Mark Munoz was the fighter coming into the UFC on Fuel 4 event talking about a title shot.It would be Chris Weidman who left the arena with all the bargaining chips in his pocket.Weidman came out and controlled Munoz from bell to bell, utilizing his wr…
Mark Munoz was the fighter coming into the UFC on Fuel 4 event talking about a title shot.
It would be Chris Weidman who left the arena with all the bargaining chips in his pocket.
Weidman came out and controlled Munoz from bell to bell, utilizing his wrestling, jiu-jitsu and, finally, his striking to end the fight. Munoz couldn’t offer any offense as Weidman seemed to be one step ahead of him all night.
Following the fight, Weidman made a request to fight Anderson Silva in his next contest and that may very well be a real possibility for the undefeated fighter.
As impressive as Weidman’s performance was, fans should let their initial reaction to it cool a bit before talking about Weidman facing Silva. To me, Weidman needs another win against a top guy to solidify himself as a title contender.
Everyone, myself included, was shocked at how easily Weidman dispatched Munoz, but let’s remember that Munoz was coming off a lengthy layoff from elbow surgery.
Prior to that Weidman had an ugly win over former title contender Demian Maia. The performance was undoubtedly due to Weidman taking the fight on late notice and cutting quite a lot of weight in a short period of time.
Also, despite where Maia ranked in the division at the time, let’s consider the fact that he now competes at welterweight.
Weidman certainly has made an impression on fans of late as he seemingly gets better each time he steps into the Octagon, but I believe fans need to step on the brake when talking about him matching up against Silva.
A few names like Chael Sonnen and Alan Belcher have been thrown around as possible opponents for Weidman if it isn’t a title fight. I like both of those matchups better than throwing him to the wolves against Silva.
The win over Munoz resembles Jon Jones’ fights against Brandon Vera and Vladimir Matyushenko. The UFC light heavyweight champion used the free TV platform to announce his arrival to title-contender status much in the same way that Weidman did tonight.
The fan response may be strong in calling for him to step into a title fight, but hopefully the UFC utilizes the same method to build up Weidman, another future star. It’s obvious he has all the tools to become a superstar fighter but needs another high-profile victory to cement his place as the top contender.
About an hour ago I was writing that Chris Weidman was too green for a title shot just yet.Well, I’m putting my foot in my mouth after his Round 2 technical knockout over veteran Mark Munoz tonight. Weidman should be able to bring it against current mi…
About an hour ago I was writing that Chris Weidman was too green for a title shot just yet.
Well, I’m putting my foot in my mouth after his Round 2 technical knockout over veteran Mark Munoz tonight. Weidman should be able to bring it against current middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
At 5-0 in the UFC and 9-0 overall, Weidman is still very young in his career. Despite his young career, he looks like a veteran. With the win tonight, and his unanimous decision victory over Demian Maia on just 11 days’ notice with over thirty pounds to cut, he’s a clear cut contender in the division.
Munoz is no joke. Many had him getting a title shot if he beat Weidman tonight and fans were expecting a competitive fight. Instead, Weidman took down Munoz early in Round 1 and remained in dominant positions until the horn all the while attempting submission after submission.
Round 2 started off the same with Weidman nabbing the takedown. But Munoz, for better or for worse, was able to get back to his feet. Shortly after, Weidman landed a Jon Jones like elbow that spelled the beginning of the end for Munoz.
By the way, the referee let the fight go on way too long, and Munoz ate 8 or 9 unnecessary shots before the fight was called. Not the kind of image the UFC wants to put out there.
Anderson Silva—a living legend—will go down as the greatest of all time, but if there is one thing we know about the Brazilian it’s that he’s susceptible to wrestling as evidenced in his fights with Chael Sonnen, Dan Henderson and Travis Lutter.
Weidman obviously has top notch wrestling in the middleweight division, but his training with Serra-Longo fight team has turned him into a very competent striker and an excellent grappler with some dangerous submissions.
His well-rounded game—which was on full display tonight—separates him from Anderson’s former challengers. Sonnen is an excellent wrestler and fully controlled Silva in 6 of 7 rounds of fighting, but he simply doesn’t have the submission game or punching power to get the finish. That’s why Silva was able to beat him on two occasions. Against a guy like Weidman, Silva wouldn’t be able to relax on the bottom and wait until the next round or he’d risk being submitted or pounded out.
Up until tonight, I was talking about guys like Hector Lombard, Mamed Khalidov, Weidman and Francis Carmont as being the tougher fights for Silva later on. I still believe this, the difference being that Weidman is a tough fight for Silva right now, not later.
