(Griggs might not have had the best ground game in the biz, but he made up for it in pure funkatude.)
It must be spring, Potato Nation, because in order to make room for their new batch of Strikeforce fighters, the UFC has been doing a little cleaning out of their roster as of late. In total, 9 fighters have been axed as of this morning, including everyone’s favorite muttonchops aficionado, Chad Griggs. MMA Opinion has the full list, so join us after the jump to find out which fighters will no longer be punctuating the undercards of FUEL and FX events.
Chad Griggs: 11-1 before entering the UFC, Griggs’ lack of a ground game was quickly exposed in his debut, where he was choked out by Travis Browne in under three minutes at UFC 145. After dropping to light heavyweight, Griggs returned at UFC 154 to face PRIDE veteran and feared striker Cyrille Diabate. Those who were expecting a slugfest left disappointed, however, as Griggs was choked out in the first round again, just 15 seconds later than his first fight.
Marcus LeVesseur: Despite being one of the more decorated wrestlers to enter the UFC in some time, “The Prospect” quickly showed that he was simply not well rounded enough to hang in the sport’s highest promotion. After dominating the beginning of his UFC debut against TUF 12 alum Cody McKenzie, LeVesseur became McKenzietine victim #11 at just over three minutes into the first round. After scoring a snoozer of split decision over Carlo Prater in his next fight, Levesseur was absolutely savaged by Abel Trujillo at UFC on FOX: Henderson vs. Diaz.
(Griggs might not have had the best ground game in the biz, but he made up for it in pure funkatude.)
It must be spring, Potato Nation, because in order to make room for their new batch of Strikeforce fighters, the UFC has been doing a little cleaning out of their roster as of late. In total, 9 fighters have been axed as of this morning, including everyone’s favorite muttonchops aficionado, Chad Griggs. MMA Opinion has the full list, so join us after the jump to find out which fighters will no longer be punctuating the undercards of FUEL and FX events.
Chad Griggs: 11-1 before entering the UFC, Griggs’ lack of a ground game was quickly exposed in his debut, where he was choked out by Travis Browne in under three minutes at UFC 145. After dropping to light heavyweight, Griggs returned at UFC 154 to face PRIDE veteran and feared striker Cyrille Diabate. Those who were expecting a slugfest left disappointed, however, as Griggs was choked out in the first round again, just fifteen seconds later than his first fight.
Marcus LeVesseur: Despite being one of the more decorated wrestlers to enter the UFC in some time, “The Prospect” quickly showed that he was simply not well rounded enough to hang in the sport’s highest promotion. After dominating the beginning of his UFC debut against TUF 12 alum Cody McKenzie, LeVesseur became McKenzietine victim #11 at just over three minutes into the first round. After scoring a snoozer of split decision over Carlo Prater in his next fight, Levesseur was absolutely savaged by Abel Trujillo at UFC on FOX: Henderson vs. Diaz.
Joey Gambino: After getting sliced, diced, and eventually submitted by Steven Siler in his promotional debut at UFC on FX 4, Gambino was outpointed by TUF 14 winner Diego Brandao at UFC 153.
Jared Papazian: 0-3 in the octagon, followed up a majority decision loss to Mike Easton at UFC on FX: Guillard vs. Miller with a submission loss to Dustin Pague at UFC on FX 3. He was given a final chance at the TUF 16 Finale, but was utterly dominated (30-25 x2, 30-26) by Tim Elliot in a performance that somehow netted both men a FOTN award.
Jeff Houghland: 1-2 in the promotion, with UD losses to Yves Jabouin and Takeya Mizugaki in successive contests.
Nick Penner: 0-2, with successive (T)KO losses to Anthony Perosh and Cody Donovan at UFC on FX 2 and UFC on FX 6, repectively.
John Cofer: The TUF 15 alum who was head kick KO’d by Justin Lawrence at the TUF 15 Finale last June before suffering an armbar defeat to Mike Rio at the TUF 16 Finale.
Yasuhiro Urishitani: a.k.a the highly ranked flyweight who was blistered by Joseph Benavidez in the opening round of the flyweight tournament at UFC on FX 2, then outpointed by John Lineker at UFC on FUEL 6.
