It’s been 14 months since UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar made the first successful defense of his belt against B.J. Penn. Since then, we’ve had a whopping one title fight in arguably the UFC’s most competitive division.Fight o…
It’s been 14 months since UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar made the first successful defense of his belt against B.J. Penn.
Since then, we’ve had a whopping one title fight in arguably the UFC’s most competitive division.
Fight of the Year candidacy aside, January’s draw between Edgar and top contender Gray Maynard put the 155-pound ranks in a bit of a logjam.
Ten months later, Maynard and Edgar will settle the score in a bout that should be captivating the minds of fight fans far more than it likely is.
It’s a fitting description for the UFC 136 card as a whole, an offering that rivals any lineup the UFC has rolled out in recent memory.
Full of great fights with notable ramifications on their respective divisions, I couldn’t think of a better way to spend my weekend than to drive four hours south to the Toyota Center.
And that’s what I’ll be doing. As such, I’ve figured out why I should give a damn about this weekend’s card.
UFC 136 will mark the third time that Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar have met inside the octagon. Last time, out at UFC 125, both fighters slugged it out for a five-round war which ended with a draw. Edgar and Maynard were expected to meet at UFC 130, …
UFC 136 will mark the third time that Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar have met inside the octagon. Last time, out at UFC 125, both fighters slugged it out for a five-round war which ended with a draw. Edgar and Maynard were expected to meet at UFC 130, but injuries sidelined both fighters until now. […]
Joey Beltran is one of the toughest individuals to ever step foot inside the world famous Octagon. His three round battle with Pat Barry this past January was one for the ages when talking about sheer toughness. Five months later, Beltran (13-5 MMA, 3-…
Joey Beltran is one of the toughest individuals to ever step foot inside the world famous Octagon.
His three round battle with Pat Barry this past January was one for the ages when talking about sheer toughness.
Five months later, Beltran (13-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC) returned to action against Strikeforce veteran Aaron Rosa at UFC 131, where he put his heart and toughness back on display by earning the knockout victory. Additionally, by putting on thrilling fights each time he steps in the Octagon, he’s become a clear fan favorite.
“A lot of it boils down to I have to have tons of cardio to fight like that,” Beltran recently told BleacherReport.com. “I’m always the first to admit that I’m not the most athletic person, I’m one of the least athletic people, at least top five in the UFC. So, I got to use my other skills that I have. One thing that I can take advantage of is my cardio.
“If I push myself and I’m miserable for three months then I know on that one night I can go and go and go and not stop. So, that’s a really good tool to have in your back pocket. It also helps having a really good chin too, so I think that’s my God given talent is my ability to take a shot.”
The aforementioned victory over Rosa this past June not only marked Beltran’s return to the win column, but it also signaled the return of a fighter who makes it a top priority to put the hurt on his opponents.
“UFC 131 was actually the beginning of my new approach to fighting, or actually it’s my old approach that I readopted,” Beltran said. “After the Pat Barry fight, even going back to my first UFC fight I kind of put a mental block on myself where I started talking myself down like these guys are in the UFC, they’re top notch and I can’t just walk in there and handle business, I have to be smart and have a gameplan. I really talked myself out of my fighting style, which is ‘I’m going to come beat you up and it’s your job to stop me.’
“After the Pat Barry, I know that if I would’ve went in that first round with the attitude I had in the middle of the second round. I remember the moment where I was like ‘Oh, shoot I’m hitting this guy and it’s hurting him, keep going.’ If I would’ve came out guns blazing in the first round, who knows what would’ve happened?
So, I promised myself, my coaches, (and) my family that I would never, ever wonder what if ever again. Every fight from Aaron Rosa to now on, I’m coming out with that approach that I’m coming out to take your head off and it’s your job to stop me.”
That job will be handled by undefeated newcomer Stipe Miocic (6-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) this Saturday live on Facebook, and it remains to be seen if he can prevent “The Mexicutioner” from implementing his aggressive style.
In addition to the action packed event, which includes two championship fights live on pay-per-view, the organization is holding an Fan Expo on Friday and Saturday.
Beltran couldn’t be more thrilled to have the opportunity to showcase his skills during arguably the biggest fight weekend of the year.
“Pure excitement when I realized that I was going to fight on the Fan Expo card,” he said. “I knew way before the fight was announced, it’s just naturally the way things happen. As more and more of the fights were announced, as a fan, I was just like after I handle business I get to go and sit back and watch these great fighters, watch my peers perform on the biggest stage in the world.
“It’s just awesome and it’s really a surreal feeling, I think that ‘Well Joey, you’re one these fighters that’s fighting on this huge show.’ I’m not trying to pat myself on the back or anything like that, but it is a pretty cool feeling to know that I’m not fighting first or second fight, I’m middle of the card right before stuff gets televised on Spike.
“It’s pretty cool and I know if I do well and stop this guy or get a solid a win that it’s going to be I get back to the main card. That’s my first short-term goal is to make it back to the main cards and start getting the wins there and we’ll see what happens.”
