(Cormier spent more on Popeye’s delivery that night than Durkins made for getting his ass kicked. / Props: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports, via MMAJunkie)
Ronda Rousey ($110,000, including $55,000 win bonus and $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus)
def. Sara McMann ($16,000)
Daniel Cormier ($160,000, including $80,000 win bonus)
def. Patrick Cummins ($8,000)
Rory MacDonald ($150,000, including $50,000 win bonus and $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
def. Demian Maia ($114,000, including $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
(Cormier spent more on Popeye’s delivery that night than Durkins made for getting his ass kicked. / Props: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports, via MMAJunkie)
Ronda Rousey ($110,000, including $55,000 win bonus and $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus)
def. Sara McMann ($16,000)
Daniel Cormier ($160,000, including $80,000 win bonus)
def. Patrick Cummins ($8,000)
Rory MacDonald ($150,000, including $50,000 win bonus and $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
def. Demian Maia ($114,000, including $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
Mike Pyle ($96,000, including $48,000 win bonus)
def. T.J. Waldburger ($18,000)
Stephen Thompson ($78,000, including $14,000 win bonus and $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus)
def. Robert Whittaker ($15,000)
Alexis Davis ($30,000, including $15,000 win bonus)
def. Jessica Eye ($8,000)
Raphael Assunção ($56,000, including $28,000 win bonus)
def. Pedro Muhnoz ($8,000)
Erik Koch ($30,000, including $15,000 win bonus)
def. Rafaello Oliveira ($14,000)
Ernest Chavez ($16,000, including $8,000 win bonus)
def. Yosdenis Cedeno ($8,000)
Not sure if underpaid or overpaid: Let’s be real, Patrick Cummins could have been killed in there. On the other hand, would you rather take a 79-second ass-whuppin’ from Daniel Cormier, or work for 800 hours in a coffee shop making hot drinks for assholes at $10/hour? Cummins got an opportunity that most up-and-coming fighters would probably take for free, sadly.
I’d say that Cummins is “not ready for the UFC” at this point, but of course he is. At 4-1, he’s more than qualified to compete on the prelims of an international Fight Pass event, where he’d face off against another too-green prospect for the opportunity to fight on future Fight Pass cards.
That’s the best case scenario for Cummins right now, because he accepted an invite to the big show too soon. In the UFC, you’re either a fighter the promotion wants to develop, or the meat that gets fed to them. Maybe two or three years from now Patrick Cummins could have been a prospect that the UFC was actually interested in. Instead, he chose to be the meat, after being fooled by one of the biggest lies in the MMA promoter’s handbook: Anything can happen in this sport.
Round-by-round results from the UFC 170 main card will be after the jump beginning at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and shoot us your own thoughts in the comments section.
Round-by-round results from the UFC 170 main card will be after the jump beginning at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and shoot us your own thoughts in the comments section.
Preliminary Card Results
– Alexis Davis def. Jessica Eye via split-decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)
– Raphael Assuncao def. Pedro Munhoz via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)
– Aljamain Sterling def. Cody Gibson via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
– Zach Makovsky def. Josh Sampo via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)
– Erik Koch def. Rafaello Oliveira via TKO, 1:24 of round 1
– Ernest Chavez def. Yosdenis Cedeno via split-decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
Robert Whittaker vs. Stephen Thompson
Naturally, Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson comes out to “Wonderboy” by Tenacious D. Whittaker shows love to Australia by walking out to AC/DC’s “Hells Bells.”
Round 1: Thompson opens with a side kick. Whittaker sticks the jab. Whittaker throws a high kick. Thompson marches forward with punches, then lands a leg kick. Body kick then a leg kick from Thompson. He tries an outside axe kick that scores him style points if nothing else. Great head movement and counters from Thompson. Truly, he is the white Machida. A hook kick from Thompson lands. Whittaker pops the jab. Thompson drops Whittaker with a dead-on right straight, then swarms as Whittaker tries to get to his feet. Thompson clinches, fires in some knees, and clubs Whittaker down to the mat again. Thompson with a frenzy of ground and pound until Mario Yamasaki calls a stop to it. Impressive, violent finish from Wonderboy. Stephen Thompson def. Robert Whittaker via TKO, 3:43 of round 1.
Mike Pyle vs. TJ Waldburger
And now Waldburger is coming out to “TNT” by AC/DC. What the hell. He’s not even Australian. And Mike Pyle is rocking the mullet tonight. Waldburger is already dead.
