Tag: UFC

Early Breakdown of Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin

Most fighters who have won just once in the past five years no longer have a career in the UFC. Not only is Tito Ortiz still under contract for one more fight, he seemingly is going to get to have a say on who his final fight will be against.There have…

Most fighters who have won just once in the past five years no longer have a career in the UFC. Not only is Tito Ortiz still under contract for one more fight, he seemingly is going to get to have a say on who his final fight will be against.

There have been numerous rumors of Chuck Liddell and Rampage Jackson, but the one that has the most legs is that of Forrest Griffin.

Ortiz and Griffin have faced off twice before. In 2006, Ortiz won via split decision. Griffin returned the favor at UFC 106 in 2009 with a split decision win of his own.

When fans think of Griffin, they either envision the classic fight against Stephan Bonnar at The Ultimate Fighter 1 Finale or they think of the man who was embarrassed by Anderson Silva. Many are saying this could be Griffin’s last fight as well.

A date hasn’t been set, nor has the fight contract even been signed. However, it’s never too early to breakdown a potential fight to settle the trilogy between these two UFC veterans.

Heart and Desire

 

If you follow Ortiz on Twitter or just listen to his tone in interviews, you get the sense that he may not even want to go through the motions of training for this last fight. His emotions peaked when he beat Ryan Bader, but two straight losses have put Tito back on a losing streak. Let’s face it, he’s been doing a lot more losing (six times) than winning (once) since 2006.

Griffin has never taken himself seriously. His attitude toward his UFC career is as goofy as his face. At times it looks like he doesn’t want to be a fighter and other times he is as amped as anybody we’ve ever seen. We’ll know within the first two minutes of the fight how bad Griffin wants to win.

Overall Skill Level

 

When you watch Ortiz fight against today’s top opponents, it has become increasingly evident that the sport has started to pass him by. Ortiz made his most impressive run as a fighter from  2000 to 2006. At that time, to have great wrestling skills along with decent striking was enough to be successful.

Today’s successful fighters demand so much more. Griffin has also been humbled by how well-rounded the rest of the UFC roster have become. He came into the UFC as somebody who would rely heavily on throwing haymakers. As time went on and the sport evolved, he was able to keep up by evoking more leg kicks and falling back on his good ground game.

Now at the tail end of their careers, both fighters get banged up easier early on in fights. Griffin’s chin is one step away from being that of Chuck Liddell’s, and Ortiz can’t seem to sustain blows to the body like he once did.

This fight, should it come to fruition, will by no means be a “cane and walker” fight. I just wouldn’t suggest you bank on them going at it with guns blazing for an entire three rounds.

What Tito Ortiz Needs to do to Win

 

The Huntington Beach Bad Boy/People’s Champ will need to capture lightning in a bottle like he did against Bader to beat Forrest Griffin.

Ortiz’s body has become too soft to absorb the hard shots like it could a few years ago. He is going to have to avoid damage to the body. Thankfully for him, Griffin is not known for attacking the midsection.

What Forrest Griffin Needs to do to Win

 

Many people don’t realize the brutal talent Griffin has faced over the last four years. In that period of time he has faced Shogun Rua (twice), Rampage Jackson, Anderson Silva, Rich Franklin, and of course Tito Ortiz. 

Griffin is 4-3 in those seven fights. Should he face Ortiz this year, it would easily be the most favorable matchup he has had during that span. The Tito Ortiz of 2012 is a long ways off from the Tito Ortiz of 2009.

In order to secure a win against Ortiz, Forrest needs to have the same type of game plan that he had for his fight against Rampage. Crisp kicks to the legs of Ortiz will limit the effectiveness of a potential takedown attempt by Ortiz and make him question his will early on in the fight.

We’ve all seen what happens to Ortiz once he gets a few hard shots as of late. He seems to go in shutdown mode. If Forrest can get off to a good start in the first round and mix in kicks and effective striking while stuffing Ortiz’s takedowns, then he should win by an easy decision.

Who Will Win

 

Forrest Griffin—easily. Ortiz hasn’t shown us anything in over five years except for a flash punch that dropped Bader and allowed himself to secure the submission. Griffin, while not as sharp or durable as he once was has faced elite competition on a continuous basis, and has had much more success as of late than Ortiz has.

This fight would go to a decision and Griffin would walk out victorious should this event take place.

