Kenny Florian gets his shot at featherweight king and pound-for-pound star Jose Aldo tomorrow night at UFC 136 in Houston. The champ is a large favorite going into the fight and the question is, can Florian pull off the upset? There is one major advant…
Kenny Florian gets his shot at featherweight king and pound-for-pound star Jose Aldo tomorrow night at UFC 136 in Houston. The champ is a large favorite going into the fight and the question is, can Florian pull off the upset?
There is one major advantage I see for Florian in this one and that is his coaching, camp and ability to game plan to victory. Aldo is the superior fighter in skill alone, but Florian has a very solid MMA machine behind him, and that help and experience is his key to victory.
If Florian can stick to, and execute, the game plan his team sets out for him, he most certainly can pull off the upset tomorrow night. We have seen Florian work a strategy in all his big fights but not always to success.
I see him trying to smother Aldo to the cage and the ground in order to nullify the power which Aldo possesses. Florian won his featherweight debut in this fashion as well.
After standing with Diego Nunes early and not getting the upper hand, he shifted to the jab, take downs and grappling control to pour it on and take the fight. If he couldn’t get the upper hand standing with Nunes, he certainly won’t with Aldo so look for Florian to wrestle.
I think Aldo will push him off and try to keep distance all night. He will use his strikes and power to win, but don’t be completely surprised if Florian “GSPs” his way to the upset.
If Aldo wins by employing his strategy, we are in for a very fun fight to watch. If Florian can impose his will, it will be a disappointing fight for the fans to watch but a satisfying upset for Florian.
Dwight Wakabayashi is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report MMA and (also a Correspondent for MMACanada.net)
With the featherweight and bantamweight divisions still being sorted out, there are few certainties in a pair of weight classes so young into their development. There is at least one constant, though: UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is a damn g…
With the featherweight and bantamweight divisions still being sorted out, there are few certainties in a pair of weight classes so young into their development.
There is at least one constant, though: UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is a damn good fighter.
Saturday will answer the question of just how many people are willing to tune in and watch him.
On the heels of a Fight of the Year contender against Urijah Faber at UFC 132, Cruz goes from headlining pay-per-view to headlining Versus and the champion of just the second UFC title fight to air on free television.
Cruz jousts with Demetrious Johnson in an attempt to shed the label of “that guy who last fought Urijah Faber” and connect with fans in a way few at his weight class have been able to do.
Cruz and Johnson take center stage Saturday, but why else should you give a damn about the UFC’s sixth card on Versus?
Can “Mighty Mouse” teach us anything new about Dominick Cruz?
As the UFC’s bantamweight division continues to evolve, champion Dominick Cruz is approaching uncharted waters.
A win against Demetrious Johnson on Saturday would mark Cruz’s fourth successful title defense and a record-high for any prior 135-pound titleholder under the Zuffa banner. It’s been a dominant run too, with wins over Joseph Benavidez, Scott Jorgensen and Urijah Faber; neither of whom were able to establish a clear-cut blueprint on how to flummox the champion.
The 5’3” Johnson will be tasked with trying to solve the riddle of Cruz, one of befuddling footwork, pinpoint combo striking and a stout wrestling base.
Johnson presents a speed element lacked by Cruz’s past few opponents and how Cruz deals with that will dictate his success in this fight. Johnson’s striking obviously isn’t to the level of Cruz’s but he possesses one of the fastest shots in the division.
It’s forcing Cruz into a grappling affair that would best suit Johnson, but that’s easier said than done as getting a hold of Cruz while at the same time avoiding his myriad of offense has proved a woeful proposition for most.
For whatever technical errors Cruz makes with his head movement and what not, Johnson doesn’t appear to have the power to make him pay, nor the strength to grind out the converted featherweight so he’ll be relying on the speed of his takedowns, the balance of his top control and his ability to win scrambles as keys to victory.
As dominant as the champ has looked, Johnson brings a skill set with the pacing and physical intangibles that Cruz is yet to experience and as was the case with light heavyweight champion Jon Jones last weekend, I’m curious as to what Johnson can showcase that will give us a better understanding of just how good Cruz is.
Whose glaring flaw will be exploited first?
