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Regrouped After February Upset Loss, Chris Lytle Not Ruling Out UFC Title Run

Filed under: UFC, NewsMILWAUKEE – There are workaholics, and then there is Chris Lytle.

When he’s not training for a UFC fight – and going into his 20th with the promotion, he’s among the all-time leaders – he’s working as an Indianapolis firefighter…

Filed under: UFC, News

MILWAUKEE – There are workaholics, and then there is Chris Lytle.

When he’s not training for a UFC fight – and going into his 20th with the promotion, he’s among the all-time leaders – he’s working as an Indianapolis firefighter. And he recently said when he stops scrapping in the cage, he wouldn’t mind taking a stab at Indiana state politics – he even put an exploratory committee together to see how he’d fare in an election. Then there’s his family, with four kids.

It would occur to most people to wonder, geez – does the guy ever take a break? Maybe not retire just yet, though Lytle will turn 37 next week. But just stop going for a few days?

“After this last fight, I had a lot of injuries and that was one of the things I was contemplating,” Lytle told MMA Fighting on Friday after a short workout in Milwaukee, where he’ll fight Dan Hardy in the main event of UFC on Versus 5 on Sunday. “I don’t want to keep fighting if I can’t perform like I’ve been doing. So I took some time off, hung out with the family a little bit and let my body heal up. I actually got to relax a little bit – it was pretty cool. I had about a month where I didn’t do too much. That’s a rarity.”

(Of course, that month where he “didn’t do too much” still involved working at the firehouse.) And then that switch in his head clicked back over, the one that doesn’t really allow him to take breaks. The one that doesn’t really allow him to relax.

“I don’t like to take much time off – after a couple days, it’s like something’s missing,” Lytle (30-18-5, 9-10 UFC) said. “I start to get in a bad mood, and my wife’s like, ‘You need to go to the gym.’ I love to take breaks, but it just never happens. I feel like I have a lot of responsibilities, a lot of goals – I think I’m just too goal-oriented. Once I get something on my mind, it’s hard for me to get it out.”

Right now, what’s on Lytle’s mind is getting back in the win column. In February, his name was being tossed around as a possible title challenger for Georges St-Pierre‘s welterweight belt. His four-fight winning streak, while not overwhelming, was the kind of run that if it hit five, then six, a title shot would have been realistic.

But then Brian Ebersole came along. He pulled one of the year’s biggest upsets in front of his home Australian crowd, taking the fight on short notice and sending Lytle back into the middle of the pack at 170 pounds. Lytle said everything about that fight at UFC 127 felt wrong.

“That was a lose-lose situation for me,” Lytle said. “I knew I wasn’t physically where I should be, and I knew nobody knew who this guy was. Unless I went out there and knocked him out in 30 seconds, everyone would say, ‘Chris didn’t look good tonight.’ And I knew I wasn’t going to do that – no one’s ever knocked him out, he’s a good wrestler, he hasn’t lost a fight in five years. I knew he was going to be tough, and there was very little to gain. I knew I had a lot working against me.”

Against Hardy (23-9, 1 NC, 4-3 UFC), Lytle is back in the type of fight he loves the most – the potential for a good old fashioned scrap. That’s what Hardy has been practically begging for since he was “punked” by Anthony Johnson in March. Hardy claims Johnson told him personally he wanted to have a knock-down, drag-out slugfest of a fight, then wrestled his way to a decision victory.

But Lytle again on Friday said Hardy has very little to worry about in that department. After all, you don’t win eight UFC fight night bonuses by fighting safe and playing for points with the judges.

“I do take a lot of pride that the UFC has put us in the main event,” Lytle said. “I know they do that for a reason – they want fireworks. They want a fight people want to see. These are the kinds of fights I want. There’s no thought in my head of pulling an Anthony Johnson. I got to get that W, but I’d rather lose the fight than win it like that.”

