The UFC returns to FOX this Saturday with a three-fight main card that could produce the next title contenders in two different divisions. It’s also packed with betting opportunities that will generously reward the risk-takers. And you’re not a chicken, are you? Huh? Bawk bawk bawwwwwk?? Yeah, that’s what we thought. So consider our UFC on FOX 2: Evans vs. Davis gambling advice after the jump, and be sure to come back for our liveblog, which kicks off at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. But first, the complete odds lineup, via BestFightOdds.com:
The UFC returns to FOX this Saturday with a three-fight main card that could produce the next title contenders in two different divisions. It’s also packed with betting opportunities that will generously reward the risk-takers. And you’re not a chicken, are you? Huh? Bawk bawk bawwwwwk?? Yeah, that’s what we thought. So consider our UFC on FOX 2: Evans vs. Davis gambling advice after the jump, and be sure to come back for our liveblog, which kicks off at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. But first, the complete odds lineup, via BestFightOdds.com:
PRELIMINARY CARD (FACEBOOK.com/UFC)
Chris Camozzi (-170) vs. Dustin Jacoby (+160)
Let’s get started…
The Main Event: This is Rashad’s fight to lose. His striking is better than Davis’s, and he’s not going to allow Mr. Wonderful to outwrestle him for five rounds. I say Evans keeps the fight standing and takes a win on the scorecards. Now, if you consider the intangibles — Rashad’s streak of bad luck, his high emotions coming into this fight, the rocky start of the Blackzilians camp (see: Anthony Johnson, Melvin Guillard) — then an upset starts to seem possible. But on paper, Suga holds more advantages, and you can bet comfortably on him.
The Good ‘Dogs: For starters, the two other fights on the main card are worth looking at. Chael Sonnen certainly deserves to be the favorite against Michael Bisping, but 4-1 odds is pushing it. (You have to think that Bisping has spent the last week drilling triangle chokes off his back nonstop.) A small wager on Bisping for the upset is smart, simply because the payoff is so inflated. As for Demian Maia, slating him as the underdog is close to insulting. Weidman may be the newest hot-shit wrestler/grappler prospect in the middleweight division, but he’s also coming into the fight on very short notice, against a veteran whose biggest strengths are on the mat. Weidman could be in trouble here. I also like the occasionally-brilliant George Roop at +125 against the generally-inconsistent Cub Swanson.
Prelim Steal: How is Mike Russow, who’s 3-0 in the UFC and hasn’t lost a fight in almost five years, only a -150 favorite against Jon Olav Einemo, who’s 0-1 in the UFC and hasn’t won a fight in over five years? Just because Einemo briefly had Dave Herman on the ropes in his UFC debut, we’re supposed to think that this fight isn’t a squash match? Forget that — this is free money. Bet big on Russow.
Official CagePotato Parlay: Sonnen + Russow + Oliveira + Beltran
Suggested wager for a $50 stake
– $10 on Evans
– $5 on Bisping
– $5 on Maia
– $5 on Roop
– $20 on Russow
– $5 on the parlay
(Is that who we think it is? No wonder Guillard always chose “Thong Song” as his walkout music.)
Tonight marks the UFC’s fourth biggest debut on a television network, so how appropriate is it that I, CagePotato’s fourth or fifth best writer, would be assigned to such an…assignment? Damn it, I really had something for that. Anyway, both Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller will be looking to rebound from tough losses and reestablish themselves amongst the UFC’s ever-growing 155 lb. division in tonight’s main event. Elsewhere on the card, Pat Barry and Christian Morecraft will likely be fighting for their jobs, and Jorge Rivera is calling it a career regardless of how his battle with Eric Schafer goes. Everyone raise your glass of Dos Equis in his honor.
So whether you’re watching the fights from your local watering hole or the privacy of your two story, five bedroom & three bathroom brownstone in the sky, join me, Jared Jones, as I recap the action round by round starting at 9 p.m. ET/ 6 p.m. PT, all whilst trying to find the perfect balance between Maker’s Mark, Yellow Tail, and Pabst Blue Ribbon. Allow me to preemptively apologize for any grammatical errors, delayed updates, and possibly racist, anti-semitic, or chauvinistic remarks that may or may not find their way onto this liveblog as a result. LETS DO THIS!!!
(Is that who we think it is? No wonder Guillard always chose “Thong Song” as his walkout music.)
