Tag: UFC 148

UFC 148 Results: 5 Things We Learned from Saturday’s Fights

UFC 148 delivered fantastic moments, a sad retirement and memorable finishes. But what did we learn?Here are five things we learned from Saturday’s epic fights.   Melvin Guillard gave himself a lifelineMelvin Guillard’s back was against …

UFC 148 delivered fantastic moments, a sad retirement and memorable finishes. But what did we learn?

Here are five things we learned from Saturday’s epic fights.  

 

Melvin Guillard gave himself a lifeline

Melvin Guillard’s back was against the wall going into his fight Saturday night. That wall was the door to the exit from the UFC. 

After coming close to a title fight about a year ago, Guillard has failed to deliver inside of the Octagon. He fell all the way to the preliminary’s. 

But, with his back to the wall, he defeated Fabricio Camoes via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

Lifeline given.

 

Anderson Silva proves his worth

A late submission saved Anderson Silva the first time he locked horns with Chael Sonnen, but this fight was more certain.

After Sonnen found some success early, Silva took over the fight in the second round. He landed some heavy strikes, and Sonnen found himself on the wrong side of a TKO.

No more theories, no more Sonnen can compete with Anderson. He lost not once, but twice. The door has shut. 

 

Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz looked old

Forrest Griffin defeated Tito Ortiz via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28). Both fighters looked old, out of gas and run down.

Griffin came out with the slight decision, and his shelf life in the UFC does appear to have some time left, but both looked old. 

 

Tito Ortiz’s retirement was perfect timing

The “I’m retiring” right after you lose is something I can’t stand. It generally takes a lot of the publicity from the winning fighter.

But in this case, with an aging Ortiz, it was the right time. Hopefully this is it for Ortiz. He doesn’t have much more in the tank at age 37, and his skid of 1-7-1 to conclude his career proves it. 

However, he did go down fighting until the bitter end, which is classic Ortiz. It’s sad to see a legend retire, but the time was right. 

 

Chad Mendes’ body blow got the show started

Which one would you take—shot to the face or blow to the body? 

Chad Mendes countered a Cody McKenzie kick with a powerful body shot, ending it in only 31 seconds.

I don’t like when fights last under a minute, but this was perfect for UFC 148. We saw six fights that went the distance prior, and then Mendes landed a blow that opened up the rest of the show. 

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UFC 148 Post Fight Breakdown

Anderson Silva v Chael Sonnen In one of the most hyped fights in UFC history, middleweight champion Anderson Silva once again defended his title against Chael Sonnen. For one round, it looked like we may.

Anderson Silva v Chael Sonnen

In one of the most hyped fights in UFC history, middleweight champion Anderson Silva once again defended his title against Chael Sonnen. For one round, it looked like we may have been witnessing a replay of their first fight. Sonnen came out and immediately landed a takedown. Just like the first fight, he proceeded to land his particular brand of annoying but not very damaging ground and pound. He managed to move to mount by the end of the round but was only able to land a few shoulder strikes after moving into the dominant position. Sonnen started the second round exactly the same way. He pushed Silva against the cage and worked for the takedown. But this time Silva was able to do what he was unable to do in the first fight. He defended the takedown and managed to get separation from Sonnen. Upon separating, Silva did some showboating. With his arms by his sides, he popped Sonnen with a quick right. Sonnen countered with a left that seemed to hurt Silva just enough to make him angry. Silva pushed forward with aggression rarely seen in his UFC title run. He didn’t land anything cleanly but his forward push put Sonnen off balance. And then for a reason no one will ever understand, olympic caliber wrestler Chael Sonnen decided to throw a backyard fight club style spinning back fist that resulted in him sitting on his butt against the cage seemingly unsure of what to do. Silva wan’t unsure and threw a knee to the body of his seated opponent. He then attacked with punches. Sonnen eventually stood up. But a right hand to the chin put him back down and he would not get up again.

