After what’s felt like 100 cancellations and postponements, this fight is finally here.
Vitor Belfort’s taken almost two years off from kicking people in the face to give his body the necessary recuperation time as it gets a grasp on life after testost…
After what’s felt like 100 cancellations and postponements, this fight is finally here.
Vitor Belfort‘s taken almost two years off from kicking people in the face to give his body the necessary recuperation time as it gets a grasp on life after testosterone replacement therapy. Last time we saw him, The Phenom looked all the parts of a frightening man with a pining for gold.
Chris Weidman’s taken almost a full year off from defending the highly sought-after middleweight crown to recover from injury after injury. Last time we saw him, he was busy going five rounds with Lyoto Machida in what was considered one of the best fights 2014 had to offer.
The two will meet on Saturday, May 23 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas as they play second fiddle to the heavier boys at 205 pounds.
Click on as we examine this fight from head to toe before providing you with a prediction on who’ll be walking out of UFC 187 with the crown and all the perks that come with it.
UFC Fight Night 66 is in the books. The results are as follows (h/t Bleacher Report’s live blogger, Nathan McCarter):
Frankie Edgar defeats Urijah Faber by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
Gegard Mousasi defeats Costas Philippou by unanimous …
UFC Fight Night 66 is in the books. The results are as follows (h/t Bleacher Report’s live blogger, Nathan McCarter):
Frankie Edgar defeats Urijah Faber by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
GegardMousasi defeats CostasPhilippou by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Mark Munoz defeats Luke Barnatt by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Neil Magny defeats HyunGyuLim by TKO at 1:24 of the second round
Phillipe Nover defeats YuiChul Nam by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
LevanMakashvili defeats Mark Eddiva by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
Jon Tuck defeats TaeHyun Bang via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:56 of the first round
Kajan Johnson defeats ZhangLipeng by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Li Jingliang defeats Dhiego Lima by KO at 1:25 of the first round
NingGuangyou defeats Royston Wee by TKO at 4:59 of the second round
Jon Delos Reyes defeats Roldan Sangcha-an via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:13 of the second round
Yao Zhikui defeats Nolan Ticman by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Next up? The super-stacked UFC 187 on May 23.
For the first time in a long time, there is a UFC card where every single fight is worth watching. Similarly, for the first time in a long time, yours truly had to pick and choose which questions to run.
With eight top-fivers on the card and a number of other fun, title-relevant or otherwise interesting fighters, there is plenty to talk about. So jump on in, MMA fans!
When former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was involved in a hit-and-run accident last month, the UFC stripped him of the light heavyweight title and suspended the New York native indefinitely. The incident came as a great blow to the UFC, as Jon…
When former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was involved in a hit-and-run accident last month, the UFC stripped him of the light heavyweight title and suspended the New York native indefinitely. The incident came as a great blow to the UFC, as Jones was slated to face the division’s No. 1 contender in Anthony Johnson at UFC 187. However, even in the absence of Jones, UFC 187 has the potential to become one of the highest-grossing pay-per-views of 2015.
Anthony Johnson vs. Daniel Cormier
A great amount of anticipation surrounded the Jones/Johnson match-up, as the challenger set out and destroyed every one of his foes since entering the light heavyweight ranks for the first time in his UFC career at UFC 172. Johnson even dismantled Jones’ greatest test to date in Alexander Gustafsson at UFC on Fox 14 in just two minutes, 15 seconds of the first round. Therefore, their matchup at UFC 187 was expected to be one of epic proportions. However, with the outing of Jones, entered the man whom the former champion defeated in his last bout, Daniel Cormier.
Speaking on an episode of MMA Hour, Johnson commented on his upcoming fight and gave light to his feeling toward Jones and Cormier:
Yeah, I will feel I’m the champion if (Cormier) I beat him. I worked my ass off to get where I am. It’s not my fault, not anybody’s fault with what happened with Jon (Jones). Jon (Jones) did that to himself, everybody knows that. But, life goes on and you got to keep it moving, But when he comes back, if I still have the title and it’s time to fight him, I’ll fight him. One day we will fight.