His long term goal is ultimately to continue winning and secure his spot in the organization. With support from his home gym at Alliance MMA combined with the support he receives from his wife and family, fighting in the sport’s premier organization is a dream come true.
“It’s definitely a dream come true just to be a professional athlete, one that makes sufficient enough money that really that’s the only job I need to have, that’s awesome,” Beltran said. “But also on the other side of the coin, now that I am providing for a family, not as if I wasn’t taking it seriously before but now every fight, every training camp is so much more serious, (and) it’s all about business. I clock in a certain amount of hours every week in the gym like I would if I was working at Wal-Mart or a construction job. I make sure that I maintain that level of what I expect from myself in training.
“My coaches have a hard time with me, they get mad at me for overtraining, constantly telling me to take time off or don’t do a certain session today. But then on that one night it’s time to perform and I have a very, very, very workmanlike approach to what it is that I do and I don’t take it lightly. I know it’s a blessing that I get to fight in the biggest organization in the world and it’s something that I fight for, fight to maintain and I’m fighting for my family now.”
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UFC 136 will mark the third attempt at UFC gold for Kenny “KenFlo” Florian as he meets dynamic Brazilian José Aldo. The former finalist on the first season of The Ultimate Fighter is now competing in his fourth weight class wit…
UFC 136 will mark the third attempt at UFC gold for Kenny “KenFlo” Florian as he meets dynamic Brazilian José Aldo. The former finalist on the first season of The Ultimate Fighter is now competing in his fourth weight class within the promotion.
Florian failed in both of his attempts at the lightweight belt, first to Sean Sherk at UFC 64 and then to BJ Penn at UFC 101. Additionally, he dropped a title eliminator to Gray Maynard at UFC 118, which would have earned him a third try at the 155-pound strap. With a strong grappling base and dangerous Muay Thai striking, Florian had managed to finish eight of his nine other foes within the division, but in each of the aforementioned bouts, Florian’s largest deficiency, wrestling, was exploited by his opponents.
As a result, Florian made the decision to drop down to featherweight. With a victory over Diego Nunes in his 145-pound debut at UFC 131, Florian was rewarded the title shot against Aldo. Since Aldo is not known for his wrestling, the casual observer might believe this is Florian’s best chance to finally gain his long-desired championship.
The problem for Florian is that Aldo’s strengths are not only identical to his own, but he’s better at them.
Florian is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Roberto Maia in his native Boston, while Aldo is a black belt under the Nova União camp in Rio de Janeiro. Black belts are not created equal, and Aldo’s camp is one of the best in the world. The biggest difference between the two fighters in regards to their ground game is that Florian has relied on his submission skills in 10 of his 15 wins, while Aldo has only utilized his in one of his 20 bouts.
So, does Florian have the advantage? Not likely. The reason that Aldo has not relied on his ground skills is due to his lethal striking. Florian’s striking game has evolved tremendously throughout his UFC career, training with the likes of Mark Dellagrotte at Sityodtong and Firas Zahabi at TriStar, but he’s nowhere near the level of the Brazilian. Aldo has finished 12 of his 20 fights by way of knockout, while Florian has managed only three.
It’s not only in power that Florian will face a problem. Aldo’s speed is remarkable and he uses it to fire off brutal combinations. In his arsenal is something that was made famous by Ernesto Hoost in the kickboxing world—a jab, cross, hook to the body, leg kick assault—that he used to batter wrestling stalwart Urijah Faber and striking specialist Mark Hominick for five rounds each. Luckily for Florian, he is a southpaw, which will prevent some of the combination’s effectiveness.
All in all, Florian is going to be overmatched when he enters the Octagon on Oct. 8 in Houston. He’s battling one of the most dangerous fighters on the planet, and unfortunately for the Boston native, he does not possess the tools to defeat the Brazilian. Aldo is riding a 12-fight win streak going into the bout, and against Florian he’ll keep his belt by finishing the fight before the championship rounds.
Gray Maynard, without a doubt, deserves his lightweight title shot against Frankie Edgar at UFC 136.Putting the title aside, Maynard may have more of a claim to being the No. 1 lightweight in the world then the champion, Edgar, does. Aside from an unof…
Gray Maynard, without a doubt, deserves his lightweight title shot against Frankie Edgar at UFC 136.
Putting the title aside, Maynard may have more of a claim to being the No. 1 lightweight in the world then the champion, Edgar, does. Aside from an unofficial loss to Nate Diaz on TUF Five, Maynard is undefeated through 12 professional fights (10-0-1-1). Perhaps even more importantly, he represents the only two blemishes on Edgar’s record.
In their first bout, at UFC Fight Night 13, Gray dominated Frankie on route to a unanimous 30-27 rout. He used superior wrestling and completely overpowered the future champion in a clear upset. To this day, that is Edgar’s only loss.
Immediately following the bout, the true colors of UFC President Dana White began to show. Although Maynard won the fight decisively, comparisons of each fighter’s next few matchups would seem to tell a different story. The always exciting Edgar went on to defeat former title challenger Hermes Franca and former champion Sean Sherk while Maynard was left picking apart middle-of-the-packers such as Rich Clementi, Jim Miller, Roger Huerta, and Nate Diaz.
