UFC 136 is less than a week away, and it will feature a replay of one of the leading candidates for 2011’s fight of the year between UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard.Edgar has yet to defeat Maynard, who is the only man to beat hi…
UFC 136 is less than a week away, and it will feature a replay of one of the leading candidates for 2011’s fight of the year between UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard.
Edgar has yet to defeat Maynard, who is the only man to beat him in his career. Their second fight from UFC 125 ended in a draw and leaves much unfinished business between the two.
In the co-main event, UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo defends his title against former lightweight title challenger Kenny Florian.
Both made their UFC featherweight debuts earlier this year. Aldo defeated Mark Hominick at UFC 129 while Florian beat Diego Nunes at UFC 131.
Middleweight title challenger Chael Sonnen also returns to the cage since losing against Anderson Silva in July, 2010. He takes on Brian Stann, a former Marine who packs a lot of power in his punches.
Other main card bouts include Joe Lauzon vs. Melvin Guillard and Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan.
The PPV will begin at 9 p.m. ET and be broadcast live from the Toyota Center in Houston, TX.
The undercard will be streamed on Facebook and Spike TV.
Spike TV will broadcast Demian Maia vs. Jorge Santiago and Anthony Pettis vs. Jeremy Stephens.
UFC 136 is one of the most anticipated cards of the year and for good reason. To put it simply, it is flat out loaded with good fights. It is one of those rare events where two title fights will be on the line and it doesn’t stop there.Aside from…
UFC 136 is one of the most anticipated cards of the year and for good reason. To put it simply, it is flat out loaded with good fights. It is one of those rare events where two title fights will be on the line and it doesn’t stop there.
Aside from the two title fights of Edgar-Maynard and Aldo-Florian, there are appearances on the card by former WEC champs in Anthony Pettis and Brian Stann, whom are still chasing UFC gold.
The gangster from Oregon Chael Sonnen is also making his highly-anticipated return to the cage on this card, as he squares off against Brian Stann in what is likely a No. 1 contender bout.
It doesn’t stop there. Fast-rising lightweight Melvin Guillard is taking on Joe Lauzon. Keep your eyeballs on this one, because if Guillard wins he could very well get a crack at the Edgar-Maynard winner.
Like I said before, there are good fights all-around, but what has people looking forward to this card are not just the fights, but there are some intriguing story lines and implications to these fights as well.
What follows is a list of the top five reasons fight fans are looking forward to this card. Whether it is the actual fight or the story lines surrounding the fight, this event has people buzzing.
The battle between Matt Wiman and Mac Danzig was fought with the kind of fervor and inspiration to warrant itself one of the best wars of the year.This is a list of the some of the most exciting and back and forth battles that were waged all the way to…
The battle between Matt Wiman and Mac Danzig was fought with the kind of fervor and inspiration to warrant itself one of the best wars of the year.
This is a list of the some of the most exciting and back and forth battles that were waged all the way to a decision.
They are showcase fights.
Fights that exemplify the best of fortitude and skill of MMA fighters at the highest level.
These are the best WARS (gone on to decision) in 2011…
UFC Lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will be coming into UFC 136 with a chip on his shoulder–but not because of his opponent.Set to face challenger Gray Maynard on Oct. 8 for the third time, Edgar looks to gain respect as the champion by stayin…
UFC Lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will be coming into UFC 136 with a chip on his shoulder–but not because of his opponent.
Set to face challenger Gray Maynard on Oct. 8 for the third time, Edgar looks to gain respect as the champion by staying on his winning ways and holding onto to the title for as long as possible.
“Respect’s coming man, it’s going to keep growing the better I do and the longer I keep this belt,” Edgar told Bleacher Report at the UFC 136 media conference call on Friday. “I try to come into every fight with a chip on my shoulder, not for any reason, I’m eager to win and having that chip on your shoulder helps you do so.”
Edgar and Maynard last squared off at UFC 125 in January, fighting to a draw in an exciting back and forth contest that took Fight of the Night honors.
