The exit of the dragon?
After two years of inaction, karate poster boy and UFC ex-champ Lyoto Machida stepped into the Octagon again Saturday at UFC Fight Night 119. It feels like decades ago that the Dragon failed that drug test, the same one that lan…
The exit of the dragon?
After two years of inaction, karate poster boy and UFC ex-champ Lyoto Machida stepped into the Octagon again Saturday at UFC Fight Night 119. It feels like decades ago that the Dragon failed that drug test, the same one that landed him in the soup and interrupted his disruptive innovation.
Do you remember when The Dragon Machida was going to rule the world with his weird karate stance and unbeatable counter-punching, while we all sang “You’re the Best Around” and marveled at his demographic-less good looks? I sure as heck do.
But that was then, and this is now. Saturday, he had Derek Brunson the wrestle-striker in front of him.
Before the event, Brunson hadn’t beaten a true contender in the middleweight division. He had won six of eight but lost two of his past three. Brunson has all the talent, but his ability to leverage it against an elite opponent is, charitably, uncertain.
Machida, at age 39 and two years out of the sport, was officially an unknown quantity.
Something had to give, then. Either Machida still has it or Brunson is a contender.
The card may not have brought any higher stakes than the main event, but there was one contest that was louder, if you will. That’s the co-main event.
Demian Maia and his amazing-if-boring jiu-jitsu faced Colby Covington. The latter took a page from the Chael Sonnen Book of Trash Talk in the run-up to this. He talked some garbage. Did anyone care? Sure. It’s good copy. At some point, though, cliched behavior has to answer to itself. If Covington wants legitimacy, he’ll need to earn it.
Finally, this event took place in Sao Paulo, Brazil. There were many Brazilian fighters on this card. Every Brazilian fighter deserves respect in this MMA game. How did they all do on Saturday?
As always, the stat lines don’t reveal everything. These are the real winners and losers from UFC Fight Night 119.
For the literal-minded among us, full results appear at the end.
Round 1: Maia opens with a jab and hook, Covington responds with a jumping switch kick that misses. Maia is looking pretty impressive on the feet thus far and is landing some nice shots to Covington’s chin. A leg kick lands for Covington and a big left hand from Main forces Covington to back up. […]
Maia opens with a jab and hook, Covington responds with a jumping switch kick that misses. Maia is looking pretty impressive on the feet thus far and is landing some nice shots to Covington’s chin. A leg kick lands for Covington and a big left hand from Main forces Covington to back up. A takedown attempt from Maia now and it’s stuffed. More left hands land for Maia and Covington is ripping off some leg kicks. Maia continues to land his left hand but Covington is landing hard leg kicks continuously.
Maia has been tagging Covington up so nicely that he is busted open above his eye and is bleeding profusely. Covington is starting to land some nice strikes now but Maia continues to move around nicely. Now Covington rips off some hard shots and pressures Maia against the cage. The leg kicks from Covington are now forcing Maia’s legs to swell up.
A big shot lands for Maia and wobbles Covington a bit, but Covington is firing back with heavy strikes of his own. Maia now grabs a leg and works a takedown but Covington sprawls and is looking to lock up the neck. Maia gets to his feet and the round ends with Covington blitzing Maia with strikes.
Round 2:
Covington stuffs a takedown to open the round and the pair are back up to their feet immediately. Covington stuffs another takedown and presses Maia against the cage before backing up. Again Maia shoots in and locks up Covington’s legs, but Covington has top position and defends well. They stand again but Maia shoots yet again. Maia lays down but Covington refuses to engage and the ref stands him up.
A left hand lands for Maia but now Covington is landing some big shots in response. Both men look tired and Maia shoots in again, but Covington defends. Covington stands up and pressures forward with striking, and Maia shoots again. The ref stands Maia up as Covington stands and Covington now busts Maia open with his jab. The round comes to an end with Covington landing a few strikes on Maia.
Round 3:
Maia avoids most of Covington’s offense and is able to land a nice uppercut inside the pocket. Covington clinches up and lands a few hard shots but they disengage and Maia shoots in on a failed takedown attempt. They stand back up but Covington is now landing some big shots. Both men are exhausted and things are looking very sloppy. Covington is obviously the fresher of the pair and is landing the better shots.
