There’s absolutely no denying that Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is a lethal and powerful force in the UFC Welterweight division. He brings strength and size unheard of in the division. Physically, he’s a man among boys. But that’s physica…
There’s absolutely no denying that Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is a lethal and powerful force in the UFC Welterweight division. He brings strength and size unheard of in the division. Physically, he’s a man among boys. But that’s physically.
Throughout his career, Johnson has had various troubles that negate his size and strength. As Dana White often alludes to, Johnson has a rough time making weight. This often indicates a lack of discipline. If you can’t make the necessary dietary changes to make weight comfortably when the time comes, how disciplined can you be when asked to execute a game plan against a top-10 opponent? That’s a mental breakdown that can’t happen if one seriously intends on contending for a title.
Rumble also has problems with his submission defense. He’s lost three times in his career. One time was a horrible TKO lose due to being poked in the eye—similar to the lone loss on Jon Jones’ record (disqualification due to illegal elbow strikes) in that it doesn’t count to the viewing public. However, his other two loses do count.
Guess how those fights ended.
Submission losses.
Rumble must shore up his submission defense. I would actually suggest leaving the tutelage of Cung Le’s AKA for something with more of a Brazilian Jiu-Jistu base. With that knowledge he can defend submissions and keep the fight standing, where he’s most comfortable.
He also has to beat a couple of prominent contenders to even be considered. Picture this: If Johnson fought Jake Ellenberger and crushed him, then fought Jon Fitch and beat him, we would all be screaming for him to get a title shot against Georges St-Pierre (if he retains the title). Two prominent victories are all that stand between him and a title shot.
Now, can he get those matchups? That remains to be seen.
After weeks of height-related gags, Struve still wasn’t done rubbing his length advantage in Barry’s face. (Photo: Tracy Lee via Yahoo Sports!)
Sandwiched between two marquee UFC cards, last night’s UFC Live flew under the promotional radar. It’s understandable that Zuffa would focus more on two stacked pay per view cards than a Versus broadcast, but in a time when fights are hyped for months only to fall short when the bell rings, it’s rare to see a card that delivers so much action from Facebook to the main event. Add to the mix that there was gold on the line and the lack of promotion for this event is borderline criminal. Only two fights on the card were decided by the judges—though just as many were decided by the referees—and either of them could have earned FOTN honors. We’ve got a lot to cover, so hunker down.
First off, I’d like to welcome back an old friend. Elbows, we’d nearly forgotten about you, but last night you were ushered back into society like the queen of a violent debutant ball. Bored with simply working on teeth, “The Dentist” performed a full-facial extraction via elbow on Keith Wisniewski during the Facebook broadcast. Cut stoppages aren’t my favorite, but these ‘bows we’re seeing from the clinch are brutal, damage inflicting blows that you’ve got to stop before they stop you, and I like them. Speaking of which…
After weeks of height-related gags, Struve still wasn’t done rubbing his length advantage in Barry’s face. (Photo: Tracy Lee via Yahoo Sports!)
Sandwiched between two marquee UFC cards, last night’s UFC Live flew under the promotional radar. It’s understandable that Zuffa would focus more on two stacked pay per view cards than a Versus broadcast, but in a time when fights are hyped for months only to fall short when the bell rings, it’s rare to see a card that delivers so much action from Facebook to the main event. Add to the mix that there was gold on the line and the lack of promotion for this event is borderline criminal. Only two fights on the card were decided by the judges—though just as many were decided by the referees—and either of them could have earned FOTN honors. We’ve got a lot to cover, so hunker down.
First off, I’d like to welcome back an old friend. Elbows, we’d nearly forgotten about you, but last night you were ushered back into society like the queen of a violent debutant ball. Bored with simply working on teeth, “The Dentist” performed a full-facial extraction via elbow on Keith Wisniewski during the Facebook broadcast. Cut stoppages aren’t my favorite, but these ‘bows we’re seeing from the clinch are brutal, damage inflicting blows that you’ve got to stop before they stop you, and I like them. Speaking of which…
Mac Danzig and Matt Wiman opened the broadcast with an outstanding rematch that saw both men fighting for the finish. Much of the bout was spent in the clinch with Wiman throwing heavy elbows with bad intent. Danzig answered with combinations and body shots, but Wiman got better of the exchanges. The action didn’t lull when the fighters hit the mat, and though Wiman attempted a few close submissions in the second round it was Danzig who nearly ended the fight with a guillotine as the final bell rang. Wiman got his hand raised, but both men earned the $65k “Fight of the Night” bonus.