Silva never landed the flashy strike that I’m sure he envisioned in training but he did enough to establish that Sonnen does not belong in the same cage with him. Once again, Sonnen showed that he panics when he senses danger and instead of going through the proper progression of defensive techniques, he puts himself in a position to be finished. He was basically running away when he threw the back fist and when he hit the ground, he just sat there and waited for Silva to attack. He didn’t seem to have changed anything about his gameplan and that simply was not going to be enough to win the fight. Anderson Silva is one of the best pound for pound fighters on the planet and he doesn’t currently have a legitimate contender in his division. Alan Belcher, Michael Bisping and Brian Stann are the names currently being discussed in the title picture and none of them look like a serious threat. Hector Lombard looms in the background but he needs at least one solid UFC victory before he can be considered a serious contender. So for now, Silva remains the undisputed king of the 185 pound division. Sonnen drops back down in the rankings and I don’t see a reason for him to ever get another shot at Silva unless he absolutely cleans out every other contender in the division, which seems unlikely.

Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz

The third match in this trilogy between former light heavyweight champions proved to be the clear fight of the night as Griffin slugged his way to a hard fought decision victory over Ortiz. Ortiz managed to land a couple of takedowns in the first round but was not able to keep Griffin down or do any damage and when the fight was standing, Griffin out landed Ortiz by a wide margin. The second round started with Ortiz dropping Griffin with a right hand but after that, Griffin once again dominated the rest of the round. The third round was the only one that I scored for Ortiz as he once again dropped Griffin, this time with the left hand. From there he was able to get a takedown and control the fight for the majority of the round. Once Griffin got back to his feet, he controlled the striking just as he did in the first two rounds but it wasn’t enough to win back the round. As much as I would have loved to score this fight in favor of Ortiz, the striking statistics made it obvious that Griffin was the clear winner. Ortiz actually landed the bigger power punches but the volume of Griffin’s strikes was overwhelming and he deserved to have his hand raised.
For Ortiz, I can’t imagine a better way to leave the sport regardless of the outcome. He slugged it out with another hall of famer for three exciting rounds and went out on his sword. He never gave in to the relentless pressure and had Griffin in danger several times. This trilogy is one of the better ones in MMA history thus far with all three fights going to a decision and being relatively close. Ortiz has been a polarizing figure throughout his MMA career but last night, he gave the fans a great way to remember him.


Cung Le vs. Patrick Cote

Cung Le proved that he isn’t done yet in the UFC middleweight division with a convincing victory over Patrick Cote. Cote simply could not figure out Le’s trademark san shou style as Le battered him with kicks and punches. Cote stayed in the fight and landed several power shots of his own but was never able to put Le in danger and was unable to cope with the volume and variety of strikes coming from his opponent. The fight was close through most of the first round with both fighters landing and Cote being the aggressor. But after taking several shots, Cote started to back off and that was the recipe for his defeat. When he relented, he allowed Le to find his range and from that point on, Le controlled the fight. By the middle of the second round, he was beginning to dominate using his full arsenal of kick and punch combinations. When the third round started, the outcome of the fight was not in doubt and Le continued his assault battering Cote all around the cage. He even landed a takedown at the end of the round. Cote was game but was outclassed throughout the majority of the fight and could not find a home for his powerful right hand. For Cote, this could mean a quick exit from the UFC. He will probably get one more fight and will need to win that if he hopes to stay in the big show. For Le, this puts him back in the hunt in the middle of the 185 lb division. He will likely see another step up in competition but at age forty, he likely doesn’t have much time left to compete at the highest level. He seemed to tire late in this fight but Cote didn’t have the skill set to take advantage of it. Against higher level competition, that will likely be a bigger issue.