Round 1: Waldburger lands first with a leg kick. Pyle lands a kick but almost eats a big overhand left in return. Pyle fires a pair of leg kicks. They trade leg kicks. Pyle dashed forward with punches. Pyle grabs a clinch and Waldburger pushes him against the fence. Pyle escapes with ease. Waldburger slips while throwing a kick and Pyle chases him when he gets up but can’t capitalize. Waldburger lands a right, then a left, then a leg kick. Pyle tries a front kick to the body, Waldburger grabs him, Pyle sweeps him to the mat and gets on top. Then, Pyle transitions into side control. Very slick work by Pyle tonight. But then Waldburger powers up to his feet and escapes. They clinch against the fence. Knees to the body then to the head from Pyle. Waldburger throws a pair of knees to Pyle’s leg as the round expires. 10-9 Pyle.
Round 2: Uh…I think my dog just erased everything I wrote for this round when he ran across my laptop. WTF. Short version: It was a much closer frame…Waldburger may have had a slight edge in the striking total, but Pyle had some good grappling moments and bloodied Waldburger’s face with knees.
Round 3: Hard right hand from Pyle and he smells blood. They clinch, Pyle shoulder-checks im in the face then lands a hard left hook. And then a spinning back elbow. Pyle is on fire. He lands two nasty elbows in the clinch then fires punches until Waldburger stumbles to the mat. Pyle almost gets a guillotine but Waldburger pulls out. Pyle bears the ever-loving fuck out of Waldburger with punches and elbows from the top. Joe Rogan asks Herb Dean why he’s not stopping the fight. This beating…it just keeps going. Okay, now Herb stopped the fight. Mike Pyle def. TJ Waldburger via TKO, 4:03 of round 3.
Rory MacDonald vs. Demian Maia
Round 1: They meet in the center of the cage and trade haymakers. Demian Maia shoots once, MacDonald defends. He tries it again and single-legs MacDonald to the mat. Maia trying to pass guard. He throws down an elbow. And boom, Maia scores mount. Maia softening MacDonald up with punches to the head and body. MacDonald tries to shrimp out and almost does it. Maia in half-guard now. MacDonald uses double-butterfly guard, trying to prevent the mount again. MacDonald kicks him off and gets up. Maia shoots and Rory defends. The two fighters start brawling and Maia lands the harder shots. MacDonald is bloodied. The round ends, and it’s an easy 10-9 for Maia.
Round 2: Maia landing some serious power punches, but MacDonald comes back with a series of head kicks that have Maia hurt. Maia shoots and fails. McDonald with a hard body kick and Maia shoots in desperation. MacDonald is having a lot of success with his kicks right now, which are landing at all levels. MacDonald lands a head kick as Maia is shooting in. MacDonald has Maia rocked with punches and kicks. MacDonald using his range really well, landing long jabs and straights. Overhand left from Maia, kicks to the body and leg from MacDonald. MacDonald with a kick to the body, a kick to the head. He tries a superman punch. MacDonald measure up Maia and stings him with a cross. He lands another body kick as the round ends. That round was all MacDonald, 10-9. We’re even heading into round 3, but Rory has the momentum.
Round 3: MacDonald with more long punches. Maia lands a left straight. MacDonald with more kicks to the body and head. MacDonald with another clean right hand. Maia shoots, unsuccessfully once again. MacDonald punches him in the face for it. MacDonald thoroughly outboxing Maia. Maia shoots for a single. Then he grabs both legs and slams MacDonald to the mat. Maia on top, MacDonald pushes him off and scrambles away. MacDonald fends off another takedown attempt. And another. MacDonald with a body punch before stuffing another takedown. MacDonald with a front kick to the body. MacDonald stuffs a takedown and makes Maia pay, landing a nice uppercut. MacDonald with jabs and another big uppercut. And a right straight. MacDonald stuffs one last takedown before the bell. Pretty clear 10-9 for Rory as far as I’m concerned. After a couple of back-to-back stinkers, that was a fantastic performance from Rory MacDonald. Hey look, all the judges got it right! Rory MacDonald def. Demian Maia via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3). “The animal is back,” MacDonald says. “I’m ready to kick some ass, I’m ready to kill…I want that belt.”