For most of his 2:49 second bout, Charlie Brenneman got his face grated against the canvas and bombed on from all angles, and that was the high point for “The Spaniard”. Johnson bullied Brenneman around like his kid brother, securing a dominant position off of a stuffed takedown and landing shots at his leisure. When he scrambled back to his feet, Brenneman was greeted with a head kick that sent him scrambling back to the mat. Once back on wobbly legs, another head kick sent him tumbling backwards. It was a forceful, undefended blow to an already-rocked opponent, but Mario Yamasaki made the decision to stop the fight while Brenneman was in mid-air. Had he waited a second longer, he may have seen that “The Spaniard” braced himself on impact with the mat and was prepared to defend himself. A tough call to make in the moment? I’m sure it is, but that’s what we expect of high-level officials, and where was his concern for fighter safety earlier in the evening? It certainly wasn’t a knockout, but it was the “Knock Out of the Night”.
Freakshow bouts are a roll of the dice, and outside of its wild finish the Barry-Struve bout did not deliver. Both fought a cautious first round, with “HD” trying to work his way inside and Struve largely content to keep him at bay with front kicks. When the two finally clinched up in round two, Struve nicely transitioned from standing darce attempt to a guillotine to a deep triangle. Barry’s Rampagesque counter was exciting, but the power bomb only served to tighten up the choke. Struve earned his fourteenth submission win and “Submission of the Night” honors. This was Barry’s second consecutive stoppage defeat.
After being put into a heavyweight-induced coma last week, Cruz and Johnson gave us a clear reminder that the lighter weight classes are where the action is. This was billed as a fight between MMA’s fastest fighters, and as predicted it looked a lot like one of those cartoon fights that takes place in a cloud of smoke with only the occasional limb popping out. For a full twenty five minutes their bout exhibited the sort of wild transitions and blazing speed that only my exes can fully appreciate. Johnson’s hustle and pressure forced Cruz to abandon his herky-jerky footwork, but the champion adapted and put on an incredible display of grappling superiority, landing two picturesque German suplexes and ten total takedowns throughout the bout. This marks Cruz’s fourth consecutive title defense, all the more impressive considering he broke his hand in the first round.
Bantamweight Championship bout: Dominick Cruz def. Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson via Unanimous Decision (50-45, 49-46, 50-45)
Heavyweight bout: Stefan Struve def. Pat Barry via Submission (Triangle choke) – R2 @ 3:22
Welterweight bout: Anthony Johnson def. Charlie Brenneman via TKO (Head Kick) – R1 @ 2:49
Lightweight bout: Matt Wiman def. Mac Danzig via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Preliminary Card (Facebook.com/UFC)
Lightweight bout: Yves Edwards def. Rafaello Oliveira via TKO (Punches) – R2 @ 2:44
Lightweight bout: Paul Sass def. Michael Johnson via Submission (Heel hook) – R1 @ 3:00
Catchweight (138 lbs) bout: Mike Easton def. Byron Bloodworth via TKO (Knee-Punches) – R2 @ 4:52
Lightweight bout: T.J. Grant def. Shane Roller via Submission (Verbal Submission) – R3 @ 2:12
Welterweight bout: Josh Neer def. Keith Wisniewski via TKO (Doctor Stoppage) – R2 @ 5:00
Bantamweight bout: Walel Watson def. Joseph Sandoval via TKO (Kick/Punches) – R1 @ 1:17
Filed under: UFCIt’s not often that we see a title fight on free TV. As expected, Saturday night’s bantamweight contest at UFC on Versus 6 provided the full 25 minutes, and maybe showed some fans the difference between the lumbering heavyweights at the…
It’s not often that we see a title fight on free TV. As expected, Saturday night’s bantamweight contest at UFC on Versus 6 provided the full 25 minutes, and maybe showed some fans the difference between the lumbering heavyweights at the top of the MMA food chain and the swift little hummingbirds in the lighter divisions.
The 135-pounders may not be long on finishing power, but at least they keep coming without slowing down. They don’t overwhelm, but they also don’t run out of gas halfway through. Either you appreciate that or you don’t. After the performances of some of the heavyweights last weekend at UFC 135, I’m guessing a lot of fight fans do.
But now that another one is in the books, it’s time again to sift through the biggest winners, losers, and everything in between from UFC on Versus 6.
