Michael “The Count” Bisping and Alan “The Talent” Belcher will finally settle their ongoing feud at UFC 159, when they co-headline the night’s festivities. The event, which recently announced a bout between Phil Davis and Vinny Magalhaes as w…
Michael “The Count” Bisping and Alan “The Talent” Belcher will finally settle their ongoing feud at UFC 159, when they co-headline the night’s festivities.
Okay, that last part wasn’t real, but with the recent addition of Bisping and Belcher, such a description is entirely believable.
MMAjunkie.com and ESPN.com confirmed the bout, and Internet forums are bound to explode with predictions and chatter regarding this high-profile co-main event.
Both men dropped tough contests in their most recent outings, and a title shot is no longer in either of their immediate futures.
For his part, Bisping lost to VitorBelfort at UFC on FX 7. Had he emerged victorious in that bout, he would have set up a championship bout with longtime middleweight champion and pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva.
In a way, Belfort‘s head-kick knockout actually saved Bisping some long-term brain damage, because Silva would have absolutely wrecked him.
But, I digress.
Belcher provides a stiff test for the outspoken British fighter, and this matchup—on paper—is awesome.
Both guys have proficient skills wherever a fight goes, but both prefer to stand and bang. In his most recent fight against YushinOkami, Belcher‘s stand-up game was nullified, and The Talent was forced to fight the majority of the fight from his back.
Against Bisping, this almost assuredly will not be the case, and I expect a show of high-quality, technical stand-up and grappling from each fighter.
Both 185 lb. fighters desperately need a win to stay relevant in their ever-deepening division, and the night’s victor will throw himself right back into the thick of title contention.
While I can see Bisping picking Belcher apart for the duration of this matchup en route to a unanimous decision victory, I think Belcher clips The Count early and finishes his dazed opponent with a rear-naked choke.
Belcher, I feel, still has plenty to show, and UFC 159 will provide his first step back to the top of the middleweight division.
(This will become relevant by the end of the article. Until then, let’s just bask in its glory.)
We’re not sure if we’ve conveyed our feelings regarding middleweight contender Michael Bisping in such articles as “Michael Bisping Asshole Quote of the Day” or the sarcastically-titled “Michael Bisping, Most Understood Fighter in the UFC,” but suffice it to say, we aren’t too high on “The Count.” If you’re someone who appreciates a humble fighter who puts on entertaining fights each and every time they step into the octagon, chances are you aren’t too high on him either.
I can honestly say that I haven’t been outright entertained by a Bisping fight since he fought Wanderlei back at UFC 110, so perhaps he is the correct source to consult when determining whether a fight was boring or not. Luckily for us, Michael could only fit so much dickishness into his schedule each day, so he went and started a blog to make sure we could all be privy to this exact kind of information. In his most recent post, he took aim at Tim Boetsch and Alan Belcher, two fellow middleweights who came up short in somewhat disastrous performances at UFC 155.
We’ve collected all the best snippets, along with our running commentary in bold, after the jump. So join us as we honor (that’s code for “Spill Haterade on”) the nastiest hater since Silky Johnson, won’t you?
(This will become relevant by the end of the article. Until then, let’s just bask in its glory.)
We’re not sure if we’ve conveyed our feelings regarding middleweight contender Michael Bisping in such articles as “Michael Bisping Asshole Quote of the Day” or the sarcastically-titled “Michael Bisping, Most Understood Fighter in the UFC,” but suffice it to say, we aren’t too high on “The Count.” If you’re someone who appreciates a humble fighter who puts on entertaining fights each and every time they step into the octagon, chances are you aren’t too high on him either.
I can honestly say that I haven’t been outright entertained by a Bisping fight since he fought Wanderlei back at UFC 110, so perhaps he is the correct source to consult when determining whether a fight was boring or not. Luckily for us, Michael could only fit so much dickishness into his schedule each day, so he went and started a blog to make sure we could all be privy to this exact kind of information. In his most recent post, he took aim at Tim Boetsch and Alan Belcher, two fellow middleweights who came up short in somewhat disastrous performances at UFC 155.
We’ve collected all the best snippets, along with our running commentary in bold, after the jump. So join us as we honor (that’s code for “Spill Haterade on”) the nastiest hater since Silky Johnson, won’t you?
UFC president Dana White has confirmed that if I beat Vitor Belfort in two weeks – which is a big ask – then I get the next shot at Silva. (Be careful, Michael, he said “probably” get a shot. All it takes is one cocky welterweight with higher PPV numbers to turn “probably” into “sometime next year.”)But, that’s the limit of how much I have thought about Anderson Silva. All this talk will be for nothing if I get caught by Vitor Belfort in Brazil on January 19.
