If you weren’t excited about the next major Zuffa show on February 25 before, this 10-minute extended preview should get you pumped for the first UFC show in Japan in more than 10 years.
You know the card for UFC 144 is good when Yushin Okami, “Kid” Yamamoto and Hatsu Hioki are on the prelims. The card is stacked. Edgar versus Bendo will be a fast-paced chess match, Rampage versus Bader should be a slugfest, Hunt versus Kongo will be a K-1 bout in a cage and Pettis versus Lauzon is an interesting clash of styles. What’s not to like about this event?
(Video courtesy of Sapo/IronForgesIron)
If you weren’t excited about the next major Zuffa show on February 25 before, this 10-minute extended preview should get you pumped for the first UFC show in Japan.
You know the card for UFC 144 is good when Yushin Okami, “Kid” Yamamoto and Hatsu Hioki are on the prelims. The card is stacked. Edgar versus Bendo will be a fast-paced chess match, Rampage versus Bader should be a slugfest, Hunt versus Kongo will be a K-1 bout in a cage and Pettis versus Lauzon is an interesting clash of styles. What’s not to like about this event?
Considering that there will only be one event between this event and the one in Sweden on April 14, it’s a good thing the card isn’t a dud, otherwise we might have all said, “I’m not going to accept this as a card. I think I’m done with this MMA stuff; I don’t think they can pay me enough to do this again.”
If only they would bring in the ramp and have crazy PRIDE lady make a guest spot, JMMA fans’ wet dream would be complete.
UFC 144
February 25, 2012
Saitama Super Arena
Saitama, Japan
Main Card (PPV)
Lightweight Championship Bout
Frankie Edgar vs. Ben Henderson
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Ryan Bader
Mark Hunt vs. Cheick Kongo Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Jake Shields
Anthony Pettis vs. Joe Lauzon
Preliminary Card (FX)
Takanori Gomi vs. Eiji Mitsuoka
Yushin Okami vs. Tim Boetsch
Hatsu Hioki vs. Bart Palaszewski
Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto vs. Vaughan Lee
Riki Fukuda vs. Steve Cantwell
Takeya Mizugaki vs. Chris Cariaso
What pairings are you most looking forward to, Potato Nation?
Later this month, the UFC will venture back to Japan for the first time in more than a decade.The main event will feature a lightweight title bout pitting champion Frankie Edgar against top contender Benson Henderson, while the co-headliner will featur…
Later this month, the UFC will venture back to Japan for the first time in more than a decade.
The main event will feature a lightweight title bout pitting champion Frankie Edgar against top contender Benson Henderson, while the co-headliner will feature the return of Quinton Jackson taking on Ryan Bader, The Ultimate Fighter Season 8 winner.
It’s a pivotal bout for both men, though Jackson has the stuff to prove once again that he is no pushover and that he has the gusto to become a top contender in the light heavyweight division.
Sure Anderson Silva has a date with Chael Sonnen the winner of Chael Sonnen and Mark Munoz this summer, but when you think about it, there really aren’t many fights left for the dominant UFC middleweight champion at 185, so why not have him move up?
Anderson has a plethora of reasons why he likely won’t fight at 205 and most of them concern loyalty to friends like Lil’ Nog and Jon Jones, but from a fan’s perspective, a move up in weight is the only one that makes sense for “The Spider.”
Look at how he toyed with Ryan Bader in the TUF sparring session, basically letting him punch him in the chin as hard as he wanted to. Granted, Bader has improved from his technique of charging forward with arm punches, but I really don’t see a match-up between the two going any differently now. Silva made one former UFC light heavyweight champ look stupid and he would likely do the same to most of the division’s top contenders, so why not have him step up?
We’ll tell you why.
(Video courtesy of YouTube/TUF)
Sure Anderson Silva has a date with Chael Sonnen the winner of Chael Sonnen and Mark Munoz this summer, but when you think about it, there really aren’t many fights left for the dominant UFC middleweight champion at 185, so why not have him move up?
Anderson has a plethora of reasons why he likely won’t fight at 205 and most of them concern loyalty to friends like Lil’ Nog and Jon Jones, but from a fan’s perspective, a move up in weight is the only one that makes sense for “The Spider.”
Look at how he toyed with Ryan Bader in the TUF sparring session, basically letting him punch him in the chin as hard as he wanted to. Granted, Bader has improved from his technique of charging forward with arm punches, but I really don’t see a match-up between the two going any differently now. Silva made one former UFC light heavyweight champ look stupid and he would likely do the same to most of the division’s top contenders, so why not have him step up?
The number one reason it won’t happen, is it would delegitimize the middleweight title if Silva vacated it, making it the silver medal for whoever wins it. Say Chael Sonnen beats whoever else the UFC decides should challenge him for the vacant strap, they would essentially be the winner of the losers Silva beat. It would be like winning a Strikeforce title after the *real* champs left for the UFC.
Another reson why it is unlikely we’ll see Anderson put the 205-pound class on notice, if Jon Jones still holds the belt at the time and both are willing to put personal feelings aside and do their jobs, is that it would tarnish one of their legacies. One man has to lose, and although I would put money on Silva’s chin and striking over Jones’ creativity and flashiness, it’s unlikely that the UFC will want to risk an outgoing champ on the cusp of retirement beating an up-and-coming face of the promotion like Jones.
