Tag: Caged In

Hector Lombard’s UFC Tonight Interview Effectively Cures Insomnia

Lots of people are looking forward to Hector Lombard’s UFC debut. I’m one of them. I’ve always been a sucker for seeing guys from another promotion debut for their competitors. I think this desire, at least on a personal level for me, can be trace…

Lots of people are looking forward to Hector Lombard‘s UFC debut. I’m one of them. 

I’ve always been a sucker for seeing guys from another promotion debut for their competitors. I think this desire, at least on a personal level for me, can be traced back to my old days of hardcore pro wrestling fandom.

Some of the most visceral memories of my childhood involve seeing Ric Flair appear on World Wrestling Federation television for the first time, or that guy “Mean” Mark Callus suddenly growing a fetish for dead people and appearing as The Undertaker.

But that’s not the only thing that interests me about Lombard’s UFC debut. This is a man riding a 25-fight winning streak, and he’s finally appearing in the biggest promotion on the planet. We never got to see Fedor Emelianenko debut in the UFC during the height of his winning streak—the subtly brilliant minds at M-1 Global were responsible for that.

And while Lombard is not Emelianenko—though I’d probably give Hector the advantage if the two were to fight in 2012—his winning streak and vicious style is enough to make his UFC debut a highly-anticipated moment for me and others just like me.

Lombard nearly killed that interest dead during an appearance on Tuesday’s edition of UFC Tonight. 

Look, I’m not saying that every single guy doing an interview needs to be Chael P. Sonnen. That’s impossible, and the sport would be hard to handle if everyone out there did an over-the-top Billy Graham impersonation. It’d be too much.

But Lombard was being interviewed about the biggest fight of his career. He’d finally made it to the big stage and was being featured on one of the UFC’s shows that caters to the hardcore segment of their audience. The least he could’ve done was show a little enthusiasm. 

Instead, we got a version of Lombard that looked completely uninterested in what was going on and sounded like he was about to fall asleep. The evidence is in the video above. See for yourself.

Not every fight needs over-the-top promotion or a hype job. But at the rate Lombard is going, he’ll actively turn away viewers who might actually be interested in seeing what he can do against Brian Stann. That’s not what the UFC needs for its fourth FOX outing, and that’s not what Lombard needs if he wants to gain new fans.

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Josh Koscheck Thinks He Beat Johny Hendricks, and I Do Too

I watched UFC on FOX 3 last Saturday in a bar. More specifically, I watched the card in the bar at Buffalo Wild Wings. This is not an uncommon practice. Back when I lived in Vegas, John Morgan from MMAjunkie.com and I would spend hours at the loca…

I watched UFC on FOX 3 last Saturday in a bar. More specifically, I watched the card in the bar at Buffalo Wild Wings. 

This is not an uncommon practice. Back when I lived in Vegas, John Morgan from MMAjunkie.com and I would spend hours at the local Buffalo Wild Wings. You know the show Cheers? BW3 was our Cheers. I’m not kidding—not even a little bit—when I tell you that we spent a good portion of last Christmas at Buffalo Wild Wings.

I’ve gotten pretty good at watching fights at BW3, even when they refuse to turn the sound on. Or when the bartenders don’t even know there is a UFC show scheduled that night, much less a UFC show on free television. That’s what happened this time around, but we finally got the television tuned to FOX just in time to see the ref call for Lavar Johnson and Pat Barry to trade heavy, leathery fists.

I say all of this, I guess, to say this: I didn’t watch the Josh Koscheck vs. Johny Hendricks fight as closely as I usually do. It just wasn’t possible. I didn’t see every single solitary second of the fight, and I didn’t have my trusty pen and paper to take minute-by-minute notes.

But after watching the conclusion of the third round, I was certain Koscheck had won a close 29-28 decision, mostly because that’s how I scored the fight. I thought Josh might even get a 30-27 score here or there, if there were any judges sitting cageside that didn’t know what they were watching.

So you can imagine my bewilderment when Hendricks was awarded the win. 

Now, I’ve gone back and watched the fight since Saturday night’s wing-and-beer festival ended. And I still find myself coming to the same conclusion: Koscheck won the first and third rounds with more effective striking, and the official numbers from FightMetric—the official supplier of statistics for the UFC—back me up. 

In the first round, Hendricks landed 18 significant strikes out of 25 overall landed strikes. Koscheck landed 14 overall strikes, but all were significant. And 16 of Hendricks’ strikes were leg kicks, while 11 of Koscheck’s strikes were to the head.

Now, I’m not a guy who says leg kicks aren’t worth anything. They obviously are. But it was also obvious that Koscheck landed the more valuable strikes in the first round, and judge Ricardo Almeida—the only former professional fighter on the panel—agreed with me. 

Hendricks dominated the second round. There’s no question about that one. And the third round was close enough that it could’ve gone either way. I’m not here to say this was a blowout by Koscheck, but I do believe he did enough with his strikes to the body and his clinch work in the third round to earn the decision.

