The month of July is winding down, and a pair of UFC events—UFC 162 and UFC on Fox 8—have come and gone. And we have the key statistics from this month right here.
The first event featured a good deal of stoppages, including an improbable u…
The month of July is winding down, and a pair of UFC events—UFC 162 and UFC on Fox 8—have come and gone. And we have the key statistics from this month right here.
The first event featured a good deal of stoppages, including an improbable upset in the main event that saw Anderson Silva’s title reign come to an abrupt halt.
The second event, meanwhile, was live and free on Fox, featuring a flyweight title fight between Demetrious Johnson and John Moraga. Johnson took home a slick fifth-round submission win in that main event.
But the major upset from UFC 162 and Johnson’s exciting stoppage win were just two outcomes in the month of July, and there were many more interesting takeaways from this month.
Check out where July stands in comparison to the first five of 2013 in the UFC in our list of key stats from the past 30 days.
Striking and Takedown statistics courtesy of FightMetric.com
In any case, Belfort’s wife/manager, Joana Prado, recently spoke on his behalf, telling Combate that the Kennedy matchup “didn’t make sense.” Which in today’sMMA landscape, means “give him a week to come around.”
It doesn’t make sense that Vitor, who is No. 1 in the rankings, should fight against No. 2, No. 6 or No. 10 in his weight class. His next fight in the middleweight class will be against the winner of Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva. If the UFC wishes him to fight in any class above middleweight, we are at their disposal. It can be anyone, Tim Kennedy, even Roy Nelson, but it has to be at 205 pounds or heavyweight – he’ll even fight as a heavyweight. Vitor wants to fight, but in his weight class, only if for the belt.
As oddly as that was worded, we kind of understand Belfort’s logic here.
(Weaseling out of things is important to learn. It’s what separates us from the animals… except the weasel. -Homer Simpson)
In any case, Belfort’s wife/manager, Joana Prado, recently spoke on his behalf, telling Combate that the Kennedy matchup “didn’t make sense.” Which in today’sMMA landscape, means “give him a week to come around.”
It doesn’t make sense that Vitor, who is No. 1 in the rankings, should fight against No. 2, No. 6 or No. 10 in his weight class. His next fight in the middleweight class will be against the winner of Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva. If the UFC wishes him to fight in any class above middleweight, we are at their disposal. It can be anyone, Tim Kennedy, even Roy Nelson, but it has to be at 205 pounds or heavyweight – he’ll even fight as a heavyweight. Vitor wants to fight, but in his weight class, only if for the belt.
As oddly as that was worded, we kind of understand Belfort’s logic here.
While asking for another title shot is a bit presumptuous, a fight with Kennedy doesn’t exactly make a ton of sense either. Belfort is ranked #2 on the UFC’s official list. Kennedy is not ranked at all. Belfort just dusted the guy who put a five round beating on Kennedy less than a year ago. Kennedy is coming off a tepid win over Roger Gracie, also unranked, in his UFC debut. We’re not saying it couldn’t make for an interesting fight, but it’s pretty much a lose-lose for Belfort.
Dana White’s response was surprisingly curse-free. “Vitor, for some insane reason, believes he should get the fight with Weidman or Anderson Silva right now,” White said during the UFC on FOX 8 media scrum. “He’s out of his mind.”
Might you say he’s even raging, Dana? Might you? Yes…gooood. Goooood.
Personally, I say we get behind this Vitor Belfort at heavyweight idea. Oh, you wouldn’t want to see Belfort and Junior Dos Santos slug it out until someone falls over? Go fuck yourself. And a fight with Roy Nelson? It would be the closest thing to Belfort/Ferrozzo II that we’re ever going to get, damn it. I say we roll the dice.
At UFC on Fox 8 Rory MacDonald successfully achieved a transition from hot prospect to the most hated man on the card. How? By fighting smart. Too smart.
Rory MacDonald displayed a wonderfully accurate jab and snapped it in Jake Ellenberger’s fa…
At UFC on Fox 8 Rory MacDonald successfully achieved a transition from hot prospect to the most hated man on the card. How? By fighting smart. Too smart.
Rory MacDonald displayed a wonderfully accurate jab and snapped it in Jake Ellenberger‘s face whenever the latter stepped in. For the best part of fifteen minutes, this was the story of the fight. Unfortunately, as much as the UFC wants MMA to be taken seriously as a sport, exciting fighters still get into title contention far quicker than tedious, forgettable ones.