Though Lytle admits to giving some thought to hanging up the gloves after his loss to Ebersole, he said it will be his body that will dictate how long he stays in the game. And even though he had to go back to Square One in the title picture after the loss, he wouldn’t put a title run down the line beyond the realm of possibility for him.

“I feel that if you go out there and just grind it out to try and get a title, you’re going to have to win eight or nine fights in a row to get a title fight,” Lytle said. “If I go out there and just put on great fights – and I’m trying to win all of them – and win in spectacular fashion, it’s not going to take eight fights. It’s going to take a few. I feel like I’m still on the radar, and if I get a couple wins …”

Lytle has time for very little in his schedule, but he’d make time for one last run at a UFC belt.

Lytle and Hardy fight in the main event of UFC on Versus 5, which airs Sunday at 9 p.m. Easter on the Versus cable channel.

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The Cut List: Who’s in Desperate Need of a Win at UFC on Versus 5?

Filed under: UFCThe UFC Live cards may lack the firepower of the big shows, but a) they’re free, and b) they afford some great opportunities for up-and-comers and down-and-outers alike to show off their stuff at an event where the spotlight isn’t compl…

Filed under: UFC

The UFC Live cards may lack the firepower of the big shows, but a) they’re free, and b) they afford some great opportunities for up-and-comers and down-and-outers alike to show off their stuff at an event where the spotlight isn’t completely hogged by superstars.

That also makes UFC on Versus 5 a last-chance go-round for several fighters on the roster, so it’s either win or go home when the UFC rolls into Milwaukee.

Who’s on the hot seat this time around, and who’s most likely to get scorched before the night is over? Find out below.

Dan Hardy (23-9, 1 NC; 4-3 UFC)
Who he’s facing: Chris Lytle
Why he’s in danger: Hardy managed to avoid the UFC’s informal three strikes policy based primarily on his popularity and his fighting style. If he was a bland, decision-prone wrestler with a buzz cut, he’d be long gone by now. But even the UFC would have trouble overlooking four straight losses, so Hardy needs to pull it together against Lytle. He’s a smart chap, so he knows that, which is why he called out Lytle to begin with. As much as he can’t afford to lose another one, he really can’t afford to get out-wrestled in another snoozer. In Lytle, he’s found an opponent who will probably choose not to exploit his weak takedown defense, opting instead to fling leather at one another’s faces until someone falls down. That’s exactly what Hardy needs right now. Of course, he also needs to be the one who doesn’t fall down. If you lose a hand-picked fight like this, then what hope is there for you?
Odds of getting cut: 3-1. It’s a winnable fight for Hardy, and one that’ll probably produce enough fireworks to please the bosses. If he gets KO’d, however, he’s almost certainly done in the UFC…at least for now.

Duane Ludwig (20-11; 3-2 UFC)
Who he’s facing: Amir Sadollah
Why he’s in danger: His current run in the UFC started with two straight losses, followed by a somewhat lucky split decision win over Nick Osipczak at UFC 122. Lucky not because he didn’t deserve it, mind you, but rather because he was pretty clearly losing until Osipczak ran out of gas and tried to coast to the finish, allowing “Bang” to finish strong. With close to 90 fights on the books between MMA and kickboxing, Ludwig is a savvy, yet battered journeyman of combat sports. He’s been in some battles and has more miles on the odometer than most 33-year-old fighters. If he gets beat by Sadollah, the UFC might start to do the math on him and decide it doesn’t need another tailspinning welterweight who’s doing good to pull off a 1-3 run against four mid-level opponents. Then again, he’ll fight whoever you’ve got and he doesn’t cause trouble, and there’s something to be said for an employee like that.
Odds of getting cut: Even. Without a memorable showing, a defeat here — which is likely, to say the least — probably results in Ludwig getting his walking papers.