The two lightweights previously faced each other in 2008, with Maynard taking the unanimous decision. This has been Edgar’s only professional loss to date.
Edgar does not seem put off having to prepare for the same fighter again, a situation he has been in before. Edgar previously faced former UFC Lightweight champion BJ Penn back-to-back in 2010, taking and defending the title at UFC 112 and UFC 118 respectively.
“For myself, it is a unique position to be training for a guy this long,” Edgar said. “I fought BJ back to back and had two back to back training camps for him so, I’m training for two guys the past two years, I guess I’m kind of used to it.”
What poses a problem to the champion is not staying motivated for the same opponent, but coming up with the right strategy to bring into the fight.
“The challenge is coming up with another game plan, another series of attacks and what not,” Edgar said. “It benefits too because he’s fresh on your mind, you have a lot of situations to base your training camp off of.”
The final act of the Edgar-Maynard trilogy was scheduled to take place at UFC 130 in May. However, injuries to both Edgar and Maynard has postponed the bout until now. Edgar seems ready to go, as the injury has not staved greatly affected his training going into next Saturday’s fight.
“I had to take some time off, rehab and everything to take care of my back, but I’ve pretty much had a full training camp before I had gotten hurt so it’s almost like I didn’t really miss a beat,” Edgar said. “I took the time off I needed to take off and then got right back to it.”
Now healthy and ready to take on Maynard, Edgar believes that he will be the best he’s every been, as he constantly strives to improve his game.
“I’ve just been improving on my overall skills, my biggest thing between every fight is trying to become a better fighter than I was my last time out and I believe I accomplish that,” Edgar said. “So as long as I can put it together things will go my way.”
UFC Lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will be coming into UFC 136 with a chip on his shoulder–but not because of his opponent.Set to face challenger Gray Maynard on Oct. 8 for the third time, Edgar looks to gain respect as the champion by stayin…
UFC Lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will be coming into UFC 136 with a chip on his shoulder–but not because of his opponent.
Set to face challenger Gray Maynard on Oct. 8 for the third time, Edgar looks to gain respect as the champion by staying on his winning ways and holding onto to the title for as long as possible.
“Respect’s coming man, it’s going to keep growing the better I do and the longer I keep this belt,” Edgar told Bleacher Report at the UFC 136 media conference call on Friday. “I try to come into every fight with a chip on my shoulder, not for any reason, I’m eager to win and having that chip on your shoulder helps you do so.”
Edgar and Maynard last squared off at UFC 125 in January, fighting to a draw in an exciting back and forth contest that took Fight of the Night honors.
The two lightweights previously faced each other in 2008, with Maynard taking the unanimous decision. This has been Edgar’s only professional loss to date.
Edgar does not seem put off having to prepare for the same fighter again, a situation he has been in before. Edgar previously faced former UFC Lightweight champion BJ Penn back-to-back in 2010, taking and defending the title at UFC 112 and UFC 118 respectively.
“For myself, it is a unique position to be training for a guy this long,” Edgar said. “I fought BJ back to back and had two back to back training camps for him so, I’m training for two guys the past two years, I guess I’m kind of used to it.”
What poses a problem to the champion is not staying motivated for the same opponent, but coming up with the right strategy to bring into the fight.
“The challenge is coming up with another game plan, another series of attacks and what not,” Edgar said. “It benefits too because he’s fresh on your mind, you have a lot of situations to base your training camp off of.”
The final act of the Edgar-Maynard trilogy was scheduled to take place at UFC 130 in May. However, injuries to both Edgar and Maynard has postponed the bout until now. Edgar seems ready to go, as the injury has not staved greatly affected his training going into next Saturday’s fight.
“I had to take some time off, rehab and everything to take care of my back, but I’ve pretty much had a full training camp before I had gotten hurt so it’s almost like I didn’t really miss a beat,” Edgar said. “I took the time off I needed to take off and then got right back to it.”
Now healthy and ready to take on Maynard, Edgar believes that he will be the best he’s every been, as he constantly strives to improve his game.