The sloppy fighting continues before Covington pulls off a string of hard shots and Maia is trying to survive at this point. He shoots in on a takedown and Covington stands up. Another takedown attempt and it’s stuffed as Covington just lays down on Maia, dropping ground-and-pound. The fight comes to an end at the buzzer with Covington landing a barrage of ground-and-pound.
Official Result: Colby Covington def. Demian Maia via unanimous decision (29-27, 30-27, 30-26)
From inside the guts of of Sao Paolo, Brazil, it’s UFC Fight Night 119. As is usually the case when the UFC hits Brazil, that means plenty of Brazilian fighters on the card. That, in turn, means good things are bound to happen.
In the main event, aging…
From inside the guts of of Sao Paolo, Brazil, it’s UFC Fight Night 119. As is usually the case when the UFC hits Brazil, that means plenty of Brazilian fighters on the card. That, in turn, means good things are bound to happen.
In the main event, aging lion Lyoto Machida steps into the cage after a two-year absence for a failed drug test. He’s facing Derek Brunson, a streaking middleweight with designs on title contention in a shallow division.
The co-main event sees the return of Demian Maia following his unsuccessful challenge to champion Tyron Woodley.
Oh, and did someone say John Lineker? Everyone’s favorite tiny knockout artist is in the mix.
Get yourself acquainted the main card, which airs Saturday on Fox Sports 1, with the help of our predictions team. Nathan McCarter. Craig “Cookie” Amos. Steven Rondina. And myself, Scott Harris. Let’s get it on.
Colby Covington is not short on self-confidence. On the heels of a four-fight win streak, Covington will take on recent UFC title challenger Demian Maia Saturday night at UFC Fight Night 119. The bout airs live on FOX Sports 1 from Sao Paulo, Brazil. “I see myself as the uncrowned king of this division. This […]
Colby Covington is not short on self-confidence. On the heels of a four-fight win streak, Covington will take on recent UFC title challenger Demian Maia Saturday night at UFC Fight Night 119. The bout airs live on FOX Sports 1 from Sao Paulo, Brazil. “I see myself as the uncrowned king of this division. This […]
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida returns to the Octagon for the first time since serving a suspension, as he welcomes Derek Brunson to Brazil at UFC Fight Night 119. The event takes place from the Ginasio do Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo and airs live on FOX Sports 1. Machida was handed a n […]
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida returns to the Octagon for the first time since serving a suspension, as he welcomes Derek Brunson to Brazil at UFC Fight Night 119. The event takes place from the Ginasio do Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo and airs live on FOX Sports 1. Machida was handed a n […]
The UFC’s all-time wins record might be a transitive beast for the next few weeks.
An odd wrinkle in the fight company’s upcoming schedule has all four of the fighters with the most career Octagon victories in action between now and Nov. 4. That run be…
The UFC’s all-time wins record might be a transitive beast for the next few weeks.
An odd wrinkle in the fight company’s upcoming schedule has all four of the fighters with the most career Octagon victories in action between now and Nov. 4. That run begins Saturday, when Donald Cerrone (19 UFC wins) takes on upstart Darren Till in the main event of UFC Fight Night 118.
If Cerrone beats Till, it’ll move him into a tie with middleweight champion Michael Bisping (20) as the winningest competitors in UFC history. Depending how it goes for Cerrone, it also gives him a chance to pad a few of his other already impressive UFC numbers:
On Oct. 28, Damien Maia (19 victories) can make it a three-way tie atop the wins leaderboard, as he takes on Colby Covington at UFC Fight Night 119.
As if that weren’t already enough, Bisping could retake the overall lead with a win over former welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre (19 wins) in that pair’s superfight at UFC 217 on Nov. 4.
If not? Then St-Pierre could make it a four-man logjam in the history books, with everybody possibly tied up at 20 wins apiece.
As you can see, this under-the-radar race to see who can win the most fights ever in the UFC is neck and neck.
The bad news for the field, however, is that Cerrone has the inside track to ultimately come out ahead.
Considering the breakneck pace at which he fights, The Cowboy is on pace to stand alone with the all-time wins record by the time he hangs up his gloves.