Tonight marks the UFC’s fourth biggest debut on a television network, so how appropriate is it that I, CagePotato’s fourth or fifth best writer, would be assigned to such an…assignment? Damn it, I really had something for that. Anyway, both Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller will be looking to rebound from tough losses and reestablish themselves amongst the UFC’s ever-growing 155 lb. division in tonight’s main event. Elsewhere on the card, Pat Barry and Christian Morecraft will likely be fighting for their jobs, and Jorge Rivera is calling it a career regardless of how his battle with Eric Schafer goes. Everyone raise your glass of Dos Equis in his honor.
So whether you’re watching the fights from your local watering hole or the privacy of your two story, five bedroom & three bathroom brownstone in the sky, join me, Jared Jones, as I recap the action round by round starting at 9 p.m. ET/ 6 p.m. PT, all whilst trying to find the perfect balance between Maker’s Mark, Yellow Tail, and Pabst Blue Ribbon. Allow me to preemptively apologize for any grammatical errors, delayed updates, and possibly racist, anti-semitic, or chauvinistic remarks that may or may not find their way onto this liveblog as a result. LETS DO THIS!!!
Undercard Results
-Nick Denis def. Joseph Sandoval via KO (Jordan Mein-esque standing hellbows) 0:22 of round 1
-Daniel Pineda def. Pat Schilling via submission (rear-naked choke) 1:37 of round 1
-Fabricio Camoes def. Tommy Hayden via submission (rear-naked choke) 4:03 of round 1
-Charlie Brenneman def. Daniel Roberts via unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 29-28)
-Habib “The Nurm” Nurmagomedov def. Kamal Shalorus via submission (rear-naked choke) 2:08 of round 3
-Jorge Rivera def. Eric Schafer via TKO (punches) 1:31 of round 2
Jon Anik says Morecraft will have to be “crafty and more to get past Pat Barry.” Mauro Ronaldo just threw himself into oncoming traffic. Herb Dean is our referee.
Round 1: Morecraft gets ahold of Barry’s leg and takes him down early, then starts working a rear-naked. Barry fights out of it and gets to his feet. Leg kick drops Morecraft momentarily. Nice jab by Barry. Morecraft shoots a single…is that Barry attempting a guillotine?!! Morecraft takes advantage, gets Barry to the mat and mounts him again. Morecraft goes for an armbar AND BARRY DEFENDS IT. Barry just misses a head kick. A looping left hook drops Morecraft, and Barry swarms him. Barry finishes Morecraft off with some brutal ground and pound ala Yvel/Rizzo.
Barry def. Morecraft via KO (punches) at 3:38 round 1
Barry showed some much improved submission defense, but will need to add some takedown defense if he wants to put together a real win streak. And he celebrates by planking on Jon Anik’s foot. Love him or hate him, you can’t deny that Barry is one entertaining SOB. Morecraft looks…rough.
Mike Easton vs. Jared Papazian
These two are not fans of one another, and are jawing from across the cage. Was that a Haiduken by Easton in the introductions?
Round 1: Both men come out trading like Frye/Takayama, minus the mustache glory. Easton pins Papazian against the cage. Yamasaki breaks it up near the halfway mark. Leg kick by each man. Papazian wings a huge right hook and catches nothing but air. Leg kick by Easton is answered. Left hand counter by Easton. Easton tries a knee from the clinch. Then a spinning back kick that partially lands. Nice leg kick from Easton. Both men trade some knees and punches until the round ends. 10-9 Easton.
Round 2: Papazian lands a few punches including a superman, but Easton walks right through them. Solid left hook from Easton. Both guys are swinging for the fences, but Easton is getting the better, who decides to clinch. Now they are fighting for underhooks against the cage. Now Papazian tries the spinning back kick, and Easton clinches. Easton gets a takedown and into half guard. He momentarily gets side mount, but Papazian is able to stand back up. Knee Easton. Papazian shoots but is reversed and taken down. Another close round, but Easton took it with takedowns.
Round 3: Both men are trading back and forth with bad intentions. Papazian gets the clinch, but Easton reverses again. Mario splits them up. Papazian recovers briefly from a knee to the groin. Jab Papazian. Three punch combo by Easton. These men have some chins, folks. Papazian is coming forward Diaz style, constantly pressuring Easton with punches in bunches. Leg kicks from both fighters. Easton follows a trip with a right hand. Easton gets the Thai plum and throws a couple more knees. Uppercut Papazian. Easton answers with a right and Papazian goes for a double as the bell rings. Great fight.
Mike Easton def. Jared Papazian via majority decision.
Duane Ludwig vs. Josh Neer
This was my original pick for FOTN, but it’s going to be hard to top Papazian/Easton. They’re using the NFL theme as background music, a sickening reminder that I have to watch Tom Brady yet again come Sunday. I’m not one to wish harm on another person, but I really hope someone spears Brady directly into Bill Belichick, permanently disabling them both in the process.
