Much to the disapproval of the Denver crowd, Jake Shields walked away from UFC 150 with a unanimous decision victory over Ed “Short Fuse” Herman.It wasn’t the prettiest fight, but Shields managed to spend most of it in top position, and that was enough…
Much to the disapproval of the Denver crowd, Jake Shields walked away from UFC 150 with a unanimous decision victory over Ed “Short Fuse” Herman.
It wasn’t the prettiest fight, but Shields managed to spend most of it in top position, and that was enough to pull out the win. Although he did control most of the fight, Shields was unable to come close to finishing Herman, only putting him in notable danger once with a kimura.
Herman looked good on the feet and in the clinch, but was unable to stuff Shield’s takedowns.
What We’ll Remember about This Fight:
Um…that Shields won it, I guess.
No particular moment in the fight stood out as memorable. This is a bout that will be remembered more as a statistic than a performance.
What We Learned about Jake Shields:
Middleweight is the right place for him.
Shields fought four times at welterweight in the UFC and looked unimpressive in all four fights. He didn’t have a totally impressive performance against Herman either, but he definitely looked more comfortable than at 170 pounds, and his cardio looked better than it has.
What We Learned about Ed Herman:
He might not be a threat for this title, but Herman could wind up being a top-10 middleweight. He didn’t fight smart tonight, and that cost him, but he is well-rounded and hung in there on the mat with one of the sports best Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners.
What’s Next for Shields:
I know the UFC doesn’t like to do winner vs. loser matchups, but I think Shields vs. Hector Lombard would be a good fight.
What’s Next for Herman:
Court McGee makes sense.
Andrew Barr is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and a stand-up comedian. Check him out on Twitter @AndrewBarr8.
The 150th UFC PPV takes place at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, which means tonight’s drinking game will lead you to the ER with liver poisoning as Joe and Goldie talk about the altitude. Headlining the card is the rematch to end all rematches when former WEC standout and current UFC lightweight champion, Benson Henderson squares off against Frankie “The Answer” Edgar.
Also on the broadcast is the front-runner to win Fight of the Night honors when Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone locks horns with Melvin Guillard. I’m told that Jake Shields and Yushin Okami are scheduled to fight Ed Hermann and Buddy Roberts respectively, and that’s totally cool, But you’re only buying this card for one reason: to see if the gold changes hands at the end of the night.
“Live” (emphasis on the quotation marks) round-by-round results from the Henderson – Edgar 2 pay-per-view main card will be piling up after the jump beginning at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT, courtesy of Jason Moles. Refresh the page every few minutes hours for all the latest, and please toss in your own inebriated thoughts in the comments section.
The 150th UFC PPV takes place at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, which means tonight’s drinking game will lead you to the ER with liver poisoning as Joe and Goldie talk about the altitude. Headlining the card is the rematch to end all rematches when former WEC standout and current UFC lightweight champion, Benson Henderson squares off against Frankie “The Answer” Edgar.
Also on the broadcast is the front-runner to win Fight of the Night honors when Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone locks horns with Melvin Guillard. I’m told that Jake Shields and Yushin Okami are scheduled to fight Ed Hermann and Buddy Roberts respectively, and that’s totally cool, But you’re only buying this card for one reason: to see if the gold changes hands at the end of the night.
“Live” (emphasis on the quotation marks) round-by-round results from the Henderson – Edgar 2 pay-per-view main card will be piling up after the jump beginning at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT, courtesy of Jason Moles. Refresh the page every few minutes hours for all the latest, and please toss in your own inebriated thoughts in the comments section.
Let’s get this started, shall we?
Justin Lawrence vs. Max Holloway
Round 1: Holloway’s crotch says, “BUY MY SHORTS.” Don’t ask me why that’s the first thing I noticed about him. Feeling out process ended with a few kicks from Lawrence. Nice high kick from Holloway. Both trade a few nice punches. Lawrence seems to be landing more strikes. %$#&!!! Holloway just drilled “The All American Kid” All- American nuts! Okay, just walk it off. Lawrence pushing forward and gets the takedown. Right back up. Lawrence is bleeding. Holloway lands a knee to the chin. Swing and a miss by Holloway. 13-12 Significant strikes favoring Lawrence. Holloway drills him in the balls again as the end of round horn sounds.
