As you may have heard Keefe and I discuss on Wednesday's podcast, the UFC is down under (cliche, I know) and The Sports Brief has its preview and picks for you for tomorrow's PPV card. The main event features the resurgent BJ Penn, back at welterweight for the second consecutive fight against a guy who will never be the division's champion as long as Georges St. Pierre has a pulse. Actually, neither guy will be champion as long as GSP is alive.
In terms of the matchup, I have to think the advantage goes to Penn. Fitch has excellent wrestling, and all great wrestlers have traditionally given Penn trouble if they can get him down, particularly guys who are bigger and stronger than him. Case in point: GSP. Frankie Edgar used his superior wrestling skills to taken down Penn, but was unable to sustain any GnP because of the lack in size differential. Here, Fitch is likely the bigger, stronger guy. But I'm not sure his wrestling will be quick enough and elite enough to take down the flexible, well balanced Penn.
For that reason, I think Penn manages to keep it on the feet enough to score well and outpoint the rugged Fitch. The only problem? No one will be interested in either guy challenging GSP again, certainly until he defeats Jake Shields (presumably) and fights UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Nonetheless, this should be an entertaining scrap between two elite fighters at 170lbs.
In the co-main event, Michael Bisping continues his campaign for what has been an elusive title shot in the UFC. Every time we've felt he's one or two fights away, he's folded. He did against Rashad Evans in a fight that not only sent Evans on an ascent to an eventual title victory, but also sent Bisping down to 185lbs. Then against Dan Henderson, he was KO'd in embarrassing fashion at UFC 100, ignoring his corners plea to NOT move to his left and avoid the big right hand. Here, he finds himself up against another guy with a big right hand: Jorge Rivera.
Rivera is experiencing new life in the twilight of his career, having 4 of his last 5 fights, including consecutive KO's over Rob Kimmons and former title challenger Nate Quarry. He packs a punch, and will test the chin of Bisping in this fight. I stated on the podcast with Keefe the other night that this fight reminds of the Bisping-Leben matchup. Bisping will look to circle, stay on the outside and win with volume punching while trying to avoid the stalking style of a Rivera/Leben type fighter. If Rivera can dial up Bisping's chin, there's no doubt he can win this fight. But Bisping is an active fighter, and if he's able to pin down his emotions, he could have the type of game plan that can frustrate Rivera. And that's the rub: Rivera has found his inner Tito Ortiz, mocking and poking fun at Bisping, ribbing him with good humor and constantly agitating him to the point that Bisping has brought a lot of emotion and trash talking to the press conference and weigh-in. It will be interesting to see if he's able to overcome that, or if Rivera has implanted himself in Bisping's head, much to his advantage.
The third biggest fight on the card is a middleweight tilt that could have a legitimate impact on the state of the 155lb division. George Sotiropolous is on a tear, undefeated in the UFC and winner of 8 straight. He's coming off an impressive submission win over Joe Lauzon, and fighting in his home country will undoubtedly have the crowd on his side. Siver, on the other hand, has gone 6-1 since starting his UFC career 1-3. And the only loss in his last 7 fights was, in my opinion, a disputable decision loss to Ross Pearson. He's an agressive, powerful kickboxer with some of the best striking in the division. Both fighters bring excellent submission attacks into this fight, although Sotiropoulos may have the advantage on the ground. And that will most likely be a place of comfort for him; staying on the feet could lead to an unplanned nap in the center of the Octagon.
Here are the picks for the PPV portion of tomorrow night's card from Besse and Keefe at The Sports Brief:
Penn vs. Fitch
Besse: Penn via decision
Keefe: Penn via decision
Bisping vs. Rivera
Besse: Bisping via decision
Keefe: Rivera via KO in the 2nd
Sotiropoulos vs. Siver
Besse: Sotiropoulos via submission in the 2nd
Keefe: Siver via submission in the 3rd
Lytle vs. Ebersole
Besse: Lytle via (T)KO in the 2nd
Keefe: Lytle via KO in the 1st
Noke via Camozzi
Besse: Noke via (T)KO in the 3rd
Keefe: Noke via decision
So there you have it. I know my picks vary a bit from what I stated on the podcast, but that'll happen. I'm picking with my brain, not my heart. In other words, as much as I'd like to see Bisping and Sotiropoulos get KTFO'd, I don't think it's going to happen, nor would I bet on it.
Be sure to check back with The Sports Brief for a post-fight recap and see how we did with our picks. Enjoy the fights!