Demian Maia vs. Dong Hyun Kim

What could have been an entertaining fight ended in the first minute due to injury when Kim appeared to suffer a broken rib on a routine takedown by Maia. What we did learn in this fight is that Maia looked great at 170 lbs. Kim is one of the larger fighters in the division and Maia looked just as big so instead of being one of the smaller middleweights, he’ll now be one of the bigger welterweights. We also learned that Maia wasn’t just talking when he said he was going back to his jiu-jitsu routes. He wasted no time in attempting a single leg takedown and quickly transitioned to Kim’s back. He was relentless and appeared to be gaining a dominant position before Kim suffered his injury. We’ll never know how the fight would have ended had it been able to continue but Maia had the early advantage. From here, Maia will likely get to step up in competition due to his name and Kim will likely continue to tread water in the middle of the division until he gets another opportunity against a high level fighter. Ideally, a rematch would be possible. But that seems unlikely considering the timeline on Kim’s recovery and the UFC’s probable eagerness to move Maia up the welterweight ranks.

Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie

This fight was an obvious mismatch on paper and proved to be even more of a mismatch in the cage. McKenzie threw a sloppy kick to open the fight, Mendes caught it, countered with a right to the body and ended the fight. McKenzie’s run on the Ultimate Fighter based entirely on the novelty of his modified guillotine was fun but he clearly doesn’t have the technique or athleticism to seriously compete in the featherweight division. On the opposite end of that featherweight spectrum is Mendes who is still one of the best in the world at 145 lbs despite his title fight loss to Jose Aldo. Mendes should see a return to fighting against top tier competition in his next fight while McKenzie will likely spend the next year or so struggling to stay in the UFC. The unfortunate part about mismatches like this is that we don’t really learn anything about either fighter and neither fighter really has a chance to grow. But for Mendes, this at least puts another finish on his record and hopefully he can carry the momentum from such a dominating performance into his next fight.

Ivan Menjivar vs. Mike Easton

In the opening fight of the UFC 148 main card, Mike Easton and Ivan Menjivar struck their way to a close three round decision. Neither fighter ever gained a significant advantage and neither fighter was ever in any danger of being finished. The difference in the fight proved to be Easton’s relentless pressure and forward movement. Menjivar seemed to have the cleaner technique early in the fight and was able to initially avoid most of Easton’s power shots while countering with his own. But as the fight progressed, Easton’s leg kicks and body shots started to take effect and Menjivar’s movement slowed significantly compared to the first round. By the third round, Easton began to take a clear advantage and was obviously the fresher fighter. He landed several several power strikes and scored a takedown when Menjivar attempted a spinning back kick. I was surprised to see two of the judges score all three rounds for Easton as I thought the fight was closer than that. I gave Menjivar the first round and had him ahead in the second round until Easton stole it at the end. But the third was clearly in favor of Easton and he deserved the victory. He will see a step up in competition but if he wants to progress in the bantamweight division, he will need to continue to improve as both of his recent victories have been close decisions. At this point in his career, Menjivar is who he is as a fighter. He will continue to provide entertaining fights and should serve as an effective gatekeeper at 135 lbs.

Silva vs. Sonnen 2 Results: UFC 148 Is Not End of the Road for Chael Sonnen

Anderson Silva successfully defended his middleweight championship at UFC 148 Saturday night, but the bigger story of the night has to be what’s next for Chael Sonnen.There is no question that Silva is the most dominating champion in the history …

Anderson Silva successfully defended his middleweight championship at UFC 148 Saturday night, but the bigger story of the night has to be what’s next for Chael Sonnen.

There is no question that Silva is the most dominating champion in the history of MMA, but that doesn’t mean Sonnen’s road to the belt is over; it just means it starts over.

With cardio for days and a ground game second-to-none in the middleweight division, Sonnen will have to start back at the bottom of the barrel again and work his way through the ranks…again.

While many fans and experts thought that a loss for the 35-year-old Sonnen would result in his retirement, there is too much pride in the fighter’s heart to allow him to walk away from MMA when he is arguably the second-best fighter in the division.

Sonnen told ESPN after the fight about his plan of attack after his loss and what’s next for the fighter:

You get knocked down sometimes in life and you have to put one foot in front of the other. You’ve got to learn to shake things off and you have to keep your eye on the ball. You can’t get down. You can’t get depressed. Every single day you get up, you’ve got to make the most of it. I really believe that if you’re going to be in this company [UFC], and take up a spot, you’ve got to be chasing a championship.