Alex Caceres (5-3; 0-1 UFC)
Who he’s facing: Jim Hettes
Why he’s in danger: At least so far, Caceres seems more suited for reality TV than for the Octagon. He’s a character, and every season of TUF needs at least one of those. Once the show’s over, however, you’ve got to earn your keep with your fists. Caceres seemed out of his depth against Mackens Semerzier in his first UFC fight. On paper, he seems to be headed for another defeat against the undefeated submissions artist Hettes. It was the Bruce Leeroy gimmick and the glimmer of raw talent that got Caceres this far in the UFC, but that shine wears off quickly. We know Caceres has personality. Now he needs to show he has skills, as well.
Odds of getting cut: 2-5. Caceres is still young, so maybe he could use the time to get some experience on the small circuit. My guess is he’s going to get that chance after Sunday.

Jason Reinhardt (20-2; 0-2 UFC)
Who he’s facing: Edwin Figueroa
Why he’s in danger: What does it tell you when a guy’s undefeated outside of the UFC and winless in it? Either he hasn’t fought the toughest competition in the local shows or else he gets a killer case of nerves inside the Octagon. Neither is a particularly good sign. In two UFC fights, Reinhardt has lasted a total of 2:02. It’s somewhat surprising that he didn’t get cut after being mauled by Tiequan Zhang at UFC 127, but his role in the curtain-jerker on a UFC Live show should definitely tell him that this is the last stop on the express train out of the organization. Only a win will keep the 41-year-old Reinhardt on the UFC roster, and his opponent is a 3-1 betting favorite. If Reinhardt’s going to turn out to be the UFC’s answer to Rudy, he’d better start on Sunday.
Odds of getting cut: 1-5. Get a good look at him while you can, because Reinhardt is headed for the door.

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Eddie Wineland Looking for Tough Road Back to UFC Title Contention

Filed under: UFC, NewsAfter Eddie Wineland had his four-fight winning streak snapped against Urijah Faber in March, he took an interesting next step.

Rather than taking the positives from a fight he kept much closer than most people predicted, regrou…

Filed under: UFC, News

After Eddie Wineland had his four-fight winning streak snapped against Urijah Faber in March, he took an interesting next step.

Rather than taking the positives from a fight he kept much closer than most people predicted, regrouping and taking on someone down the bantamweight ladder to start a new streak, Wineland asked for an opponent maybe tougher than his last – Joseph Benavidez.

Before thinking Wineland might not have his head on straight – after all, he asked for the teammate and primary training partner of his last opponent, ensuring Benavidez would have plenty of knowledge about him built up from Faber’s training camp – one must listen to his logic. Having once held the bantamweight belt for the WEC, now the UFC strap, getting it back is the one thing he wants most.

“I could have easily fought one of the top five, six, seven guys, and that would’ve got me back on track,” Wineland said. “But a win over Joseph, I think, puts me right back into title contention. It’s a gamble, but I don’t need to be fighting guys who are up and coming and looking to get their names out there.”

Wineland (18-7-1, 0-1 UFC) had back-to-back Knockout of the Night bonuses to close out his WEC career before getting his matchup with Faber. And though he won the first round on the judges’ scorecards at UFC 128 – stopping multiple Faber takedown attempts and landing a slam of his own to the surprise of nearly everyone but Wineland – he couldn’t keep Faber at bay long enough in the second and third. Faber went on to get a title shot – a shot that UFC president Dana White said afterward he’d have to have given to Wineland had he won.

With Dominick Cruz locked down on the No. 1 spot in the bantamweight class, Wineland sees plenty of lists with Benavidez (14-2, 1-0 UFC) as the No. 2 guy. Benavidez’s only two career losses? To Cruz, of course. But Wineland wants to dispel the myth that asking for Benavidez was a call-out of any kind. He wanted another major test, more than anything.

“I always said that Benavidez poses a lot of problems for me since he’s a good wrestler and he’s really fast, very scrambly,” Wineland said. “He’s ranked top two or three in most all the rankings. In the beginning, he felt like I called him out – when it’s not coming from the horse’s mouth he’s going to hear something different. Not that I called him out, but I asked for the fight because that’s my fastest path back to the belt.”

