Let’s get one thing straight: Last night’s co-main event was by no means a legacy-cementing fight. The legacies of both fighters had been cemented well before last night, with both Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz being very influential in the UFC’s push towards the mainstream, being involved in unforgettable fights and holding the light-heavyweight championship. While winning the trilogy would be a nice way to cap off an otherwise lackluster rivalry, it would be nothing more than another “W” in the grand scheme of things. Especially for Tito – while Forrest is arguably worthy of a Hall of Fame induction, Tito already has been inducted.
Which perhaps explained why Tito Ortiz seemed more aggressive throughout the fight: Forrest had little to lose, Tito had nothing to lose. While the aggression of “The People’s Champion” seemed to have Forrest Griffin on the verge of defeat a few times during the fight, in the end it wasn’t enough. For the majority of the fight, Griffin managed to outstrike Ortiz en route to the unanimous decision victory.
Really, there is little more to be said for the actual fight. Two aging veterans entered the cage and performed like aging veterans. Both men looked slow, both men gassed out early, and if it weren’t for the names involved, this fight would have had zero chance of taking home the $75k Fight of the Night honors. If you want to watch the fight again, watch the fight again – if you missed it, you didn’t miss much.
Let’s get one thing straight: Last night’s co-main event was by no means a legacy-cementing fight. The legacies of both fighters had been cemented well before last night, with both Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz being very influential in the UFC’s push towards the mainstream, being involved in unforgettable fights and holding the light-heavyweight championship. While winning the trilogy would be a nice way to cap off an otherwise lackluster rivalry, it would be nothing more than another “W” in the grand scheme of things. Especially for Tito – while Forrest is arguably worthy of a Hall of Fame induction, Tito already has been inducted.
Which perhaps explained why Tito Ortiz seemed more aggressive throughout the fight: Forrest had little to lose, Tito had nothing to lose. While the aggression of “The People’s Champion” seemed to have Forrest Griffin on the verge of defeat a few times during the fight, in the end it wasn’t enough. For the majority of the fight, Griffin managed to outstrike Ortiz en route to the unanimous decision victory.
Really, there is little more to be said for the actual fight. Two aging veterans entered the cage and performed like aging veterans. Both men looked slow, both men gassed out early, and if it weren’t for the names involved, this fight would have had zero chance of taking home the $75k Fight of the Night honors. If you want to watch the fight again, watch the fight again – if you missed it, you didn’t miss much.
As for the implications of the bout: Does the victory for Forrest Griffin keep him relevant in the light-heavyweight division? Don’t be crazy – Griffin looked unmotivated and admitted to letting himself be lazy throughout the fight. Does the victory improve his chances of getting into the UFC Hall of Fame? Ask Frank Shamrock to comment on whether admission into the UFC Hall of Fame relies strictly on your record. Forrest Griffin’s Hall of Fame credentials begin with his legendary bout against Stephan Bonnar and end with his victory over Rampage Jackson for the light-heavyweight title. The fact that he jabbed and wheezed his way through three rounds against a fellow aging veteran should be treated for what it is: A footnote in his career. Even if he lost last night, I’d still be convinced that he’ll one day be in the UFC Hall of Fame.
As for his bizarre post-fight decision to walk out of the cage and head towards the locker room? I’ll leave that for you all to debate. To me, what was supposed to be a time for Tito to receive one last ovation from the fans became a collective “WTF” moment for everyone involved. Rather than continuing to focus on Griffin’s antics, let’s put the spotlight back where it belongs. Thank you for the memories, Tito. It’s a shame you went out winning only one of your last nine fights, but your legacy as one of our sport’s greatest light heavyweights had been cemented well before this.
Speaking of legacies, Cung Le certainly improved his with a hard-fought victory over the returning Patrick Cote. The decorated forty year kickboxer and former Strikeforce champion picked up his first victory in the UFC over arguably his toughest test to date. Le used his dynamic striking to outpoint Cote and pull off the upset; although when Cote was able to get inside against Le, he was able to do some damage.
While a victory in the UFC is a feather in the cap of any martial artist, it’s doubtful that Le has too much further to go from here. Aside from being forty years old, he’s also a somewhat one dimensional fighter attempting to make his way through a division with wrestlers like Jake Shields, Chael Sonnen, Chris Weidman and Mark Munoz, just to name a few. Even guys like Michael Bisping, Brian Stann and Alan Belcher are balanced enough to keep Le from the deep end of the division. This isn’t meant to take away anything from Le – it’s a reminder rather that he’s not an answer to the stalemate that has become the UFC middleweight division.
