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TUF Live Finale: What’s Next for Charles Oliveira?

Not too long ago, this writer discussed the problems the featherweight division is facing due to its terribly shallow pool of fighters. Charles Oliveira and Jonathan Brookins are both decent featherweights, for sure. Oliveira was reasonably successful …

Not too long ago, this writer discussed the problems the featherweight division is facing due to its terribly shallow pool of fighters.

Charles Oliveira and Jonathan Brookins are both decent featherweights, for sure. Oliveira was reasonably successful as a lightweight, putting together a 2-2 (1) record (his two losses, however, came against top-ten fighters in Jim Miller and Donald Cerrone). He then had his featherweight debut against UFC newcomer Eric Wisely, who he beat by first-round submission.

Brookins, meanwhile, is best known for winning The Ultimate Fighter season 12, where he bested opponents above his native weight class. After topping his lightweight cast mates, he dropped back down to featherweight and had a semi-controversial decision loss to Erik Koch, but followed it up with a first-round KO of Vagner Rocha.

As the above article discusses, being able to string together any number of wins is enough to fall into a title shot in the featherweight division. With both fighters coming off wins, Brookins vs. Oliveira was a deceptively important bout.

Naturally, only one of them could win. Oliveira, obviously, came out on top.

Oliveira, as one would expect from a good-but-not-great fighter, looked good but not great against Brookins. Using his superior striking, Oliveira dazed Brookins and finished him with a submission. This is even more impressive when one considers that Brookins’ greatest strength is his grappling.

Still, the performance was neither especially exciting nor eye-opening. Again, Oliveira was good, but not great.

The bottom line, though, is that Oliveira now has a two-fight winning streak. Diego Nunes, Ross Pearson, Dennis Siver, Chad Mendes, Bart Palaszewski and Eddie Yagin cannot say the same. Also keep in mind, the last person that current top contender Erik Koch beat was, in fact, Brookins (who he did not dominate in the least).

Because of that, Charles Oliveira is potentially one fight away from facing current UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo. The situation is not perfect. Oliveira is barely beyond a straw-man of an opponent for Aldo. However, those are the facts.

Aldo is currently slated to face Koch at UFC 149 in July. Assuming he wins (which he will), he is likely going to face Chan-Sung Jung around November or December of this year. Schedule-wise, that works out perfectly for Oliveira.

With some luck (he needs other fighters to have issues with scheduling, injuries or upset losses) and a win, he could easily end up facing Jose Aldo in early 2013.

He does need one more win but again, the scheduling could not be better for Oliveira.

The UFC on FX 4 card, coming up on June 22, features four of the promotion’s better featherweights, with Hatsu Hioki vs. Ricardo Lamas and Ross Pearson vs. Cub Swanson. This lines up nicely, and beating either of the winners from those bouts would realistically be able to put Oliveira into title contention.

Because of this, Oliveira is somebody to keep an eye on. Granted, it is really difficult to envision Jose Aldo losing to anybody. Regardless, Oliveira stands to benefit from the absence of any real threats to Aldo’s reign.

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TUF Live Finale: What We Learned from Jonathan Brookins vs. Charles Oliveira

On a fight card that is filled with The Ultimate Fighter cast members making their UFC debut, veterans Jonathan Brookins and Charles Oliveira went at it in an exciting featherweight clash at The Ultimate Fighter Live Finale on Friday nig…

On a fight card that is filled with The Ultimate Fighter cast members making their UFC debut, veterans Jonathan Brookins and Charles Oliveira went at it in an exciting featherweight clash at The Ultimate Fighter Live Finale on Friday night.

After a first round that was mostly contested on the feet, Oliveira took the fight to the ground midway through the second, fought off a submission attempt from Brookins and ended up locking in his own guillotine choke a few seconds later to earn the win.

What we’ll remember about this fight

Charles Oliveira is a scary fighter once it hits the mat.

We’ve known this for a while, but his ability to lock in a guillotine from an awkward position against a talented fighter like Brookins shows just how good he is on the mat.

What we learned about Jonathan Brookins

Brookins never looked outclassed, but he had a lot of trouble dealing with the range and speed of Oliveira.

Brookins has made his name as a grappling specialist in the UFC, but it’s tough to justify going to the ground against a guy like Oliveira, and he ended up trying to exchange with a slightly better striker.

