At UFC on FX 8, Vitor Belfort put himself in the front of the line for a shot at the winner of an upcoming middleweight title fight between Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman.In welcoming former Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold to the Octagon, Belfort …
At UFC on FX 8, Vitor Belfort put himself in the front of the line for a shot at the winner of an upcoming middleweight title fight between Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman.
In welcoming former Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold to the Octagon, Belfort landed a spinning heel kick that led to a first-round knockout win. After finishing Michael Bisping in January, the victory was Belfort’s second in a row that resulted from a kick to his opponent’s head.
Both Bisping and Rockhold were likely to be named top contenders in the 185-pound class had they beaten Belfort. After halting both of those rising fighters, it will be tough for the UFC brass to deny Belfort another chance to battle for the middleweight crown.
With another UFC event in the books, let’s take a look at the report cards for the main card competitors.
In the days leading up to UFC on FX 8, Vitor Belfort said at a press conference (h/t MMA Weekly), “TRT doesn’t win fights.” We could argue that point for days and I’m sure that in some circles that debate will take place. W…
We could argue that point for days and I’m sure that in some circles that debate will take place. What you can’t argue is that the type of kick that VitorBelfort delivered on Saturday night does end fights, and it ends them quickly and effectively.
Belfort is known for his devastating first-round knockouts, most of which have come via his quick and heavy hands. On Saturday night he ended his second consecutive fight with a kick, using a spinning heel kick to put Luke Rockhold down and out at the 2:32 mark of the first round. Sure, some ground strikes followed that kick, but it’s doubtful those strikes were necessary. Rockhold was not getting off the mat after the kick landed.
In his previous bout Belfort dispatched Michael Bisping with a head kick. Both knockout kicks were enough to justify the UFC writing “Knockout of the Night” bonus checks in Belfort’s name.
Following the fight, Belfort said, during in his in-cage interview, “I’m stronger than ever. I appreciate all the love from the fans.” Belfort then went on to thank the team he trains with, The Blackzilians.
As for Rockhold, the dejected former Strikeforce middleweight champion said after the fight, “I take my hat off, he landed a spinning heel kick to my head. I didn’t see that coming. What can I say, he caught me with a spinning heel kick to the head, kudos to him.”
The win will, at the very least, put Belfort in the discussion for the next shot at the UFC middleweight title.
Brazilians love their mixed martial arts and vicious knockouts. At UFC on FX 8, they got both. The country largely recognized as the homeland of the sport has produced a passionate and educated fanbase who always turn out when fisticuffs are on th…
Brazilians love their mixed martial arts and vicious knockouts. At UFC on FX 8, they got both.
The country largely recognized as the homeland of the sport has produced a passionate and educated fanbase who always turn out when fisticuffs are on the menu. The raucous crowd helps to create one of the most unique “fighting environments” in all of combat sports as they keep the energy levels high from the opening bout until the lights go out in the arena.
All the Brazilian MMA faithful want to see is beautiful violence, and they were treated to their fare share Saturday night in Jaragua do Sul.
The sport’s most successful promotion made its first visit to Jaragua, Brazil, with a card anchored by a high-profile tilt between middleweight contenders Luke Rockhold and Brazilian superstar Vitor Belfort.
While the event was largely overlooked in the MMA community—save for the main event and co-main event between Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Chris Camozzi—this didn’t stop the fighters on the bill from getting down to serious business inside the cage.
The action came fast and furious at Arena Jaragua. From the lightweight ruckus displayed between Lucas Martins and Jeremy Larsen in the opening bout to a blistering spinning heel-kick knockout scored by Vitor Belfort in the main event, UFC on FX 8 certainly had high points..
That being said, there were certainly a few awkward and unsavory moments to go along with all of the face-punching goodness from Saturday night.
Here is a look at the good, bad and strange from UFC on FX 8:
The Good
Belfort is an absolute wrecking ball. Over the past 16 years, “The Phenom” has proven to be one of the best fighters in mixed martial arts. But in 2013, the 36-year-old has elevated his game to become an a monster in the middleweight division.
The former light heavyweight champion kicked off the year by starching Michael Bisping at UFC on FX 7 in January, then one-upped himself by scoring an early candidate for “Knockout of the Year” by flattening Luke Rockhold with a spinning back kick in the first round of their main event bout at UFC on FX 8.
The biggest question is what comes next for Belfort? With devastating wins over Bisping and Rockhold, another title shot should be in short order for the Brazilian knockout machine. Nevertheless, in his post-fight interview with Jon Anik, Belfort shrugged off the suggestion of him stepping in for another crack at UFC gold, which will leave a limited number of options for his next step.