Now Rory MacDonald is not boring fighter ordinarily—his manhandling of Nate Diaz, his close loss to Carlos Condit and his destruction of BJ Penn should attest to that. Unfortunately Rory’s greatest strength is the characteristic which is going to drive fans away from him the most—he is an intelligent fighter who, since his hard fought loss to Carlos Condit, seems reluctant to take risks.
We only need to look at the sad saga of Jon Fitch to understand where forgettable fights get a fighter. Fitch was easily the second-best welterweight in the world and could take down and grind on anyone he met and strike decently in between. When he finally got knocked out—exceptionally early in his bout with Johnny Hendricks—he was immediately out of title contention. A few fights later he was out of the UFC.
The climb is slow for a boring fighter, and the fall swift. If someone stinks up the event like Jacob Volkmann, Jon Fitch and Anthony McGee did, the UFC will be happy to throw them out the door as soon as they can justify it. If Rory MacDonald truly hopes to become a force in the division, or even a well-paid fighter in this era of TV deals and reportedly declining views, he cannot afford to be a boring fighter.
Fighting behind the jab is brilliant—if one has a hard enough jab to stun or hurt opponents rather than just throw their aim off and jam their attacks—but there is a reason that non-jabs are referred to as “power punches”. Most people, even professional fighters, need to turn their hips over and throw a right hand or come back with a left hook to do real damage.
MacDonald’s jab is sound from a technical stand point, though he leans forward at the waist when he is diving in to reach for an opponent and drops his right hand. This is not great for avoiding counter jabs and counter left hooks. What MacDonald does so well, and what Tristar seems to teach so well, is how to feint, pump non committal double or triple jabs and connect with a stiff one.
MacDonald’s jab is quite peculiar because it lacks the smashing authority of Georges St. Pierre‘s. George’s jab is a driving step that coincides with the extension of his arm, it is a full-body punch. Rory seems to spring forward then push his fist out on the end. I wouldn’t dare to imply it doesn’t hurt—Jake Ellenberger is a far tougher man than most and he wasn’t enjoying it—but he looked more confused and annoyed than in any dire straights.
MacDonald once again carried a significant reach and height advantage in this bout. This is interesting because he does not seem to keep anywhere near to the same form that St. Pierre does. When Rory pushes his jab out on the end of his step, he will stick his chin out, then back out of range.
Against Penn and Ellenberger, there were several moments where their punches fell just short as they chased him and this was put down to great distancing by MacDonald, but it would be interesting to see how this holds up against taller opponents who pursue him out of range.
Now we can’t blame a boring fight entirely on Rory MacDonald. There were two men in the cage and it was clear that the other, Ellenberger, had no idea how to go about closing the distance on Rory or prevent him from jabbing.
Typically there are two ways to get close to a taller fighter—the first is to move your head or cover their lead hand as you move in close—the second is to step back and make them over commit, giving up their reach. Mike Tyson is a fantastic example of the former and LyotoMachida is a fantastic example of the latter.
Ellenberger did neither and sat on the end of MacDonald’s reach all night, reluctant to do anything because it hurts to be hit while moving in. While many asserted before the fight began that Rory was the better rounded striker, it really hurt Ellenberger to not be able to kick in this bout despite it being a pure boxing match.
Notice that almost every time Rory steps in with his jab he jumps straight back out, and his feet are almost always in line. Furthermore, when Rory circles to his left he leads with his rear leg, a basic flaw in footwork. Well-timed low kicks will break the balance of fighters who do this and expose opportunities to run in without risking getting a hard jab in the face.
While I enjoyed the fight from a technical perspective because of the jab, I can see where fans are coming from in asserting this fight was boring because it was samey and there was no sign of a conclusion before the final bell.
Pick up Jack’s eBooksAdvanced Striking and Elementary Striking at his blog, Fights Gone By.
UFC on FOX 8 not only provided a number of awesome moments from some unexpected heroes, but it also saw a few fighters who were expected to do big things disappoint in a big way. In the first of a new post-event column only on CagePotato.com, here are three fighters who surprised us at UFC on FOX 8 and three fighters who let us down.
Surprises
Demetrious Johnson: Many expected UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson to successfully defend his title against John Moraga in the main event of UFC on FOX 8, but I don’t think anyone predicted him to win the fight via armbar with just one minute and 17 seconds left in the fight.