Biggest Winner: Anthony Johnson
He said he wanted an exciting finish to silence the critics who weren’t too pleased about his strategy in the Dan Hardy fight. Kicking Brenneman in the face until he fell down was a good way to go about that. Fight fans have short enough memories that a good TKO win will make them forget all about the time you promised a slugfest and delivered a wrestling match instead. All it took was him placing his foot across another man’s face in as violent a fashion as possible. A very simple and reliable formula for changing public perception if there ever was one.
Biggest Loser: Charlie Brenneman
Fresh off his big win over Rick Story, he gets TKO’d by “Rumble” Johnson in a fight he was never really in. He can complain all he wants about the stoppage, but even before he got kicked in the face he was on wobbly legs, clinging to the fence rather than guarding his head. Maybe he could have fought on, but he wasn’t doing much fighting when he took a foot to the grill. I can’t blame a referee for watching that scene unfold and then deciding Brenneman was done. Now he goes from late-notice hero to just another welterweight in a crowded field. The fall was only slightly quicker than the rise, but looked far more painful.
Most Perfunctory Title Defense: Dominick Cruz
Okay, so it wasn’t the most dominant or impressive victory of his career. He looked mildly vulnerable at times and, most shockingly, even a little bit tired. Still, Cruz controlled the fight down the stretch and did what he had to do, so he goes home with the hardware. Was it a breakout performance that will make him a huge star? Probably not, but any night you leave with the title that you showed up with is a good night indeed. Cruz remains the best 135-pounder in the world, and he showed that he can dig down and gut one out when he needs to. In fact, the only thing he lacks at the moment is fresh, compelling challengers. Unfortunately for him, there’s not a lot he can do about that.
Worst Use of a Reach Advantage: Stefan Struve
While the fight stayed standing, he did very little to keep Barry at a distance. Despite having arms and legs that were about the size of Barry’s entire body, he just kept letting the smaller man walk him down. In fact, of all the problems Barry had in the fight, getting within striking distance seemed to be the least of his troubles. It was only once the fight hit the mat and Struve was on his back that he managed to put his long limbs to good use, locking up a triangle choke that Barry really should have seen coming. Again, Struve’s submissions game continues to sneak up on opponents, though it honestly shouldn’t. He’s won more fights that way than he has by any other method, so when will people stop thinking that it’s a good idea to grapple with him? As long as he uses his range so much better on the ground than he does on the feet, there’s little reason to take the Dutchman down.
Mr. Consistency: Paul Sass
I’ve heard MMA trainers say that what they really want is not a guy who can pull off every submission in the book, but a guy who has one or two good ones that he can nail on command. Sass has the triangle choke and the heel hook, and he doesn’t need anything else. With his heel hook of Michael Johnson he remained unbeaten in twelve pro fights, and he’s ended with a submission in eleven of those. You’d think that any opponent would be able to take a quick look at his record and know what to watch out for, and you’d be right. The fact that he keeps pulling those moves off anyway tells you just how good he is.
Most in Need of a Ground Game: Pat Barry
He’s a great kickboxer and a likeable guy, but at times it seems he can be finished by the merest suggestion of a submission. I don’t care how vicious your leg kicks are, if you can’t defend against a triangle choke any better than that you have a very limited future in the UFC. Barry’s had plenty of time to develop his overall game, and he has improved. Just not enough. The UFC has been somewhat kind to him in terms of matchmaking, largely keeping him away from the better grapplers in the heavyweight division, but still he finds ways to get submitted. It’s a shame, because he’s a lot of fun to watch when he’s in his element. It’s when he’s not that it gets ugly in a hurry.
Most in Need of an Ice Pack: Demetrious Johnson
He showed a lot of heart and did much better than most expected, but he’s still going home with a lump the size of a cueball in his face. That’s not something you can cover with a pair of sunglasses, either. All it takes is for you to roll over on it once in your sleep and your whole night is ruined. Though of course, losing a title fight probably has a similar effect.
Narrowest Margin of Victory: Matt Wiman
Watching him bounce around while the decision was read, I had a flashback to Wiman’s mini-freakout after the judges sided with Dennis Siver over him at UFC 132. That night he bolted from the cage like he’d left his car running out front. If the decision had gone the other way this time, he might have taken off through the streets of D.C. and been halfway to Florida by now. Fortunately for Wiman, he got the nod from the judges, but just barely. A guy who can’t take it when a squeaker doesn’t go his way should really learn to stop leaving it up to the judges. Or if he is going to go the distance, he could at least make it a little clearer who the winner and the loser was. Keeping it that close is a good way to go home disappointed.