With Belfort’s hesitation to jump into the title picture, a great option for his next challenge could very well be the owner of the event’s most impressive showing—Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza.
The Brazilian grappling machine once again proved he’s an absolute nightmare when the action hits the canvas as he left surging middleweight Chris Camozzi sleeping on the cavnas. Certainly, there is some slack to be given for the Colorado native—having stepped up to take the fight on short notice—but from the onset of the fight, it was all Souza.
Once the submission ace pulled Camozzi into his world, the clock on the TUF alum’s fate began to tick. After a bit of ground-and-pound, Souza locked in a fight-ending arm-triangle choke, and that left Camozzi unconscious.
The victory was certainly an impressive Octagon debut for the former Strikeforce champion, and his performance put the rest of the middleweight division on notice. In his post-fight interview with Anik during the FX broadcast, Souza asked for the winner of Belfort versus Rockhold, and that is a solid possibility.
In the featherweight division, Nik Lentz keeps on rolling. The scrappy, former NCAA Division I wrestler picked up his third consecutive victory since dropping down into the featherweight division. While “The Carny’s” fighting style is never anything to come out of your chair for, there is no way to argue his effectiveness inside the cage.
At UFC on FX 8, the American Top Team fighter kept constant pressure on Hacran Dias and picked up the unanimous-decision victory. The win will definitely ensure Lentz’s next outing will come against one of the featherweight division’s best. And with the title race in the 145-pound weight class hotter than it’s ever been, a possible matchup with Clay Guida or Chad Mendes would make sense.
Rounding out the category is Yuri Alcantara’s performance. The 32-year-old Brazilian made short work of Iliarde Santos on the preliminary portion of the card and made his presence known in the bantamweight division. With the current lack of depth in the 135-pound weight class, it wouldn’t come as a shock to see Alcantara’s next outing come against a top-10 opponent.
The Bad
The only major entry into this category for UFC on FX 8 was the judging on the bout between Evan Dunham and Rafael Dos Anjos. This was a back-and-forth, “Fight of the Night” worthy scrap between two lightweights on the rise, but when the action came to an end and went to the judges’ cards, a decision which should have belonged to Dunham went to Dos Anjos.
The Brazilian had his moments throughout the affair, but the Xtreme Couture product landed the cleaner shots and kept the pressure applied. While “RDA” was getting the better of the exchanges in the early goings, over the final two rounds, it was Dunham whose punches were getting there first.
UFC President Dana White took to Twitter to share his disapproval of the judge’s decision.
With the loss, the 31-year-old Oregon native will lose substantial ground in the highly competitive lightweight division. Where Dunham was once on the verge of trading in his prospect card for a contender’s badge, dropping two of his past three showings will put a top-10 ranking out of his immediate view.
Two other entries into this category are Roger Hollett’s brutal low-blow against Fabio Maldonado and referee Mario Yamasaki’s wavering authority in the bout between Hacran Dias and Nik Lentz.
“The Hulk’s” effort to throw a spinning back kick came up remarkably short against the Brazilian which resulted in Hollett landing a mule-kick smash to Maldonado’s delicate region. Whether it was an issue with flexibility or taking his eye of the target, missing a kick that poorly should keep Hollett from throwing anything that requires spinning for some time.
It wouldn’t be a true mixed martial arts event if there were nothing to gripe about on the officiating side. While the rest of the card went off without a hitch, Yamaski telling Dias he was going to take a point if the Nova Uniao fighter grabbed the fence again—then proceeded to look on as Dias grabbed the fence several more times—was a solid example of an official waffling during a fight.
The referee is supposed to keep the action clean and make sure the fight takes place within the boundaries of the rules. Yamasaki had no problem taking control of the initial situation and has to stand up and take the point if the fighter he warned commits another infraction. It was simply a bad look for Yamasaki.
The Strange
While the UFC’s last event at UFC 159 provided enough strangeness to put this category on overload, UFC on FX 8 was relatively light on “the weird.”
There was no demon voice to be heard.
There were no majority-draw inducing eye pokes.
In fact, for the most part, the action went down in smooth fashion in Brazil with the majority of fights running their course without incident. That being said, there were still a few things that happened outside the realm of normal, with the most notable being Gleison Tibau finishing his opponent.
The muscle-heavy American Top Team fighter has been a staple in the lightweight division for the past five years. But while he has proven knockout ability and a power submission game, the stocky Brazilian has a reputation for going the distance inside the Octagon.