Leon Horne enjoys all sports and has a particular interest in MMA; give him a follow on Twitter for more information and keep an eye out for interesting interviews and news, Follow @Leon_Horne
Anderson Silva has no chance of beating Chris Weidman. The current champ is simply keeping the belt warm for Weidman. Absurd?Think again. Chris Weidman just dismantled the highly touted Mark Munoz in a fight that didn’t come close to being co…
Anderson Silva has no chance of beating Chris Weidman. The current champ is simply keeping the belt warm for Weidman.
Absurd?
Think again.
Chris Weidman just dismantled the highly touted Mark Munoz in a fight that didn’t come close to being competitive. Weidman took Munoz—a highly skilled wrestler in his own right—down with ease and dominated him on the ground.
However, this wasn’t all Weidman had to offer. He floored Munoz with a devastating elbow and then finished the fight with ground-and-pound.
This is a man who is tailor-made to destroy Anderson Silva.
Just look at what another talented wrestler—Chael Sonnen—did to Anderson Silva in the first round of their most recent fight. Sonnen took Silva down at will and even got mount. In their first fight, Sonnen took Silva down at will for the first four rounds!
Of course, Sonnen eventually lost in both fights—in the first by means of a Hail Mary triangle choke, and in the second due to, in large part, an ill-fated spinning back fist that caused him to lose his footing and get pummeled by Silva.
Weidman, a capable striker and literally a world-class submission grappler, wouldn’t make such grievous errors.
A Silva-Weidman fight would go this way: Weidman would take Silva down (as fast as Sonnen took Silva down this past Saturday) and would use his superior wrestling and grappling abilities to control Silva from the top en route to either a unanimous decision victory (if Silva is lucky) or a submission.
Silva has nothing for Weidman. Yes, his striking is better, but Weidman’s wrestling and grappling advantage is far greater than Silva’s striking advantage.
Silva can’t submit Weidman, nor is it likely that he could shrug off Weidman’s takedowns and (T)KO Weidman.
“But Silva has clowned impressive grapplers before! Just look at the Demian Maia fight,” you say?
Chris Weidman is no Demian Maia.
Maia is a phenomenal grappler but just a good—not great—mixed martial artist. Also, when Maia was fighting Silva, Maia’s striking game was deficient and anemic.
Weidman doesn’t have such a problem, as indicated by his impressive victory over Munoz and his training with the famed striking coach Ray Longo. Furthermore, Weidman’s wrestling base gives him takedown abilities that Maia lacked against Silva.
Silva has no answer for Weidman’s overwhelming talents as a mixed martial artist.
The man is an amazing wrestler and grappler, and he’s a skilled enough striker to set up a takedown on Silva and avoid mistakes that would part him from consciousness. The aged Brazilian will not be able to compete with Weidman, who is a fighter from the next generation.
Thus, Silva’s middleweight title reign is at an end. The 37-year-old is now relegated to keeping Chris Weidman’s belt warm until Weidman meets him in the Octagon to claim what is his.
Chris Weidman is for real folks.The undefeated fighter put on a dominant showing against top contender Mark Munoz in the main event of the UFC on Fuel TV 4 card.Weidman used his wrestling to control Munoz in the first round that could’ve easily been sc…
The undefeated fighter put on a dominant showing against top contender Mark Munoz in the main event of the UFC on Fuel TV 4 card.
Weidman used his wrestling to control Munoz in the first round that could’ve easily been scored as a 10-8. It was much of the same in the second round as Weidman again secured a takedown. However, this time Munoz was able to work his way back to his feet, at which point he attempted to land one of his vaunted power punches.
Weidman caught Munoz coming in with a slicing right elbow that seemed straight out of Jon Jones’ playbook. In what was supposed to be a big comeback win for Munoz, Weidman instead stole the title opportunity out from under him in the main event.
What Fans Will Take Away from This Fight
Without a doubt this fight will be considered Weidman’s dominant performance.
Munoz is a tough guy, and Weidman controlled him during every second of the fight. Weidman not only controlled Munoz through his wrestling but also with his jiu-jitsu.
It’s clear that training with the Serra-Longo camp is paying big dividends for Weidman; he puts on a better performance each time he steps into the Octagon.
What We Learned about Chris Weidman
What can you say about Weidman’s performance that hasn’t already been said by the MMA community?
The guy showcased all of his skills tonight against a very tough Munoz.