Ladies and gentlemen, we have now entered the “squash match” portion of the evening…
Daniel Cormier vs. Patrick Cummins
Round 1: Cormier takes the center of the cage. Cummins lands a sharp leg kick. He shoots, Cormier defends. Cummins with a nice body kick. Cormier lands a hard uppercut. Some hockey-fighting from the clinch. Cummins literally turns his back and runs away. Cormier follows him and throws bombs. An uppercut from Cormier glances off the side of Cummins’s head, and Cummins hits the mat. Cormier starts throwing down bombs. Cummins rolls and turtles. More big, nasty shots from Cormier and it’s all over. Cummins tries to get to his feet. He looks disappointed with the stoppage, but come on bro, you were gonna get killed out there. Daniel Cormier def. Patrick Cummins via TKO, 1:19 of round 1.
Ronda Rousey vs. Sara McMann
Round 1: Rousey storms to the center of the Octagon, and McMann lands multiple punches to Ronda’s dome as she’s coming in. They clinch against the fence and Rousey lands a hard knee to the body and a sharp elbow. They trade knees. Rousey lands another knee to the liver and McMann drops to the mat and covers up. Herb Dean steps in…just as McMann grabs a leg and tries to recover. The crowd boos the stoppage as premature. But what are you gonna do, McMann dropped like a corpse. Ronda Rousey def. Sara McMann via TKO, 1:06 of round 1. So that’s what it looks like to see Ronda win by something other than an armbar…interesting.
Well damn, the main card is over in two hours, and it doesn’t look like they’re going to replay any of the prelims. Are Goldberg and Rogan going to have to kill time for a full hour? I want no part of this. Good night, all.
Tonight’s UFC 170 card poses a lot of intriguing questions: Is Ronda Rousey‘s striking *really* “the best in the game?” Can a last second injury in your co-main event be used as a legal justification for homicide? What is a Yosdenis Cedeno, exactly?
Here to “intelligently” “debate” at least one of those questions are CagePotato staff writers Jared Jones and Seth Falvo, so join them after the jump to get the inside scoop on all things UFC 170-related.
So what happens if Sara McMann actually wins on Saturday night?
JJ: Simple: Dana White dissolves the women’s bantamweight division, cancels TUF 20, and bans any MMA outlet that dares question his decision. MWAHAHAHAHA!!
Seriously though, there is no scenario in which a Rousey loss doesn’t equal an immediate rematch. I don’t care if McMann takes Rousey down in the first 5 seconds, annihilates her with ground-n-pound and then armbars her, we are getting an immediate rematch. This whole “WMMA in the UFC” thing all hinges on Rousey being the champ, right? Because I’m pretty sure that Dana White has been completely transparent about that fact since Day 1.
Tonight’s UFC 170 card poses a lot of intriguing questions: Is Ronda Rousey‘s striking *really* “the best in the game?” Can a last second injury in your co-main event be used as a legal justification for homicide? What is a Yosdenis Cedeno, exactly?
Here to “intelligently” “debate” at least one of those questions are CagePotato staff writers Jared Jones and Seth Falvo, so join them after the jump to get the inside scoop on all things UFC 170-related.
So what happens if Sara McMann actually wins on Saturday night?
JJ: Simple: Dana White dissolves the women’s bantamweight division, cancels TUF 20, and bans any MMA outlet that dares question his decision. MWAHAHAHAHA!!
Seriously though, there is no scenario in which a Rousey loss doesn’t equal an immediate rematch. I don’t care if McMann takes Rousey down in the first 5 seconds, annihilates her with ground-n-pound and then armbars her, we are getting an immediate rematch. This whole “WMMA in the UFC” thing all hinges on Rousey being the champ, right? Because I’m pretty sure that Dana White has been completely transparent about that fact since Day 1.
SF: If McMann wins, we’re getting three things: A rematch, an extremely exaggerated (if not completely fabricated) story about the personal demons that Ronda Rousey was fighting before UFC 170, and we’re all getting blamed for them in some way, shape or form. The rematch will serve as the co-main event of UFC 173: Weidman vs. Belfort, which will get moved to Brazil for some reason. Hey, it’ll be a strange UFC if McMann wins, I says.
SF: You know what, I’m going to take the extremely unpopular stance and say that yes, it is. On paper, it’s a squash match between the number one contender and some random guy from Twitter, yes, but aren’t those fights usually fun? Of course they are. Besides, no matter who wins this fight, the UFC can still continue their whole “XX is the future of the division!” campaign, right? That’s a lot more than we would have been able to say if Cormier vs. Sonnen was booked…
JJ: I’ll give you that Cormier vs. Cummins is a better fight than Cormier vs. Sonnen, but the best we could ask for? Nah, son.