Cerrone has been the UFC’s resident wild man since arriving in the Octagon from the WEC in 2011. Since then, he’s set a torrid pace, fighting five times in 2011 and then four times each year from 2013 through 2016. Along the way, he’s won 12 of the organization’s performance-based fight-night bonuses while putting up an overall record of 19-6.
The Colorado native’s “work hard, play hard” ethos has made him so well-liked that Cerrone has created his own cottage industry inside the UFC. Though he’s fought once for the lightweight championship and consistently faces top competition, he exists on his own plane, outside the rat race of the UFC’s divisional title pictures.
Fans love Cerrone regardless if he’s winning or losing. They see his love for the sport and Clint Eastwood-style, down-for-whatever squint and latch onto it.
Now 34 years old, Cerrone knows his high-octane approach can’t go on forever. By his own estimation, he’ll be done before he turns 40.
“My three things that I really, really want, that I think the fight game needs, because I’m ending my career in three, four more years. I need some retirement,” Cerone said in late 2016, via MMAjunkie’s Mike Bohn and Ken Hathaway. “A pension. Some kind of health care. Those are three things I think the sport really needs, so that’s what I’m looking for.”
Even with that limited window, however, Cerrone likely still has the upper hand on Bisping, St-Pierre and Maia.
Maia is already 39 and almost certainly nearing the end of his career. While a couple years younger, both Bisping and St-Pierre have acknowledged they too won’t be around forever.
For St-Pierre, 36, this fight marks his return from his first extended hiatus from the sport. Following a hard-fought welterweight victory over Johny Hendricks in November 2013, GSP walked away from MMA, citing the various psychological pressures of being champion.
Now he’s back, but it remains unclear for how long.
Bisping, 38, has gone as far as to say UFC 217 might be his last fight.
“I think the career I’ve had, the years I’ve been in the UFC, the injuries I’ve had, the ups and downs, getting close to title fights and all of this, there’s a possibility—this might be my last ever fight,” Bisping said recently, via MMA Fighting’s Shaun Al-Shatti. “I don’t know if I’ll fight again after this. So, what a way to go out if it is.”
Regardless, it’s unlikely either Bisping or St-Pierre has anywhere near the number of fights left in the tank as Cerrone. Even if Cowboy plans to call it quits in a few years, it’s not unthinkable he might have dozen more fights planned, especially if he’s intent on building a nest egg for himself.
That means Cerrone is very likely to become the winningest fighter in UFC history by the time he’s all done.
Assuming that does happen, how long could Cerrone be reasonably assured of holding onto the record? That depends. There is a gaggle of other active fighters within striking distance of the all-time mark.
Anderson Silva (42) and Jim Miller (34) each have 17 UFC wins, and each has a fight coming up. Silva takes on Kelvin Gastelum on Nov. 25, and Miller fights Francisco Trinaldo on Oct. 28.
Jon Jones (30), Frankie Edgar (36), Rafael Dos Anjos (32), Gleison Tibau (34) and Diego Sanchez (35) all have 16 UFC wins. Edgar, Sanchez and Dos Anjos all have upcoming bouts scheduled, but Jones and Tibau are on the bench dealing with the fallout from failed drug tests.
Tibau is already serving a two-year ban handed down in early 2016.
Jones, who might be the most interesting case of the above group, still faces an uncertain future. The former light heavyweight champion might well already have the all-time wins record sewn up if he hadn’t spent significant periods of his career dealing with self-inflicted crises.
Jones has fought just once each year since 2014, and the worst-case scenario following his second positive test for performance-enhancing drugs has him staring down the possibility of a four-year suspension. Obviously, how that positive test is ultimately handled by the UFC will have a lot to do with Jones’ future.
Other active notables with a chance of catching Cerrone include men’s flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson (15 wins) and men’s featherweight champ Max Holloway (14). Both those guys are still very much in their athletic primes, but still far enough away that it would take a few years for them to catch up.
For now, we’re left to assume that Cerrone has the best shot to retire as the UFC’s iron man, and that would be a fitting accolade to cap the career of The Cowboy.
The UFC’s all-time wins record might be a transitive beast for the next few weeks.