You don’t see fighters get to fight in their hometown often. But when they do, more often than not, they put on a show for the fans. It was no different for UFC heavyweight Mike Russow. Russow (15-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC), fighting in his hometown of Chica…
You don’t see fighters get to fight in their hometown often. But when they do, more often than not, they put on a show for the fans. It was no different for UFC heavyweight Mike Russow.
Russow (15-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC), fighting in his hometown of Chicago, defeated Jon Olav Einemo via unanimous decision at UFC on Fox 2.
The Chicago police officer came out to a rousing ovation from the sold out United Center and was able to control the entire fight. He out-wrestled Einemo, who many expected would outclass Russow based on his BJJ credentials.
Watch above as we talk to Mike Russow about his victory over Jon Olav Einemo at UFC on Fox 2, the hometown crowd, who he wants to face next and much more.
Totally illegal in NCAA competition. (Photo: UFC.com)
“It’s usually not like this.” With that text I found myself apologizing to a UFC-virgin for the first time in a long time. My friend had just told me that she was at home watching the the show on FOX, without any provocation from me mind you. “This is that fighting you like, right???”. I assured her that the event had yet to capture the energy and excitement indicative of the sport. “I’m going back and forth between this and figure skating,” she replied. I can’t really say I blame her, either.
While we expected plenty of grappling in the bouts themselves, the wrestling theme seemed to carry on throughout the production at large. The usually-charismatic Jon Jones wrestled with his notes, relying on them not just for in-depth fight analysis but for simple things like his thoughts on fighting Rashad. The opening act wrestled with fatigue, leading to a performance as exhausting for fans as it was for the competitors in the cage. And once again, FOX wrestled with an underwhelming broadcast that left the most exciting action behind in the prelims.
Enough belly aching about the show itself, let’s take a look at what made such a promising event so forgettable for the masses.
Totally illegal in NCAA competition. (Photo: UFC.com)
“It’s usually not like this.” With that text I found myself apologizing to a UFC-virgin for the first time in a long time. My friend had just told me that she was at home watching the the show on FOX, without any provocation from me mind you. “This is that fighting you like, right???”. I assured her that the event had yet to capture the energy and excitement indicative of the sport. “I’m going back and forth between this and figure skating,” she replied. I can’t really say I blame her, either.
While we expected plenty of grappling in the bouts themselves, the wrestling theme seemed to carry on throughout the production at large. The usually-charismatic Jon Joneswrestled with his notes, relying on them not just for in-depth fight analysis but for simple things like his thoughts on fighting Rashad. The opening act wrestled with fatigue, leading to a performance as exhausting for fans as it was for the competitors in the cage. And once again, FOX wrestled with an underwhelming broadcast that left the most exciting action behind in the prelims.
Enough belly aching about the show itself, let’s take a look at what made such a promising event so forgettable for the masses.
The first fight of the FOX broadcast was a dreadful match between Demian Maia and Chris Weidman. The All-American wrestler showed little fear of Maia’s proven BJJ, taking him down numerous times throughout the bout. Though he went down without much trouble, Maia impressively scrambled back to his feet more often than not. His striking, however, left much to be desired. The Brazilian showcased limited weapons in the stand-up, though neither man went for the kill, even when they had the stamina to do so. Weidman’s cardio woes are easily forgiven; he took this fight on eleven-days notice following Munoz’s departure from the card. Maia’s lethargy is a bit less understandable. The pair were beyond exhausted in round three, opting to forgo the opportunities they found themselves in simply because it was far less tiring to do nothing at all. Weidman took the split decision in a (hopefully) easily forgotten performance. As the lone lead-in for the co-main events, this bout really set the stage for a disappointing evening.
Perhaps it’s best that Michael Bisping and Chael Sonnen had a scant eleven days to talk up their bout, as it didn’t live up to the hastened hype it received. It’s not their fault, really. They both fought their asses off, it’s just that each man made the other look bad. The opening seconds reflected what many expected from this bout, with Chael landing an instant takedown and going to work. A moment later, however, Bisping threw the script out of the Octagon and popped right back up to his feet. His defensive wrestling wasn’t limited to the ground, either. The Brit surprised many everyone by repeatedly circling off the fence, pinning Sonnen against the cage and controlling much of the action. Though not much happened in the clinch, he outworked “The American Gangster” in the center of the cage as well, finding a home for his hands. Round three was all Chael; the self-proclaimed Middleweight champion put “The Count” in peril while taking his back and mounting him. If Twitter is any indication, exactly 50% of you are outraged with Sonnen’s unanimous decision victory. If even industry experts can’t agree on who won and by what margin, what must new fans have thought of the outcome? A fist fight should be a relatively easy affair to judge, but a bout like this puts MMA’s nebulous scoring system in the spotlight. The UFC now has the momentous rematch with Anderson Silva that they’d hoped for, but Chael’s performance hardly commanded the second bite at the apple like his submission win over Stann did.