While I loved the idea of giving Cummins a shot at his “Rocky” moment when the fight was first announced – the unpredictability of MMA, after all, is one of the most intriguing aspects of the sport – I also fell back on the idea that there were plenty of unbooked, proven UFC fighters who had a lot more to offer Cormier than a story about that time they made him cry in training camp. In short, I agreed with Ben Askren’s take on the situation and felt weird inside because of it.
Upon looking over the UFC’s current list of light heavyweight fighters, however, I found that nearly everyone in the division either has a fight booked already, are coming off a loss (or multiple losses), are injured or retired, or just signed with the promotion. In fact, there is literally one guy who doesn’t fit into any of the above categories: Rafael Cavalcante. The former Strikeforce champion just steamrolled Igor Pokrajac at Fight Night 32, isn’t injured, and would make for a much more compelling reason to drop $50 on a PPV than some fabricated grudge match between an Olympian and a barista.
I give all the respect in the world to Cummins for accepting the fight, but have you even *seen* any of his fights? Dude is going to be ground into dog food inside of 3 minutes.
You have $20, and you need some horrific gambling advice. Go!
JJ: As one of our readers pointed out in the Gambling Enabler, a ten dollar bet on a McMann – Cummins – Maia parlay nets you over $1000 ($1,639 to be exact). I’ll double down on that bet and make a cool…uh…$4000.
SF: Maybe I’m just old-fashioned, but I prefer my terrible gambling advice to come from a real hack journalist, and not just some random guy from the comments section. Now then, if you’re looking for some horrific advice, then I’d suggest a Rousey/Cormier parlay. You’ll start sweating bullets if either fight makes it past the first minute, and your twenty dollars will only return a whopping $5.71 in profit from BetUS.com. Talk about not being worth the (almost non-existent) risk.
Now, if your idea of horrific gambling advice involved asking me for genuine advice as a way to mock me, then know that I decided to parlay my grad school alma mater UL-Lafayette’s men’s basketball team covering the spread against Troy (which they did) with Rory MacDonald defeating Demian Maia. I will use my winnings to put a picture of me holding my thumbs up on the trunks of a Hip Show competitor, “Ravishing” Rick Rude style.
Take your best guess as to what the PPV numbers for UFC 170 will look like.
JJ: Without launching into the same discussion about oversaturation, quantity over quality and “garbage-asses” that we’ve all had a thousand times, I will say that UFC 170 is a “tough sell” to both casual and hardcore MMA fans. While the UFC of days past would have taken the best matchups from Fight Night 36 (mainly, Machida vs. Mousasi) and UFC 170 and combined them into one stacked card actually worthy of my purchase, we are living in the era of “World Fucking Domination,” which this weekend will equate to less than 300,000 PPV buys. Ronda Rousey may be the quote unquote “ biggest star the UFC has ever had,” but UFC 170 will offer evidence to the contrary.
Seriously though, how great would it be if UFC 170 had Lyoto Machida, Gegard Mousasi, and Jacare Souza to support it? Maybe then the UFC wouldn’t have to shop for fighters at the Starbucks drive-thru to justify charging us $50 for a garbage-ass (sorry, I had to) pay-per-view. One can only dream…(*gazes out window and tosses back whiskey*)
SF: So, remember when “I predict a card with a title fight and three Olympians will draw less than 500k buys” would have actually sounded stupid? And not in a “Well no shit, dumbass” sort of way, but in a “You must be high out of your damn mind” way? Oh man, those were the days when…hang on… (*swings open front door and yells at hoodlums skateboarding on MY sidewalk*)
If only to keep this column from being us agreeing with each other while occasionally hi-fiving, I’ll say that this card draws more than 300k buys. But not more than 350k buys, because what sort of contrarian asshole do you think I am?
SF: Maia had this locked up the second I bet money on MacDonald, because I am not allowed to have nice things.
JJ: Although Maia has looked outstanding at welterweight, save his most recent fight with Shields, I gotta go with the “future of the welterweight division” in this one. We (the “MMA media”) have been riding MacDonald’s jock ever since he entered the UFC, and the pressure on “Ares” to finally achieve his potential is more intense than ever. Against a high-profile fighter and former middleweight title challenger like Maia, methinks MacDonald is going to show the flashes of brilliance he did against Condit and Penn and remind us all why he’s still an elite member of the division with plenty of years ahead of him. Rory might not send Maia into a full-on tailspin in the opening frame like Nate Marquardt did, but he’ll get the job done.
Make one wild prediction for the UFC 170 undercard.
