Some fighters are born to be champions. From the time that they step foot into the Octagon, it is clear that they are on a collision course with greatness. Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez and Dominick Cruz are all examples of this undeniable talent.However, …
Some fighters are born to be champions. From the time that they step foot into the Octagon, it is clear that they are on a collision course with greatness. Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez and Dominick Cruz are all examples of this undeniable talent.
However, not everyone can be so lucky. Some fighters are afforded golden opportunities time and time again, but simply can’t get the job done. Occasionally, they’ll score a major win against a quality opponent, but their margin of victory is fairly small or the opponent is considered to be past their prime.
With the recent fall of some of the UFC’s top divisional contenders, let’s take a look at 10 fighters who struggle when the going gets tough.
“Belcher lost every minute of every round in a fight so boring I was afraid my brain was going to melt and start to dribble out of my ears. It was like someone detonated a nuclear bomb of boredom in the arena — everyone in the seats around me was playing Angry Birds. What delusions of grandeur Belcher has. This is a guy who didn’t fight for a year after giving himself career-threatening eye-strain by watching too much internet porn, and he thinks he’s god’s gift to MMA…This is a guy who got his arse kicked by two guys I smashed (Yoshihiro Akiyama and Jason Day) but he thinks he can not only beat me on a couple weeks’ training, but also assumed he was getting passed Okami, who is not to be underestimated. Anyway, now we don’t have to listen to this guy anymore. Back to the undercard, sunshine!”
Now, Bisping is fighting the very same man he just cursed to an eternity of curtain-jerking. That might be a tough pill to swallow, but Mike actually seems okay with the booking, tweeting today:
(Well that is just *completely* out of character. / Photo via Esther Lin/MMAFighting.com)
“Belcher lost every minute of every round in a fight so boring I was afraid my brain was going to melt and start to dribble out of my ears. It was like someone detonated a nuclear bomb of boredom in the arena — everyone in the seats around me was playing Angry Birds. What delusions of grandeur Belcher has. This is a guy who didn’t fight for a year after giving himself career-threatening eye-strain by watching too much internet porn, and he thinks he’s god’s gift to MMA…This is a guy who got his arse kicked by two guys I smashed (Yoshihiro Akiyama and Jason Day) but he thinks he can not only beat me on a couple weeks’ training, but also assumed he was getting passed Okami, who is not to be underestimated. Anyway, now we don’t have to listen to this guy anymore. Back to the undercard, sunshine!”
Now, Bisping is fighting the very same man he just cursed to an eternity of curtain-jerking. That might be a tough pill to swallow, but Mike actually seems okay with the booking, tweeting today:
“Ok I’m back in ASAP like I wanted. To eradicate the mistake I made last week. April 27th vs belcher. Back on track!! Make no mistake!”
And so, the dependable cycle of Bisping beating a string of mid-level middleweights before falling short when a title shot is on the line begins once again. Does anybody think Belcher can pull off an upset here?
“Belcher lost every minute of every round in a fight so boring I was afraid my brain was going to melt and start to dribble out of my ears. It was like someone detonated a nuclear bomb of boredom in the arena — everyone in the seats around me was playing Angry Birds. What delusions of grandeur Belcher has. This is a guy who didn’t fight for a year after giving himself career-threatening eye-strain by watching too much internet porn, and he thinks he’s god’s gift to MMA…This is a guy who got his arse kicked by two guys I smashed (Yoshihiro Akiyama and Jason Day) but he thinks he can not only beat me on a couple weeks’ training, but also assumed he was getting passed Okami, who is not to be underestimated. Anyway, now we don’t have to listen to this guy anymore. Back to the undercard, sunshine!”
