Here’s a weird little fact you probably already know: MMA is obsessed with the future.
In order to satisfy what we’re led to believe is a nearly inexhaustible interest in our sport, journalists and fans are constantly spinning things forwar…
Here’s a weird little fact you probably already know: MMA is obsessed with the future.
In order to satisfy what we’re led to believe is a nearly inexhaustible interest in our sport, journalists and fans are constantly spinning things forward, trying to jump the line of reality to predict what might happen next.
We prognosticate, we forecast, we speculate wildly about outcomes we couldn’t possibly know. Before the sweat is dry on the brow of a winning fighter, we’ve usually already booked his/her next fight, predicted the likely result of that fight and decided what it will mean amid a landscape of other things that probably haven’t happened yet.
There’s nothing wrong with this. It’s all in fun—a natural byproduct of the fight game in the age of instant communication—but even though I willingly participate, I’ve never fully made peace with it.
That’s why one of the most exciting things about Saturday night’s UFC 168 middleweight title rematch between Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman is that I have no earthly idea what’s going to happen.
You don’t either, and I love that about this fight.
In fact, one of the most anticipated aspects of what is arguably the most anticipated rematch in UFC history is that we have no clue what’s going to transpire when Weidman and Silva enter the cage. We don’t know who will win, how they’ll do it or how strange it may or may not be.
Even more than normal, there’s a sense that this bout could break any which way. In a sport where there is an allegedly big fight every month and so many crystal balls are routinely polished to such a high gloss, that’s the ultimate luxury.
Granted, we’ve tried to guess. We always try. But if you took all of the stories written about what will happen at UFC 168 (mine included) and put them on a spool, we could bill it as the world’s largest toilet-paper roll. We could pitch a tent roadside in Ohio and charge tourists $5 to take pictures with it.
Because that’s what all our conjecture is worth this time around.
The circumstances of their first bout at UFC 162 put us in this delicious mess. Prior to that bout, some people picked the upstart Weidman to unseat the longstanding champ. A bunch of people played it safe and went with Silva. In the end, none of it mattered. Nobody, and I mean nobody, thought it was going to go down like that.
When Weidman responded to the tired old saw of Silva’s playacting and mockery by stepping up and knocking him out, it essentially made all our guesswork moot. If that can happen the first time, well, why even waste our breath talking about how the next one will go down?
There are just too many unknowables here. Was Weidman’s win legitimate? Did Silva beat himself? Can the challenger-turned-champion possibly do it again? Will Silva repeat the same bizarre performance he’s been presenting on and off for the last few years? Does he even want to be there?
Anyone who says they know the answers to these questions is lying, and they are not your friend.
This time, it might be nice to dispense with all the speculation and just soak in the fight.
Because, really, here’s the point: Oftentimes, our sport gets so wrapped up in asking “what’s next?” that we forget to enjoy the present. In our clamor to get to the next thing, we don’t give ourselves time to revel in right now.
And this is a moment that deserves to be savored.
Not to overinflate things (another of our industry’s recurring sins), but what we have on tap this weekend is something we’ve never seen before. It’s something we might never see again.
Our sport’s greatest champion will try to rebound from a loss inside the Octagon. He’ll take on a competitor who is undefeated, and in their only previous meeting, he proved to not only be his equal but also his superior.
You know what the craziest thing about the UFC 168 pay-per-view price hike is? I’m actually going to pay it. That’s how badly I want to Anderson Silva vs. Chris Weidman II, because as amazing a troll as Chael Sonnen was, he never came close to a burning ol’ Andy as bad as Weidman just did in the above gif. There’s just something magical about those two, and the power of the gif for that matter, so we figured, “Why not combine them both into an article?”
No offense to Fabricio Camoes, but who the fuck is Fabricio Camoes and why is he fighting on the biggest main card of the year? Jim Miller may always bring it (and should finish the Brazilian inside three rounds if the bookies are to be believed), but this is a “Fight Night” main card matchup at best. Ranking:
You know what the craziest thing about the UFC 168 pay-per-view price hike is? I’m actually going to pay it. That’s how badly I want to Anderson Silva vs. Chris Weidman II, because as amazing a troll as Chael Sonnen was, he never came close to a burning ol’ Andy as bad as Weidman just did in the above gif. There’s just something magical about those two, and the power of the gif for that matter, so we figured, “Why not combine them both into an article?”
No offense to Fabricio Camoes, but who the fuck is Fabricio Camoes and why is he fighting on the biggest main card of the year? Jim Miller may always bring it (and should finish the Brazilian inside three rounds if the bookies are to be believed), but this is a “Fight Night” main card matchup at best. Ranking:
Now this is what I’m talking about — an intriguing matchup between two exciting featherweights with solid hands and sound submission games. Poirier looked great in his unanimous decision victory over Erik Koch at UFC 164, and Brandao once entered into a staring contest with a Largemouth bass and won, so this fight should be a real banger.