JJ: All 6 fights go to decision, and all but 2 of them are completely forgotten about as soon as the judges scores are announced. I know, it’s not exactly a “wild” prediction given the past couple events, but when more people on the undercard *don’t* have a Wikipedia page than those who do, you can probably expect more of the same sloppy sparring matches we’ve been treated to in recent weeks.
SF: We’re talking about the undercard now? Take it away, Green Bastard…
My wild prediction is that someone might actually disagree with me. Someone who isn’t related to either fighter. Wild, huh?
Let us all gather round, hold hands, and pray. Pray that this weekend’s UFC 170 manages to rise above the level of the decision-filled snoozefests that were UFC 169 and Fight Night 36. Of course, with a main event featuring Ronda Rousey, whose “kill ratio” is 100% (as Don Frye would put it if he gave two shits about this fight), and a co-main event featuring the biggest squash match of the year (so far), it looks like UFC 170 will rise to the level of those 10 decision events at the very minimum. I’m guessing that sound I just heard was all of you reaching into your wallets for $50.
Regardless of whether or not UFC 170 is able to deliver from an action standpoint, it has plenty of opportunities to deliver from a gambler’s standpoint, so join us after the jump for some sexy gambling lines (courtesy of BestFightOdds) and even sexier advice. You know, because women.
Makovsky is a perfect 3-0 since dropping down to flyweight and looked outstanding in his upset victory of Scott Jorgensen in his UFC debut at UFC on Fox 9. Sampo is looking to extend his 5 fight winning streak after an equally impressive debut RNC submission win over Ryan Benoit at the TUF 18 finale. The +105 prop that he wins via decision is a nice plus money option, as “Fun Size” should be able to use his NCAA division 1 wrestling to nullify Sampo’s submission threat on the ground while getting the better of the exchanges in the stand up department. Makovsky makes the parlay at a bargain -165 to win outright.
Let us all gather round, hold hands, and pray. Pray that this weekend’s UFC 170 manages to rise above the level of the decision-filled snoozefests that were UFC 169 and Fight Night 36. Of course, with a main event featuring Ronda Rousey, whose “kill ratio” is 100% (as Don Frye would put it if he gave two shits about this fight), and a co-main event featuring the biggest squash match of the year (so far), it looks like UFC 170 will rise to the level of those 10 decision events at the very minimum. I’m guessing that sound I just heard was all of you reaching into your wallets for $50.
Regardless of whether or not UFC 170 is able to deliver from an action standpoint, it has plenty of opportunities to deliver from a gambler’s standpoint, so join us after the jump for some sexy gambling lines (courtesy of BestFightOdds) and even sexier advice. You know, because women.
Makovsky is a perfect 3-0 since dropping down to flyweight and looked outstanding in his upset victory of Scott Jorgensen in his UFC debut at UFC on Fox 9. Sampo is looking to extend his 5 fight winning streak after an equally impressive debut RNC submission win over Ryan Benoit at the TUF 18 finale. The +105 prop that he wins via decision is a nice plus money option, as “Fun Size” should be able to use his NCAA division 1 wrestling to nullify Sampo’s submission threat on the ground while getting the better of the exchanges in the stand up department. Makovsky makes the parlay at a bargain -165 to win outright.
The only thing more controversial than Eye’s decision win over Kaufman was the consequential fall out and NC ruling from the TDLR a few weeks ago. Hopefully, Jessica will not be overly affected by the recent controversy that has surrounded her, but it may be a small difference maker in a razor sharp fight that will be close and most likely decided by the judge’s cards. +170 for Alexis Davis to win by decision is a solid risk if you believe that Eye will be good enough not to be submitted, but not good enough to control where this fight takes place.
Aljamain Sterling (-240) vs. Cody Gibson (+200)
With a perfect 8-0 record, Serra Longo Fight Team submission specialist Aljamain Sterling is a +215 prop to beat Cody Gibson inside the distance. Sterling has won his last three fights via RNC while 2 of Gibson’s 3 career losses have come via submission. If he cannot keep this fight standing, that’s easy money.
“Quicksand” is a 2 to 1 favorite to avoid the submission game of T.J. Walburger, who comes in as the +160 underdog. All signs point towards Pyle being the right favorite; prior to his 30 second sparring session gone wrong with Matt Brown at UFN 26, he was riding a four fight win streak and the last time he lost by submission was close to five years ago. With 3 of his 4 UFC wins coming via submission, T.J. Waldburger has found success when he hits the mat with his opponent, something Pyle will most likely participate in here. With the likelihood this fight goes to the ground, Waldburger is fighting where he is strongest while Pyle plays with fire and hopes not to get burned. Pyle if you must, but probably a better idea to skip and simply enjoy this one.