Henry Martinez: 1-2 in the promotion, Martinez followed up a highly entertaining split decision loss to Matt Riddle at UFC 143 with a split decision win of his own at UFC on FX: Johnson vs. McCall. However, Martinez would find himself on the wrong end of a Daron Cruickshank highlight reel, walk-off KO at UFC on FOX: Henderson vs. Diaz. A sour note to end on, for sure.
Before the UFC 154 main card fireworks kick off on pay-per-view, FX is presenting four bouts of preliminary action from Montreal’s Bell Centre, including a battle between fellow Canadian strikers Sam Stout and John Makdessi, and Patrick Cote‘s Octagon return against Alessio Sakara. Your good friend Anthony Gannon will be piling round-by-round results after the jump, starting at 8 p.m. ET. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest.
Before the UFC 154 main card fireworks kick off on pay-per-view, FX is presenting four bouts of preliminary action from Montreal’s Bell Centre, including a battle between fellow Canadian strikers Sam Stout and John Makdessi, and Patrick Cote‘s Octagon return against Alessio Sakara. Your good friend Anthony Gannon will be piling round-by-round results after the jump, starting at 8 p.m. ET. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest.
Sup, y’all. It’s time to get this shit poppin’ up in here. I’m your host/liveblogger for these here undercard fights this evening, and if there’s a sudden absence of posting allow me to apologize in advance. It’s because the Sam Adams and awful wings I just consumed are instigating a rebellion that needs to be squashed, Longshanks style.
But I’m not going to allow this to get me down. We got some fights to watch, and I intend to have some fun this weekend as I may very well be walking into a human resources nightmare/firing Monday morning.
I have a semi-private bathroom at work. Technically, it’s “public.” But it’s a lovely little john, one throne, directly behind my work station. So naturally I consider it mine, and look upon anyone who dares enter it as a threat to my security. Occasionally, some selfish interloper will be in there when I have to handle my handle, and I’m forced to set them straight. I’ve taken to memorizing all of my co-worker’s shoes so I know who the intruder is and can take the appropriate course of action. The other day, a Vietnamese fellow I know pretty well was in there. I decided it would be fun to get all Platoon on his ass. “La Dai! La Dai! Get the fuck out of the shitter,” I shouted as I burst into the room. I heard him jump, and then he started yelling, loud. Like he was really pissed. We’re pretty cool, he’s one of the very few fellow MMA fans I work with, so I figured it was all good to get a little derogatory.
Well, what I didn’t know, but do now, is that he came to this country as a young child, adopted by an American family, after being displaced in the war. Apparently, that little bit of trauma took the humor out of it for him. I still think it was funny as shit, and I apologized whole-heartedly, but you know how PC all this shit is. Hopefully if he rats me out I’ll just get some sensitivity training or something.
But whatever, I won’t let it spoil my weekend because right now I’m watching fights on Facebook while simultaneously playing the Kevin Bacon game in my head, and I gotta tell ya, it just doesn’t get any better than this. Patrick Cote to Randy Couture in The Ultimate Fighter 4, Randy to Sylvester Stallone in The Expendables, Stallone to Robert De Niro in Cop land, and De Niro to Kevin Bacon in Sleepers. How do you like them apples, bitches? It always comes down to either Sleepers or A Few Good Men, doesn’t it.Sure, I had to mix a television show into a movie themed game, but shit man, it’s the undercards. Gotta give a fellow a little latitude. Eh, fuck that game anyway. It ceased being fun with Sleepers. I mean shit, a movie with Kevin Bacon, Brad Pitt, and De Niro? It’s almost as if the casting director assembled the actors with the sole intention of destructing the greatest parlor game since Charades.
Anyway, forget all this babbling nonsense, its fight time. And while this may not be the best undercard ever assembled, it aint half bad. We have a main show of Patrick Cote vs Alessio Sakara, Chad Griggs is taking his pimp-ass mutton chops down to 205 to face Cyrille Diabate, and if you ever watched Oz you know damn well Cyrille is no one to trifle with. Also, we have Antonio Carvahlo vs Rodrigo Damm in a desperate struggle for relevance, and Sam Stout vs John Makdessi in a pretty decent stand up affair.
First, let’s get the Facebook results out of the way:
Darren Elkins busts Steven Siler up for a unanimous decision W.
Ivan Menjivar defeats Azamat Gashimov by first round armbar.
Matt Riddle defeats John McGuire by unanimous decision.