It’s tough but, unfortunately, it’s not my first athletic defeat. In this sport you have a 50 percent chance of failure. So you get out there and put in your mouthpiece and you do the best you can. You’ve got to man-up sometimes.

Now is one of those times Sonnen must man up. His career is far from over.

While it is a tough loss to swallow because of the sheer amount of trash talked, that is just what Chael does. The next man who gets in the Octagon will have to endure the same verbal lashing, but the hope is that the outcome will be different.

Silva is just too dominant right now and throughout his reign to be stopped, but the hope is that he will still be wearing gold in another year or two when Sonnen marches back through the middleweight division and finds his way into another title match.

As much as legions of fans and experts will claim that Sonnen doesn’t deserve a third fight, if Silva is still champion after Chael makes his way back to the top of the division, there is little doubt that the third installment is something may fans would love to see.

Until then, there is a long road ahead for Sonnen to get another shot at glory. He did it twice already, what’s one more time?

 

Check back for more on Mixed Martial Arts as it comes, and don’t miss Bleacher Report’s UFC page or listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics.

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Silva vs. Sonnen 2: Silva’s TKO Victory Proves He Is Still Growing as a Fighter

Anderson Silva is still progressing as a fighter, and that may be the scariest thing I’ve ever written.After all, Silva is already the undisputed greatest mixed martial artist of all time. With his second-round TKO of Chael Sonnen at UFC 148, he improv…

Anderson Silva is still progressing as a fighter, and that may be the scariest thing I’ve ever written.

After all, Silva is already the undisputed greatest mixed martial artist of all time. With his second-round TKO of Chael Sonnen at UFC 148, he improved to 15-0 in the UFC (32-4 total) and extended his record of most consecutive successful title defenses to 10.

As if that wasn’t enough, he also convincingly defeated his only career rival, and proved that he is still evolving in the process.

At 37 years of age, Silva is defying the basic laws of physics. Wine is supposed to get better as it ages. World-class athletes are not.

And yet, despite being just two years away from the current definition of “middle age,” Silva is deadlier than ever.

It’s expected to see fighters’ athleticism deteriorate as they reach their late 30s, but Silva has shown no signs of slowing down. His strikes are still lightning-quick, his power is still devastating and his elusiveness is still unparalleled.

Silva has always been an incredible athlete, but the fact that he is the same athlete today that he was a few years ago is fascinating.

Where he has really grown—and will continue to grow—is in the mental aspects of fighting. Silva’s ability to take punishment in the first Sonnen bout was amazing, but his adjustments for the rematch were even more so.

Like the first fight between the two, Silva spent most of Saturday’s first round on his back. But rather than wrap his arms around Sonnen’s neck like the first fight, Silva wrapped them around his chest and shoulders.

This limited Sonnen’s movement, specifically his ability to punish Silva’s body, which in turn would open up Silva’s face. It also denied Sonnen the opportunity to land brutal punches to the head, as he was pressed chest-to-chest against Silva.

This robbed him of his power and reduced the size of his target, as Sonnen’s own upper body was often shielding Silva’s face. At one point, a frustrated Sonnen even tried smacking Silva with his chest, but unsurprisingly, it did no damage.

Of course, this adjustment on the ground might not have mattered had Sonnen not slipped in the second round, allowing Silva to pounce.

But what it did do was prove that Silva is still learning—still growing—and with his athleticism remaining at an elite level, this is terrible news for the rest of the UFC.

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Anderson Silva vs Chael Sonnen 2 Results: Keys Leading to Silva’s Solid Victory

Anderson Silva abruptly ended his extended rivalry with Chael Sonnen by TKO during their UFC 148 main event.  Prior to the fight, each fighter’s expected strategy wasn’t a secret:  Sonnen needed to drag this fight to the ground, w…

Anderson Silva abruptly ended his extended rivalry with Chael Sonnen by TKO during their UFC 148 main event. 