Round 2: Stick and move by Holloway. The men both trade snapping kicks. Lawrence with a lot of front kicks, sidekicks. Crowd starting to boo but it dies down. Holloway lands a clean right hand. Holloway demonstrating very nice counter punching — stuffs a takedown as well. Lawrence landing 47% of his strikes. Stick and move by both men. Holloway stuffs a takedown my grandmother could have seen, and she’s got cataracts. Now he tags Lawrence which leads to an opening for a deep knee to the gut. Left hook to the liver and “It’s all over!!!”
Winner Max Holloway Rd. 2 TKO
Up Next – Yushin Okami vs. Buddy Roberts
Buddy Roberts walking out to ‘Bleed It Out’ by Linkin Park. Yushin on the other hand… Holy $%&@! Is that Tank Abbott??? Nope, he’s sober.
Round 1: Roberts comes out swinging. Looking for a head kick. Okami lands a nice left. Buddy keeps connecting with the jab. Okami just got clipped. Roberts landing knees from the clinch. Okami tries and fails twice to get the takedown from the clinch against the cage. Okami finally drags him down,. takes his back, transitions to his guard. Okami in half guard, not much action. Crowd boos on cue. Yushin in side mount with arm control and lands a few shots. Okami in full mount, takes the back, lands a few shots to the back of the head but Herb doesn’t seem to mind. A bunch more punches and the horn sounds.
Round 2: Buddy goes forward and slips on the mat. Lands a shot once he recovers. Okami with a straight left. Clinches and tries to drag him down. Success. Buddy transitions into a guillotine. Back on their feet. Okami nails a double leg. Moves into half guard. Looking to utilize elbows, looks some more… Full mount by “Thunder” and Buddy rolls over on his belly. Okami just keeps punching him in the skull. Herb calls it.
Winner: Yushin Okami – Rd. 2 – TKO
Better grab a Mt. Dew and a handful of Yellow Jackets before Jake Shields middleweight debut against Ed Herman.
Herman walking out wearing a Dethrone hoodie. His music sucks, but his bobcat shirt makes up for it. Man, I almost forgot how pale redheads are. Shields walks out to what sounds like The Glitch Mob dubstep remix of Seven Nation Army. My wife says his nipples are really “pokie” – like they’ve been stretched. Wow – Rashad really wasn’t joking around when he said you’d notice a difference.
Round 1: Shields immediately throws a kick. Both men attacking. Herman goes for takedown, Shields hip tosses him. Back on the feet. Clinched and they both trade blows. Herman lands a knee. Shields gets the trip takedown. Ground and pound from Jake. Both men back up, dirty boxing along the fence. These guys have separation issues. Jake has a sponsor sticker for a radiator company. Nice elbow by Herman. Jake looking for the guillotine. *yawn* Thank God the fans can boo for me. Finally some action – that guys claps the 2×4′s together to signal 10 seconds left.
Round 2: Looks, I can text the UFC who I want to win. Nice. More kicks by Shields. Herman initiates the clinch again. Take down – Shields on top in half guard, now side control. Working for a kimura.
Sorry guys, @#&^$@*$^#*(# internet! Sorry.
Round 3 almost over – Shields has been dominating Herman on the ground for most of it. Shields in full mount. Herman trying to score pints off his back, but he’s no Miguel Torres. Shields lands more and more punches as the crowd boos louder. Both men swinging but it’s all over. The judges will decide who moves forward…. but the fans are not impressed with their performance.
Winner: Jake Shields by Unanimous decision.
Coming up next: Former teamates and BFF’s, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Melvin “I don’t care if I’m indoors, I’m wearing my damn sunglasses anyway!” Guillard.