…what’s that, you say it was Bill Brasky who won the aforementioned staring contest? Well whatever the case, Brandao is a beast who will be riding a three fight UFC win streak (4-1 overall) into this weekend and looking to set himself up with a top 5 opponent. Let’s just hope his questionable cardio holds up against a guy like Poirier, who has shown that he can at least make it into the fourth round in his 2012 Fight of the Year with Chan Sung Jung. Ranking:
Call me crazy, but aside from proving herself to be the more laid back fighter of the two, Miesha Tate did not do a thing on TUF 18 that led me to believe she stands any better of a chance against Rousey the second time around. Tate looks to be in the best shape of her life, sure, but have you even seen Ronda Rousey (or deez odds) lately? The champ’s got a look in her eyes that would give Dr. Sam Loomis a stress-induced seizure for Christ’s sake. Combine that with her infinitely superior grappling prowess and ever-improving striking and you’ve got yourself a classic mismatch, Taters.
I would rank this rematch higher on the outside possibility that Rousey physically dismembers Tate in the octagon or beats her into retirement, but as long as Steve Mazzagatti isn’t the assigned ref, we’re likely in for another first round armbar for Rousey (not that there’s anything wrong with that). And maybe some blood-licking. Then Rousey can hopefully move onto the *actual* #1 contender she was supposed to fight in the first place. Ranking:
Without using too much hyperbole, it’s safe to say that you’d have to be in a persistent vegetative state to not be excited for this fight. It’s a battle between two of the most exciting heavyweights out there today, and a matchup that is all but guaranteed to end inside the distance and/or feature Josh Barnett saying something psychotic on the microphone.
After finally making his return to the UFC in August, Barnett made quick work of Frank Mir at UFC 164, KO’ing the former champ with a beautifully placed knee to the cranium in just under two minutes. Browne, on the other hand, is fresh off a come-from-behind KO via front kick of Alistair Overeem at Fight Night: Shogun vs. Sonnen in just over four minutes. While some are predicting that Barnett will look for the takedown early and often, I think these two are going to Rock ‘Em-Sock ‘Em until one of them tips over midway through the second. “The Warmaster” doesn’t seem to think the fight will last long either, and I’m not prepared to call this man a liar. Ranking:
Oh, like it was going to be something else? WHAT KIND OF TROLL DO YOU TAKE ME FOR?!
On the real though, Chris Weidman is going to officially end the Anderson Silva era tomorrow night. There, I said it. He will make good on Ray Longo’s promise to “punch a fucking hole” in Silva’s chest, and he will silence the cries of “fluke” once and for all. Unfortunately, his legendary victory will come at the cost of his mentor, as Matt Serra will choke to death on a chilidog ringside while shouting him advice/making fun of Longo’s hair. His last word will be “Fahgeddah.” Silva will then announce his retirement from MMA, destroy Roy Jones Jr. in a boxing match in Brazil, and reemerge in 2024 as the world’s preeminent R&B lip-syncher. These are facts. Ranking:
I don’t know what is happening in this gif, but it makes me sad.
If you subscribe to this narrative, UFC 168 represents a chance for the UFC to slow their decline. If Silva prevails, the UFC has a bankable champion again; the crisis of the UFC’s future isn’t averted per se but at least it’s delayed.
This is the wrong way to look at it.
First, Anderson Silva is 38 years old. Despite his ten-fight deal, he likely won’t be around much longer. Even if he does stay for a while, he won’t be the same fighter. UFC 162 taught us that. Silva was just a 1/2 second too slow against Weidman. How much slower will he be a year from now? Two years from now?
If you subscribe to this narrative, UFC 168 represents a chance for the UFC to slow their decline. If Silva prevails, the UFC has a bankable champion again; the crisis of the UFC’s future isn’t averted per se but at least it’s delayed.
This is the wrong way to look at it.
First, Anderson Silva is 38 years old. Despite his ten-fight deal, he likely won’t be around much longer. Even if he does stay for a while, he won’t be the same fighter. UFC 162 taught us that. Silva was just a 1/2 second too slow against Weidman. How much slower will he be a year from now? Two years from now?
If Silva continues, we won’t be getting the real-life Neo we’re used to. We’ll be getting a watered-down, dilatory, depressing Anderson Silva—a 2009 Chuck Liddell-esque Silva that makes us want to give the Brazilian a cup of coffee and a hug rather than our pay-per-view dollars. “Remember how great Silva used to be?” will replace “Holy shit! Did you just see what Silva did?” throughout bars and dens across the world.
Excluding his two fights against Sonnen (UFC 117 and UFC 148), Silva didn’t bring in jaw-dropping numbers. Over the last three years, he’s garnered an average of just over 400,000 PPV buys each time he headlined a card. Silva needs the right opponent to draw. Silva-Weidman II will draw well because of the rematch angle, but the initial fight only drew 550,000 buys—respectable but not a “this guy is a superstar” level of success. It’s doubtful the UFC will find a new, profitable rival for Silva in the tired crop of “I respect him, he’s a great opponent” fighters.
