When Nick Ring took to the Octagon against Tim Boetsch at UFC 135 in September, the Canadian middleweight—after three rounds of action—claimed the first loss of his nearly decade-long professional mixed martial arts career. Despite the fact…
When Nick Ring took to the Octagon against Tim Boetsch at UFC 135 in September, the Canadian middleweight—after three rounds of action—claimed the first loss of his nearly decade-long professional mixed martial arts career. Despite the fact that Ring is disappointed that he fell short against Boetsch, who is the proud owner of five victories […]
When Nick Ring took to the Octagon against Tim Boetsch at UFC 135 in September, the Canadian middleweight—after three rounds of action—claimed the first loss of his nearly decade-long professional mixed martial arts career.Despite the fact …
When Nick Ring took to the Octagon against Tim Boetsch at UFC 135 in September, the Canadian middleweight—after three rounds of action—claimed the first loss of his nearly decade-long professional mixed martial arts career.
Despite the fact that Ring is disappointed that he fell short against Boetsch, who is the proud owner of five victories in the UFC, he insisted he isn’t going to be making any profound changes to the way he approaches his career on the canvas.
“After a loss, I think it’s easy to say [that] I’m going to make a bunch of changes and that things will be different next time, but I’m not going to say anything cheesy like that,” Ring, 32, explained to Bleacher Report.
“The truth is, I made big improvements in certain aspects of my game leading up to that fight and as shitty as it is to lose, I have more in my toolbox now than before I started training for it. Regardless of the outcome, I am a better fighter.”
Although he argued that he is consistently improving in the cage, Ring doesn’t necessarily agree with the common assertion—cliché, perhaps—that you can take away more from a loss than a victory.
“Yeah, I would say that you can learn a lot from a loss, but you can learn just as much from a win,” clarified Ring. “I think it comes down to your attitude in general and your dedication to constantly improving yourself through experience.
“I’ve known lots of guys who lose lots of matches and never learn anything from it at all and I have also seen guys who never lose and they look better each time they fight. I don’t prescribe to the notion that losing is a good thing, but I will say it can be if you are dedicated to learning from your mistakes.”
Ring, who doesn’t have any matches set at the moment, is now looking to get back to his winning ways in the coming year.
Despite the fact that he will more than likely be pitted against a fellow UFC middleweight in his return to the Octagon, Ring seemingly has bigger aspirations in the sport.
“I want to be the first MMA fighter to have a match against an endangered animal,” Ring joked. “I’m kind of thinking like a snow leopard or a manatee or something. I’m still trying to get this one past the animal rights people, but I have made some surprising headway in the last year…I’m still crossing my fingers and I will keep you guys up to date.”
This past Saturday night, Jose Aldo proved that not only is he the best featherweight in the world, but also one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in MMA when he knocked out No. 1 contender Chad Mendes in the final second of the first round.Also, Vit…
This past Saturday night, Jose Aldo proved that not only is he the best featherweight in the world, but also one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in MMA when he knocked out No. 1 contender Chad Mendes in the final second of the first round.
Also, Vitor Belfort proved size is overrated, as he submitted an extremely overweight Anthony Johnson in the first round of their “middleweight” bout.
In other action, Edson Barboza scored what will be the knockout of the year when he landed a wheel kick that sent Terry Etim in to la-la land. Erick Silva got, what most believe, robbed of a knockout victory over Carlo Prater, and Rousimar Palhares added another leg to his trophy case when he submitted Mike Massenzio.
Once again, it’s time to take a look at the performances of each main card fighter and hand out some grades.
All photo props: Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Vitor Belfort picked up an impressive submission victory over Anthony Johnson in their UFC 142 co-main event. With the win Belfort has won seven of his last eight fights. His only loss during that run was to UFC middleweight champ Anderson S…
Vitor Belfort picked up an impressive submission victory over Anthony Johnson in their UFC 142 co-main event. With the win Belfort has won seven of his last eight fights. His only loss during that run was to UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva. At just age 34, Belfort has been in the UFC longer than anybody on […]
Vitor Belfort picked up an impressive submission victory over Anthony Johnson in their UFC 142 co-main event. With the win Belfort has won seven of his last eight fights. His only loss during that run was to UFC middleweight champ Anderson Si…
Vitor Belfort picked up an impressive submission victory over Anthony Johnson in their UFC 142 co-main event.
With the win Belfort has won seven of his last eight fights. His only loss during that run was to UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva.
At just age 34, Belfort has been in the UFC longer than anybody on the current roster as he made his debut back in 1997. During his on-and-off UFC career, Belfort has picked up victories over Wanderlei Silva, Randy Couture and Rich Franklin.
Belfort has also won a UFC tournament and captured the UFC light heavyweight title.
While Belfort is still one of the top contenders in the UFC, over the last couple of days leading up to UFC 142, there have been talk of retirement from him.
Belfort has a coaching gig on the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter Brazil against Wanderlei Silva. Following the season and a matchup with Silva, we could very well see Belfort retire from the sport.
If Belfort does decide to go that route, no one would blame him.
Although he is still very competitive, he is getting up there in age.
He’s accomplished a lot in the sport and is one of the few guys who have found success in multiple eras of the UFC.
If Belfort chose to retire after TUF Brazil, no one could blame him for it.
From a fan’s standpoint it is easy to say Belfort should not retire. Especially considering that he is still a world-class fighter.
But considering Belfort still has his health intact and has nothing else to prove in the sport, it could be the right time for him to go.
Terry Etim made history in his UFC 142 bout with Edson Barboza, but it wasn’t in a good way.The English native became the first fighter in UFC history to get knocked out by a spinning wheel kick. The spectacular finish came late in the third round.Barb…
Terry Etim made history in his UFC 142 bout with Edson Barboza, but it wasn’t in a good way.
The English native became the first fighter in UFC history to get knocked out by a spinning wheel kick. The spectacular finish came late in the third round.
Barboza and Etim earned fight of the night honors for a competitive and entertaining scrap. As the third round winded down, Barboza pulled off a beautiful spinning wheel kick, smashing his heel clean across Etim’s face.
The brunt force of the kick sent Etim crashing to the canvas like a log.
It’s hard enough on a fighter to taste the bitter pill of defeat, but for Etim, he knows he’ll be on the wrong end of a major highlight reel for years to come.
There’s no use dwelling over the past. Etim is still a solid talent in the lightweight division. He has some major defensive issues in regards to his wrestling and striking, but at only 26 years of age, he has plenty of time to shore up holes in his fight game.
When Nick Ring took to the Octagon against Tim Boetsch at UFC 135 in September, the Canadian middleweight—after three rounds of action—claimed the first loss of his nearly decade-long professional mixed martial arts career.