This was an interesting fight. With Carlos Condit on the sidelines, waiting for Georges St-Pierre to return in November, Hendricks will have a long time to sit and wait for his promised title shot. Why would Hendricks sit for what will likely be a year or more in the prime of his career? That doesn’t make sense.

I’ll let Koscheck propose a different idea:

 

 

I like it. Let’s make it happen, UFC.

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UFC 148 Preview: Bleacher Report Hangs out with the Real Chael Sonnen

It’s closing in on midnight on a Thursday at the posh Hilton Hotel in downtown Atlanta. As a married guy with two young kids, this is uncharted territory. If I can make it up through Sunday Night Football, I consider it an accomplishment worth tel…

It’s closing in on midnight on a Thursday at the posh Hilton Hotel in downtown Atlanta. As a married guy with two young kids, this is uncharted territory. If I can make it up through Sunday Night Football, I consider it an accomplishment worth telling the world about. 

But I’ve got my game face on. One of many high-end hotels in an area that features local watering holes like Hooters and the Hard Rock Cafe, a strip mall made up of skyscrapers and absolutely lacking the slightest charm, it stands out for one reason—it’s fight week and this is the fighter hotel of choice.

My colleagues and friends are all about half a dozen drinks in and flying high. Professional fighters are seemingly everywhere, signing autographs and chatting up the press.

Tony, the Bleacher Report cameraman I’ve dragged out of bed for a $20 unmetered cab ride of about six city blocks, and I are the sober ones, with eyes for none of it. We’re waiting for UFC middleweight star Chael Sonnen.

 

It All Begins

It started with an interview. Not just any interview, but one of the worst of my whole career. I had spent a lot of time working with Sonnen’s camp, helping the Team Quest guys with a college course they were teaching, offering my own brand of often unsolicited advice and helping their young fighters get their names out to the world.

So when I asked for a favor, something I almost never do, I was expecting the best. The real Chael Sonnen.

Instead, I got Chael P. You know Chael P. He’s the guy who holds the title belt he bought online up in front of the cameras and calls himself the champ. The guy who lambasts journalists like my buddy Jon Lane. The guy who never met a ridiculous soundbite he didn’t fall immediately in love with.

Now, don’t get it twisted. I like Chael P. He’s a throwback to my youth as a wrestling fan. He’s Nick Bockwinkle, Ric Flair and Ted DiBiase rolled into one amazing package. Best of all? He’s real.

At that moment, however? After investing my time in hard-hitting interviews with Sonnen’s training team and longtime friends like Olympic silver medalist Matt Lindland, I didn’t want any part of Chael P.

I certainly didn’t want a watered down, tired, rehashed version. To say I was displeased with our interview is a bit of an understatement. I was livid.

Half Irish and half Welsh, I don’t do livid well. I called to let Chael have it, leaving a message I assumed would not just burn any bridges I’d built, but torch them beyond all repair.

It was not the smooth play—but what can I say? When my blood is up, I’m not a smooth man. And my blood is always at a near boil.

I was shocked when I heard back from Sonnen. Doubly shocked at his message. He agreed with me. “I owe you one buddy.” And so here we were, traveling to UFC 145 to collect.

After settling in with Chael, his lovely girlfriend Brittney and one of his close confidantes, we got a little of both Chaels. Chael Sonnen, the remarkably smart and articulate guy with a wide range of interests, and Chael P. Sonnen, a man interested only in kicking butt and taking names.

I enjoyed my time with both. I hope you do too.

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Alan Belcher Says Michael Bisping Is a Professional Point Fighter

Alan Belcher’s first-round win over Rousimar Palhares at last Saturday’s UFC on FOX 3 card was the biggest of his career.From a purely athletic perspective, it was an important fight for Belcher. Palhares was, or is, one of the most terrifying guys in …

Alan Belcher’s first-round win over Rousimar Palhares at last Saturday’s UFC on FOX 3 card was the biggest of his career.

From a purely athletic perspective, it was an important fight for Belcher. Palhares was, or is, one of the most terrifying guys in the division, especially when it comes to submissions. Belcher didn’t just beat Palhares; he took everything Palhares could give him on the ground and still escaped to finish the fight.

The fight also proved that Belcher is deserving of consideration against the top guys in the division. If not for a highly-disputed loss to Yoshihiro Akiyama back at UFC 100 — a fight just about everyone else in the universe besides the three judges sitting cageside figured Belcher won — the Biloxi native would have a 7-fight win streak against increasingly tough competition.

So what’s next for Belcher?

The top of the middleweight division is becoming increasingly crowded. Champion Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen fight in July, and new signee Hector Lombard faces Brian Stann in August, with the winner likely earning a title shot.

Though Belcher called out Silva after defeating Palhares, it looks like he’ll have to wait awhile before getting his shot. Never fear, though — Belcher has the perfect next opponent in mind: 

I think a fight with Michael Bisping makes a lot of sense. I mean, Boetsch looks like a beast at 185, and I’ve got to admit, he looks pretty scary. The other guys in the division, in my mind, I’ve already beat them so many times, and I know everything about them, and I know they don’t have anything really threatening. Boetsch has got some pretty powerful tools, and is a pretty scary dude.

