UFC on Fuel TV 3 – The Crisper’s Betting Recap

Man that Korean Zombie really f’d up what was looking like a great betting night in the UFC. Here is a recap of the bets and results: TJ Grant (-460) – This one was like.

Man that Korean Zombie really f’d up what was looking like a great betting night in the UFC. Here is a recap of the bets and results:

TJ Grant (-460) – This one was like takin candy from a baby ….Grant took control from the onset and dominated all phases. It’s nice when you’re laying so much to never really feel nervous at any point during the fight. PUT ONE IN THE COOKIE JAR!….. + 1 unit.

Donald Cerrone (-250)– Cowboy uses his reach advantage to completely outclass a good fighter in Lil Heathen Stephens. Stephens couldn’t even play dead in a western on this night. He had no chance and Cerrone never let him breath, give the Crisper another one!…… + 2 units.

Jorge Lopez (+110) – Just read Alan Wells’ recap on this fight in UFC on Fuel Random Thoughts. We got SCREWED by the judges and I am none to happy about it. Cost us money. Bullshit. Anyway….take a half a unit and stick it up the judges asses……+1.5 units

Dustin Poirier (-325) – All I can say is, when you lay on a big favorite and he gets his ass kicked, for the betting man it feels like getting your nuts kicked in. Korean Zombie took it to our boy, and there was really never a doubt. It looked like Poirier started to turn a corner in the 3rd by establishing his jab, but Zombie turned the tables and finished him off. That result completely ruined our night giving back 3.25 units……-1.75 units

This brings our total on posted picks to -1.025 units. Check back this weekend for Crisper Picks on Strikeforce Saturday night May 19th!

Armchair Matchmaker: UFC on FUEL 3 Edition


(Tom Lawlor: The UFC’s undisputed Seven Up champion.) 

Maybe it’s just us, but it seems like it’s getting harder and harder to drum up a potential list of future opponents for the winners of a given UFC card these days. Not only are most fighters already booked for the promotion’s ever-increasing amount of cards, but the ones selected for title shots are seemingly being drawn out of a hat. Be that as it may, we are going to try and sift through the wreckage of last night’s UFC on FUEL card and determine who the big winners should face next. Enjoy.

Chan Sung Jung: We’ll be the first to admit that we underestimated “The Korean Zombie” heading into yesterday’s fight. But aside from his excellent transitions on the ground, or that amazing takedown reversal to mount he was able to pull off, the thing that impressed us the most about Jung was his tranquility. While Poirier was throwing his best shots at him, Jung remained calm, and worked his way out of every hairy situation like a true pro. He deserves a title shot, and Dana White claims that he is next in line for one. And The Baldfather would never go back on his word. Just ask Anthony Pettis.


(Tom Lawlor: The UFC’s undisputed Seven Up champion.) 

Maybe it’s just us, but it seems like it’s getting harder and harder to drum up a potential list of future opponents for the winners of a given UFC card these days. Not only are most fighters already booked for the promotion’s ever-increasing amount of cards, but the ones selected for title shots are seemingly being drawn out of a hat. Be that as it may, we are going to try and sift through the wreckage of last night’s UFC on FUEL card and determine who the big winners should face next. Enjoy.

Chan Sung Jung: We’ll be the first to admit that we underestimated “The Korean Zombie” heading into yesterday’s fight. But aside from his excellent transitions on the ground, or that amazing takedown reversal to mount he was able to pull off, the thing that impressed us the most about Jung was his tranquility. While Poirier was throwing his best shots at him, Jung remained calm, and worked his way out of every hairy situation like a true pro. He deserves a title shot, and Dana White claims that he is next in line for one. And The Baldfather would never go back on his word. Just ask Anthony Pettis.

Amir Sadollah: Despite the fact that neither Sadollah or Jorge Lopez offered much in terms of offensive output in their co-main event (Author’s note: WHO THE FUCK DECIDED THIS?!) clash, we were a little surprised to see Amir get the nod. But regardless of the outcome, one could see that there are still some noticeable holes in Sadollah’s game. Mainly, aggression and takedown defense. Sadollah needs to fight a guy that will bring out his inner beast, and the winner of the Matt Riddle/Luis Ramos bout would be a perfect test for him.