-Bess
Showing posts with label BJ Penn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BJ Penn. Show all posts
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Friday, November 19, 2010
UFC 123 Breakdown and Picks
We are now a day away from UFC 123, which features a headline bout between two former light heavyweight champions in Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida. In addition, the top MMA organization offers us a co-main event between former welterweight champion Matt Hughes and former lightweight and welterweight champion BJ "The Prodigy" Penn. This will be the third bout in what will surely go down as one of the greater trilogies in the history of combat sport. The entire card is very solid, and without further delay, let's get to the breakdown and picks courtesy of The Sports Brief. We'll start with a technical breakdown of each fight on the main card and follow with picks from both myself and Keefe. Enjoy.
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson v. Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida
Machida started out his mma career winning 16 straight fights, utilizing his unorthodox striking and karate background to remain elusive and lure his opponents into uncomfortable spots where he was able to capitalize with excellent counter striking. For a while, fans and mma pundits often characterized his style as "boring", noting his failure to finish fights on a frequent basis and excite the crowd. He was certainly not a guy you were expecting to cash in on a "Fight of the Night" bonus. But knocked Thiago Silva out cold at UFC 94, then really burst into the spotlight with his devastating KO of Rashad Evans at UFC 98. He picked Evans apart, almost finishing the fight in the first round before putting Evans to sleep with a barrage of strikes; Evans was left snoring up against the cage, and at the time, UFC commentator Joe Rogan exclaimed, "Welcome to the Machida Era".
Incredibly, that era almost came to an abrupt end at UFC 104, when many thought Mauricio "Shogun" Rua put forth a winning effort before losing a disputed unanimous decision. In the rematch at UFC 113, Rua did not leave it to the judges, putting the champion out on his back and claiming what many thought was his after the first fight: The UFC Light Heavyweight title. The two fights with Shogun were a bit of an eye opener, as it showed someone with effective strikes from the outside that can cut off Machida could score points and flip the script, putting him in uncomfortable positions. If you go back and look at the Tito Ortiz fight, Machida did a lot of back peddling and lateral movement, and Tito chased. He didn't cut him off, just chased him in the direction he was moving. Because of that, Machida could stop on a dime and land a strike or series of strikes as Tito was still coming forward, not expecting Machida to engage. This caught Ortiz off-guard, and ultimately led to a decision victory for "The Dragon".
His opponent, however, is as tough on the feet as you'll find in this sport. Jackson has some of the best boxing skills in MMA and can light up an opponent with power in both hands. He also has impressive counter strikes, ala his KO of Chuck Liddell, and a chin that makes him hard to put down, nevermind put out. He has excellent wrestling skills and his brute strength is incredible; just ask Ricardo Arona:
In order for Rampage to be successful on Saturday night, I think he'll need to force Machida to engage. Take the center of the Octagon, cut him off with angles and footwork, and stand in the pocket and trade. While Machida has shown power and great counter striking, I think Rampage has the ability to take multiple shots while in the pocket in the hopes of landing one that can change the momentum in an instant. If he fails to get in Machida's face, he'll probably end up losing a decision much in the same fashion as his loss to Forrest Griffin. At UFC 86, Griffin seized the belt from Jackson by hurting him with leg kicks and volume striking. Griffin got knocked down a couple times, but managed to strike and move away before Jackson could land a knockout blow.
Matt Hughes v. BJ Penn
The series is tied at one apiece, and Saturday night will put an end to a fantastic trilogy between two of the sports greatest ever. What's so fascinating about this fight is that while the first two seemed like the ultimate grudge matches between two men that truly disliked one another, there doesn't seem to be that same sentiment between the two anymore, at least not in what they're saying publicly. Both appear to have a mutual respect for not only each other's game, but what the two have accomplished over the course of their storied careers.
The key to this matchup will be Hughes decision to either stand or attempt to bring the fight to the mat(t) (pun intended). As we've seen in his fights with GSP, Penn can be brought down and controlled by a bigger, stronger man. The problem is whether or not you can actually get him on his back. GSP's wrestling is probably the best in the game; Hughes' used to be, but isn't anymore. While it's still great, it's not at the same level it used to be. In addition, Hughes had improved remarkably on his feet, as shown in his fights with Royce Gracie and Ricardo Almeida.
The issue is whether or not he becomes too confident on his feet. Penn's boxing is excellent, and against a bigger, slower opponent who doesn't present a threat in terms of power, Penn could have his way with Hughes in the stand up. He's not facing a smaller, faster Frankie Edgar here, so I don't expect him to be outboxed like he was in his two losses to the champion. But what I do fear for Hughes is for this fight to end up much like Penn's fight against Sean Sherk. Sherk had also shown improved standup, and he wasn't able to drag Penn to the floor like he could less talented fighters. So Sherk tried to overpower Penn on his feet and was outboxed for three rounds before Penn put the rubber stamp on (T)KO win.