If Brookins can improve his stand-up, he’ll be a very tough test for anyone at 145.

What we learned about Charles Oliveira

The submission specialist has showed off his skills on the feet, and as we’ve seen before, Oliveira is wild and entertaining when the fight stays upright.

But they call him a submission specialist for a reason, and once Oliveira get a hold of a limb or your neck, it’s usually just a matter of time before the tapout.

What’s next for Jonathan Brookins

Brookins has a lot of skill and has looked decent against good competition at featherweight so far, so I don’t think he needs to fall too far down the ladder.

A fight with Diego Nunes, who recently lost a decision to Dennis Siver, would be interesting for both guys.

What’s next for Charles Oliveira

Since we’re giving Brookins a fight against Nunes, why not throw Oliveira in there with Dennis Siver?

It would be a fun fight to watch between two former lightweights, and the winner would be within striking distance of a title eliminator fight.

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The Ultimate Fighter 15: Power Ranking the Best TUF Winners of All-Time

The Ultimate Fighter has been going strong for 14 seasons, and with the 15th installment underway, it seems like a proper time for a retrospective. While participation in the competition obviously hasn’t led to stardom for everyone, many fighters have …

The Ultimate Fighter has been going strong for 14 seasons, and with the 15th installment underway, it seems like a proper time for a retrospective. While participation in the competition obviously hasn’t led to stardom for everyone, many fighters have made a name for themselves on the show.

Several current or former champions took part in TUF and were able to take a huge leap in their careers because of it. Not every success story from The Ultimate Fighter actually won the competition, but there have been some impressive winners over the show’s history.

Here is a power ranking of the three best TUF winners of all-time. Who knows? Perhaps the next great fighter could be taking part in the current season and will one day join this list of greats.

3. Matt Serra

In what was one of the more interesting seasons of TUF, Season 4 allowed veterans to participate rather than unknowns with the prize being a title shot to the winner. Journeyman welterweight Matt Serra took part in the competition and ultimately won his weight class. Up to that point Serra wasn’t considered to be anything special, but winning The Ultimate Fighter completely turned his career around.

Serra earned a title match with Georges St-Pierre and entered the bout as the decided underdog. Shockingly, Serra ambushed St-Pierre and knocked him out in the first round, however, handing GSP only the second loss of his career. Serra only has a career record of 11-7 and he dropped the title to St-Pierre in a rematch, but he made the most of his TUF experience.

2. Rashad Evans

Heavyweight Rashad Evans is one of the most successful and recognizable fighters in the sport, and he got his start on The Ultimate Fighter. Evans defeated Forrest Griffin for the UFC light heavyweight championship in 2007, and although he lost the belt to Lyoto Machida in his next match, Evans is widely regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the sport.

Evans has a career record of 17-1-1 and stands a good chance of one day reclaiming his title. The goal of TUF is not only to develop serviceable fighters, but also bona fide superstars. That is precisely what Evans has become as he is one of the biggest drawing cards UFC has to offer. There is no question that the company is particularly proud of Evans winning the competition.

1. Forrest Griffin

Although he has recently struggled against some of the sport’s top fighters, Griffin is unquestionably the greatest and most successful fighter to come out of TUF. Griffin won the first season of the competition and is credited by many as helping to save the livelihood of UFC. Griffin won the heavyweight division in TUF and he went on to become the UFC light heavyweight champion.

Griffin has taken part in some of the most memorable fights over the past several years and is a fan favorite in every sense of the term. Griffin has been heavily involved in the show ever since and he is considered the face of The Ultimate Fighter. If not for Griffin, the competition may never have survived, so the UFC should be eternally grateful for that.

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B/R Exclusive: Tom Watson on the UFC, Brian Stann, and BAMMA

Tom Watson is interested in making the UFC. He just does not want to go the conventional route. As a middleweight with a record of 14-4 (six knockouts, one submission), the quickest way to get to the UFC is through the Ultimate Fighter reality show. Th…

Tom Watson is interested in making the UFC. He just does not want to go the conventional route.

As a middleweight with a record of 14-4 (six knockouts, one submission), the quickest way to get to the UFC is through the Ultimate Fighter reality show.

That does not appeal to Watson.

