UFC 132 features great stylistic matchups, compelling storylines and fights that are sure to leave fans satisfied for paying $55.This PPV is not headlined by Brock Lesnar, Jon “Bones” Jones or Georges St-Pierre, so it won’t get the same amount …
UFC 132 features great stylistic matchups, compelling storylines and fights that are sure to leave fans satisfied for paying $55.
This PPV is not headlined by Brock Lesnar, Jon “Bones” Jones or Georges St-Pierre, so it won’t get the same amount of buys that those PPVs would have gotten. But my goodness, look at this card. It’s as if UFC President Dana White and UFC matchmaker Joe Silva got together and said let’s make a card strictly for the fans.
1)It starts with the undercard, which fans can see live on Facebook and on Spike. Three fights taking place on Facebook that fans won’t want to miss are Anthony Njokuani vs. Andre Miller, Brad Tavares vs. Aaron Simpson and Brian Bowles vs. Takeya Mizugaki.
The Njokuani-Miller fight is one of the most exciting matchups on the card. Expect a kickboxing clinic between these two high-level strikers.
2)Move on to Spike’s version of the Prelims and you’ve got George Sotiropoulos vs. Rafael Dos Anjos and Melvin Guillard vs. Shane Roller.
These are two exciting lightweight matchups that will have compelling storylines and questions. Will Guillard continue his winning streak and become that lightweight contender MMA fans always envisioned him to be? And will Sotiropoulos get back on his horse and start another winning streak?
3)From the first fight on PPV between Dennis Siver and Matt Wiman to the main event between Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber, this fight card is stacked with exciting matchups that have a large effect on five weight divisions.
Siver and Wiman is simply a crowd-pleasing fight. Their styles match up so well, and both fighters will most likely want to keep this fight on the feet. UFC 132 will get off to a fast start with this PPV opener.
4)The welterweight division is in need of new contenders for St-Pierre’s belt, and these two guys are just that. Carlos Condit is riding a wave of momentum after a highlight reel knockout over Dan Hardy, and Dong Hyun Kim is undefeated with recent wins against Amir Sadollah and Nate Diaz.
Condit proved what he can do when he gets off to a fast start in his last fight, so let’s see how long it takes him to kick things into gear in this bout.
5)Tito Ortiz vs. Ryan Bader is not only a good matchup stylistically, but the fact that it’s do-or-die for Ortiz makes it that much more intriguing.
Ortiz is the biggest reason why I got into MMA. The Ultimate Fighter, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture and the sheer awesomeness of the sport helped, too, but I absolutely hated Ortiz and wanted to watch him get beat up. I would order PPVs just to watch him take a beating and finally this Mohawk guy gave me what I wanted.
Looking back, Ortiz was a genius in promoting fights and getting new fans. I have him to thank for really getting me invested in the sport and seeing how great the sport was. If it’s Ortiz’s last fight in the UFC, you better believe he will go down swinging.
6)I don’t think Joe Silva could have made a more exciting matchup than the co-main event, Chris Leben vs. Wanderlei Silva. They have the same brawling style that makes them fan favorites, and when they meet in the center of the octagon, expect them to throw down.
If all the other fights on this card end up being lackluster and not worth your $55, this fight will be the PPV’s saving grace. Buy this PPV for this fight, and everything else will just be icing on the cake.
7)This is the first time a UFC PPV has been headlined by a bantamweight fight, and they couldn’t have picked two better fighters to take the main stage.
This is a rematch four years in the making, and Faber has the mental edge as he won the first fight by guillotine choke in the first round. But make no mistake, these are two completely different fighters from who they were in 2007.
Both fighters have evolved in many ways, and they are embraced as the elite of the division. Both have exciting styles, and they should leave the fans with a crowd-pleasing main event.
Tito Ortiz‘s matchup with Ryan Bader at UFC 132 this Saturday didn’t come without a price. When the Huntington Beach Bad Boy begged for another fight following his loss to Matt Hamill last October, the UFC eventually gave in, but not under the same terms of his former contract. As Ortiz explained to Ariel Helwani:
“I guess it was negotiation on their part of paying me less. And I took it. I want to compete. And that shows how much I want to compete, to take a big, big, big pay cut. It is what it is, man, I’m gonna fight my ass off on Saturday night and I get my contract back, and I’ll be fighting some more.”
