Sorry, Alistair, it looks like you’ll just have to wait your turn.
In an interview with MMAFighting’s Ariel Helwani that followed the UFC 150 post-fight press conference, Dana White was asked to answer a series of questions with simple “yes” or “no” answers. And although it seemed implausible that The Baldfather could ever go more than thirty seconds without uttering a certain curse word, he kindly obliged Helwani and spilled the beans in regards to several big questions currently circulating in the MMA world. Simply put, bullshit was cut through in record time.
And among the questions present in the back of Ariel’s (and everyone’s) mind was that of heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos and who would be the next man to get viciously mauled to death bravely sacrifice himself for the good of The Colony “challenge” him for the title. To put it in the words of DW: Overeem – No, Velasquez – Yes. Although an event has yet to be named, White said in a seperate interview that the pair would likely collide on the annually stacked New Year’s Eve card, also known as the card that Overeem will totally be fighting on.
Sorry, Alistair, it looks like you’ll just have to wait your turn.
In an interview with MMAFighting’s Ariel Helwani that followed the UFC 150 post-fight press conference, Dana White was asked to answer a series of questions with simple “yes” or “no” answers. And although it seemed implausible that The Baldfather could ever go more than thirty seconds without uttering a certain curse word, he kindly obliged Helwani and spilled the beans in regards to several big questions currently circulating in the MMA world. Simply put, bullshit was cut through in record time.
And among the questions present in the back of Ariel’s (and everyone’s) mind was that of heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos and who would be the next man to get viciously mauled to death bravely sacrifice himself for the good of The Colony ”challenge” him for the title. To put it in the words of DW: Overeem – No, Velasquez – Yes. Although an event has yet to be named, White said in a separate interview that the pair would likely collide on the annually stacked New Year’s Eve card, also known as the card that Overeem will totally be fighting on.
It’s hard to see why Ariel wins more MMA journalism awards than Uwe Boll does Razzies, as he managed to extract more information out of White in ten seconds than our intern Frederick has done in two years (we told him that if he resolved our situation with Dana, we’d hire him, and we haven’t seen him since). Here’s a brief rundown:
– BJ Penn vs. Rory MacDonald is still happening, likely as a co-main event on UFC on FOX 5.
– Dana “is cool” with Jason Miller, even though Mayhem refused to call him during their awkward Twitter exchange. Turns out, Dana was only joking when he told Miller to retire, furthering my belief that sarcastic font really needs to become a thing in 2013.
And although booking Velasquez over Overeem was the right thing to do given the circumstances, it also looks like the UFC is walking into the same potential trap that they placed themselves in with UFC 150. What trap are we referring to? Well, aside from DirecTV shitting the bed Saturday night, the live gate for UFC 150 was apparently “the worst gate for a pay-per-view since 2007″ according to White, who told the following in the UFC 150 media presser just moments before.
White attributed part of the low attendance to the recent string of Colorado-based tragedies that has swept over the state, and he undoubtedly has a point here. But on the other hand, the paltry 650k gate can also be attributed to that of the main event. Not many of us thought Edgar had earned an immediate rematch based on his performance alone at UFC 150, to which White’s response was that Edgar received one simply because it was owed to him. And while the latter is true, it doesn’t exactly generate a lot of excitement, or at least enough to fill an arena in any case.
Yet here we are again, witnessing another rematch. Only this time, the first fight didn’t end in a controversial decision, but in a first round knockout. Sure, Velasquez was coming off a long layoff and got caught, and sure, he will definitely do better the second time around (as did Edgar), but when even Dos Santos is admitting that he doesn’t want this fight, it’s kind of hard to get excited for it from a fan’s perspective, something the gate numbers might reflect down the line.
Then again, the end of the year cards are normally stacked enough to draw even the most reluctant MMA fan out of hiding, so the UFC will more than likely prosper to close things out unless a *knock on wood* injury curse rears its ugly head again. It should be known that I also scored Henderson/Edgar II in favor of Edgar (48-47), so what the hell do I know?