Now, Bisping is fighting the very same man he just cursed to an eternity of curtain-jerking. That might be a tough pill to swallow, but Mike actually seems okay with the booking, tweeting today:
(Well that is just *completely* out of character. / Photo via Esther Lin/MMAFighting.com)
“Belcher lost every minute of every round in a fight so boring I was afraid my brain was going to melt and start to dribble out of my ears. It was like someone detonated a nuclear bomb of boredom in the arena — everyone in the seats around me was playing Angry Birds. What delusions of grandeur Belcher has. This is a guy who didn’t fight for a year after giving himself career-threatening eye-strain by watching too much internet porn, and he thinks he’s god’s gift to MMA…This is a guy who got his arse kicked by two guys I smashed (Yoshihiro Akiyama and Jason Day) but he thinks he can not only beat me on a couple weeks’ training, but also assumed he was getting passed Okami, who is not to be underestimated. Anyway, now we don’t have to listen to this guy anymore. Back to the undercard, sunshine!”
Now, Bisping is fighting the very same man he just cursed to an eternity of curtain-jerking. That might be a tough pill to swallow, but Mike actually seems okay with the booking, tweeting today:
“Ok I’m back in ASAP like I wanted. To eradicate the mistake I made last week. April 27th vs belcher. Back on track!! Make no mistake!”
And so, the dependable cycle of Bisping beating a string of mid-level middleweights before falling short when a title shot is on the line begins once again. Does anybody think Belcher can pull off an upset here?
Michael “The Count” Bisping and Alan “The Talent” Belcher will finally settle their ongoing feud at UFC 159, when they co-headline the night’s festivities. The event, which recently announced a bout between Phil Davis and Vinny Magalhaes as w…
Michael “The Count” Bisping and Alan “The Talent” Belcher will finally settle their ongoing feud at UFC 159, when they co-headline the night’s festivities.
Okay, that last part wasn’t real, but with the recent addition of Bisping and Belcher, such a description is entirely believable.
MMAjunkie.com and ESPN.com confirmed the bout, and Internet forums are bound to explode with predictions and chatter regarding this high-profile co-main event.
Both men dropped tough contests in their most recent outings, and a title shot is no longer in either of their immediate futures.
For his part, Bisping lost to VitorBelfort at UFC on FX 7. Had he emerged victorious in that bout, he would have set up a championship bout with longtime middleweight champion and pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva.
In a way, Belfort‘s head-kick knockout actually saved Bisping some long-term brain damage, because Silva would have absolutely wrecked him.
But, I digress.
Belcher provides a stiff test for the outspoken British fighter, and this matchup—on paper—is awesome.
Both guys have proficient skills wherever a fight goes, but both prefer to stand and bang. In his most recent fight against YushinOkami, Belcher‘s stand-up game was nullified, and The Talent was forced to fight the majority of the fight from his back.
Against Bisping, this almost assuredly will not be the case, and I expect a show of high-quality, technical stand-up and grappling from each fighter.
Both 185 lb. fighters desperately need a win to stay relevant in their ever-deepening division, and the night’s victor will throw himself right back into the thick of title contention.
While I can see Bisping picking Belcher apart for the duration of this matchup en route to a unanimous decision victory, I think Belcher clips The Count early and finishes his dazed opponent with a rear-naked choke.
Belcher, I feel, still has plenty to show, and UFC 159 will provide his first step back to the top of the middleweight division.
Costa Philippou has a wish for his next opponent, and he is not interested in making a small-fry request.The 33-year-old boxer from Long Island, N.Y., is ready for the big time, and he anxiously eyes a bout with British middleweight superstar Michael “…
Costa Philippou has a wish for his next opponent, and he is not interested in making a small-fry request.
The 33-year-old boxer from Long Island, N.Y., is ready for the big time, and he anxiously eyes a bout with British middleweight superstar Michael “The Count” Bisping.
Philippoutold BJpenn.com radio he would like to fight Bisping in July, and the fight would ensure a standup battle of attrition.
Further stoking the flame, Philippou said he would take the fight in Bisping‘s home country of England. This, he said, would make the UFC’s job of marketing the fight easy and quickly fill the arena with fans.