I’m doing a few of these blogs, so without wanting anyone to think I’m not 100 percent focused on Belfort and that fight, and in the interest of keeping something fresh to talk about over the next four blogs, I’ll talk a little about UFC 155, which was a huge card for my division. I was there in person and the undercard was great, the last two fights were awesome… and the middleweights let us down (Hard to argue that).
I felt sorry for Chris Leben (You’re not alone there), who didn’t look himself and clearly was suffering from ring rust in his fight. I hope next time he’s the Crippler of old. Fit and healthy, he’s one of the most exciting guys in the UFC (Except when he’s fighting you, in which case he’s neither. BOOM!)and the middleweight division is richer having Leben in it.
Obviously commiserations are in order for my former fellow top five contenders Alan Belcher and Tim Boetsch, who both came up short in big fight at UFC 155 on December 29 (Whaaaa?!). Belcher lost to Yushin Okami and Boetsch lost to Costa Philippou. I respect all my fellow fighters, and I know the agony of defeat, so heartfelt commiserations to both of these two fine, upstanding gentlemen (Look out, IT’S A TRAP!!).
Now I’ve got that obligatory fluffy stuff out of the way (YOU SEE?!), I’d like to say I’m looking forward to these two simpletons keeping their pie holes shut about me for a little while. Those two have been calling me out and talking crap for months (Right, all the talking has come from their side and their side alone. Hey Mikey, have you ever heard of a persecution complex?), and I would have got some real enjoyment beating them in the Octagon but two no-marks took that glory (Because the guy who actually fought Anderson Silva is a “no-mark.” Did we mention that this Bisping guy is a real asshole?)
Belcher lost every minute of every round in a fight so boring I was afraid my brain was going to melt and start to dribble out of my ears (Agreed. Worst fight we’ve seen since the main event of UFC 78). It was like someone detonated a nuclear bomb of boredom in the arena (HA!)– everyone in the seats around me was playing Angry Birds(As opposed to the British version of the game: “Crotchety Wenches”).
What delusions of grandeur Belcher has (Oh…God…the ironing…). This is a guy who didn’t fight for a year after giving himself career-threatening eye-strain by watching too much internet porn (We’re presuming Michael’s son was responsible for this gem), and he thinks he’s god’s gift to MMA (Again with the ironing). He even told UFC president Dana White that after he beat Okami, he’d fight me on January 19 if something happens to Belfort. This is a guy who got his arse kicked by two guys I smashed (Yoshihiro Akiyama and Jason Day) but he thinks he can not only beat me on a couple weeks’ training, but also assumed he was getting passed Okami, who is not to be underestimated (You mean the “no-mark” you referred to earlier? Yeah, don’t underestimate that guy). Anyway, now we don’t have to listen to this guy anymore. Back to the undercard, sunshine!
That really leaves myself and Chris “Sick Note” Weidman, a nice humble guy who’s got plenty to be humble about, at the top of the rankings. And as Chris retired last June (Dude, he had one injury and then his house was destroyed. For fuck’s sake, Mikey.), there’s no doubt I’m the No.1 contender to Anderson Silva’s world middleweight title.
Hit me up on Twitter @bisping, as ever, Hendo gifs are welcome (Touche, you classless bastard. Touche.).
We’d really wish we could say say that just when we thought Bipsing couldn’t be any more of an asshole, he dropped that last line AND TOTALLY REDEEMED HIMSELF. But life is not that easy. Bisping still is and will always be MMA’s — and the middleweight division’s — second greatest heel, although he seems to devote way too much time to something that has yet to even earn him an unwarranted title shot yet. But hey, he seems to dial the act back to a semi-tolerable level for his blog posts, so kudos to him for that. If only we could do the same, then maybe, just maybe, we could start to see the world through his eyes…
One of MMA’s most outspoken combatants has once more opened his mouth to hurl insults in the direction of his peers. Michael Bisping has made a career of outworking foes, as well as launching vicious verbal tirades at virtually any man to mention…
One of MMA’s most outspoken combatants has once more opened his mouth to hurl insults in the direction of his peers. Michael Bisping has made a career of outworking foes, as well as launching vicious verbal tirades at virtually any man to mention him.
Alan Belcher—who had recently requested a fight with Bisping, should Mike’s UFC on FX 7 opponent, VitorBelfort, find himself unable to battle the brash Brit—found himself on the receiving end of quite the outburst from “The Count”.
To an extent, I can understand Bisping’s frustration, as Belcher now looks a tad silly having apparently looked beyond UFC 155. Any man who meets YushinOkami in the cage should keep the future out of mind, and focus solely on the nightmarish grinder known as “Thunder”.
