Filed under: UFC
It’s been an interesting week in Denver, what with both UFC 135 main eventers chipping away at each other in their own unique ways. With the fight nearly upon us, I submit some thoughts, predictions, and questions for your consideration.
I. When did respect and humility become so important to “Rampage” Jackson? It must have been very, very recently, since I seem to recall him being less than respectful in the pre-fight exchanges with Rashad Evans. And remember Darrill “Titties” Schoonover, who Jackson bullied repeatedly during a coaching stint on TUF? Let’s go ask him how important respect is to Jackson. I get it, he’s feeling dissed by Jones and, possibly, the media and the oddsmakers. But as Jackson spent all week harping on Jones’ lack of respect, it was hard not to wonder when the challenger had decided to eschew bad breath jokes and personal insults in favor of treating everyone like he’d want to be treated. It must have been after he compared Jones to a monkey he saw at the zoo, just like his sudden love of humility must have come after he predicted that Jones would have to be woken up in the cage following Saturday’s fight. I guess when Jackson says fighters should show respect, he means they should show it to him.
II. And, while we’re on the subject, why can’t Jon Jones just admit that he thinks he’s pretty great? It’s not like anyone would blame him. Look at what he’s done. Just a few years after putting on the gloves for the first time he’s the UFC light heavyweight champion. A guy like that can be cocky. After all, it ain’t bragging if it’s true. The problem is, he’s trying very hard to present a certain hand-crafted, squeaky clean image to the fans, but they’re no longer buying it. He claims not to care what people think of him, but in reality it seems like few UFC champions care more. The claim that he’s somehow disrespected Jackson more than Jackson has disrespected him doesn’t hold up, but Jones certainly has a high opinion of his own skills, and he’s not the only one. If he’d just admit it, it couldn’t be used against him so effectively.
III. My God, this spying nonsense. With all this talk about secret espionage, how is it that there hasn’t been a single statuesque Russian woman involved? Or a dude with an eye patch? At least a spit bucket that is also a smoke bomb. Worst spy story ever.
IV. Matt Hughes says he hasn’t made a decision, but he definitely doesn’t sound like a guy who wants to retire soon. If he did, this would be a sensible fight to end on. His contract is coming up, he claims he doesn’t want to stick around into his forties, so why not call it now? My guess is, it’s because he’s hoping he’ll put out a win over Josh Koscheck and then he’ll be able to ride this train for at least one or two more fights. His wife wants him to quit. His boss doesn’t see what else he’d have to fight for. All signs are pointing toward retirement. The fact that Hughes is adamant about making no decision yet — just as he is adamant that the outcome of this fight doesn’t really matter — tells you that he desperately wants to stay in the UFC just a little while longer. If Koscheck puts a beatdown on him (and I suspect he will), the case for a continued Hughes run is going to be hard to make.
V. If Travis Browne can put his size to work, Rob Broughton could be in for a rough night. Seeing those two heavyweights near each other in the gym on Thursday, it became very apparent that Broughton’s biggest challenge will be getting in close. He’d probably like to put Browne on the mat, but at 6’7″ Browne is a lot of humanity to try and forcibly relocate. If he keeps Broughton at a distance, this should be Browne’s fight to lose.
VI. Will Nate Diaz opt to stand and bang against an opponent who excels at that (and, at this point, little else)? If you’re Takanori Gomi, you probably hope so. The Japanese import has not been so stellar on the ground lately, and he did get submitted by Diaz’s older brother (who then got submitted by the NSAC’s drug testing procedures, but whatever). But if Diaz comes out looking to box, he gives Gomi more of a chance than he needs to. Gomi still hits hard (just ask Tyson Griffin) and he’s always gotten high marks in the brawlability category. That doesn’t mean Diaz can’t beat him on the feet, but why risk it if you don’t have to? Maybe just because you’re a Diaz, and that’s what Diazes do.
VII. Ben Rothwell is a brand new fighter…again. I like Rothwell as a person, and I see what he’s trying to say, but what is this, like the third time he’s declared himself to be a new man? He’s been gone for a bit with injuries, so this time maybe it’s more true than ever, but how different is he really going to be? What, he’s lost some weight? He’s quicker? He’s a jiu-jitsu master who pulls guard now? Okay, the last one would be a significant change, but odds are he’s going to be more or less the same fighter, just an updated version. Again, nothing wrong with that. But you don’t get to be born anew before every fight. Especially not when you’ve been in this sport for ten freaking years.
VIII. The “media notes” the UFC has started handing out recently are, well, interesting. There’s some good information in the ten-plus pages of handouts. If you don’t live and breathe this sport (looking at you, local newspaper writer who probably won’t even show up until the main event), it catches you up on ‘spygate’ and on Hughes’ record of 18 UFC wins. But it also feels like some information is tossed in there just to fill white space. For instance, did you know Rothwell has “a technical degree in collision repair” from Waukesha County Technical College? Or that Hughes has an associate of arts degree from Lincoln Community College? I’m not sure what the UFC expects us to do with that information, but hey, the more you know, I guess.
IX. It’s a little weird to see Josh Koscheck being this nice. We’ve seen flashes of the old Kos this week, but the barbs have been few and not even all that prickly. When he said Hughes was in for a bad night, he seemed to actually feel a little bit bad about it. It’s as if he doesn’t want to beat Hughes up (or at least, not as much as he usual), but simply has no choice. Then again, he’s as fierce a competitor as Hughes is, he reminded us. It doesn’t matter if he’s fighting a former world champ or “a 12-year-old kid,” he wants to win. Who knew he could do it with such a congenial attitude? Well, congenial for him, anyway.