Tag: UFC 166

UFC 166 Highlight Videos: Velasquez Dominates Dos Santos, Nelson Pays the Troll Toll + The FOTY Frontrunner

(Velasquez vs. Dos Santos highlights, via the FOX Sports Youtube page.) 

To put it bluntly, UFC 166 was the kind of faith-restoring UFC event that effectively silenced even the most cynical of the sport’s detractors (henceforth known as “garbage-assers“). Featuring a trio of wars and a pair of brutal first round finishes on the main card alone, UFC 166 staked its claim as an early frontrunner for “Event of the Year” at this year’s Potato Awards and will likely achieve the same notoriety at awards ceremonies that actually transpire.

In the evening’s main event, Cain “El Emperador Finale” Velasquez selfishly opted to ruin the heavyweight division for the foreseeable future with a dominant fifth round TKO of former rival Junior Dos Santos. Elsewhere on the card, Roy Nelson was routed by another top 5 competitor in Daniel Cormier, Gilbert Melendez attempted to punch the crazy out of Diego Sanchez to little avail, and Gabriel Gonzaga reaffirmed that a man with a pedostache is not to be toyed with. Twas a momentous night, indeed.

Thankfully, FOX Sports has compiled some highlight videos of the evening’s greatest slugfests and made them available for viewing on their Youtube page. Although these snippets won’t fill the bottomless void created in the soul of, say, your friend Dave who insisted on skipping UFC 166 to attend a Lady Gaga concert with his bitch of a girlfriend, they will give you the chance to confirm that Dave is a tiny, tin-eared man who lacks intestinal fortitude and any semblance of deductive reasoning. Fucking Dave.

We’ve placed the highlight video for Velasquez/Dos Santos III above, but join us after the jump to relive the rest of what was truly a historic night for both the UFC and MMA in general.


(Velasquez vs. Dos Santos highlights, via the FOX Sports Youtube page.) 

To put it bluntly, UFC 166 was the kind of faith-restoring UFC event that effectively silenced even the most cynical of the sport’s detractors (henceforth known as “garbage-assers“). Featuring a trio of wars and a pair of brutal first round finishes on the main card alone, UFC 166 staked its claim as an early frontrunner for “Event of the Year” at this year’s Potato Awards and will likely achieve the same notoriety at awards ceremonies that actually transpire.

In the evening’s main event, Cain “El Emperador Finale” Velasquez selfishly opted to ruin the heavyweight division for the foreseeable future with a dominant fifth round TKO of former rival Junior Dos Santos. Elsewhere on the card, Roy Nelson was routed by another top 5 competitor in Daniel Cormier, Gilbert Melendez attempted to punch the crazy out of Diego Sanchez to little avail, and Gabriel Gonzaga reaffirmed that a man with a pedostache is not to be toyed with. Twas a momentous night, indeed.

Thankfully, FOX Sports has compiled some highlight videos of the evening’s greatest slugfests and made them available for viewing on their Youtube page. Although these snippets won’t fill the bottomless void created in the soul of, say, your friend Dave who insisted on skipping UFC 166 to attend a Lady Gaga concert with his bitch of a girlfriend, they will give you the chance to confirm that Dave is a tiny, tin-eared man who lacks intestinal fortitude and any semblance of deductive reasoning. Fucking Dave.

We’ve placed the highlight video for Velasquez/Dos Santos III above, but join us after the jump to relive the rest of what was truly a historic night for both the UFC and MMA in general.

Cormier vs. Nelson Highlights

Melendez vs. Sanchez Highlights

Gonzaga vs. Jordan Highlights

–J. Jones

UFC 166 Velasquez vs. Dos Santos 3: What Went Wrong for JDS?

It was the same story but different venue for Junior Dos Santos, who took another lopsided beating at the hands of Cain Velasquez.
“Heart” was the reoccurring theme throughout the night at UFC 166. Diego Sanchez had displayed tons of it in …

It was the same story but different venue for Junior Dos Santos, who took another lopsided beating at the hands of Cain Velasquez.

