(If anyone can explain what is going on in this photo, we’ll give you Carmen Valentina’s digits.)
After Edson Barboza’s spinning heel kick KO over Terry Etim gave birth to the phrase “falling tree” knockout here on CP, we got to thinking, what other classifications of devastation existed in the MMA highlight-o-sphere? Debates got heated, egos got crushed, and limbs got mangled, but we were eventually able to agree that the next category of KO’s in need of appreciation was that of the “lawn chair.”
What is a “lawn chair” knockout, you ask? Well, it’s that special kind of knockout, perhaps the complete opposite of a “falling tree,” in which the victim’s legs give out from underneath them almost instantaneously after the lethal blow is delivered, often forcing their body to collapse into itself like that of a common lawn chair. And to add insult to injury, the poor son of a bitch often receives an unnecessary strike courtesy of his own knee on the way down. Here are nine of the finest examples, in no particular order.
Chuck Liddell v. Guy Mezger
Ricardo Lamas v. Bendy Casimir
Check out seven more beautiful examples of this phenomena after the jump.
(If anyone can explain what is going on in this photo, we’ll give you Carmen Valentina’s digits.)
After Edson Barboza’s spinning heel kick KO over Terry Etim gave birth to the phrase “falling tree” knockout here on CP, we got to thinking, what other classifications of devastation existed in the MMA highlight-o-sphere? Debates got heated, egos got crushed, and limbs got mangled, but we were eventually able to agree that the next category of KO’s in need of appreciation was that of the “lawn chair.”
What is a “lawn chair” knockout, you ask? Well, it’s that special kind of knockout, perhaps the complete opposite of a “falling tree,” in which the victim’s legs give out from underneath them almost instantaneously after the lethal blow is delivered, often forcing their body to collapse into itself like that of a common lawn chair. And to add insult to injury, the poor son of a bitch often receives an unnecessary strike courtesy of his own knee on the way down. Here are nine of the finest examples, in no particular order.
(DON’T MOVE ROB! There is the biggest hornet on your nose right now!)
A battle between undefeated heavyweights Stipe Miocic and Philip De Fries has recently been booked for the UFC’s upcoming debut on FUELTV, which transpires February 15th at the CenturyLink and Cornmeal Center in Omaha, Nebraska.
After starting off his professional career with five straight (T)KO victories, all coming within the first two rounds, Croatian-born Stipe Miocic scored a second round leglock submission over Bobby Brents to earn himself a call from the UFC. In his debut, Miocic would handle tough veteran Joey Beltran with a deft combination of leg kicks and takedowns en route to a unanimous decision victory. Though his choice to sport the same checkerboard trunks as the legendary Mirko Cro Cop would earn him the ire of many keyboard warriors across the nation, a win over De Fries, specifically a head kick KO, would certainly give him some breathing room. De Fries, on the other hand, had finished all of his opponents (excluding a No Contest against Dave Wilson) via submission before making his UFC debut, where he scored his own unanimous decision win over Rob Broughton at UFC 138.
(DON’T MOVE ROB! There is the biggest hornet on your nose right now!)
A battle between undefeated heavyweights Stipe Miocic and Philip De Fries has recently been booked for the UFC’s upcoming debut on FUELTV, which transpires February 15th at the CenturyLink and Cornmeal Center in Omaha, Nebraska.
After starting off his professional career with five straight (T)KO victories, all coming within the first two rounds, Croatian-born Stipe Miocic scored a second round leglock submission over Bobby Brents to earn himself a call from the UFC. In his debut, Miocic would handle tough veteran Joey Beltran with a deft combination of leg kicks and takedowns en route to a unanimous decision victory. Though his choice to sport the same checkerboard trunks as the legendary Mirko Cro Cop would earn him the ire of many keyboard warriors across the nation, a win over De Fries, specifically a head kick KO, would certainly give him some breathing room. De Fries, on the other hand, had finished all of his opponents (excluding a No Contest against Dave Wilson) via submission before making his UFC debut, where he scored his own unanimous decision win over Rob Broughton at UFC 138.