The third reason why Anderson likely won’t transition to 205 is the glut of wrestlers who fight at that weight. Silva’s Achilles Heel is strong wrestling. We all saw what Sonnen did to him for four-and-a-half rounds and Chael isn’t half the wrestler guys like Rashad Evans, Phil Davis and Dan Henderson are. Hendo, who could very well surprise Jones when they fight, was able to take Anderson down at will before giving up his back and being rear-naked-choked. A veteran like Dan doesn’t make the same mistake twice, unless he’s named Chael Sonnen and the mistake is being triangled. Nobody wants to take on big challenging projects in their final years before retirement. We just want to coast and collect a pay check for not fucking up the menial tasks our bosses give us until our last day finally arrives. How many retirees do you know who learned HTML programming the last year before they retired? Exactly, so why would Anderson want to learn how to deal with big strong wrestlers?
Hopefully we won’t have to sit through another challenge by a future UFC castaway like Travis Lutter, Patrick Cote or Thales Leites. Silva needs real competition and we need to see him face it.
Jason “Mayhem” Miller was on the wrong end of a lopsided blitzkrieg at the TUF 14 Finale courtesy of Michael “The Count” Bisping. In so far as one-sided trouncings go and UFC hype trains being derailed, Mayhem isn’t the fi…
Jason “Mayhem” Miller was on the wrong end of a lopsided blitzkrieg at the TUF 14 Finale courtesy of Michael “The Count” Bisping. In so far as one-sided trouncings go and UFC hype trains being derailed, Mayhem isn’t the first and most definitely won’t be the last fighter to fail miserably when much was expected in a sport as unforgiving as MMA.
Don’t get me wrong, Mayhem isn’t just all hype and no substance—he’s a decent enough fighter, however, sometimes the pomp and pageantry as well as the eliteness of UFC combatants can overwhelm even the best of them.
Even though it’s not overly momentous (it could be if the rumours are true that he’s on the verge of being cut), Mayhem’s unsuccessful return to the Octagon since UFC 52 has to count as a bust.
At present, there are some fighters who have jumped ship to the UFC or have been head-hunted on the pretext of being something out of the ordinary, only to suffer ignominious defeats and sometimes a fast exit out of the Zuffa-based company.
Here’s a look at the five biggest busts currently residing in the UFC.
Filed under: UFCThe entire UFC 144 fight card has been announced for the promotion’s return to Japan on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012 at the Saitama Super Arena in Japan.
In the main event, lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will defend his belt against forme…
The entire UFC 144 fight card has been announced for the promotion’s return to Japan on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012 at the Saitama Super Arena in Japan.
In the main event, lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will defend his belt against former WEC champ Ben Henderson.
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, who last fought in Japan exactly six years removed from UFC 144, returns to the Land of the Rising Sun to face TUF 8 winner Ryan Bader.
Out of the 12 bouts scheduled for the card, seven of the competitors are Japanese. Check out the complete UFC 144 fight card below.
UFC 144 will air live in North America on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET.
Preliminary Bouts
Yushin Okami vs. Tim Boetsch
Takanori Gomi vs. George Sotiropoulos
Hatsu Hioki vs. Bart Palaszewski
Norifumi “KID” Yamamoto vs. Vaughan Lee
Riki Fukuda vs. Steve Cantwell
Takeya Mizugaki vs. Chris Cariaso
Leonard Garcia vs. Tiequan Zhang
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was in dire straits.Following his defeat to current 205-pound kingpin Jon Jones this September, Rampage’s lone desire was to grace the February event, which will mark the organization’s fo…
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was in dire straits.
Following his defeat to current 205-pound kingpin Jon Jones this September, Rampage’s lone desire was to grace the February event, which will mark the organization’s foray back into the Land of the Rising Sun.
UFC 144 will feature a lightweight headliner pitting Frankie Edgar against challenger Ben Henderson. Jackson was all but a shoo-in for the event, given his long and illustrious career with the now defunct Pride Fighting Championships.
However, his chances of gracing the card seemed bleak when the fan favorite tweeted that he would not be headed to the Saitama Super Arena.
Jackson retorted a short time later stating, “Guys I have the best managers n the business,this thing will work its way out, I was peed off when I 1st tweed the bad news,let’s c what’s up [sic]”
His management must be good, as Jackson will not only be prominently featured on the Japan card, but will also be taking on a big named opponent in the form of The Ultimate Fighter’s season eight winner Ryan Bader, according to UFC exec Lorenzo Fertitta.
“Darth” Bader recently snapped a two-fight skid, when he knocked out Jason Brilz last Saturday at UFC 139, cinching up the emphatic finish with a devastating right hand. It took just over one minute inside the Octagon.
Both Jackson and Bader are adept wrestlers who wield heavy punches, indicating that this battle could very well end in dramatic fashion.
The winner will likely move themselves back into the upper echelon of the division, where they will remain a win or two away at a likely shot at the light heavyweight belt sometime in the near future.
The entire 
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was in dire straits.