First up is Rodrigo Damm vs Antonio Carvahlo
Round 1: They touch gloves and it is on, yo. Carvahlo is in stalk mode. Damm attacks with a right, answered with a leg kick by Carvahlo. Damm with a left hook, blocked. They trade leg kicks. Carvahlo misses a high kick. Damm lands a powerful low kick, and answered by Carvahlo. Lots of leg kicks, and Rogan has a hard-on. Damn throws one, checked. Damm misses a straight right, while Carvahlo misses a low kick. Damm sticks a jab. Carvahlo with another low kick, and Damm’s leg is looking jacked up. Front kick by Carvahlo, Damm answers with a stiff jab. Carvahlo ends with another leg kick. Close round, 10-9 for Carvahlo.
Anderson Silva is icing down Damm’s leg, and it looks like chopmeat.
Round 2: Carvahlo attacks the leg, misses. Then hits it. And again. Damm sticks a nice front kick to the body. Carvahlo goes high, blocked. Man, Carvahlo lands to the leg again. Then to the inside. Damm with another front kick. Carvahlo misses a high kick and falls down. Damm jumps on him, but they scramble and now they’re back up. Damm misses a kick. So does Carvahlo. Damm charges forward, lands a decent left. Carvahlo is bleeding from the shnoz. Damm lands a shot, Carvahlo with another leg kick. Damm responds, then sticks a nice jab, fallowed by a front kick. Damm’s leg is getting busted up, but he’s getting the better of the punching exchanges. 10-9 Damm.
Round 3: Brittany is SO fine. Carvahlo with a head kick, misses. Goes low, lands inside, misses outside. Damm with a front kick, not much on it. The natives are getting restless. Carvahlo lands to the leg again. Damm answers. Damm with a stiff jab, knocks Carvahlo’s mouthpiece out. The camera zooms in on Damm’s leg, and it is fuuucked up. Damm charges forward, lands a good one. They trade hard leg kicks. Damm with another stiff shot to the mug. Good head movement by Carvahlo, avoids Damm’s combination. Carvahlo with a left. Inside leg kick by Carvahlo. Carvahlo misses a hige overhand right, and a high kick. Damm connects with a right. Carvahlo with a straight right, misses a flying knee. Good fight, gotta give that last round to Carvahlo.
The decision is in and it’s split, 29-28 x 2 for Carvahlo, 29-28 for Damm.
Sam Stout and John Makdessi are next, and Makdessi is on a two fight losing skid. He needs this one. Stout is coming off a fairly meaningless decision win over Spencer Fisher. You never know which Stout is going to show up. If the sluggish Stout shows, Makdessi has a good shot here. If Stout is on point, he has a habit of winning FOTN checks.
Round 1: Stout rocking a very stylish hairdo, looking suave. Here we go. Stout with a left jab. Makdessi avoids a few shots. He goes to the body. Stout with a nice hook, Makdessi answers with a stiff jab. Stout misses, Makdessi counters nicely. Stout to the body. Makdessi with another nice jab. Oh nice, Makdessi lands a side kick, and Stout whiffs a left hook. Makdessi with anothe rjab, Stout answers with a good straight right. Stout with a leg kick, finishes to the body. Stout with another leg kick, Makdessi goes to the grill, and again. Stout with an uppercut, skims. Makdessi with another nice jab. Stout shoots in, stuffed. They trade jabs, Makdessi’s lands better. Stout goes hard to the body, lands a jab, misses a right. Makdessi lands a jab that whacks Stout’s head back. Stout misses a combo. Damn, another nice jab, Stout answers with a hard low kick. Tough round to score, I’ll go with Makdessi 10-9.
Round 2: Stout with a low kick, Makdessi with a head kick, not much on it. Another nice jab by Makdessi. Stout attacking, but Makdessi moving very well. Stout misses a right, Makdessi lands a counter. Stout charges forward, lands a decent right hand. Stout shoots, stuffed again. Stout with a jab, Makdessi with a straight right. Stout goes low, then lands a right. Makdessi with the inside leg kick. Stout sticks a jab. Makdessi lands a hook. Another sweet jab. They trade, both land a couple good ones to the head. Makdessi ducks an overhand right, lands a jab. They trade leg kicks. Good exchange, Makdessi lands about four nice shots to Stout’s one. Body kick by Makdessi blocked. Stout misses a jab, Makdessi answers with his own. Stout gets stuffed again. Nice action, Makdessi again, 10-9, but close.