That trend was bucked for the time being when Tibau submitted John Cholish via guillotine choke in the second round of their tilt at UFC on FX 8. The submission victory snaps a four-fight decision skid for the 29-year-old and puts Tibau back into the win column after coming out on the losing end of a split decision to Evan Dunham at UFC 156.
It is a well-known fact that the fight game is an unpredictable beast. And while there is little that be counted on time in and time out, putting on the master of the microphone Bruce Buffer is about as consistent as they come. Nevertheless, “The Buff” has been misfiring as of late, and the trend continued at UFC on FX 8.
In both the pre-fight and post-fight announcements, Buffer incorrectly called light heavyweight slugger Fabio Maldonado “Fabiano”. The Twitterverse quickly pointed out Buffer’s mistake, but in the longtime announcer’s defense, “Fabio” is a shortened version of Fabiano.
Nevertheless, if the man wants to go by Fabio, then you have to call him Fabio, and it is possible the rigors of his book tour for “It’s Time is taking its toll.
The incident comes in the aftermath of his botched call in the Jim Miller vs. Pat Healy fight at UFC 159. Following the Strikeforce veteran’s impressive third-round submission victory, Buffer incorrectly announced Miller as the winner of the fight.
While the moment was certainly embarrassing and a rare “off” moment for Buffer, perhaps, it was his clairvoyance showing through as the victory would ultimately be taken away from Healy three weeks later following a failed drug test.
Whether Buffer’s backslide will continue remains to be seen. But with his work ethic and mastery of the craft, it is a safe bet that the inventor of the Buffer 360 will be back to form in no time.
For the second fight in a row, Vitor Belfort finished an opponent with a devastating head kick, this time around putting away former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold Saturday night in the latest UFC on FX main event. With just over two …
For the second fight in a row, VitorBelfort finished an opponent with a devastating head kick, this time around putting away former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold Saturday night in the latest UFC on FX main event.
With just over two minutes gone in the fight, Belfort launched a quick, spinning heel kick that landed flush on Rockhold‘s jaw sending him crashing to the mat.
The spinning kick was similar to the ones landed by UFC lightweight EdsonBarboza (finishing Terry Etim) and former Ultimate Fighter finalist Uriah Hall (putting away Adam Cella). Rockhold deserves some credit because he’s the only one of the three who had the kick land and didn’t get completely knocked out from the impact, but Belfort didn’t need much morebesides a few punches to put Rockhold‘s lights out and pick up another win at 185 pounds.
Belfort is actually undefeated at the weight outside of one loss, and that’s where his win creates a big problem in the UFC’s middleweight division.
The Brazilian has now knocked off two top-five contenders in a row, with Rockhold and Michael Bisping in his previous fight.For any other fighter, it would almost seem a lock for a title shot in his next bout, but for Belfort that assumption can’t happen just yet for a number of reasons.
The first obstacle is middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
Belfort and Silva met already at UFC 126 in 2011 and ended in one of the most stunning knockouts in mixed martial arts history.Silva threw a front kick that landed straight on Belfort‘s mouth, knocking him to the ground in dramatic fashion.
Add to that the knockout happened in the first round in a one-sided fight that Silva controlled and no matter what streak he’s on currently, it’s hard to put Belfort back in against the champion a second time.Silva has never been keen on rematches, although he did grant one to both ChaelSonnen and former UFC champion Rich Franklin since he’s been middleweight champion.
Silva next faces Chris Weidman at UFC 162 in July. With a win, he would seem poised to focus on fights that would further define his legacy, like bouts against welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre or light heavyweight king Jon Jones.It’s unknown if Silva would have any interest at all in taking on Belfort a second time.
The other major obstacle for Belfort right now is his use of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT).
While the treatment is 100 percent legal by all standards in mixed martial arts, fighters are required to receive a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) by any state commission leading up to a fight.Belfort has now openly been using TRT for his last two fights, but he’s only fought in Brazil while being on the controversial treatment.
In the past with cards in Brazil, the UFC acted as a governing body to test the competing athletes.Recently, a commission was formed in Brazil, approving Belfort‘s continued TRT use.
Belfort would also need TRT approval for fights in the United States or other areas with recognized commissions.
Unfortunately for Belfort, he tested positive for steroids after competing in a Pride Fighting Championships bout in 2006 in Las Vegas.While there’s no proof why Belfort has low testosterone, steroid abuse is a known cause of the problem in men.
Nevada State Athletic Commission Executive Director Keith Kizerspoke to Bleacher Report in March and stated that because of Belfort‘s past conviction for steroid use, it’s unlikely they would grant him TRT exemption in the state.