Fans were well aware of Weidman’s grappling skills with a strong wrestling background coupled with solid jiu-jitsu, but he showed some new wrinkles in his game tonight.
Weidman landed a picture perfect elbow to not only cut Munoz but also dropped “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” to the canvas. The stoppage capped an amazing performance by Weidman that could see him become next in line for a title shot.
What We Learned about Mark Munoz
I’m not sure if it was Weidman being on his A-game or if it’s a case of cage rust, but Munoz really didn’t look himself tonight.
An early takedown and a dominant round by Weidman looked to frustrate Munoz. He never really threatened Weidman throughout the contest, looking instead like he was in survival mode during the fight.
A lot of fans and analysts were already high on Weidman as a prospect coming into the bout, but after this performance he’s effectively jumped to “in-the-mix” status.
If it isn’t “The Spider,” then Weidman should be paired up against another top-level guy. Chael Sonnen and Alan Belcher are two names that are being floated around as great possibilities.
Munoz looked extremely depressed after the fight following his performance and will need to go back to the drawing board. Whether or not it was the lengthy layoff—or he simply came out flat against Weidman—Munoz was anything but a wrecking machine tonight.
At UFC 148, middleweight legend Anderson Silva defended his title for a second time against Chael Sonnen. It was one of the most amazing spectacles in UFC history.From the prefight trash talk, to the action-packed weigh-in, to the spectacular knee that…
At UFC 148, middleweight legend Anderson Silva defended his title for a second time against Chael Sonnen. It was one of the most amazing spectacles in UFC history.
From the prefight trash talk, to the action-packed weigh-in, to the spectacular knee that was the beginning of the end for Chael, it was a night to remember.
With Chael out of the picture, the UFC desperately needed a new contender to Silva’s crown. Tonight, they found one in Chris Weidman.
The prospect squared off with Mark Munoz in San Jose, a bout between two proud athletes with much more than pride on the line—a title shot was also up for grabs for whoever could reach out and grab it.
With his TKO win, Weidman snatched it.
As great as he was, Weidman wasn’t the only fighter on the card. There were other winners, and some checked the “loss” column.
Let’s run down the card and pick out the fighters who truly made their mark, for good or ill, on this free television broadcast.
Riding shotgun on the card are Joey Beltran and James Te Huna. The Mexicutioner picked up a victory and a tapeworm while away from the UFC; he returns tonight as a light heavyweight to slug it out with the heavy-handed Kiwi. Someone’s getting concussed.
All of the cool kids are inside talking about the fights. If you’re cool, you’ll join us too.
Sure, UFC 148 had countless hours of commercials and press conferences, but did you get a look at this poster?!? (Photo: UFC.com)
Riding shotgun on the card are Joey Beltran and James Te Huna. The Mexicutioner picked up a victory and a tapeworm while away from the UFC; he returns tonight as a light heavyweight to slug it out with the heavy-handed Kiwi. Someone’s getting concussed.
All of the cool kids are inside talking about the fights. If you’re cool, you’ll join us too.
And we…are…LIVE!!! They were billing the main event as a #1 Contender Bout in the pre-show, and since that designation is legally binding I guess we’ll be seeing the winner of the Munoz-Weidman bout facing Anderson Silva soon. Well, that’s settled.
Here we go!
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Anthony Njokuani
R1: Dos Anjos tries a Segal kick to the face, but whiffs. Nice inside leg kick by Dos Anjos and Njokuani fires back with a combo. BIG left floors Njokuani and Dos Anjos is all over him with a takedown, but it’s short lived and Njokuani is back to his feet. Another takedown by the Brazilian, but Njokuani is back up again. The Assassin pushes off and we’re back to a striking match. Both men are measuring their attacks and slow to commit. Dos Anjos has Njokuani backing up, but we’re still short on exchanges. Dos Anjos with another shot, but he’s stuffed and relegated to knee striking Njokuani against the cage.
R2: Dos Anjos returns to that heavy inside leg kick to open the second frame. The Nigerian responds with a body kick. We’re still in single-shot mode–very few combos getting launched. Njokuani is grunting like Monica Seles with each strike. Dos Anjos is working for the takedown again, but he can’t drag The Assassin to the ground. Dos Anjos wants this fight on the ground, and he finally hoists Njokuani up for the slam. Njokuani manages to work his way out of half guard and we’re back on our feet with Dos Anjos maintaining his body lock death grip, eager to return to the canvas. That was, what? Four missed takedowns? But lucky number five gets the job done and we’re back on the mat. Dos Anjos was looking for an arm in guillotine, but Njokuani stands up again and the horn sounds.
