(Garcia upsets Kevin Aguilar to win the LFC featherweight title last December. Highlights via AXS TV.)
2013 may have been a toss up between “The Year of the Rhino,” “The Year of the California Kid,” and “The Year of the Ruthless“(?), but there was one former UFC star who perhaps had the greatest career turnaround of them all: Leonard Garcia. Sure, the back-to-back-to-back stoppage victories Garcia picked up under the Legacy FC banner pale in comparison to the high-level wins of the other candidates, but none of those guys were coming off five straight losses either.
Yes, after kicking off last year by getting kicked out of the UFC following a loss to Cody “Tags” McKenzie at UFC 159, Garcia signed with Legacy Fighting Championships and proceeded to go on a three fight tear capped off by a first round TKO over the previously undefeated Kevin Aguilar at LFC 27 that earned him the promotion’s featherweight title. While it might not be the crowning achievement of his career, at least Garcia had to earn the damn thing (*cough* Rousimar Palhares *cough*).
Any which way you look at it, Garcia had a hell of a 2013. And on March 21st, “Bad Boy” will look to keep his win streak going when he faces Bellator and KOTC veteran Shane Howell at Legacy FC 27 in what will hopefully be his first title defense. Not that we have a dog in this fight or anything.
Don’t let Howell’s mediocre 13-7 record fool you, the Oklahoman has been on an absolute tear as of late. Currently riding a six-fight win streak with five finishes and nine victories in his past ten bouts, Howell should easily make for Garcia’s toughest test since exiting the UFC. So yeah, it’s 2014 and Leonard Garcia is *defending* the title of a semi-reputable organization. Who saw that coming?
(Garcia upsets Kevin Aguilar to win the LFC featherweight title last December. Highlights via AXS TV.)
2013 may have been a toss up between “The Year of the Rhino,” “The Year of the California Kid,” and “The Year of the Ruthless“(?), but there was one former UFC star who perhaps had the greatest career turnaround of them all: Leonard Garcia. Sure, the back-to-back-to-back stoppage victories Garcia picked up under the Legacy FC banner pale in comparison to the high-level wins of the other candidates, but none of those guys were coming off five straight losses either.
Yes, after kicking off last year by getting kicked out of the UFC following a loss to Cody “Tags” McKenzie at UFC 159, Garcia signed with Legacy Fighting Championships and proceeded to go on a three fight tear capped off by a first round TKO over the previously undefeated Kevin Aguilar at LFC 27 that earned him the promotion’s featherweight title. While it might not be the crowning achievement of his career, at least Garcia had to earn the damn thing (*cough* Rousimar Palhares *cough*).
Any which way you look at it, Garcia had a hell of a 2013. And on March 21st, “Bad Boy” will look to keep his win streak going when he faces Bellator and KOTC veteran Shane Howell at Legacy FC 27 in what will hopefully be his first title defense. Not that we have a dog in this fight or anything.
Don’t let Howell’s mediocre 13-7 record fool you, the Oklahoman has been on an absolute tear as of late. Currently riding a six-fight win streak with five finishes and nine victories in his past ten bouts, Howell should easily make for Garcia’s toughest test since exiting the UFC. So yeah, it’s 2014 and Leonard Garcia is *defending* the title of a semi-reputable organization. Who saw that coming?
(AND FOR ONLY FIVE DOLLARS MORE, I WILL PERSONALLY COME TO YOUR HOME AND SCREAM AT YOUR KIDS WHILE YOU WATCH MY FIGHT ON TEVO.)
It’s hard to say what exactly inspires aging MMA fighters with the sudden desire to give the sport another go. In Aleksander Emelianenko’s case, it was money, probably to be put towards more prison-style death tattoos. In Tank Abbott’s case, it was probably because one of his crusty drinking buddies at the local VFW bet him he wouldn’t. And in UFC HOFer Ken Shamrock‘s case, it appears that his first round TKO over that chick outside a Wetzel’s Pretzels is to thank for his most recent “comeback” fight, the details of which MMAOpinion has just passed along:
UFC Hall of Famer, Ken Shamrock will be returning to MMA on July 27 to take on British MMA star Ian ‘The Machine’ Freeman under the Ultimate Cage Fighting Championship banner at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, England.
Shamrock,a UFC Superfight Champion, made his desire to fight Freeman public when he commentated on BAMMA 12. His wish has been granted after some heavy negotiation. Shamrock has been in fights with some of all time greats including Royce Gracie and Kazushi Sakuraba but it looks like even at the grand age of 49, ‘The World’s most Dangerous Man’ is not ready to call it quits. He has not fought since November 2010. His last fight in the UK saw him lose by TKO to Robert ‘Buzz’ Berry in 2008.