As fun as these two can be to watch at times, both Pat Barry and Stefan Struve have proven to be very flawed fighters.
For Barry, the image of him tapping to a rear-naked choke, sans hooks, at the hands of Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic are as fresh as ever. A ferocious kickboxer by nature, Barry’s lack of grasp for the grappling game has hampered his ceiling at heavyweight.
Struve has a physical skill set that should make him far better than his UFC run indicates. Standing 6’11” with an 84-inch reach, Struve maintains distance as if he were the size of Demetrious Johnson. Still unable to take full advantage of his telephone pole-like limbs, Struve’s added propensity to take unnecessary risks on the feet have allowed opponents to feast on his otherwise brittle chin. The outcome has been some of the UFC’s more gruesome knockouts in recent memory.
Saturday’s co-main event is about who can capitalize on the glaring weakness of the other first, as this fight doesn’t appear destined for the scorecards.
Struve won’t win a striking battle but the least he can do is not let Barry close the distance as effortlessly as Junior Dos Santos and Roy Nelson managed to. If Barry does, Struve needs to clinch and drag the action to the mat by whatever means necessary.
I’m also curious to see Barry’s mindset after the Cheick Kongo loss, as he was knocked out for the first time in his career for being too reckless on his feet.
Does he take a more conservative approach against Struve, sit back and pick apart at the towering Dutchman with leg kicks?
Either way, it should be a doozy.
The Curious Case of Charlie Brenneman
For all the questions and subplots regarding the fighters on Saturday’s card, Charlie Brenneman may be the most fascinating of them all.
Seizing the opportunity of a lifetime, Brenneman was the benefactor of the Nate Marquardt fiasco at UFC on Versus 4, filling in as a last-minute replacement against Rick Story and upsetting the welterweight contender with a clear-cut unanimous decision win.
Like some, I’m skeptical of how good Brenneman is and think that his benchmark victory was aided somewhat by Story’s inability to adapt to the last-minute opponent change.
Here’s Brenneman’s chance to silence any doubters as Anthony Johnson is certainly a credible opponent and one that should provide a clearer picture of where Brenneman falls in the welterweight hierarchy.
Game-planning for Brenneman isn’t terribly difficult, with his primary objective being to grind opponents out with his tenacious wrestling. Brenneman’s damn good at it too, wearing down Jason High and even stealing the first round of his bout with Johny Hendricks before succumbing to strikes.
Johnson’s hulking frame will always leave questions regarding his gas tank should a fight of his ever carry on too long and it isn’t out of the question that Brenneman’s pace and conditioning will zap Johnson as easily as it did Story.
“Rumble” is a solid wrestler in his own right though, with tried-and-true power on the feet, to boot. That’s the x-factor and if Brenneman can avoid Johnson’s one-hit-quit punches, he can go a long way towards validating the credibility built up after the Story fight.
Showing a little love to the Facebook prelims
If you plan on taking in the full UFC on Versus 6 experience, then you’ll be by the computer late Saturday afternoon for the preliminary bouts set to be streamed via Facebook.
There’s a bit of star power on these prelims, with the likes of Yves Edwards and Shane Roller looking to bounce back from losses, the UFC return of Josh Neer and the promotional debut of Mike Easton, most famously known for his controversial decision win over Chase Beebe in 2009.
Grappling wins should be apprised of the return of the “Sassangle,” as Paul Sass tangles with “The Ultimate Fighter 12” runner-up Michael Johnson. Sass has a bit of a Cody McKenzie syndrome in that he has finished all but three of his 11 opponents via triangle choke.
A master at pulling guard and drawing opponents into his comfort zone, Sass is a very game opponent for Johnson, who unfortunately saddles the guilt by association by having competed on an increasingly-inept TUF season.
Lastly, one fight I’m particularly curious to see is the opener between Joseph Sandoval and Walel Watson; not because I think either of these fighters are an immediate high-level prospect worth keeping an eye on, but as more of a sentimental bias in having seen Sandoval fight live.
A Shark Fights staple, Sandoval’s lone fight outside of the popular regional promotion came under the banner of Steele Cage MMA, a small-scale promotion in Frisco, Texas.
