It’s probably safe to say no one saw that coming.
Riding a win streak of a couple of fights (19 non-Anthony Pettis fights if you want to get crazy with it) and looking like he’d never be far beyond nipping at the champ’s heels, Benson Henderson walked …
It’s probably safe to say no one saw that coming.
Riding a win streak of a couple of fights (19 non-Anthony Pettis fights if you want to get crazy with it) and looking like he’d never be far beyond nipping at the champ’s heels, Benson Henderson walked into Tulsa, Oklahoma, and got himself knocked out.
The culprit, Rafael dos Anjos, is a grappling ace who has developed the type of technique that accentuates his physical tools nicely and just happened to peak in the biggest fight of his life.
Henderson was the victim for a change, falling to 21-4 in his career and finding himself rudderless in the crowded 155-pound waters of the UFC.
Here are three fights to consider for him going forward.
These two met earlier in the year and provided one of the more divisive results in recent history, as Thomson looked to get the better of Henderson for much of the bout, but Henderson’s focus on activity over damage was enough to sway the judges.
Now, the better part of a year later, they’re both in the same place in the UFC anyway: respected veteran contenders coming off surprising losses. Funny how this sport works, isn’t it?
With no obvious solution to the matchmaking problem for either man, why not put them together again and give them the chance to work out their issues one more time? After all, Thomson was so flustered by the loss that he openly pondered retirement, and it was the exact type of decision Henderson gets so often that fans were flustered by it too.
The UFC could do worse than booking these two again.
Michael Johnson
The man who was booked to face Thomson last month on Fox might also be an interesting fit for Henderson, as he pulled out of that bout due to injury but has otherwise been enjoying quite a resurgence in his career.
Finally capable of applying his athletic gifts to the fight game, Johnson matches up well with Henderson in every imaginable way. Every component of the bout would be a pick ’em on paper, the type of fight that could easily serve to create a new star or prove that an old one isn’t ready to burn out just yet.
KhabibNurmagomedov
No one has been itching to fight Nurmagomedov since he joined the UFC, and it’s hard to imagine the lineup to fight Henderson has ever been particularly long either. Though he’s presently out with a knee injury, there’s reason to be intrigued by Nurmagomedov meeting Henderson in a return bout.
Due to the UFC’s schedule, the urgency of booking winners against winners and losers against losers is much less compared to what it was a couple of years ago. There’s also the influence of lightweight champion Anthony Pettis and top contender Gilbert Melendez sitting around until December, when their season of The Ultimate Fighter ends and they can fight for the title.
With that in mind, there’s a good chance that, though he beat Dos Anjos himself and could easily hold claim to a title shot, the unbeaten Dagestan native may need to take another fight when he’s healthy, and that fight should be Henderson.
Almost everyone who’s relevant is either booked or hurt and, at least on paper, Nurmagomedov has never been tested by a name as well-known and dangerous as Henderson. Win that fight, and he proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that he should be next in line for a crack at gold.
With a short right hand and some follow-up shots to a collapsed Gray Maynard, Ross Pearson made a bold, violent announcement to the MMA world Saturday night in Maine at UFC Fight Night 47: His time is now; ignore him at your own peril.
The Englishman h…
With a short right hand and some follow-up shots to a collapsed Gray Maynard, Ross Pearson made a bold, violent announcement to the MMA world Saturday night in Maine at UFC Fight Night 47: His time is now; ignore him at your own peril.
The Englishman has been puttering about as a fringe contender seemingly since the day he stepped out of the Octagon as an official TUF champion, and now, with a signature win under his belt to wipe away the foul stench of his decision loss to Diego Sanchez, he’s moving on up.
With that in mind, here’s a short list of guys who make sense for him the next time he knuckles up.
Michael Johnson
Michael Johnson was yanked from his bout with Josh Thomson in July after he suffered an injury, but in terms of matchmaking, there’s lots to like here.
The two men are at similar stages of their career—late-20s TUFproducts with a high athletic ceiling and some substantial career momentum—and for them to meet now would be notable for the future of the division.
It’s also a bout that pits the wrestling chops and vastly improved striking of Johnson against the nasty kickboxing and crafty takedown defense of Pearson, which is almost a lock to provide an exciting fight.