As for the rest of the fights on the main card, they happened. I wish I could say more for them than that, but honestly, there’s nothing that even can be said for them. Sorry, Maia fans, but I’m not going to act like a forty-seven second freak injury tells us anything about Demian Maia‘s attempt to rejuvenate his career by dropping to welterweight. Likewise, we’ve literally said since the booking of the fight that Mendes vs. McKenzie was a ridiculous mismatch. The fact that it ended the way it did, a thirty-second body shot KO, proved it. Also, Easton vs. Menjivar provided fans exactly what they expected: A fast paced unanimous decision that has become par for the course whenever the bantamweights are in the cage. Easton came out on top, looking good, but not great. Expect at least one more victory from Easton before he’s trusted with a title shot. Meanwhile, Menjivar drops to 24-9 in his career, and will be back to the drawing board after winning three straight in the UFC before last night.
There were other fighters at UFC 148 besides Anderson Silva, Chael Sonnen, Tito Ortiz and Forrest Griffin.One specifically was Mike Easton, who defeated Ivan Menjivar by unanimous decision.Easton is now on a three-fight win streak in the UFC and on a e…
One specifically was Mike Easton, who defeated Ivan Menjivar by unanimous decision.
Easton is now on a three-fight win streak in the UFC and on a eight-fight win streak in MMA. During that win streak, Easton has taken out some recognizable talent like John Dodson, Josh Ferguson, Ivan Menjivar and former WEC bantamweight champion, Chase Beebe.
Easton can become a contender at 135 pounds, and the Washington D.C. native is still improving.
Easton has what it takes to become a contender in the division. Easton has the striking—black belt in Taekwondo—and the necessary grappling credentials—black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu—to make a run at the belt.
So far he has impressed me in his three fights in the UFC. His first fight with Byron Bloodworth was awesome and he finished with a TKO. Bloodworth even missed weight and was still beaten by the smaller Easton.
Now Easton has tested himself against Menjivar who is a really good test for upcoming bantamweights. Beating Menjivar is no easy task.
Easton should get one more fight under his belt in the middle tier and then start getting the bigger name guys in the division.
His mixture of personality and skills help make him an easy fighter to push to the masses.
The only thing that goes against Easton that I can see being trouble long term is his size. He isn’t exactly the biggest guy, but that isn’t any reason to stop him from going far in the division. He isn’t as small as Joseph Benavidez or Demetrious Johnson, yet those two guys made title runs themselves.
Easton is getting better and will become a contender eventually in the bantamweight division proving big things can come in small packages.
Anderson Silva v Chael Sonnen In one of the most hyped fights in UFC history, middleweight champion Anderson Silva once again defended his title against Chael Sonnen. For one round, it looked like we may.
Anderson Silva v Chael Sonnen
In one of the most hyped fights in UFC history, middleweight champion Anderson Silva once again defended his title against Chael Sonnen. For one round, it looked like we may have been witnessing a replay of their first fight. Sonnen came out and immediately landed a takedown. Just like the first fight, he proceeded to land his particular brand of annoying but not very damaging ground and pound. He managed to move to mount by the end of the round but was only able to land a few shoulder strikes after moving into the dominant position. Sonnen started the second round exactly the same way. He pushed Silva against the cage and worked for the takedown. But this time Silva was able to do what he was unable to do in the first fight. He defended the takedown and managed to get separation from Sonnen. Upon separating, Silva did some showboating. With his arms by his sides, he popped Sonnen with a quick right. Sonnen countered with a left that seemed to hurt Silva just enough to make him angry. Silva pushed forward with aggression rarely seen in his UFC title run. He didn’t land anything cleanly but his forward push put Sonnen off balance. And then for a reason no one will ever understand, olympic caliber wrestler Chael Sonnen decided to throw a backyard fight club style spinning back fist that resulted in him sitting on his butt against the cage seemingly unsure of what to do. Silva wan’t unsure and threw a knee to the body of his seated opponent. He then attacked with punches. Sonnen eventually stood up. But a right hand to the chin put him back down and he would not get up again.