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UFC on FOX 2: Michael Bisping, Chael Sonnen Battle for Title of Best Villain

Ask a room full of MMA fans which fighters they love to root against the most and the two names that come up most often will likely be Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping. Guys like Tito Ortiz and Josh Koscheck have made a career out of playing the part o…

Ask a room full of MMA fans which fighters they love to root against the most and the two names that come up most often will likely be Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping. Guys like Tito Ortiz and Josh Koscheck have made a career out of playing the part of the villain, but in the […]

UFC on FUEL TV 2 Fight Card: Nogueira vs. Gustafsson

Filed under: UFCThe UFC on FUEL TV 2 fight card, headlined by Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Alexander Gustafsson, takes place April 14 and marks the live debut of the UFC in Sweden.

The event airs live from the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm on FUEL…

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The UFC on FUEL TV 2 fight card, headlined by Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Alexander Gustafsson, takes place April 14 and marks the live debut of the UFC in Sweden.

The event airs live from the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm on FUEL TV and Facebook.

The current lineup is below.

FUEL TV Card – 10 p.m. ET
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

Brian Stann vs. Alessio Sakara
Siyar Bahadurzada vs. Paulo Thiago
DaMarques Johnson vs. John Maguire

Facebook Preliminary Card
Jörgen Kruth vs. Cyrille Diabate
Magnus Cedenblad vs. Francis Carmont
Brad Pickett vs. Damacio Page
James Head vs. Papy Abedi
Akira Corassani vs. Jason Young*
Simeon Thoresen vs. Besam Yousef

*not yet officially announced

 

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UFC on FOX 2: Michael Bisping, Chael Sonnen Battle for Title of Best Villain

Ask a room full of MMA fans which fighters they love to root against the most and the two names that come up most often will likely be Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping. Guys like Tito Ortiz and Josh Koscheck have made a career out of playing the part …

Ask a room full of MMA fans which fighters they love to root against the most and the two names that come up most often will likely be Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping. Guys like Tito Ortiz and Josh Koscheck have made a career out of playing the part of the villain, but in the modern day UFC, no fighters do it better than Bisping and Sonnen.

Both middleweights are brash, outspoken and have a knack for saying things that make fans want to pull their hair out, which has caused them to be two of the most disliked fighters in the sport.

While most would agree that their antics are primarily used to sell fights, it doesn’t make anyone like them any more than they have to.

Sonnen has driven MMA fans crazy with comments that can only be described as insane, as he has taken verbal shots at Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida,Wanderlei Silva, Lance Armstrong and, yes, Michael Bisping.

Bisping has been less cartoonish with his antics, taking a more hostile approach that has rubbed fans the wrong way. Bisping has been pissing off fans for years, but his antics at UFC 127 in his bout against Jorge Rivera, where he threw an illegal knee and allegedly spit in the direction of Rivera’s corner, pushed most viewers over the edge.

The two top-ranked middleweights got thrown into a No. 1 contenders bout on just 11 days’ notice when Mark Munoz was forced from the UFC on FOX card with an injury, and while anticipation has skyrocketed for the bout in a short amount of time, there is still a feeling of what could have been.

These two could have had a war of words that would have only been described as legendary, but with just under two weeks left to promote the fight they will likely not have enough time to take thing to another level.

In most UFC high-profile fights, you can guess which fighter the fans will be rooting for going into the fight, but with these two it will be interesting if either fighter gets cheered at all.

In the next week or so, not only will the hype for this fight grow on a daily basis, the sheer personality of these two fighters is going to force fans to pick a side. I’m not saying Team Michael and Team Chael T-shirts are going to be made, but everyone is going to find a reason to hate one guy a little more than the other.

These two have both made a career out of trying to get a reaction out of people, and most of the time that reaction seems to be negative.

Obviously, the most important battle will take inside the Octagon on fight night, but a minor victory will be won before Sonnen and Bisping even step into the cage.

Whoever gets booed more loudly on their way to the cage will know that they have done their job well over the last few years and, perhaps more importantly, will be viewed as the best villain the UFC has to offer.

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Diego Sanchez Talks Jake Ellenberger, Carlos Condit, His Very Hard Head

Let’s be honest, most people don’t stay up at night counting the days until they get to go to Omaha, Neb. But when Diego Sanchez told Bleacher Report, “I get to go to Omaha, Nebraska,” you’d have thought he was on his way …

Let’s be honest, most people don’t stay up at night counting the days until they get to go to Omaha, Neb. But when Diego Sanchez told Bleacher Report, “I get to go to Omaha, Nebraska,” you’d have thought he was on his way to Disneyland.

The difference is, when kids want to go to Disneyland, they aren’t typically thinking of declaring war on Disneyland.  But that’s what Sanchez has in mind for his Feb. 15 fight with Jake Ellenberger in Ellenberger’s hometown for the UFC’s first card on Fuel TV. To Sanchez, his bout with Ellenberger is more than just a fight. It’s geopolitics.  

