Tag: UFC on Fox 1

Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos: Can Dos Santos Dominate the HW Division?

The historic UFC on FOX event has come to a close, and if you blinked, you may have missed the 64 seconds that actually mattered. In that time, Junior dos Santos went from No. 1 contender to UFC Heavyweight Champion, handing Cain Velasquez his first ca…

The historic UFC on FOX event has come to a close, and if you blinked, you may have missed the 64 seconds that actually mattered. In that time, Junior dos Santos went from No. 1 contender to UFC Heavyweight Champion, handing Cain Velasquez his first career loss.

Dos Santos won by knockout in the first round—something mixed martial arts fans have seen quite a few times before. He’s done the same to Fabricio Werdum, Stefan Struve, Gilbert Yvel and Gabriel Gonzaga in his UFC career.

In his two fights before the title, dos Santos won by decision. It was the only two times in his career that a fight went to the judges, but they were nevertheless completely dominant performances.

Over the course of his eight UFC bouts, “Cigano” went from unknown prospect to heavyweight champion. In the process, he has never lost a round, nor has he ever been in danger of having that happen. Dos Santos is on one of those incredible runs MMA fans rarely witness: completely dominant performances against the best fighters in the world.

What may be the most frightening thing for the heavyweight division is the fact that the current champion is just 27 years old and has only been fighting since 2006. The man will only continue to improve. In addition, he trains with with the likes of Anderson Silva and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, so it’s very unlikely he’ll ever get complacent in the gym.

While dos Santos has been devastating up until this point, the fact that he’s never faced any adversity in the cage leaves a few unanswered questions. Is he capable of fighting five rounds? Can he fight off of his back?

Dos Santos is certainly a boxing focused fighter, but he does possess a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu under the Nogueira brothers. His one career loss has been by submission, but that was in just his sixth professional bout against Joaquim Ferreira—a Brazilian Jiu-jitsu black belt himself.

Dos Santos may not be submitting opponents off of his back, but he seems very aware what his strength is. As a result, he will keep the fight where he has the best chance of winning: on the feet. Instead of trying his hand at grappling, he’ll work to get right back up. Cain Velasquez, for example, seemed to ignore his clear grappling advantage and was handed his first loss as a result.

Although it’s possible that dos Santos may struggle with a competent wrestler like Brock Lesnar, he has fared well against quality wrestlers such as Velasquez and Shane Carwin. He has also distinguished himself as the best striker in the heavyweight division, and because the fight starts standing, every opponent he faces will have to deal with his hands.

The UFC heavyweight championship hasn’t stayed in one man’s hands for very long, but “Cigano” certainly has the tools to hold onto it for a while.

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UFC on Fox: Debut Meets Hype but Offers Blueprint for Improvement

All the fights from UFC on Fox 1 are in the memory banks. Now that the lights are extinguished and the ratings tabulated, it’s fair to ask whether this watershed television event lived up to the hype that surrounded it.
I think it did, but there are ar…

All the fights from UFC on Fox 1 are in the memory banks. Now that the lights are extinguished and the ratings tabulated, it’s fair to ask whether this watershed television event lived up to the hype that surrounded it.

I think it did, but there are areas in need of polish.

First thing’s first: When the updated ratings came out, they revealed an average viewership of 5.7 million, enough to outperform nearly every college football game that day. It also exceeded the average viewership of MMA‘s first foray into network broadcast television—that 2008 EliteXC event, with that guy named Kimbo Slice—which averaged 4.3 million viewers, although it did peak higher with 6.5 million.

Take those numbers, add in a riveting (though short) heavyweight title fight, and you’ve really got something you can build on.

That’s all you can really ask out of the UFC’s very first foray into broadcast TV. Success: achieved. Now for the building areas.

Dana White doesn’t want to hear it, but there should be more than one fight on these cards. I know the UFC is in spoon-feeding mode at this point, and that’s cool. I get that. But the UFC should be working to push out more than just two individual fighters. Even if you don’t want to give all the fights away, at least acknowledge that other fights happened that evening, maybe in the form of some highlights or a rundown of the results.

Claiming that Facebook and premium channel Fox Deportes are adequate stand-ins for regular coverage just doesn’t pass the smell test. I imagine they’ll take this into account moving forward, though.

Speaking of White, I wonder if he might want to consider ratcheting down his level of involvement in the broadcast.  I think his presence on the screen is very important, and I always enjoy what he has to say. But he’s the big boss man. It’s confusing and strange to watch him hobnob with Curt Menefee and break down fight strategies. Doesn’t he have people to do that for him? Shouldn’t he hold himself above that fray a little bit?

I like how they do it in the pay-per-view broadcasts. Joe Rogan interviews him for a few minutes, gets his thoughts on the evening and that’s that. I realize this is a different animal, but there should still be some dividing lines.

It was a great night for the UFC, both as a fight promotion and an organization. The show was well-produced and free of controversy. Those are no small tasks these days, for anyone.

The ratings prove that this is a worthwhile enterprise. There are kinks to work out, but here at the outset of what will be at least a seven-year relationship, things are looking pretty good. You may not want to break out the flight suit just yet, but the first mission has been accomplished.

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UFC on Fox: Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos Q & A

The UFC on Fox event brought with it a great amount of hype and potential.It also gave us a lot of questions that need answers. Is Junior Dos Santos the next great thing at heavyweight? Can he be beaten? And what of Cain Velasquez now?So where do the w…

The UFC on Fox event brought with it a great amount of hype and potential.