“Heart” was the reoccurring theme throughout the night at UFC 166. Diego Sanchez had displayed tons of it in his epic, lightweight scrap with Gilbert Melendez. Roy Nelson demonstrated his fair share against Daniel Cormier.

But it wasn’t until the main event heavyweight bout between Dos Santos and Velasquez where fans got to see the ultimate example of heart.

For nearly 25 minutes, MMA fans around the world watched as Velasquez bullied and battered Dos Santos. The Brazilian’s face was hardly recognizable beneath all of the blood and swelling.

Still, Dos Santos never backed down or wavered in the face of adversity. He continued to stand in the pocket and exchange strikes with the heavyweight champ before finally being stopped by TKO at 3:09 of the fifth round.

“I was okay, very okay for this fight. He’s very, what can I say? He beat me up. That’s what I have to say,” Dos Santos told UFC commentator Joe Rogan after the fight. “He did a great job. Congratulations for him. I’m going to go back home, train harder to come back and face him again.”

What went wrong for Dos Santos in the rubber match?

In the last two fights, Velasquez’s game plan has been relatively simple when dealing with Dos Santos. He wanted to make the fight as short as possible, which typically means closing the distance and keeping his opponent’s back to the cage.

Dos Santos is the more talented boxer in the open, but Velasquez’s aggressive approach took away his range and negated a pure boxing match. In close quarters, Velasquez also minimized his chances of getting caught with a big punch. Dos Santos rarely got an opportunity to fully extend on his punches, and he was always battling on his heels in tight space.

One good note to take away from the bout was Dos Santos’ continued improvement in his takedown defense. He was able to remain upright for a good portion of the bout. Unfortunately, it appeared like he put all of his marbles in defensive grappling.

Dos Santos’ corner screamed over and over again for him to get his back off the cage, but he seemed completely lost grappling in the clinch with Velasquez. He was never able to reverse the position. Velasquez was basically able to lean on him, create quick separation, fire off some heavy punches and return to the starting position.

It has been a wash, rinse and repeat game plan that has proved flawless in Velasquez’s last two fights with Dos Santos.

Defensive wrestling is a must when dealing with someone like Velasquez, but if Dos Santos ever hopes to be UFC champ again, he’ll have to make huge strides in his offensive grappling, specifically in his use of leverage in the clinch. He should also focus his training more on short strikes like uppercuts, hooks and elbows.

There is plenty of time for him to get it right. Unless someone else defeats Velasquez, it could be years before Dos Santos ever gets another UFC title shot.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

[VIDEO] Dana White Talks Bad Judging, Title Contenders & Much More at UFC 166 Post Event Press Scrum

UFC president Dana White spoke with assembled press after UFC 166 Saturday night in Houston. Per usual, all topics were on the table including judging, reffing, who is and isn’t on the chopping block and the future of the heavyweight and light heavyweight division title scene.

Who’s up next for Cain Velaszquez? Is there a chance Alexander Gustafsson and Daniel Cormier could fight next?

Check out Uncle Dana’s interesting and non-committal answers alike to these questions and more in the video above.

– Elias Cepeda


UFC president Dana White spoke with assembled press after UFC 166 Saturday night in Houston. Per usual, all topics were on the table including judging, reffing, who is and isn’t on the chopping block and the future of the heavyweight and light heavyweight division title scene.

Who’s up next for Cain Velaszquez? Is there a chance Alexander Gustafsson and Daniel Cormier could fight next?

Check out Uncle Dana’s interesting and non-committal answers alike to these questions and more in the video above.

– Elias Cepeda

UFC 166: Why Gilbert Melendez Will Get the Next Lightweight Title Shot

Gilbert Melendez’s “Mexican World War” with Diego Sanchez at UFC 166 will be the reason TJ Grant misses out on yet another UFC title shot.
On Saturday night, Melendez and Sanchez went toe-to-toe in a 15-minute battle that some are alr…

Gilbert Melendez’s “Mexican World War” with Diego Sanchez at UFC 166 will be the reason TJ Grant misses out on yet another UFC title shot.