Donald Cerrone: To say that Cerrone’s performance against Jeremy Stephens was anything short of masterful would be an understatement. When facing “The Cowboy’s” multifaceted, not to mention vicious attack, Stephens could do little else but swing for all he was worth, with all but a few of his punches coming up far short of their target. Now 5-1 in the UFC, Cerrone should only be fighting the division’s brightest. A match against Anthony Pettis would not only be a great test of just how far either man will go at 155, but a potential FOTY candidate to boot. Plus, DW could promise the winner a title shot by the end of 2014 when the lightweight division finally clears up.

Yves Jabouin: After falling prey to one of the greatest submissions of 2011 in his UFC debut, the Tristar Gym standout has reeled off three straight in the octagon. Although he has yet to finish an opponent in convincing fashion in his UFC run, he came as close as humanly possible when he unleashed that spinning back kick in the first round of his bantamweight brawl with Jeff Hougland. Given his propencity to put on technical, yet exciting striking clinics, we’d like to see him square off against Mike Easton, who he was originally scheduled to face at yesterday’s event, once “The Hulk” recovers from his injury. It was a good matchup then, and it makes just as much sense now. The pace this fight would take place at would be enough to send the audience into a mass epileptic seizure, and it could make for a great addition to any lacking card.

Tom Lawlor: Currently 2-2 in his last four, with victories coming over the now released Patrick Cote and the soon to be retired Jason MacDonald, it’s kind of hard to place LOLor anywhere but the middle of the pack at this point. We will forever be indebted to “Filthy” for becoming the first man to choke C.B. Dolloway into Narnia at UFC 100, and the man’s weigh-in fashion sense is nothing short of impeccable, so he deserves a winnable matchup against an entertaining fighter to carry the momentum of his KOTN performance. The winner of the Nick Catone/Chris Camozzi scrap, scheduled for UFC on FX 4, comes to mind.

Cody McKenzie: We don’t care if McKenzie is a one-trick pony, he’s our one trick pony, dammit. Physically, McKenzie looked the best he ever has when stepping into the cage against UFC newcomer and wrestling powerhouse Marcus LeVessuer, but that could’ve simply been the result of trimming the outhouse mop that sat atop his head for so long. Sure, he still looked goofy as hell when throwing some of his kicks, which included the first upkick nutshot we’ve seen in quite some time, but if you so much as sneeze in his general direction, he will snatch that neck up and have you crying uncle before you even have time to wipe your nose. He more than likely saved his Zuffa career yesterday, and isn’t exactly ready for a huge step up in competition. Honestly, I would be satisfied if the UFC continued to serve him McKenzietine fodder for the rest of his career, but a matchup against Reza Madadi, who is coming off an impressive debut submission victory over Yoislandy Izquierdo at UFC on FUEL: Gustafsson vs. Silva would be a good test of just what he can do.

So what do you think, Potato Nation? Who should yesterday’s biggest winners (or losers) face off against in the near future?

J. Jones 

UFC on Fuel TV 3- Post-Fight Recap

With his victory over Dustin Poirier last night at UFC on Fuel TV 3, Chan Sung Jung established himself as an elite fighter in the 135 pound division.  He didn’t turn the fight into an.


With his victory over Dustin Poirier last night at UFC on Fuel TV 3, Chan Sung Jung established himself as an elite fighter in the 135 pound division.  He didn’t turn the fight into an impossible to score brawl.  He didn’t catch Poirier with an early punch.  He was clearly the better fighter from the opening bell until the fourth round when he finished with a D’arce choke after dropping Poirier with an uppercut followed by a flying knee.  Poirier did well with his jab and may have won the third round with it but Jung was always the more dangerous fighter and never seemed to be in any danger.  The only weakness Jung showed was in his stamina as he appeared to tire toward the end of the third round.  He mentioned before the fight that he struggled with the weight cut.  He and his team will need to figure out a way to improve on that process to allow him to maximize his stamina for five round fights in the future.  But aside from that, his performance makes it impossible to consider him as anything other than one of the top featherweights in the world.  The win puts him no more than one fight away from a title shot and at the moment, he looks to be one of the few fighters in the division willing to face Jose Aldo.  Jung now has consecutive victories over top ten featherweights in Mark Hominick and Poirier and adding that to his entertainment value and marketability makes him the most likely candidate to face Aldo, provided he defeats Eric Koch at UFC 149 in July.  
 