Round 3: Switch kick by Makdessi, not much on it. Damn, then lands a decent hook kick. Followed by a leg kick. Stout pawing, trying to get something going here. He lands a left. Stout to the body, clips Makdessi’s chin. Stour eats a shot as he stalks. Makdessi with a very good left, knocks Stout’s new hairdo around. Stout with a jab, eats another jab. Stout with a hard leg kick. Another jab by Makdessi, and then lands two good shots in a row. Stout to the body. Makdessi slips a punch, lands two of his own. He’s just doing a better job of countering than Stout is of attacking. Stout with a jab. Makdessi sticks another jab. They trade hooks. Makdessi slipping and moving, and landing shots. The round ends, and I give the edge to Makdessi.
The decision is 30-27, 29-28, and 30-27 for John Makdessi. Good win, he looked great.
Cyrille Diabate vs Chad Griggs is next, and rumor has it they have a bet where the winner gets to sleep with the loser’s girl, while the loser has to French kiss Anthony Perosh’s toe. Main objective in life: Do Not Fucking Lose.
Round 1: It’s on. Diabate is so damn long. Diabate lands a bomb and Griggs goes down. Diabate jumps on him, works to side control. Griggs pushes him off, gets up, but Diabate hurls his ass to the ground, Hendo style. Diabate back to side control, and Griggs is looking rough. He works his way to his feet, but eats a nasty knee, and another. Griggs up, but Diabate drags him down again. Diabate gets on Grigg’s back, and scores himself a sweet rear naked choke.
Less than two and a half minutes into it, Cyrille Diabate gets the submission victory.
Ivan Menjivar and Azamat Gashimov are up from the Facebook portion.
Round 1: Azamat sticks a shot, gets the takedown. Menjivar with a tight guard, looking for an arm. Azamat with a hammer fist, Ivan goes for another arm. Oof, Menjivar lands an upkick, and Azamat is back in Menjivar’s guard. Azamat trying to work some ground and pound. Menjivar with a nasty armbar, belly down baby. Azamat taps.
That was sweet, and Azamat’s arm looks like it’s damaged.
Patrick Cote and Alessio Sakara are up next, and it’s hard to imagine that the loser of this one won’t end up on the unemployment line. Sakara has been around forever, fighting exclusively in the UFC since 2005, but at 6-6 with a No-Contest, and riding a two fight losing skid, his job could be on the line. Cote isn’t setting the Octagon on fire either, dropping his last four, but he’s tearing up the regional circuit, and any time the UFC rolls into Canada they give him a ring, losses be damned. Not too sure how long that hometown favorability will continue though. Cote needs a win very badly.
Round 1: The Predator does not look good, he’s a tad flabby in the midsection. Here we go. Cote opens with an inside leg kick. Sakara opens up a combo, Cote covers up well. Cote with a few decent shots, Sakara is hurt. But Sakara comes back with some devestating elbows. Cote is down, and Sakara is bashing him in the side of the head with cartoon hammer fists. And it’s over, the ref steps in and saves Cote.
Okay, a couple of those were to the back of the head, not so much the side, but hey man, that shit happens.
There is some controversy here. The officials are discussing it. I counted three shots clearly to the back of the head during the replay. The crowd is letting Sakara have it. The decision is in, and it’s a disqualification win for Patrick Cote. That’s a bitch for Sakara, he had Cote badly hurt from the elbows. But those were brutal illegal shots. Anyway, Cote gets a much needed W.
Well, that’s it for me. I want to thank all two of you for joining me. Be sure to stick around the CP for the main card, up next.
(So there we were, about to face off at the UFC 154 press conference when Georges finally decided to POP THE QUESTION!! ERMAGERD!!)
A fortune cookie wise man once told me that the frustrating thing about questions is that they do not always have answers. This Saturday night, Zuffa’s globetrotting MMA organization returns to the province of Quebec — the birthplace of the UFC in Canada — to answer the burning question: Who is the undisputed king of the 170 lbs division? GSP may be the PPV king of the UFC, but during his 20 month layoff due to reconstructive knee surgery, Carlos Condit has quietly and somewhat controversially asserted himself as the welterweight division’s top dog.