Bisping jotted down an assortment of thoughts for Yahoo! Sports hours ago, and as is his tradition, he pulled no verbal punches. Rather, he unleashed insult to accompany any injuries Alan Belcher may have sustained in his UFC 155 fight with the Japanese standout.
Get a load of this thrashing, and note that Tim Boetschdidn‘t escape this rant unscathed either…
Obviously commiserations are in order for my former fellow top five contenders Alan Belcher and Tim Boetsch, who both came up short in big fight at UFC 155 on December 29. Belcher lost to YushinOkami and Boetsch lost to Costa Philippou. I respect all my fellow fighters, and I know the agony of defeat, so heartfelt commiserations to both of these two fine, upstanding gentlemen.
Now I’ve got that obligatory fluffy stuff out of the way, I’d like to say I’m looking forward to these two simpletons keeping their pie holes shut about me for a little while. Those two have been calling me out and talking crap for months, and I would have got some real enjoyment beating them in the Octagon but two no-marks took that glory.
Belcher lost every minute of every round in a fight so boring I was afraid my brain was going to melt and start to dribble out of my ears. It was like someone detonated a nuclear bomb of boredom in the arena – everyone in the seats around me was playing Angry Birds.
What delusions of grandeur Belcher has. This is a guy who didn’t fight for a year after giving himself career-threatening eye-strain by watching too much internet porn, and he thinks he’s god’s gift to MMA. He even told UFC president Dana White that after he beat Okami, he’d fight me on January 19 if something happens to Belfort. This is a guy who got his arse kicked by two guys I smashed (YoshihiroAkiyama and Jason Day) but he thinks he can not only beat me on a couple weeks’ training, but also assumed he was getting passed Okami, who is not to be underestimated.
Anyway, now we don’t have to listen to this guy anymore. Back to the undercard, sunshine!
With a somewhat forgettable year thankfully coming to an end, UFC 155 looked to excite fans, promote contenders and get everybody ready for a new year. This card did exactly that. Not to reach into our bag of clichés so early into the aftermath, but UFC 155 really sent 2012 out with a bang, and set the bar high for upcoming cards in 2013.
With as many solid fights as took place Saturday in Las Vegas at UFC 155, Jim Miller and Joe Lauzon’s three round battle was recognized by the UFC brass as the Fight of The Night and each man earned an extra $65,000 for their effort. The lightweight contenders should also be in consideration for Fight of The Year lists everywhere.
If it is, Lauzon will be competing with himself for his incredible fight last August against Jamie Varner. JLau may have lost the decision against Miller on the judge’s score cards, two rounds to one, but deserves credit for coming back from being bullied, beaten and bloodied badly in the first round by Miller in the first round and finishing stronger in the final two rounds.
On the strength of his aggressiveness and multiple submission attempts to close out the second and third rounds, this writer believes that a very reasonable judge could have scored the bout Lauzon’s way instead of Miller’s. As it stands, both men were impressive in their own ways and, *reaches back into the bag of applicable clichés* there simply were no “losers” in this one.
Miller has always shown excellent boxing skills but he may have been sharper than ever before against Lauzon in the first and second rounds, scoring almost at will with shots to the body and head, as well as knocking Joe down repeatedly with a nasty inside leg kick. His dirty boxing from the clinch was masterful, using punches, knees and elbows to hurt and cut open Lauzon over and again.
With a somewhat forgettable year thankfully coming to an end, UFC 155 looked to excite fans, promote contenders and get everybody ready for a new year. This card did exactly that. Not to reach into our bag of clichés so early into the aftermath, but UFC 155 really sent 2012 out with a bang, and set the bar high for upcoming cards in 2013.
With as many solid fights as took place Saturday in Las Vegas at UFC 155, Jim Miller and Joe Lauzon’s three round battle was recognized by the UFC brass as the Fight of The Night and each man earned an extra $65,000 for their effort. The lightweight contenders should also be in consideration for Fight of The Year lists everywhere.
If it is, Lauzon will be competing with himself for his incredible fight last August against Jamie Varner. JLau may have lost the decision against Miller on the judge’s score cards, two rounds to one, but deserves credit for coming back from being bullied, beaten and bloodied badly in the first round by Miller in the first round and finishing stronger in the final two rounds.
On the strength of his aggressiveness and multiple submission attempts to close out the second and third rounds, this writer believes that a very reasonable judge could have scored the bout Lauzon’s way instead of Miller’s. As it stands, both men were impressive in their own ways and, *reaches back into the bag of applicable clichés* there simply were no “losers” in this one.