Sandoval competed in the co-main event of a Steele Cage card in August 2010 and put on easily the most entertaining show of the night, ripping through Douglas Frey with a second-round TKO behind a flurry of nearly 20 unanswered punches and knees.
I covered the event and seeing Sandoval now with a chance to make it in the UFC, color me curious to see just how far his game has come in a year’s time.
The Minneapolis-based Mixed Martial Arts event, “Riot at the Hyatt” was a packed house by the end of the show. There were, however, two stand out performances of the night that many fans who showed up late may have missed. The first was an …
The Minneapolis-based Mixed Martial Arts event, “Riot at the Hyatt” was a packed house by the end of the show. There were, however, two stand out performances of the night that many fans who showed up late may have missed.
The first was an amateur bout between Nick Jessen and Andre “The Diva” Tieva. The fight went the distance with Tieva getting the win via unanimous decision.
The amateur bout had an exciting pace that never slowed. Tieva showcased impressive striking, take downs, and an ability to work off his back.
It was Tieva’s second fight to go the distance, leaving him with an undefeated amateur record at 5-0.
Tieva plans to go pro in early 2012 and currently trains with UFC veterans like Jacob Volkman, Nik Lentz, and Greg Nelson at the Academy in Minneapolis.
The second fight that stood out was between Chris Lane and Michael “The Marine” Richman. At 1:43 of the first round Richman walked away with a TKO victory due to corner stoppage.
While Richman did receive a broken nose, his stand up was very impressive. He looked eager to push the pace and dropped Lane with a couple of great body shots.
Once his opponent was on the ground, Richman laid into him with some vicious ground and pound before Lane’s corner threw in the towel.
Richman also trains out of the Academy in Minneapolis and has earned a record of 10-1, which includes his victory over Lane.
Both of these Midwestern warriors showed lots of promise, great skill, and an ability to dictate the pace of their fight. Be sure to keep your eye on them as they evolve through the sport.
Jon Jones is a great fighter. There’s no questioning that. There is some questioning as to some fans’ ideas that Jones should be put up against Anderson Silva. Following Jones’ beat down of Quinton Jackson, the post-fight press conference s…
Jon Jones is a great fighter. There’s no questioning that. There is some questioning as to some fans’ ideas that Jones should be put up against Anderson Silva.
Following Jones’ beat down of Quinton Jackson, the post-fight press conference seemed to be abuzz about the possibility of Jon Jones and super fights. Even Dana White admitted that he and Jones have had discussions about Jones moving up to heavyweight.
Pump the breaks please.
Jones has defended the belt once, and while I admit his destruction of Mauricio Rua and his dominant win against Rampage are impressive, the UFC should be under no pressure to put Jones in any kind of super fight.
I do not want to discredit Jones’ win at all, but when you consider that many analysts (and the UFC hype machine) believed Rampage offered nothing but a punchers chance against Jones, is his performance so impressive it warrants a fight against Silva?
I think not.
Jones still has plenty of fights at 205. Rashad Evans is next in line of course, and while Evans is shorter than Rampage, he offers more tools to attack Jones with. Arguably for the past few years, Evans has been the best at 205 and he will do his best to make fans believe he is the one to dethrone “King Jones.”
Although a few fights away from a title shot, young prospect Phil Davis and former champion Lyoto Machida offer some stylistic matches. Davis is untested on the big stage, but he has shown glimpses of brilliance as evident by the “Philmura” against Tim Boetsch.
Machida’s style of in and out strikes could force Jones to leave his reach advantage. We saw last night that Jones has the awareness not to trade shots on the inside—but what if someone were to make Jones do the chasing?
I’m not saying Davis (9-0) or Machida are the answers to the Jon Jones riddle. I’m just saying that before people get carried away with Jones vs. Silva or Jones in the heavyweight division, let him first clear out his own division.
For every Anderson Silva or George St. Pierre, there’s always a Chael Sonnen or Matt Serra who reminds fans that on any given night any man can be beaten.
