Tag: Mike Pierce

CagePotato Superlatives: UFC 162 Edition


(“I said, I DON’T DANCE!” / Photo by Esther Lin for MMAFighting.com)

By Alex Giardini

We know — these things are just popularity contests. But as we look ahead following this weekend’s mind-blowing UFC 162 card, we decided to take a yearbook approach and predict which fighters will go on to even greater success, and which ones will be pumping our gas someday.

Most likely to make well over $24,000 to show in his next fight: Chris Weidman

Perhaps this is jab towards the fighter pay issues that have risen as of late but Chris Weidman established himself as a future star, no matter how differently the fight would have been had Anderson Silva taken it seriously. Yes, Weidman officially made just $48,000, but by dethroning Anderson Silva, he earned a lot more than just money — Weidman became world famous overnight ending up on sites like TMZ and every major newspaper in the country, and he was the man responsible for one of the most historic moments in UFC history. Weidman’s ability to have a similar legacy in the middleweight division is now in question, especially when you consider that an immediate rematch with Silva is still the most likely scenario. Say what you will about Weidman and the fact that eighteen fighters were not enough to convince you otherwise — he knocked out Anderson Silva. That’s all you need to know.

Least predictable future: Anderson Silva

Rematch…retirement….Roy Jones….Stephan Bonnar II…who knows what the future really has in store for the former middleweight kingpin? And with the reiteration that his participation in superfights is off, it becomes more bleak. It really all depends on how Silva would like to go out: On his shield, or dancing the night away worse than J-Lo. Without discrediting Weidman, it was not what we expected or wanted from the supposed best fighter who has ever lived. When some unknown jackass gets KO’d while taunting his opponent, we applaud and move on with our lives, but let’s face it, the best fighters in the world usually don’t put themselves in such vulnerable positions. However it’s impossible to say that it was not a deserving loss for Silva and we’ve never seen him do that before; you live by the gun, you die by the gun.


(“I said, I DON’T DANCE!” / Photo by Esther Lin for MMAFighting.com)

By Alex Giardini

We know — these things are just popularity contests. But as we look ahead following this weekend’s mind-blowing UFC 162 card, we decided to take a yearbook approach and predict which fighters will go on to even greater success, and which ones will be pumping our gas someday.

Most likely to make well over $24,000 to show in his next fight: Chris Weidman

Perhaps this is jab towards the fighter pay issues that have risen as of late but Chris Weidman established himself as a future star, no matter how differently the fight would have been had Anderson Silva taken it seriously. Yes, Weidman officially made just $48,000, but by dethroning Anderson Silva, he earned a lot more than just money — Weidman became world famous overnight ending up on sites like TMZ and every major newspaper in the country, and he was the man responsible for one of the most historic moments in UFC history. Weidman’s ability to have a similar legacy in the middleweight division is now in question, especially when you consider that an immediate rematch with Silva is still the most likely scenario. Say what you will about Weidman and the fact that eighteen fighters were not enough to convince you otherwise — he knocked out Anderson Silva. That’s all you need to know.

Least predictable future: Anderson Silva

Rematch…retirement….Roy Jones….Stephan Bonnar II…who knows what the future really has in store for the former middleweight kingpin? And with the reiteration that his participation in superfights is off, it becomes more bleak. It really all depends on how Silva would like to go out: On his shield, or dancing the night away worse than J-Lo. Without discrediting Weidman, it was not what we expected or wanted from the supposed best fighter who has ever lived. When some unknown jackass gets KO’d while taunting his opponent, we applaud and move on with our lives, but let’s face it, the best fighters in the world usually don’t put themselves in such vulnerable positions. However it’s impossible to say that it was not a deserving loss for Silva and we’ve never seen him do that before; you live by the gun, you die by the gun.