Despite his lone loss to Jones, Cormier has been known to utilize his wrestling to literally manhandle and throw around his opponents. He sports significant wins over MMA legends in SoaPalelei, Jeff Monson, Antonio Silva, Roy Nelson, and former world champions in Josh Barnett, Frank Mir and Dan Henderson. Cormier is a formidable opponent, and his bout against Johnson at UFC 187 represents nothing less than elite.
Chris Weidman is the only man to twice defeat who many consider to be the greatest of all time in Anderson Silva. Both bouts ended in dramatic fashion—one in Silva’s knockout and the last with the breaking of his leg due to a blocked kick.
The two-time NCAA Division I All-American wrestler is the only undefeated male champion in the UFC and boasts wins over longtime veterans in Demian Maia, Mark Munoz, and former world champions Silva and LyotoMachida. At UFC 187, he will take on the No. 3 contender, VitorBelfort.
In preparation for his fight with Belfort, Weidman uploaded the following picture of his foe on Instagram with a message of inspiration written on it:
I, Chris Weidman, will defeat VitorBelfort on May 23rd, 2015, and still be the UFC champ!
#Work hard every day
#No excuses
#Refuse to lose
#Physical, mental and SPIRITUAL.
Belfort, on the other hand, is 10-2 in his last 12 bouts and has lost only to two of the most gifted athletes of all time since 2007, Jones and Silva. He is explosive and sports heavy hands, knocking out the likes of MMA greats in Henderson, Luke Rockhold, Michael Bisping, Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva.
Given their inclination to end fights, a matchup between Weidman and Belfort most likely will not be decided by the judges. This bout is highly anticipated and represents yet another high-octane bout that is sure to deliver.
Anthony “Rumble” Johnson will not fight Jon “Bones” Jones on May 23 as originally planned.
Instead, he will face Daniel “DC” Cormier, an opponent who stepped in at UFC 187 after Jones’ recent hit-and-run incident put the UFC light heavyweight tit…
Anthony “Rumble” Johnson will not fight Jon “Bones” Jones on May 23 as originally planned.
Instead, he will face Daniel “DC” Cormier, an opponent who stepped in at UFC 187 after Jones’ recent hit-and-run incident put the UFC light heavyweight title up for grabs.
For most fighters, going from Jones to literally anyone else in the 205-pound class would be a blessing.
Jones’ only loss in 22 fights came via disqualification in a fight he was thoroughly dominating, and his eight title defenses are the most in the division’s history. Nobody, to this point, has had the answer for his vast array of skills inside the cage.
To Johnson, however, fighting Jones is preferable to facing the former Olympic wrestler, Cormier.
“The part that’s not disappointing (about the change of opponents) is that I get to fight another elite athlete, a guy who, in my opinion, is actually a tougher fight for me than Jon Jones,” Johnson said Wednesday on a UFC 187 media conference call.
Specifically, Johnson thinks that, since Cormier failed to capture the title from Jones at UFC 182 on January 3, DC will harness a different level of motivation for this fight.
After seeing gold in front of him and failing to snatch it, Cormier will come out stronger this time, knowing that he doesn’t want to experience defeat in a championship matchup again.
“Right now I feel that he’s just more difficult because, once again, I said it before, this is his second opportunity at a title shot,” Johnson said. “So he’s going to bring everything that he can bring to win that title. People get second chances in life, and this is his second chance, just like it was my second chance in life when I returned to the UFC, and you see what has happened so far as far as me.”
In addition, Johnson lauded Cormier‘s skills as a wrestler but added that the former heavyweight packs a more serious punch than Jones. Cormier, at 5’11”, is five inches shorter than Jones, and his striking game relies more heavily on pure power than Jones’ does.
“We’re a little crazy because we are wrestlers, so it’s just going to be one of those fights that’s just, I assume, an all-out war,” Johnson said. “You’ll get to see everything. Daniel has power, he has speed, he has good technique, and his wrestling is top-notch. Nobody can deny that.