Donald Cerrone didn’t have to prove that he was one of the best in the world in his weight class because we already knew he was.  But he did remind us just in case we had forgotten by dominating Jeremy Stephens for fifteen minutes.  By the second round, Cerrone seemed to be playing with Stephens and treating the fight more like a sparring match.  He used his kicks to maintain his reach advantage and Stephens was never able to close the distance enough to land punches.  Cerrone repeatedly battered his opponent with punching combinations punctuated with brutal leg kicks.  By the third round, he was even able to land a knockdown with a low kick.  Stephens hung in the fight and continued to throw punches, which if they landed, could have done some damage.  But he couldn’t get inside Cerrone’s reach and often led himself into counter knees to the body.  Cerrone belongs in the title discussion but with Benson Henderson and Frankie Edgar scheduled to fight in August and Nate Diaz already next in line, Cerrone is going to have to continue to fight through the absurd gauntlet of the UFC lightweight division if he wants a shot at the belt.
 
In other action on the card, Amir Sadollah earned a win with a questionable split decision over Jorge Lopez.  Neither fighter was overly impressive and both had chances to assert themselves and earn a clear victory.  Because they did not, the judges were left with a difficult fight to score and in that scenario, the fighters have only themselves to blame if they lose.  Lopez won the first round and Sadollah the second with the third being the round in question.  Two of the judges gave it to Sadollah based on his striking in the middle of the round and that was enough to earn him the win.  Despite the win, Sadollah will need to bring more to the cage in his next fight if he hopes to fulfill his promise as an Ultimate Fighter winner.
 
Yves Jabouin dominated Jeff Hougland and did everything except finish the fight.  Hougland showed a strong heart and could have allowed the fight to be stopped multiple times but forced to Jabouin to earn the stoppage, which Jabouin was unable to do.  Jabouin dropped Hougland in the first round with a spinning back kick to the body but was unable to finish.  He repeated the feat in the third round with a left hand to the jaw but once again, Hougland fought through and got back to his feet.  Basically, Jabouin did exactly what one would expect from him when facing an overmatched opponent.
 
In the slugfest of the night, Igor Pokrajac defeated Fabio Maldonado via unanimous decision.  Pokrajac showed growth building on his knockout of Krzysztof Soszynski.  He made the fight competitive on the feet landing knees from the clinch and punches on the outside.  When necessary, he mixed in takedowns and controlled Maldonado on the ground.  Had he simply taken Maldonado down and kept the fight on the ground, the fight would not have been nearly as close.  His willingness to stand with a professional boxer could have cost him the fight but he managed to absorb the punishment and earn the victory.
 
In the main card opener, Tom Lawlor knocked out Jason MacDonald early in the first round.  Both fighters started aggressively with MacDonald shooting for a takedown.  Lawlor stuffed it and landed a left hand to the chin, a right to the temple, another right on the ground and the fight was over.  The knockout gave Lawlor a much needed win and an opportunity to build some momentum going forward.
 
– Alan Wells

UFC on FUEL 3 Aftermath: When There is No More Room in Hell…The Dead Will Walk the Earth


(Stay away from the light, Dustin! Stay away from the light!) 

Ladies and gentlemen of the Potato Nation, the end times are upon us. Last night, a quiet, unassuming man named Chan Sung Jung escaped from a remote Korean testing facility and wound up in Fairfax, Virginia. Needing to fulfill certain diversity requirements that had long eluded them, the people of Fairfax embraced and accepted him with open arms, completely unaware that he was in fact patient zero of a zombie-like virus that would spell the untimely demise of the human race. Those ignoramuses.

Before they even knew what had hit them, reports of strange occurrences were popping up from county to county, then state to state. Having caught the latter half of the movie Outbreak on TBS just a few weeks prior, the people of Fairfax knew that they had to capture the source of the disease if they were ever to restore order to the chaos they had created. So they sent forth their bravest virologist, a man by the name of Dustin Poirier, to subdue the host and bring him back for testing. Early reports claimed that “The Diamond” would have little to no trouble accomplishing this feat, as he had successfully extinguished every threat placed before him since joining the Zuffa corporation.

How wrong they were.

For nearly twenty minutes, the two engaged in an all out war of attrition, one that would determine the very fate of mankind. He put up a hell of a fight, but as much as it saddens us to say this, we are officially doomed. Poirier was infected by “The Korean Zombie (virus),” and chances are that you will be soon as well. Early symptoms include raucous use of the phrase, “HOLY SHIT BRO”, an ability to absorb a tremendous amount of punishment, $80,000 cash, drowsiness, and cramps.


(Stay away from the light, Dustin! Stay away from the light!) 

