UFC 147 may not have have the most enticing fight card ever, but the main event between Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin could make for a sleeper pick in the 2012 Fight of the Year race.Franklin and Silva will meet for the second time after their firs…
UFC 147 may not have have the most enticing fight card ever, but the main event between Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin could make for a sleeper pick in the 2012 Fight of the Year race.
Franklin and Silva will meet for the second time after their first fight saw Franklin win an extremely entertaining 15-minute slug fest at UFC 99.
After being bumped up on the card to the main event, Franklin now looks forward to the rematch in what he expects to be another exciting fight.
“The best way to describe Wanderlei’s fighting style…it would be like fighting a tornado,” Franklin told UFC.com. “As long as you stay away from the tornado, you’re safe. But if you get too close to the tornado, it does damage.”
It does damage, indeed. In his 34 career MMA victories, Silva has finished 24 by way of knockout. Another two came by way of submission due to strikes.
“When you come in, he pulls the trigger, and when he pulls the trigger, things fly,” Franklin continued. “He’s throwing multiple punches with his hands, following up with knees and he’s dangerous.”
Despite Silva’s devastating knockout power, which he displayed in his most recent victory over Cung Le at UFC 139, Franklin believes that he can not only beat the Brazilian in his home own country, but finish the fight this time.
“The best way for me to finish the fight is to not get lazy in the fight and get caught up in his game,” he said. “It’s been 16 months since I’ve been in the Octagon, so I’m excited to fight again. I’m hungry.”
A string of injuries to himself and his opponents has kept him out of the cage since then, but barring any freak accidents between now an June 23rd, fans will see the return of “Ace” at UFC 147.
MMA fighters aren’t exactly known for their fashion sense. So it should come as little surprise that most MMA t-shirt companies produce some pretty questionable designs. The rampant abuse of foil print, skulls, chains, tribal designs and nautical stars among most MMA t-shirts is bad enough on its own; even worse when you consider that they sell for thirty bucks a pop.
Which I guess makes it all the worse when a fighter makes his way to the cage covered in an “athletic fit” Old-English mess. Not only is the shirt revolting, but it’s going to sell for an outlandish sum of money, and be worn by every overweight Texas Roadhouse chef, milquetoast tech support geek and muscle-bound frat boy.
Perhaps the reason that we’ve never attempted an “Ugliest Walkout Shirts” post is because ranking these train wrecks is like ranking, well, actual train wrecks. No matter what order you place them in, you’re a total scumbag for attempting to rank a tragedy from most to least depressing. And besides, you’re clearly wrong about which one belongs at number three. For that reason, these will not be ranked, per se, but rather categorized. How you feel these shirts fall into place is up to you.
MMA fighters aren’t exactly known for their fashion sense. So it should come as little surprise that most MMA t-shirt companies produce some pretty questionable designs. The rampant abuse of foil print, skulls, chains, tribal designs and nautical stars among most MMA t-shirts is bad enough on its own; even worse when you consider that they sell for thirty bucks a pop.
Which I guess makes it all the worse when a fighter makes his way to the cage covered in an “athletic fit” Old-English mess. Not only is the shirt revolting, but it’s going to sell for an outlandish sum of money, and be worn by every overweight Texas Roadhouse chef, milquetoast tech support geek and muscle-bound frat boy.
Perhaps the reason that we’ve never attempted an “Ugliest Walkout Shirts” post is because ranking these train wrecks is like ranking, well, actual train wrecks. No matter what order you place them in, you’re a total scumbag for attempting to rank a tragedy from most to least depressing. And besides, you’re clearly wrong about which one belongs at number three. For that reason, these will not be ranked, per se, but rather categorized. How you feel these shirts fall into place is up to you.
Don’t worry, this won’t be the only Tapout shirt to make this list. The company that is responsible for more ILS than Muscle Beach has produced some downright disgusting t-shirts. We’ve said it before: Tapout has become the new Vuarnet or No Fear.
Taking the cake though has to be Ryan Bader’s UFC 119 walkout. I didn’t think it was possible to dislike anything related to ”Citizenship in a Republic“. I stand corrected.
Ugliest Affliction Shirt: Chris Leben‘s UFC 116 Walkout
Speaking of companies you’ll be seeing more than once, here’s our first Affliction eyesore. The only redeeming quality of this shirt is that the edges are already frayed, meaning it will fall apart much sooner than a normal t-shirt. Then again, if you’re the type of person who wears shirts like this, you probably won’t think that’s such a good thing.