On Saturday night, Melendez and Sanchez went toe-to-toe in a 15-minute battle that some are already calling the “Fight of the Year.” During the live pay-per-view telecast, UFC commentator Joe Rogan called it the “fight of the century.”

MMA fans have a short-term memory span, and ultimately, it will prove beneficial in helping Melendez leapfrog Grant for a shot at lightweight champ Anthony Pettis. UFC President Dana White already planted the seeds during the UFC 166 post-fight media scrum, which was attended by MMA H.E.A.T.’s Karyn Bryant:

TJ Grant’s in one of those unfortunate situations where he’s had a title shot, and he had to pull out twice, so he might have to come back and fight another fight. We have to keep this thing rolling. [Melendez’s win is] a huge step back for TJ Grant.

There is certainly no questioning that Grant deserves the next title shot. Melendez’s win over Sanchez pales in comparison to Grant’s first-round knockout victory over perennial lightweight contender Gray Maynard.

It’s all about bad timing for Grant, who has pulled out of consecutive title bouts with an injury. Some still see Melendez as the uncrowned champion after his controversial split-decision loss to Benson Henderson back in April. Then, he topped that off at UFC 166 by competing in one of the best fights in UFC history.

It all puts a murky stain on Grant’s title hopes.  

In fairness, the UFC should offer Grant at least one more opportunity to lay claim to the title shot he earned months ago. Unfortunately, sometimes being fair doesn’t always equate to good business.

You can always count on White to make the tough decisions, and given the level of excitement generated by Melendez vs. Sanchez, this one is a no-brainer.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

‘Velasquez vs. Dos Santos 3? Fight-Picking Contest: And the Winner Is…


(FTF’s Muay Thai 2013 tee. Check out the rest of their Combat Line shirts here.)

Thanks to everybody who entered last week’s UFC 166 fight-picking contest! Cain Velasquez‘s destruction of Junior Dos Santos may have seemed obvious in retrospect, but only one of our readers actually predicted that Cain would end the fight by TKO in the fifth round. That man was Brett Ketchum, who has just won himself a Combat Line t-shirt from Fear the Fighter.

Well done, Brett. We’ll be sending you a message on Facebook about how to claim your prize, so be sure to check the “Other” folder of your FB messages today. As for everybody else, please swing by Fear the Fighter to browse their line of fight-themed shirts and gear, and if you’d like us to do more giveaway contests with FTF, let us know in the comments section.


(FTF’s Muay Thai 2013 tee. Check out the rest of their Combat Line shirts here.)

Thanks to everybody who entered last week’s UFC 166 fight-picking contest! Cain Velasquez‘s destruction of Junior Dos Santos may have seemed obvious in retrospect, but only one of our readers actually predicted that Cain would end the fight by TKO in the fifth round. That man was Brett Ketchum, who has just won himself a Combat Line t-shirt from Fear the Fighter.

Well done, Brett. We’ll be sending you a message on Facebook about how to claim your prize, so be sure to check the “Other” folder of your FB messages today. As for everybody else, please swing by Fear the Fighter to browse their line of fight-themed shirts and gear, and if you’d like us to do more giveaway contests with FTF, let us know in the comments section.

Cain Velasquez and Junior Dos Santos: Positives and Negatives for Both Fighters

Another weekend, another terrific UFC event. Dana White and Co. are on a roll and UFC 166 did nothing to halt the organisation’s momentum.
The main event between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight title turned out to be …

Another weekend, another terrific UFC event. Dana White and Co. are on a roll and UFC 166 did nothing to halt the organisation’s momentum.

The main event between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight title turned out to be an extremely lopsided affair, yet it remained compelling throughout.

What did each fighter do well and what will they be looking to improve for the future? For those interested, read on for my take on last night’s action.

Begin Slideshow