Denver crowd tried to snatch the infamous sunglasses of Guillard. #fail – Apparently being a Blackzillian automatically gets you a Pretorian sponsorship. *Cue Kid Rock music* Here comes Cowboy, baby. The TapouT cowboy hat looked much better than this Muscle Pharm stuff. Cerrone looks happier than a pig in, well, you get the point.
Round 1: “Taller is Cerrone”, says Mike Goldberg. Guillard gets booed heavily as Buffer introduces him. Remember, it’s not because Denver is racist, it’s because they love them some homegrown talent – and Cerrone is home. Cowboy quick on the offensive with a head kick. Guillard is beating the living daylights outta Cerrone!!!!! Punches in bunches AND a knee to the midsection. Dang! Okay, he looks shocked but he;s good now. Damn! Now Cowboy lands a head kick followed up by a hard right hand and Guillard is asleep!!! When will he ever learn that sunglasses are unnecessary indoors?
Winner: Donald Cerrone – Rd. 1 KO
Craziest fight of the year? Yeah, I think so. They both hug it out, now that “The Young Assassin” has come to. I would pay to be at their after party.
Main Event Time: Benson “Smooth” Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar
Frankie runs to the Octagon, gets greased up -legally, not the Anderson Silva way. Like a leprechaun who’s been had, he wants his gold back. Ben is strutting his way to the prep point. The champ’s calm and focused. It’s Time!
Round 1: Edgar in the black/red trunks littered with sponsors. Henderson must have sponsored himself because his upper body is plastered on his poster… oh yeah, tighties for the champ. Empty jabs by Henderson. Egdar landing a few shots, most noticeably a left hand. Leg kick by Smooth. Edgar nearly looses his balance after Henderson kicks his leg again. Another one and he’s down. Scrambled to the feet. Edgar returns the favor and throws a leg kick. Frankie’s left calf is swollen and red. Both men throwing combos, landing shots here and there. Frankie lands a leg kick. Edgar catches the leg kick this time, takedown but the champ locks in a guillotine. Remember how many times Frankie caught kicks last time? Round over.
Nate Diaz in attendance.
Round 2: 12-8 Sig strikes in favor of the champ for round 1. Another leg kick by Smooth and Edgar drops to a knee but recovers. Frankie feints a takedown. Lands a punch. Leg kick and a hook for Edgar. Both guys switching stance. Leg kick by the champ. Edgar drops Henderson with a wicked uppercut. Looking to sink in the choke. Smooth works up to his feet. but Frankie still has a hold of him. Henderson keeping a hand on the ground to avoid knees. Edgar is bleeding. Separation! Henderson misses a big axe kick. Then shoots but is stuffed by Frankie. Big body kick by the champ the the horn.
Round 3: Half landed/half blocked head kick by Benson. Lots of jabs by him as well, most hit air. Frankie lands a leg kick. Ben returns the favor and charges. very nice jab by Benson. Both men exchange blows. Champ telegraphs a head kick. Edgar ducks. Same for his right hard. More of the same – I hit you, you hit me. Repeat. Still no mention of altitude – my drinking game sucks – I can still see the keys clearly. The champ tries to Sweet Chin Music the former champ – misses. 20-16 sig strikes so far in favor of Smooth. Champ charges and Frankie Edgar tries to hit HBK’s finisher as the horn sounds.
Championship rounds, deep water, point of no return, etc….
Round 4: Guys are just banging. Leg kicks, straight punches, more leg kicks – it’s all here. Neither man looks to have a significant advantage, both are active. Edgar gets a takedown. Big kick from the ground and Ben is back up. Until he Frankie locks in the choke. Leaning on the champ is Edgar. Applying pressure on the choke. Now they stand. Crowd’s chant is inaudible. Henderson lands a jab that knocks Edgar’s mouthpiece out. TIME OUT! Okay, back to work. Leg kick by Frankie is beautiful. My face hurts from watching all of these punches. Edgar catches ANOTHER kick. and Keeps it standing. Horn.