With a current record of 3-2 over the past 5 UFC PPV’s, the GAE’s back is against the wall and in need of another profitable evening if it is to be still considered as the champion of the odds breakers, bloggers and “professional gamblers” of the mixed martial arts world (which it totally is). So follow us after the jump as we highlight select bouts from the undercard and all contests on the main card in an attempt to save those who laid 1600 bucks on a Franklin to beat Le ticket from the man in the black trench coat. All odds courtesy of BestFightOdds.com.
(So there we were, about to face off at the UFC 154 press conference when Georges finally decided to pop the question! ERMAGERD!!)
A fortune cookie wise man once told me that the frustrating thing about questions is that they do not always have answers. This Saturday night, Zuffa’s globetrotting MMA organization returns to the province of Quebec — the birthplace of the UFC in Canada — to answer the burning question: Who is the undisputed king of the 170 lbs division? GSP may be the PPV king of the UFC, but during his 20 month layoff due to reconstructive knee surgery, Carlos Condit has quietly and somewhat controversially asserted himself as the welterweight division’s top dog.
With a current record of 3-2 over the past 5 UFC PPV’s, the GAE’s back is against the wall and in need of another profitable evening if it is to be still considered as the champion of the odds breakers, bloggers and “professional gamblers” of the mixed martial arts world (which it totally is). So follow us after the jump as we highlight select bouts from the undercard and all contests on the main card in an attempt to save those who laid 1600 bucks on a Franklin to beat Le ticket from the man in the black trench coat. All odds courtesy of BestFightOdds.com.
While some would credit Riddle’s impressive submission victory at UFC 149 to his use of marijuana(Ed note: Seriously? If anyone honestly believes this, just let us know so we can hit you on the head with a tack hammer because YOU ARE A RETARD), Matt seems to understand what he needs to do to win fights these days. Maguire recently lost a unanimous decision to a bigger, stronger grappler in John Hathaway at UFC on FUEL 5, someone he is essentially paired up with again this weekend. I believe we see Riddle approach this fight with the same mentality as his previous two fights in the UFC, fighting with the W in mind. The price is fair and parlay-worthy as I see Riddle being able to fend off all of Maguire’s submissions while maintaining control of “The One” on the mat.
If I had to pick an underdog on this card it would be Mark Bocek, who is essentially fighting out of his own backyard and hovering around the +130 range. Dos Anjos has shown that he has issues with strong grapplers throughout his UFC career and despite being a BJJ black belt, I believe that Bocek is the stronger grappler of the two. Look for the Tri Star fighter to close the distance, force Rafael against the cage and look for the takedown for the majority of this fight. It may not be pretty, but Bocek has the ability to win here.
All of a sudden, Cote doesn’t look so bad when you consider what happened to Rich Franklin this past weekend. I believe Cote has the chin to stick it out with Sakara and either finish Alessio or at the very least profit from the hometown 29-28 on the cards if the fight goes the distance. Even near 30 cents on the dollar Cote will find his way into one of the parlays for old time sake.
Hominick is simply too tough a puzzle to figure out at this point in his career. With changes both professionally and personally over the past two years of his life, “The Machine” needs to prove that he is not a shell of the former 145 contender who actually won a round against Jose Aldo at UFC 129. My money will go towards the prop that this fight does not go the distance; Garza only going to the cards once in his last six fights and Hominick losing two of his last three fights by decision sets the scene for a finish here if Hominick hopes to right the ship and avoid a fourth straight loss. I believe Hominick wins inside the distance possibly by submission.
Those who follow the GAE know that I have a strong handle on these two fighters. Hovering around -250, Philippou is a solid betting favorite here, essentially showing in the past he will not be smothered and definitely not be out struck by his opponent. Nick came very close to being finished against McGee in his last outing and I believe Costa’s ever improving game shines in this fight, making it virtually impossible for the judges to give the fight to Ring on the cards if it gets there. Costa makes the parlay.
Carmont seems to be pretty much better than Lawlor everywhere in this fight. The price of -250 on Carmont is just right and since moving shop to Tri Star, the Frenchman is undefeated as a mixed martial artist. Lawlor has the ability to play spoiler by trapping Carmont in a submission, but I believe Carmont will simply be too strong for “Filthy” and find a way to a decision victory.
The Hitman as a small underdog is the play to make against the heavy handed wrestler here. While many believe Kampmann may have trouble with Johny’s power — especially in his left hand (see Daley vs. Kampmann) — Hendricks may have a tough time finding the mark with a technical savant like Martin. I think Kampmann stays on the outside, uses his footwork and wins by decision in this fight. I like the prop that this fight goes the distance and will lay my money there.
