Tag: Clay Guida

Dana White’s Criticism of Clay Guida: ‘He Runs’ and ‘Nobody Wants to See That’

It wasn’t long ago that Clay Guida was the darling of the UFC because every time he stepped foot in the cage, mayhem ensued and the crowd both in the arena and at home had no choice but to stand up and applaud every moment. Guida racked up five Fight o…

It wasn’t long ago that Clay Guida was the darling of the UFC because every time he stepped foot in the cage, mayhem ensued and the crowd both in the arena and at home had no choice but to stand up and applaud every moment.

Guida racked up five Fight of the Night awards as well as two Submission of the Night bonuses, while navigating his way through a treacherous lightweight division.

Eventually though, as Guida bounced back and forth between wins and losses, the number of cuts, big hits and damage mounted, and he started approaching fights with a different mentality all together.

In his fight against Gray Maynard at UFC on FX 4 last year, Guida abandoned his aggressive, move-forward-at-all-times style and started to bounce more in and out and become more of a counter fighter. The changes were not well received at all by either the UFC or the fans watching his performance.

Guida continued with that same technique in his next fight, which was against Hatsu Hioki at UFC on Fox 6 in Chicago last month, and the changes have turned him from a fan favorite to someone who UFC President Dana White says now “runs” instead of fights.

“The problem with Clay Guida lately is Clay Guida has completely changed his style. The style that made him popular and exciting, what everybody liked, why everybody liked Clay Guida—now he does the exact opposite,” Dana White told the morning show at 95.5 KLOS in Los Angeles on Thursday.

The criticism Guida has received has landed mostly on the shoulders of trainer Greg Jackson, who began working with the Chicago-area fighter a few years ago. In all reality, however, Guida has stated on several occasions that while he was exciting in his past fights, he also didn’t come away with the win and had to endure some serious damage to get that Fight of the Night bonus.

The unfortunate side of those changes for Guida has been the way fans and people like White have reacted. They don’t seem to be cheering for him nearly as much these days.

“He was a buzzsaw and just moves forward and doesn’t stop and he keeps going until he eventually breaks you. Now he does the exact opposite, he runs. Nobody wants to see that,” said White.

Guida‘s next fight will come in April when he faces the ultra-tough Chad Mendes at UFC on Fox 7 in San Jose. It will be his second test at featherweight and Mendes, a former title contender, is no easy challenge. 

Damon Martin is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report.

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Chad Mendes to Face Clay Guida at UFC on FOX 7, Following Manny Gamburyan Fight Cancellation


(If only he used his moustache powers for good. Photo via Tracy Lee/Yahoo!)

With his UFC 157 appearance up in smoke due to an injury withdrawal by Manny Gamburyan, featherweight contender Chad Mendes has been officially removed from the February 23rd card, and was just given a new match at UFC on FOX 7: Henderson vs. Melendez (April 20th, San Jose). Mendes, who is coming off back-to-back knockout victories in what could charitably be called “rebound fights,” will face Clay Guida, who is coming off a questionable split-decision victory in his featherweight debut against Hatsu Hioki, which followed his Worst Fight of the Year runner-up against Gray Maynard.

For Mendes, the matchup represents a return to tough competition that’s long overdue. For Clay, it’s another opportunity to bounce around the Octagon between takedowns and long stretches of top-control. (I’m just saying, remember the beast-version of Clay Guida who put in legendary battles against Roger Huerta and Diego Sanchez? Well, he got tired of losing fights and changed his strategy a bit. It is what it is.)

In addition to the headlining lightweight title fight, UFC on FOX 7 will feature Daniel Cormier vs. Frank Mir, Nate Diaz vs. Josh Thomson, and Dan Hardy vs. Matt Brown.


(If only he used his moustache powers for good. Photo via Tracy Lee/Yahoo!)

With his UFC 157 appearance up in smoke due to an injury withdrawal by Manny Gamburyan, featherweight contender Chad Mendes has been officially removed from the February 23rd card, and was just given a new match at UFC on FOX 7: Henderson vs. Melendez (April 20th, San Jose). Mendes, who is coming off back-to-back knockout victories in what could charitably be called “rebound fights,” will face Clay Guida, who is coming off a questionable split-decision victory in his featherweight debut against Hatsu Hioki, which followed his Worst Fight of the Year runner-up against Gray Maynard.

For Mendes, the matchup represents a return to tough competition that’s long overdue. For Clay, it’s another opportunity to bounce around the Octagon between takedowns and long stretches of top-control. (I’m just saying, remember the beast-version of Clay Guida who put in legendary battles against Roger Huerta and Diego Sanchez? Well, he got tired of losing fights and changed his strategy a bit. It is what it is.)