“I look at this like I’m going to, like, Russia, and I’m fighting Russia,” Sanchez said. “I’m going into his backyard. I’m taking the war to him. I’m invading his territory.”

Being on the UFC’s debut on Fuel TV is a bit of déjà vu for “The Dream,” who also appeared on the UFC’s Spike TV premier when he fought Nick Diaz in the first Ultimate Fighter show finale. Sanchez defeated Diaz by unanimous decision to claim the first shard of glass otherwise known as the Ultimate Fighter trophy.

Seven years later, with UFC welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre injured, the man Sanchez beat is preparing to take on Sanchez’s teammate Carlos Condit for the interim welterweight title at UFC 143 on Feb. 4.  Sanchez, meanwhile, is preparing for Ellenberger, whom Condit defeated.

Sanchez said he and Condit know that if they both keep winning they’ll have to fight each other, but they’re not sweating it now. Sanchez observed, as has been noted often of late in a variety of contexts, that “it is what it is.”

The two Albuquerque, N.M. natives have come a long way since meeting in a hotel room in Juarez, Mexico.

“Carlos, when he fought his first fight I was fighting my third fight in Juarez, Mexico, and we shared a hotel room together. We were sitting in there talking to each other. I was fighting at 185 he was fighting at 155. And we were telling each other how we were gonna be fighting in UFC.  Little did we know. Eight years later we’re here,” Sanchez said.

But Sanchez doesn’t have too much time to spend reflecting on the good old days or dwelling on hypothetical future matchups. He has a date with a man who did in less than a minute what St-Pierre couldn’t do in five rounds: Finish Jake Shields.  Sanchez doesn’t take this lightly.

“I feel that I’m fighting the most dangerous fighter in the welterweight division,” he said. “He has knockout power, he’s a great wrestler, he’s hungry, he fights extremely hard. I think he’s the most dangerous guy out there. The way he handled Jake Shields.  We saw the way Georges handled Jake Shields, compared to how Jake handled Jake, so you know, I feel like I’m fighting the No. 1 contender.”

That, on top of waging war with Omaha, Neb., is a pretty full plate. But when you’re as hungry as Diego Sanchez, it doesn’t seem like much.  

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UFC’s Pre-Contract PED Screening Won’t Stop Fighters from Cheating

The Nevada State Athletic Commission wasn’t the only one with performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) on the mind today. Following the news that Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal tested positive for anabolic steroids after his Jan. 7 fight with Lorenz Larkin, t…

The Nevada State Athletic Commission wasn’t the only one with performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) on the mind today. 

Following the news that Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal tested positive for anabolic steroids after his Jan. 7 fight with Lorenz Larkin, the UFC had some PED news of its own.

Citing a commitment to the health and safety of its athletes, all incoming UFC and Strikeforce fighters will be subject to a mandatory pre-contract screening for PEDs prior to finalizing a contract, effective Jan. 1, 2012. 

Unfortunately, this will likely do little to actually prevent PED use amongst UFC and Strikeforce fighters. Though I commend Zuffa/the UFC on enacting this pro-active policy—something, after all, is at least better than nothing—it is ultimately little more than a nice sounding PR policy.

In fact, this policy is a perfect example of a flawed syllogism that is often cited in IT security, the “Security Syllogism.” It goes something like this:

  1. To be secure, we must do something.
  2. We are doing something.
  3. Therefore, we are secure. 

The fact that the minor premise (No. 2) meets the condition of the major premise (No. 1) does not necessitate a logical conclusion. The action taken in the minor premise must actually directly address the problem.

To put it a bit more simply, predictable, well-announced drug tests (such as those established by the UFC policy) allow athletes that may be using PEDs to time the tests and ensure their system is clean prior to being tested.

Only regularly occurring, random, out-of-competition tests will suitably ensure that PED abuse is being curbed. The risk of being tested must be so omnipresent that the only reasonable reaction is to not use banned substances at all.

As Sean McCorkle put it on MMAFighting.com’s The MMA Hour, “I think we’d be pretty naive to think that every person who’s ever taken anything was caught.”

Just because a fighter is tested once or twice at a pre-determined interval doesn’t at all mean that they are clean, it just means they didn’t have PEDs in their system when they were tested.

What would a good testing system look like? The World Anti-Doping Agency has already done a majority of the legwork for the UFC and major state athletic commissions by drafting and implementing a harmonized set of anti-doping rules, the World Anti-Doping Code.

So, let’s see the UFC put their money where their mouth is. Take real, meaningful steps towards eliminating the use of PEDs rather than setting up another easily foreseen hurdle.

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