How about you, Potato Nation? Are you excited to see these two throw down once again? One thing’s for sure, the winner wont be decided by the judges, and that should be reason enough to get excited.
(Mike Swick and DaMarques Johnson combine their efforts to create not only the greatest punchface of 2012, but perhaps the greatest punchface of all time.)
Aside from the disappointing and sudden end that came during the Phil Davis/Wagner Prado fight (which is tentatively being rescheduled for UFC on FX 5), last Saturday’s UFC on FOX event delivered in spades, featuring a main card that not only provided four highlight reel finishes for the night’s big winners, but a quartet of great fights that mainstream audiences had yet to witness on a FOX card. It more than likely came as a surprise to most of us that the card was as successful as it truly was, so with that in mind, we decided to dust off our beloved Armchair Matchmaker and pre-determine the fates of the aforementioned winners and losers from last weekend’s action. Enjoy, and let us know of any other possible matchups you’d like to see in the comments section.
Mauricio Rua: Despite smashing Brandon Vera’s title aspirations in rather brutal fashion, there is no denying that Shogun had some rather dicey moments leading up to the fourth round finish (that guillotine, for instance). After controlling Vera on the ground for the majority of the first, Shogun looked like he was fighting underwater by the end of the second. But as was the case in his previous loss to Dan Henderson, Shogun proved that what he lacks in cardio he more than makes up for in heart.
Still, it will take at least another “impressive” finish over an upper-echelon opponent before we are convinced that Shogun deserves another title shot. His total unwillingness to fight Glover Teixeira causes some pause for concern, and since it appears that Rashad Evans might be headed for 185 in the near future, we are left with only one suitable fit: Alexander Gustafsson. Last weekend basically cleared out the list of potential contenders at 205, and although we’d rather see Shogun and Lyoto Machida complete their trilogy for the right to take on the Bones/Hendo winner, we can’t hate on Dana White for following through on his promise. So if Rua/Gustafsson is all we’re left with, we’d be more than willing to watch these two throw down for a #1 contender spot. Let’s just hope Shogun packs his oxygen tank this time.
(Mike Swick and DaMarques Johnson combine their efforts to create not only the greatest punchface of 2012, but perhaps the greatest punchface of all time.)
Aside from the disappointing and sudden end that came during the Phil Davis/Wagner Prado fight (which is tentatively being rescheduled for UFC on FX 5), last Saturday’s UFC on FOX event delivered in spades, featuring a main card that not only provided four highlight reel finishes for the night’s big winners, but a quartet of great fights that mainstream audiences had yet to witness on a FOX card. It more than likely came as a surprise to most of us that the card was as successful as it truly was, so with that in mind, we decided to dust off our beloved Armchair Matchmaker and pre-determine the fates of the aforementioned winners and losers from last weekend’s action. Enjoy, and let us know of any other possible matchups you’d like to see in the comments section.
Mauricio Rua: Despite smashing Brandon Vera’s title aspirations in rather brutal fashion, there is no denying that Shogun had some rather dicey moments leading up to the fourth round finish (that guillotine, for instance). After controlling Vera on the ground for the majority of the first, Shogun looked like he was fighting underwater by the end of the second. But as was the case in his previous loss to Dan Henderson, Shogun proved that what he lacks in cardio he more than makes up for in heart.
Still, it will take at least another “impressive” finish over an upper-echelon opponent before we are convinced that Shogun deserves another title shot. His total unwillingness to fight Glover Teixeira causes some pause for concern, and since it appears that Rashad Evans might be headed for 185 in the near future, we are left with only one suitable fit: Alexander Gustafsson. Last weekend basically cleared out the list of potential contenders at 205, and although we’d rather see Shogun and Lyoto Machida complete their trilogy for the right to take on the Bones/Hendo winner, we can’t hate on Dana White for following through on his promise. So if Rua/Gustafsson is all we’re left with, we’d be more than willing to watch these two throw down for a #1 contender spot. Let’s just hope Shogun packs his oxygen tank this time.