Miller has always shown excellent boxing skills but he may have been sharper than ever before against Lauzon in the first and second rounds, scoring almost at will with shots to the body and head, as well as knocking Joe down repeatedly with a nasty inside leg kick. His dirty boxing from the clinch was masterful, using punches, knees and elbows to hurt and cut open Lauzon over and again.
For his part, Lauzon looked to be on his way out of the fight early on but somehow not only managed to survive, but thrive and turn the tide back in his favor multiple times with knees and submission holds despite bleeding like a stuck pig. Lauzon was cut in at least three places on his head by Miller and wore a crimson mask for most of the fight. On his facebook page, the Massachusets fighter shared a photo with fans of his bruised and stiched up (to the tune of 40) face.
The old knock on Lauzon for tiring late in fights should finally be retired. Both men look ready to continue to fight the division’s other elite. Lauzon, of course, has hit a speed bump and may have to move back a spot or two. Miller, as long as he’s healthy, should get another top opponent as soon as possible to give him another chance to move towards a title shot.
More than just a big uppercut – Dos Santos shows heart of a champion in defeat
Junior Dos Santos could not threaten in the late rounds to the same level that Lauzon did but he also, and perhaps even more improbably, managed to go the distance and survive after nearly being knocked out in the first round. For five rounds Cain Velasquez knocked around and took down Dos Santos en route to winning back the UFC heavyweight title that he lost a little over a year ago to Dos Santos.
Despite looking to be out on his feet from the early minutes, Dos Santos never stopped moving, never stopped swinging and demonstrated almost unbelievable conditioning and mental fortitude. Despite being knocked silly time and again from clean shots to the chin and temple from Velasquez, and being dragged to the ground time and again, Dos Santos refused to stay down. He fought to the end and promised to be back for what an almost inevitable rubber match at some point between the two champions.
Cain out-paced, grappled and struck Dos Santos with a ballsy strategy that relied on complete faith in his own conditioning level. We’ve heard for years about how Velasquez out-worked light and welterweights in the gym but we’ve rarely had to see him go the distance and show his supposed inhumane conditioning.
In the main event at UFC 155 Cain showed what all the gym-buzz was about. Velasquez used everything in his arsenal from the opening bell, from punches, kicks, knees to diving for take downs ceaselessly, and continued to until the final one. After Dos Santos quickly got back to his feet after Cain’s first successful take down in the opening stanza and then Velasquez began missing follow up low single leg attempts from far away, it appeared that the Chicano fighter might be on his way to getting frustrated by the then-champ.
However it soon became clear that Velasquez was simply employing a strategy set on tiring out the larger-muscled Brazilian from the onset. Cain’s low single leg attempts from far away were not so much about landing the take down as not letting Dos Santos rest at any point while managing to stay low and out of the way of his counter upper cuts.
As Dos Santos huffed and puffed in the first round and then began eating more and more shots on the feet, including a huge over hand right from Cain, it was evident that the Velasquez strategy was paying dividends.
Still, the now two-time champion had to stay clear of Dos Santos’ power for five rounds. Even when “Cigano” had his hands at his sides and ate huge shots to the chin against the fence, he followed up with wild but hard punches, one at a time, to the body and head of Velasquez. Cain got hit with plenty, but his Toltec stone statue-like head managed to hold up to Dos Santos’ power this time around.
From the sound of Dos Santos’ voice in his post-fight interview, he injured his jaw badly. His head was also badly bruised and swollen, no doubt outward evidence of concussions suffered internally. As such, and because Velasquez won so dominantly, an immediate rematch is out of the question.
That said, however, two exciting fights from this rivalry have left each man with one win a piece. There is no doubt that should both stay healthy and winning enough, that they will face one another at least one more time.
Fans can’t be upset with that. Well, maybe the Vegas crowd that inexplicably booed Dos Santos after his courageous effort could be, but other than those ignorant parasites, no fans could be upset with a third fight.
The only question is who Velasquez will fight next. If his teammate Daniel Cormier keeps on winning as he enters the UFC, he couldn’t be far off from deserving a title shot. The two have said they don’t want to fight one another but Dana White has a way of making these things happen.
Fight of the Night went to Jim Miller vs. Joe Lauzon, Submission of the Night went to John Moraga, who kicked off the preliminary card by choking out Chris Cariaso, and Knockout of the Night went to Todd Duffee, who scored a first round TKO (Caveman Seizure) over Phil De Fries.