Round 5: Edgar’s corner tells him to punch him against the cage. Edgar’s footwork prevents being kicked in the lead leg again. Nice shots by the NJ native. Champ is fighting like he’s already won… Edgar is hungry. Crowd chants, “Frankie!” Caught another kick did Frankie. Puts a right hand on his face. Keeps attacking with combos. Now the champ looks to score points with a few jabs. Edgar’s counter striking is impressive. Frankie hits a nice leg kick. One minute left!!! Nice body shot by Edgar. Champ comes forward, lands s shot. Both are going at it now. End of fight.. Judges will now calculate the scores, correctly, we hope.
And the winner is…..
Ben HendersonFrankie Edgar by unanimous decisionsplit decision!
The crowd is NOT happy. “I fight for you guys! I try to finish fights!” -Henderson.
Edgar says he’s not sure if he’ll go back and watch this fight again. Dude looks heartbroken. Fans love him though.
When you go through adversity in life, it’s how you bounce back that shows how strong you are. Ed Herman has shown how strong he is inside and outside the cage.Herman suffered a torn ACL and meniscus in his fight with Aaron Simpson at UFC 102 in 2…
When you go through adversity in life, it’s how you bounce back that shows how strong you are. Ed Herman has shown how strong he is inside and outside the cage.
Herman suffered a torn ACL and meniscus in his fight with Aaron Simpson at UFC 102 in 2009. As he was preparing for his comeback, Herman tore the same ACL again in 2010.
After not competing for almost two years, Herman returned at TUF 13 finale last June, as he stopped Tim Credeur in 48 seconds. Herman since then has rattled off two more victories as he submitted Kyle Noke and Clifford Starks.
Herman now enters quite possibly the biggest fight of his career as he squares off against former Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Jake Shields tonight at UFC 150. The “Short Fuse” feels the injuries gave him that something that was lacking in his career.
“I don’t ever want to say an injury is a good thing,” Herman told Bleacher Report. “I think (the injury) gave me that fire after I thought my career was possibly over. I didn’t want my career to be done yet. It gave me that motivation to take this opportunity and make the most of this second chance in my career. My mental approach has changed in just trying to enjoy this time while I’m here and take advantage of everything I can.”
After he defeated Clifford Starks at UFC 143, Herman told the UFC he wanted to fight a top-ten fighter and the UFC gave him that in Shields.
“It’s a great matchup,” Herman stated. “Jake’s a top-ten guy in the welterweight division, but I feel that also translates into the middleweight division. I was excited when the UFC told me about the fight and I jumped on the chance.”
Shields is returning to middleweight after posting a modest 2-2 record in the welterweight division after leaving Strikeforce and entering the UFC. Herman feels Shields is a better fighter at middleweight and plans on ruining Shields’ return to the division.
“He has fought better at middleweight,” Herman stated. “His most successful fights have been at this weight class. I plan on shocking the world and surprising Jake Shields by finishing him.”
Benson Henderson (-210) vs. Frankie Edgar (+175) Emily Kapala: The Henderson Vs. Edgar fight is going to worth every PPV penny. While Henderson did take the belt from Edgar at their last meeting in the.