Josh Thomson
Speaking of Thomson, he ended up losing—on the night he was supposed to fight Johnson—to an upstart Bobby Green. It was one of his more lackluster performances in recent years, and it essentially undid all the goodwill and momentum he’d ferreted away after beating Nate Diaz and losing a dubious decision to Benson Henderson.
Now, with his ranking lower than it’s been in the promotion in quite some time (No. 6 in the lightweight division), there could be some serious enjoyment to be had if he were to lock up with Pearson just as his star is beginning to shoot a little.
Thomson is always fun and entertaining, and Pearson doesn’t know what a boring fight looks like. When you add the stakes of divisional relevance to the mix it becomes a pretty appealing tilt.
Jim Miller
Another guy who’s no stranger to in-cage excitement, Jim Miller could be a solid test for Pearson as he tries to stack up against the tougher men in the division.
Miller has been around forever and has only suffered defeats to the cream of the UFC crop, usually going in for a night of bloody mayhem no matter what side of the ledger he ends up on.
With his criminally underappreciated jiu-jitsu, solid wrestling, capable standup and unflinching will, he could be the perfect guy to help lock down exactly what the promotion has in the 29-year-old Pearson and determine just how far he might go now that he’s entering his best years.
Robbie Lawler and Matt Brown put on a show at UFC on FOX 12. It wasn’t the 5-star epic poem many were expecting, but it was still a fun, entertaining fight that made spending a night in front of the TV worth it.
But was it worth it for the fighters?
Heading into the card, media pundits discussed the potential paydays for the card’s fighters. They noted four fighters could earn six figures. Friend of CagePotato Trent Reinsmith summed up our thoughts on the issue:
Three fighters earned six figures. And only five fighters made fewer than $10,000 (this excludes “of the night” bonuses and the mythical locker room bonuses as well).
Lawler earned $210,000, the highest pay of the night. Matt Brown received $46,000.
Anthony Johnson made the easiest $106,000 of his life in a 44-second drubbing of Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, who took home $114,000 to act as a human punching bag–not bad!
Here are the figures for the entire card (all via MMAJunkie):
(Photo via Getty)
Robbie Lawler and Matt Brown put on a show at UFC on FOX 12. It wasn’t the 5-star epic poem many were expecting, but it was still a fun, entertaining fight that made spending a night in front of the TV worth it.
But was it worth it for the fighters?
Heading into the card, media pundits discussed the potential paydays for the card’s fighters. They noted four fighters could earn six figures. Friend of CagePotato Trent Reinsmith summed up our thoughts on the issue:
Three fighters earned six figures. And only five fighters made fewer than $10,000 (this excludes “of the night” bonuses and the mythical locker room bonuses as well).
Lawler earned $210,000, the highest pay of the night. Matt Brown received $46,000.
Anthony Johnson made the easiest $106,000 of his life in a 44-second drubbing of Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, who took home $114,000 to act as a human punching bag–not bad!
Noad Lahat: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus)
Steven Siler: $15,000
And again: These numbers don’t account for magic locker room bonuses or “of the night” bonuses. Speaking of the latter: Lawler and Brown earned an extra $50,000 for “Fight of the Night.” Both Dennis Bermudez and Anthony Johnson got $50,000 for “Performance of the Night.”
The UFC is in San Jose tonight with a free fight card that can only be described as “legit man [expletive].” UFC on FOX 12 kicks off at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT, and BG will be sticking round-by-round results after the jump; refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest.
The UFC is in San Jose tonight with a free fight card that can only be described as “legit man [expletive].” UFC on FOX 12 kicks off at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT, and BG will be sticking round-by-round results after the jump; refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest.
Shoot your own thoughts in the comments section, or fling them at us on twitter. And as always, thanks for coming.
UFC on FOX 12 preliminary card results
– Daron Cruickshank def. Jorge Masvidal via unanimous decision (29-28 x 2, 29-27)
– Patrick Cummins def. Kyle Kingsbury via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-25, 30-24)
– Tim Means def. Hernani Perpetuo via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
– Brian Ortega def. Mike De La Torre via submission (rear-naked choke), 1:39 of round 1
– Tiago Trator def. Akbarh Arreola via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)
– Gilbert Burns def. Andreas Stahl via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
– Joanna Jedrzejczyk def. Juliana Lima via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)
– Noad Lahat def. Steven Siler via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
Please stand by…
Curt Menefee starts off with a tortured Silicon Valley analogy, that has no place on any card that’s headlined by Matt Brown. Oh, and we’ve already got a Guardians of the Galaxy commercial *within* the broadcast. That took about 45 seconds. Good job, everybody.