Most likely to be allowed to date your sister: Frankie Edgar

Not only does he have the best entrance music this side of Big Nog, there is never a dull moment when the real Jersey Shore darling fights and quite frankly (no pun intended… or pun intended, thank you) we all wish we could fight our battles like he does. This was the first time in eight fights that Edgar did not compete for the title, and he still won Fight of the Night honors. Edgar will never be in a boring fight considering his fighting style and his ability to match his opponent’s pace; his cardio suggests he could have probably won fights against light-heavyweights in PRIDE with their opening ten minute round. Frankie becomes bloodied more frequently than Dustin Rhodes in the early ’90s no matter how lopsided or even his fights are. With the marketability of a prime Stallone and the heart of a prime Jake Lamotta, Edgar could skip the waiting line and get another crack at the featherweight title — and some of us wouldn’t have a problem with it.

Least likely to get another co-main event slot (even if he deserves one): Charles Oliveira

When this fight was announced, to say Oliveira was not being fed to the wolves was like saying you knew this guy wasn’t dead all along. Oliveira did more than just keep up with Edgar the whole fight — he had him in a bit of a knot at the end of the first round and tagged the former champion more than once with some solid shots. At the tender age of 23, it’s unclear what Oliveira’s future has in store, and if he is the budding prospect he is advertised to be (even if we get the feeling that everyone in the UFC is a “prospect” until they turn 32) or if he will be lost in the shuffle. Edgar’s star power to the habitual fan helped this fight get a co-main event slot but this was not the mismatch many, including this scribbler, thought it was going to be. Oliveira stand-up has improved drastically and we all know his submission game is gross in a good way. He should definitely be included in headlining plans again, even if it seems far away for now.

Least likely to be acknowledged while continuing to do his job efficiently: Mike Pierce

Mike Pierce isn’t going to be the annoying Spring Break emcee you would love to drown any time soon, but he doesn’t really get credited for even being at the festivities. The tough-as-nails wrestler has only lost three since 2009 (Fitch, Hendricks and Koscheck – all fellow wrestlers, all highly regarded) and that last one was debatable. Pierce’s four-fight win streak includes two stoppages by strikes, but Pierce can’t find a way out of the prelims. What is even odder is that Pierce opened the show on Facebook underneath a guy he beat in his last fight: Seth Baczynski. Maybe the brass thinks he isn’t exciting enough but with all due respect, we could name about fifty fighters we’d rather never see again and instead, watch a vintage Spike TV: Mike Pierce marathon. Come on, it’s main card time.

Most likely to be signed by Bellator, then lose in the opening round of their next heavyweight tournament: Dave Herman

We figured that coming out in a pink scarf at a press conference would have immediately cemented Dave Herman’s demise in Zuffa, but somehow, “Pee Wee” was able to survive two years of consistent failure during his UFC stint. After winning his first fight against Jon Olav-Einemo in June 2011, Herman failed a pre-fight drug test for marijuana, got his ass kicked by Stefan Struve, got his ass kicked by Roy Nelson, got his ass kicked by Big Nog, then failed a post-fight drug test for marijuana. Herman getting another fight at UFC 162 was an undeserved gift — not that he did much with it. Following his 17-second smashing at the hands of Gabriel Gonzaga, it’s safe to say the number two, three, four or whatever-they-call-themselves promotion in the world could easily secure the services of Herman, if they want to roll the dice on an underperforming pothead. And don’t act like Bellator is above that sort of thing, either. (See: Q. Jackson, W. Machine).

Most likely to *actually* “get some fans” after being advised to by Greg Jackson: Cub Swanson

Finally, there is a fighter in Greg Jackson’s stable we can finally relate to. Swanson’s revival in the featherweight division could be the most impressive career-comeback currently happening in all seven divisions. He’s on a five-fight win streak with wins over Dustin Poirier, Ross Pearson and George Roop, and his lone Octagon loss was nearly two years ago at the hands of Ricardo Lamas (another future title-threat at 145 pounds). Although he may have to do a little extra to get a rematch with Aldo for fan-convincing purposes, Swanson’s exciting striking game and pure fighting spirit is something slobs like us dream of when we’re on our 34th chicken wing.

And Now He’s (Sorta) Fired: Aaron Simpson Not Offered New UFC Contract, Already Booked for WSOF 2


(No, I’m watching *you* Jack Byrnes.) 