Brandon Vera: Although we don’t need to reiterate that “The Truth” completely blew our expectations out of the water, we’re going to anyway. Anyone who predicted that Vera would put up as great a fight as he did against a beast like Shogun was either Negrodamus or a shut-in UFC fan who hadn’t seen Vera fight since UFC 65. If the Brandon Vera that showed up Saturday night continues to show up in the future, we are going to be in for some fantastic fights to put it simply. We’re sure he’d love a chance for revenge against noted “juice monkey” Thiago Silva, who was originally scheduled to face Rua at UFC 149, but Silva’s neverending back problems don’t give us much hope that he’ll be ready for action anytime soon. Given Vera’s stellar performance last weekend, we’d like to see him take a tough, but winnable matchup that will boost his confidence should he emerge victorious. Just 1-2 in his last three, Antonio Rogerio Nogueria seems like a perfect litmus test for Vera. Lil Nog packs a hell of a punch and a slick submission game to boot, yet hasn’t really convinced many fans that he is championship material in his past few octagon appearances. Sound familiar?
Ryan Bader: If Lyoto Machida is Johnny Cage (or more likely Liu Kang, but just set ethnicity aside for a moment), Ryan Bader is without a doubt the lumbering, stumbling four armed freak that Cage testicle-punched off the mountain top. Bader looked completely lost when forced to deal with Machida’s elusive style, and aside from abandoning his wrestling base, apparently became frustrated to the point that he decided bull rushing into Machida’s fist with his eyes closed would be the most dignified way out. A flawless victory for Machida it truly was. The loss puts Bader in a unique, if not scary position. On one hand, he can handily defeat 85 to 90 percent of the division’s challengers, but on the other, he has been absolutely schooled by the division’s elite…and Tito. It’s not quite gatekeeper status, but if Bader wants to launch himself back up the ranks, he will need a huge win to do so.
Although he doesn’t present as interesting a puzzle as Machida (then again, who does really?) James Te Huna would make for a great matchup. On the heels of a record setting performance against Joey Beltran, Te Huna’s UFC record now stands at 4-1, with three of those wins coming by some variation of a Falcon Punch. The New Zealander has shown some susceptibility to the takedown in the past, and a fight against Bader would tell us a lot about which direction both men are headed.
Joe Lauzon: After overcoming a few rocky moments against a former WEC champion, Lauzon delivered in the style he has become known for: exciting and decisive. Now the all time leader in performance bonuses, Lauzon has only seen the judge’s cards in defeat, which in and of itself should be commended. That being said, Lauzon’s standup game still has some significant holes (mainly, his defense and head movement) that need working on if he is to hang with some of the power punchers that reside at 155 lbs. If you’re looking for a fighter who would make for a great test of Lauzon’s all around game, look no further than Jim Miller. He came up short in his #1 contender bout with Nate Diaz, suffering the first submission loss of his career, and will be looking to rebound with a fury. Both men are upper-level lightweights that have fallen short in fights against the true contenders, and would make for a guaranteed FOTN were they to square off.
Jamie Varner: Although his comeback story hit a speedbump, there is no reason to knock Varner for his gutsy performance. He took the fight on short notice, fought until the very end, and even managed to drop Lauzon on a couple of occasions. Varner is a gamer, through and through, and once his hand recovers, he deserves a fight with a guy who brings the fight each and every appearance. The first name that pops into my mind is Sam Stout, who is fresh off a trilogy capturing victory over Spencer Fisher. Both men are excellent strikers who aren’t afraid to take a punch, and would make for a great addition to any card lacking fireworks.
Mike Swick: It may have taken him over two years to do so, but “Quick” put on a performance for the ages against Damarques Johnson, overcoming an early storm to emphatically show “Darkness” the irony of his nickname in the second round. At the risk of sounding cliche (not to mention ignoring a certain ban on the phrase), Swick looked like his old self last weekend, and we couldn’t be more happy for the guy. But given the time he has spent away from the octagon, we’d like to have him face another mid-level fighter before he is thrown to the contenders of the division. James Head is fresh off an upset victory over Brian Ebersole at UFC 149, and would definitely jump at the opportunity to knock off another big name like Swick. If that’s not quite the marquee matchup you’re looking for, a fight against Stephen Thompson, who just came up short against Matt Brown in a hell of a fight at UFC 145, would make for an interesting pairing.