“For me it’s just going to be a tougher opponent. He might be shorter than me, but the dude packs a lot of power, you know what I’m saying? And Jon isn’t known for packing power, he’s known for throwing crazy kicks, using his range and his reach, whatever you want to call it—stuff like that. DC is just that guy, and I truly believe that.”
Personally, I find it hard to disagree with anything Johnson said, but there’s no doubt that Jones brings a little extra something to the UFC Octagon on fight night. Styles make fights, so the fact that Jones already soundly defeated Cormier isn’t the only factor to consider here, but there’s something to be said for the way Jones out-wrestled and overpowered Cormier throughout the fight.
Jones is always just a little bigger, a little stronger, a little better than we expect when the lights go down, and that’s part of what has elevated him into “greatest of all time” discussions in relatively short order.
Should Johnson get past Cormier at UFC 187, it is likely we see Johnson vs. Jones once Bones returns to action to settle the debate for good.
What do you make of Johnson’s words? Is Cormier a tougher fight for him than Jones would have been?
Leave a comment, and we’ll discuss this light heavyweight title matchup.
As everyone reading this already knows by now, the UFC Light Heavyweight championship has been vacated due to a recent hit and run incident involving Jon Jones that left a pregnant woman with a broken arm and other injuries. The news comes as…well, not very shocking to anyone that has been paying attention to the behavior of the former champion and it seems that his history of bad behavior has finally caught up to him as the UFC has stripped him of his title, removed him from their rankings and have “indefinitely suspended” him from competition.
Today we’re going to take a look at the effects that this incident has had in a fun segment that I’m stealing from former CP alumni: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
As everyone reading this already knows by now, the UFC Light Heavyweight championship has been vacated due to a recent hit and run incident involving Jon Jones that left a pregnant woman with a broken arm and other injuries. The news comes as…well, not very shocking to anyone that has been paying attention to the behavior of the former champion and it seems that his history of bad behavior has finally caught up to him as the UFC has stripped him of his title, removed him from their rankings and have “indefinitely suspended” him from competition.
Today we’re going to take a look at the effects that this incident has had in a fun segment that I’m stealing from former CP alumni: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
The Good
-UFC makes the right decision by vacating the title and suspending Jones
My first reaction upon hearing the news of Jones’ involvement in a hit-and-run accident was “Hmm…I wonder how Dana White is going to justify keeping him in the main event of UFC 187.” To my surprise, White announced last Tuesday that the UFC would be stripping him of the title and released the following statement:
UFC feels strongly that its athletes must uphold certain standards both in and out of The Octagon®. While there is disappointment in the recent charges, the organization remains supportive of Jones as he works through the legal process.
It was certainly refreshing to see the UFC take the right course of action after recent incidents like the Anderson Silva drug test debacle or the attempted rehiring of Thiago Silva. Let’s hope that the UFC continues on its course of taking the high road should…ok let’s be as real as it gets, *when* another fighter does something terribly stupid down the road.
-The LHW Title Picture becomes much more interesting
Although it may not have happened the way we wanted to (which I’ll be getting to later), the removal of the dominant champion opens up the opportunity for the other fighters in the division to get a taste of championship gold. Much like with the aforementioned Silva, there weren’t many contenders for the belt that could offer much of a challenge to Jon Jones. Should he have gone on to UFC 187 and defeated Anthony Johnson, there wouldn’t have been anyone else waiting in the wings outside of a rematch with Alexander Gustafsson, who came close to defeating the champion but then suffered a devastating KO loss to the current number one contender, leaving him to contemplate retirement. Gustafsson has since backpedaled on his retirement statement but one has to wonder the blow dealt to his confidence after the loss.
With Cormier replacing Jones in the title fight at UFC 187, which I can only imagine is leaving a much deserved sour taste in Bones’ mouth, we are now guaranteed to see a new champion emerge be it DC or Rumble. Regardless of who wins, it opens up a slew of new title matches to be booked while the slow build for a possible return and match up of the disgraced former champion. Hopefully, the UFC can use this angle to attract fans into spending their money on upcoming PPV events.