R3: Njokuani is down here, so he’ll likely need to put Dos Anjos away. Dos Anjos circling around while Njokuani is landing a punch here or there. Dos Anjos responds with a nice right hand. Dos Anjos is crowding Njokuani now, but still not letting go. Ok, now he fires off a combo then presses Njokuani up against the cage as he works for a takedown. Denied, but Dos Anjos is nothing if not diligent–he gets the The Assassin down on his second shot. The Brazilian has half mount and probably has his eye on a kimura, but he gives it up to drop some leather. He opened up a little too much and Njokuani is back to his feet as the fight comes to a close. We’re headed to the scorecards.
And Rafael Dos Anjos takes the uanimous decision (30-27 x 2 and 29-28)
We’ve got a bantamweight battle up next.
T.J. Dillashaw vs. Vaughan Lee
R1: Dillashaw breaks the silence with a combo, and Lee returns fire with some heavy shots of his own. Dillashaw misses with a wild head kick. The former TUF’er ducks a head kick, scoops Lee’s leg, and dumps him to the mat, but the Brit is back to his feet. Dillashaw’s not giving up on that takedown, though, and he works his way to Lee’s back and sinks his hooks in while standing. Lee’s fighting off the rear naked choke attempt on his feet, but Dillashaw is cranking away. Aaaand the tapout! Dillashaw scores a first round submission victory.
T.J. Dillashaw wins via neck crank (2:33 R1)
And we take a break in tonight’s action to promote the Urijah Faber–Renan Barao bout at UFC 149. Shockingly, no one was seriously injured in the production of the commercial.
Karlos Vemola vs. Francis Carmont
R1: Vemola circles away and bull rushes in for the takedown, but Carmont stuffs the shot. Temporarily, that is–Vemola drags him down with a body lock. Carmont works his way free and stands up directly into a standing guillotine. The French Canadian takes Vemola down, but is still in the choke. Let’s hope his air is “Limitless”. (See what I did there? It’s because of his nickname. That’s why it’s hilarious.) Carmont pulls his head free and has Vemola pinned against the cage in side-mount. Now Carmont is slapping on a painful looking key lock, which he uses to take mount. Vemola frees his arm and works back to his feet, almost finding himself in a guillotine as well. Oh, now Carmont wants the takedown and Vemola has him in an arm-in guillotine. Carmont escapes and probably would have gone for a guillotine had time not expired.
R2: Big front kick to the grill of Vemola, but he’s still breathing long enough to charge in for a stuffed takedown. Carmont drops down for a…wait for it…guillotine, but Vemola rolls free. Vemola working hard for the takedown, but Carmont drops to his own back with Vemola’s arms trapped in a crucifix. Limitless switches it up to a rear naked, squeezes the hell out of it, and draws the tap.
Francis Carmont wins via rear naked choke (1:39 R2)
Up next we’re taking a trip to the welterweight division.
Aaron Simpson vs. Kenny Robertson
R1: Robertson fires off a huge head kick that catches nada but air, then rushes in and presses Simpson against the cage with a body lock. Simpson pushes him off and scores a knee to the body. They are throwing! Both men land hands before Robertson delivers a few knees to the gut six pack. Simpson is hte first to secure a takedown but it’s short lived. Robertson gets back to his feet and a wild tumult of reversals ends with Robertson landing a big right hand that splits Simpson’s wig open along the hairline. Simpson forces action up against the cage, but Roberston spins around and presses Simpson to the fence. Both men are fighting to gain the wrestling advantage, which Simpson gains momentarily as he gets behind Robertson and takes him down. Robertson is quickly back up. Damn, we’ve got a fight on our hands.
R2: Robertson responds to a punch with an attempted judo toss, but is denied and Simpson takes his back standing once again. Knees to the ass from Simpson and after more jockeying for grappling control he puts Robertson on his back. Robertson is struggling to get up which allows A Train to take his back. Back up, back down, back up. There’s a lot of positional control and reversing going on here between these two capable wrestlers. Simpson had a bizarre rear facing mount for a moment, but he’s able to get behind Robertson once more and deliver some hard shots on the ground for the last minute of the frame.
R3: Robertson is looking a little fatigued as we enter the final round. Spinning back kick from Simpson misses its mark. More clinchwork against the cage ends with Simpson taking Roberson’s back and dragging him to the canvas once more. A Train nearly locks up a reverse triangle choke, but Robertson escapes and gets back to his feet. Simpson, clearly the fresher of the two, slams him back to the ground. Simpson is standing over Robertson in guard dropping down some heavy fists to the head and body. Simpson moves to side mount with thirty seconds left. He’s trying to grab an arm, but chooses to wail on Robertson to close the fight.
