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With excitement building about his return to Japan, Rampage Jackson caused alarm for his fans by missing weight for UFC 144. From there, it only got worse. He went on to lose his scheduled scrap with Ryan Bader and leaving Dana White wringing his hands…
With excitement building about his return to Japan, Rampage Jackson caused alarm for his fans by missing weight for UFC 144.
From there, it only got worse.
He went on to lose his scheduled scrap with Ryan Bader and leaving Dana White wringing his hands over losing one of his bankable light heavyweights.
The loss—his second in a row—combined with his routine talk of retirement, left many people with questions. Some of which include:
Yoshihiro Akiyama may have not come out on top at UFC 144 but it won’t be the last time we see “Sexyama” inside the UFC’s Octagon.
Akiyama impressed many fans in his welterweight debut by showcasing good takedown defense along with some improved condit…
Yoshihiro Akiyama may have not come out on top at UFC 144 but it won’t be the last time we see “Sexyama” inside the UFC’s Octagon.
Akiyama impressed many fans in his welterweight debut by showcasing good takedown defense along with some improved conditioning.
A match-up that would provide fans with an exciting show would be against Diego Sanchez. Both men are coming off decision losses and both men are known for their exciting, fan-friendly styles. So how do these two welterweight stars match up?
The answer to Frankie Edgar’s lightweight woes could be a move down to the featherweight division.At 155 pounds, Edgar has demonstrated tremendous heart in capturing a UFC title and ousting world-class fighters twice his size.The underdog story came to…
The answer to Frankie Edgar‘s lightweight woes could be a move down to the featherweight division.
At 155 pounds, Edgar has demonstrated tremendous heart in capturing a UFC title and ousting world-class fighters twice his size.
The underdog story came to an end at UFC 144 at the hands of former WEC lightweight champion Benson Henderson.
“I don’t want to take anything away from Ben. He did a great job, but I do think I won that fight,” Edgar said at the post-fight press conference for UFC 144.
After a championship bout for the ages, all three judges scored the fight in Henderson’s favor. From the looks of the post-fight mugs alone, it would seem like the judges made the right decision.
Henderson left the arena just as smooth as he entered, but Edgar’s face was rather unrecognizable after eating a steady dose of heavy strikes throughout the closely-contested bout.
With the loss, the world is already clamoring for Edgar to consider dropping to 145 pounds to challenge UFC featherweight champion and pound-for-pound standout Jose Aldo.
The move doesn’t look like it’s coming anytime soon. At the post-fight presser, Edgar shot down all inquiries about a potential move to featherweight, but his decision won’t stop fans and pundits from playing devil’s advocate.
If he dropped weight, where would Edgar rank in the featherweight division?
The better question would probably be whether or not Edgar has the tools to oust Aldo. Outside of the featherweight champ, there isn’t a single fighter that boasts the same level wrestling and technical efficiency on the feet as Frankie Edgar.
There are fun bouts to be had at 145 pounds for the former lightweight champion, particularly against Chad Mendes, Hatsu Hioki and Diego Nunes, but in every one of those fights, Edgar would enter as a heavy favorite.
Fans want to see Edgar versus Aldo. There really is no other reason for Edgar to drop to the featherweight division. At lightweight, Edgar has earned two wins over MMA legend B.J. Penn, a decision victory over Sean Sherk and a fourth round knockout over Gray Maynard.
It wasn’t like he was blown away by Henderson. There is definitely rematch potential surrounding the UFC 144 main event.
For fans holding out hope for an Edgar-Aldo super fight, they could be waiting quite awhile longer.
Edgar is already campaigning for an immediate rematch against Henderson.
“I’m not trying to shoot anybody out of anything they deserve, but I had to do two immediate rematches [against Penn and Maynard], so, what’s right?” asked Edgar.
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UFC 144 saw Frankie “The Answer” Edgar tenaciously defend his UFC Lightweight throne against the onslaught of Benson “Smooth” Henderson— in vain. That is, as far as the judges and the official winner’s announcement a…
UFC 144 saw Frankie “The Answer” Edgar tenaciously defend his UFC Lightweight throne against the onslaught of Benson “Smooth” Henderson— in vain. That is, as far as the judges and the official winner’s announcement are concerned.
And the telling and determinant difference could be the comparative state of facial tissues between the two fighters.
The Answer’s baby face appeared to have been bloodied by unanswered blows, while Smooth’s face appeared to have remained, well, smooth after five rounds of attrition.
It was a very close battle that could have gone either way, and in the end, it had to go one way. And that way pointed towards the UFC belt wrapping around Bendo’s girth.
The fight is now being peddled as a potential Fight of the Year awardee, and rightly so. The two men gave their all, proving that they are light only in weight class, but driven by hearts each weighing more than Quinton Jackson’s actual body weight.
It was a truly action-filled scrap, as both fighters bravely attempted to out-strike and out-grapple each other for 25 minutes of hell. How many times have we witnessed an MMA fight featuring two combatants who both try to inflict damage in every position, every second?
In the end, the warrior armed with the heavier hand—and overall body weight—won.
UFC 144 FightMetric results aside (anyone have a link to that now?), yours truly doesn’t really have a problem with Bendo as our new champion. And congratulations to him…begrudgingly.