Round 1: Both men pawing with the jab. Neer clinches after Ludwig catches him coming forward. Nice balance by Ludwig, who throws a knee. Neer lands an overhand right. Ludwig with a knee to the body that momentarily backs up Neer. Ludwig lands a few nice shots, and Neer is just eating them up. Neer grabs a single and manages to get Ludwig down. Neer snags a guillotine in the scramble, and that shit is DEEP. Ludwig goes limp shortly thereafter. Nice win for Neer.
Josh Neer def. Duane Ludwig via submission (guillotine) 3:05 round 1.
Now they’re previewing the Diaz/Condit fight, calling Diaz “the most enigmatic fighter in the UFC.”A thousand dollars says Diaz can neither spell that word nor knows what it means. Then again, dictionaries are for trick ass punks and punk ass tricks, homie.
Melvin Guillard vs. Jim Miller
Miller comes out to “Bad Moon Rising” by CCR. BOSS.
Round 1: Guillard tries an “explosive” flying knee early. Then another. Guillard catches Miller with a left, and Miller clinches. Guillard throws another knee, then whiffs a head kick. Miller drives him into the fence but can’t get him down. Guillard with a right, then yet another flying knee, but Miller manages to take him down. Miller quickly gets into mount, Guillard tries to stand, and Miller leaps into a rear naked choke. I’ve seen this movie before. Aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnndddd it’s over. Blackzilians are officially 0-2 in the octagon.
Jim Miller def. Melvin Guillard via submission (rear-naked choke) 2:04 of round 1
Chalk up another win for the Gambling Enabler, folks. Well, just like many first times, this liveblog was shockingly quick and mostly pain free. I thank those of you who decided to keep me company on this cold evening, and hope you all have a great weekend. Peace and love, Potato Nation.
Over the past few days, there’s been a lot of talk about what is fair and what is not. ESPN’s latest Outside the Lines episode, in which they attempted to sabotage the UFC find out whether or not the UFC holds a monopoly in mixed martial arts, was mostly focused on how much money entry-level fighters are making compared to top fighters, and how unfair that is. Over and over again we were forced to hear terms like “revenue pie” and “fair share.” And just like that, the MMA fanosphere exploded as everyone with an Internet connection shared their inebriated take on fairness and injustice.
Let me stop you in your tracks right there. Who said life was fair, or even that it should be? Need I remind you just how unfair life is?
Over the past few days, there’s been a lot of talk about what is fair and what is not. ESPN’s latest Outside the Lines episode, in which they attempted to sabotage the UFC find out whether or not the UFC holds a monopoly in mixed martial arts, was mostly focused on how much money entry-level fighters are making compared to top fighters, and how unfair that is. Over and over again we were forced to hear terms like “revenue pie” and “fair share.” And just like that, the MMA fanosphere exploded as everyone with an Internet connection shared their inebriated take on fairness and injustice.
Let me stop you in your tracks right there. Who said life was fair, or even that it should be? Need I remind you just how unfair life is?
At UFC 142 we saw featherweight champion, Jose “Where’s Waldo?” Aldo, cheat his way to victory with a perfectly executed grab of the cage, leading to the advantageous position where he promptly knocked out Team Alpha Male standout Chad Mendes. Do you remember the phantom knee that got Josh Koscheck‘s panties in a bunch? Thankfully, the point deduction was taken back after a quick check of the instant replay. Man, that thing sure would have come in handy for Erick Silva in Rio on Saturday night. Another fighter’s record blemished forever by an incompetent ref…or lapse in judgement, I’ll let you make the call.
Rape joke from fighter X = acceptable. Rape joke from fighter Y = GTFO.
When a reporter asks if it’s fair that a guy on the undercard is only making “6 and 6,” we should keep in mind that only a handful of people are paying the UFC to watch him fight, and most of them have changed his diaper at one point or another. He’s lucky to have made it this far, and to be given the opportunity to make a lot more money in the future. Would it be fair if Zuffa didn’t pay top guys Anderson Silva money? I mean, they are the primary reason we buy the PPV to begin with, right? We’ve seen the numbers drop when the main event stars get injured and the co-main event gets bumped up a week before the fight. You shell out our hard-earned money when the big dogs come out to play.
Bill Gates is said to have given a commencement speech to a group of students titled ‘Rules for Life’, and I can’t help but think it’s only appropriate to share what he said with all of you. [Ed. note: It was actually written by Charles J. Sykes, but let’s not get hung up on details.]
Rule 1: Life is not fair — get used to it!
Rule 2: The world won’t care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won’t be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.
Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping — they called it opportunity.