For Hughes to win, there's no doubt he'll need to find a way to put Penn on his back and control him there. If he does, expect something similar to his performance against Chris Lytle back at UFC 68, where he took Lytle down and basically held him there for three rounds. Penn's guard is tremendous, and even if he can't back to his feet, he'll try and threaten with submissions and offense from the bottom while trying to neutralize Hughes' offense. Because Hughes has been submitted by Penn before, I don't expect he'll go all out in fear of being caught again. But, that's if he can get Penn down, and for me, that's a major if.
Joe Lauzon v. George Sotiropoulos
Sotiropoulos has been plowing through opponents since his stint on TUF, where he was controversially knocked out by Tommy Speer in a semi-final bout. Sotiropoulos suffered an eye poke prior to taking the punch that put him out cold. But that was an exhibition, and he's undefeated at 6-0 in his UFC career, beating the likes of Kurt Pellegrino and Joe Stevenson. There seems to be a lot of hoopla behind him, and this will be a good test to see if it's warranted, or if he's the beneficiary of wins over strictly middle-tier opponents with bigger names than their actual games.
In Lauzon, we have a solid striker with unquestionable jiu-jitsu skills. He transitions from one submission to another in a seamless, flawless way that almost seems fluid and somewhat poetic. That's what makes him so good and so dangerous. But he is long and lean, and Sotiropoulos is more compact and powerful. So I think the course of the fight will be dictated by which fighter is able to handle the difference better. In other words, can Sotiropoulos use his size and strength to his advantage, or will Lauzon be able to nullify it? That's the question, and it's a big one, one that will ultimately determined which of these fighters is actually deserving of a spot in line for title contention.
Phil Davis v. Tim Boetsch
Davis is a prospect, but personally I'll leave it at that. I don't want to say he's a blue-chip, certainly not in the way I considered Jon "Bones" Jones before he legitimized himself as a title contender. Jones, by the way, will have a chance to solidify his stature against another blue-chip in Ryan Bader in February. But back to Davis, who is 3-0 in his young UFC career, and for the most part has look pretty impressive albeit against middle of the road talent, if that. He won a decision on former WEC Light Heavyweight Champion Brian Stann, but in case you haven't heard, "All-American" is dropping to middleweight to face Chris Leben on the New Year's card. That should say something.
Boetsch, meanwhile, fights like his nickname: "The Barbarian". Some of you may remember his mauling of David Heath back at UFC 81, when he tossed Heath around like a ragdoll. It was an incredible scene, and many thought Boetsch may be a force in the UFC until he met Matt Hamill, who silenced him inside of two rounds. Boetsch stepped out of the UFC for a brief three fight winning streak before returning with a lackluster win at UFC 117 over Todd Brown. He has good wrestling, and obviously a ton of strength.
The interesting dynamic of this fight is how Davis will stack up against Boetsch in terms of strength. Davis' wrestling is superior in terms of resume, and his striking is still evolving. If he can handle Boetsch's strength and get him to the mat, working from top position will probably be his best bet. If he keeps it standing in an attempt to display improved striking, it could be a dangerous affair for the up and coming prospect. He'll need to be cerebral and stick with what works. If Boetsch lures him into exchanges, or gets his hands and/or arms on him, he could employ some of that brute strength we saw in the Heath fight, and that could stop the prospect train in its tracks.
Gerald Harris v. Maiquel Jose Falcao Goncalves
Harris is the guy you saw on Sportscenter's Top 10 after slamming Dave Branch to near death at UFC 116. He's a talented guy who was the favorite to win TUF 7, but ran into a guy named Amir Sadollah. A lot of people did the same, and none of them won against the mma novice, so certainly it was nothing to hang his head about. But he's proven his worth with a three fight win streak inside the UFC, and a win Saturday will earn him another step up the ladder. He's still pretty far down, but an impressive win might earn him a couple steps.
His opponent is making his UFC debut, and I know two things: 1) He owns a 25-3 record; 2) He didn't impress me in this training video posted last month:
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson v. Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida
Machida started out his mma career winning 16 straight fights, utilizing his unorthodox striking and karate background to remain elusive and lure his opponents into uncomfortable spots where he was able to capitalize with excellent counter striking. For a while, fans and mma pundits often characterized his style as "boring", noting his failure to finish fights on a frequent basis and excite the crowd. He was certainly not a guy you were expecting to cash in on a "Fight of the Night" bonus. But knocked Thiago Silva out cold at UFC 94, then really burst into the spotlight with his devastating KO of Rashad Evans at UFC 98. He picked Evans apart, almost finishing the fight in the first round before putting Evans to sleep with a barrage of strikes; Evans was left snoring up against the cage, and at the time, UFC commentator Joe Rogan exclaimed, "Welcome to the Machida Era".