Carlos Condit has never lost a five rounder in his career, and is probably the most well rounded fighter GSP has faced in his career. What this fight will come down to is whether or not GSP is still capable of landing his signature explosive takedown after surgery and a long layoff. In the 5th round of his fight with Nick Diaz, Condit showed that he can be taken down and once on the mat can be controlled by a fighter who has strong grappling skills. Due to the layoff, there are simply too many factors at play to pick GSP to win this fight in a parlay, although I do believe GSP will take Condit down and grind out a decision victory.
Parlay 1
-Riddle-Philippou
Parlay 2
-Philippou-Cote-Carmont-Bocek
Props
-Bocek/Dos Anjos Fight goes the distance
-Ring/Philippou Fight does not go the distance
-Kampmann/Hendricks Fight goes the distance
Bet what you feel comfortable with, more on the parlays, less on the props. Please share your thoughts and let us know who you like and why.
(Mutton chops: Giving white people the confidence to shake their rump since the 1800’s.)
It could just be our queasy stomachs, but we’ve begun to feel more and more trepidation when it comes to announcing a scheduled UFC contest these days, because the likelihood of said contest actually coming to fruition seems borderline impossible.
That being said, it will please all of the lumberjacks who happen to read CagePotato to learn that the man with the coolest facial hair in the biz this side of Casey “fagtastic flameathon of facial distortion” Oxendine, Chad Griggs, will be returning to UFC action on November 17th at UFC 154 in Montreal, Canada to face PRIDE veteran Cyrille Diabate. Griggs, who gained notoriety over the past couple years with his decimations of Bobby Lashley, Valentijn Overeem, and Gian Villante, is coming off a first round submission via arm-triangle loss to Travis “Don’t ask, don’t tell” Browne in his UFC debut at UFC 145. Shortly after the loss, Griggs announced that he would in fact be dropping to 205 lbs to face Phil Davis at UFC on FOX 4, but go figure, suffered an injury and was forced to pull out.
Diabate, on the other hand, is coming off a majority decision victory over late replacement Tom DeBlass at UFC on FUEL 2. “The Snake” has gone win-loss in his five fight UFC career and was originally set to face Fabio Maldonado at UFC 153, but again, an injury blah blah blah things are different now.
Diabate has shown a susceptibility to submissions in the past (as well as an inability to last three rounds), so a matchup with a stand-and-bang aficionado like Griggs should be tailor-made for an exciting, if not winnable opportunity for everyone involved.
Who you got for this one, Potato Nation?
After the jump: A video of Griggs’ slugfest with Villante, because it’s arguably the greatest two and a half minute fight you will ever see.
(Mutton chops: Giving white people the confidence to shake their rump since the 1800′s.)
It could just be our queasy stomachs, but we’ve begun to feel more and more trepidation when it comes to announcing a scheduled UFC contest these days, because the likelihood of said contest actually coming to fruition seems borderline impossible.
That being said, it will please all of the lumberjacks who happen to read CagePotato to learn that the man with the coolest facial hair in the biz this side of Casey “fagtastic flameathon of facial distortion” Oxendine, Chad Griggs, will be returning to UFC action on November 17th at UFC 154 in Montreal, Canada to face PRIDE veteran Cyrille Diabate. Griggs, who gained notoriety over the past couple years with his decimations of Bobby Lashley, Valentijn Overeem, and Gian Villante, is coming off a first round submission via arm-triangle loss to Travis “Don’t ask, don’t tell” Browne in his UFC debut at UFC 145. Shortly after the loss, Griggs announced that he would in fact be dropping to 205 lbs to face Phil Davis at UFC on FOX 4, but go figure, suffered an injury and was forced to pull out.
Diabate, on the other hand, is coming off a majority decision victory over late replacement Tom DeBlass at UFC on FUEL 2. “The Snake” has gone win-loss in his five fight UFC career and was originally set to face Fabio Maldonado at UFC 153, but again, an injury blah blah blah things are different now.
Diabate has shown a susceptibility to submissions in the past (as well as an inability to last three rounds), so a matchup with a stand-and-bang aficionado like Griggs should be tailor-made for an exciting, if not winnable opportunity for everyone involved.
Who you got for this one, Potato Nation?