Rule 6: If you mess up, it’s not your parents’ fault, so don’t whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren’t as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you are. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent’s generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they’ll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.
Potato Nation, I beseech you to help enforce this newly added CagePotato Ban. Let all those who complain or inquire about the fairness of something be reprimanded for their blatant disregard for common sense. As we’ve just discussed, life isn’t fair. Plain and simple, cut and dry. Let’s all stop questioning something so obvious and spend our time doing something a little more productive, like, say, I don’t know… maybe finding an affordable way to do random drug testing in and out of competition.
The Good
• Edson Barboza‘s astounding spinning heel kick knockout of Terry Etim. Mike Goldberg might have been exaggerating a bit when he called it “maybe the most spectacular knockout in UFC history,” but it’s certainly the early front-runner for Greatest Knockout of 2012. And props to Joe Rogan for immediately recalling Baraboza’s prior use of the kick against Anthony Njokuani. As Rogan mentioned, it’s an under-utilized technique that we may start to see come in-vogue in 2012, much like the crane kick in 2011.
• Gabriel Gonzaga needed a good performance to provoke any sort of excitement in his return to the UFC’s heavyweight division. Even sweeter than his early finish was his proclamation that we can expect to see him return to the submission base that generated so much interest in his first run at UFC contention.
• After two highly energetic Brazilian shows within a year, the UFC has found its most passionate and dedicated audience. The crowd at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro was loud, enthusiastic, and everything one would expect from a bunch of rowdy Brazilian fight fans. There was a good amount of variation in the chants throughout the night — from “U.S.A., to “Thiago,” to the famous soccer anthem “ole ole ole” — and a surreal crowd-surfing celebration from defending featherweight champion Jose Aldo capped off the incredible fan involvement.
The Good
• Edson Barboza‘s astounding spinning heel kick knockout of Terry Etim. Mike Goldberg might have been exaggerating a bit when he called it “maybe the most spectacular knockout in UFC history,” but it’s certainly the early front-runner for Greatest Knockout of 2012. And props to Joe Rogan for immediately recalling Baraboza’s prior use of the kick against Anthony Njokuani. As Rogan mentioned, it’s an under-utilized technique that we may start to see come in-vogue in 2012, much like the crane kick in 2011.
• Gabriel Gonzaga needed a good performance to provoke any sort of excitement in his return to the UFC’s heavyweight division. Even sweeter than his early finish was his proclamation that we can expect to see him return to the submission base that generated so much interest in his first run at UFC contention.
• After two highly energetic Brazilian shows within a year, the UFC has found its most passionate and dedicated audience. The crowd at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro was loud, enthusiastic, and everything one would expect from a bunch of rowdy Brazilian fight fans. There was a good amount of variation in the chants throughout the night — from “U.S.A., to “Thiago,” to the famous soccer anthem “ole ole ole” — and a surreal crowd-surfing celebration from defending featherweight champion Jose Aldo capped off the incredible fan involvement.
The Bad
• Referee Dan Miragliotta’s stand-ups in the Belfort/Johnson fight were far too quick. In both instances, Miragliotta should have allowed Anthony Johnson more time to improve his position or inflict some damage from the top. [Ed. note: A Bleacher Report column went as far as to suggest that Miragliotta was paid to make things difficult for Johnson, but the article has since been removed from the site.] If Johnson were in any position to complain, he might have a case; however, nobody wants to listen to any more of this guy’s excuses. Hope the free agent market treats you well, AJ.
• For a channel trying to brand itself as the new home of the UFC, FX did not seem to put much effort into their promo for this Friday’s upcoming UFC on FX 2 card during their prelims broadcast. All they could manage was a promo that featured split-second highlights of Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller and an animated fighter made out of chain-link fence that pretended to punch the screen. Needless to say, it seemed like a missed opportunity.
• Felipe Arantes looked pretty silly jumping on the cage in celebration prior to confirmation that he had edged out a unanimous decision win over Antonio Carvalho, in their card-opening match on Facebook. Obviously, Arantes wanted to soak in what he was sure would be an appreciative hometown crowd but it seemed excessive for a performance that lacked the fight-ending dominance we’ve come to expect from post-fight cage jumps.
The Ugly
• Even though Rousimar Palhares’s submissions are a thing of beauty for leg-lock fanatics, they serve as an ugly reminder of the hideous damage that the “Tree trunk” can inflict on his opponents. When Palhares gets within snatching distance of an opponent’s leg, there is a large part of me that wants to scream at the referee to stop it already for the love of God before he inflicts permanent damage on this poor man! Get in the cage with Palhares and there’s a good chance he will get hold of your leg and tear some of the major tendons, ligaments and muscles. If that’s not ugly, I don’t know what is.