The Bad
-An anticlimactic end to a dominant title run
One of the greatest parts of any long win streak is basking in the joy of watching someone end it. I’m sure more than a handful of people reading this article can remember exactly where they were when Anderson Silva’s six year title run came to a halt at the hands of Chris Weidman or when current interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum snapped Fedor’s nine year undefeated streak via triangle choke. As awesome as it is to see someone display complete and total domination at their game, it’s even more exciting when you’re there to see it come to an end and this is a moment that we as fans have been robbed of. For years, we’ve waited to see who would be the first to end Jones’ momentous undefeated streak (no, that horseshit DQ doesn’t count) but now that’s all come to an end thanks to a terribly stupid decision.
Rumors are swirling about whether or not Jones will retire after all of this, but if he return to action one day and pick up where he left off, whatever absence he takes from the cage will always serve to mark his streak with an asterisk.
-The UFC loses one of its few remaining draws
With Jones suspended, this leaves Ronda Rousey, and to a lesser degree, Conor McGregor as the only real draws left on its roster and they can only fight so many times a year. This doesn’t discount the amount of talent in the UFC as there are many interesting matchups to be had among the different divisions but talent doesn’t necessarily add up to PPV buys (See: Demetrious Johnson, Renan Barao, Benson Henderson). By taking Jones away from its already diminished pool of fighters with drawing power, the UFC is going to have to scramble to start making new stars for the future, although exactly how they can pull that off remains to be seen (medieval weapon fighting, perhaps?)
The Ugly
-A legacy tarnished
Regardless of what your personal opinion is of Jon Jones, there is no question that as a fighter, Bones was building one hell of a legacy as a MMA fighter. He had already built an eight year undefeated streak, become the youngest UFC champion in history and defended that title eight times consecutively. Now he’s added another historical fact to his resume by becoming the first UFC Champion to be stripped of his title as a disciplinary measure.
While the recent events will not diminish the accomplishments already made by Jones, they most certainly slam the brakes on the legacy that he was building and no matter what happens from this point on, his bad behavior, and most specifically this hit and run incident will most certainly become a talking point anytime anyone ever brings up Bones in a conversation of great MMA fighters, much like Tyson’s rape conviction will always overshadow all of the amazing feats he accomplished prior.
While Jones will certainly be a name mentioned as one of the greatest fighters in MMA’s ever growing history, what could have been the story of the greatest fighter in MMA will now be tarnished and told as a fighter with limitless potential that screwed it all up with a series of bad decisions. It’s a sad way for the Bones saga to end and hopefully he will use this to improve himself and become a better human being.
As everyone reading this already knows by now, the UFC Light Heavyweight championship has been vacated due to a recent hit and run incident involving Jon Jones that left a pregnant woman with a broken arm and other injuries. The news comes as…well, not very shocking to anyone that has been paying attention to the behavior of the former champion and it seems that his history of bad behavior has finally caught up to him as the UFC has stripped him of his title, removed him from their rankings and have “indefinitely suspended” him from competition.
Today we’re going to take a look at the effects that this incident has had in a fun segment that I’m stealing from former CP alumni: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
As everyone reading this already knows by now, the UFC Light Heavyweight championship has been vacated due to a recent hit and run incident involving Jon Jones that left a pregnant woman with a broken arm and other injuries. The news comes as…well, not very shocking to anyone that has been paying attention to the behavior of the former champion and it seems that his history of bad behavior has finally caught up to him as the UFC has stripped him of his title, removed him from their rankings and have “indefinitely suspended” him from competition.
Today we’re going to take a look at the effects that this incident has had in a fun segment that I’m stealing from former CP alumni: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
The Good
-UFC makes the right decision by vacating the title and suspending Jones
My first reaction upon hearing the news of Jones’ involvement in a hit-and-run accident was “Hmm…I wonder how Dana White is going to justify keeping him in the main event of UFC 187.” To my surprise, White announced last Tuesday that the UFC would be stripping him of the title and released the following statement:
UFC feels strongly that its athletes must uphold certain standards both in and out of The Octagon®. While there is disappointment in the recent charges, the organization remains supportive of Jones as he works through the legal process.