After the jump: A video of Griggs’ slugfest with Villante, because it’s arguably the greatest two and a half minute fight you will ever see.
(I gotta admit, the man knows how to fill out a singlet.)
Due to an undisclosed injury, Chad Griggs won’t be making his light-heavyweight debut against Phil Davis at UFC on FOX 4 in August, which is probably for the best. (Not trying to hate on you, Grave Digger; it was just a bad matchup, that’s all). Coming in for Davis is an Octagon newcomer who will probably be an even heavier underdog than Griggs would have been — undefeated Team Nogueira product Wagner “Caldeirao” Prado.
Prado’s 8-0 record (seven by KO/TKO) looks good on paper, but his competition has been entry-level at best; his last three opponents had a combined record of 1-4 at the time of their fights. Taking on a world-class fighter in your UFC debut after a couple years spent beating on local yokels is rarely a recipe for success. So, barring any Dos Santos vs. Werdum-caliber world-shocking, Mr. Wonderful should have this one in the bag.
After the jump: The full lineup of UFC on FOX 4, plus two videos of Prado doing work.
(I gotta admit, the man knows how to fill out a singlet.)
Due to an undisclosed injury, Chad Griggs won’t be making his light-heavyweight debut against Phil Davis at UFC on FOX 4 in August, which is probably for the best. (Not trying to hate on you, Grave Digger; it was just a bad matchup, that’s all). Coming in for Davis is an Octagon newcomer who will probably be an even heavier underdog than Griggs would have been — undefeated Team Nogueira product Wagner “Caldeirao” Prado.
Prado’s 8-0 record (seven by KO/TKO) looks good on paper, but his competition has been entry-level at best; his last three opponents had a combined record of 1-4 at the time of their fights. Taking on a world-class fighter in your UFC debut after a couple years spent beating on local yokels is rarely a recipe for success. So, barring any Dos Santos vs. Werdum-caliber world-shocking, Mr. Wonderful should have this one in the bag.
After the jump: The full lineup of UFC on FOX 4, plus two videos of Prado doing work.
UFC on FOX 4: Stann vs. Lombard August 4th, 2012 Staples Center; Los Angeles, CA
After getting utterly demolished by the much-larger Travis Browne during his Octagon debut at UFC 145, heavyweight prospect Chad Griggs has decided to drop to 205 pounds for his follow-up UFC appearance. Griggs was only 228 pounds when he hit the scales before his UFC debut — about as heavy as Jon Jones’s walking weight — making this a wise career choice on paper. The question is: Will Chad’s decision turn out to be good, bad, or ugly?
The Grave Digger certainly won’t be getting an easy welcome in his new division. According to MMA Weekly, Griggs will be returning at UFC on FOX 4 (August 4th, Los Angeles) against light-heavyweight contender Phil Davis, who suffered the first loss of his career in a decision against Rashad Evans in January. Before that, Davis had used his wrestling and grappling skills to dominate such tough competition as Brian Stann, Alexander Gustafsson, Tim Boetsch, and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. In other words, Griggs’s takedown defense had better be airtight if he wants his puncher’s chance to be worth the fist it’s printed on.
UFC on FOX 4 is shaping up to be a real crowd-pleaser; the current lineup is after the jump…
(Chad’s the dead guy in the background.)
After getting utterly demolished by the much-larger Travis Browne during his Octagon debut at UFC 145, heavyweight prospect Chad Griggs has decided to drop to 205 pounds for his follow-up UFC appearance. Griggs was only 228 pounds when he hit the scales before his UFC debut — about as heavy as Jon Jones’s walking weight — making this a wise career choice on paper. The question is: Will Chad’s decision turn out to be good, bad, or ugly?
The Grave Digger certainly won’t be getting an easy welcome in his new division. According to MMA Weekly, Griggs will be returning at UFC on FOX 4 (August 4th, Los Angeles) against light-heavyweight contender Phil Davis, who suffered the first loss of his career in a decision against Rashad Evans in January. Before that, Davis had used his wrestling and grappling skills to dominate such tough competition as Brian Stann, Alexander Gustafsson, Tim Boetsch, and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. In other words, Griggs’s takedown defense had better be airtight if he wants his puncher’s chance to be worth the fist it’s printed on.
UFC on FOX 4 is shaping up to be a real crowd-pleaser; the current lineup is after the jump…