Bisping, of course, is getting to be a professional point fighter, and he’s kind of hard to beat like that. That fight would be a nice payday, and a big fight for the media, so I’m kind of leaning towards that one. It would make sense, and the fans would love it. I can almost feel the energy I would get from the fans if I put him to sleep.

I’ve got to admit, this is an intriguing idea. If Bisping isn’t in the title picture — and it’s a shame if that’s actually the case — then pairing him up with Belcher in a contender’s bout later this year would be just about the perfect fit.

Does Belcher have a point when he says that Bisping is becoming a professional point fighter? Sure. Bisping finished Jorge Rivera last year, and he finished an exhausted Mayhem Miller in December, but for the most part, Bisping has been content to ride out decisions. He’s been highly effective in that role, to be sure. But that style hasn’t helped him earn any title shots in a promotion that values entertainment almost as much as they do winning. Just ask Jon Fitch how that philosophy worked for him.

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UFC on Fox: How to Fix the Network Television Ratings Dilemma

It started with such promise—a heavyweight title fight on live network television. The response was even better than expected. More than eight million people watched the bout between Junior dos Santos and Cain Velasquez. One shot to Velasquez’s c…

It started with such promise—a heavyweight title fight on live network television. The response was even better than expected. More than eight million people watched the bout between Junior dos Santos and Cain Velasquez. One shot to Velasquez’s chin, and a star was born.

Although ratings dipped somewhat for the second show in Chicago, it still delivered in a big way. Behind Rashad Evans and Chael Sonnen, two of the sport’s most interesting and polarizing fighters, the promotion managed to attract 4.7 million fans.

Last weekend, however, the ship hit the iceberg. Just 2.4 million fans tuned in to watch Nate Diaz and Jim Miller headline a fun night of fights. That’s barely more than the UFC drew for live events on Spike television, despite being available, for free, to almost anyone with a television.

But the UFC isn’t sunk—yet. Despite, falling to sixth place in its time slot, hope remains that MMA is still a mainstream sport. This is fixable. Here’s how.

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Chael Sonnen’s UFC Middleweight Championship Reign Gets Better Every Day

There are very few things in the MMA world more entertaining than Chael P. Sonnen.I understand that he’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s OK. If you’re the kind of dude who goes Hulk Smash every time Sonnen opens his mouth, you’re probably not the…

There are very few things in the MMA world more entertaining than Chael P. Sonnen.

I understand that he’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s OK. If you’re the kind of dude who goes Hulk Smash every time Sonnen opens his mouth, you’re probably not the target audience anyway. 

Sonnen isn’t targeting mixed martial arts fans. He’s targeting mainstream fans, and he’s done so very successfully.

Jim Rome, who hosts one of the largest sports radio programs in North America, calls Sonnen the undisputed king of sports trash talk. Coming from Rome, that’s quite a compliment, considering that Rome’s empire was built on the back of a legendary TV interview with former Rams quarterback Jim Everett in the mid 1990s.

The point is, Sonnen’s one of the few MMA fighters to get regular play on sports television and radio. He’s obviously doing something right.

On The MMA Hour on Monday, Sonnen continued a storyline that’s one of the oldest in the pro wrestling storyline book—pretending he’s the world champion despite losing in his title fight. 

I am the champion, so I will always have my belt. Will Anderson bring his fake belt? Yeah, he most likely will, and I think it’s embarrassing he has to do that. I think what he’s doing is he’s seeing the influx of new viewers the FOX deal got us, he went out to do his level best to misinform the new viewers into believing he’s champion, and he went out and got himself a fake belt. I think it’s embarrassing. I would never do that. I think it’s shameful. I think it’s disrespectful to everything that I’ve done and I’ve earned in the sport, but he continues to do it. So I’m going to destroy him once and for all, finally, on July 7, live and only on pay-per-view.

I find this very hard to believe, but there are people out there who take Sonnen quite literally when he says things like this.

Case in point, I have a buddy who called me yesterday and said, “Chael isn’t actually the champion, is he? Anderson beat him.”

I shook my head and gently explained that no, he is not the actual world champion. He asked me why, if he’s not actually the champion, does he go around saying he is?

Here’s why.

At the end of the day, it’s better for your bank account if you anger people so greatly that they will gladly pay $54.95 to watch you lose to the reigning champion. Without his mouth, Sonnen would’ve had a difficult time scoring a title shot when he did, and do you really think we’d be discussing this rematch two years later? Do you think this rematch would be one of the most anticipated fights in UFC history? 

The answer is no.

Sonnen is earning his paycheck each and every time he does media, and he’s turning Silva into a bigger star in the process.

UFC 148 will be Chael P. Sonnen’s crowning achievement, even if Silva knocks him out in the very first round.

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