Wineland was a heavy underdog against Faber, and he’ll enter the fight with Benavidez at UFC on Versus 5 on Sunday in Milwaukee, just a couple hours’ drive from his home in Northwest Indiana, as a 2-to-1 ‘dog.

Wineland will have a reach and height advantage of several inches against Benavidez, but he remembers how his opponent caught the bigger Miguel Torres not long back – the same Torres that Wineland once trained with. Wineland said he looked at Benavidez’s losses to Cruz more than anything else, and he wonders if he might have some of the same Benavidez Kryptonite that Cruz seems to possess. If he does, he believes an upset is in the offing on Sunday.

“I think Dominick and I have similar movements in the sense we move side to side and not forward and backward,” Wineland said. “I think ultimately, my natural movement is what’s going to give me the win. I think they think they’re going to come in and fight the same Eddie Wineland that Urijah fought, and that’s not going to happen. Every fight, I change. I get stronger. I get faster.”

And that size difference of 5-foot-7 vs. 5-4? If it gives Wineland that little extra mental boost for himself, he’ll take it.

“When we’re in the gym and I’m sparring with shorter guys, my confidence seems to grow,” Wineland said. “Not so much the fact that I’m looking down on them … but I am looking down on them. I think it gives me that confidence factor and helps me to push forward and realize that, hey, this guy’s a kid – he looks like a kid. So I can’t let this kid come in here and beat me. I just have to think child abuse, I guess.”

But that’s not a call out.

Wineland and Benavidez fight as part of the preliminary card of UFC on Versus 5 on Sunday at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Wis. Their fight will air as part of a live stream on the UFC’s Facebook page, with the first fight starting at 5:45 p.m. Eastern. The main card, featuring a welterweight bout between Dan Hardy and Chris Lytle, airs live on Versus starting at 9 p.m. Eastern.

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Hardy Going ‘All-In’ Against Lytle Sunday Night

(Hardy says it’s either “kill or be killed” Sunday night against Lytle.)

Many critics are pointing to the welterweight scrap between Dan Hardy (23-9-0-1) and Chris Lytle (30-18-5) at UFC on Versus 5: Hardy vs. Lytle in Milwaukee on Sunday as being a a must-win match-up for the British striker, and by rights it very well will be considering he is 0-3 in his past three outings.

Hardy, who is cognizant of the high stakes of the bout, says that even though some might opt to play it cautious in his position, he’s still going to come out swinging and let the chips fall where they may, and he believes that Lytle will walk into the Octagon in the same frame of mind.

“That’s what I’m hoping for. Chris is an exciting fighter, and he always brings the fight,” Hardy explains. “I’m sure this fight won’t be any different. I’m always fine with trading punches until someone falls over…I like my odds in that gamble.”

(Hardy says it’s either “kill or be killed” Sunday night against Lytle.)

“The Outlaw” says that he wants to be in the running for not only “Fight of the Night” honors Sunday night, but also for the coveted award of “Knockout of the Night” — a rather lofty goal considering no opponent has ever turned the “Lights Out” on Lytle.

“My goal is to be the first person to knock Chris out,” he says matter-of-factly. “I’m not sure when it will come or how it will come, but I have a lot of options, a lot of techniques that would get him out of there before the final bell.”

Hardy believes that he is a better striker than his 36-year-old opponent, who by day is an Indianapolis firefighter, and he says that he aims to prove it this weekend by besting Lytle and stopping the durable veteran.

“All I know is that the fight will be a war while it lasts, and my hand will be raised at the end.”

*Special thanks to Hardy’s sponsor RevGear for supplying us with the above quotes from “The Outlaw.”