Cain Velasquez is a proud Mexican-American with “Brown Pride” tattooed across his chest. I get how that means any shirt bearing his name is going to play off of his heritage. What I don’t get is why Dethrone wanted this shirt to look like the totally bitchin’ Myspace background of a fifteen year old from 2006.
Sorry Ace, but America’s colors are red, white and blue. And this shirt is hideous.
Ugliest Clusterfuck: Frank Mir’s UFC 107 Walkout
Put yourself in my position for a moment: I am expected to explain to someone with healthy eyesight- someone who is clearly capable of just looking at this mess- why this shirt is ugly. After two hours of trying to write something, I’ve decided that it’s probably for the best that I never look into a career as a guy who writes warning labels for coffee cups.
Ugliest Shirt to Never Be Worn: Aleksander Emelianenko’s “Affliction: Banned” Walkout
Most Half-Assed Shirt: James Toney’s UFC 118 Walkout
Judging by his performance at UFC 118, James Toney spent about twenty minutes studying the ground game leading up to his bout with UFC Hall-of-Famer Randy Couture. Judging by the image above, that’s roughly 5x longer than Twistd Apparel spent designing his walkout shirt. Besides, if you’re going to make something half-assed, at least make it realistic.
Hit that “next page” link for that other Emelianenko, the craziest shirt you’ll see all day, and some lifetime achievement awards for walkout shirt ineptitude…
With all the talk of fighters retiring, one begins to look at those who remain and wonder how long they have left. The world of MMA is a demanding one, and the fighters who attempt to ply their trade on the biggest stage often seem to be forgotten as t…
With all the talk of fighters retiring, one begins to look at those who remain and wonder how long they have left.
The world of MMA is a demanding one, and the fighters who attempt to ply their trade on the biggest stage often seem to be forgotten as that stage continues to grow.
Rich Franklin knows this about as well as anyone.
For a time, he was one of the big names, fighting at the top of his division. But amid all the attention and the glory that comes with being a champion, Franklin never lost sense of himself.
He’s always been a humble, honest man outside the cage, and inside the cage, the purity of his motives and the clarity of his intent have always been consistent and honest.
He doesn’t need bad blood or fabricated storylines to focus his competitive edge; he signs his name to fight, and he fights to the best of his ability, with no excuses.
After he was defeated twice by Anderson Silva, his career seemed set adrift, and still Franklin made the most of it, fighting anyone the UFC put in front of him.
He’s always been there for the company and the fans, and he’s fought a “who’s who” list of champions and top contenders.
His next fight is against Wanderlei Silva, a fighter beloved by damn near everyone due to his take no prisoners style. Franklin won a tough, exciting bout against Silva years ago, but he’s facing a better version of “The Axe Murderer” this time around.
And I have no doubt that Franklin will fight as he always does: with the courage of his convictions.
I can’t help but dread the day when Franklin announces his retirement. I love watching him fight, and I love how he conducts himself outside the cage.
When Franklin was one of the bigger faces for the company, he served them well and with the integrity that has always been a constant in his life. Brutal honesty has always been one of Franklin’s strongest assets, and he’s never failed to call a spade a spade, especially when he aims the light of criticism at himself.
After his losses to Silva, he was brutally honest about the path he was on, and he clearly intended to make the most of it.
He’s given us some great fights, and as a coach on the second season of The Ultimate Fighter, he was about as good a trainer and role model as anyone could hope for.
When Rich Franklin finally hangs up his gloves, it seems clear he will do so with no regrets. He’s never been wholly defined by his life as a fighter, instead choosing to let his principals and dedication define how he fights.
And that’s why he’ll always be a fighter to watch. And there are many who would do well to take notes, because there’s some damn good stuff there.
Rich Franklin is a legend of mixed martial arts, as the former school teacher has gone from the classroom to middleweight champion in his illustrious career.Franklin makes his return to the Octagon for the first time since his loss in February of last …
Rich Franklin is a legend of mixed martial arts, as the former school teacher has gone from the classroom to middleweight champion in his illustrious career.
Franklin makes his return to the Octagon for the first time since his loss in February of last year, where he dropped a decision to Forrest Griffin. Franklin, who will be stepping up on short notice to fight Wanderlei Silva in a rematch from earlier in their career, was scheduled to fight Cung Le at UFC 148 before taking this fight.