Prior to the fight, each fighter’s expected strategy wasn’t a secret:  Sonnen needed to drag this fight to the ground, while Silva looked to keep it standing.  Domination was the intended goal for each fighter, and while Sonnen struck first, Silva bounced back in devastating fashion later in the fight.

In the first round, Sonnen successfully shot in and took Silva down to the mat.  The ‘American Gangster’ controlled the entire five minutes, ending the first round in full mount.  Again, he seemed to have the strategy to frustrate and control Silva – even if he was unable to land any significant ground and pound.

Starting the second round, Sonnen rushed the champion and pinned him against the cage while looking for another take down.  Silva defended the take down but absorbed a few knees, and capitalized when Sonnen suddenly decided to go for a spinning back fist.

After clearly making an adjustment between rounds, Silva followed his keys to victory perfectly: avoid the take down, and capitalize on any mistakes made by Sonnen.  Silva avoided being planted on his back, and instantly jumped on Sonnen after the American fighter missed while trying to land a reckless spinning back fist. 

Silva landed a perfectly placed knee – 100 percent legal – to Sonnen’s sternum, and followed up with ground and pound. 

Following the fight, Silva acknowledged the victory – and respectfully called a truce to the end of his fight rivalry with Sonnen.  During his post-fight speech with Joe Rogan, here is what the champion had to say:

“Chael disrespected my country, but it’s fine.  Yeah, I have big emotions… (but) let’s show that Brazil has manners.  I want everyone to applaud Chael.”

I believed Sonnen would be able to learn from his mistakes following the first fight with Silva, predicting he’d win by submission.  However, Silva took advantage of Sonnen’s reckless and rather sudden standup strategy, and that has to be applauded.

In other words: He did what elite athletes do, and was prepared to fight any possibility in the cage.

On the biggest stage, Silva reaffirmed why he’s the best MMA fighter on the planet.  He’s now 15-0 in the UFC, and successfully defended the middleweight championship for the 10th consecutive time.  Impressive – and he plans to continue facing any and all middleweight challengers.

I’m an MMA writer addicted to Twitter, so feel free to get in touch if you want to chat:

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UFC 148 Results: Dana White ‘Forrest and Tito Looked Old Tonight’

The Tito Ortiz and Forrest Griffin story came to a close at UFC 148. The match would be Ortiz’ last as he had announced his retirement in the lead-up to the fight. The fight had a nostalgia factor as Ortiz claimed to be healthy for the first time and i…

The Tito Ortiz and Forrest Griffin story came to a close at UFC 148. The match would be Ortiz’ last as he had announced his retirement in the lead-up to the fight. The fight had a nostalgia factor as Ortiz claimed to be healthy for the first time and in the opening round, he looked to be in vintage form.

Unfortunately, both fighters faded pretty fast and the fight went from being exciting to losing some steam midway through the third round. UFC President Dana White was critical when addressing the fight. 

“Both Tito and Forrest looked old tonight. Anybody who thought that those guys looked good tonight is out of their f***ing mind. They both looked old. Tito barely beat Forrest the first time. Forrest barely beat Tito the second time. And Forrest barely beat Tito tonight,” White told Bleacher Report after the UFC 148 post-fight press conference.

“All three of those fights looked the same except this was the slowest and sloppiest of the three that they’ve had. And my point in saying that isn’t to beat up on Forrest and Tito. That’s what you see when a guy starts to get closer—and they’re younger than Anderson, you know what I’m saying?”

With Tito’s retirement, it truly is the end of the Golden Age of the UFC. His compatriots Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture had already called it quits, leaving only Ortiz to represent the older generation of UFC light heavyweights. 

“That’s what happens in this business and not just this business but all sports. There’s always an end to an era man. Your heroes, your guys. F***ing Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys died. Beastie Boys were supposed to be young forever man. I’m just saying, that’s my generation.”

He’d go on to add, “I seriously haven’t been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys. It’s life. It’s the way that it happens. It’s the end of an era. It’s the way that it goes. The old guys go out and the new guys come in. Especially in this sport, it’s a young man’s game.”

He’s right, it’s the end of an era. And we witnessed history. 

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