In a relatively surprising turn of events, 11-fight UFC veteran Aaron Simpson — whose contract expired with the promotion following his second round KO loss to Mike Pierce at UFC on FX 5 — has not been offered a new contract and has subsequently left the UFC.

The two-time All American out of Arizona announced his drop to the welterweight division in April of 2012 following a 6-3 run at middleweight and was expected to face Jon Fitch at UFC 149. Fitch was forced to bow out with a knee injury shortly thereafter and Simpson was eventually paired up with Kenny Robertson at UFC on FUEL 4, a fight he ended up winning by way of unanimous decision. In his next fight, Simpson squared off against the aforementioned perennial welterweight contender in Pierce. After dropping Pierce in the first round, Simpson would unfortunately find himself KO’d for the first time in his career* following a beautifully placed counter right hand on Pierce’s part early in the second.

But it’s not all bad news for Simpson, who has already signed a four fight deal with upstart promotion World Series of Fighting according to Ariel Helwani. And in an ironic twist of fates, Simpson will find himself competing at the promotion’s upcoming second event scheduled for March 23rd. “A-Train” will be stepping in against fellow UFC veteran Josh Burkman, who was expected to face undefeated prospect Ryan LaFlare at the event before LaFlare jumped ship to join the UFC.

Out with the old, in with the new.

*Yes, I recall that Simpson was TKO’d by Chris Leben at the TUF 11 Finale. But that was basically the Kalib Starnes of TKO’s. 

–J. Jones


(No, I’m watching *you* Jack Byrnes.) 

In a relatively surprising turn of events, 11-fight UFC veteran Aaron Simpson — whose contract expired with the promotion following his second round KO loss to Mike Pierce at UFC on FX 5 – has not been offered a new contract and has subsequently left the UFC.

The two-time All American out of Arizona announced his drop to the welterweight division in April of 2012 following a 6-3 run at middleweight and was expected to face Jon Fitch at UFC 149. Fitch was forced to bow out with a knee injury shortly thereafter and Simpson was eventually paired up with Kenny Robertson at UFC on FUEL 4, a fight he ended up winning by way of unanimous decision. In his next fight, Simpson squared off against the aforementioned perennial welterweight contender in Pierce. After dropping Pierce in the first round, Simpson would unfortunately find himself KO’d for the first time in his career* following a beautifully placed counter right hand on Pierce’s part early in the second.

But it’s not all bad news for Simpson, who has already signed a four fight deal with upstart promotion World Series of Fighting according to Ariel Helwani. And in an ironic twist of fates, Simpson will find himself competing at the promotion’s upcoming second event scheduled for March 23rd. “A-Train” will be stepping in against fellow UFC veteran Josh Burkman, who was expected to face undefeated prospect Ryan LaFlare at the event before LaFlare jumped ship to join the UFC.

Out with the old, in with the new.

*Yes, I recall that Simpson was TKO’d by Chris Leben at the TUF 11 Finale. But that was basically the Kalib Starnes of TKO’s. 

–J. Jones

Mike Pierce: "Nick Diaz is Entertaining Like Honey Boo Boo"

What does Nick Diaz, Jersey Shore and Honey Boo Boo all have in common?They are all entertaining train wrecks, according to Mike Pierce.The UFC welterweight was a guest on “The Joe Show” on Thursday, where he was asked to give his thoughts on Diaz as a…

What does Nick Diaz, Jersey Shore and Honey Boo Boo all have in common?

They are all entertaining train wrecks, according to Mike Pierce.

The UFC welterweight was a guest on “The Joe Show” on Thursday, where he was asked to give his thoughts on Diaz as a possible future opponent.

“Oh, I thought he was going up to 185 to get his ass beat,” said Pierce.

After serving out his suspension for a failed drug test, Diaz is already preparing for his UFC return in early 2013. The rumor mill is already buzzing about Josh Koscheck as a potential opponent.

Pierce and Koscheck have never really seen eye to eye.

The two engaged in a multitude of heated verbal exchanges leading up to their big fight at UFC 143, where Koscheck won a controversial split decision.

Despite his feud with Koscheck, Pierce says he will cheer him on against Diaz.