In addition to the headlining lightweight title fight, UFC on FOX 7 will feature Daniel Cormier vs. Frank Mir, Nate Diaz vs. Josh Thomson, and Dan Hardy vs. Matt Brown.

10 MMA Fighters That Struggle in Big Fights

Some fighters are born to be champions. From the time that they step foot into the Octagon, it is clear that they are on a collision course with greatness. Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez and Dominick Cruz are all examples of this undeniable talent.However, …

Some fighters are born to be champions. From the time that they step foot into the Octagon, it is clear that they are on a collision course with greatness. Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez and Dominick Cruz are all examples of this undeniable talent.

However, not everyone can be so lucky. Some fighters are afforded golden opportunities time and time again, but simply can’t get the job done. Occasionally, they’ll score a major win against a quality opponent, but their margin of victory is fairly small or the opponent is considered to be past their prime.

With the recent fall of some of the UFC’s top divisional contenders, let’s take a look at 10 fighters who struggle when the going gets tough.

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Judge Defends 30-27 Score in Guida vs. Hioki, Despite Being FB Friends with Clay

On Tuesday, a Bleacher Report article revealed that UFC featherweight Clay Guida is Facebook friends with judge Gabriel Sabaitis, which obviously doesn’t mean a whole lot on its own. That’s just the tip of the iceberg though, as Sabaitis was a jud…

On Tuesday, a Bleacher Report article revealed that UFC featherweight Clay Guida is Facebook friends with judge Gabriel Sabaitis, which obviously doesn’t mean a whole lot on its own. 

That’s just the tip of the iceberg though, as Sabaitis was a judge in Clay Guida‘s UFC on FOX 6 featherweight debut against Hatsu Hioki, which took place at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. 

Despite fans and analysts universally finding the fight to be very close, with many feeling Hioki got shafted with a split decision loss, Sabaitis scored the fight 30-27 in “The Carpenter’s” favor. 

The story caused enough of a stir that Sabaitis defended himself on the matter when he spoke to mixedmartialarts.com on Wednesday. 

“I felt all 3 rnds were real close. Guida has an awkward style to score. I felt his aggression and TD out weighed (barely) Hioki‘s effective striking in the 1st. I also marginally gave him rnds 2&3…barely. But there’s no half point scoring in MMA! There’s 3 Judges for a reason. If both Judges gave it 29-28 Hioki and I gave it 30-27 Guida, then YES!! I am the new Cecil Peoples! But one DIDN’T!! And he’s one of the most experienced Judges in the business!! He had it 29-28 Guida!! So that means he agrees with me more than the other Judge!! But this fight was so close it could’ve been 29-28 Hioki, no doubt. I respect everyone who believes Hioki won. I’m an open minded Judge, but I stand by my decision and it was made by using The MMA Judging Criteria NOT favoritism! My brother could be fighting and still wouldn’t give him an undeserved decision!!!”

Guida was outstruck 16-26 in the first round, and did little, if any, damage after he scored a takedown late in the opening frame.

Even those who believe the cardio-machine won the fight would have a tough time arguing that he won the first round. 

In an exclusive interview with MMA Weekly, Hioki blamed his lack of takedown defense and submission skills for the loss, not poor judging.

“I hear a lot of people criticizing Guida’s strategy to lie on top; however, it was ultimately my lack of skills to get back on (to my) feet, stop these takedowns and submit an opponent who was staying tight while being on top to put myself on the losing end. I say this again: Guida won the fight fair and square. He was better than me at that night.”

Was allowing Sabaitis to officiate the fight of one of his fellow Illinois-natives a poor move by the athletic commission or not a big deal at all?

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

The Judge Who Scored Guida vs. Hioki 30-27 Is Also Clay’s Facebook ‘Friend’

Ever wonder what an athletic commission considers a conflict of interest?It’s a question running amok in my brain as I type and mull over last weekend’s featherweight bout between Clay Guida and Hatsu Hioki.Guida took home a split decision …

Ever wonder what an athletic commission considers a conflict of interest?

It’s a question running amok in my brain as I type and mull over last weekend’s featherweight bout between Clay Guida and Hatsu Hioki.

Guida took home a split decision nod over Hioki after three tough rounds.

The bout was certainly a closely contested match. But by the 10-point must system in which the UFC abides, it’s relatively easy to understand how Clay Guida exited the cage victorious, despite being out-struck by a tally of 74-40 (according to Fightmetric) and having half of his takedown attempts thwarted.

