Well, tonight’s (Sat., Nov. 4, 2017) UFC 217 from Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, didn’t take long to get the action started. Unbeaten bantamweight prospect Aiemann Zahabi, the brother of Georges St-Pierre’s famed coach Firas Zahabi, looked to continue his rise in the Octagon when he took on Ricardo Ramos in the […]
Well, tonight’s (Sat., Nov. 4, 2017) UFC 217 from Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, didn’t take long to get the action started.
Unbeaten bantamweight prospect Aiemann Zahabi, the brother of Georges St-Pierre’s famed coach Firas Zahabi, looked to continue his rise in the Octagon when he took on Ricardo Ramos in the first bout on the Fight Pass preliminary card.
Unfortunately for him, however, he was handed the first loss of his MMA career when Ramos uncorked an absolutely insane spinning back elbow that knocked him out cold in the third round of the back-and-forth bout. It was only the second such KO in UFC history, joining Dong Hyun Kim’s 2014 spinning elbow knockout of John Hathaway.
Conor McGregor talked a metric ton of trash over the weekend which is pretty interesting stuff to dissect. But while all his talk may be interesting there are still some interesting topics to tackle as far as this past weekend’s fights are concerned. The main and co-main event of UFC Denver saw a pretty dominating victory and an unforeseen upset cap off a night of fairly entertaining fights. Valentina Shevchenko and Jorge Masvidal left the event in considerably higher standings than when they first arrived in Colorado.
Conor McGregor talked a metric ton of trash over the weekend which is pretty interesting stuff to dissect. But while all his talk may be interesting there are still some interesting topics to tackle as far as this past weekend’s fights are concerned. The main and co-main event of UFC Denver saw a pretty dominating victory and an unforeseen upset cap off a night of fairly entertaining fights. Valentina Shevchenko and Jorge Masvidal left the event in considerably higher standings than when they first arrived in Colorado.
For Shevchenko’s part she proved that she’s a slow starter no longer. Her judo black belt came in handy when she took Julianna Pena to the ground in the first round with relative ease. She dominated top position of a majority of the opening five minutes until a Pena armbar submission threatened to put all that hard work to waste. Even though it appeared tight, by the closing seconds it was obvious that Shevchenko had escaped danger even before the bell rang to end the round. Where it seemed like Shevchenko was playing a dangerous game by remaining in the clinch with Julianna Pena, the reality is that the “Venezuelan Vixen” was in fact biting off more than she could chew. Even after getting the fight to the ground where she wanted it, Pena couldn’t land any significant offense while Shevchenko remained patient in hunting for the fight ending armbar she slapped on her opponent seemingly out of nowhere. While many agreed that Shevchenko needed to win the fight on the feet in order to secure victory, the truth of the matter is that Valentina has been hiding some tricks up her sleeves and proved that even a risky situation can indeed pay dividends.
For Donald Cerrone that proved to be less than true.
After an impressive finish of Matt Brown at December’s UFC 206, there appeared to be nothing but upside for “Cowboy” Cerrone. But it appeared that his propensity to fight anyone at any place at any time got the better of him as he faced off with Jorge Masvidal. Cerrone won most of the first round which shouldn’t be ignored. But winning most of a round means nothing if you’re almost flatlined by the end of it. Masvidal executed a flawless game plan. The kicks of Cerrone have always been a dangerous weapon, but going to the well too often can leave it dry. Cerrone threw one too many kicks and Masvidal exploded forward with well timed right hand counters over the top. Cerrone has never been the best boxer in the game and Masvidal has always shown a propensity to light guys up with his hands. Kicking was definitely the best option for Cerrone, but the lack of variety gave Masvidal some easy reads as the fight wore on.
The knock out in the second round was a bit disheartening to watch simply because of the fact that Cerrone lost in front of his hometown fans. But this is the hurt business as they say and no matter how you look at it the game is always risk versus reward. Cerrone fighting so often may have been to his detriment. Though he performs better when he’s on a roll, the fact of the matter is that there are always diminishing returns as far as this game goes and taking a sabbatical from time to time can evolve a person’s game, even a man Cerrone. For now he has to go back to the drawing board while Jorge Masvidal announces himself as a person of interest in the welterweight division.
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
The main event of UFC on Fox 23 features two of the most ferocious women in the bantamweight division as Valentina Shevchenko squares off against Julianna Pena. Both women have built up quite the resume with Shevchenko having defeated former bantam weight champion Holly Holm and Pena out dueling Cat Zingano. These two women are both extremely talented with their own specific roads to victory. Who gets the job done at UFC Denver?