Nam Phan: Here’s what we know about Nam Phan:
1. Dude throws some nasty body punches.
2. Dude makes for exciting fights in every appearance.
3. Dude cannot beat another dude convincingly inside of three rounds.
Do the judges have it out for this guy? We couldn’t be the only one’s who felt the Leonard Garcia decision creep into the back of our minds when it was announced that Phan’s victory over Cole Miller was a split decision. Although it’s a given that one out of three MMA judges is either mentally handicapped in some fashion or plain blind nowadays, Phan needs to start going for broke if he doesn’t want to find himself on the wrong end of a decision in the near future. We’d suggest that he square off against Manny Gamburyan, who also emerged victorious at the same event, to try and get a good finish under his belt. Manny is a tough, hard hitting former title challenger who just recently broke a three fight skid, so we’d like to see these two throw caution to the wind and let the fists fly.
Give us your thoughts on our matchups, as well as the ones you’d like to see for the rest of the night’s competitors, in the comments section.
(No, Rampage, that’s not a white tiger! Bad Rampage! Down!)
Can MMA fighters just start referring to these so called “retirements” as what they really are (an extended vacation), or do they simply have too much pride? I only ask because, after retiring less than twenty pay-per-views ago (that’s roughly a year in human people time), it appears that TUF 3 light heavyweight alum Matt Hamill will be returning to action at UFC 152, where he will be taking on promotional newcomer and Bellator veteran Roger Hollett.
Being that Matt is one of the more inspirational figures in the sport, not to mention hails from just a few towns away from me, I was initially excited to hear this news. Sure, Matt will probably not be getting his revenge (or whatever you’d call it considering he won) on Jon Jones anytime soon, but he makes for a great addition to any card, and produces good fights for the most part with the occasional skull shattering KO mixed in. However, upon reading over what BG (or at least who I assume was BG, being that I’m the only one who signs his damn posts around here) wrote when Hamill originally announced his retirement, I couldn’t help but reconsider:
Prior to Saturday night, Hamill’s only career losses came against former champions Quinton Jackson and Rich Franklin, as well as his controversial split-decision loss against Michael Bisping…But losing to a mid-level up-and-comer like Gustafsson (Ed note: How things change in a year, amiright?) was apparently the final sign that the game was passing him by. It’s rare to find an MMA fighter who hangs up the gloves before the sport has completely chewed him up. Hats off to Hamill for a fantastic career, and for knowing when to walk away.
Granted, Hammil stated that part of the reason he had decided to retire was due to a “career [that] has been plagued by injuries starting with The Ultimate Fighter and disrupted my training ever since,” so perhaps he has finally had the time to sufficiently heal up. That being said, what do you think of his decision? Will it go the way of Jamie Varner, or is “The Hammer” just setting himself up to get dicknailed?
(No, Rampage, that’s not a white tiger! Bad Rampage! Down!)
Can MMA fighters just start referring to these so called “retirements” as what they really are (an extended vacation), or do they simply have too much pride? I only ask because, after retiring less than twenty pay-per-views ago (that’s roughly a year in human people time), it appears that TUF 3 light heavyweight alum Matt Hamill will be returning to action at UFC 152, where he will be taking on promotional newcomer and Bellator veteran Roger Hollett.