Daniel Cormier is on the broadcast panel, plugging his upcoming title fight against Jon Jones, which leads into a trailer package for the bout. You know what, I’ll count that as a commercial too. Now they’re breaking down tonight’s fight card.
After a full 20 minutes of commercials, it’s time to begin…
Josh Thomson vs. Bobby Green
Round 1: Thomson starts out snapping kicks at Green’s ankles. Green returns a leg kick, and lands a solid right hand. Thomson with a pair of quick punches. Good body kick from Green. They trade punches and Thomson’s land harder. Bobby Green starts bouncing around, not even looking at Thomson. It’s Paulo Filho-esque. Thomson goes high with the left kick. Thomson gets thumbed in the eye pretty badly and there’s a break in the action. Herb Dean offers him some more time to recover, but Thomson is back in after about 30 seconds. Thomson grazes Green with a head kick; Green smiles and starts talking to him. Thomson tries a foot-sweep takedown and Green defends. Green going low with an oblique kick. He lands nicely with a leg kick. The round ends, and it was a close one.
Round 2: Green with a body kick. Thomson brushes Green back with another head kick and Green gives Thomson a wide smile and basically congratulates Thomson for the effort. “Talking back isn’t going to score you points,” Mike Goldberg says, after Green responds to Thomson’s attacks with more conversation. Leg kick Thomson. Now even Thomson can’t help but smile as Green continues to treat this fight like a bro-out session. Green with another oblique kick to Thomson’s knee. Thomson tries to shoot in, but Green avoids it. Thomson slugging as soon as Green gets close. Thomson tries the trip-takedown again and gets it. He pounces on Green, but Green escapes to his feet. The round ends; I’d call it a clear 10-9 for Thomson.
Round 3: Green comes out with some kung fu arm movements. Good punch to the body from Green. Thomson whiffs a spinning backfist. They clinch against the fence. Green whips a right hand to Thomson’s temple and spins out. A spinning knee from Green pushes Thomson against the fence. Green staying busy this round, keeping Thomson near the fence and attacking. Thomson slips in with some punches. He fails on the foot-sweep, but follows it with a hard body kick. Thomson is bleeding under his right eye. Green shoots, Thomson slugs him in a head a few times while defending against the fence. Green with a lead uppercut. Thomson goes over the top with a right hand. Green stalks in during the closing seconds of the round, Thomson fires back and tries a capoeira kick. There’s the bell. 10-9 for Green. This could go either way.
Bobby Green def. Josh Thomson via split decision. (29-28 x 2, 28-29). The crowd isn’t happy with it, but whaddya gonna do. Joe Rogan says that Green “belongs with the elite of the division.” Really? For grinnin’ his way through an incredibly close fight against Josh Thomson? I’m not convinced.
Clay Guida vs. Dennis Bermudez
And there’s Jason Guida doing his “slap Clay in the face before the fight” thing, again. He’s carved out quite a little niche for himself. Indeed, Jason Guida is the white Antonio Inoki.
Round 1: Bermudez rushing forward like a bull. He lands a leg kick. He’s throwing some serious punches too, but missing most of them. Clay Guida kicks Bermudez in the knee, then lands a big right hand. Guida shoots for a single leg, but Bermudez pulls out of it. They clinch against the fence. Bermudez sneaks in a good knee, and another. Guida shoots, Bermudez grabs him in a headlock and punches Guida when he pulls away. Guida tries to take Bermudez’s back in a scramble, but Bermudez shakes him off. Another knee from Bermudez, and Clay is cut near his right eye. Bermudez dashes forward with a leg kick, a punch, a knee. Bermudez grabs a clinch and starts smashing Guida with knees. Guida tries to escape and Bermudez takes his back, looking for a choke. Guida defends it, sticks his tongue out at the camera and the crowd loves it. The round ends. Dominant first round for Bermudez, but we’re still in 10-9 territory. Guida burps loudly on the stool.