Silva never landed the flashy strike that I’m sure he envisioned in training but he did enough to establish that Sonnen does not belong in the same cage with him. Once again, Sonnen showed that he panics when he senses danger and instead of going through the proper progression of defensive techniques, he puts himself in a position to be finished. He was basically running away when he threw the back fist and when he hit the ground, he just sat there and waited for Silva to attack. He didn’t seem to have changed anything about his gameplan and that simply was not going to be enough to win the fight. Anderson Silva is one of the best pound for pound fighters on the planet and he doesn’t currently have a legitimate contender in his division. Alan Belcher, Michael Bisping and Brian Stann are the names currently being discussed in the title picture and none of them look like a serious threat. Hector Lombard looms in the background but he needs at least one solid UFC victory before he can be considered a serious contender. So for now, Silva remains the undisputed king of the 185 pound division. Sonnen drops back down in the rankings and I don’t see a reason for him to ever get another shot at Silva unless he absolutely cleans out every other contender in the division, which seems unlikely.
Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz
The third match in this trilogy between former light heavyweight champions proved to be the clear fight of the night as Griffin slugged his way to a hard fought decision victory over Ortiz. Ortiz managed to land a couple of takedowns in the first round but was not able to keep Griffin down or do any damage and when the fight was standing, Griffin out landed Ortiz by a wide margin. The second round started with Ortiz dropping Griffin with a right hand but after that, Griffin once again dominated the rest of the round. The third round was the only one that I scored for Ortiz as he once again dropped Griffin, this time with the left hand. From there he was able to get a takedown and control the fight for the majority of the round. Once Griffin got back to his feet, he controlled the striking just as he did in the first two rounds but it wasn’t enough to win back the round. As much as I would have loved to score this fight in favor of Ortiz, the striking statistics made it obvious that Griffin was the clear winner. Ortiz actually landed the bigger power punches but the volume of Griffin’s strikes was overwhelming and he deserved to have his hand raised.
For Ortiz, I can’t imagine a better way to leave the sport regardless of the outcome. He slugged it out with another hall of famer for three exciting rounds and went out on his sword. He never gave in to the relentless pressure and had Griffin in danger several times. This trilogy is one of the better ones in MMA history thus far with all three fights going to a decision and being relatively close. Ortiz has been a polarizing figure throughout his MMA career but last night, he gave the fans a great way to remember him.
Cung Le vs. Patrick Cote
Cung Le proved that he isn’t done yet in the UFC middleweight division with a convincing victory over Patrick Cote. Cote simply could not figure out Le’s trademark san shou style as Le battered him with kicks and punches. Cote stayed in the fight and landed several power shots of his own but was never able to put Le in danger and was unable to cope with the volume and variety of strikes coming from his opponent. The fight was close through most of the first round with both fighters landing and Cote being the aggressor. But after taking several shots, Cote started to back off and that was the recipe for his defeat. When he relented, he allowed Le to find his range and from that point on, Le controlled the fight. By the middle of the second round, he was beginning to dominate using his full arsenal of kick and punch combinations. When the third round started, the outcome of the fight was not in doubt and Le continued his assault battering Cote all around the cage. He even landed a takedown at the end of the round. Cote was game but was outclassed throughout the majority of the fight and could not find a home for his powerful right hand. For Cote, this could mean a quick exit from the UFC. He will probably get one more fight and will need to win that if he hopes to stay in the big show. For Le, this puts him back in the hunt in the middle of the 185 lb division. He will likely see another step up in competition but at age forty, he likely doesn’t have much time left to compete at the highest level. He seemed to tire late in this fight but Cote didn’t have the skill set to take advantage of it. Against higher level competition, that will likely be a bigger issue.
Demian Maia vs. Dong Hyun Kim
What could have been an entertaining fight ended in the first minute due to injury when Kim appeared to suffer a broken rib on a routine takedown by Maia. What we did learn in this fight is that Maia looked great at 170 lbs. Kim is one of the larger fighters in the division and Maia looked just as big so instead of being one of the smaller middleweights, he’ll now be one of the bigger welterweights. We also learned that Maia wasn’t just talking when he said he was going back to his jiu-jitsu routes. He wasted no time in attempting a single leg takedown and quickly transitioned to Kim’s back. He was relentless and appeared to be gaining a dominant position before Kim suffered his injury. We’ll never know how the fight would have ended had it been able to continue but Maia had the early advantage. From here, Maia will likely get to step up in competition due to his name and Kim will likely continue to tread water in the middle of the division until he gets another opportunity against a high level fighter. Ideally, a rematch would be possible. But that seems unlikely considering the timeline on Kim’s recovery and the UFC’s probable eagerness to move Maia up the welterweight ranks.
Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie
This fight was an obvious mismatch on paper and proved to be even more of a mismatch in the cage. McKenzie threw a sloppy kick to open the fight, Mendes caught it, countered with a right to the body and ended the fight. McKenzie’s run on the Ultimate Fighter based entirely on the novelty of his modified guillotine was fun but he clearly doesn’t have the technique or athleticism to seriously compete in the featherweight division. On the opposite end of that featherweight spectrum is Mendes who is still one of the best in the world at 145 lbs despite his title fight loss to Jose Aldo. Mendes should see a return to fighting against top tier competition in his next fight while McKenzie will likely spend the next year or so struggling to stay in the UFC. The unfortunate part about mismatches like this is that we don’t really learn anything about either fighter and neither fighter really has a chance to grow. But for Mendes, this at least puts another finish on his record and hopefully he can carry the momentum from such a dominating performance into his next fight.
Ivan Menjivar vs. Mike Easton
In the opening fight of the UFC 148 main card, Mike Easton and Ivan Menjivar struck their way to a close three round decision. Neither fighter ever gained a significant advantage and neither fighter was ever in any danger of being finished. The difference in the fight proved to be Easton’s relentless pressure and forward movement. Menjivar seemed to have the cleaner technique early in the fight and was able to initially avoid most of Easton’s power shots while countering with his own. But as the fight progressed, Easton’s leg kicks and body shots started to take effect and Menjivar’s movement slowed significantly compared to the first round. By the third round, Easton began to take a clear advantage and was obviously the fresher fighter. He landed several several power strikes and scored a takedown when Menjivar attempted a spinning back kick. I was surprised to see two of the judges score all three rounds for Easton as I thought the fight was closer than that. I gave Menjivar the first round and had him ahead in the second round until Easton stole it at the end. But the third was clearly in favor of Easton and he deserved the victory. He will see a step up in competition but if he wants to progress in the bantamweight division, he will need to continue to improve as both of his recent victories have been close decisions. At this point in his career, Menjivar is who he is as a fighter. He will continue to provide entertaining fights and should serve as an effective gatekeeper at 135 lbs.
Mike Easton has just emerged as a potential contender in the UFC’s bantamweight division, defeating Ivan Menjivar by unanimous decision at UFC 148. It wasn’t exactly an action-packed fight, but it is the biggest win of Easton’s career.The majority of t…
Mike Easton has just emerged as a potential contender in the UFC’s bantamweight division, defeating Ivan Menjivar by unanimous decision at UFC 148. It wasn’t exactly an action-packed fight, but it is the biggest win of Easton’s career.
The majority of the contest took place standing, with both fighters a little hesitant to engage. In particular, Menjivar spent a lot of time moving back, which resulted in both fighters missing a lot of strikes and putting up pretty underwhelming FightMetric stats.
Easton was certainly the more aggressive fighter in this one and it paid off for him, as he was able to out-point Menjivar en route to a decision win.
Considering that Menjivar was recently being considered to fight Urijah Faber for the UFC Interim Bantamweight Championship—a shot that was eventually given to Renan Barao—this victory definitely puts Easton in the mix at the top of his division.
So, what’s next for Mike Easton?
Well, the top of the bantamweight division isn’t exactly budding with contenders, so there aren’t too many options.
Brad Pickett would make sense. He’s an extremely experienced fighter and a tough test for almost anyone in the bantamweight division. Pickett is also a talented grappler, so he would be good to test for Easton’s ground game.
Eddie Wineland is another viable option. Like Pickett, he is an experienced fighter with solid grappling.
If Easton is lucky, he may be matched with Michael Mcdonald, who is one of the hottest prospects in the sport today. McDonald is ranked quite a bit higher than Easton, but currently he doesn’t have a fight booked, so it is possible.
Andrew Barr is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and a stand-up comedian. Check him out on Twitter @AndrewBarr8.
Mike Easton beat Ivan Menjivar by unanimous decision at UFC 148 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev., improving his impressive record to 13-1.It was a solid performance from Easton, who will certainly move up the bantamweight rankings after win…
Mike Easton beat Ivan Menjivar by unanimous decision at UFC 148 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev., improving his impressive record to 13-1.
It was a solid performance from Easton, who will certainly move up the bantamweight rankings after winning his eighth consecutive fight. Fight Matrix had him ranked 50th among all bantamweights coming into Saturday, but with his UFC record now standing at 3-0, he is guaranteed to leapfrog some of the fighters ahead of him.
As the former Ultimate Warrior Challenge bantamweight champion, everyone knew the 28-year-old Easton was talented. Now that he’s showcasing his skills on the biggest stage in mixed martial arts, it’s only a matter of time before he becomes one of the more well-known fighters in the division.