Clay obtained and secured top position for extended stretches of the fight, and regardless of how active a fighter is or isn’t from his back, the common misconception among uninformed judges is that the man on top is winning the fight by default.

Fair enough, I’m not outraged by the outcome, despite having scored the fight in Hioki’s favor by one point. I can understand why Guida was afforded the win, whether I agree with it or not, and I’m not out to slight Guida or his in-cage efforts.

However, one must wonder: at what point does an athletic commission, or those assigned the task of overseeing a MMA event, examine the deeper relationships between appointed judges and the fighters whose fights they score?

Both Gabriel Sabaitis (the judge who scored the bout a clean sweep, 30-27 in Guida’s favor) and Clay Guida are Illinois representatives. Fair enough, UFC on FOX 6 was hosted by the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. It’s not baffling to know that the Chicago Sports Commission would employ the services of a local judge.

But the relationship between Guida and Sabaitis stretches a bit more. See, Sabaitis and Guida are also “Facebook friends.” Big deal, you ask? Maybe, maybe not.

From a neutral stance, it seems a bit questionable that a man assigned the task of judging two fights on one card would just so happen to draw a bout featuring a hometown favorite. It also seems a bit questionable that no one would question the depth of Sabaitis and Guida’s relationship, given their online status as acquaintances.

Does Gabriel really know Clay? It’s tough to say. For all we know, the two may have never shared any communication other than a “friend accept” in the vast expanse of the interwebs. But if a commission aims to ensure fair judging, it seems as though a hint of research might ensue prior to assigning judges specific tasks.

Questionable situations such as the one we currently eye could easily be avoided with a few Google searches.

Standing here, on the outside looking in, I’m forced to admit that appointing Gabriel Sabaitis as one of three judges set to score Clay Guida’s fight looks a little suspect. Sabaitis’ questionable scoring (again, a reminder that Gabriel was the only judge who seemed to feel Hatsu Hioki didn’t do enough to secure a single round) only raises further question marks and eyebrows.

Did Gabriel give Hatsu a fair shake? Furthermore, did the commission afford Hatsu a fair shake?

I’m not here to accuse anyone of misconduct. Don’t misconstrue this piece. This is about raising awareness in regards to the judging system (and not just in Chicago) worldwide. Fighters invest every ounce of their being in the sport, the preparation for competition, competition itself and every subplot of the assignment (i.e., press, travel, public appearances, etc.) in between. I think they certainly deserve to have an unbiased eye overseeing their work in the cage.

The question now becomes this: did Hatsu Hioki receive three pairs of unbiased eyes to judge his bout with Clay Guida, or only two?

For the record, all information revealed in this article, including the image, are publicly available. If you’ve got a Facebook page, you can view Gabriel’s page publicly, and you can view his friends as well. You’ll spot Clay in the lineup, and if he happens to disappear in the wake of this release, well, you’ve got an attached image that proves the two are FB buddies.

Follow me on Twitter. To my knowledge, neither Clay nor Hatsu and I are “friends.”

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Armchair Matchmaker: ‘UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Dodson’ Edition


(Well, that might explain the spray tan, at least. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.)

It’s safe to say that the UFC’s latest trip to the land of major network television succeeded in exceeding most of our expectations. For starters, the event pulled in much higher viewership numbers than most pundits of the sport (and apparently the UFC’s marketing department) ever believed a card topped off by a flyweight fight could do. The fact that the card delivered exciting finishes and entertaining brawls from top to bottom further cemented our belief that the UFC has truly started to hit their stride with Fox. Not that we ever doubted them, but things were looking hairy for a while there *thinks back to UFC on Fox 2, shudders*. 

But today, we must gather up last weekend’s results like a herd of slaughtered bison, take to our (ban)wagons, and forge ahead to the river of subjectivity that is the armchair matchmaker (Oregon Trail metaphors. They’re like, so in right now.). So join us after the jump as we breakdown what is next for some of Saturday’s biggest winners.

Demetrious Johnson: Challenger John Dodson might have brought the pop rocks to his first ever UFC title fight, but Demetrious Johnson surely brought the coke. And by coke, I mean cocaine. Because Johnson fights like he’s on…you know what, forget it. The Tazmanian Devil-esque tornado of takedowns known as “Mighty Mouse” is truly something to behold when he enters the octagon, combining a limitless gas tank with a simple will to survive that is unmatched by 90% of his MMA counterparts, flyweight or otherwise.


(Well, that might explain the spray tan, at least. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.)