Ladies and gentlemen of the Potato Nation, the end times are upon us. Last night, a quiet, unassuming man named Chan Sung Jung escaped from a remote Korean testing facility and wound up in Fairfax, Virginia. Needing to fulfill certain diversity requirements that had long eluded them, the people of Fairfax embraced and accepted him with open arms, completely unaware that he was in fact patient zero of a zombie-like virus that would spell the untimely demise of the human race. Those ignoramuses.

Before they even knew what had hit them, reports of strange occurrences were popping up from county to county, then state to state. Having caught the latter half of the movie Outbreak on TBS just a few weeks prior, the people of Fairfax knew that they had to capture the source of the disease if they were ever to restore order to the chaos they had created. So they sent forth their bravest virologist, a man by the name of Dustin Poirier, to subdue the host and bring him back for testing. Early reports claimed that “The Diamond” would have little to no trouble accomplishing this feat, as he had successfully extinguished every threat placed before him since joining the Zuffa corporation.

How wrong they were.

For nearly twenty minutes, the two engaged in an all out war of attrition, one that would determine the very fate of mankind. He put up a hell of a fight, but as much as it saddens us to say this, we are officially doomed. Poirier was infected by “The Korean Zombie (virus),” and chances are that you will be soon as well. Early symptoms include raucous use of the phrase, “HOLY SHIT BRO”, an ability to absorb a tremendous amount of punishment, $80,000 cash, drowsiness, and cramps.

If you happened to be watching last night’s UFC on FUEL event from a pirated stream or some other medium (because who the hell actually has FUEL), you more than likely experienced many of these symptoms before the main event even began. The same could be said for many of the fighters involved. Just ask Jason “The Mathlete” *snicker* MacDonald, who was so sick with the virus that he slipped into a hallucinogenic state just moments before his fight with Tom Lawlor. Within the opening minute of the very first round, he became so delusional that he mistook the UFC canvas for a Serta mattress and dove headfirst onto it, promptly knocking himself unconscious. When he awoke, his fever had broken, and he could only chuckle at the silly mistake he had made. Lawlor, on the other hand, managed to take home a $40,000 Knockout of the Night award for helping guide this sickly individual to his momentary resting place, living up to the humanitarian reputation he has earned in the UFC.

Signs of the disease were present in Jeremy Stephens and Jeff Hougland in their respective bouts with Donald Cerrone and Yves Jabouin as well. In typical zombie fashion, both men were lit up like the fourth of fucking July for fifteen long minutes, yet could not be put away by their still human counterparts. A tip of the hat is due to their undead corpses. Jabouin opted for a variety of spinning attacks that would make Dennis Siver blush to try and finish the job on Hougland, who only made it out of the fight alive (sort of), thanks to an incredible heart and the, let’s call it timidness, of referee Todd McGovern. Cerrone utilized his reach advantage and a more diverse striking attack to give Stephens fits throughout their fight, putting him in trouble on more than one occasion and slice-n-dicing the ever loving shit out of his face for good measure. When asked to describe his performance afterward, “Lil’ Heathen” proceeded to take a bite out of Jon Anik’s neck and sprint off into the night before he could be put down.

But the virus’ lethargy-induced side effects truly took hold of the audience during the evening’s co-main event, which pitted TUF 7 winner Amir Sadollah against Wanderlei Silva student Jorge Lopez. Although Amir has never been one to get into a barn-burning brawl, even his precision-based offense was a welcome change when having to deal with Lopez’s relentlessly boring “wall-n-stall” takedown attempts. The members of the audience who had not been lulled into a coma…scratch that, every single member of the audience had in fact been lulled into a coma, only to come back as flesh-eating mongoloids hell bent on raping and pillaging anything within arm’s reach. In other words, West Virginians.

Lock your doors. Board up your windows. Put the children to bed and start stockpiling canned foods, because The Korean Zombie virus is coming to your town, probably within the hour. It is relentless, deceivingly strong, and somehow inspiring at the same time, and the only man who can bring an end to this madness is trapped in Canada somewhere.

God save us.

J. Jones

UFC on Fuel TV 3 (TONIGHT)- Crisper Betting Picks

Ok MMA fans, I have been looking at this card for over a week. Several interesting matchups tonight, especially from the mindset of the degenerate gambler. First of all, this looks like a CHALK nite.

Ok MMA fans, I have been looking at this card for over a week. Several interesting matchups tonight, especially from the mindset of the degenerate gambler. First of all, this looks like a CHALK nite to me. For all you non-bettors, that means the favorites look to roll tonight. I usually like to pick 1 “Dog of the Night” and my 3 FAVORITE FAVORITES.