It also gave us a lot of questions that need answers. Is Junior Dos Santos the next great thing at heavyweight? Can he be beaten? And what of Cain Velasquez now?

So where do the winners and losers go from here? How will Fox handle future UFC events? Was Saturday night a failure?

Luckily for you, we at Bleacher Report have all the answers for you.

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Cain Velasquez vs Junior dos Santos: Did the first UFC on FOX Broadcast Deliver?

Mixed martial arts fans have been waiting for an event like the first UFC on FOX broadcast for a long time. We’ve all been hoping for this sport to gain main-stream appeal and for the fan base to grow. But while the UFC on FOX event was historic, it wa…

Mixed martial arts fans have been waiting for an event like the first UFC on FOX broadcast for a long time. We’ve all been hoping for this sport to gain main-stream appeal and for the fan base to grow. But while the UFC on FOX event was historic, it was rather disappointing.

Ultimately, there were only 64 seconds of fighting in an hour-long broadcast. Fans were treated to an excellent main event, but the ratio of fights to filler was simply unreasonable.

Parts of it were understandable, however. The UFC wanted to give a history of the sport to welcome and educate new fans. In addition, the broadcast included an introduction to and background on both fighters to make it seem less like two blood-thirsty savages battling and more like two athletes competing.

Even though the commercials were excessive, it’s a free fight, so that’s to be expected. What didn’t make sense was the excessive analysis. Brock Lesnar, Dana White, Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan all essentially said the same thing over and over—Cain Velasquez is well-rounded, and Junior dos Santos has amazing hands.

Both the UFC and FOX squandered an amazing opportunity to gain new fans by not airing the Clay Guida and Benson Henderson bout. Everyone who knew anything about MMA was aware it was going to be an amazing fight. After all, both of them have earned Fight of the Year awards before.

And what a fight it was. The back-and-forth war would have pleased any individual with the slightest interest in combat sports.

What the UFC and FOX care about, though, is that, according to USA Today, the “one-hour broadcast averaged 5.7 million viewers, 16% higher than the 4.9 million average for CBS’ live airing of EliteXC in May 2008, which culminated with a fight between Kevin ‘Kimbo Slice’ Ferguson and James Thompson.” This is a record average for a mixed martial arts event in the United States.

So while the UFC on FOX event may have been a success in terms of viewership, it was clearly a failure in terms of content. The fact that a lightweight title eliminator featuring Clay Guida and Benson Henderson—the potential Fight of the Year—was only available online is maddening.

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UFC on FOX: Will Cain Velasquez Ever Regain the Heavyweight Title?

After a year-long layoff coming into the UFC’s debut on FOX, Cain Velasquez suffered the first loss of his career. Velasquez was 9-0 and defending his UFC Heavyweight Championship for the first time, but the hands of Junior dos Santos put an end to his…

After a year-long layoff coming into the UFC’s debut on FOX, Cain Velasquez suffered the first loss of his career. Velasquez was 9-0 and defending his UFC Heavyweight Championship for the first time, but the hands of Junior dos Santos put an end to his title reign in just 64 seconds.

An emotional dos Santos revealed that he was scared and injured coming into the bout with Velasquez, but proved to be the better man that night. Still, one fight doesn’t prove that Velasquez is the lesser fighter, nor does it prove that he will not be champion again.

Junior “Cigano” dos Santos is on one of the most impressive runs UFC fans have ever been exposed to. His debut was a huge upset, knocking out Fabricio Werdum in just 81 seconds—a kind of result viewers would get used to, as he finished his next four opponents, before dominating Roy Nelson, Shane Carwin and knocking out Cain Velasquez to win the title.

Despite the incredible streak, Velasquez was the favorite entering the bout, the general sentiment being that he was the more complete fighter. If Velasquez could just drag this fight into the later rounds or to the ground, he would hold a significant advantage and that still holds true. Velasquez has better stamina and a superior grappling ability, but he did the one thing no fighter should ever do—stand and trade with “Cigano.”

Velasquez had finished his last three opponents before his first title defense, scoring knockout victories over Ben Rothwell, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Brock Lesnar. However, none of these fighters are known for their striking ability. The last and perhaps only man that Velasquez ever faced with quality striking is Cheick Kongo, whom he did struggle with.

The now former champion seemed too comfortable striking, likely because he was facing men who didn’t really have the ability to knock him out. Dos Santos is a completely different animal that warranted an entirely new game plan. If Velasquez was adamant about getting the fight to the ground, it’s very possible that would have happened.

Ultimately, Velasquez is an incredibly dangerous opponent for anyone in the heavyweight division. A poor decision to stand and trade with an incredible striker doesn’t change that. Even though he was just handed his first career loss, Velasquez was confident in his ability to return, stating after the fight, “I will get that belt back.”

A different night could hold a different result. It seems very likely that Velasquez will be challenging for the title again soon and perhaps this time, he’ll remember that it was his wrestling ability that got him there.

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UFC on Fox Results: Matches to Make After Velasquez vs. Dos Santos

The UFC probably would have preferred a five-round war over the one-minute knockout that Junior dos Santos’ win over Cain Velasquez turned into, but the organization’s first appearance on network television ran smoothly otherwise.One of the most i…

The UFC probably would have preferred a five-round war over the one-minute knockout that Junior dos Santos’ win over Cain Velasquez turned into, but the organization’s first appearance on network television ran smoothly otherwise.

One of the most important events in UFC history is now behind us, though, and it is time to look forward to what fight may come out of the fights that took place at UFC on Fox. 

Joe Silva, take notice. These are the fights you should make after the events that transpired on Saturday night.

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