Saturday night’s UFC 136 was one of the most spectacular MMA events of 2011. The card wasn’t particularly stacked with big names, but the night was filled with fireworks from start to finish. Not only did the evening offer some serious entertainme…
Saturday night’s UFC 136 was one of the most spectacular MMA events of 2011. The card wasn’t particularly stacked with big names, but the night was filled with fireworks from start to finish.
Not only did the evening offer some serious entertainment, but it also shook up the future of the UFC in a major way. While it was Frankie Edgar, Chael Sonnen and the rest of the night’s victors who stole the show, the results of Saturday’s bouts had a big-time impact on the careers of several other fighters who were not on the card.
After this past Saturday’s UFC 136 card, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issued five medical suspensions to the fighters, all of which exceed 10 days, according to MMAjunkie.com.Gray Maynard, who was knocked out by …
After this past Saturday’s UFC 136 card, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issued five medical suspensions to the fighters, all of which exceed 10 days, according to MMAjunkie.com.
Gray Maynard, who was knocked out by UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar in the main event, was issued a suspension of 60 days.
Edgar survived a first-round assault from his bigger opponent and survived long enough to get Maynard on his heels before knocking him out in the fourth round.
Other suspensions include those issued to Leonard Garcia, Eric Schafer and Mike Massenzio.
Garcia lost a unanimous decision to Nam Phan in the event’s fight of the night. Eric Schafer suffered a decision loss to Aaron Simpson. Massenzio defeated Steve Cantwell but not without facing adversity in the first round.
Filed under: UFCJust in case UFC president Dana White had any doubts about what he would do next with the middleweight division — and before UFC 136, he seemed a bit torn — Chael Sonnen made his case with his actions and his mouth. Afterward, it seem…
Just in case UFC president Dana White had any doubts about what he would do next with the middleweight division — and before UFC 136, he seemed a bit torn — Chael Sonnen made his case with his actions and his mouth. Afterward, it seemed clear that White would grant Sonnen his wish for a rematch with division champion Anderson Silva.
According to White, it’s a matchup that Silva wants, too, because, as he told MMA Fighting, Silva “hates him with a passion.” The funny thing is, Silva should love Sonnen. He should send him thank you cards. And 20 years from now, he’ll probably feel that way. Because regardless of his words, Sonnen has helped to raise Silva’s profile and to define his career.
Years from now, when Silva is old and we have a stronger grasp of MMA history, the win over Sonnen will be seen as the defining one of his career. It was a victory that only a champion could have pulled out. Silva was fighting with a severe rib injury, and was trailing badly on the judges’ scorecards — 40-34 on one judge’s card. The fifth round started much the same as the first four, with a Sonnen takedown. But Silva somehow willed one last gasp triangle that caught Sonnen and forced a tapout.
Of course, master fight promoter Sonnen barely waited to begin talk of a rematch. It was at the post-fight press conference that same night when he said, in Silva’s presence, “Here’s the truth: if the commission would sanction it and Dana would move, I would fight him again right now.”
If we’ve learned anything about White over time, it’s that he loves a fighter who proactively campaigns for opportunities. Passion moves him. Whether you love or hate Sonnen, you can’t deny his passion. And after his first performance against Silva, you can’t deny he has a chance to win. That should mean big interest in the fight, and big business for the event, and even Anderson Silva should be able to appreciate that.
Frank Edgar
Edgar has spent the last two years of his life focused on two fighters: BJ Penn and Gray Maynard. He has to be thrilled about moving on. And he also has to be thrilled about finishing his toughest opponent after nearly 12 rounds of war, earning a decisive conclusion.
Edgar will take off the next two weeks or so, and he won’t be back in the cage until early next year. Gilbert Melendez has been mentioned, but for now it seems like Melendez’s status is up in the air. That makes it a toss-up as to whether Edgar will face him next, or a UFC lightweight.
Prediction: Edgar faces the winner of UFC on FOX 1’s Ben Henderson vs. Clay Guida fight
Gray Maynard
Maynard seemed heartbroken after UFC 136, and you can’t blame him. He came within a punch or two of winning the lightweight title in two different fights and couldn’t close it out.
There is a silver lining though, as his competitive performances have shown that he is clearly capable of giving the world’s best a run for their money. And after having been tied up with Edgar so long, there are plenty of fresh matchups out there for him.
Prediction: He faces the loser of UFC on FOX 1’s Henderson vs. Guida fight
Jose Aldo
Aldo received some criticism for his win over Kenny Florian from those who believed he was too conservative with his offense. But with the way Florian was attacking him, Aldo did the right thing. Florian was looking to take away Aldo’s explosiveness by either taking him down or grinding him against the cage. By FightMetric’s count, Florian tried 19 takedowns (and only completed one).
Even if you didn’t watch the fight, from those number you can surmise that Florian didn’t give Aldo much room to operate. Aldo had to worry about defense for good reason, and he did a great job with it. It may not be any easier in his next fight.
Prediction: He faces unbeaten Chad Mendes in early 2012.
Kenny Florian
At least in the immediate aftermath of UFC 136, Florian looked like a man who was done with fighting. Verbally, he wouldn’t commit to either continuing or retirement, and rightfully, Florian should take time to consider all his options. At 35 years old, Florian is still a very good fighter, and he could certainly continue on and seek out intriguing matchups if he so chose. But Florian has always said his goal was a UFC championship belt, and now it appears that will never happen. That leads me to wonder if he will have the proper motivation to go through the grind of training camps. Hopefully he makes a decision he can embrace wholeheartedly.