But that’s exactly what Johnson did as he earned his first stoppage victory in eight UFC fights, en route to shutting up the critics who called him boring and said he didn’t have what it takes to finish a tough guy like Moraga.
Johnson had all four rounds in his pocket and was ahead in the fifth, but instead of coasting to a win he tried desperately to get the finish and put an exclamation point on his performance, and that’s exactly what he did with his first submission win in the Octagon, a victory that earned him the $50,000 “Submission of the Night” award.
“Mighty Mouse” is always going to have his detractors because of his wrestling-heavy style, and I think his finish of Moraga is a bit of an anomaly, but on Saturday night he deserved all the praise in the world for a brilliant performance, one that has truly earned him his spot amongst the pound-for-pound best fighters in MMA. And hopefully, it’s just a sign of things to come.
Melvin Guillard: It had been over two years since Melvin Guillard last stopped an opponent inside the Octagon, but with his brutal second-round KO of Mac Danzig on the UFC on FOX 8 preliminary card, it’s safe to say that “The Young Assassin” is back.
(A triumphant loss for Trevor Smith, and an awe-inspiring punch-face for Ed Herman. / Photo via Getty. Click to enlarge.)
UFC on FOX 8 not only provided a number of awesome moments from some unexpected heroes, but it also saw a few fighters who were expected to do big things disappoint in a big way. In the first of a new post-event column only on CagePotato.com, here are three fighters who surprised us at UFC on FOX 8 and three fighters who let us down.
Surprises
Demetrious Johnson: Many expected UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson to successfully defend his title against John Moraga in the main event of UFC on FOX 8, but I don’t think anyone predicted him to win the fight via armbar with just one minute and 17 seconds left in the fight.
But that’s exactly what Johnson did as he earned his first stoppage victory in eight UFC fights, en route to shutting up the critics who called him boring and said he didn’t have what it takes to finish a tough guy like Moraga.
Johnson had all four rounds in his pocket and was ahead in the fifth, but instead of coasting to a win he tried desperately to get the finish and put an exclamation point on his performance, and that’s exactly what he did with his first submission win in the Octagon, a victory that earned him the $50,000 “Submission of the Night” award.
“Mighty Mouse” is always going to have his detractors because of his wrestling-heavy style, and I think his finish of Moraga is a bit of an anomaly, but on Saturday night he deserved all the praise in the world for a brilliant performance, one that has truly earned him his spot amongst the pound-for-pound best fighters in MMA. And hopefully, it’s just a sign of things to come.
Melvin Guillard: It had been over two years since Melvin Guillard last stopped an opponent inside the Octagon, but with his brutal second-round KO of Mac Danzig on the UFC on FOX 8 preliminary card, it’s safe to say that “The Young Assassin” is back.
Training with boxing coach Trevor Wittman at Grudge in preparation for Danzig, Guillard really got back to what made him such a successful lightweight in the first place, and that’s his hands, which are some of the heaviest in the UFC’s entire 155-pound division.
Danzig found out that out the hard way on Saturday night after Guillard knocked him down with a punch and then followed it up with some exceptionally brutal hammerfists, blows that were so deadly that poor Danzig could be seen weeping once he awoke from his nightmare. (GIF here, explanation here.)
Guillard is a bit of a headcase but there’s no denying the talent is there, and after getting a big win over Danzig that snapped his two-fight losing streak and earned him some bonus money for “Knockout of the Night,” look for Guillard to be more confident in his next fight. Who knows, maybe we’ll finally see him unlock the potential that we all know he has.
Trevor Smith: Perhaps the biggest throwaway fight on the entire card heading into UFC on FOX 8 was the middleweight matchup between Ed Herman and Strikeforce vet Trevor Smith, a fight that no one was talking about heading into the weekend’s event.
But that’s why you should never judge a fight on paper before it’s been fought because, man, Herman vs. Smith is my early frontrunner for “Fight of the Year” in 2013 and that’s not hyperbole.
This was such an awesome fight that any words I use to describe it won’t do it justice, as anyone who saw it will agree with — just go and watch it if you haven’t yet, it really was amazing — and it was the surprisingly good performance by Smith which was made it so memorable.