Being that Matt is one of the more inspirational figures in the sport, not to mention hails from just a few towns away from me, I was initially excited to hear this news. Sure, Matt will probably not be getting his revenge (or whatever you’d call it considering he won) on Jon Jones anytime soon, but he makes for a great addition to any card, and produces good fights for the most part with the occasional skull shattering KO mixed in. However, upon reading over what BG (or at least who I assume was BG, being that I’m the only one who signs his damn posts around here) wrote when Hamill originally announced his retirement, I couldn’t help but reconsider:
Prior to Saturday night, Hamill’s only career losses came against former champions Quinton Jackson and Rich Franklin, as well as his controversial split-decision loss against Michael Bisping…But losing to a mid-level up-and-comer like Gustafsson (Ed note: How things change in a year, amiright?) was apparently the final sign that the game was passing him by. It’s rare to find an MMA fighter who hangs up the gloves before the sport has completely chewed him up. Hats off to Hamill for a fantastic career, and for knowing when to walk away.
Granted, Hammil stated that part of the reason he had decided to retire was due to a “career [that] has been plagued by injuries starting with The Ultimate Fighter and disrupted my training ever since,” so perhaps he has finally had the time to sufficiently heal up. That being said, what do you think of his decision? Will it go the way of Jamie Varner, or is “The Hammer” just setting himself up to get dicknailed?
Prior to the second round loss he suffered at the hands of Gustafsson at UFC 133, Hammil dropped the aforementioned unanimous decision to Jackson in a snoozer at UFC 130, but prior to that, he collected five straight victories over the likes of Keith Jardine (via MD), Tito Ortiz (via UD), and Jon Jones (via DQ) among others. His record currently stands at 10-4, with 6 of those victories coming by way of (T)KO.
Hamill will be squaring off against 13-3 Roger “The Hulk” Hollett, who has put together a five fight win streak of his own over the past three years. Though he doesn’t hold many notable victories to his credit, Hollett most recently scored a split decision victory over John Hawk in his Bellator debut last November. Upon doing a little research, I found that John is in no way related to Lincoln Hawk, who would have totally thrown Hollett through a glass door on his way to the ring and that would’ve been the end of it. So……there’s that.
(RagePotato: Using the sleekest technology possible to combine MMA and stupid internet trends since 2007.)
Not many of us expected Brazilian up-and-comer Charles “do Bronx” Oliveira to absolutely manhandle TUF 12 winner Jonathan Brookins in the fashion he did at the TUF 15 Finale. Sure, Brookins’ head movement and general striking stance most closely resembles a Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em robot when his block has been knocked off, but Oliveira’s performance, which improved his featherweight record to 2-0, was truly a coming out party for a fighter who already had a considerable amount of hype behind him. Given the circumstances, it’s all the more appropriate (not to mention exciting) that Oliveira has been booked to take on fellow ever-rising featherweight Cub Swanson at UFC 152, which goes down on September 22nd at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada. Swanson has looked nothing short of spectacular lately, blistering George Roop and Ross Pearson in consecutive bouts at UFC on FOX 2 and UFC on FX 4.
After falling to the secret death-touch taught to Demian Maia by Sensei Seagal at UFC 148, Dong Hyun Kim is set to return to action against the always dangerous but struggling Paulo Thiago at UFC on FUEL 6, which will make for the UFC’s first ever trip to China on November 10th from the Cotai Arena in Cotai, Macau. Thiago last performed a dead-on impression of a cadaver in his bout with Siyar Bahadurzada at UFC on FUEL 2 (his first career loss via KO) and has dropped three of his last four bouts, so look for him to try and end things impressively against Kim because his career may be on the line.
And in heavyweight booking news…
(RagePotato: Using the sleekest technology possible to combine MMA and stupid internet trends since 2007.)
Not many of us expected Brazilian up-and-comer Charles “do Bronx” Oliveira to absolutely manhandle TUF 12 winner Jonathan Brookins in the fashion he did at the TUF 15 Finale. Sure, Brookins’ head movement and general striking stance most closely resembles a Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em robot when his block has been knocked off, but Oliveira’s performance, which improved his featherweight record to 2-0, was truly a coming out party for a fighter who already had a considerable amount of hype behind him. Given the circumstances, it’s all the more appropriate (not to mention exciting) that Oliveira has been booked to take on fellow ever-rising featherweight Cub Swanson at UFC 152, which goes down on September 22nd at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada. Swanson has looked nothing short of spectacular lately, blistering George Roop and Ross Pearson in consecutive bouts at UFC on FOX 2 and UFC on FX 4.