The main event pitted perennial #1 contender Rashad Evans against the undefeated Phil Davis. Evans insisted that he would out-wrestle “Mr. Wonderful” convincingly, collegiate pedigrees be damned, and was confident that the rising star would fade under the bright lights of a high-stakes bout. As the final seconds of round one ticked away, and he stared up at those bright lights with his back against the canvas and his arms pinned in a crucifix, Davis must have heard Rashad’s claims echoing in his mind. Davis’ stand-up, though vastly improved, was still too sluggish for Rashad’s fast hands, and he repeatedly found himself in compromising positions on the ground throughout the bout. At times Davis looked disillusioned, but he never stopped fighting, he never allowed Rashad to put him away. He’ll benefit from this loss and has ample time to develop his skills and grow as a fighter. Evans will find no such respite. Following his unanimous decision win, the UFC has once again dangled the Jon Jones carrot in front of him. Fortunately he has little time to question if the fight will actually take place. The former training partners and friends are slated to dance at UFC 145 in Atlanta, Georgia. Assuming Evans picked up no injuries in his five round battle, this gives him just enough time to recover and get in a full training camp for the April 21st bout.
You need look no further than last night’s bonus checks for proof that the best of last night’s tussles were left on the cutting room floor. Lavar Johnson hurt Joey Beltran early with body shots, but it was a torrent of brutal uppercuts that dropped “The Mexicutioner” late in first round. Johnson picked up $65k for the evening’s “Knock out of the Night” and the first win for a Strikeforce heavyweight since their formal assimilation into the Octagon. Eric Wisely’s UFC debut was short lived. Charles Oliveira welcomed the rookie to the cage with some hard leg kicks before taking him to the ground and raining down shots. The Brazilian quickly transitioned from leg lock to leg lock before catching a rare calf-slicer and drawing the tap in just 1:43 of the first round. A terrific debut at Featherweight for “Do Bronx” was made all the sweeter with a check for the “Submission of the Night”. In the evening’s “Fight of the Night”, Evan Dunham and Nick Lentz swung away early and often. There was little feeling out process as the two traded shots in close quarters throughout the first frame. Both fighters slowed in round two, but their assaults were just as spirited. Dunham battered Lentz on the ground, swelling and cutting the fighter just below his eye. The damage was serious enough to limit his vision and force cage-side physicians to halt the bout between the second and third frames.
Main Bouts (on Fox at 8 p.m. ET on Fox): -Rashad Evans def. Phil Davis by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45), R5
-Chael Sonnen def. Michael Bisping by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28), R3
-Chris Weidman def. Demian Maia by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28), R3
Preliminary Bouts (on Fuel TV at 5 p.m. ET on Fuel TV):
-Evan Dunham def. Nick Lentz by TKO (doctor stoppage) at 5:00, R2.
-Mike Russow def. Jon Olav Einemo by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
-Cub Swanson def. George Roop by TKO (punches) at 2:22, R2
-Charles Oliveira def. Eric Wisely via submission at 1:43, R1
-Michael Johnson def. Shane Roller by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
-Lavar Johnson def. Joey Beltran by knockout (punches) at 4:24, R1
-Chris Camozzi def. Dustin Jacoby by submission (front choke) at 1:08, R3
On Saturday night, Demian Maia faced Chris Weidman at UFC on Fox 2, and Maia had arguably the worst performance of his career.Maia seemed to have nothing to offer Weidman, and he gassed badly in the third round.Even while gassed, it would be assumed th…
On Saturday night, Demian Maia faced Chris Weidman at UFC on Fox 2, and Maia had arguably the worst performance of his career.
Maia seemed to have nothing to offer Weidman, and he gassed badly in the third round.
Even while gassed, it would be assumed that Maia would go for something to try to win the fight in the third round, but he seemed content to coast toward a loss.
After this performance, let’s take a look at five fights to get Demian Maia back on track.
Trash talk in MMA is starting to become the norm, but Cub Swanson felt he never had to do it. That all changed in his preparation to face George Roop at UFC on Fox. Looks like it worked, as Swanson got his forst victory inside the octagon (16…
Trash talk in MMA is starting to become the norm, but Cub Swanson felt he never had to do it. That all changed in his preparation to face George Roop at UFC on Fox. Looks like it worked, as Swanson got his forst victory inside the octagon (16-5 MMA, 1-1 UFC) by defeating Roop via TKO at 2:22 of RD 2.
Swanson talks about his victory George Roop at UFC on Fox 2, whether he was motivated by the trash talk and much more.