Aaron Simpson wins via unanimous decision (30-27 & 29-28 x 2)
Like Babe Ruth promising that sick kid a homerun, I’m going to guarantee you kids a knock out in this one. Unfortunately, if I’m wrong you all die of cancer. It’s a gamble, but one that I’m willing to make.
James Te Huna vs. Joey Beltran
R1: No time wasted between these two. They’re both throwing, but Te Huna is reaching Beltran first. Te Huna looks mighty relaxed out there, though Beltran isn’t shy to throw. It’s a measured pace, but both men are uncorking their hands. Te Huna went for a reverse elbow like Silva-Frykland but missed. Te Huna scores with a combo and has Beltran backing up. Te Huna is letting the hands go now. Big right. He looks very confident and is mixing up his strikes. Beltran counters and clips Te Huna before spinning and pressing him against the cage. Te Huna get free from the cage and is connecting with big shots. He knocks Beltran down with a huge left hook and follows him to the ground. Te Huna working hard from mount with ground and pound, but Beltran somehow gets back up and eats plenty of more haymakers as the bell sounds.
R2: Mexicutioner gutted out that last round, let’s see what he’s got. Te Huna is very confident out there, mixing it up with body shots, upper cuts, etc. Beltran isn’t reaching him, but he’s standing tall. Te Huna with a single leg plants Beltran on his back…interesting choice considering he was owning the striking, but Beltran has power. Te Huna is working from guard, but the Mexicutioner nullifies his attack and they get stood up. Te Huna launches his hands before failing on another takedown. Beltran just isn’t reaching the New Zealander with his hands. Or feet. Te Huna’s slowed his attack as the clock ticked away and got tagged with a short shot that dropped him to his knees as the bell rang.
R3: Beltran is eager to throw, as he can’t take the decision at this point. Beltran forces Te Huna against the cage and lands a few elbows as they separate. Te Huna dumps him to the mat momentarily, but they’re back on their feet. There’s going to be a lot of cancer in Potatoland if no one finds the off-switch. Te Hun brings the action to the mat, but Beltran is back up. Big body shots by Te Huna, but Beltran don’t care. Two minutes left. Te Huna dumps Beltran to the canvas but lets him back up; the Kiwi’s looking tired now as Beltran takes him down. One minute. They’re standing again as Beltran scores a tight elbow against the cage. Beltran is going for it as the clock ticks down. And they slug away until the end. They’re headed to the scorecards. You’re headed to the oncologist.
James Te Huna takes the unanimous decision (30-26 & 30-27 x 2)
Time for our main event. We’re scheduled for five rounds of action; let’s see if it takes that long to find a winner.
Mark Munoz vs. Chris Weidman
R1: Wiedman opens with a couple of high kicks before ducking down and shooting in. All American off to a good start in control on the ground in side mount. Weidman works his way to Munoz’s back, but the Filipino Wrecking Machine stands up before eating two knees and returning to safer territory on the ground. Weidman maintains top control and nearly sinks in a guillotine before opting to drop some ‘bows. Weidman is calm and an in control as he drops elbows and tries to isolate an arm. The crowd boos–they didn’t pay for high level grappling and momentary lapses in action! Weidman pounces on another guillotine from mount. Munoz scrambles free, but Weidman is all over him. They’re up on their feet and Weidman lands another knee before taking Munoz’s back. The round is over. That was all Weidman. Every second over it.
R2: Weidman takes him down again as soon as they’re within feet of each other. More control on the ground from Weidman, but Munoz wrangles free and we’re back to a standup battle. Munoz lunges in with a punch and Weidman connects with a hard elbow. Munoz drops forward, out cold, and the ref doesn’t notice for a good twenty to thirty seconds as Weidman pounds away. Munoz is bleeding like a stuck pig all over the canvas. Horribly late stoppage.
My god, that whole fight was Weidman’s, bell to bell. He extends his record to a perfect 9-0.
Chris Weidman scores the TKO victory (1:37 R2)
Well, that’s a wrap on tonight’s action. In the words of Seth Falvo, I need a Mr. Pibb and a blowjob, and not necessarily in that order. Take it easy, Nation.
Mark Munoz was the fighter coming into the UFC on Fuel 4 event talking about a title shot.