“I’ll be 30 soon,” Watson when asked about the TUF. “The last thing I want to do is live in a house full of kids that just want to make it on TV.”

Watson, however, remains steadfast in his goal to compete in the sport’s top promotion. In his career, the former boxer has defeated many notable fighters including Murilo “Ninja” Rua, Matt Horwich, and Travis Galbraith.

“Of course, I want to fight in the UFC,” Watson said. “I know a lot of guys want to protect the organizations’ they’re in, but the UFC is where the money is. That’s where people make a living.”

One person who is in Watson’s corner is also a training partner at Jackson’s MMA – Brian Stann.

“He is one of the most underrated fighters in the world,” Stann said about Watson. “The fact that he is not in the top 10 or at least honorable mention will change soon.”

Watson, tongue-in-cheek, responded to Stann’s comments.

“I don’t know,” Watson said. “Stann’s been hit in the head too many times.”

Going forward, in order for Watson to achieve his goal of making the UFC, he has to continue to be successful on the regional shows.

His next opponent is the undefeated Jack Marshman. Marshman is 10-0 with eight knockouts and one submission.

The fight is scheduled for the upstart BAMMA promotion on March 24.

“Jack is a tough guy,” Watson said. “The fight should be great for the fans. He always comes out and puts on a good fight. It’s gotten “war” written all over it.”

As far as Marshman’s strengths, Watson will be ready

“He’s got a lot of boxing fights as well,” Watson said. “He has fast hands and decent power. I have been preparing for him at my usual spot – Jackson’s MMA.”

Should Watson be victorious, the British native feels the UFC will take notice.

“This is a good fight for me coming up,” Watson said. “Going against a guy that’s 10-0? This is the type of guy the UFC likes as an opponent. I want to make the fans get onto me a little more. That’s what I need to do.”

Watson understands that it takes more to being a successful mixed martial artist then just winning fights. He understands this is a business, and he needs to make fans want to see him.

“It’s important to be a winning fighter,” Watson said, “but you have to be an exciting fighter as well. I don’t want to be like someone like a Jon Fitch. He’s a great fighter, but who’s really going to pay to watch him fight?”

Watson hopes that pretty soon the fans will be paying to see him fight, but prior to any of that, Marshman is first.

“I think it’s going to be a tough fight. At this stage of my career, I can’t afford to lose,” Watson said, noting the importance of the fight. “I’m focusing on a getting a victory.”

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The Ultimate Fighter 15: Memorable Moments from Episode 1

Season 15 of The Ultimate Fighter kicked off last night with 32 fighters looking to impress potential coaches Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber. After years of producing a stale product to fans, the first season of the show on FX promised to bring a numbe…

Season 15 of The Ultimate Fighter kicked off last night with 32 fighters looking to impress potential coaches Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber.

After years of producing a stale product to fans, the first season of the show on FX promised to bring a number of changes to freshen the show up.

The UFC succeeded in creating a lot of interest with some new changes in this upcoming season by making the season live instead of taped, and it continued with some good items from past shows like performance-based bonuses.

The new season started off on a good note as the first episode pulled fans in for a wild ride through Season 15.

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UFC: Creating the Ultimate Fighter

Yet another season of The Ultimate Fighter is in the books, and this season saw featherweight Diego Brandao and bantamweight John Dodson both come out victorious. For winning the show they are given a lucrative contract with the UFC and given the title…

We all know that neither of these guys are truly the “ultimate fighter,” they’re really just the guys that were able to win all the fights in this particular season and win their respective fights at the finale.

The truth is, the ultimate fighter doesn’t really exist.

The interesting thing about the sport of MMA is that anyone can be beaten. Even the best in the sport can be caught on any given night.

Anderson Silva, undoubtedly one of the greatest fighters of all time, has been beaten by Ryo Chonan and Daiju Takase. He has also looked very human on occasion, most notably in his UFC 117 victory over Chael Sonnen.

Fedor Emelianenko, considered by many to be untouchable for nearly a decade, now holds a 1-3 record in his last four fights.

Even current “untouchable” fighter Jon Jones could be beaten on any given night, perhaps even by a flying kick by Lyoto Machida in their upcoming bout.

So what would the “ultimate fighter” look like? What traits would an unbeatable fighter have?

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