After falling to the secret death-touch taught to Demian Maia by Sensei Seagal at UFC 148, Dong Hyun Kim is set to return to action against the always dangerous but struggling Paulo Thiago at UFC on FUEL 6, which will make for the UFC’s first ever trip to China on November 10th from the Cotai Arena in Cotai, Macau. Thiago last performed a dead-on impression of a cadaver in his bout with Siyar Bahadurzada at UFC on FUEL 2 (his first career loss via KO) and has dropped three of his last four bouts, so look for him to try and end things impressively against Kim because his career may be on the line.
And in heavyweight booking news…
Former heavyweight title challenger Gabriel Gonzaga is set to return to action for the second time in 2012, at UFC 153 in Rio. Since being fired from the UFC, then retiring from the sport over two years ago, the star of the Jack Links beef jerky commercials has collected two straight victories, including a first round submission over promotional newcomer Ednaldo Oliveira in his return to the octagon at UFC 142.
Gonzaga will have his hands full when he takes on 6’2”, 264-pound powerhouse Geronimo Dos Santos. Dos Santos will be making his UFC debut after collecting 9 victories in 2011 alone (You hear that Travis? Step it up!). While his win streak is pretty impressive, the fact that he is debuting doesn’t bode well against a guy like Gonzaga, who has built a career out of the crushed dreams of promotional newbies. Based on his last performance, it seems that Gonzaga has also learned to finally use his BJJ wizardry to his advantage, so let’s hope he doesn’t revert back to the guy who thinks he can stand and trade with the best of ‘em, or he could be in for a long night against Dos Santos.
To familiarize you with Dos Santos a little bit (and to spice up these fight booking-style posts), here is a video of a fight in which Dos Santos goes all Kongo vs. Barry on some fatass.
(Step 1: Combine equal parts Rage virus and Mr. Clean’s DNA. Step 2. ????????? Step 3. Profit.)
We don’t mean to sound harsh, but come October 13th, the UFC will more than likely be severing its ties with 9-1 prospect Joey Gambino. As was the case with guys like Antonio Silva and the poor saps who made it onto our “Cursed From Birth” list, it seems that the UFC doesn’t want to give “The Raging Warrior” a rebound match or a chance to develop in the organization, and will sit idly by as he is pummeled into mincemeat on two separate occasions.
We don’t want to write the guy off (but are doing exactly that), but to put it simply, Gambino was basically filleted then submitted by TUF 14 veteran Steve Siler in his UFC debut at UFC on FX 4. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, now he’s been booked to face not only the winner of that season in his sophomore appearance, but the man who absolutely annihilated Siler (among others) in Diego Brandao. The world is truly an unjust place.
Then again, it’s not like Brandao has looked bulletproof since entering the UFC. He will also be looking to bounce back from a loss, which came at the hands of Darren Elkins at UFC 146. Despite stomping Elkins in the first round, Brandao looked visibly sluggish in the second and third, allowing Elkins to use his superior grappling to keep Brandao on the bottom en route to a unanimous decision loss. So maybe, just maybe, Gambino stands a chance here.
But probably not.
Check out a shoddily filmed video of Gambino’s UFC 146 bout with Siler after the jump and let us know if you agree or disagree.
(Step 1: Combine equal parts Rage virus and Mr. Clean’s DNA. Step 2. ????????? Step 3. Profit.)
We don’t mean to sound harsh, but come October 13th, the UFC will more than likely be severing its ties with 9-1 prospect Joey Gambino. As was the case with guys like Antonio Silva and the poor saps who made it onto our “Cursed From Birth” list, it seems that the UFC doesn’t want to give “The Raging Warrior” a rebound match or a chance to develop in the organization, and will sit idly by as he is pummeled into mincemeat on two separate occasions.