“I don’t see VitorBelfort getting a TRT exemption from us,” Kizer told Bleacher Report. “I really don’t and I feel kind of bad for him in some ways because if he has learned from his mistakes and now he’s trying to do it the right way and his levels are low with the treatment good for him and I hope he is doing that. The rules are the rules and you have to draw the line somewhere.”
The line in the sand for TRT usage seems to be a past suspension for steroids, and that could prevent “the Phenom” from using the treatment in a fight in Las Vegas or some other major areas in the U.S. if other commissions follow suit.
It would mean that Belfort‘s fights would have to continue to take place in Brazil or England or other areas where the UFC acts as the governing body. If that’s the case, it’s going to make a title fight with Belfort involved a hard sell, especially with the lion’s share of major UFC championship fights taking place in the United States and Canada.
The only other scenario would be Belfort discontinuing his use of TRT all together.
At the post-fight press conference in Brazil, Belfort didn’t seem too interested in talking about TRT or a potential matchup with Silva down the road anyway, according to Tatame reporter Guilherme Cruz.
Belfort‘s best hope for a title shot might be to begin rooting for Chris Weidman at UFC 162, and then ask for the fight to take place in Brazil.Otherwise, Belfort may have to settle for big fights taking place in his native country with no title implications on the line.
It’s not an ideal spot for any fighter to be in, but at 36 years of age, Belfort could certainly earn a nice living being a part of major cards in Brazil time and again. But another shot at UFC gold may never happen in his career.
Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report.
UFC on FX 8 featured three top 10 middleweights, and after their performances on Saturday night, there was a mild shake-up in the division.No. 5 Luke Rockhold stepped inside the Octagon for the first time to battle No. 2 Vitor Belfort. The fight didn’t…
UFC on FX 8 featured three top 10 middleweights, and after their performances on Saturday night, there was a mild shake-up in the division.
No. 5 Luke Rockhold stepped inside the Octagon for the first time to battle No. 2 VitorBelfort. The fight didn’t make it past the first round because Belfort pulled off an incredible KO. A spinning back kick leveled Rockhold, and The Phenom finished him off with heavy punches on the mat.
No. 8 Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza took on Chris Camozzi and made quick work of the young prospect. Once he took the fight to the ground, it was academic. Jacare locked in an arm-triangle and picked up an impressive debut victory.
The division has certainly heated up over the past year, and the inclusion of the Strikeforce middleweights has only deepened the talent pool. These are exciting times in the 185-pound division.
Here are the middleweight power rankings after UFC on FX 8.
Vitor Belfort finished Luke Rockhold by knockout at UFC on FX 8, making that his 11th first-round finish in his UFC career. After connecting with a vicious spinning heel kick, Belfort then immediately followed that up with five unanswered punches…
VitorBelfort finished Luke Rockhold by knockout at UFC on FX 8, making that his 11th first-round finish in his UFC career. After connecting with a vicious spinning heel kick, Belfort then immediately followed that up with five unanswered punches before referee Leon Roberts halted the action at two minutes, 32 seconds of the opening round.
What we’ll remember about this fight
Belfort shocked everyone—not by winning in the first round—but by the fashion in which he did so. It was the second spinning heel kick he threw in the round, something you would’ve expected from Rockhold not Belfort.
What we learned about VitorBelfort
When he fights in Brazil, he wins. This was Belfort’s fourth career fight in his native country, dating back to 1998 when he finished Wanderlei Silva at UFC Brazil. Belfort continues to defy his age and is still diversifying his striking.
“I have a great team, the Blackzilians,” Belfort told Jon Anik in the post-fight interview, after being asked about the win.
What we learned about Luke Rockhold
It isn’t that Rockholdwasn’t ready for the bright lights of the UFC or that he had the infamous Octagon jitters. He simply just ran into a wall Saturday night in the form of VitorBelfort‘s left foot. We will see what the former Strikeforce middleweight champion is made of in his next fight.
What’s next for VitorBelfort
“I don’t pick fights, I accept fights,” Belfort told Jon Anik, upon being asked about facing the winner of Anderson Silva vs. Chris Weidman.
After finishing the No. 4- and No. 5-ranked middleweights back-to-back, there is no way for Dana White to justify not giving him a title shot.
What’s next for Luke Rockhold
The surfer from Santa Cruz may have to hit some waves and clear his head after this fight. He still has to prove he deserves his ranking. Michael Bisping is coming off a win, but the rest of the division is tied up with fights at the moment. It makes sense and would be an interesting matchup.
Michael Stets is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report.
Brazilians love their mixed martial arts and vicious knockouts. At