Gambling Addiction Enabler: ‘Hardy vs. Lytle’ Edition

Full betting lines for this Sunday’s UFC Live: Hardy vs. Lytle event have been released, which means it’s time to steal some money from your old lady’s purse and tell her you’re going for a walk. And if you follow our gambling advice very carefully, you’ll be able to return the cash before she notices and earn some extra cigarette-money in the process. (Ed. note: You’ll probably lose everything like usual. Are things ever going to change with you, Jim?) Check out the juiciest lines, via bestfightodds.com:

Main Card (Versus, 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT)
Chris Lytle (-107) vs. Dan Hardy (even)
Jim Miller (-145) vs. Ben Henderson (+145)
Charles Oliveira (-130) vs. Donald Cerrone (+130)
Amir Sadollah (-310) vs. Duane Ludwig (+273)

Preliminary Card (Facebook.com, 5:45 p.m. ET / 2:45 p.m. PT)
C.B. Dollaway (-250) vs. Jared Hamman (+222)
Joseph Benavidez (-231) vs. Eddie Wineland (+225)
Kyle Noke (-144) vs. Ed Herman (+145)
Karlos Vemola (-210) vs. Ronny Markes (+201)
Jimy Hettes (-350) vs. Alex Caceres (+313)
Cole Miller (-387) vs. T.J. O’Brien (+335)
Danny Castillo (-118) vs. Jacob Volkmann (+107)
Edwin Figueroa (-300) vs. Jason Reinhardt (+288)

Let’s get that money…

The Main Event: Chris Lytle definitely deserves to be a slight favorite here; he’s dangerous from more positions than Dan Hardy, and supernaturally impervious to knockouts and submissions. I think the line would be wider if Lytle wasn’t coming off a lackluster performance against Brian Ebersole in February, but as we all know, the dude was nursing injuries and shouldn’t have taken the fight in the first place. Dan Hardy allegedly holds the striking advantage — but I’m not entirely convinced of that either. Straight money on Lights Out is a wise choice.

The Co-Main: There’s part of me that thinks Jim Miller is being disrespected (as usual) by only being a -145 favorite against Bendo. Henderson is incredibly talented and capable of brilliant performances, but this is Miller’s time. His last two stoppage wins against Charles Oliveira and Kamal Shalorus have demonstrated that his skills are developing with every fight. I see the Jersey Boy taking this one by decision and hitting lucky #8. Miller’s a safe bet.

The Good ‘Dog: I expected the Oliveira vs. Cerrone line to be closer to even. The rangy, experienced, well-rounded Cowboy is a legitimate test for the young Brazilian phenom, and his +130 line is attractive.

The New Guys: Never heard of Jimy Hettes, huh? Well after Sunday night, you’ll know him as “the guy who just knocked Bruce Leroy out of the UFC.” Hettes is a grappling savant who has tapped all eight of his opponents in regional east coast promotions. Despite his TUF 12 credentials, Caceres isn’t really a step up in competition; please don’t bet on him just because you’ve heard of him. As for the card’s other late-replacement newbie, Ronny Markes is a 23-year-old Brazilian prospect who scored a decision win over Paulo Filho in April — not that beating Paulo Filho means much anymore. Vemola is the favorite here because he kicked the dogshit out of Seth Petruzelli in his last fight, while Markes is something of an unknown quantity. My gut is telling me to stay away from this one altogether.

Official CagePotato Parlay: Lytle + Miller + Benavidez + Hettes + Figueroa. $20 returns $131.05 profit.

UFC on Versus 5: By the Odds

Filed under: UFCThere’s nothing like a free Sunday night fight card from the UFC to take your mind off the impending doom of Monday morning and the current lack of good TV dramas on HBO.

As we settle in to enjoy another event on Versus, which necessa…

Filed under: UFC

There’s nothing like a free Sunday night fight card from the UFC to take your mind off the impending doom of Monday morning and the current lack of good TV dramas on HBO.

As we settle in to enjoy another event on Versus, which necessarily includes a confused few minutes of searching for Versus on the cable TV dial, let’s look at how oddsmakers see the action going down in Milwaukee.