I have to admit that I still fall victim to the David vs. Goliath syndrome. My heart remains biased towards the smaller guy fighting the giant, in any fight. (I also happen to share the same height with Frankie at 5 feet, 6 inches.)
What transpired last night was a true lightweight match, with both protagonists making the 155-pound weight limit the day before. But with the telling size discrepancy, it was very likely a lightweight versus welterweight bloody affair that we saw inside the Octagon.
In short, I was pining for Edgar. I believe that, according to my fallible perception, the defending champ did enough to eke out a victory and still reign as King David.
Just the same, the valiant Goliath Bendo delivered as much punishment as he could and remained standing. He wasn’t felled and finished off by any stone whipped from the little guy’s slingshot.
And, again, I can accept that Bendo’s win was of no stirring controversy; it was pretty close, after all.
I also remember that Carlos Condit’s face appeared a lot better-looking after he outscored Nick Diaz in UFC 143, compared to poor Edgar’s after last night.
Here’s interesting insight from Jeff Wagenheim’s Inside MMA article from Sports Illustrated:
This was no robbery. It was not even a shocking result. But it does call into question the stock a judge ought to put in the cuts and bruises on a fighter’s face, especially when that fighter shows no debilitating effect and ends up having landed more strikes, more significant strikes and a lot more takedowns. How much do you weigh those factors against a bloody nose?
…The [up-kick late in the second round] especially hurt Edgar in the eyes of the judges, as it connected high on the champ’s left cheek, just below the eye, and soon the area was purple and swollen, the eye opening barely a slit. That surely didn’t look good to the cageside observers with pencils and scorecards.
But The Answer had an answer to that vicious up-kick: a punch to the head that knocked Smooth down on the canvas in the fifth and final round! Still, it was no speeding stone that finished Bendo—it didn’t even leave him bloodied or bruised like the one who threw it.
Oh, well. Both fighters deserve a standing ovation from all of us for a brutal but very technical show of what MMA is all about.
And, for the umpteenth time, congrats to Bendo, our new UFC Lightweight Champion! (I’m still talking to myself.)
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The UFC’s return to Japan proved to be a successful and monumental event.Once the premiere destination for mixed martial arts events, Japan represented a homecoming of sorts to the spiritual motherland of martial arts and MMA.The contests did not disap…
The UFC’s return to Japan proved to be a successful and monumental event.
Once the premiere destination for mixed martial arts events, Japan represented a homecoming of sorts to the spiritual motherland of martial arts and MMA.
The contests did not disappoint as a variety of martial arts techniques were on display.
There were wrestling slams, judo throws, jiu-jitsu submission grappling, muay thai strikes, boxing punches, and just about every bit of imagination and ingenuity you could hope to fit in between.
The live Japanese crowd and audiences tuning in worldwide were treated to a spectrum of the wonderful world of mixed martial arts in a memorable event.
As Jake Shields stiffly welted away at Yoshihiro Akiyama in their UFC 144 feature bout, I turned to the friend I was watching the fight with and offered up a thought: “Jake really needs a little more Diaz in his style.” We went on to discus…
As Jake Shields stiffly welted away at Yoshihiro Akiyama in their UFC 144 feature bout, I turned to the friend I was watching the fight with and offered up a thought: “Jake really needs a little more Diaz in his style.”
We went on to discuss how baffling it is that Shields could work with the Diaz brothers so regularly and yet still be so robotic with his striking, and that the Diaz brothers could work with Shields and still be so faulty in their wrestling.
On paper, it’s a match made in heaven for training partners—insane boxers work with insane wrestlers, both sides develop two remarkable skills instead of just one. In reality, it’s become one of the greatest puzzles in MMA.
It’s a puzzle because Shields can take a punch, which is the foundation of that Stockton Slap style that’s become so prominent in the Diaz brothers’ combat approach.
Everyone raves about their hands, but it’s their chins which gives them the chance to be so open and aggressive. From there, it’s all about accurate punches in high volume and a stalking footwork that gets you from point A to point B long enough to dish out punishment.
Trash talk, optional.
Shields also has the cardio to adopt the punches-in-bunches style, and the athleticism to make it work. Any man who has NCAA wrestling titles, a Cesar Gracie black belt and a trophy case of MMA titles is a good athlete, and Shields has all of those things. Why hasn’t he tried to bring such an effective style of striking into his game?
The logical answer is that he continues to be hell bent on taking his man to the ground at all costs. Neither Diaz brother is interested in a ground fight, and as a result, they’re much more free with their hands.
For Shields, he wants to get people down and rough them up, so he needs to be a little more guarded with his standup to be in position to capitalize when a chance to shoot or clinch presents itself. As a result, he relies on slapping kicks from the outside and an underrated jab to set up his takedowns.
It’s hard to argue with that reasoning, because it’s worked for Shields for so long. He’s beaten the likes of Dan Henderson, Carlos Condit, Yushin Okami and Paul Daley, and that’s only a few of the big names on his hit list. But still, it’s hard to understand how a man could spend so much time working with elite strikers and still be so uncomfortable striking.
No one can stick a finger in his chest and tell him what to do, but most fans would probably say that a little bit more Diaz in his game wouldn’t be the end of the world for Jake Shields. He has all the tools to be as explosive and impressive on his feet as his Skrap Pack cohorts, so maybe that’s the thing to look into during training camp for his next tilt.
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