Filed under: UFCNovember is a month without any title fights, which makes it a good time to take a long view of the future title picture in each weight class. Today we look at the middleweight division.
November is a month without any title fights, which makes it a good time to take a long view of the future title picture in each weight class. Today we look at the middleweight division.
Anderson Silva just keeps on winning. At age 35 he’s probably past his athletic prime, and it’s been quite a while since he’s had a dominant middleweight title defense, but the bottom line is that while no one else in UFC history has ever won more than eight straight fights, Silva is 12-0 inside the Octagon.
So will Silva stay undefeated over the next year and remain head and shoulders above the rest of the middleweight division? Or is 2011 the year that the UFC sees a new middleweight champ? We explore the state of the division below.
UFC and Spike TV have decided to give you a full week of free fights, leading up to UFC 122: Marquardt Vs. Okami this Saturday, November 13th. Because of the time change, this overseas fight which takes place in Oberhausen, Germany is one of the few fight cards that is not Pay-Per-View, that […]
UFC and Spike TV have decided to give you a full week of free fights, leading up to UFC 122: Marquardt Vs. Okami this Saturday, November 13th. Because of the time change, this overseas fight which takes place in Oberhausen, Germany is one of the few fight cards that is not Pay-Per-View, that is if you don’t consider you must pay for cable to watch it on Spike.
Included in Spike’s MMA action-packed week are the TUF 12 quarterfinals. Two bouts will take place in the show’s quarterfinals this Wednesday night. Team Koscheck’s Sako Chivitchian faces Team GSP’s Jonathan Brookins. Koscheck’s nemesis Cody McKenzie meets Nam Phan in the second quarterfinal match up.
Filed under: UFCYushin Okami is the last man to beat current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, so it would seem like a title bout pitting the two with Silva having a shot at revenge would seem a natural fit. Yet despite a strong run in the UFC,…
Yushin Okami is the last man to beat current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, so it would seem like a title bout pitting the two with Silva having a shot at revenge would seem a natural fit. Yet despite a strong run in the UFC, Okami has never been able to work his way into a position to challenge the champ.
Okami has essentially had two golden opportunities to get there in his UFC tenure. In the first, he lost to Rich Franklin at UFC 72. In the second, he dropped a decision to Chael Sonnen at UFC 104. The winners of both of those fights were propelled into a title match with Silva.
Filed under: UFC, NewsThree years later, Nate Marquardt can pinpoint what went wrong when he fought Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight title at UFC 73. Considered one of the top middleweights in the world since then, Marquardt has never been able …
Three years later, Nate Marquardt can pinpoint what went wrong when he fought Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight title at UFC 73. Considered one of the top middleweights in the world since then, Marquardt has never been able to work his way back into a rematch with “the Spider,” and avenge the loss, but that could possibly change should Marquardt defeat Yushin Okami at UFC 122 next weekend.
It’s a scenario Marquardt hopes to make a reality.
(Props: fromhit)
UFC 122 may not be stacked — it’s Germany, those haters should be glad they’re getting anything — but it’ll be broadcast free on Spike, it’s full of potentially exciting matchups, and it’ll have serious implications f…
UFC 122 may not be stacked — it’s Germany, those haters should be glad they’re getting anything — but it’ll be broadcast free on Spike, it’s full of potentially exciting matchups, and it’ll have serious implications for the UFC’s middleweight division. In the main event, Nate Marquardt and Yushin Okami will face off for a title shot against the winner of Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort. Marquardt and Okami are two guys who have spent their UFC careers clawing their way almost to the top, but falling just short of the glory. Earlier in his UFC career, Marquardt was TKO’d by Anderson Silva in the Spider’s first official title defense at UFC 73; this year, Marquardt suffered a decision loss to Chael Sonnen, snapping a fearsome three-knockout run.
As for Okami, the Japanese standout was outpointed in a previous #1-contender match against Rich Franklin at UFC 72, and was also stymied by Chael Sonnen last October. In other words, UFC 122’s headliners have endured the same setbacks — and they both know that the big opportunities don’t last forever. It’s do or die time. At Jackson’s MMA and Grudge Training Center, Marquardt is getting the best preparation that this country has to offer, and he’s a powerful, vicious striker. Okami is a deceptively strong fighter with great conditioning, who might be able to smother Marquardt just like Sonnen did.
In a recent interview with Fighters Only, UFC president Dana White revealed that the next time Michael Bisping steps through the doors of the Octagon to compete, he will be staring across the cage at a top five opponent.
Considerin…
In a recent interview with Fighters Only, UFC president Dana White revealed that the next time Michael Bisping steps through the doors of the Octagon to compete, he will be staring across the cage at a top five opponent.
Considering the options, it’s a pretty safe bet that said opponent will be the loser of the UFC 122 bout between Yushin Okami and Nate Marquardt.
Let’s look at the simple deductive reasoning we used that helped us come to our conclusion:
November is a month without any title fights, which makes it a good time to take a long view of the future title picture in each weight class. Today we look at the middleweight division.
Three years later, 
In a recent interview with