Stephen is the better striker on paper and Whittaker prefers to stand with his opponents in the cage. Thompson should be able to land first from and begin to find his range as the fight progresses. Whittaker may eventually have to work at taking “Wonderboy” down if the first round does not go well on the feet, which may lead to Thompson creating distance and fighting off his back foot on the way to the scorecards. Thompson to win.
Not sure that anyone is running to the window to lay -280 on Rory MacDonald to beat Demian Maia given the 2013 that he had. Rory has the tools to best Maia on the feet, but Demian will surely be looking to take this fight down to the ground right away. This leads to the question of whether or not Rory can get back to his feet or whether or not he will look like Jon Fitch did against Maia. Rory may opt to use the jab he found success with against strong grapplers to keep Maia at bay and outpoint the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ace until a window opens for him to end the fight (if the window presents itself…cough.. Jake Ellenberger) or simply ride out another decision victory. Rory to win.
-1300 means there is no point trying to make much profit off picking Cormier to win against the 4-0 short notice replacement Patrick Cummins here. Did Cummins really school Cormier in wrestling practice so bad that it led Daniel to break down in tears? Or is Cummins attempting to get inside Cormier’s head in hopes of pulling off the upset of the year this Saturday night? Well we know for sure that Pat…sorry… Patrick has upset Cormier, but from the looks of it, this may work against him once the cage door closes. Cormier to win via hulk smash is not available but highly likely nonetheless. Cormier to win.
The line suggests otherwise, but this fight has to be the closest fight on the cards based on the pedigree of both fighters alone. McMann is a silver medalist in wrestling, Rousey a bronze medalist in Judo, and both are undefeated thus far in their respective careers. Ronda has given up her back to far lesser a grappler than McMann, but always ends up in the same position by the end of the fight, forcing the tap from by applying her signature armbar submission. McMann, on the other hand, has either finished her opponent on the ground or given the audience a 15 minute wrestling clinic by controlling her opponent en route to a decision victory.
While many expect to see Ronda Rousey’s striking game to be put on display, it can be argued that under the bright lights and with the gold on the line, these ladies will want to go with what brought them to the dance. The fight boils down to what happens when McMann initiates the first takedown and whether or not Ronda counters effectively with one of those beautifully timed/executed Judo throws which finds her on top of McMann in control on the ground. The possibilities when these two hit the mat are endless and this contest will offer the highest caliber grappling the UFC audience has ever seen. Rousey to win.
Parlay 1
Makovsky-Koch
Parlay 2
Sterling-Assuncao
Props
Makovsky +105 to win by decision
Davis +170 to win by decision
Sterling +215 to win inside the distance
Coincidentally enough, we’ll start with his next opponent…
10.) Injury Replacement Daniel Cormier Wins the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix. (Photo Courtesy of Getty Images.)
The Details: Replaced Alistair Overeem against Antonio Silva at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov (09/10/2011). Why He Makes the Top Ten: It’s hard to believe that just under three years ago, Daniel Cormier such an unknown prospect that sportsbooks didn’t even bother creating odds for him to win the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix, despite creating odds for Ray Sefo and Valentijn “Othereem” Overeem; a $20 bet on Cormier “FIELD” to win the tournament would have netted you $1,000. But when Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem injured his toe/realized fighting in the tournament was pointless and pulled out of his scheduled bout against Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, Cormier handled Silva so effortlessly that it was impossible not to take note. Cormier would go on to defeat Josh Barnett for the tournament title, and the rest is history. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: While Cormier may not have been high on our radars at the time, it’s hard to call an Olympic wrestler an “unknown prospect.”
On a somewhat related note…
(He wore his own shirt in hopes of getting MMA fans to learn his name. Instead, they all asked him if he’s a cameraman for the new Danny Trejo movie.)
Coincidentally enough, we’ll start with his next opponent…
10.) Injury Replacement Daniel Cormier Wins the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix. (Photo Courtesy of Getty Images.)