After original opponent Eric Koch was forced to withdraw from their bout citing an unknown injury, featherweight wrecking machine Dustin Poirier was in need of an opponent to continue the four fight win streak he had built up starting back at WEC 52, which had included brilliant wins over Pablo Garza and Josh Grispi. It has been reported that fellow UFC on FOX victor Ricardo Lamas has stepped up to the challenge and will meet Poirier at UFC 143, which goes down February 4th from the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and features an interim welterweight championship bout between Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit.
Lamas has built up a two fight streak of his own in his time under the Zuffa banner, following up a head kick TKO over Matt Grice with the aforementioned UFC on FOX win over Cub Swanson via second round arm triangle.
Filed under: UFC, UFC on FOXTwo years ago, in the hours after UFC 103 in Dallas, I spoke to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira about one of the night’s big stars. Deep in the bowels of the American Airlines Center, the longtime MMA veteran had the look of a prou…
Two years ago, in the hours after UFC 103 in Dallas, I spoke to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira about one of the night’s big stars. Deep in the bowels of the American Airlines Center, the longtime MMA veteran had the look of a proud father of his face. That was the night when his student Junior dos Santos officially joined the “in the mix” category that signifies contention status.
That was also the night that Nogueira made a prediction that would come true.
“He’s going to be a future champ for sure,” he told me at the time. “Without a doubt. He’s strong, fast, athletic. He has good wrestling, good ground game. He’s a complete fighter.”
dos Santos’ march through the UFC has been incredibly impressive to watch. In eight UFC fights, he’s unbeaten and has yet to lose even a single round among the 14 rounds he’s fought. That’s far short of the record (33) held by Georges St-Pierre, but with his well-rounded game, the 27-year-old Brazilian’s performances have shown no signs of slowing.
Since this column is designed as a look forward for the recent event’s participants, and we already know that dos Santos will take on the winner of December’s Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem fight, it’s fair game to project how he’d do against either.
Given dos Santos’ proven success in stopping takedowns, the Lesnar fight would likely be a more favorable matchup for him. He’s stopped 85 percent of takedowns, according to FightMetric, and Lesnar does not have the comfort level or arsenal to match him in a striking contest.
Overeem would be a more intriguing style matchup. As one of the most decorated strikers in MMA, he might be the only heavyweight with the firepower to bang with dos Santos.
Prediction: Overeem handles Lesnar’s wrestling and keeps things upright long enough to win, setting up a strikers’ delight against dos Santos
Cain Velasquez
It was a rough night for Velasquez, who never got his motor started before the ref was calling a halt to the action. He also faced post-fight criticism from UFC president Dana White regarding his game plan, but it’s never wise for a fighter to move in for a takedown without a setup. Velasquez likely felt he had five rounds to implement what he wanted, so there was no reason to rush. But apparently there was. It seems that he brought injuries into the fight that deserve some time to heal. Velasquez deserves the time to address his injuries and come back strong, maybe in the summer of 2012.
Prediction: Velasquez faces Shane Carwin in the summertime.
Ben Henderson
dos Santos vs. the Overeem-Lesnar winner wasn’t the only guaranteed fight we got out of UFC on FOX. We also learned that Ben Henderson would get a chance to face Frankie Edgar for the lightweight title in February.
Henderson’s improvement has been rapid since joining the UFC, as he’s learned how to seamlessly combine striking/wrestling transitions. That will be a great skill to bring in against Edgar, who has spent his last four fights competing against fighters who became quite reliant on throwing their hands. Henderson mixes up his game in a way that will make him a tougher matchup for Edgar than either BJ Penn or Gray Maynard, and that’s saying a lot.
Clay Guida
UFC’s Energizer bunny fought a spirited bout, responding from some early trouble to give Henderson a real fight, but saw his wildness exploited by Henderson’s technique. Guida remains a very popular fighter so there’s definitely still space for him on an upcoming main card against a relevant opponent.
Dustin Poirier
Since losing his Zuffa debut while in the WEC in August 2010, Poirier has turned heads with four straight wins. The featherweight captured his third straight bout since moving over to the UFC, defeating the tough Pablo Garza with a D’arce choke submission. At 22 years old, Poirier is one of those talents you hope the UFC moves up in a careful manner, matching him up with fighters of similar experience level. That leads me to this …
Ricardo Lamas
Since moving to featherweight, Lamas has won both of his fights, and finished his opponents in both fights. Lamas is 11-2 and Poirier is 11-1. You know where I’m going with this, don’t you?