• The “Keys to Victory” segment has got to go. It was a horrible feature when Frank Shamrock did it on CBS and it’s horrible now. If the UFC insists on breaking something down in such a simplistic and grossly misleading manner, they should at least get somebody other than Joe Rogan to deliver it. As the color commentator, he’s already influencing audience perceptions about each fighter’s skills. It would make sense to mix things up by having a veteran like Randy Couture or Kenny Florian breaking things down.
• Mario Yamasaki may have made a bad call in disqualifying Erick Silva for what he deemed to be illegal shots to the back of the head but Joe Rogan challenging him about it post-fight was even more cringe-inducing. Joe should stick to interviewing fighters, not referees. It was disrespectful to Mario, a mainstay in the Brazilian MMA community. Mario seemed none too pleased with being called out and paced anxiously in the background as Rogan continued to rip on the decision while interviewing Silva. It was an uncomfortable moment in the broadcast and the empathy it invoked on behalf of Yamasaki almost seemed to negate his poor judgment in the fight.
By now, you’ve probably heard the big news of the day: Anthony “Hey Yo, Is That My Tummy Rumblin’?” Johnson missed weight today in historic fashion, tipping the scales at 197 pounds. According to some research that I absolutely did not just do, twelve pounds is the most that anyone has ever blown weight anywhere ever, and you can feel free to correct me in the comments. Vitor Belfort has agreed to fight a catchweight at 197, but has asked that Johnson weigh-in again tomorrow at no more than 205.
Now, maybe I’m not shocked by this — but damn brotato, how do you miss — how do you go UP a weight class because you have a nightmare cut at 170 and the boss has said you belong at 185, then proceed to bulk up like you got a call from Vince McMahon?
Serious question: is Anthony Johnson dyslexic with numbers or something? Just checking.
By now, you’ve probably heard the big news of the day: Anthony “Hey Yo, Is That My Tummy Rumblin’?” Johnson missed weight today in historic fashion, tipping the scales at 197 pounds. According to some research that I absolutely did not just do, twelve pounds is the most that anyone has ever blown weight anywhere ever, and you can feel free to correct me in the comments. Vitor Belfort has agreed to fight a catchweight at 197, but has asked that Johnson weigh-in again tomorrow at no more than 205.
Now, maybe I’m not exactly shocked by this — but damn brotato, how do you miss … how do you go UP a weight class because you have a nightmare cut at 170 and the boss has said you belong at 185, then proceed to bulk up like you got a call from Vince McMahon?
Serious question: is Anthony Johnson dyslexic with numbers or something? Just checking.
The downsides are all on Rumble’s side. Dana is already going on record calling him “unprofessional”, which may be code for “black”, but in this case is actually code for “I’m going to fuck him worse than he’s ever been fucked before”. Unless Rumble puts in a Fight of the Night-worthy performance, he will almost certainly lose his job and wind up in StrikeForce, except without their awesome salaries.
First off: bungalow fans rejoice, because this just became a slugfest. Johnson has to know that a methodical, grinding win will result in Dana firing him angrily during the press conference (which Johnson would not be invited to). Johnson is going to have to use his reach and size (ha ha, get it?) to win a stand up fight with Belfort.
Belfort himself comes out of this like a champ, because he can not lose in this situation. He’s stepping up to save the fight, which means he’ll have a job with the UFC through the next two years or four losses (whichever comes first). Should he lose, his record will have an asterisk for all eternity that Johnson was a 250 pound roid-monster in the cage, and if he pulls out a win the internet will explode because Vitor Belfort just knocked out a heavyweight holy shit did you see that, bro!? It’s like UFC 13 again, only in Brazil.
Meanwhile Johnson loses pretty much any way you slice it. He’ll be a visibly larger man in the cage to anyone with rods and cones to rub together, and any win he gets will be tainted. No one is going to be particularly impressed with a quick knockout on a smaller Belfort, and if he actually tries to wrestle Belfort for a decision?
UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo is 20-1 as a pro fighter, 2-0 in his UFC career with a “Fight of 2011″ candidate in his UFC 129 win over Mark Hominick and a UFC 136 win over Middleweight-turned-Featherweight Kenny Florian, and he’…
UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo is 20-1 as a pro fighter, 2-0 in his UFC career with a “Fight of 2011″ candidate in his UFC 129 win over Mark Hominick and a UFC 136 win over Middleweight-turned-Featherweight Kenny Florian, and he’s seen by some as the best Featherweight in MMA while others argue that Aldo […]