We don’t want to write the guy off (but are doing exactly that), but to put it simply, Gambino was basically filleted then submitted by TUF 14 veteran Steve Siler in his UFC debut at UFC on FX 4. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, now he’s been booked to face not only the winner of that season in his sophomore appearance, but the man who absolutely annihilated Siler (among others) in Diego Brandao. The world is truly an unjust place.
Then again, it’s not like Brandao has looked bulletproof since entering the UFC. He will also be looking to bounce back from a loss, which came at the hands of Darren Elkins at UFC 146. Despite stomping Elkins in the first round, Brandao looked visibly sluggish in the second and third, allowing Elkins to use his superior grappling to keep Brandao on the bottom en route to a unanimous decision loss. So maybe, just maybe, Gambino stands a chance here.
But probably not.
Check out a shoddily filmed video of Gambino’s UFC 146 bout with Siler below and let us know if you agree or disagree.
(Buy all of the Lombard stock you can….wait…he WHAT?! THEN SELL DAMMIT, SELL!!)
If you are the type of MMA fan that gets his news from CagePotato and only CagePotato, we’d like to thank you for your dedication. Surely you will be rewarded in the afterlife for your selfless sacrifice. At the same time, you’ve more than likely missed out on all of the middleweight calamity that has happened over the past few days, as we deemed it less important than photos of mutilated hands, anti-Mandy Moore smear campaigns, and things of that nature. Clearly we made the right choice, but like we said, we appreciate your dedication.
To sum up the middleweight soap opera in a few sentences, Vitor Belfort tried to call out Chris Weidman, stating both a respect for the fact that Weidman is the top dog at 185 (as we previously stated), and realizing that a win over Weidman would be the easiest path to another shot at Anderson Silva. Weidman promptly denied Belfort, claiming that he had all the respect in the world for the former LHW champ, but simply put, “[he] had his shot” and “right now is my time.”
(Buy all of the Lombard stock you can….wait…he WHAT?! THEN SELL DAMMIT, SELL!!)
If you are the type of MMA fan that gets his news from CagePotato and only CagePotato, we’d like to thank you for your dedication. Surely you will be rewarded in the afterlife for your selfless sacrifice. At the same time, you’ve more than likely missed out on all of the middleweight calamity that has happened over the past few days, as we deemed it less important than photos of mutilated hands, anti-Mandy Moore smear campaigns, and things of that nature. Clearly we made the right choice, but like we said, we appreciate your dedication.
To sum up the middleweight soap opera in a few sentences, Vitor Belfort tried to call out Chris Weidman, stating both a respect for the fact that Weidman is the top dog at 185 (as we previously stated), and realizing that a win over Weidman would be the easiest path to another shot at Anderson Silva. Weidman promptly denied Belfort, claiming that he had all the respect in the world for the former LHW champ, but simply put, “[he] had his shot” and “right now is my time.”
Although there has yet to be an official confirmation from the UFC as of this writing, the fight is listed on both men’s Sherdog pages, and you gotta imagine that this will be booked in the immediate future. Not only is Vitor a huge draw in Brazil, but the aforementioned fireworks are all but guaranteed when these two collide.
Belfort has picked up two straight stoppage wins since ending up on Anderson Silva’s highlight reel at UFC 126, first pummeling Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 133, then choking Anthony Johnson’s fat ass right out of the UFC at UFC 142. He was scheduled to face off against long time rival Wanderlei Silva at UFC 147, but suffered a hand injury in training that forced him to pull out from the main event matchup. Currently, oddsmakers have Belfort as a slight favorite over Belcher, but also have the likelihood of “The Phenom” withdrawing due to last minute injury at -1600.
Belcher, on the other hand, has scored four straight victories in the UFC, most recently telling said oddsmakers to go f*ck themselves by pounding out the heavily favored Rousimar Palhares at UFC on FOX 3. Belcher has also finished five of his last 6 opponents inside of the second round, and has not truly lost since getting upset by Jason Day at UFC 83 (yes, I am saying that his UFC 100 fight with Sexyama was a draw at worst. Deal with it.).
UFC 153 is scheduled to go down at the HSBC Arena in Rio De Janeiro on October 13th.