Filed under: UFC, NewsFour fighters from Saturday’s UFC on Versus 6 card in Washington, D.C., added $65,000 bonus checks to their take-home pay after the show.
Stefan Struve, Anthony Johnson, Matt Wiman and Mac Danzig each took home post-fight bonus …
Four fighters from Saturday’s UFC on Versus 6 card in Washington, D.C., added $65,000 bonus checks to their take-home pay after the show.
Stefan Struve, Anthony Johnson, Matt Wiman and Mac Danzig each took home post-fight bonus awards for their performances in the final UFC event on the Versus channel. The post-fight awards were announced by UFC president Dana White after the card.
The $65,000 total equals the largest amount for a UFC show on either Versus or Spike, tying the $65,000 bonus awards that were handed out after UFC on Versus 5 in Milwaukee in August. UFC on Versus 6 was the promotion’s debut in the nation’s capital.
Struve, the tallest heavyweight in the UFC, fought the shortest heavyweight in what became a fun kickboxing bout. But when Struve got the fight to the ground and locked in a triangle in the co-main event, Barry used his power to muscle Struve to the sky for a massive slam with the triangle still locked in. Struve though, held the hold, sank it in even tighter and forced Barry to tap, giving Struve the Submission of the Night bonus. It was Barry’s second straight loss, the first losing streak of his career. In June, after nearly stopping Cheick Kongo, Kongo pulled off an epic comeback knockout victory.
“He kept me at bay with his kicks because those were landing hard and will definitely leave bruises tomorrow,” Struve said after the win. “I was eventually able to get him in the [choke], and once I locked it in I wasn’t letting it go. When he slammed me, I was able to put my arm down to catch myself and sink the submission in deeper.”
Johnson won Knockout of the Night for his head-kick finish of Charlie Brenneman on the main card. Though Brenneman popped back up quickly after Johnson’s left kick to the face, referee Mario Yamasaki had already stepped in to shut the fight down, and the official decision was a TKO for Johnson.
“I hit him hard quite a few times in a row and he didn’t look like he was all there,” Johnson said. “I landed that head kick and put him on the canvas. He looked done to me, but if that kick hadn’t have done it, the punches that would have come afterwards would have.”
And Wiman and Danzig rematched after a controversial ending to their first fight in June 2010 – and the reboot was worth the wait. The two battled for three rounds of back-and-forth that earned them Fight of the Night, with Wiman taking a unanimous 29-28 decision. At UFC 115, Wiman won when Yves Lavigne stopped the fight, believing Danzig was out from a choke. He was not, and it’s taken 16 months for the rematch, which was scheduled once but delayed with a Danzig injury.
“Mac did fantastic tonight and has nothing to be ashamed of, because I’ve been on that side of things too,” Wiman said. “But I can’t deny that it feels good to be on this side of things. You really never know what the judges are going think, and I’m just happy it fell to me this time.”
Struve got serious competition from Paul Sass, who submitted Michael Johnson with a heel hook on the preliminary card. Sass stayed unbeaten with the submission and now has 11 of his 12 career wins by tapout. And Wiman-Danzig got competition from the main event bantamweight title fight between champion Dominick Cruz and Demetrious Johnson. But it was likely Cruz’s large amount of time spent keeping Johnson pinned along the fence that kept them from the bonus.
Filed under: UFCIn a welterweight battle on Saturday night’s UFC live card, Anthony Johnson defeated Charlie Brenneman in the first round thanks to a big head kick — and a questionable stoppage from the referee.
In a welterweight battle on Saturday night’s UFC live card, Anthony Johnson defeated Charlie Brenneman in the first round thanks to a big head kick — and a questionable stoppage from the referee.
Johnson is a devastating striker who executed the kick perfectly, landing his foot square on Brenneman’s face, and knocking Brenneman flat on his back. But Brenneman appeared to be conscious, alert and ready to defend himself on the ground when referee Mario Yamasaki jumped in to stop the fight. The whole contest lasted just 2 minutes, 49 seconds.
“I’m very happy — everybody was talking crap about my last performance with Dan Hardy so I figured I had to come in here and make a statement,” Johnson said afterward. “I told Charlie he was the first guy to ever really have me nervous because his wrestling is so good.”