Chris Lytle (-130) vs. Dan Hardy (even)

In his role as the guy you fight when you want to throw them bungalows and forget about the existence of takedowns altogether, Lytle has been pretty dependable. That’s good news for Hardy, who, after three straight losses, needs a win so bad he can feel it in his mohawk. We know Hardy can be outwrestled, but we also know Lytle isn’t likely to take that route. He’ll stand there and fling blows for as long as Hardy wants, regardless of whether it’s a good idea or not. We know Lytle is a skilled striker. What we have to wonder at this point is if he can stand up to Hardy’s power. The 36-year-old vet started to look his age a little bit in his last fight. He’s been eyeing retirement and a potential political run recently, while Hardy has no choice but to win. Kind of makes you think that the Brit might want/need this more.
My pick: Hardy. Based on past experience, Lytle will probably let him off the hook by ignoring the glaring weakness in his takedown defense. From there, youth and speed rule the day.

Ben Henderson (+145) vs. Jim Miller (-175)

We’re still figuring out just how well the top WEC lightweights stack up against the UFC regulars, but Henderson’s decision win over Mark Bocek was enough to tell us that he deserves to be taken seriously. However, there’s a big difference between edging out Bocek and hanging with Miller, who’s as underappreciated as any fighter in the UFC right now. The last time he lost a fight was to current top contender Gray Maynard, and that was in 2009. Since then he’s won seven straight, against quality opponents, and he’s finished more than half of them. Henderson is a decent striker with good grappling, but it’s hard to see where he holds significant advantages over Miller. This seems like Miller’s time to shine, and oddsmakers know it.
My pick: Miller. At -175 (meaning you’d need to wager $175 to win $100), you’re better off saving it for a parlay pick. Just don’t count on Henderson to be your underdog savior.

Charles Oliveira (-130) vs. Donald Cerrone (even)

There’s a lot to like about Oliveira, even though, after his blatantly illegal knee on Nik Lentz, his understanding of the unified rules of MMA may not be one of them. But while he looked impressive right up to that point, just as he did against Efrain Escudero last September, he’s facing a different kind of opponent in Cerrone. “Cowboy” is just straight-up mean. He took a disturbing amount of joy in leg-kicking Vagner Rocha until he could no longer stand, and when forced to use it, he’s also got a pretty good submissions game. Oliveira had a strong start to his UFC career, but we have to face the fact that he’s seeing a big jump up in competition lately, especially with Miller and now Cerrone, and we don’t know for sure yet whether he’s ready for it.
My pick: Cerrone. It’s going to be a close one, and quite possibly the best fight on this card, but I think his experience and crowd/judge-pleasing style will make the difference.

Amir Sadollah (-310) vs. Duane Ludwig (+250)

This is one where oddsmakers seem to have zeroed in on the right guy, but are perhaps a little overly optimistic. On paper, Sadollah should beat Ludwig. But when you’re looking at an experienced kickboxer like “Bang” going up against a still pretty inexperienced fighter like Sadollah, I’m not sure I’d have the faith to go all the way to 3-1 on it. Yes, Sadollah looked impressive against DaMarques Johnson (who took the fight on very short notice) in March. And yes, his weakness is his wrestling, where Ludwig isn’t likely to take it. But any time you’re trading kicks and punches with a guy who has as many kickboxing bouts as Ludwig does, there’s always a chance for things to go wrong.
My pick: Sadollah, though I could never get on board with these odds. In fact, Ludwig might even be worth small action if you’re sick of playing the lottery, where you so rarely get a decent fight for your money.

Quick picks:

– Jim Hettes (-400) over Alex Caceras (+300). I know, you loved him as Bruce Leeroy on TUF, but Hettes appears to have the submission game that Caceras lacks, so don’t get suckered in here.

– Jacob Volkmann (+105) over Danny Castillo (-135). Volkmann is not terribly fun to watch, and his trash talk on Obama comes off like an ill-conceived Mr. Bean sketch, but he’s got this.

The ‘For Entertainment Purposes Only’ Parlay: Hardy + Miller + Cerrone + Volkmann

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