Barboza
Luiz Cane vs. Stanislav Nedkov

Preliminary Card

Thiago Tavares vs. Spencer Fisher
Paulo Thiago vs. David Mitchell
Mike Swick vs. Erick Silva

‘Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum’ Aftermath:All We Know is that We Don’t Know


Yeah, we were praying for something to happen in that fight, too.

Heading into last night’s Strikeforce card, there were a lot of potential storylines. There was Werdum continuing to clean out Strikeforce’s heavyweight division. There was Overeem avenging his loss to Werdum five years ago in devastating fashion. There were the returns to relevance of Josh Barnett and Jeff Monson, the rise of Daniel Cormier and “Othereem” getting the fans to learn his name. Yet after the event was over, the most compelling thing we can take from it is that Dallas has some educated MMA fans. While your average Affliction clad meathead was booing from the start of Cormier vs. Monson until the end of the night, Dallas fans only booed during Overeem vs. Werdum.

Normally I hate when fans boo fighters, but to say Overeem vs. Werdum was boo-worthy doesn’t begin to capture what a disappointment the main event was. We expected fireworks, and instead were given an even less relevant version of Silva vs. Leites (at least that fight was for a title). If that fight was under the UFC banner, Dana White would have immediately issued an apology to the fans and a threat to fire Werdum over another performance like that. To say the least, Werdum’s chances of getting back into the UFC were more than likely squashed by that fight three round Thales Leites impression.

Yeah, we were praying for something to happen in that fight, too.

Heading into last night’s Strikeforce card, there were a lot of potential storylines. There was Werdum continuing to clean out Strikeforce’s heavyweight division. There was Overeem avenging his loss to Werdum five years ago in devastating fashion. There were the returns to relevance of Josh Barnett and Jeff Monson, the rise of Daniel Cormier and “Othereem” getting the fans to learn his name. Yet after the event was over, the most compelling thing we can take from it is that Dallas has some educated MMA fans. While your average Affliction clad meathead was booing from the start of Cormier vs. Monson until the end of the night, Dallas fans only booed during Overeem vs. Werdum.

Normally I hate when fans boo fighters, but to say Overeem vs. Werdum was boo-worthy doesn’t begin to capture what a disappointment the main event was.  We expected fireworks, and instead were given an even less relevant version of Silva vs. Leites (at least that fight was for a title). If that fight was under the UFC banner, Dana White would have immediately issued an apology to the fans and a threat to fire Werdum over another performance like that. To say the least, Werdum’s chances of getting back into the UFC were more than likely squashed by that fight three round Thales Leites impression.

Werdum stuck to his “punch punch flop” strategy despite getting the better of Overeem in multiple standup exchanges. For that matter, FightMetric actually gave Werdum the fight, 29-28. So does that mean Werdum got robbed? Of course not. You’re judged by aggression, and Werdum showed absolutely none through his unwillingness to do anything other than flop. Say what you want about Overeem’s performance, but it’s not his fault that he didn’t blindly pounce into Werdum’s guard, especially after Werdum’s victory over Fedor. The bottom line is, if you’re strategy is going to be “beat him on the ground”, then it’s your responsibility to get the fight to the ground. It’s not your opponent’s responsibility to play to your strengths. Perhaps we’ll find out more about Overeem when he’s fighting Antonio Silva. Or when he’s actually fighting in a meaningful fight with Strikeforce. You know, where his title is on the line against a credible opponent. I digress.

It’s hard to get too excited about Josh Barnett’s victory over Brett Rogers as well. Yes, Josh Barnett looked as dominant as ever, slamming Rogers and rendering him an oversized grappling dummy. As we knew he would. It’s not like a victory over Bret Rogers has ever meant too much, especially considering he was coming into this fight on a two fight skid in Strikeforce and most recently lost a round to Warpath. Considering Sergei Kharitonov’s struggles against good wrestlers, it’s doubtful that Barnett’s fight with him will answer any questions we have about Barnett, either. At least we know that Josh Barnett can still be counted on for a ridiculous post fight interview, so there’s that I guess.