If you haven’t noticed yet, UFC 135 is not the only big card this week in the MMA World.That may come as a surprise to anyone who is so accustomed to seeing the UFC brand of MMA all over the world with no hint at other forms of MMA existing, but for th…
If you haven’t noticed yet, UFC 135 is not the only big card this week in the MMA World.
That may come as a surprise to anyone who is so accustomed to seeing the UFC brand of MMA all over the world with no hint at other forms of MMA existing, but for those of you who recognize MMA life forms outside of the UFC, you might actually come to love this week.
Sure, it’s Zuffa and FEG this week, but that should fuel the week up for fans that can’t wait for great MMA action before Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson take center stage in Denver.
Need a reason to care about the MMA that exists before UFC 135?
Two TUF champions—Jonathan Brookins and Court McGee—are presently on the upcoming UFC Fight Night 25 card, but fans should anticipate a more impressive return to the Octagon Saturday by McGee. McGee and Brookins are pretty even regard…
Two TUF champions—Jonathan Brookins and Court McGee—are presently on the upcoming UFC Fight Night 25 card, but fans should anticipate a more impressive return to the Octagon Saturday by McGee.
McGee and Brookins are pretty even regarding stats, so how does one figure that McGee’s fight will be the better one?
McGee has 13 wins out of 14 professional fights, while Brookins has 12 wins out of 15 professional fights.
McGee is currently on a seven-win streak, in comparison to Brookins’ four-fight win streak, and McGee’s two most recent wins took place in the Octagon. McGee, however, has not fought in 11 months.
Court McGee, winner of The Ultimate Fighter 11, also spent the past several weeks recuperating a torn ACL.
Both fighters have more victories via submission than knockout.
Several things stand out about McGee’s fight against Dong–Yi Yang, placing it as the more exciting fight in comparison to the Brookins-Koch fight.
Due to potential ring rust built up over nearly a year, and an opponent who has achieved nine out of 10 of his professional victories via knockout, McGee has a lot going against him.
Brookins, on the other hand, still has yet to make his Octagon debut, originally delayed due to injury. This does not hurt his case, but it does not help him.
In a recent interview with the Las Vegas Sun, Brookins said that the time off to heal a broken orbital he received during training gave him time to reflect and reassess his strategy.
Brookins’ time away from the Octagon allowed him to train and drop down from the lightweight division to the featherweight division. His more natural weight is 145.
“I had already gotten a spot in the UFC at 155, so it was a little harder for me. But I thought it was a good part of my career where I could implement a little more focus.”
UFC is not doing any favors for Brookins after his time off and his move to a lower and smaller weight division.
If featherweight is Brookins’ more natural weight, in addition to his yet untested skills under the big lights, it makes sense that Dana White would not make his first fight an easy one. Brookins, however, claims he is ready for the challenge.
Regarding winning the reality show, Brookins went on to tell the Sun, “It’s a blessing I really don’t want to go to waste.”
“I don’t want it to be something I didn’t have the full respect for. It’s something that comes with a lot of responsibility. I want to be that person who really covets it for the position, while not making it the highlight of their life.”
Brookins will be facing the younger, equally talented and very hungry Erik Koch, who told MMAjunkie.com in a recent interview that he is looking to knock out Brookins.
Having previously won Knock out of the Night from both the WEC and the UFC for his two most recent fights, Koch’s aspirations are not impossible. Brookins will have to overcome Koch’s explosive inertia in order to secure a win.
Koch is also very capable on the ground; 58 percent of his wins have been by submission, ranging between chokes and armbars. On the other hand, 53 percent of Brookins’ wins have been by submission, making him only slightly less successful in that regard.
Everybody likes an underdog, and Brookins must overcome several obstacles to achieve a win. In another regard, McGee’s successful reentry into the Octagon means he must neutralize Yang’s strikes by bringing him to the ground and beating him there.
Despite possessing similar profiles, the length of McGee’s time off recovering from a severe injury that affects major mobility, places him at a distinct disadvantage against a very skilled striker.
This is precisely why his victory would be the more impressive of the two TUF champions.
Kenny Florian gets his shot at featherweight king and pound-for-pound star Jose Aldo tomorrow night at UFC 136 in Houston. The champ is a large favorite going into the fight and the question is, can Florian pull off the upset?