The main event of UFC on Fox 23 features two of the most ferocious women in the bantamweight division as Valentina Shevchenko squares off against Julianna Pena. Both women have built up quite the resume with Shevchenko having defeated former bantam weight champion Holly Holm and Pena out dueling Cat Zingano. These two women are both extremely talented with their own specific roads to victory. Who gets the job done at UFC Denver?
Key Factors:
Striking
For many who tuned into her bout against Holly Holm, it became evident that Valentina Shevchenko operates on a level far beyond that of the average striker in the women’s bantamweight division. Her combinations were slick, her movement balanced, and the spinning attacks she threw gave a level of unpredictability that froze Holm at times. Shevchenko has been criticized by Pena for being more of a point fighter which is an unfair assessment. The reality of the situation is that Shevchenko is a controlled striker who looks for opportunities rather than wading into the fire, which just happens to be Pena’s preferred style.
Where Shevchenko is controlled and nuanced in her approach, playing the outside and countering effectively, Julianna Pena is a ball of fire who looks to explode forward with shots, get into the clinch, then do her best work by getting the fight to the ground. The biggest problem with her approach is that she usually enters the fray with little head movement leaving her susceptible to punishment when she makes her way in. While it may be an exciting style, it’s not very conduscive when facing off with a striker at the level of Shevchenko.
Shevchenko is a patient striker who will pivot on the outside, play matador, and chew up her opponents with a variety of attacks from all heights. The problem is that in the early rounds she can be a bit passive. Pena’s striking is alarming, but would be most effective if used at the initial bell in hopes of catching Shevchenko off balance. Something tells me that’s unlikely to happen.
Clinch/Grappling
Where Pena will likely have the advantage is in the grappling exchanges. She’s strong and pushes a ferocious pace once she gets the fight to the ground. She looks to punish her opponents with heavy leather and vicious elbows. The problem about all that is, she actually needs to get Shevchenko down to the ground for all that to happen. In order to do that, Pena will most likely choose to enter the clinch and try for a trip takedown which is her preferred method of getting her opponents grounded. There in lies another issue for the “Venezuelan Vixen.” Valentina Shevchenko is a judo black belt and is proficient with performing and avoiding trip takedowns.
Shevchenko was able to ground the champion Amanda Nunes in their match with a well timed counter Osoto Gari outside reap. The trip utilized in that match showcased Shevchenko’s ability to not only defend against trips, but counter effectively to end up on top. If Pena is hoping to get Shevchenko to ground then she’ll have to be aware of that fact and utilize a combination of takedowns in order to get the job done. Pure aggression alone will do her no good in this match up. Pulling guard could be an option, but Shevchenko has proven to have a strong top game of her own so the proposition is a bit of a gamble.
No matter how you slice it, this match is competitive as hell and the winner will likely be the one with the better game plan. When both fighters have heart for days, technical ability will always be the deciding factor.
Who do you think wins the main event at UFC Denver?
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
You know, it’s becoming clear that most times when a fighter loses people steadily begin to discuss their options and future. Many say that fighter A is done, that it makes no sense to continue. They’re washed up and broken down, their skill set just isn’t cutting it. In some cases it’s true, some fighters simply don’t have the skill set needed to continue to succeed or come back from a crushing defeat. One of the fighters that fit into that category is someone who has dominated the competition for years.
You know, it’s becoming clear that most times when a fighter loses people steadily begin to discuss their options and future. Many say that fighter A is done, that it makes no sense to continue. They’re washed up and broken down, their skill set just isn’t cutting it. In some cases it’s true, some fighters simply don’t have the skill set needed to continue to succeed or come back from a crushing defeat. One of the fighters that fit into that category is someone who has dominated the competition for years.
Ronda Rousey.
Now, while many people have their own opinions on whether she should continue or not, Ronda Rousey is the kind of woman who is going to weigh her options before jumping headlong in any direction. She’s not going to retire on a whim nor is she going to casually return to action. Ronda and her handlers have a plan of attack they’re formulating. If that plan does include a comeback fight then she’s going to have to make a few decisions going forward.
For The Love Of God, A New Head Coach Please
First thing’s first. Ronda Rousey is not going to get to where she needs to be by remaining where she is. While I do appreciate her loyalty to her camp, she has to realize that her approach to fighting has stagnated and if Edmond Tarverdyan can’t get her to where she needs to go then Ronda needs to consider her options.
As important as it is to be loyal and trust in your camp, Ronda Rousey should be considering if the coaching she’s receiving is actually making her grow or if things have stagnated. And the reality is that Rousey could still easily employ Tarverdyan’s services while at the same time exploring her options.