Full Results:
Main Card:
Cain Velasquez def. Junior Dos Santos via Unanimous Decision
Jim Miller def. Joe Lauzon via Unanimous Decision
Costa Philippou def. Tim Boetsch via TKO (punches), 2:11 of Round Three
Yushin Okami def. Alan Belcher via Unanimous Decision
Derek Brunson def. Chris Leben via Unanimous Decision
Preliminary Card
Eddie Wineland def. Brad Pickett via Split-Decision
Erik Perez def. Byron Bloodworth via TKO (punches), 3:50 of Round One
Jamie Varner def. Melvin Guillard via Split-Decision
Myles Jury def. Michael Johnson via Unanimous Decision
Todd Duffee def. Phil De Fries via TKO (punches), 2:04 of Round One
Max Holloway def. Leonard Garcia via Split-Decision
John Moraga def. Chris Cariaso via Submission (arm-in guillotine choke), 1:11 of Round Three
For the second time in two fights, Alan Belcher was thoroughly dominated by Yushin Okami in a unanimous decision loss.That defeat comes at a particularly bad time for Belcher, killing what could have been an impressive five-win streak in the suddenly f…
For the second time in two fights, Alan Belcher was thoroughly dominated by YushinOkami in a unanimous decision loss.
That defeat comes at a particularly bad time for Belcher, killing what could have been an impressive five-win streak in the suddenly flexible UFC middleweight division.
Maybe he wasn’t remotely close to challenging the likes of Anderson Silva or Michael Bisping, but Belcher likely sniffed his last whiff of elite competition for a while on Saturday. Barring any breakout victories, there’s also not likely going to be any title talks for the next year or two.
So where does “The Talent” go from here?
At this point, the only way to go is up.
Even though Belcher lost at UFC 155, he’s still on the right side of 30 years old and has a little over a year to quietly rack up another winning streak.
Conventional wisdom says that Belcher could spend 2013 playing gatekeeper status to the division’s “Top 10” group, where he could rack up some wins fighting equally-skilled UFC opponents or the upcoming influx of Strikeforce middleweights.
Optimally, a fight with Chris Leben or Mark Munoz seems like the best option.
Both Leben and Munoz are coming off losses, and they have enough name value to make a fight with Belcher a solid addition to the main card of an FX, Fuel TV or PPV card.
However, Belcher could also upset a big-name middleweight coming off a loss.
In a few months, the losers of Bisping vs. VitorBelfort and Brian Stann vs. Wanderlei Silva will likely need game opponents, while Rich Franklin also needs a tune-up fight. Belcher more than fits the bill, as he’s still a tough test for anyone in the division.
Either way, Belcher‘s only option is another winning streak.
Recovering lost ground will be his best move right now, and with a little luck, Belcher might even be able to get himself another four-fight winning streak before he eventually runs up against some even stiffer competition next year.
One of the most important fights of the night at UFC 155 featured potential middleweight threats Yushin Okami and Alan Belcher throw down in the Octagon. Both men are top 10 in the division and near a title shot with a win.In a highly anticipated clash…
One of the most important fights of the night at UFC 155 featured potential middleweight threats Yushin Okami and Alan Belcher throw down in the Octagon. Both men are top 10 in the division and near a title shot with a win.
In a highly anticipated clash, Okami beat Belcher by unanimous decision to move one step closer to a middleweight title shot.
Here is what we learned from Belcher vs. Okami.
What We’ll Remember About This Fight:
Anybody that was upset with how unexciting Chris Leben and Derek Brunson were to open the card were probably just as upset with a majority of this fight. Okami smothered Belcher, dominated the ground action and through all that, did not inflict much damage.
That wasn’t surprising to me, but it was still somewhat upsetting.
What We Learned About Alan Belcher:
Belcher will always be a great striker with a solid submission game, but it looks like he struggles against wrestlers. In looking at his record, he has not fought many wrestlers, so this will be an eye-opening experience for Belcher. Hopefully he goes back to the drawing board and works on that.
What We Learned About Yushin Okami:
Okami is still a top-level middleweight in the UFC. Though his fight style is not aesthetically pleasing, it is effective. He imposed his will and dominated Belcher for a majority of the fight. He still needs to work on his striking, though.
What’s Next for Belcher:
Belcher still deserves to fight a top middleweight, despite the hiccup here. When Mark Munoz returns, I think that fight would be great, as both men are coming off losses and it could test Belcher’s counter-wrestling.
What’s Next for Okami:
Okami proved that he needs another crack in the top of the middleweight ranks. A showdown with recent winner Hector Lombard would be a great test for both men.
Michael “The Count” Bisping and Alan “The Talent” Belcher will finally settle their ongoing feud at UFC 159, when they co-headline the night’s festivities. 
