Better late than never but as usual my move to Korea has put me in high demand in more physical locations than one… at once. UFC 102 was not really the kind of event that you just brush under the rug and ignore. Criticized by many as an event with no immediate title implications and hinging on a main event made of living legends, the pre-event buzz was mixed. It is this nearsightedness that I have taken umbrage with in the past. This event had two fights with very real title implications, one fight that is just one step outside the title picture, and two fights relevant to the future of their respective divisions and marketable fighters. To boot, we got to see a top blue-chip prospect at heavyweight in a record-breaking performance. There wasn’t one fight on the main card that I was completely confident in picking. Every fight was well constructed, even if some of them ended in one-sidedness. In short, this was a true MMA fan’s card. It was not going to draw in the huge buy rates and even the gate was somewhat weak (something we could attribute to a number of factors), but this card had hardcore MMA fans all a-buzz. Personally, the card delivered a worth-while show and then some.
Brandon Vera continues to morph
I say morph because I am still torn as to weather or not he is improving. Clearly he is at a better weight class for him and he is taking a more technical approach to his fights. However, this fight was anything but exciting and it left sort of a sour taste in my mouth regarding Vera. The Truth needs to find a balance between the flashy charismatic fighter that claimed he was going to win a belt in two divisions and the more reserved fighter concerned with self-improvement. The latter is clearly preferable if he wants to be a champion, but he needs to put his skill to use if he is going to return to the good graces of the UFC hype machine. I am all about Matt Hammill being his next opponent as that fight would present Vera with a whole new set of obstacles and both fighters are at about the same place within the division as far as I am concerned.
Nate Marquardt is Nate Bad-Assquardt
I for one had trouble imagining Maia getting Marquardt down, like he has so many others, and tapping him. “The Great” is a huge middleweight and has been known to push that weight around in the cage. I just thought Maia would be a little too one dimensional to give him much trouble. I did not expect Maia to be turned into a lawn-dart inside 30 seconds of the first round. Marquardt looked great in this fight but we really didn’t learn anything about how he could technically stand up to the Maia game-plan or how Maia’s technique would stand up to Marquardt’s power and well-roundedness. It looks like Nate Marquardt is going to meet Dan Henderson next for a title shot. It also looks like there is a different Silva making matches at MW as Anderson has scoffed at the idea of a rematch with either and suggested that they fight each other first. I actually tend to agree. If we were talking about any other champion I would say give one of them a shot now, but Silva is interested in being active in two or three divisions and has the talent to do just that. He has also already destroyed both fighters, yes I said destroyed. Marquardt vs Henderson is a fight I am very much into and somewhat conflicted on right now, not something I would have said a month ago.
Jake Rosholt Finally Impresses
I was impressed with Jake Rosholt for the first time on Saturday. Up to that point he had been a great wrestler that was just way way too green for me to give much thought to. At UFC 102 Rosholt demonstrated his chin, improved stand up, and a greatly improved as well as more diversified ground game. That is a lot against a tough kid like Chris Leban, who despite being a perennial middle of the road fighter, is always a threat. I can see Leban taking one, maybe two more steps in his game and competing against some stiffer competition but I would be floored if he ever became a real title contender. I will keep my feelings for Rosholt in check and say pretty much the same thing. The guy has a ton of potential but I will reserve higher accolades for when I see even more improvement.
Todd Duffee Turns Heads
There isn’t a lot to say about Todd Duffee and his performance at UFC 102. We only got to see seven seconds of him in the cage and really only got exposed to one punch and some ground-n-pound. A record breaking knockout is one of the best ways to turn heads in the UFC so there is no doubt we will see him against stiffer competition next time around. At this point all we can do is wait for his next performance and hope we get a little more time to see what this kid is all about.
Thiago Silva Gets Back on Track
Man I like this guy. I think Thiago Silva looked as good or better in this fight than he has ever looked in the past. He was more focused and more controlled. I am not talking about that fake kind of focused where he walked around mean mugging. That look may return but compared to what we saw at 102, those mean mugs and struts were compensation for eagerness. This was a much more controlled and more tactical Thiago Silva and it showed in his most impressive win to date. He even demonstrated some, but not too much, of ground prowess that we have heard so much about. He is all about a rematch with Machida and while I really like what I saw last Saturday, I am in no way, shape or form convinced that fight would go any differently… at least not right now. I will be very interested to see what they line up for Thiago Silva next. Forrest Griffin makes sense, as does a welcoming match for Little Nog or the loser of Machida/Shogun. Any way you cut it, I think Thiago is positioning himself nicely near the top of that division and this win is going to invite tough tests in the future.
Is The Old Big Nog Back?
I think the answer is no, only because one ill prepared fight does not make a rut. Big Nog looked fairly good before the Frank Mir fight and we all know the count on that. This fight came down to two things and they both belong to Big Nog: his hips and his chin. Minatao’s chin is made of solid rock and nothing Randy did was going to change that. On the ground, they had their backs and forths but Nog’s hips were too strong and too technically driven to stay on bottom long or to be bucked easily. We saw a top-notch performance from The Natural. We just literally saw who was the better fighter. If both guys come in at 100% I think Nog wins seven out of ten. Three out of ten fights get won on Randy taking it to that other level he sometimes calls upon. It is the difference between a truly great HW and a truly great big LHW. I like Big Nog’s chances against almost anyone in the division. I think he will find serious match-up problems against Brock or Carwin, but either fight could turn into a real battle that Nog is more than capable of winning. As a long time Nog fan it was good to see him back in championship form.
Randy’s Return to 205
This news has been breaking since UFC 102 ended and should come as no surprise to anyone who saw the fight. I have already pointed out the problem with Randy fighting at HW and it looks like his camp has seen it too. Hey could continue to face size problems unless he puts on about 20 pounds of muscle. There are a ton of big money fights at LHW for the Natural but he will trade his size disadvantage for a speed disadvantage. The top LHWs in the UFC (Machida, Shogun, Rashad, Rampage, T. Silva, A. Silva)* all have lightening fast hands and most of them are more technical and accurate than anyone Randy had success against at 205 in the past. He needs to be handled correctly because more loses could do a lot of damage to his current marketability. He needs a top-notch win or two to get back on track. I am still down with Randy Couture vs Anderson Silva at HW, though I doubt it will happen now. However, if Rampage actually pulls out of his fight with Rashad, I can see them replacing him with The Natural as well, demonstrating how diverse a fighter Couture is from a booking standpoint. No matter what is next, Randy Couture is still a few years from retirement so we have plenty more dream matches to come; you know he won’t lose them all.
*I did not include Forrest Griffin here because of his relationship with Randy Couture and the assumption that they would not fight each other.
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