“If that happens, it happens, great, I’ll be rooting for Josh Koscheck I guess. I’m not in love with either of the guys, but Koscheck is a guy I’ve already fought once, and he’s definitely a good fighter and everything. I wouldn’t take that away from him. Maybe it’s just the way I see Nick interact with the media. I look at him and shake my head like, ‘What the hell?'”

Diaz is a fighter through and through, and he really doesn’t like being bothered with interviews and press conferences.

At UFC 137, he had his welterweight title shot against Georges St-Pierre revoked after missing several flights and failing to show up at two scheduled press conferences. He then released a video apologizing for failing to show up at the “beauty pageant.”

To Pierce, Diaz’s antics are like one big reality TV show.

“I guess that’s part of the fun with him is the way he responds to certain things, and the antics that he pulls in the Octagon. It’s entertaining like the Jersey Shore is entertaining or Honey Boo Boo is entertaining. It’s a freaking train wreck, yeah, of course it’s going to get ratings and everything and people are going to talk about it, but it’s not my preference, to be honest. I’m still rooting for Josh Koscheck, if that fight happens.”

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Injury Replacement Roundup: Maguire in Against Riddle, Pierce in Against Baczynski, + More


(Pierce celebrates after successfully thwarting Mario’s plans with a well-timed barrel.) 

We here at CagePotato have literally taken every possible step in order to rid the MMA world of the great injury curse of 2012: we’ve prayed (lol!), we’ve had our cleaning lady Concepcion rid the office of evil spirits, we’ve resorted to Pagan rituals involving pentagrams, we’ve even had Rex track down “thisredengine” and sacrifice his virginal body to the Gods. And after all that fell flat, we tried to go Freddy Kruger on the curse and simply stop talking about it in the hopes that it would eventually just leave us be and move on to some other, less important sport. Like women’s ______.

But alas, our efforts were a complete failure. In the past few days, at least four fighters have come down with a case of the injury bug, leading to some small yet noticeable changes in several of the UFC’s upcoming cards. And we wonder why even Canadian fans are cautious to buy a ticket these days. (Author’s note: You see, Dana? THIS is what happens when you read from the Necronomicon. Side effects include nausea, meniere’s disease, Saturday night palsy, and possessed hand.) 

We shall begin today’s trip down injury lane with Kyle Noke…


(Pierce celebrates after successfully thwarting Mario’s plans with a well-timed barrel.) 

We here at CagePotato have literally taken every possible step in order to rid the MMA world of the great injury curse of 2012: we’ve prayed (lol!), we’ve had our cleaning lady Concepcion rid the office of evil spirits, we’ve resorted to Pagan rituals involving pentagrams, we’ve even had Rex track down “thisredengine” and sacrifice his virginal body to the Gods. And after all that fell flat, we tried to go Freddy Kruger on the curse and simply stop talking about it in the hopes that it would eventually just leave us be and move on to some other, less important sport. Like women’s ______.

But alas, our efforts were a complete failure. In the past few days, at least four fighters have come down with a case of the injury bug, leading to some small yet noticeable changes in several of the UFC’s upcoming cards. And we wonder why even Canadian fans are cautious to buy a ticket these days. (Author’s note: You see, Dana? THIS is what happens when you read from the Necronomicon. Side effects include nausea, meniere’s disease, Saturday night palsy, and possessed hand.) 

We shall begin today’s trip down injury lane with Kyle Noke, who is coming off a first round blistering of Charlie Brenneman at UFC 152 that, although a little premature in its stoppage, led to “The Spaniard’s” current place in the Zuffa unemployment soup line. Noke was scheduled to face streaking Polish powerhouse Seth Baczynski at UFC on FX 6, but withdrew earlier this week. He has been replaced by Mike Pierce, who is on the heels of a come-from-behind KO of Aaron Simpson at UFC on FX 5. Baczynski is coming off a skull-shattering knockout win of his own against Simeon Thoreson at UFC 152, so expect fireworks here.