Round 2: Bermudez storming forward trying to grab onto Guida, Guida landing punches while backpedaling. Punches and a sharp leg kick from Bermudez. Guida lands an inside leg kick. Bermudez lands in a punching exchange. A stiff left hand from Bermudez gets Guida stumbling backwards. Bermudez land a teep to the belly. Bermudez stalking Guida down. Guida lands a big overhand right again, but Bermudez doesn’t seem phased. Heck of a chin on that guy. Bermudez bullrushes Guida to the mat and takes his back. He goes for the rear-naked choke again, and sinks it almost immediately. Guida taps. He gets up and starts running laps around the cage.
That’s seven straight wins for Bermudez, and honestly, he looks like a killer now.
Dennis Bermudez def. Clay Guida via submission (rear-naked choke), 2:57 of round 2. Bermudez is “super-stoked.” He says Guida will be in the Hall of Fame one day. He’d like a title shot, but he’d be happy to fight anybody in the top 5.
Anthony Johnson vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Welp, it’s public execution time.
Round 1: Johnson moving forward slowly, cautiously. Johnson tags Nogueira with a punch, and Lil’ Nog is on his heels. Johnson lands another power punch, as Nog hits the fence. Johnson enters the kill sequence. A barrage of heavy punches from Rumble, ending with a right uppercut that sends Nogueira to the mat. It’s over. “And the lights go out in San Jose,” Joe Rogan says, somberly.
Bottom line, that fight shouldn’t have been made. And yet…isn’t this why we watch Rumble Johnson?
Anthony Johnson def. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira via TKO, 0:44 of round 1. “Hopefully I keep puttin’ fear in everybody’s hearts,” Johnson says, before thanking the crowd. “I just wanted to destroy him, that was it.” After his rocky competitive history is brought up by Rogan, Johnson says “yeah, don’t cut so much weight, everybody.”
Again, it should be noted that Antonio Rogerio Nogueira is held together by duct tape, and didn’t really come to fight. The man has no more tread left on the tires, and should retire (like Kyle Kingsbury didearlier, by the way). Still: Who should Rumble beat up next?
Robbie Lawler vs. Matt Brown
Round 1: Brown comes out jabbing and Lawler immediately brushes him back with hard punches. Brown testing range with kicks. Lawler lands a nice uppercut. Brown on his heels, as Lawler lands sharp punches at will. Brown doing these really slow leg kicks that make me nervous for him. But Brown lands a big right hand. Lawler returns fire. Now Brown grabs his clinch, lands some knees. He lands a standing elbow. Brown waking up now. He flips Lawler to the mat, and looks for a D’arce choke, but Lawler defends and stands. Lawler pushes Brown against the fence, lands a hard uppercut. Brown is cut near the top of his nose. Brown lands knees to Lawler’s legs from the clinch, and an elbow in close. Another elbow from Brown, but Lawler bashes his way out, and nails Brown with heavy punches. Nice body kick from Lawler. Brown lands one of his own. Brown dashes in with a long punch and Lawler fires back an uppercut as the round ends. I’d say 10-9 Lawler, who looked very dangerous throughout.
Round 2: Brown missing punches and running out of the way to avoid Robbie’s counters. Brown tries a high right kick that’s mostly blocked. I just noticed that Brown is sponsored by Dude Wipes. Brown lands a kick to the body. Brown shoots in for a takedown. It’s telegraphed and Lawler is ready for it; Brown briefly gets Lawler to the mat, but Lawler is quickly on his feet. Brown whiffs a punch. Lawler lands a straight left. Brown lands a spinning back to the body. He storms forward with punches. Brown stick a right hand. He briefly grabs a clinch and sneaks in an elbow. Brown throws a high kick, then thumps one to the body. Lawler with a hard body kick of his own. Brown chases Lawler and fires a kick at the bell. Brown did much better in that round, and may have edged out a 10-9.
Round 3: Brown shoots in for a single-leg, and is tenaciously trying to convert it against the fence, but Lawler doesn’t budge. He drops down an elbow, drawing more blood from Brown’s face. Lawler with a hard body kick and Brown winces. Lawler throws it again. Lawler goes high with the kick. Lawler sneaks in a right hook. Brown gets busy firing punches. Lawler kicks Brown in the belly and Brown is hurt, stumbling backwards…but Big John thinks it was a low blow, and stops the action. Damn it. The replay shows that it was as clean as you can get. But Brown gets a break. They’re back in. Brown lands a body kick. They trade high kicks. There’s the bell. Lawler, 10-9. Brown was in trouble there for a while.