I knew Smith had good grappling, but he hit Herman with some massive punches and he also showed that he has a solid chin as he ate a number of bombs from “Short Fuse” but never went out. For three rounds he fought valiantly and, even though he ended up losing a split decision, Smith put on a memorable performance and definitely earned himself another fight inside the Octagon.
Sometimes a fighter can lose and still emerge with their stock going up and Smith’s performance at UFC on FOX 8 is the best example of this that I can think of in recent memory. Smith is well deserving of his “Fight of the Night” award, as well as all of the new fans he made on Saturday night.
Disappointments
Jake Ellenberger: The most disappointing performance by any fighter on the entire UFC on FOX 8 card came courtesy of Jake Ellenberger, who laid an egg in his co-main event bout against fellow welterweight contender Rory MacDonald.
Ellenberger literally did nothing for three rounds outside of one takedown on MacDonald in the third round, and both fighters were booed by the crowd and then chewed out by UFC president Dana White on both Twitter and at the post-fight presser for their bad fight.
But while some are blaming MacDonald’s low-risk, jab-centric strategy for the fight being boring, I believe it had a lot more to do with Ellenberger freezing in the biggest moment of his career, a fight that would have likely garnered him a title shot had he emerged victorious.
Instead, Ellenberger’s stock dropped dramatically because the fight didn’t live up to expectations at all, and much of that can be blamed on the hesitation of “The Juggernaut,” who was uncharacteristically cautious throughout the bout.
I like Ellenberger and believe he can still beat a lot of welterweights in the UFC, but the fight with MacDonald proved once again he’s essentially a 170-pound version of Michael Bisping, a fighter that can get to that title eliminator position but not win the big fight to put themselves over the hump.
But unlike Bisping, don’t expect Ellenberger to get any more title eliminator fights anytime soon. At least Bisping tried to fight Vitor Belfort, Chael Sonnen and Dan Henderson. Ellenberger, though? I wouldn’t call what he was doing with MacDonald “fighting,” and I bet UFC matchmaker Joe Silva feels similarly.
Michael Chiesa: One of the most disappointing performances by a fighter on the undercard took place during the FX prelims, where Michael Chiesa suffered the first-ever loss of his career after tapping out to a Jorge Masvidal D’arce choke with just one second left in the second round.
Chiesa fought very well in the first round and even hurt Masvidal with his underrated striking, but after failing on a power guillotine attempt and letting Masvidal recover from being rocked, Chiesa’s performance went downhill from there as Masvidal thoroughly dominated the second round until he managed to sink the choke, drawing a tap from “Maverick” literally right before the bell sounded to end round two.
I’m surprised that Chiesa, who is known for his heart and will, wasn’t able to hang on just a half second longer and take the fight to the third round, where he might have had the edge over Masvidal because of his superior cardio. Instead, he tapped out and lost for the first time in his career and, to make matters even worse, he ran out of the cage a la Forrest Griffin, which was hugely disrespectful to his opponent.
I’ve been a Chiesa supporter ever since he won TUF Live despite the death of his father, but this loss is a setback for him and I really hope it’s not a defeat that will ruin his career. Chiesa is only 25 years old and this wouldn’t be the first time an undefeated MMA prospect suffered a loss that made them fall off the rails.
John Albert: One last disappointment that has to be mentioned is John Albert, who was submitted by Yaotzin Meza in round two of the first Facebook fight of the night. It’s Albert’s fourth loss in a row in the UFC — all by submission — and there’s no doubt in my mind he’ll be getting a pink slip from UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby sometime this week.
Albert is such a talented fighter but his lack of cardio has always been his problem and yet he didn’t bother fixing it for this fight with Meza, a guy who trains with UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson, the fighter with arguably the best cardio in the UFC. After Albert gassed following an armbar attempt, Meza took advantage and won the fight with a rear-naked choke, an embarrassing result for Albert considering he was winning the fight until his poor conditioning cost him the fight — and likely his job, too.
I knew it was a bad omen when Albert walked into the cage with Dennis Hallman by his side. Hallman, after all, was always known for his bad cardio and even though he always had a slick submission game – just like his pupil Albert — if his opponent was able to survive it he usually lost. Sadly, Albert never learned anything from watching his mentor fight, as he’s basically a 135-pound version of Hallman, and no, that’s not a compliment.
The UFC on Fox hosted a headliner on Saturday between flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson and top contender John Moraga. When it was all said and done, the champion retained his title with a fifth-round submission.