Benson Henderson (-210) vs. Frankie Edgar (+175)
Emily Kapala: The Henderson Vs. Edgar fight is going to worth every PPV penny. While Henderson did take the belt from Edgar at their last meeting in the octagon, I think the oddsmakers have it wrong by choosing Henderson as the favorite. While Henderson may have been the better fighter at the bout in Japan, Edgar is a better all around fighter. Not only will he win the fight, but he is the highest value bet. Frankie Edgar will be the regain his title as the lightweight champion of the world on Saturday night. Winner: Frankie Edgar
Alan Wells: I expect this fight to play out similarly to the first one. It will be close and Edgar will have his moments but Henderson is just a little better overall. Either way, this one is going five rounds and will be contested at a high level. And the odds are bettable either way. What more can you ask for? Winner: Ben Henderson
Elise Kapala: The main event is clearly a must see for MMA fans. Because Edgar lost the belt to Henderson, I believe he has the driving edge mentally, as well as physically, to get back his belt and regain the title of champion. I think Edgar will come out on top in this rematch. Winner: Frankie Edgar
Ryan Poli: I picked Henderson to win the first time, and even though I think Edgar should have won the fight, I’m picking Henderson again due to his skill in every aspect of the fight game. Henderson by decision. Winner: Ben Henderson
MMAFix PicK: Push (2-2)
Donald Cerrone (-350) vs. Melvin Guillard (+290)
Emily Kapala: With 7 fight of the night performances throughout his mixed martial arts career, you know a good brawl is going to happen when Cerrone is on the card. While Guillard has shown excellent skill thoughout his career, I see Cerrone winning with his Muay Thai kickboxing. With a win, he is on his way to be in the lightweight champion contendership once again. Winner: Donald Cerrone
Alan Wells: I expect this fight to be a replay of Cerrone’s previous fight against Jeremy Stephens. He’ll keep Guillard on the outside and pick him apart with combinations. The punches will land clean and set up huge leg kicks to finish. Cerrone will take this one convincingly but the odds make it not worth a bet. Winner: Donald Cerrone
Elise Kapala: The fight between Guillard and Cerrone is an interesting fight. They both have incredible knockout ability, so it should be very interesting. Although I think it will be a very close fight, I think that Cerrone will take the victory over Guillard. Winner: Donald Cerrone
Ryan Poli: Guillard has the power to end the fight at any time, but Cerrone has the technical advantage in the striking and a huge advantage in the ground game. Cerrone by Submission. Winner: Donald Cerrone
Benson Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar Because of Frankie Edgar’s willingness to give immediate rematches to B.J. Penn and Gray Maynard, he gets one against Ben Henderson despite the long list of potential opponents waiting for.
Benson Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar
Because of Frankie Edgar’s willingness to give immediate rematches to B.J. Penn and Gray Maynard, he gets one against Ben Henderson despite the long list of potential opponents waiting for a title shot. But the first fight was entertaining enough that most fans are willing to tolerate the rest of the division being held hostage so that Edgar can get a second chance at Henderson.
We know who both of these fighters are at this point in their careers and the outcome of this fight will be determined solely on gameplan and execution. Neither fighter is significantly better than the other in any area and the key in fights like this is finding a way to create openings to score. This fight represents the future of MMA as two fighters who have high level skill sets in all areas fight for slight advantages through five close rounds. The only significant advantage gained by either fighter in the first fight was when Henderson landed an upkick at the end of the third round, which seems unlikely to be repeated. Both fighters have excellent striking with Edgar probably having a slight advantage in the boxing but Henderson having a slight advantage in the kicking game. Henderson also has the reach advantage but keeping Edgar on the outside has proved nearly impossible. Both are excellent wrestlers and frequently change levels to keep their opponents off balance. Once on the mat, both are capable of doing damage with ground and pound. But both are also excellent at getting back to their feet and neither fighter was able to maintain any significant ground control in the first fight.
This fight will likely play out similarly to the first fight with both fighters happy to engage on the feet but looking to mix in takedowns when the opportunity presents itself. Henderson proved to have a slight advantage in most positions in the first fight and one would expect that pattern to continue in this fight. Because of that, he comes in as a solid favorite at -210 with Edgar at +175. However, Henderson in no way dominated the first fight so a win for Edgar would not be a surprise. The first fight was won because Henderson took advantage of of a few small openings to outscore Edgar. If Edgar can tighten up those minor mistakes and instead create a few small openings of his own in this fight, he could easily reverse the outcome and regain his title. Whatever the outcome, this fight will be back and forth. Both fighters will win rounds and both will be successful at different points in the fight. The key will be whose execution is tighter and who was able to learn the most from the first fight. Henderson deserves to be the favorite but Edgar could easily walk away the champion. And if he does, the lightweight division will be even more convoluted than it already is.
Donald Cerrone vs. Melvin Guillard
If you’re an MMA fan, you’re excited about this fight. Donald Cerrone and Melvin Guillard are two of the most exciting fighters in the sport and only a glitch in the fabric of the universe could extinguish the fireworks these two are almost certain to light from the moment this fight begins.