Round 4: Lawler runs out to the center of the Octagon, throwing punches. He takes Brown to the mat and starts working from half-guard. Some douche-bro in the crowd starts booing immediately. Brown grabs a headlock, but loses it. He scoots back to the fence. Brown tries to turn and stand, but Lawler slams him back to the mat and takes his back. Brown escapes to his feet. Good lead uppercut from Lawler. Brown shoots, Lawler defends. Good right hand from Lawler. Lawler lands a left high kick. Brown lands a pair of kicks to Lawler’s right leg. Lawler snaps Brown’s head back with a left. The round ends; another 10-9 for Lawler. Brown looking pretty tired as he walks back to his corner.
Round 5: And here we go. Both guys spend the first 20 seconds slugging the shit out of each other. Brown knows he needs a finish here. Brown working some standing elbows with good success. Body kick from Lawler, followed by a left hand. They clinch against the fence, briefly. Lawler is cut now, too. Good knee to the body from Brown, and Lawler responds with a right hand. Brown lands a kick to the ribs. Lawler lands a left high kick. Brown with a left hook to the body. Powerful body kick from Brown. But Lawler lands one of his own and Brown is hurt. More back and forth, with both guys tearing into each other. Lawler with a kick, Brown catches it, Lawler spins around with a backfist. Lawler with another kick to the body. What a dogfight. Brown is tough as nails, but he must be in agony. Lawler smashes Brown to the mat, but Brown is quickly on his feet. The last horn sounds. Brown smiles at Lawler. The Immortal must know he lost, but hey, it was a hell of a show.
Robbie Lawler def. Matt Brown via unanimous decision (49-46 x 2, 48-47). “There’s two champions in this ring tonight,” Lawler says to Brown. The post-fight interview is a quick one, as the broadcast is completely out of time, but Lawler’s not much of a talker anyway. The important thing is, the win secures Lawler a rematch against Johny Hendricks for the welterweight title, as soon as Hendricks is healthy again. Can’t wait for that one.
Josh Thomson knows how to get the media and fans talking as much about his actions outside the cage as about his actual fights. Never one to shy away from his sharing his opinion, “The Punk” is back at it again.
Speaking to Damon Martin of Fox Spo…
Josh Thomson knows how to get the media and fans talking as much about his actions outside the cage as about his actual fights. Never one to shy away from his sharing his opinion, “The Punk” is back at it again.
Speaking to Damon Martin of Fox Sports, Thomson basically said that anyone who fights above 155 pounds isn’t as good as everyone who fights in the lighter weight classes:
You hit 185, 205 and heavyweight, those guys are always just good at like one thing, two things, but they’re not great all the way around. There’s ways to finish them. So if you’re a well-rounded athlete, you can finish those guys. You can find ways to finish those guys.
With 55-pounders and below, good luck, man. Everybody’s good all around — they’re good wrestlers, they’re good jiu-jitsu guys, they’re good stand up guys, they’re game to throw down and they’re always in shape. …
You start getting in the 185’s, 205, heavyweight, they start being one-dimensional, two-dimensional fighters. They’re not mixed martial artists. They’re not as good as the 55-pounders and below. They’re just not. To me that’s just a fact.
Thomson would add that the welterweight division was his cutoff point (or the division in “limbo,” as he put it) for deciding when guys stop being mixed martial artists.
It’s a notion that Thomson expressed due to fans (and likely UFC President Dana White) calling for Thomson to finish fights rather than head to the judge’s scorecards. The outspoken fighter shared his thoughts on lighter weight classes and scorecards in the aforementioned Fox Sports piece.
What’s surprising (or I guess it shouldn’t be considering Thomson’s past) is that Thomson would use such a blanket statement to cover everyone who fights above lightweight.
You’re telling me that guys like Jon Jones, Chris Weidman, Cain Velasquez, Rashad Evans, GegardMousasi, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza,LyotoMachida and others aren’t well-rounded? Sure, they may excel in typically one or two areas, but they also aren’t completely inept in others.
There are plenty of guys who have risen to the top 10 in their respective divisions despite a glaring weakness that opponents can key in on.
If you look at the pound-for-pound rankings you’ll also notice that three out of the top five and five out of the top 10 come in weight classes that Thomson isn’t fond of.
Thomson will also likely have to do some clarifying to his American Kickboxing Academy teammates as well. The aforementioned Velasquez, Luke Rockhold and light heavyweight contender (and former heavyweight contender) Daniel Cormier all train with Thomson.
(Awww…who could stay mad at that face? / Photo via joshpunkthomson)
This Saturday, lightweight veteran Josh Thomson leads off the UFC on FOX 12: Lawler vs. Brown broadcast with a fight against Bobby Green, and naturally, “The Punk” decided to talk a little trash in the media to build some heat. The problem is, his insults weren’t directed at Green, or anybody else in his weight class. Instead, Thomson used a Fox Sports interview as a platform to bury the UFC’s three heaviest divisions.
Basically, Thomson was arguing that it’s harder to come by a finish at 155 pounds or below (which is true), because the fighters are much more talented and well-rounded (which is debatable). And sure, maybe it could have come out better:
“You hit 185, 205, and heavyweight, those guys are always just good at like one thing, two things, but they’re not great all the way around. There’s ways to finish them. So if you’re a well-rounded athlete, you can finish those guys. You can find ways to finish those guys.
“With 55-pounders and below, good luck, man. Everybody’s good all around — they’re good wrestlers, they’re good jiu-jitsu guys, they’re good standup guys, they’re game to throw down and they’re always in shape. 170 is kind of like the limbo — like there’s some well-rounded guys in there…
“You start getting in the 185’s, 205, heavyweight, they start being one-dimensional, two-dimensional fighters. They’re not mixed martial artists. They’re not as good as the 55-pounders and below. They’re just not. To me that’s just a fact.
(Awww…who could stay mad at that face? / Photo via joshpunkthomson)
This Saturday, lightweight veteran Josh Thomson leads off the UFC on FOX 12: Lawler vs. Brown broadcast with a fight against Bobby Green, and naturally, “The Punk” decided to talk a little trash in the media to build some heat. The problem is, his insults weren’t directed at Green, or anybody else in his weight class. Instead, Thomson used a Fox Sports interview as a platform to bury the UFC’s three heaviest divisions.
Basically, Thomson was arguing that it’s harder to come by a finish at 155 pounds or below (which is true), because the fighters are much more talented and well-rounded (which is debatable). And sure, maybe it could have come out better:
“You hit 185, 205, and heavyweight, those guys are always just good at like one thing, two things, but they’re not great all the way around. There’s ways to finish them. So if you’re a well-rounded athlete, you can finish those guys. You can find ways to finish those guys.
“With 55-pounders and below, good luck, man. Everybody’s good all around — they’re good wrestlers, they’re good jiu-jitsu guys, they’re good standup guys, they’re game to throw down and they’re always in shape. 170 is kind of like the limbo — like there’s some well-rounded guys in there…
“You start getting in the 185′s, 205, heavyweight, they start being one-dimensional, two-dimensional fighters. They’re not mixed martial artists. They’re not as good as the 55-pounders and below. They’re just not. To me that’s just a fact.
“So you want to tell me ‘don’t leave it in the judges’ hands’ but where am I supposed to take this fight where this guy isn’t good? He’s good at stopping submissions, he’s good at wrestling, he’s good as standup and he’s generally in great shape. Tell me how when we start talking 55 and below, these guy are phenomenal athletes and they’re almost impossible to finish. People knock us for it, but guess what? Our weight classes are so much harder than the guys that are above us.”
My problem with Thomson’s opinion about larger fighters is that there are just too many obvious exceptions to take the claim seriously. From the champions (Chris Weidman, Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez) to the top contenders (Fabricio Werdum, Daniel Cormier, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, among many others), the heavier divisions are loaded with athletes who can hurt you from any position and always show up in shape.
Thomson interprets the lower finishing rate in the lighter divisions as a sign that the talent pool is higher there, the fighters are more well-rounded. But you can look at the same evidence and come to the exact opposite conclusion — the heavier fighters are better because they’re actually finishing each other. Only one thing’s for certain: Josh Thomson is not here to make friends.
It’s probably safe to say no one saw that coming.