I see value in the following favorites tonight…..Let’s make some money!!

TJ Grant – Ok, not a lot of value here, but he is far superior to Prater in this one. At -460, its time to GRAB YOUR NUTS and pray Grant doesn’t get caught with a flying knee or something weird. This is an early one, so get to the window (or your offshore spot online) asap. Grant wins to put us up 1 unit on the day (unless the gambling gods aren’t with us on this night).

Donald Cerrone (-250) – Never bet against a Cowboy…seriously he keeps this on his feet, he is the better striker, and he wins a unanimous decision. Cowboy is 3 inches taller with a huge reach advantage. His only danger becomes if Stephens gets inside and can operate. Go with the Cowboy to be up 2 units.

MAIN EVENT – Poirier, Poirier, Poirier. Korean Zombie is a scary cool marketing name….and that’s about it. Poirier’s camp knows how to control this one, and he will win a Unanimous Decison for a 3 UNIT NIGHT!

DOG OF THE DAY
Jorge Lopez (+110) – Not really sure why he is the “Dog” in this fight. He is more powerful and explosive, and very dangerous to Amir Sadollah. Lots of value here so put a half a unit on Jorge and watch him go…

BOOM – The Cookie Crisper

UFC on Fuel TV 3- Pre-Fight Analysis II (Jeremy Stephens (20-7) vs. Donald Cerrone (17-4)

Jeremy Stephens (20-7) vs. Donald Cerrone (17-4) While the headliner is the more important fight in terms of rankings and title positioning, this matchup is the favorite for fight of the night and should be.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Jeremy Stephens (20-7) vs. Donald Cerrone (17-4)

While the headliner is the more important fight in terms of rankings and title positioning, this matchup is the favorite for fight of the night and should be explosive from start to finish, which could come at any moment. Both Donald “ Cowboy” Cerrone and Jeremy Stephens are aggressive fighters who prefer to stand and strike. Both have been known to stay in the pocket and trade punches. Even to their own detriment. Both also find themselves in similar positions having lost to high ranking fighters in their last octagon appearance.

Stephens lost a close split decision to Anthony Pettis at UFC 136. A win over Pettis would have elevated him into the crowded top tier of 155 pound title contenders. The loss kept him just below that level where he has been stuck for years. Since 2009, Stevens has split his eight UFC appearances earning victories over Justin Bucholz, Sam Stout, Marcus Davis and Daniel Downs. In that same span, he has lost to Joe Lauzon, Gleison Tibau, Melvin Guillard and Pettis. That history establishes a clear trend of Stephens being unable to succeed against fighters at the peak of the lightweight division. He nearly broke that trend in his last fight and according to one of the three judges on that night, he did break the trend. He will look to build on that performance and finally obtain the signature win he has been seeking throughout his career. The matchup with Donald Cerrone offers that opportunity and the gameplan for Stephens should be similar to what we have seen with him in the past. His best weapons are his hands and he’ll look to use them to outbox Cerrone. While he doesn’t have the skill level required to repeat Nate Diaz’s recent performance against Cerrone, he will try to achieve the same results by keeping the pressure on Cerrone and outstriking him. Cerrone has never been knocked out but Jeremy Stephens has the power to be the first if Cerrone leaves him an opening.

Donald Cerrone is also coming off a loss to a top tier opponent but he was not as competitive in his fight with Diaz as Stephens was against Pettis. Cerrone was outboxed in a clinical performance by Nate Diaz, which probably says more about Diaz than it does about Cerrone. Cowboy has been one of the best lightweight fighters in the world over the last two years with his only clear losses coming to current UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson and Nate Diaz, who has been promised the winner of the upcoming championship bout between Henderson and Frankie Edgar. Cerrone has a more well rounded game than Stephens and he will look to capitalize on that in this fight. His standup features high level muay thai with great knees and kicks to go with his hands. He also possesses an underrated ground game but usually doesn’t show it because he prefers to fight on his feet. But if Stephens does decide to try to take Cerrone down, he will find himself in a dangerous guard. Cerrone is capable of from finishing from his back at any moment with a triangle or arm bar.

Cerrone is favored at -260 with Stephens at +200. Cerrone will have the upper hand wherever this fight takes place. If it stays on the feet, Cerrone’s muay thai is better than Stephens’ boxing and if it goes to ground, Cerrone has the clear grappling advantage. I don’t expect Cerrone to be able to finish Stephens but he should be able to batter him on the feet to win a unanimous decision.

-Alan Wells