Cerrone’s only loss since coming to the UFC was against Nate Diaz who is currently awaiting the winner of the headlining lightweight title fight between Frankie Edgar and Benson Henderson. He followed that loss with a dominant decision victory over Jeremy Stephens. Cerrone was never challenged in that fight and appeared to be sparring with Stephens by the third round. He destroyed Stephens leg with kicks and seemed to finish every combination with a baseball bat to Stephens’ thigh. He’ll be able to use the same strategy against Guillard who will be at a similar reach disadvantage and is also not a threat to take Cerrone to the mat. Cerrone has a clear grappling advantage in this fight and Greg Jackson will certainly be imploring his fighter to put Guillard on his back and work for a submission. Whether or not Cerrone listens will likely depend on whether or not he feels threatened by Guillard’s power.
Guillard was on the brink of a title shot before losing back to back fights via first round submission to Joe Lauzon and Jim Miller. And his performance last month against Fabricio Camoes was not impressive. He earned a bizarre unanimous decision victory with all three judges scoring the fight 30-27 despite the fact that Camoes clearly won the second round and the third round was incredibly close. Regardless, he will look to build on whatever momentum he gained from that fight in this fight against Cerrone. Guillard’s game is largely based on the power in his hands. If he finds his opponent’s chin, he usually wins but if he doesn’t, he struggles. He will be at a significant reach disadvantage in this fight and will need to use speed and movement to find his way inside and land combinations. He is capable of doing it but it will require a level of execution he hasn’t shown since leaving Jackson MMA for the Blackzillions.
Cerrone comes in as a significant favorite at -350 with Guillard getting +290. This fight will likely play out similarly to Cerrone’s previous fight against Jeremy Stephens. He will use his reach to keep Guillard at distance and pick him apart with combinations that end with destructive leg kicks. If Guillard has success closing the distance, look for Cerrone to take him down and work his submission game. And if Cerrone is only interested in winning, that is the more intelligent strategy. But he’s never been interested in simply winning the fight so look for him to make it a kickboxing match unless he feels threatened. But either way, this is likely to be a great lead in for the main event.
Another day, another month and another UFC pay-per-view event.Luckily for us in the media—and perhaps your own wallet—there’s only one major UFC offering this month. After this one, we’re not due for another pay-per-view until the first wee…
Another day, another month and another UFC pay-per-view event.
Luckily for us in the media—and perhaps your own wallet—there’s only one major UFC offering this month. After this one, we’re not due for another pay-per-view until the first weekend in September when Jon Jones and Dan Henderson lock horns in Las Vegas.
There’s still plenty of mixed martial arts to be found in August, such as next weekend when Ronda Rousey returns to the Strikeforce cage. But in terms of the kinds of events you need to drop some cash for, August only has UFC 150 on the docket.
Another stroke of luck for us? This should turn out to be a pretty good card. Two of the fights—the main and co-main events—are almost guaranteed to deliver excitement. Of course, there have been plenty of times that I’ve typed those exact words, only to see a promising card under-deliver in fight action. But, I have a feeling this one’s going to be worth a watch.
Let’s take a look at five things to keep an eye on for UFC 150: Henderson vs. Edgar 2:
Is Frankie Edgar truly the king of rematches?
You know the statistics, and you know that the lightweight division has been in a near-constant standstill ever since Edgar captured the title from B.J. Penn back at UFC 112. Edgar defended the belt against Penn in a rematch, then went on to a draw with Gray Maynard that forced yet another rematch. And now, he’s going into yet another rematch, this time as the challenger against Benson Henderson.
There’s something to be said for the improvements Edgar made in his previous rematches with Penn and Maynard. The first fight against Penn was fairly close, but Edgar adjusted his game the second time around and cruised to an easy win. The first Maynard fight was obviously as close as it gets when it comes to MMA decisions, but Edgar adjusted his game yet again and finished Maynard in the rematch.