Here are Rich Franklin’s best fights in the UFC.
Note: Only wins were considered in this power ranking.
Rich Franklin has long been known as one of the UFC’s best “company men.” When the promotion finds itself in a bind or needs someone to replace an injured fighter, they know they can typically rely on “Ace” to fill the void.But Franklin is getting on i…
Rich Franklin has long been known as one of the UFC’s best “company men.” When the promotion finds itself in a bind or needs someone to replace an injured fighter, they know they can typically rely on “Ace” to fill the void.
But Franklin is getting on in years. At 37, he’s not ancient by any means, but he’s certainly approaching the twilight of what has been a memorable career.
And so the question must be asked: Has Franklin, like many other fighters of advancing age, considered using testosterone replacement therapy as a means of extending his career? Ariel Helwani posed the question to Franklin on today’s edition of The MMA Hour:
Yeah, I’ve kicked around that idea and everything, and actually I’ve talked to doctors that work with the UFC and the athletic commission in Nevada and all that kind of stuff. And at 37, my count obviously is not what it was when I was 25, and I’m a candidate for that kind of stuff. I haven’t started yet.
But Franklin also said he understands the long-term downside of going on TRT:
I’m not sure if that’s something I want to do or how I want to approach that, because TRT is … once you start that process it’s a permanent fixture. Once you start putting those hormones in your body—those synthetic hormones—then your body is not going to produce its own hormones any more, and so you really have to think carefully.
I’m sure you’re very familiar with my stance on TRT by this point, but here’s a brief synopsis for those who aren’t: I’m against it. Plain and simple, I don’t think it has any place in mixed martial arts, or any other sport, for that matter.
Everyone ages. It’s a fact of life. You’ll eventually get to an age where you can no longer do the one thing you’ve done the best over the course of your life. When that happens, it’s time to quit and find something else to do.
Unfortunately for most athletes, that moment of reckoning comes much earlier in life than it does for those who work typical nine-to-five jobs. I don’t agree with the idea of artificially extending your career by taking a substance that gives you the ability to continue athletic endeavors when you should be winding things down and thinking about what you’re going to do when the bright lights are no longer shining directly on you.
Should exceptions be made?
Perhaps. In very extreme and very specific circumstances, there are athletes who just don’t generate the kind of testosterone levels they need to compete.
As long as these circumstances are naturally occurring—and not brought about by past abuse of steroids or other performance-enhancing drugs—I don’t have a problem considering the use of testosterone.
In these situations, the athlete isn’t responsible for the fact that their body just doesn’t give them the tools they need to compete.
But these situations are few and far between, and I don’t honestly know that we’ve seen any of them in mixed martial arts thus far.
Franklin certainly doesn’t fall under that category. He’s simply getting older, and when an athlete gets older, it’s time to find something else to do.
You have to admit: UFC 147 has officially become a promoter’s worst nightmare.As of yet, with the June 23rd event being less than two weeks away, there are only three officially confirmed main card bouts for UFC 147. And when a fading Wanderlei Silva a…
You have to admit: UFC 147 has officially become a promoter’s worst nightmare.
As of yet, with the June 23rd event being less than two weeks away, there are only three officially confirmed main card bouts for UFC 147. And when a fading Wanderlei Silva and an all-but-retired Rich Franklin are your headliners for a pay-per-view event, you have a serious problem on your hands.
After all, this current, withered version of UFC 147 is nothing more than the leftovers of what was supposed to be a huge Brazilian show, featuring the highly-anticipated rematch between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen in an Olympic-sized stadium.
Of course, the Silva-Sonnen rematch was eventually moved to UFC 148 on July 7th due to scheduling issues, and instead of a huge fight, the UFC is stuck with last minute scrap between Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin, a decent enough match-up, although both of whom are well past their expiry dates.
The problem for the UFC, at least in terms of North American sales, is that their upcoming June 23rd card is chock full of lesser known Brazilian fighters that even some of the sport’s most hardcore fans do not recognize.
So after the break, we’ll take a look at whether or not UFC 147 is actually worth your hard earned dough.
For more in-depth analysis of some of the card’s major fights, view the articles below (more will be added in the weeks leading up to the fight):
With all the talk of fighters retiring, one begins to look at those who remain and wonder how long they have left.