“Being that it would be in his hometown, they wouldn’t have to try and sell the fight,” Philippou said. “The arena would be sold out in no time, all the tickets would be sold immediately. Bisping is a national hero over there and I wouldn’t mind beating him in his hometown.”
For Philippou, the bout would provide the stiffest test of his career both inside and outside of the cage.
Known for his trash talk as much as his fighting skill, Bisping is a master of getting under his opponent’s skin and hyping a fight, while Philippou generally shies away from verbal spats.
This, however, will not be a problem should the matchup come to fruition.
“I’m not the trash talking kind of guy,” admitted the 33-year-old New York state resident. “If he wants to trash talk and say things about me, I’m not that sensitive, I don’t mind. I’ll let him do his job and sell the fight. At the end of the day it will be me and him in the cage and if he says something that really gets to me then I’ll take it out on him inside the Octagon. I have too much respect for the guy, he is a great fighter. The more he keeps trash talking me the more I will keep giving him compliments! We’ll try a different approach this time, everyone keeps trash talking one another, I am going to give compliments to everybody.”
In a time where title shots and big fights are earned with the tongue more easily than with fists, shins and takedowns (you know, actual fighting stuff), Philippou made a smart move in calling out Bisping.
Even though Bisping is coming off a loss to VitorBelfort at UFC on FX 7, this matchup would be huge for Philippou, and he would definitely fall into title talks with a big win over the brash Brit.
Making this even sweeter for the Serra-Longo trained New Yorker, a fight with Bisping is very winnable.
Philippou, a former Golden Gloves boxing star, possesses vicious power and speed in his fists, and his all-around game is ever-improving under the tutelage of his coaches, Matt Serra and Ray Longo.
There is huge upside here for Philippou, and time will tell whether he gets his wish.
If he does, however, we are in for one fine standup battle between two of the sport’s finest 185-pound athletes.
Right now, I would favor Michael Bisping via unanimous decision in the fight, but anything is possible, and Philippou certainly has the ability to turn out The Count’s lights and emerge victorious.
What do you think? Who do you see winning if Philippou‘s wish is granted?
On Wednesday afternoon, the UFC released the list of medical suspensions from UFC on FX 7. Suspensions were handed down to 10 fighters by the Comissa Atletica Brasileira de MMA, a new regulatory body that will handle these affairs for Brazilian events….
On Wednesday afternoon, the UFC released the list of medical suspensions from UFC on FX 7. Suspensions were handed down to 10 fighters by the Comissa Atletica Brasileira de MMA, a new regulatory body that will handle these affairs for Brazilian events.
The list of suspended fighters (via MMAweekly.com) includes headliner Michael Bisping and co-main event fighter Daniel Sarafian.
Suspensions of 180 days were handed to preliminary fighters Diego Nunes, Wagner Prado and C.J. Keith, although each fighter has the ability to be cleared sooner by a physician.
The full list of suspensions is as follows:
Michael Bisping: Suspended 60 days with no contact for 45 days
Daniel Sarafian: Suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
Ben Rothwell: Suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
Thiago Tavares: Suspended 60 days with no contact for 45 days
Milton Vieira: Suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
Diego Nunes: Suspended 180 days unless cleared by a Maxillofacial Surgeon; he is also suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
Lucas Martins: Suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days
Pedro Nobre: Suspended 60 days with no contact for 45 days
Wagner Prado: Suspended 180 days unless his left knee is cleared by physician following MRI; he is also suspended 30 days with no contact for 21 days.
C.J. Keith: Suspended 180 days unless his right knee is cleared by a physician following an MRI.
It is interesting to note that not a single winner from the event was given any sort of suspension.
Preliminary card fighter Andrew Craig is the only loser from the evening who did not receive any sort of suspension. Craig went three full rounds against Ronny Markes and came up short on the judges scorecards.
UFC on FX 7 took place on January 19 at the Ibierapuera Arena in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Michael “The Count”