For reference, Ortiz earned a $250,000 salary for his last two losses against Hamill and Forrest Griffin, and $210,000 for his previous three fights against Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, and Chuck Liddell; those figures don’t include points on the pay-per-view revenue that may have also been included in his contract. Early next week, we should have a clearer sense of just how “big, big, big” that pay cut was.
Ortiz also discussed the full-frontal Twitter photo that was allegedly sent from his phone by a hacker earlier this month. Here’s how it went down, to Ortiz’s best understanding…
Tito Ortiz‘s matchup with Ryan Bader at UFC 132 this Saturday didn’t come without a price. When the Huntington Beach Bad Boy begged for another fight following his loss to Matt Hamill last October, the UFC eventually gave in, but not under the same terms of his former contract. As Ortiz explained to Ariel Helwani:
“I guess it was negotiation on their part of paying me less. And I took it. I want to compete. And that shows how much I want to compete, to take a big, big, big pay cut. It is what it is, man, I’m gonna fight my ass off on Saturday night and I get my contract back, and I’ll be fighting some more.”
For reference, Ortiz earned a $250,000 salary for his last two losses against Hamill and Forrest Griffin, and $210,000 for his previous three fights against Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, and Chuck Liddell; those figures don’t include points on the pay-per-view revenue that may have also been included in his contract. Early next week, we should have a clearer sense of just how “big, big, big” that pay cut was.
Ortiz also discussed the full-frontal Twitter photo that was allegedly sent from his phone by a hacker earlier this month. Here’s how it went down, to Ortiz’s best understanding…
“Someone got on my damn phone and put a nekkid picture of me…FBI called me, we talked, we tried to find it out, what it was, I was at a Starbucks and I left my phone down, and I left it there and totally forgot, came back, and it was at a different table, and what can you do, man…I guess it was one of those pictures that I probably shouldn’t have sent to Jenna before, and left it on my phone, I probably should have erased it. I guess I could uphold it and be proud of it. I hope I didn’t offend anybody. But at the same time, personal life won’t be on Twitter ever again.”
According to our sources, there was an unexplained 11-minute gap in the security camera footage at the Starbucks in question that matches up with the time Ortiz spent taking a dump in the bathroom. We haven’t even begun to scratch the surface of this vast conspiracy.
The UFC always makes their Fourth of July weekend card one of the best of the year, and this year might be the best they’ve ever had. The first-ever UFC bantamweight title fight is going down this weekend, and we can’t ask for a better matc…
The UFC always makes their Fourth of July weekend card one of the best of the year, and this year might be the best they’ve ever had.
The first-ever UFC bantamweight title fight is going down this weekend, and we can’t ask for a better matchup than bitter rivals Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber.
Throw in a guaranteed slugfest between Chris Leben and Wanderlei Silva, plus what may be the final fight for Tito Ortiz inside the Octagon, and this may be the best card of 2011.
Tito Ortiz was one of the most feared men in the UFC.He was the champion of the UFC’s most talked about division at the time and perhaps even till this day—light heavyweight—and was not only the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” but was the bad bo…
Tito Ortiz was one of the most feared men in the UFC.
He was the champion of the UFC’s most talked about division at the time and perhaps even till this day—light heavyweight—and was not only the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” but was the bad boy of mixed martial arts as well.
However, those days have long since passed.
Ortiz is now winless since 2006 and hasn’t finished an opponent not named Ken Shamrock since Elvis Sinosic—who was 4-3-1 at the time and is 8-11-2 now—in 2001. Ortiz’s last victory was a controversial split decision to Forrest Griffin which Griffin managed to avenge.
These reasons, combined with the numerous personal and legal problems Ortiz has had recently, make the former light heavyweight’s reputation a tarnished one.
If Tito Ortiz defeats Ryan “Darth” Bader at UFC 132 will that help the former champ regain his lost luster?
Defeating Bader would help, but would still not absolve Ortiz of all his sins (be they in or out of the Octagon).
Defeating Bader would, at the very least, give Ortiz an opportunity to retire on a high note.
He would have snapped his five-fight winless streak (winless but not a losing streak; of his last five fights, four were losses and one was a draw) and would have had the satisfaction of beating one of the young up-and-comers at light heavyweight.
His hypothetical return to form may even help him get a chance to avenge losses (or a draw) should Ortiz choose not to retire and should certain fighters—namely Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans—lose their upcoming bouts.
Beating Bader will enable Ortiz to retire with dignity or to continue his career as at least a somewhat relevant fighter. However, even if Ortiz is victorious at UFC 132, he will still not be able to rid his reputation and his legacy of certain stigmas.