“I’ve just been improving on my overall skills, my biggest thing between every fight is trying to become a better fighter than I was my last time out and I believe I accomplish that,” Edgar said. “So as long as I can put it together things will go my way.”
The stage is set for reigning UFC lightweight champion Frankie “The Answer” Edgar (13-1-1) to finally get closure in his trilogy against Gray “The Bully” Maynard (11-0-1 with one no contest). The fight takes place at UFC 1…
The stage is set for reigning UFC lightweight champion Frankie “The Answer” Edgar (13-1-1) to finally get closure in his trilogy against Gray “The Bully” Maynard (11-0-1 with one no contest). The fight takes place at UFC 136 on Oct. 6,2011 at Houston’s Toyota Centre.
Their initial meeting occurred in the rarefied mile-high air of Broomfield, Colorado. In front of 6,742 fans at the Broomfield Event Center, Gray handed Frankie his first and only loss via a unanimous 30-27 on all three judges’ cards. Maynard simply out-wrestled and out-muscled the smaller Edgar.
A no-nonsense fighter, Frankie never made any excuses for that fight, so I am going to make some for him—he didn’t prepare properly for that fight. First off, the fight took place ten days before Edgar’s wedding. How can one focus on a fight when a life-changing commitment like marriage is looming? Do you have any idea how demanding it can be to marry a girl from Jersey? How can a fighter not be distracted from his training when tablecloths, seating arrangements and flowers need to be decided upon? Manicotti or lasagna?
Furthermore, the contest took place at high altitude (the fight not the wedding!) and Frankie evidently didn’t have two-weeks to spend in Colorado to acclimate properly.
After the disappointing loss, Frankie has gone on to beat Hermes Franca, Matt Veach, former UFC lightweight title-holder Sean Sherk and former UFC lightweight champion and UFC welterweight champion B.J. Penn, twice. Edgar won the UFC lightweight title via unanimous decision against B.J. in their first fight and successfully defended the title by beating Penn even more convincingly in their second meeting. Frankie beat the legend not once but twice, something no other fighter except Georges St-Pierre has done.
At UFC 125 on Jan. 1, 2011 in Las Vegas, Edgar met Maynard for the second time. The UFC lightweight championship belt was at stake as Frankie looked to avenge his only loss in the octagon. It wasn’t going to happen the way anyone imagined.
In a ferocious first round Maynard caught Edgar with a perfectly timed left hook that sent Edgar backwards and somersaulting across the ring in miraculous attempt to avoid being finished. In spite of being hit by 25 solid shots according to FightMetric, and spending the majority of the round a hair’s breadth away from being KO’ed—on sheer heart and instinct Frankie survived.
In the second round Maynard was gassed from an adrenaline dump in throwing so many shots in the first round, thus giving the amazingly recovered Edgar a chance to make a comeback. In an incredible display of conditioning and willpower, Frankie came back to win all four remaining rounds on a least two judges’ scorecards, making the fight a draw.
Both fighters were disappointed by the outcome and newly refocused on resolving the issue of who will ultimately hold the Championship belt.
Injuries to both fighters saw the “three-peat” at UFC 128 in May, get postponed. Since then, both men have had plenty of time to train, strategize and mentally condition themselves for a war.
Through two fights, both warriors have seen all of what the other has. Even though Edgar is the more effective striker as evidenced in his out-boxing and out-classing B.J. Penn over ten rounds, Maynard landed the more telling blows. But, can Gray do it again after Edgar’s camp has had so much time to make adjustments? Maynard may have the edge in size and strength, but the margin is slim. Frankie is more agile, faster and has arguably better Jiu Jitsu.
At UFC 136,it’s going to come down to who wants it most. I predict Frankie Edgar submits Gray Maynard in Round 3 with a rear naked choke to retain his lightweight title and in doing so, finally puts “The Bully” behind him.
UFC 136 is less than a week away, and it will feature a replay of one of the leading candidates for 2011’s fight of the year between UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard.