Tag: Maiquel Falcao

Early End to First Round Cost Maiquel Falcao at UFC 123

Filed under: UFCMaiquel Falcao has been criticized for his handling of the third round in his UFC 123 win over Gerald Harris, with UFC President Dana White admonishing Falcao that he was wrong to play it safe after winning the first two rounds on the j…

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Maiquel Falcao has been criticized for his handling of the third round in his UFC 123 win over Gerald Harris, with UFC President Dana White admonishing Falcao that he was wrong to play it safe after winning the first two rounds on the judges’ scorecards. White said his message to Falcao after the third round was that “This isn’t the Ultimate Staring Competition, it’s the Ultimate Fighting Championship.”

But while it’s true that Falcao was unimpressive in the third round, it’s been widely overlooked that the fight never should have gone to the third round — or even the second round.

In fact, Falcao was about to submit Harris at the end of the first round, but the horn to end the round sounded seven seconds early, depriving Falcao of what almost certainly would have been a first-round submission victory.

Falling Action: Best and Worst from UFC 123

Filed under: UFCIf nothing else, you have to respect “Rampage” Jackson’s honesty at UFC 123. He thought he took something resembling a butt-whoopin’ from Lyoto Machida, at least in the final round, and he had no problem saying so.

That’s refreshing, I…

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If nothing else, you have to respect “Rampage” Jackson’s honesty at UFC 123. He thought he took something resembling a butt-whoopin’ from Lyoto Machida, at least in the final round, and he had no problem saying so.

That’s refreshing, I have to admit. The suggestion that the two should have an immediate rematch? That just makes my head hurt.

The fight was interesting, in a way, though not exactly thrilling. Seeing them do it again wouldn’t help pay-per-view sales or the crowded light heavyweight division, which is probably why UFC president Dana White mercifully intervened with other ideas. It just goes to show that sometimes it’s a good thing to have an opinionated guy at the top with veto power and the will to use it. Sometimes.

Now on to the winners, losers, and everything else in between after UFC 123.

Armchair Matchmaker: UFC 123 Edition

(Seriously, who let that mouse into the Octagon? Props: UFC.com)
Here’s what we know: BJ Penn and George Sotiropoulos already have dates at UFC 127 in Australia. Karo Parisyan has been fired (again), and Matt Brown will surely be let go as well …

Bruce Buffer UFC 123 jump
(Seriously, who let that mouse into the Octagon? Props: UFC.com)

Here’s what we know: BJ Penn and George Sotiropoulos already have dates at UFC 127 in Australia. Karo Parisyan has been fired (again), and Matt Brown will surely be let go as well after suffering his third-consecutive submission loss. (Tyson Griffin also lost his third-straight on Saturday, but will remain in the promotion, as the judges’ decision in his fight against Nik Lentz was utter horseshit.) So where do UFC 123‘s other winners and losers go from here? As usual, we have a few suggestions…

Quinton Jackson: This one’s fairly obvious, assuming that nobody really wants to see an immediate rematch between Jackson and Machida. Rampage should get the winner of Jon Jones vs. Ryan Bader at UFC 126. The winner of that fight gets a title shot. Bada-bing, bada-boom.

Lyoto Machida: Once an unstoppable force in the light-heavyweight division, it’s now been a year and a half since the Dragon has put on a dominant performance against anybody. At this point, the UFC needs to re-build Machida against a mid-level contender. Give him Matt Hamill, who deserves a step up after handling Keith Jardine and Tito Ortiz. Alternately, you could throw Machida in against Randy Couture, and see if the Natural’s gift for game-planning can carry him through against the Dragon. Of course, that matchup might not be pointless enough for Randy, so don’t get your hopes up.

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