Therefore, Tito Ortiz defeating Ryan Bader demonstrates that Ortiz at 36 years of age has not become like his contemporaries Chuck Liddell and Ken Shamrock but this will only go so far since Ortiz himself will only go so far at 36.
At the end of the day, what Ortiz has done in the Octagon already speaks for itself, what happens at UFC 132 notwithstanding.
Even if you aren’t looking forward to the main event of Saturday’s UFC 132: Faber vs. Cruz this upcoming long weekend, there is much more to excite you about this card even with BJ Penn and Jon Fitch out with injuries.
Check out what goodness 132 has in store for you and the remainder of the countdown show after the jump.
(Video courtesy of YouTube/IronForgesIron)
Even if you aren’t looking forward to the main event of Saturday’s UFC 132: Faber vs. Cruz this upcoming long weekend, there is much more to excite you about this card even with BJ Penn and Jon Fitch out with injuries.
First you have the “Rock ‘Em, Sock ‘Em Robot” competition between Wanderlei Silva and Chris Leben. What’s not to love about watching these two go balls to the wall trying to knock the other’s head off?
Then you have Tito Ortiz’sretirement party possible last UFC fight against Ryan Bader. Tito claims he’s in better shape and healthier physically than he’s been in years, which will dramatically reduce his options when it comes to excuse-making after the bout, so he better hope he wins, especially when he calimed in the preview show that “he’s fighting for his legacy, his family and his life” against Bader.
You’ve also got a sure-to-please welterweight match-up between undefeated (sorry Karo) Korean fighter Dong Hyun Kim and Carlos Condit. When have we ever seen either of these two fight conservatively or boring? I can’t remember either, but it must not be often if at all or else we’d know it.
Even the prelim card is worth watching.
George Sotiropoulos vs. Dos Anjos probably would have been on the main card in place of Denis Siver-Matt Wiman if G-Sots hadn’t lost to Siver in his last bout at UFC 127. And Shane Roller vs. Melvin Guillard has the potential for either Submission of the Night or Knockout of the Night, depending on who wins it.
Even further down on the card are guys like former WEC featherweight champ Brian Bowles and undefeated prospect Brad Tavares. The card is stacked from top to bottom as is the preview show, which is well worth watching.
Check out the rest of it below, courtesy of our friend Zombie Prophet from IronForgesIron.com.
Even if you aren’t looking forward to the main event of Saturday’s UFC 132: Faber vs. Cruz this upcoming long weekend, there is much more to excite you about this card even with BJ Penn and Jon Fitch out with injuries.
Check out what goodness 132 has in store for you and the remainder of the countdown show after the jump.
(Video courtesy of YouTube/IronForgesIron)
Even if you aren’t looking forward to the main event of Saturday’s UFC 132: Faber vs. Cruz this upcoming long weekend, there is much more to excite you about this card even with BJ Penn and Jon Fitch out with injuries.
First you have the “Rock ‘Em, Sock ‘Em Robot” competition between Wanderlei Silva and Chris Leben. What’s not to love about watching these two go balls to the wall trying to knock the other’s head off?
Then you have Tito Ortiz’sretirement party possible last UFC fight against Ryan Bader. Tito claims he’s in better shape and healthier physically than he’s been in years, which will dramatically reduce his options when it comes to excuse-making after the bout, so he better hope he wins, especially when he calimed in the preview show that “he’s fighting for his legacy, his family and his life” against Bader.
You’ve also got a sure-to-please welterweight match-up between undefeated (sorry Karo) Korean fighter Dong Hyun Kim and Carlos Condit. When have we ever seen either of these two fight conservatively or boring? I can’t remember either, but it must not be often if at all or else we’d know it.
Even the prelim card is worth watching.
George Sotiropoulos vs. Dos Anjos probably would have been on the main card in place of Denis Siver-Matt Wiman if G-Sots hadn’t lost to Siver in his last bout at UFC 127. And Shane Roller vs. Melvin Guillard has the potential for either Submission of the Night or Knockout of the Night, depending on who wins it.
Even further down on the card are guys like former WEC featherweight champ Brian Bowles and undefeated prospect Brad Tavares. The card is stacked from top to bottom as is the preview show, which is well worth watching.
Check out the rest of it below, courtesy of our friend Zombie Prophet from IronForgesIron.com.
Tito Ortiz was one of the most feared men in the UFC.