The Details: Replaced Alistair Overeem against Antonio Silva at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov (09/10/2011). Why He Makes the Top Ten: It’s hard to believe that just under three years ago, Daniel Cormier such an unknown prospect that sportsbooks didn’t even bother creating odds for him to win the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix, despite creating odds for Ray Sefo and Valentijn “Othereem” Overeem; a $20 bet on Cormier “FIELD” to win the tournament would have netted you $1,000. But when Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem injured his toe/realized fighting in the tournament was pointless and pulled out of his scheduled bout against Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, Cormier handled Silva so effortlessly that it was impossible not to take note. Cormier would go on to defeat Josh Barnett for the tournament title, and the rest is history. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: While Cormier may not have been high on our radars at the time, it’s hard to call an Olympic wrestler an “unknown prospect.”
On a somewhat related note…
9.) Injury Replacement Steve Jennum Wins UFC 3.
The Details: Replaced Ken Shamrock against Harold Howard in the finals of UFC 3 (09/09/1994). Why He Makes the Top Ten: Well, did you buy UFC 3 to watch a police officer who dabbled in ninjutsu? Of course not. You bought that card to watch Royce Gracie take on Ken Shamrock, which made things sort-of disappointing when Royce Gracie forfeited from exhaustion to crazy person Harold Howard and Ken Shamrock was unable to continue fighting in the tournament after his victory over Felix Lee Mitchell. What we ended up with was Jennum quickly submitting Howard, winning the tournament before most fans watching could even be bothered learning his name. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: Because at this point in UFC history, pretty much everyone other than Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie was a random unknown (okay, slight exaggeration, but you get the idea…).
8.) Stephan Bonnar Saves UFC 153 by Getting Damn-Near Murdered by Anderson Silva.
The Details: Replaced Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar as the Main Event of UFC 153 (10/13/2012). Why This Makes the Top Ten: With The Injury Curse of 2012 in full effect, the UFC saw this show’s main event shift from Aldo vs. Koch to Aldo vs. Edgar to The First Two Healthy Bodies We Can Find, Hopefully At Least One of Which Brazilian. What the UFC ended up getting was then-indestructible middleweight champion Anderson Silva taking on The Ultimate Fighter star Stephan Bonnar at light-heavyweight. The short-notice bout felt like the recipe for a memorable freak show fight, and it certainly did not disappoint. Why This Isn’t Ranked Higher: As random as matching these two guys up against each other was, let’s not act like either fighter was an unknown nobody before this fight.
7.) Strikeforce Takes Zero Chances on Replacement Opponent for Bobby Lashley, Books Wes Sims to Fight at Strikeforce: Miami.
(Photo Courtesy of Sherdog)
The Details: Replaced Shane Del Rosario/Yohan Banks against Bobby Lashley at Strikeforce: Miami (01/30/2010). Why He Makes the Top Ten: Believe it or not, there once was a time when Strikeforce was an independently owned company that was actively trying to establish its own stars. One such fighter they were hoping would become a huge draw for them was former WWE superstar Bobby Lashley, who initially agreed to a bout against decorated Muay Thai fighter Shane Del Rosario at this event. Presumably as soon as Strikeforce officials realized how suicidal the match would be for Lashley, they changed their minds and set out to book a fight between Lashley and some guy named Yohan Banks. When the commission didn’t approve the bout – possibly because they asked “Who the hell is Yohan Banks?” and were met with vacant, blank stares – Strikeforce settled for none other than infamous UFC castoff Wes Sims. And if there were any doubts that Sims wouldn’t be a threat to their crossover star, they were erased when Sims showed up looking pregnant and attempted a pro-wrasslin’ test of strength at the start of the fight. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: Wes Sims may not have been the most credible opponent for Bobby Lashley, but at least he was once a somewhat-big name. He was a lot more relevant than Jimmy Ambriz – who was also being considered for the fight – ever was.
6.) The So-Very-YAMMA Pit Fighting Saga of Patrick Smith
(Photo Courtesy of Sherdog)
The Details: Injury replacement for pretty much every “Masters Division” fighter YAMMA actually wanted for YAMMA Pit Fighting 1 (04/11/2008). Why He Makes the Top Ten: It’s almost too easy to make jokes about the YAMMA Pit Fighting Senior Circuit – or “Masters Division,” as their marketing department wanted us to call it. The short version of the events is that the old-school UFC veteran was initially brought in to replace Don Frye against Oleg Taktarov, then removed from the card when he was arrested after a high-speed chase, making his participation appear doubtful. He was brought back when not only were his crimes reduced to misdemeanors, but also when his replacement, Maurice Smith, pulled out from the card. Smith fought Butterbean at the promotion’s only event, because of course he did. Butterbean, for the record, was initially set to take on Gary Goodridge. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: Because even though he hadn’t been relevant in over a decade, he was still actively competing at regional shows when YAMMA called him up to fight.