Is Edgar truly that great at applying in the rematch what he learned during the first tilt with his opponents? I’m not sure that’s the case. I think Edgar was simply a better fighter than Penn and Maynard, and that was borne out when he was given the extra rounds in the rematches. The more times we see opponents face each other, the more disparity we’re going to see between them.
And unfortunately for Edgar, I believe Henderson is the better fighter, and I think you’re going to see that play out on Saturday night.
Can Benson Henderson score a signature finishing win?
During his run in the WEC, Henderson finished four of his six fights. He’s gone to a decision in four fights since making the leap over to the UFC.
I’d say that was due to a different level in competition, but we all know that’s not the case. A few of those WEC guys are doing quite well in the UFC, thank you very much. Granted, there’s a difference between Frankie Edgar or Clay Guida and someone like Shane Roller. But, as the UFC lightweight champ, Henderson should be expected to finish opponents on a regular basis. He just hasn’t done it yet.
Edgar is notoriously hard to finish, of course—witness both Maynard bouts for a perfect example of the Jersey native’s toughness—which means that scoring that big TKO or submission win on Saturday night is going to be a difficult task.
I’m not saying that Henderson can’t do it, because I wouldn’t be all that surprised if he did. But, I suspect Henderson will be focused on simply retaining his belt by any means necessary, and that’s fine.
Can Cerrone vs. Guillard possibly live up to expectations?
Two former training partners. Two dudes with a proclivity for standing and trading strikes. Cerrone vs. Guillard has all the makings of a classic.
The fight has plenty of hype, but don’t be surprised if it’s not quite what you expect. Cerrone will want to avoid Guillard’s ridiculous hand speed and powerful punches, and if he’s smart, he’ll look to take advantage of Guillard’s weak submission defense. Cerrone enjoys putting on exciting fights and making that paper, but I think he also enjoys winning fights.
Don’t get me wrong; I still believe this will be an exciting fight. But, I’m not sure it’s going to be the three-round punchfest everyone seems to be expecting.
Will Jake Shields finally earn his second consecutive UFC win?
Since entering the UFC as the Strikeforce middleweight champ, Shields has yet to score two consecutive wins. Granted, he’s had some very tough fights during his run, against a murderer’s row of welterweight contenders. Well, except for Yoshihiro Akiyama, that is. But, he still hasn’t been able to pull off more than one win at a time.
He’ll look to change that on Saturday night. He’s moving back to middleweight, which means he’ll get all of the strength back that he had during his unbeaten run in Strikeforce. The welterweight cut was never easy for Shields, and it often sapped him of his energy during the last month of his training camp. That’s no longer the case.
Ed Herman isn’t an easy out, not by any stretch of the imagination. But, I’m looking for Shields to finally secure a start to a winning streak on Saturday night.
Who is Buddy Roberts, and how badly is he overmatched against Okami?
I don’t know much about Buddy Roberts. I doubt you do, either. And there’s a good reason for that.
Roberts is 12-2 in his MMA career, but all of those wins have come against opponents you’ve also never heard of. He beat Caio Magalhaes in his UFC debut back in June, but now, he’s taking a drastic step up in competition in facing Yushin Okami.
This may be the single biggest step in the level of competition a UFC fighter has ever faced. Roberts is going from facing lower-level preliminary middleweights to standing across the cage from one of the best —and most physically-imposing—middleweights in the world.
This feels like one of those old WWF matches you’d watch on Saturday morning on a local syndicated station, where Hulk Hogan or another big wrestling star would face off against a local jobber you’ve never heard of. I’d never call Roberts or any other professional fighter a jobber—well, except perhaps, Sean Salmon—but this one certainly doesn’t bode well for Roberts.
It’s a way for Okami to score a rebound win after his loss to Tim Boetsch. Nothing more, and nothing less.
Much to the disapproval of the Denver crowd, Jake Shields walked away from UFC 150 with a unanimous decision victory over Ed “Short Fuse” Herman.
When you go through adversity in life, it’s how you bounce back that shows how strong you are. Ed Herman has shown how strong he is inside and outside the cage.