It was certainly refreshing to see the UFC take the right course of action after recent incidents like the Anderson Silva drug test debacle or the attempted rehiring of Thiago Silva. Let’s hope that the UFC continues on its course of taking the high road should…ok let’s be as real as it gets, *when* another fighter does something terribly stupid down the road.
-The LHW Title Picture becomes much more interesting
Although it may not have happened the way we wanted to (which I’ll be getting to later), the removal of the dominant champion opens up the opportunity for the other fighters in the division to get a taste of championship gold. Much like with the aforementioned Silva, there weren’t many contenders for the belt that could offer much of a challenge to Jon Jones. Should he have gone on to UFC 187 and defeated Anthony Johnson, there wouldn’t have been anyone else waiting in the wings outside of a rematch with Alexander Gustafsson, who came close to defeating the champion but then suffered a devastating KO loss to the current number one contender, leaving him to contemplate retirement. Gustafsson has since backpedaled on his retirement statement but one has to wonder the blow dealt to his confidence after the loss.
With Cormier replacing Jones in the title fight at UFC 187, which I can only imagine is leaving a much deserved sour taste in Bones’ mouth, we are now guaranteed to see a new champion emerge be it DC or Rumble. Regardless of who wins, it opens up a slew of new title matches to be booked while the slow build for a possible return and match up of the disgraced former champion. Hopefully, the UFC can use this angle to attract fans into spending their money on upcoming PPV events.
The Bad
-An anticlimactic end to a dominant title run
One of the greatest parts of any long win streak is basking in the joy of watching someone end it. I’m sure more than a handful of people reading this article can remember exactly where they were when Anderson Silva’s six year title run came to a halt at the hands of Chris Weidman or when current interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum snapped Fedor’s nine year undefeated streak via triangle choke. As awesome as it is to see someone display complete and total domination at their game, it’s even more exciting when you’re there to see it come to an end and this is a moment that we as fans have been robbed of. For years, we’ve waited to see who would be the first to end Jones’ momentous undefeated streak (no, that horseshit DQ doesn’t count) but now that’s all come to an end thanks to a terribly stupid decision.
Rumors are swirling about whether or not Jones will retire after all of this, but if he return to action one day and pick up where he left off, whatever absence he takes from the cage will always serve to mark his streak with an asterisk.
-The UFC loses one of its few remaining draws
With Jones suspended, this leaves Ronda Rousey, and to a lesser degree, Conor McGregor as the only real draws left on its roster and they can only fight so many times a year. This doesn’t discount the amount of talent in the UFC as there are many interesting matchups to be had among the different divisions but talent doesn’t necessarily add up to PPV buys (See: Demetrious Johnson, Renan Barao, Benson Henderson). By taking Jones away from its already diminished pool of fighters with drawing power, the UFC is going to have to scramble to start making new stars for the future, although exactly how they can pull that off remains to be seen (medieval weapon fighting, perhaps?)
The Ugly
-A legacy tarnished
Regardless of what your personal opinion is of Jon Jones, there is no question that as a fighter, Bones was building one hell of a legacy as a MMA fighter. He had already built an eight year undefeated streak, become the youngest UFC champion in history and defended that title eight times consecutively. Now he’s added another historical fact to his resume by becoming the first UFC Champion to be stripped of his title as a disciplinary measure.
While the recent events will not diminish the accomplishments already made by Jones, they most certainly slam the brakes on the legacy that he was building and no matter what happens from this point on, his bad behavior, and most specifically this hit and run incident will most certainly become a talking point anytime anyone ever brings up Bones in a conversation of great MMA fighters, much like Tyson’s rape conviction will always overshadow all of the amazing feats he accomplished prior.
While Jones will certainly be a name mentioned as one of the greatest fighters in MMA’s ever growing history, what could have been the story of the greatest fighter in MMA will now be tarnished and told as a fighter with limitless potential that screwed it all up with a series of bad decisions. It’s a sad way for the Bones saga to end and hopefully he will use this to improve himself and become a better human being.
When former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was involved in a hit-and-run accident last month, the UFC 