Easton specializes in striking, as you would expect from his black belt in Taekwondo. He’s far from a one-dimensional fighter, though, as his black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu makes him a dangerous grappler. He’s also got solid wrestling and takedown defense skills.
Easton moved one step closer to a title shot with the win, and although he’s still a few fights away from getting a chance at Dominick Cruz’s bantamweight belt, he should be happy with his current standing within the UFC.
If he can string together a couple more victories, he will be in prime position to snatch the title.
Meanwhile, the veteran Menjivar dropped to 24-9 (3-1 in UFC) with the loss. At just 30 years old, he still has plenty of good fights left in him. Unfortunately, this loss derails his quest for the bantamweight crown.
Dong Hyun Kim (-155) vs. Demien Maia (+135) Ryan Poli: Despite a poor performance in his last fight, I’m picking Demian Maia to win. Stun Gun is at his best on the ground, which I.
Dong Hyun Kim (-155) vs. Demien Maia (+135)
Ryan Poli: Despite a poor performance in his last fight, I’m picking Demian Maia to win. Stun Gun is at his best on the ground, which I feel plays right in to Maia’s hand. Plus as long as Maia can showcase his improved stand up (like he did against Mark Munoz), he will also have the advantage on the feet. I disagree with the odds. It may be because of his last fight, but I still disagree. Winner: Maia
John Rivera: This fight can go one of two ways: Kim, uses a moderate kickboxing advantage and solid judo skills to keep the fight upright for a unanimous decision victory…. OR…Demian Maia submits the motherf*cker with his insane jiu-jitsu skills inside of round one. Even though I want the badass Brazilian to win via flying omaplata to reverse spinning heel hook, I got Kim with the decision this time. Winner: Kim
Alan Wells: I expect DHK to take a decision victory here. This will probably be another mediocre striking match right in line with Maia’s recent fights and Kim has the slight advantage in the striking. At -155, this is the first fight that feels worth a bet. Winner: Kim
MMAFix Staff Pick: Kim (2-1)
Chad Mendes (-640) vs. Cody McKenzie (+470)
Ryan Poli: Chad Mendes is too strong and too skilled for McKenzie. His only chance to win is with his signature guillotine choke which Mendes can easily avoid. Winner: Mendes
John Rivera: I got Chad Mendes via boring decision victory. Mendes is a good enough wrestler to keep McKenzie on his back for most of the fight but the latter is good enough on the ground to avoid any submissions from the Team Alpha Male product. As sick as he is with the guillotine (Dude has 12 submission victories all by guillotine) I don’t see McKenzie tapping out the NCAA All-American Wrestler. Winner: Mendes
Alan Wells: This fight is a joke. The only reason to bet here is to either take a flyer on McKenzie because of the ridiculous odds or to use Mendes as a parlay to get better odds on either Silva or Griffin. Parlaying is normally a sucker bet but I really can’t imagine Mendes losing this fight. Winner: Mendes
MMAFix Staff Pick: Mendes (3-0)
Ivan Menjivar (+105) vs. Mike Easton (-125)
Ryan Poli: I think Menjivar is overrated. He is extremely talented, but his last few fights have been against lower ranked competition that gave him a great deal of trouble and put him in some bad positions where I feel if Mike Easton had the same position, he would be able to put Menjivar away. Mike Easton brings it every fight and will get the TKO over Menjivar. Winner: Easton
John Rivera: We are in for a treat. First of all Menjivar fought GSP when he debuted at 170lbs—the guy is a monster, especially when you consider this fight is at bantamweight. Second, Mike Easton is a Lloyd Irvin black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu who PREFERS to fight standing up. I have no idea what is going to happen. Mike Easton is on a tear, killing guys left and right with very dangerous muay thai, but this is definitely a step up in competition. The UFC is testing Easton with this matchup. They want to see if he can make the leap from rising prospect to legitimate contender. A fourth victory against a high profile fighter such as Menjivar could sign Easton’s ticket to the title show. I think he will rise to the occasion for a very close split decision victory. Winner: Easton
Alan Wells: This is the closest fight of the night. It started as a pick ‘em but the line has now moved slightly in favor of Easton. I consider this a stay away for betting purposes because it’s too close. But if I have to pick a winner, I’m going with Easton. I’d love to pick Menjivar because I’ve been a fan of his game for a long time but I think Easton will be a bit too strong for him. Winner: Easton
MMAFix Staff Pick: Easton (3-0)
There were other fighters at 