It’s safe to say that the UFC’s latest trip to the land of major network television succeeded in exceeding most of our expectations. For starters, the event pulled in much higher viewership numbers than most pundits of the sport (and apparently the UFC’s marketing department) ever believed a card topped off by a flyweight fight could do. The fact that the card delivered exciting finishes and entertaining brawls from top to bottom further cemented our belief that the UFC has truly started to hit their stride with Fox. Not that we ever doubted them, but things were looking hairy for a while there *thinks back to UFC on Fox 2, shudders*. 

But today, we must gather up last weekend’s results like a herd of slaughtered bison, take to our (ban)wagons, and forge ahead to the river of subjectivity that is the armchair matchmaker (Oregon Trail metaphors. They’re like, so in right now.). So join us after the jump as we breakdown what is next for some of Saturday’s biggest winners.

Demetrious Johnson: Challenger John Dodson might have brought the pop rocks to his first ever UFC title fight, but Demetrious Johnson surely brought the coke. And by coke, I mean cocaine. Because Johnson fights like he’s on…you know what, forget it. The Tazmanian Devil-esque tornado of takedowns known as “Mighty Mouse” is truly something to behold when he enters the octagon, combining a limitless gas tank with a simple will to survive that is unmatched by 90% of his MMA counterparts, flyweight or otherwise.

Unfortunately, the UFC’s flyweight division is thinner than that of its participants, so Johnson’s options are severely limited. Although Tim Elliot made a statement in his dominant win over Jared Papazian at the TUF 16 Finale, the fact that he dropped a unanimous decision to Dodson prior to that means that he is still a win or two away from a shot. The only logical next step for Johnson would be against the winner of the Joseph Benavidez/Ian McCall fight at UFC 156. Johnson has the advantage of having faced both men before (and McCall twice actually) and it’s slim pickings right now for the champ. Who knows? Maybe he can use that advantage to score his first ever finish inside the UFC. Lord knows the flyweight division could use one every know and again.

Glover Teixeira: In what was easily the biggest fight of his budding career, Teixeira stepped up in a big way and did what no man has ever done before: beat the excuses right out of Rampage Jackson. And while that is an impressive accomplishment in and of itself, we don’t think Teixeira should be fast tracked to a title shot in the near future; that kind of privilege is best left for middleweights coming off a loss. Most websites out there are calling for Teixeira to take on the winner of the Rashad Evans/Lil’ Nog scrap, also scheduled for UFC 156, and it’s hard to disagree with that logic. The light heavyweight division has its fair share of viable contenders right now, with everyone from Alexander Gustafsson to Dan Henderson primed for a title shot with a victory in their next contest, so let’s give Glover a little more time to develop before we start dubbing him the #1 contender.

Anthony Pettis: If KO’ing a hard-nosed badass like Donald Cerrone in the first round didn’t make enough of a statement, doing so with an off-the-cage flying knee, a handspring (?) kick, and a liver kick to finish things off surely did. Give “Showtime” his much deserved title shot so we can see more of these shenanigans:

Also, make sure Stephan Bonnar is on announcing duties when Pettis gets said title shot.

Ricardo Lamas: Give Lamas whoever emerges victorious from the Jose Aldo/Frankie Edgar title fight at, you guessed it, UFC 156. Lamas has put together four straight over the division’s finest, and outside of Chan Sung-Jung — who is still sidelined from the shoulder surgery he underwent last July — is the only guy in the division ready for a shot at Aldo. Or Edgar. But probably Aldo.

T.J. Grant: With his incredibly impressive knockout win over Matt “Don’t Call Me Handsome Anymore” Wiman last weekend, Grant has suddenly established himself as one of the lightweight division’s hottest prospects. It may have taken him a few years under Zuffa’s embrace to pull off, but Grant now finds himself in the position to call out the Jim Millers of the division. Thankfully for us, Grant did just that. Miller is coming off a late Fight of the Year win over Joe Lauzon at UFC 155, and although Grant isn’t exactly a big name yet, a win for either man would send a resounding message to the rest of the lightweight division.

Clay Guida: On the heels of a split decision victory over Hatsu Hioki punctuated by dizzying head movement and top control, Guida proved that he is pretty much capable of doing the same things at featherweight as he did at lightweight. The perfect matchup for Guida at this point would be Nik Lentz, in our opinion. Currently riding a two fight win streak, Lentz is a similarly strong grappler who could possibly negate some of Guida’s hyper-blanket attack and would be a great litmus test for Guida in his newfound home.

So, Potato Nation, are there any matchups you find more relevant than what we’ve put together? Give us a shout in the comments section.

–J. Jones