When you break down the numbers via Fi…
The UFC on Fox hosted a headliner on Saturday between flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson and top contender John Moraga. When it was all said and done, the champion retained his title with a fifth-round submission.
When you break down the numbers via FightMetric, you will see exactly how dominant Johnson was in keeping his 125-pound title. In watching the bout, you know Johnson dominated the fight, but the numbers make things even more impressive.
To start with, Johnson outstruckMoraga 67-32. Sure, most of it was on the ground, but that is a telling tale in itself. Johnson had double the strikes of his challenger and did more damage via ground-and-pound. Mighty Mouse may not have the most impressive power, but 67 strikes landed is going to add up eventually.
The biggest tale you are going to see is the ground game in general. Johnson thoroughly dominated the fight using his strength, quickness and wrestling.
While Moraga did land one takedown (which obviously didn’t do much for him), Johnson destroyed him in the wrestling department, landing 12 takedowns of his own. Having gone almost the full five rounds, that would mean that Johnson earned almost two-and-a-half takedowns per round. So, even if Moraga was getting back to his feet, Johnson was there to plant him on his back again.
Furthermore, Johnson did not just sit in Moraga‘s guard and play it safe. While on the ground, Johnson had 13 passes, showing his commitment to improve position and look for the finish. Of course that’s what happened, securing a fight-ending armbar.
Finally, in looking at the aforementioned submission numbers, Johnson attempted three holds, with his final attempt being what ultimately had finished the fight. The armbar he used on Moraga was beautiful and showed the UFC fans that he could finish fights as opposed to always going to the judges.
The numbers don’t lie; Johnson was absolutely in charge of this entire fight.
In the buildup to their co-main event bout at UFC on Fox 8, Rory MacDonald and Jake Ellenberger didn’t seem to have much respect for one another.
During the fight, however, it was painfully obvious that MacDonald and Ellenberger held each other i…
In the buildup to their co-main event bout at UFC on Fox 8, Rory MacDonald and Jake Ellenbergerdidn’t seem to have much respect for one another.
During the fight, however, it was painfully obvious that MacDonald and Ellenberger held each other in high esteem.
Like MacDonald’s teammate Georges St-Pierre did to Josh Koscheck at UFC 124, “Ares” maximized a small reach advantage, avoided grappling exchanges and jabbed and kicked his way to a unanimous decision.
MacDonald controlled the range throughout the fight and outstruck “The Juggernaut” 46-19, including 15-5 in the first round and 13-4 in the second.
MacDonald peppered Ellenberger with jabs and front kicks from the opening bell. Ares also landed the occasional standing elbow, a technique that apparently deterred Ellenberger from clinching and wrestling.
“I obviously look to finish fights, but he’s a good fighter, so what can you do?” MacDonald said during the post-fight press conference. “I think I had him worried with the elbows because he didn’t want to come near me after that. That wasn’t my game plan, but I accomplished what I needed to do.”
The typically venomous Ellenberger, who had won eight of 10 UFC fights heading into the bout, delivered just 19 significant strikes, 10 of which came in the third round.
A former NCAA Division II wrestler, Ellenberger got stuffed on two of three takedown attempts.
Ellenberger scored his only takedown with a double-leg less than a minute left in the fight. The Juggernaut then played it safe in MacDonald’s open guard, landing no substantial blows from the top position.
Right before the bout’s final horn sounded, MacDonald tried to hook up an omoplata and nearly took Ellenberger’s back in the process.
“I think I did exactly what I was supposed to do,” MacDonald said. “He’s a counterpuncher and a very powerful puncher. I was waiting for my opportunities, and he wasn’t coming in at the right times. He was staying back and he wasn’t engaging. I was playing my angles and waiting for my opportunities like I always do. He’s a smart fighter, I’ve got to hand it to him.”
Ellenberger tried on several occasions to land his patented leaping left hook, only to swing and miss the elusive MacDonald. Like Lyoto Machida did to Dan Henderson, MacDonald made a lethal fighter seem relatively harmless.
Ultimately, MacDonald scored the unanimous decision based on his ability to control the distance, land his jab, and prevent Ellenberger from landing any significant combinations.
The win didn’t wow fans or UFC president Dana White, and it may not result in a title shot, but it’s certainly a nice feather in MacDonald’s cap.