Next up, we have a welterweight matchup that features neither of its original participants, as everyone’s favorite stoner, Matt Riddle, and “butter-toothed Brit” John Maguire have stepped in to replace Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson and Besam Yousef, respectively, at UFC 154. Due to his positive test for marijuana, Riddle’s previous UFC 149 submission victory over Chris Clements was recently changed to a no-contest, moving his record to 1-2 1 NC in his past four fights. You could argue that Maguire is in an even worse position, however, despite the fact that he has only lost one of his three UFC bouts. That loss came to fellow Brit John Hathaway at UFC on FUEL 5 in the worst possible fashion: a dreadfully boring three round affair that was forgotten about before the judges could declare a winner. I blame the general politeness of the British for that one.

And in bantamweight injury news, TUF 14 runner-up T.J Dillashaw has been replaced in his upcoming UFC on FOX 5 bout against Mike Easton by fellow castmate Bryan Caraway. The Canadian has scored two straight rear-naked choke victories in the UFC since getting the tar beat out of him by Diego Brandao on the reality show, while Easton is coming off his third consecutive octagon victory over Ivan Menjivar at UFC 148. It’s an incredibly tough fight for “Kid Lightning,” but something tells us that the Caraway household could use the money right about now.

–J. Jones

UFC 153: 5 Fights for Erick Silva to Take Next

Despite looking like an overwhelmed rookie opposite Jon Fitch at UFC 153, talented welterweight prospect Erick Silva still possesses a bright future in the UFC.He was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time.In the end, the defeat could very well he…

Despite looking like an overwhelmed rookie opposite Jon Fitch at UFC 153, talented welterweight prospect Erick Silva still possesses a bright future in the UFC.

He was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time.

In the end, the defeat could very well help the Brazilian mature as a fighter, like Georges St-Pierre’s loss to Matt Hughes at UFC 50 did for him.

With that said, assuming Silva can quickly regroup and fix his mistakes, here are five fights he should take on next.

Begin Slideshow

Armchair Matchmaker: ‘UFC on FX: Browne vs. Bigfoot’ Edition


(Having recently established himself as the alpha male, the Bigfoot eagerly races off into the jungles of Brazil to copulate with the herd’s last remaining female.)

We may be a few days removed from UFC on FX 5, but that doesn’t mean that the future has already been determined for the night’s biggest winners. Joe Silva and Sean Shelby may be the best in the biz, but even they could probably use a bit of matchmaking advice — or at least a backup plan– considering that half of the fights they book in the aftermath of this event will be cancelled due to injury, arrest, or a classic case of bitch wife. This is where the Armchair Matchmaker comes in, for what are sports without over analysis, needless speculation, and a headscratching appearance from Liam Neeson? By the end of this article, you will have witnessed at least one of these.

Here we go.

Antonio Silva: You might chalk this up to laziness, but pairing the rebounding “Bigfoot” against Stefan Struve seems like an awesome idea to us. We know Stefan called out Fabricio Werdum following his big win over Stipe Miocic at UFC on FUEL 5, but we think this matchup makes just as much sense, if not more. Both men have recently reestablished themselves at legitimate threats and Werdum 2.0 (you know, the one that can do this to people on the feet) seems like he would put on a clinic against either man. It would be a stretch to declare that either Struve or Silva are exactly title-worthy material yet, so let these two big men slug it out and give the winner a top contender. It’s a classic battle of Chin vs. Lankiness — Jay Leno vs. Conan O’Brien in an MMA ring, if you will — and would surely deliver an exciting finish inside the distance.


(Having recently established himself as the alpha male, the Bigfoot eagerly races off into the jungles of Brazil to copulate with the herd’s last remaining female.)

We may be a few days removed from UFC on FX 5, but that doesn’t mean that the future has already been determined for the night’s biggest winners. Joe Silva and Sean Shelby may be the best in the biz, but even they could probably use a bit of matchmaking advice — or at least a backup plan– considering that half of the fights they book in the aftermath of this event will be cancelled due to injury, arrest, or a classic case of bitch wife. This is where the Armchair Matchmaker comes in, for what are sports without over analysis, needless speculation, and a headscratching appearance from Liam Neeson? By the end of this article, you will have witnessed at least one of these.