Prediction: Poirier faces Lamas
Kid Yamamoto
Yamamoto was soundly out-grappled by Darren Uyenoyama in a three-round decision loss that marked a fourth loss in his last five fights. While Yamamoto was once one of the top lower-weight fighters in MMA, it appears that time has passed. In the past, his wrestling would have been enough to keep the fight upright where he enjoyed a sizable striking advantage, but he never came close to implementing that type of game plan against Uyenoyama. The only question now is whether Yamamoto gets cut, or gets one more chance.
Prediction: Yamamoto gets kept around, and faces an organizational newcomer at UFC 144 in Japan
Alex Caceres
In his first two UFC fights, Caceres looked out of his depth in the organization, getting outclassed in a pair of submission losses. After dropping to bantamweight, he looked recharged and refreshed, outworking Cole Escovedo in a strong decision win. The victory gives Caceres new life on a career that seemed like it could be destined to head back to the indies.
It’s not everyday that we’re treated to “the biggest fight in the history of the sport”, and even rarer that a single gif covers the pre-fight warm up, the bout, the post-fight celebration, and the after party at Ghost Bar. That calls for a GIF party. Though the sole focus of last night’s UFC on FOX event yielded precious little in terms of motion-picture awesomeness, the fighters relegated to the dark corners of social media came through in spades.
Join us after the jump for an incredible collection of throws, slams, submissions, knock outs, spinning everythings, and even some good old fashioned mid-fight showboating.
It’s not everyday that we’re treated to “the biggest fight in the history of the sport”, and even rarer that a single gif covers the pre-fight warm up, the bout, the post-fight celebration, and the after party at Ghost Bar. That calls for a GIF party. Though the sole focus of last night’s UFC on FOX event yielded precious little in terms of motion-picture awesomeness, the fighters relegated to the dark corners of social media came through in spades.
Join us after the jump for an incredible collection of throws, slams, submissions, knock outs, spinning everythings, and even some good old fashioned mid-fight showboating.
In the weeks leading up to last night’s Heavyweight Championship bout, Dana White trumpeted that “whether this fight goes 30 seconds or 30 minutes, this is going to be a fight right here.” It was a fight, and it was slightly longer than 30 seconds, but in the post fight analysis Dana appeared frustrated and was searching for a reason that his champion went down so quickly. With all of the buildup and hype, I can’t help but think that first time viewers were equally confused and found the whole affair to be anticlimactic. Were that all the action we got to see last night, we’d probably be disappointed as well, but thank god for Facebook.
With regards to the main event, there’s not a lot to say, really. Junior Dos Santos hits hard. Cain’s game plan has been under attack, but it’s not like he got butchered on his feet for two rounds while doggedly refusing to shoot for a single. Velasquez got nailed with a huge overhand right just 55 seconds into the bout after already trying unsuccessfully for a takedown. Obviously, getting Dos Santos off of his feet quickly would have been Cain’s best option, but for a versatile heavyweight fighting under the brightest lights ever shone on a UFC fighter, shooting in for a Couture-Toney ankle pick with the opening bell still ringing wouldn’t do. Props to Dos Santos for getting it done quickly and violently in the Knock Out of the Night. It wasn’t the most epic fight that the UFC and FOX could have hoped for, but it was a memorable one. That Dos Santos did it with a torn meniscus is all the more impressive.
In the weeks leading up to last night’s Heavyweight Championship bout, Dana White trumpeted that “whether this fight goes 30 seconds or 30 minutes, this is going to be a fight right here.” It was a fight, and it was slightly longer than 30 seconds, but in the post fight analysis Dana appeared frustrated and was searching for a reason that his champion went down so quickly. With all of the buildup and hype, I can’t help but think that first time viewers were equally confused and found the whole affair to be anticlimactic. Were that all the action we got to see last night, we’d probably be disappointed as well, but thank god for Facebook.