Get A Traditional Kicking Game
While many people have said that Ronda Rousey needs better boxing or that a freestyle wrestling game would serve her well, the reality is that she needs more tools than that. While wrestling and more boxing will help, MMA has become a game of distances. If you can’t close distance or get out of range then you’ll simply be a sitting duck for the sharper strikers in the division. A kicking game would go a long way to improving that. But not just any kicking style will do. If Ronda wants to come back strong then taking on a style like taekwondo or karate will undoubtedly help her to both in and out of striking range.
“The traditional martial artist suggests martial arts. Compelling stuff.”
Yeah, it may seem like bias, but with the game constantly changing, incorporating styles that live and die based on movement isn’t entirely a bad idea. When Ronda was getting her bell ring against Amanda Nunes she had opportunities to retreat and regain her wits. Problem is that if you don’t have the footwork and haven’t been trained as such then doing so is easier said. But imagine a Ronda Rousey who bounces lightly on her feet, uses Tai Sabaki (Japanese for body management), a practice utilized in many traditional arts, and has the confidence to get close to her opponent in a flash and get away just as fast. That’s a scary proposition to deal with for any woman in the bantamweight division. Ronda’s rumored bum knees would make this a fairly difficult proposition, but we’re talking about repurposing and if she is ever looking to get a win again it’s something she should consider.
What do you think can improve Ronda Rousey’s game?
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
Ego. It’s something I tell my fighters never to have. It’s helpful in its ability to push through pain, to overcome fear and doubt, telling yourself that you belong in the ring or cage. But as useful as it can be, it’s something impossible to fully control. Some say that “ego is the fuel a fighter needs to get to the top.” Still, I say it’s useless. “If you want to knock a man out, you don’t look for it. You allow it to happen.” Training camp after training camp this is the motto that is instilled into my fighters. It’s exactly the approach Dominick Cruz has followed for his entire career. That is, until UFC 207.
Ego. It’s something I tell my fighters never to have. It’s helpful in its ability to push through pain, to overcome fear and doubt, telling yourself that you belong in the ring or cage. But as useful as it can be, it’s something impossible to fully control. Some say that “ego is the fuel a fighter needs to get to the top.” Still, I say it’s useless. “If you want to knock a man out, you don’t look for it. You allow it to happen.” Training camp after training camp this is the motto that is instilled into my fighters. It’s exactly the approach Dominick Cruz has followed for his entire career. That is, until UFC 207.
Don’t be fooled, having a big ego can be a great thing. It can influence naysayers, turn enemies to friends, and even thrust individuals into positions of power like our president-elect. However, the one place where it shouldn’t be present is during a fist fight.
We can get into the whole nature of fighting from a primal angle, that ego and pride and passion are all intertwined when it comes to competing against another human being, to see who is the better combatant. In prize fighting however, there’s no place for it. Why? Because in the haze of combat there are too many variables to keep track of, too many outcomes to even the slightest mistake. Relying on your ego during a fist fight, perhaps the most high risk circumstance a person can find themselves in, can prove to be fighters undoing. For Dominick Cruz it’s a lesson that he had to learn the hard way.
In the co-main event of UFC 207 we got to see Cody Garbrandt rise to the occasion. It’s interesting to note that the challenger had a tremendous ego all his own leading into the fight. When interviewed by the press Garbrandt’s simple reply was that he would knock the champion out. Things didn’t quite turn out as he expected, yet his prideful boasts was something that he thrived on. For Dominick Cruz however, it was nothing but hubris. It must be noted that Cruz has been one of my favorite fighters simply for the fact that he never played into his opponent’s game. Rather than get swept up in the moment, look to trade leather and risk it all, he would always choose to take precaution and play to his strengths. Staying on the outside, being unpredictable, these are the qualities that make Dominick Cruz a cut above the rest.
Standing toe to toe with an opponent has never been what made Cruz great. He was superior because he wasn’t like those other “sluggers” who decide to stay in the pocket a trade blows. Cruz has been all about being elusive, making fighters miss, then making them pay. The Dominick Cruz that battled Cody Garbrandt for the bantamweight belt was not the same man we saw out dueling TJ Dillashaw in January. Instead we saw a man willing to trade blows, willing to stay in the pocket and trade leather. In other words, an ordinary fighter.
Cody Garbrandt on the other hand proved that ego can in fact sharpen a fighter’s skills. Rather than rush forward and look for the finish, Garbrandt instead fought a patient and balanced fight. Despite the fact that he’d been campaigning for a knock out for weeks before their fight, Garbrandt showed more maturity than he led on. With the raw power in his favor he didn’t have to look for the knock out and simply waited for his moments to shine. Cody slipped, he ripped, and he made Cruz pay for every time he remained in the pocket.