Here we go.

Antonio Silva: You might chalk this up to laziness, but pairing the rebounding “Bigfoot” against Stefan Struve seems like an awesome idea to us. We know Stefan called out Fabricio Werdum following his big win over Stipe Miocic at UFC on FUEL 5, but we think this matchup makes just as much sense, if not more. Both men have recently reestablished themselves at legitimate threats and Werdum 2.0 (you know, the one that can do this to people on the feet) seems like he would put on a clinic against either man. It would be a stretch to declare that either Struve or Silva are exactly title-worthy material yet, so let these two big men slug it out and give the winner a top contender. It’s a classic battle of Chin vs. Lankiness – Jay Leno vs. Conan O’Brien in an MMA ring, if you will — and would surely deliver an exciting finish inside the distance.

Jake Ellenberger: He may have come away with a victory over a legit fighter in Jay Hieron on Friday, but Ellenberger’s performance was easily one of the most disappointing in recent memory, which is saying something considering he was just TKO’d in his last fight. Ellenberger seemed far too content to throw haymakers with the hope of a flash KO and never really went out of his way to try and obtain a finish, so there’d be no better way to light a fire under him for his next fight than to pair him with perennial trash-talking contender Josh Koscheck. Kos is coming off a close loss to Johnny Hendricks, who he ranked just above “Ingleburger” in a previous interview and would love the opportunity to prove all of us retarded, fighter-ranking assholes wrong anyway.

John Dodson: Although Dodson earned the right to fight newly-crowned flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson with his impressive second round knockout of Jussier Formiga, we’d rather see Dodson take on the drunken asshole that couldn’t keep quiet on Friday in a no holds-barred street fight to the death. If Dodson wins, we can never complain about another flyweight fight again. If he loses, we pack him and as many flyweights as humanely possible into an undersized car and let the hijinks ensue.

Justin Edwards: Edwards is four fights into his UFC career, yet we still don’t really know what to make of the guy. His 45-second victory over Neer was both impressive and unexpected, but again, it didn’t tell us much about him other than the fact that he has a nasty arm-in guillotine. Simply put, we need to see more of Edwards, and a fight that would show us a lot about the guy would be against a Dan Miller type fighter. Not only does Miller also possess one of the nastiest guillotines in the division — which he used to score his last victory — but he is a well rounded, middle-of-the-pack guy who would be the perfect litmus test for Edwards. Miller was expected to face Sean Pierson at UFC 152, but pulled out when he received word that his son Danny Jr. would be undergoing a much needed kidney transplant. Now that Danny Jr. appears to be in the clear for the time being, we imagine Dan could use some more help paying the bills, and a win over Edwards would be a solid step in the right direction.

Michael Johnson: The TUF 12 product was able to overcome some early difficulty against Danny Castillo (thanks in part to a slight mental error by “Last Call”) in the first round and scored the most vicious knockout of his career in the second. Now finding himself on a three fight win streak, Johnson could use a slight step up in competition to see if he can overcome adversity again. A clash against the ever-improving Matt Wiman would make sense. Wiman recently scored a huge upset over Paul Sass at UFC on FUEL 5, and like Johnson, could use another big victory to keep his name in circulation.

Mike Pierce: It was almost eerie how similar Pierce’s and Johnson’s performances were last Friday. Both men were rocked in the first round, only to release the Kraken (I TOLD YOU!) and deliver a spine-shattering knockout early in the second. Considering how terrible Pierce looked in his victory over Carlos Eduardo Rocha his last trip out, he has to be feeling like a boss right now and rightfully so. Pierce is now 7-3 in his UFC career, with all of his losses coming to title challengers, so why not toss him another former title challenger? After falling to a third round come from behind submission at the hands of Martin Kampmann, Thiago Alves was supposed to fight Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 149, but blah blah blah injury curse, so pairing him against Pierce seems like a pretty smart move to effectively destroy any hope one of these men has at a title shot (or another in Alves’ case).

Are there any matchups that you’d rather see, Potato Nation?

–J. Jones