If there was one positive, slightly unexpected surprise from last night, it was Jorge Masvidal’s performance against KJ Noons. Jorge Masvidal made KJ Noons ineligible for “matinee idol of this sport”, if that’s even a real thing. Masvidal thoroughly outclassed Noons, taking him down at will and getting the better of most of the standup exchanges. A title shot against Melendez makes sense for Masvidal after a performance like this.

On a final note, Cormier and Griggs were both victorious last night, but neither guy’s victory says as much about them as it does about their opponents. I hate to say it, but Jeff Monson looked absolutely lost in the cage with Daniel Cormier. His striking would spike any boxing coach’s blood pressure, and he couldn’t even attempt to get Cormier in his guard. It’s hard to tell whether this was a testament to Daniel Cormier’s time at AKA, or just the result of Jeff Monson not fighting against elite heavyweights for years. Now might be a good time to think about that drop to 205 for Jeff Monson, especially if he plans on staying in Strikeforce. Likewise, Valentijin Overeem pretty much gave up as soon as Griggs took him down. Give credit to Griggs for getting the stoppage, but it doesn’t exactly show us anything.

Full Results, courtesy of MMAMania.com:

Main Card:

Alistair Overeem def. Fabricio Werdum via unanimous decision
Josh Barnett def. Brett Rogers via submission (arm triangle choke) at 1:11 round two
Jorge Masvidal defeats K.J. Noons via unanimous decision
Daniel Cormier def. Jeff Monson via unanimous decision
Chad Griggs def. Valentijn Overeem via TKO at 2:08 round one

Preliminary Card:

Gesias Cavalcante vs. Justin Wilcox results in a no contest because of an accidental eye poke in round two
Conor Heun def. Magno Almeida via unanimous decision
Nah-Shon Burrell def. Joe Ray via unanimous decision
Todd Moore def. Mike Bronzoulis via unanimous decision
Isaac Vallie-Flagg def. Brian Melancon via split decision

Bonnar Out, Ronny Markes in for UFC on Versus 5


Is it odd that Paulo Filho seems like one of the more normal aspects of this picture?

Just over a month out from the UFC’s Wisconsin debut, Stephan Bonnar has announced that he is no longer able to compete at UFC on Versus 5 in Milwaukee. Originally scheduled to face off against Karlos Vemola, Bonnar has suffered a torn MCL while training. According to MMAFighting.com:

Saturday, Bonnar told MMA Fighting the injury is a Grade II tear of his medial collateral ligament, or MCL. Bonnar said the injury will not require surgery, but will have him in a brace for six weeks. He said the injury is similar to ones that recently sidelined Rashad Evans and Kenny Florian.


Is it odd that Paulo Filho seems like one of the more normal aspects of this picture?

Just over a month out from the UFC’s Wisconsin debut, Stephan Bonnar has announced that he is no longer able to compete at UFC on Versus 5 in Milwaukee.  Originally scheduled to face off against Karlos Vemola, Bonnar has suffered a torn MCL while training. According to MMAFighting.com:

Saturday, Bonnar told MMA Fighting the injury is a Grade II tear of his medial collateral ligament, or MCL. Bonnar said the injury will not require surgery, but will have him in a brace for six weeks. He said the injury is similar to ones that recently sidelined Rashad Evans and Kenny Florian.

Replacing Stephan Bonnar will be current Shooto Brazil light heavyweight champion Ronny Marki Sales da Silva, better known as Ronny Markes. The 11-1 Nova Uniao prospect is riding a four fight win streak, most recently defeating the famously level headed Paulo Filho by unanimous decision on April 29th.  Aside from that fight, the last time Ronny Markes went the distance was in his third professional fight.

The timing is unfortunate for Stephan Bonnar.  After dropping three straight to Jon Jones, Mark Coleman and Krzysztof Soszynski, Bonnar rebounded with a pair of victories against K-Sos and Igor Pokrajac. The injury dampens the momentum that Bonnar has been building, but at least Bonnar now has the time to worry about some other things he’s been dealing with.