But while Brenneman’s wrestling is good, Johnson’s striking is better. The victory improves Johnson’s record to 10-3 and likely sets him up for some very big fights in the welterweight division in 2012: He could be a future welterweight title contender. The loss drops Brenneman to 14-3, but there’s no shame in losing to Johnson — especially when the referee didn’t do Brenneman any favors.
“He had my number tonight,” Brenneman said. “I didn’t execute my gameplan and that guy is a beast in the Octagon. I would have kept going if the ref allowed it, but at that point it wasn’t up to me.”
Johnson (9-3, 6-3 UFC) returned in March after a 16-month layoff and won a unanimous decision against Dan Hardy. But an injury forced him out of a fight with Nate Marquardt in June, a bout that became Rick Story vs. Brenneman the day before the fight. Brenneman (14-3, 3-1 UFC) won that bout, after having his previous fight on the card scrapped earlier in the week, snapping Story’s six-fight UFC winning streak.
Round 1: Johnson should have a significant size advantage, as he’s regarded as the biggest welterweight in, like, ever. Brenneman catches a leg kick, then backs way out of a Johnson attack. Johnson tracks him down and throws a straight kick that Brenneman avoids. Brenneman trying to hold on on the ground, but Johnson is working some big fists on the ground. Johnson is holding Brenneman’s head down with his right hand and is l anding strikes with the left. It’s a bad spot for Brenneman, and now Johnson starts to light him up with knees to the body. Johnson spins to try to take Brenneman’s back. Brenneman wriggles his way back to half guard, then looks for an arm-in guillotine. Johnson stays busy and gets out. He just misses a kick, but Brenneman scrambles out. But after Brenneman gets up, Johnson telegraphs a huge left kick to the face. Brenneman drops to his butt immediately, and Mario Yamasaki steps in to stop it. Brenneman immediately pops up wondering why it was stopped – and it appears he’s completely fine. It’s the third potentially bad stoppage of the night, but Johnson is going to have a TKO victory.
Result: Anthony Johnson def. Charlie Brenneman, TKO, 2:49 Round 1
“I’m very happy. Everyone was talking crap about my last performance against Dan Hardy, so I figured I had to come out here and make a statement. I told Charlie, he was the first guy to ever have me nervous. His wrestling is so good, and I respect him and his camp so much,” Johnson told Joe Rogan after the fight.
Johnson (9-3, 6-3 UFC) returned in March after a 16-month layoff and won a unanimous decision against Dan Hardy. But an injury forced him out of a fight with Nate Marquardt in June, a bout that became Rick Story vs. Brenneman the day before the fight. Brenneman (14-3, 3-1 UFC) won that bout, after having his previous fight on the card scrapped earlier in the week, snapping Story’s six-fight UFC winning streak.
Round 1: Johnson should have a significant size advantage, as he’s regarded as the biggest welterweight in, like, ever. Brenneman catches a leg kick, then backs way out of a Johnson attack. Johnson tracks him down and throws a straight kick that Brenneman avoids. Brenneman trying to hold on on the ground, but Johnson is working some big fists on the ground. Johnson is holding Brenneman’s head down with his right hand and is l anding strikes with the left. It’s a bad spot for Brenneman, and now Johnson starts to light him up with knees to the body. Johnson spins to try to take Brenneman’s back. Brenneman wriggles his way back to half guard, then looks for an arm-in guillotine. Johnson stays busy and gets out. He just misses a kick, but Brenneman scrambles out. But after Brenneman gets up, Johnson telegraphs a huge left kick to the face. Brenneman drops to his butt immediately, and Mario Yamasaki steps in to stop it. Brenneman immediately pops up wondering why it was stopped – and it appears he’s completely fine. It’s the third potentially bad stoppage of the night, but Johnson is going to have a TKO victory.
Result: Anthony Johnson def. Charlie Brenneman, TKO, 2:49 Round 1
“I’m very happy. Everyone was talking crap about my last performance against Dan Hardy, so I figured I had to come out here and make a statement. I told Charlie, he was the first guy to ever have me nervous. His wrestling is so good, and I respect him and his camp so much,” Johnson told Joe Rogan after the fight.
There’s absolutely no denying that Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is a lethal and powerful force in the UFC Welterweight division. He brings strength and size unheard of in the division. Physically, he’s a man among boys. But that’s physically.
It’s not often that we see a title fight on free TV. As expected, Saturday night’s bantamweight contest at 
Four fighters from Saturday’s 
This is the 