Prediction: Florian retires and continues his strong work in broadcasting
Chael Sonnen
Sonnen’s performance Saturday night was nothing short of systematic destruction. Sonnen finished off Stann with the arm triangle choke and got up off the canvas with a stoic, focused look on his face. It seemed like there was something on his mind other than Stann, and we quickly found out what it was. Bring on the rematch.
Prediction: Silva-Sonnen II
Brian Stann
Stann is a strong, powerful dude, but he had no prayer of stopping Sonnen’s takedowns. He’ll always be a tough matchup for strikers, but wrestlers are always going to try to follow the blueprint laid by Sonnen and Phil Davis. Fortunately for Stann, there aren’t an overwhelming number of wrestlers. Anyway, it’s time to retool and reload for Stann.
Prediction: Stann might have a bit of a wait until his next fight. I’m thinking he could face Mark Munoz if Munoz should lose to Chris Leben next month, or if not, Stann gets someone like a returning Alessio Sakara.
Joe Lauzon
Lauzon has some of the best finishing instincts in the UFC, fearless in his attempts to close out a fight. His win over Melvin Guillard was a shocker, entering the fight as a massive underdog. Despite the big win, Lauzon’s only 3-2 in his last five, so it’s hard to figure exactly where he fits in the lightweight hierarchy.
Prediction: TJ Grant looked very good in his lightweight debut. Sounds like a good matchup.
Anthony Pettis
When the UFC announced Pettis vs. Jeremy Stephens, no one was expecting a slow grind of a fight. And while it wasn’t Pettis’ best performance, he proved he could go in there against a rugged, powerful striker and win. Ultimately, Pettis isn’t going to win a title with his wrestling, so I don’t expect him to employ the same kind of game plan against anyone. Let’s get him back in there against another striker.
Prediction: Pettis faces Sam Stout
Stipe Miocic
You may or may not have seen the debut of Miocic, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound heavyweight who outlasted the always tough Joey Beltran during the prelims. Miocic looked good but not great against a guy who is among the UFC’s most durable heavyweights. But even though he has plenty of work to do, it was a positive first step.
Prediction: He faces Mark Hunt
UFC 136 from Houston is in the books and it lived up to all the hype heading into Saturday night.It is usually hard for an event with such hype surrounding it to live up to the expectations and leave fans fully satisfied with the $44.95 they spent to o…
UFC 136 from Houston is in the books and it lived up to all the hype heading into Saturday night.
It is usually hard for an event with such hype surrounding it to live up to the expectations and leave fans fully satisfied with the $44.95 they spent to order it. But it seems to be one of the rare events that has people buzzing long into the next week.
What made this event so entertaining was the unexpected. There were several questions fight fans had coming into this event. How was Chael going to look? Could Florian get over the hump? Was Guillard the next big thing at lightweight? How would the Edgar-Maynad trilogy end? Would Anthony Pettis bounce back? Some of these questions were answered as expected and some were not. There were plenty of surprises on this card in the octagon, but what has people talking the most may be the action outside the cage.
What follows is a list of the five biggest surprises coming out of UFC 136.
The new UFC 137 promo trailer featuring Georges St. Pierre and Carlos Condit is out. Anderson Silva manager, Ed Soares says Chael Sonnen “should be in jail; he shouldn’t be fighting” and is unsure when.
Rachelle Leah – this is her doing-chores-around-the-house outfit
The new UFC 137 promo trailer featuring Georges St. Pierre and Carlos Condit is out.
UFC 136 was a big event in terms of the future of the lightweight division.It was finally going to establish the No. 1 lightweight in the world, unless you’re one of those foolish enough to believe that it’s Gilbert Melendez. It was also going to estab…
UFC 136 was a big event in terms of the future of the lightweight division.
It was finally going to establish the No. 1 lightweight in the world, unless you’re one of those foolish enough to believe that it’s Gilbert Melendez. It was also going to establish another top contender in Melvin Guillard after he easily disposed of Joe Lauzon.
Well, at least one of those things happened.
Frankie Edgar is now the clear man to beat in the lightweight division. He showed a ton of heart surviving yet another brutal first-round beating at the hands of Gray Maynard, going on to win the fight with a fourth-round knockout.
Perhaps what makes Edgar so compelling is that he is an everyman, someone not spectacularly physically gifted or untouchable. Essentially, he’s our Rocky Balboa.
He is beatable, or so it seems.
He didn’t display the dominance of a Jon Jones in his title defense, but he certainly won himself more fans. Edgar is even small for the weight class. He hardly cuts any weight and defeats fighters who outweigh him by 15 or 20 pounds on fight night.
Part of the reason why the lightweight division is so intriguing right now is the fact that there are several interesting matchups for the champion. Perhaps Edgar isn’t the most dominant champion ever, but he’s certainly one of the most entertaining. He may even be one of the first fighters capable of holding two belts in two different weight classes—considering a cut to featherweight would be very easy for him.
One of the biggest surprises of the night wasn’t Frankie Edgar’s win, but Joe Lauzon’s. Melvin Guillard was on the fast track to a title shot, winning five straight before his loss to Lauzon.
Perhaps Lauzon has now thrown his name “into the mix” at lightweight if he can pull off another solid performance. A fight with Nate Diaz would be extremely interesting and would work out well in terms of timing.
With Gilbert Melendez heading over to the UFC and a long list of contenders including Ben Henderson, Clay Guida, Jim Miller and Anthony Pettis, the lightweight division should stay interesting for quite some time.
Donald Cerrone, Nate Diaz, Joe Lauzon, Evan Dunham and Rafael Dos Anjos may not be far behind, either.
After this past Saturday’s 
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