The UFC wins if Silva loses. They gain a new, younger champion to promote in Chris Weidman. They’re also getting their middleweight division back. What was once a predictable slaughterhouse will now be the wild west—a lawless weight class in which a multitude of gunslingers have a chance at the title. It’ll be a division where nothing is a given; number one contender fights will actually matter and predicting who will hold the belt in a year will be challenging.
Conversely, the UFC loses if Silva wins. A triumphant Silva is a victory for a past-its-prime generation of competitors. A generation that, like a price sticker on a picture frame, refuses to be peeled away so that the beauty underneath can be seen. A Silva victory means the UFC can continue relying on its fading past, while Weidman winning forces the UFC to build its future.
UFC 168 is shaping up to be one of the biggest pay-per-view events of 2013. The main event between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva is stealing all the headlines, but a few underrated bouts have the potential to steal the show.
With Uriah Hall taking o…
UFC 168 is shaping up to be one of the biggest pay-per-view events of 2013. The main event between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva is stealing all the headlines, but a few underrated bouts have the potential to steal the show.
With Uriah Hall taking on Chris Leben and Dennis Siver squaring off against Manny Gamburyan, there is serious potential for fireworks before the main card even begins.
Here is a full slate of predictions and a quick preview of the two most underrated bouts.
Uriah Hall (7-4) vs. Chris Leben (22-10)
Both Uriah Hall and Chris Leben are on losing streaks. Hall has amassed two straight split-decision losses—including the finale of The Ultimate Fighter 17—but Leben has really struggled, racking up three straight defeats and four losses in his last five fights.
While Leben’s talents are beginning to decline, Hall has suffered his losses due to inexperience. There is no better lesson in MMA than being beaten, and Hall will return to the Octagon at UFC 168 looking to save his career.
Leben has the experience advantage, but the mileage on his body has taken a toll after so many losses. If Hall can stick to his plan and keep this fight standing up, his elite striking will open up the chance to steal a victory.
Whether it’s a TKO or a submission, Hall will end Leben’s night early.
Predicted Winner: Hall via second-round TKO.
Dennis Siver (21-9) vs. Manny Gamburyan (13-7)
Veteran Dennis Siver is reeling from a TKO loss to Cub Swanson in July, and he will be taking on Manny Gamburyan, who is coming off two consecutive wins. With both fighters evenly matched, this bout has all the earmarks of an instant classic.
Both men are willing to stand and exchange in the middle of the Octagon, and that raises the likelihood of a potentially abrupt finish. While most experts believe both men can go the distance and force a decision, Siver is too good to put this fight in the judges’ hands.
With nine career submission victories, Siver will catch Gamburyan getting too aggressive and make him pay with an early end to the bout.
Siver’s climb back into title contention will start with a win over Gamburyan.
Predicted Winner: Siver via third-round submission.
So much has been made of how much Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate dislike each other. Not as much analysis has gone into how these two women match up inside the Octagon for their high-profile rematch at UFC 168 on Saturday.
Can Tate prevent herself from f…
So much has been made of how much Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate dislike each other. Not as much analysis has gone into how these two women match up inside the Octagon for their high-profile rematch at UFC 168 on Saturday.
Can Tate prevent herself from falling victim to Rousey’s armbar again? Is this the bout Rousey shows off her striking skills?
These questions won’t be answered until the two meet on Saturday night at UFC 168 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. As the moment of truth approaches, here’s a statistical look at Rousey vs. Tate 2.
Tale of the Tape
Striking
Some may believe that Tate is the better striker of the two, but the numbers don’t support that concept. Rousey has landed more strikes per minute, has been more accurate and has absorbed fewer strikes in her career.
Considering this, it may not be all that risky for Rousey to spend a little time showing off her striking ability.
Takedowns
Without a doubt, the edge goes to Rousey in this area. She seeks the takedown more aggressively. She’s more successful with her attempts, and her defense against her opponent’s takedown attempts has been better.
Submissions
Rousey also excels in this category. All seven of her wins have come by submission—including her 2012 victory over Tate while both women were in Strikeforce. Tate does have six submission wins to her credit, but none of them has come against grapplers as experienced and skilled as Rousey.
Then again, there is no woman in the UFC as advanced as Rousey is on the ground.
The Bottom Line
It’s hard to see a scenario where Tate wins this fight. I know she’s been working on her submission defense, but the truth is that she picked up martial arts late compared to Rousey. The champion has been honing her skills since she was a child.
We’ve yet to see the woman who has the technical mastery or physical strength to defeat the UFC women’s bantamweight champion.
Here’s a weird little fact you probably already know: 