And Now He’s Fired: Kendall Grove


Just think of the captions that a lesser journalist would come up with. Seriously, just think it this time.

You had to see this one coming. Three weeks out from his unanimous decision defeat to Tim Boetsch at UFC 130, the UFC has decided to part ways with TUF 3 winner Kendall Grove. After defeating Ed Herman to win The Ultimate Fighter 3 back in 2006, Grove has gone 6-6 in the UFC, including losses to Patrick Cote, Mark Munoz and Demian Maia. Aside from Ed Herman, the only fighter that Kendall Grove holds a win over who is still fighting in the UFC is Alan Belcher, who he defeated by D’Arce choke back at UFC 69 in April of 2007.


Just think of the captions that a lesser journalist would come up with. Seriously, just think it this time.

You had to see this one coming. Three weeks out from his unanimous decision defeat to Tim Boetsch at UFC 130, the UFC has decided to part ways with TUF 3 winner Kendall Grove. After defeating Ed Herman to win The Ultimate Fighter 3 back in 2006, Grove has gone 6-6 in the UFC, including losses to Patrick Cote, Mark Munoz and Demian Maia.  Aside from Ed Herman, the only fighter that Kendall Grove holds a win over who is still fighting in the UFC is Alan Belcher, who he defeated by D’Arce choke back at UFC 69 in April of 2007.

 Kendall Grove is the third winner of The Ultimate Fighter to get fired by the UFC, joining the likes of Travis Lutter and Efrain Escudero.  Interestingly enough, Grove is the first TUF winner to be released from the UFC simply due to poor performance.  Escudero was released by the UFC after missing weight by four pounds before his loss to Charles Oliveira. Meanwhile, Travis Lutter was released by the UFC after, well…being Travis Lutter.  Not to mention any names, but some fighters should take this firing as a wakeup call: Winning The Ultimate Fighter does not guarantee job security.

Daley vs Cyborg Official for Strikeforce: Fedor vs Henderson


Do your worst, comments section: The most terrifyingly unnatural part of this photo is _____________.

Well that didn’t take long, did it? Before we can even finish analyzing the action from last night, Strikeforce has announced the addition of another fight on its July 30th card, headlined by Fedor vs. Henderson. That fight, according to MMAWeekly.com will be a welterweight scrap between Paul “Semtex” Daley and Evangelista Santos. Santos, as you may remember, was initially scheduled to meet up with Tarec Saffiedine on this card. No word yet on whether Saffiedine withdrew from the card, or if Strikeforce decided to pull him in order to make this fight.


Do your worst, comments section: The most terrifyingly unnatural part of this photo is _____________.

Well that didn’t take long, did it? Before we can even finish analyzing the action from last night, Strikeforce has announced the addition of another fight on its July 30th card, headlined by Fedor vs. Henderson. That fight, according to MMAWeekly.com will be a welterweight scrap between Paul “Semtex” Daley and Evangelista Santos. Santos, as you may remember, was initially scheduled to meet up with Tarec Saffiedine on this card. No word yet on whether Saffiedine withdrew from the card, or if Strikeforce decided to pull him in order to make this fight.

If the latter is the case, as it currently appears, then this fight will more than likely be for the vacant Strikeforce welterweight title.  The two heavy-handed fighters are the most recent challengers for the welterweight title, which was held by Nick Diaz. Daley lost by TKO back in April, and Santos lost by armbar back in January.  Try not to act too surprised, but Paul Daley has initiated some pre-fight smack talk by promising to knock out Cyborg like Melvin Manhoef did.

As for an early prediction? On paper, there is no way that this fight ends in something other than a knockout, so expect Santos to outwrestle Daley on his way to a decision. Hey, we’ve seen stranger things happen.

The July 30th Card now looks something like this:

Heavyweight: Fedor Emelianenko vs. Dan Henderson
Women’s Welterweight Championship: Marloes Coenen vs. Miesha Tate
Light Heavyweight: Muhammed Lawal vs. Roger Gracie
Welterweight: Evangelista Santos vs. Paul Daley