5.) Seth Petruzelli Dethrones The Baddest Man in EliteXC…*sigh* Kimbo Slice The Details: Injury replacement for Ken Shamrock against Kimbo Slice at EliteXC: Heat(10/04/2008). Why He Makes the Top Ten: Don’t act like you don’t know the story by now. Petruzelli was the semi-retired light-heavyweight who put on a few last-second pounds to save EliteXC: Heat‘s main event when Ken Shamrock pulled out on the day of the fight. Ironically enough, he pretty much sunk the company by saving this card. Although every MMA fan in the United States would learn his name after he became the Kimbo Killer, let’s not change history and act like he was a big star before the bout. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: Well, he was a TUF alumnus, so it’s not like no one had heard of him; never mind that most of those in attendance probably never heard of TUF, either.
4.) Patrick Cummins Will Fight Daniel Cormier at UFC 170 (Photo Courtesy of MMAJunkie.com)
The Details: Will replace Rashad Evans against Daniel Cormier at UFC 170 (02/22/2014). Why He Makes the Top Ten: I’m not writing that he has no chance of beating Daniel Cormier, but on paper he sure as hell doesn’t. The 4-0 prospect has two weeks to prepare for one of the top fighters in the UFC, and the only reason anyone is giving him a chance is because of a high school drama-esque story about Cummins making Daniel Cormier cry when they trained together. This bout is essentially a slightly more legitimate version of Shamrock vs Lober II on paper; let’s see how it actually plays out. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: Because who knows, Cummins might actually win…
3.) Pro-Wrestler Sean O’Haire Steps in to Fight Butterbean #PRIDENEVERDIE
The Details: Replacement for Mark Hunt against Butterbean at PRIDE 32: The Real Deal(10/21/2006). Why He Makes the Top Ten: The craziest aspect of this bout isn’t the fact that PRIDE replaced one of their top heavyweights with a professional wrestler; that was pretty much par for the course with them. No, the strangest part about this fight was that Mark Hunt was pulled from the card when the NSAC deemed that he held an “unfair mat advantage” over Butterbean. I guess if you consider attempting a leg drop in an MMA fight a “mat advantage,” then yeah, O’Haire actually did have a chance of winning this new, “more competitive” fight. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: Because Sean O’Haire was actually 2-1 in MMA at the time, so it’s not like he was completely inexperienced when he was called in to replace Mark Hunt. Also, because if you expected anything different from PRIDE, you clearly weren’t a fan.
2.) Fred Ettish: The Excellence of Being Executed
The Details: Injury replacement who stepped in for Ken Shamrock to fight Johnny Rhodes at UFC 2 (03/11/1994). Why He Makes the Top Ten: What happens when a point fighter actually gets into a real fight? Something so tragic that it immediately becomes the stuff of legends, apparently. You have to feel bad for Ettish, who was there to essentially play Burt Watson before being called into action against an opponent with actual fighting experience. And the rest, as they say, is history. Why He Isn’t Ranked Higher: Two Reasons: Number one, because if he looked unprepared, it’s because everyone was unprepared for what they were getting into in those days, because mixed martial arts was so new that the very term “mixed martial arts” wasn’t even coined yet. And number two, because the UFC was still very much an infomercial for Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, so it’s not like matchmakers were looking for fighters who could actually beat King Royce.
1.) Ilir Latifi: The Only Man To Ever Headline a UFC Card Who Still Doesn’t Have a Wikipedia Page.
The Details: Injury replacement for Alexander Gustafsson against Gegard Mousasi at UFC on Fuel TV 9(04/06/2013). Why He Makes the Top Ten: When the guy who just signed you to a contract couldn’t be bothered with learning how to actually spell your name, you know that hopes aren’t exactly high for you. Latifi was a training partner of the injured Alexander Gustafsson, and presumably because every UFC light-heavyweight realized how suicidal accepting a short-notice bout against a Top Ten fighter would be for their careers – and also because Martin “Poker Face” Wojcik already made plans for that day, I imagine – the UFC signed Ilir Latifi to save the event. To his credit, Latifi managed to shed twenty-six pounds in three days in order to make weight for the fight. Too bad for him, though, was that the fight itself was completely forgettable, and he drifted back into obscurity immediately after it was over. Why He Is Number One: Name one other person in UFC history to headline a fight card who doesn’t even have his own Wikipedia page. Go ahead, I’ll wait.
Do you have an even more random replacement opponent in mind? You know you’re dying to share it in the comments section.