Swanson on if the trash talk on Twitter gave him that extra added motivation: “Definitely, I’m not one to get into trash talking battles unless somebody starts it. He definitely got me fired up. I mean last week, when i was supposed to be calming down one day.
“I was like you know what, I’d rather not get injured, I’m a little tired, I’m not gunna spar today. I sat down and I looked at my phone and I got a message from him saying he was gunna smash me. I put on my gear and went right to sparring. It was just like extra motivation.”
Sometimes a drop in weight class can do wonders for a fighter. Charles Oliveira showed last night for himself that was the case as Oliveira (15-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) defeated Eric Wisely via submission (calf slicer) at 1:43 of Round 1 at UFC on Fox 2. It was…
Sometimes a drop in weight class can do wonders for a fighter. Charles Oliveira showed last night for himself that was the case as Oliveira (15-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) defeated Eric Wisely via submission (calf slicer) at 1:43 of Round 1 at UFC on Fox 2.
It was Oliveira’s debut at featherweight and his first victory in the octagon since September 2010 when he defeated Efrain Escudero.
Watch above as I talk to Oliveira about his victory over Wisely, how he came up with the calf slicer, if he felt this was a must-win fight, how many victories he feels he needs to get a title opportunity at UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and much more.
Oliveira on how he came up with the calf slicer, which was the first time it was used as a finishing move in the UFC: “First of all, thank you God. God give me the victory, show me the position. I train this too much, I train hard this position, a lot of secrets in my camp. When I come into the octagon, I try to set the reach that nobody see and I did.”
Oliveira on if he felt this was a must win fight considering he was dropping down to 145: “I can’t feel the difference much because my fight was so fast, first round. I know this division, a lot of fast guys fight in this division. Different than 155, much stronger guys. I feel also I know this is my division and I still fight this division.”
Early ratings are in for Saturday night’s UFC on FOX 2 event, and the two-hour broadcast drew an estimated 4.37 million viewers, according to a report by TVBytheNumbers.com.
The final number, however, is likely to increase substantially by the time final ratings are released, as information continues to trickle in on the live broadcast.
By comparison, the initial UFC on FOX show last November featuring a heavyweight title bout with Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos drew an overnight rating of 4.64 million, but when final information was released, it ended up averaging a more robust 5.7 million viewers for the one-hour special.
Saturday night’s two-hour show, which was broadcast from the United Center in Chicago, featured a tripleheader that was void of any finishes. In the main event, Rashad Evans out-pointed Phil Davis, setting up a light-heavyweight title fight against Jon Jones. The co-main event saw Chael Sonnen earn a decision over Michael Bisping, setting up a rematch with middleweight champ Anderson Silva. And the night’s opener saw rising star Chris Weidman top Demian Maia on points.
Despite the lack of big finishes or action-packed rounds, ratings indicated that the event helped FOX carry the all important 18-49 year old demographic, as that segment of the population averaged a 2.2 rating to lead all broadcast networks.
Final ratings should be released on Monday.
The next UFC on FOX event will take place in the spring, with a May 5 date penciled in. To date, only one TV matchup has been confirmed, with lightweight contenders Nate Diaz and Jim Miller squaring off in a bout likely to serve as the co-main event.
Early ratings are in for Saturday night’s UFC on FOX 2 event, and the two-hour broadcast drew an estimated 4.37 million viewers, according to a report by TVBytheNumbers.com.
The final number, however, is likely to increase substantially by the time final ratings are released, as information continues to trickle in on the live broadcast.
By comparison, the initial UFC on FOX show last November featuring a heavyweight title bout with Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos drew an overnight rating of 4.64 million, but when final information was released, it ended up averaging a more robust 5.7 million viewers for the one-hour special.
Saturday night’s two-hour show, which was broadcast from the United Center in Chicago, featured a tripleheader that was void of any finishes. In the main event, Rashad Evans out-pointed Phil Davis, setting up a light-heavyweight title fight against Jon Jones. The co-main event saw Chael Sonnen earn a decision over Michael Bisping, setting up a rematch with middleweight champ Anderson Silva. And the night’s opener saw rising star Chris Weidman top Demian Maia on points.
Despite the lack of big finishes or action-packed rounds, ratings indicated that the event helped FOX carry the all important 18-49 year old demographic, as that segment of the population averaged a 2.2 rating to lead all broadcast networks.
Final ratings should be released on Monday.
The next UFC on FOX event will take place in the spring, with a May 5 date penciled in. To date, only one TV matchup has been confirmed, with lightweight contenders Nate Diaz and Jim Miller squaring off in a bout likely to serve as the co-main event.
You don’t see fighters get to fight in their hometown often. But when they do, more often than not, they put on a show for the fans. It was no different for UFC heavyweight Mike Russow.
Early ratings are in for Saturday night’s