With regards to the main event, there’s not a lot to say, really. Junior Dos Santos hits hard. Cain’s game plan has been under attack, but it’s not like he got butchered on his feet for two rounds while doggedly refusing to shoot for a single. Velasquez got nailed with a huge overhand right just 55 seconds into the bout after already trying unsuccessfully for a takedown. Obviously, getting Dos Santos off of his feet quickly would have been Cain’s best option, but for a versatile heavyweight fighting under the brightest lights ever shone on a UFC fighter, shooting in for a Couture-Toney ankle pick with the opening bell still ringing wouldn’t do. Props to Dos Santos for getting it done quickly and violently in the Knock Out of the Night. It wasn’t the most epic fight that the UFC and FOX could have hoped for, but it was a memorable one. That Dos Santos did it with a torn meniscus is all the more impressive.
It’s easy to say that the Henderson-Guida bout should have been broadcast in hindsight, but it was pretty obvious ahead of time as well. There was no doubt that their fight would be balls to the wall, and it may have been the organization’s best chance of finally securing the Prell sponsorship that’s eluded them for all these years. Guida’s style relies on a relentless pace and a controlling top game, but he met a superior wrestler and a cardio-equal in Bendo. His take down defense gave him control of the fight and his crisp striking allowed him to counter Guida’s wild barrages. It’s a shame that only a small fraction of those who caught the FOX broadcast are even aware of their Fight of the Night performance, but I’m sure the extra $65k makes up for it a little.
Cub Swanson headed into his bout with Ricardo Lamas with an abundance of confidence and some of the ugliest tattoos I’ve seen since “Katie’s Revenge”. After getting the better of Lamas in the striking department, Swanson nearly ended the fight with a deep guillotine in the first. He seemed indifferent as Lamas took him down and worked his way behind him, but that apathy was nowhere to be seen as he struggled to break free from an arm triangle. Lamas secured the tapout, and the Submission of the Night bonus, at 2:26 of R2.
Alex Caceres put on an absolute clinic against Cole Escovedo in his debut at 135 lbs. “Bruce Leroy” came after the former WEC champ from every possible angle with every strike in the book from the opening bell. On the ground Caceres was too much as well, coming close to sinking in a triangle and an armbar as he transitioned from one sub to the next. He picked up the unanimous decision—his first win in the Octagon–in his bantamweight debut.
Quick Notes:
Tough break for Mackens Semerzier. No one wants to get knocked out, but when it comes from an illegal (albeit accidental) headbutt it’s a lot harder to swallow. Hopefully he can get the “L” overturned.
Darren Uyenoyama knows a thing or two about grappling. Kid Yamamoto is now 0-2 in the UFC with only one win in his past five fights, and once again JMMA looks to be on life support. I’m sure Kid will be kept on board for Zuffa’s upcoming visit to Japan. His slide started just after divorcing this. We’d be depressed too, Kid.
This was Clay Harvison’s second straight loss, and it came via knock out at the hands of a mid-pack fighter just 1:34 into the bout. It was a nice recovery for DaMarques Johnson, but I don’t think Clay’s up to snuff.
Main Event (On Fox): -Junior dos Santos def. Cain Velasquez by KO at 1:04, R1
Undercard (On Facebook and FoxSports.com): -Benson Henderson def. Clay Guida by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
-Dustin Poirier def. Pablo Garza by submission (d’arce choke) at 1:32, R2
-Ricardo Lamas def. Cub Swanson by submission (arm triangle choke) at 2:16, R2
-DaMarques Johnson def. Clay Harvison by TKO at 1:34, R1
-Darren Uyenoyama def. Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-27)
-Robert Peralta def. Mackens Semerzier by TKO at 1:54, R3
-Alex Caceres def. Cole Escovedo by unanious decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
-Mike Pierce def. Paul Bradley by split decision (28-29, 30-37, 29-28)
-Aaron Rosa def. Matt Lucas by majority decision (28-28, 30-26, 30-26)
ANAHEIM, Calif. — MMA Fighting spoke with Ricardo Lamas about his submission win over Cub Swanson at UFC on FOX 1 on Saturday. Lamas talks about the emotional experience of losing his grandmother a week before the fight, escaping a tight guillotine early in the fight and advancing to 2-0 as a UFC featherweight.
ANAHEIM, Calif. — MMA Fighting spoke with Ricardo Lamas about his submission win over Cub Swanson at UFC on FOX 1 on Saturday. Lamas talks about the emotional experience of losing his grandmother a week before the fight, escaping a tight guillotine early in the fight and advancing to 2-0 as a UFC featherweight.
Two years ago, in the hours after 