Dominick Cruz endeavored to knock the challenger out, something completely uncharacteristic of the bantamweight king. He believed Cody was emotionally invested in the bout, that the young gun would fold under the pressure. But you can’t help but feel that the now former bantamweight champion fell prey to the very ideology that he accused the young Garbrandt of possessing. Ego and pride may get you to the top. It may even keep you there. But as the old saying goes, pride goes before the fall.
Dominick Cruz was a great champion, a true inspiration. To come back from three ACL surgeries and once again capture UFC gold took pride. It took ego. But it also took humility. It was hard to watch such an intelligent fighter like Cruz throw caution to the wind and stand in front of Garbrandt hoping to test his mettle. Ego returned Cruz to the throne yet it also caused his downfall. It will be that same unruly mistress that will get him back to the top of the mountain. I still think ego is useless come fight time. But it is ego that will carry Cruz back to the top of the mountain. Like it or not, it’s a balancing act that can be the difference between glory and defeat.
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
She got hit in the face. That would probably be the meathead’s quick and easy version of what went wrong for former women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey when she faced off against the new champ Amanda Nunes. That certainly isn’t an incorrect statement by any means, but it’s not really telling the full story of proceedings. Ronda Rousey, her coach Edmond Tarverdyan, and the UFC made some pretty big gaffs leading up to UFC 207.
She got hit in the face. That would probably be the meathead’s quick and easy version of what went wrong for former women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey when she faced off against the new champ Amanda Nunes. That certainly isn’t an incorrect statement by any means, but it’s not really telling the full story of proceedings. Ronda Rousey, her coach Edmond Tarverdyan, and the UFC made some pretty big gaffs leading up to UFC 207.
Media Black Out
So, let’s talk about the fact that Ronda Rousey refused to fulfill her media obligations leading up to the last event of 2016. Speaking to a few colleagues about this situation, it seemed that many people didn’t have too much of a problem with Rousey skipping media scrums and interviews. The major problem I had with all this is that Rousey and her camp were choosing to look at the media as a form of distraction, as if skipping out on the interviews before the fight would somehow elevate her fighting skills to a new level. The unfortunate thing is that while less distractions can sometimes help performance, there was no evidence indicating that media obligations is what led to her first loss in the cage.
In a sense, by going through with the media blackout, it gave Ronda and her camp a false sense of security. Media or no, it’s all about the skill and will once you get inside the cage. Everything else is dust. The UFC allowing her to skip all the media didn’t help things either. She certainly helped to revolutionize the sport, but at the same time codling the once dominant champion wasn’t going to help her confidence but damage it in the long run.
Little Improvements
What I saw at the opening bell of the UFC 207 main event wasn’t a Ronda Rousey who had made major improvements since her loss to Holly Holm. In fact, because of how quickly the fight ended, it’s hard to say what, if anything Ronda was able to learn during her time away from the cage. What was evident is her lack of improvement where strategy as well as footwork is concerned. She came straight forward on the same line, offered no feints or fakes, and looked pretty stiff out there. It seemed like Nunes had little issue dismantling Rousey simply because she was there to be hit. The former champion has always been aggressive, but when you don’t evolve your game, add new tools, or keep your opponent guessing then guess what? It’s only a matter of time before you’re figured out.
The Coaching Problem
Now the biggest issue I had with this match up has already been stated above. Ronda Rousey didn’t look like a fighter who took a year off to improve her game. In fact, she seemed even less impressive this time around. Nunes made a statement after her victory suggesting that Ronda’s coach, Edmond Tarverdyan, did her a disservice and I’m inclined to agree. While Ronda Rousey’s ability to hit mitts has improved, her footwork hasn’t seemed to improve all that much. Distance management is the most important dimension of striking and in MMA it’s importance is even more paramount than in boxing or kickboxing. Understand the range in which your opponent can land strikes, enter for takedowns, and have the best chance of winning is overwhelmingly important.
From what we’ve seen so far out of Edmond Tarverdyan as a coach is that he taught Ronda how to throw a decent punch. We haven’t seen feints out of Ronda, no pumping the jab to gauge distance, little to no kicks, and overall little fluidity in her striking combinations. Ronda’s game is all about closing distance, yet we haven’t seen anything to indicate that her abilities to do so with sophistication has improved since her last bout. Either she wasn’t training to learn how to close the gap or she simply had a hard time in doing so against a fighter of Nunes’ caliber.
Total blame can’t be forced on Tarverdyan, but at this point you have to wonder if Ronda had the best preparation possible for this fight with the coaching staff on hand.
Where do you think Ronda Rousey goes from here?
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