Edgar, after following his two name victories with a tune-up win over Matt Veach, was granted a title shot against BJ Penn. On the other hand, it took Maynard four more wins—stretching his record to 7-0 in the UFC—to earn even a number one contender fight against Kenny Florian at UFC 118.
When Gray Maynard dominated a two-time title challenger to earn his first crack at the UFC belt, one would logically expect Dana White to praise him, instead White spent the entire post-fight press conference calling Florian a choker. While Florian being a choke-artist is a different discussion for a different time, this behavior by the promoter may have signaled more about Maynard than it did about Ken-Flo.
As Jon Fitch can attest to, Dana White hates fighters who do not finish fights. Further evidence in support of this sentiment came out recently when news broke that the consensus No. 2 170 pound fighter in the world will attempt to extend his current unbeaten streak to seven consecutive fights at UFC 141 against Johnny Hendricks. While Hendricks is by no means a scrub, he is nowhere close to being a top-15 fighter. This type of fight has become the norm for Fitch (13-1-1 UFC).
Fitch may be the No. 2 welterweight in the world. He also may be unbeaten since 2002 save for a gutsy loss to pound-for-pound king Georges St-Pierre at UFC 87. He is probably the most deserving fighter for a title shot. That being said, do not expect Fitch to see another opportunity for the gold anytime soon if White has his druthers. Of Fitch’s 13 UFC victories, nine have gone the distance (including his last seven straight). More than anything else in the world (besides Loretta Hunt), Dana White hates guys who don’t finish fights. It is that last piece of information that has, and will continue, to keep Jon Fitch out of the title picture and fighting against no-name guys.
Make no mistake about it, Gray Maynard sees what Jon Fitch has gone through and will do anything to avoid a similar purgatory. While Fitch may be the poster-boy for grinding out decisions, Maynard is the real king. Much like Fitch, Maynard’s last seven victories inside the Octagon have all come by way of decision. Unlike Fitch, Maynard only has one UFC stoppage on his resume. It cannot be a good thing for Maynard when a large portion of fans refer to a grind-it-out strategy as “Gray and Pray.”
All of this information points towards something that many people already knew, when Dana White repeatedly called Kenny Florian a choker after Maynard’s UFC 118 victory, what he was really saying was, “Thanks Kenny. You were supposed to relegate this Jon Fitch-wannabe back down the ladder for good. Now what am I going to do.”
White was most certainly worried. He knew that Maynard deserved a title shot. He probably knew that Maynard deserved one way before Edgar ever did. The thought of a boring, grind-it-out fighter becoming champion seemed to be a nightmare. Now it may come true? Oh, no!
When Edgar and Maynard met for a second time on New Years’ Day 2011 at UFC 125 for the UFC Lightweight Championship, they put on the fight of the century. After Maynard put one of the worst beatings in MMA history on Edgar during round one, almost ending the fight on multiple occasions, the champion staged one of the greatest comebacks you will ever see to force a split-decision draw.
While fans, writers, and even the two fighters were all clamoring for an immediate rematch, White instead claimed that the next title shot would instead go to number-one contender Anthony Pettis. Eventually, after countless complaints from all sides, White changed the plan and set up a trilogy fight between Edgar and Maynard. He claimed that he simply wanted to put on fights that the fans want to see.
Truthfully, before the public outcry became too much to bear, White was simply trying to avoid giving Maynard another opportunity at all costs. He had avoided the bullet. The “boring fighter” had blown his opportunity. Here was Dana’s excuse to give him the Jon Fitch treatment and avoid the inevitable; Gray Maynard is quite probably the next UFC Lightweight Champion.
In a purely opinionated debate, you could argue that Frankie Edgar might finally best Gray Maynard on October 8. From a factual standpoint, such would be a difficult case to make. In their first fight, Edgar was completely manhandled. This outcome was unquestionable. While he certainly showed a champion’s heart in the second matchup, if not for Gray Maynard’s clear decrease in energy, it is unlikely that Frankie would still be the champ.
Admittedly, this is all an opinion. None if it is meant to come off as perceived fact. That being said, if Clay Guida defeats Ben Henderson in their number-one contender fight at UFC on FOX 1, and Maynard once again bests Edgar to become the new champion, somebody please call the authorities because the impending Guida-Maynard grinder may force Dana White to off himself.
All the recent talk of Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem and Nick Diaz’s disappearance has overshadowed one of the most exciting cards of the year: UFC 136, an event that is headlined by a lightweight title fight between champion Frankie Edgar and chal…
All the recent talk of Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem and Nick Diaz’s disappearance has overshadowed one of the most exciting cards of the year: UFC 136, an event that is headlined by a lightweight title fight between champion Frankie Edgar and challenger Gray Maynard.
Aside from being an event that looks good on paper from head to toe, UFC 136 will also answer crucial questions that the MMA world is asking. What are these questions? Read and find out!
Joey Beltran is one of the toughest individuals to ever step foot inside the world famous Octagon.