While we would love to bring things like Shamrock’s record over the past few years or his general mental health into the equation, we think we should hold off on our cynicism until this fight actually goes down. And honestly, when compared to what he’s been reduced to in lieu of fighting, seeing Shamrock’s brains get turned into mashed potatoes for a few thousand bucks is probably the least humiliating thing we (or he) could ask for.
(AND FOR ONLY FIVE DOLLARS MORE, I WILL PERSONALLY COME TO YOUR HOME AND SCREAM AT YOUR KIDS WHILE YOU WATCH MY FIGHT ON TEVO.)
It’s hard to say what exactly inspires aging MMA fighters with the sudden desire to give the sport another go. In Aleksander Emelianenko’s case, it was money, probably to be put towards more prison-style death tattoos. In Tank Abbott’s case, it was probably because one of his crusty drinking buddies at the local VFW bet him he wouldn’t. And in UFC HOFer Ken Shamrock‘s case, it appears that his first round TKO over that chick outside a Wetzel’s Pretzels is to thank for his most recent “comeback” fight, the details of which MMAOpinion has just passed along:
UFC Hall of Famer, Ken Shamrock will be returning to MMA on July 27 to take on British MMA star Ian ‘The Machine’ Freeman under the Ultimate Cage Fighting Championship banner at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, England.
Shamrock,a UFC Superfight Champion, made his desire to fight Freeman public when he commentated on BAMMA 12. His wish has been granted after some heavy negotiation. Shamrock has been in fights with some of all time greats including Royce Gracie and Kazushi Sakuraba but it looks like even at the grand age of 49, ‘The World’s most Dangerous Man’ is not ready to call it quits. He has not fought since November 2010. His last fight in the UK saw him lose by TKO to Robert ‘Buzz’ Berry in 2008.
While we would love to bring things like Shamrock’s record over the past few years or his general mental health into the equation, we think we should hold off on our cynicism until this fight actually goes down. And honestly, when compared to what he’s been reduced to in lieu of fighting, seeing Shamrock’s brains get turned into mashed potatoes for a few thousand bucks is probably the least humiliating thing we (or he) could ask for.
Unfortunately for “The World’s Most Dangerous Man,” he will be facing a guy on an actual win streak in Ian Freeman, the UFC veteran who is best known for his upset TKO of Frank Mir at UFC 38. Granted, Freeman hasn’t competed since 2008, so if this thing doesn’t end in the first minute or so, we are all but guaranteed fifteen solid minutes of two dudes clinching and gasping for air while the announcers attempt to remind us that they are both “legends” or “pioneers” of the sport. Should be fun.
Who are we kidding? Shamwow has only made it out of the first round once since 2002. Let’s just go ahead and dub this fight a…
When Jamie Varner returned to the UFC last month as an injury replacement against Edson Barboza at UFC 146, virtually nobody gave him a chance. (We called it “the biggest UFC squash-match of the year,” if you want to get specific.) Barboza was the undefeated wheel-kickin’ buzzsaw in the lightweight division, and Varner was just a WEC washout who had lost a decision to Dakota Cochrane the previous year. Varner admitted that Barboza was literally the only guy in the UFC he didn’t want to fight. And yet, he stormed the Brazilian golden boy, knocking him out in one round, and earning another tour of duty in the UFC. The question is, can he do it again?
It was reported yesterday that Terry Etim has withdrawn from his UFC on FOX 4 match with Joe Lauzon — yeah, yeah, that godforsaken UFC injury bug, the world is ending, etc. — and will be replaced by Varner. Inconsistent as of late, Lauzon has gone 3-3 in his last six appearances, most recently getting knocked out by Anthony Pettis in February.
When Jamie Varner returned to the UFC last month as an injury replacement against Edson Barboza at UFC 146, virtually nobody gave him a chance. (We called it “the biggest UFC squash-match of the year,” if you want to get specific.) Barboza was the undefeated wheel-kickin’ buzzsaw in the lightweight division, and Varner was just a WEC washout who had lost a decision to Dakota Cochrane the previous year. Varner admitted that Barboza was literally the only guy in the UFC he didn’t want to fight. And yet, he stormed the Brazilian golden boy, knocking him out in one round, and earning another tour of duty in the UFC. The question is, can he do it again?
It was reported yesterday that Terry Etim has withdrawn from his UFC on FOX 4 match with Joe Lauzon — yeah, yeah, that godforsaken UFC injury bug, the world is ending, etc. — and will be replaced by Varner. Inconsistent as of late, Lauzon has gone 3-3 in his last six appearances, most recently getting knocked out by Anthony Pettis in February.
In other words, the dynamic will be totally different for Varner this time. He isn’t the lamb being led to slaughter. He’ll have a tremendous amount of confidence going into the fight, and as long as he can avoid messing around on the mat too much with Lauzon, Varner could take another step toward one of the greatest career comebacks in UFC history. Your predictions, please.