Incredibly, that era almost came to an abrupt end at UFC 104, when many thought Mauricio "Shogun" Rua put forth a winning effort before losing a disputed unanimous decision. In the rematch at UFC 113, Rua did not leave it to the judges, putting the champion out on his back and claiming what many thought was his after the first fight: The UFC Light Heavyweight title. The two fights with Shogun were a bit of an eye opener, as it showed someone with effective strikes from the outside that can cut off Machida could score points and flip the script, putting him in uncomfortable positions. If you go back and look at the Tito Ortiz fight, Machida did a lot of back peddling and lateral movement, and Tito chased. He didn't cut him off, just chased him in the direction he was moving. Because of that, Machida could stop on a dime and land a strike or series of strikes as Tito was still coming forward, not expecting Machida to engage. This caught Ortiz off-guard, and ultimately led to a decision victory for "The Dragon".
His opponent, however, is as tough on the feet as you'll find in this sport. Jackson has some of the best boxing skills in MMA and can light up an opponent with power in both hands. He also has impressive counter strikes, ala his KO of Chuck Liddell, and a chin that makes him hard to put down, nevermind put out. He has excellent wrestling skills and his brute strength is incredible; just ask Ricardo Arona:
In order for Rampage to be successful on Saturday night, I think he'll need to force Machida to engage. Take the center of the Octagon, cut him off with angles and footwork, and stand in the pocket and trade. While Machida has shown power and great counter striking, I think Rampage has the ability to take multiple shots while in the pocket in the hopes of landing one that can change the momentum in an instant. If he fails to get in Machida's face, he'll probably end up losing a decision much in the same fashion as his loss to Forrest Griffin. At UFC 86, Griffin seized the belt from Jackson by hurting him with leg kicks and volume striking. Griffin got knocked down a couple times, but managed to strike and move away before Jackson could land a knockout blow.
Matt Hughes v. BJ Penn
The series is tied at one apiece, and Saturday night will put an end to a fantastic trilogy between two of the sports greatest ever. What's so fascinating about this fight is that while the first two seemed like the ultimate grudge matches between two men that truly disliked one another, there doesn't seem to be that same sentiment between the two anymore, at least not in what they're saying publicly. Both appear to have a mutual respect for not only each other's game, but what the two have accomplished over the course of their storied careers.
The key to this matchup will be Hughes decision to either stand or attempt to bring the fight to the mat(t) (pun intended). As we've seen in his fights with GSP, Penn can be brought down and controlled by a bigger, stronger man. The problem is whether or not you can actually get him on his back. GSP's wrestling is probably the best in the game; Hughes' used to be, but isn't anymore. While it's still great, it's not at the same level it used to be. In addition, Hughes had improved remarkably on his feet, as shown in his fights with Royce Gracie and Ricardo Almeida.
The issue is whether or not he becomes too confident on his feet. Penn's boxing is excellent, and against a bigger, slower opponent who doesn't present a threat in terms of power, Penn could have his way with Hughes in the stand up. He's not facing a smaller, faster Frankie Edgar here, so I don't expect him to be outboxed like he was in his two losses to the champion. But what I do fear for Hughes is for this fight to end up much like Penn's fight against Sean Sherk. Sherk had also shown improved standup, and he wasn't able to drag Penn to the floor like he could less talented fighters. So Sherk tried to overpower Penn on his feet and was outboxed for three rounds before Penn put the rubber stamp on (T)KO win.
For Hughes to win, there's no doubt he'll need to find a way to put Penn on his back and control him there. If he does, expect something similar to his performance against Chris Lytle back at UFC 68, where he took Lytle down and basically held him there for three rounds. Penn's guard is tremendous, and even if he can't back to his feet, he'll try and threaten with submissions and offense from the bottom while trying to neutralize Hughes' offense. Because Hughes has been submitted by Penn before, I don't expect he'll go all out in fear of being caught again. But, that's if he can get Penn down, and for me, that's a major if.
Joe Lauzon v. George Sotiropoulos
Sotiropoulos has been plowing through opponents since his stint on TUF, where he was controversially knocked out by Tommy Speer in a semi-final bout. Sotiropoulos suffered an eye poke prior to taking the punch that put him out cold. But that was an exhibition, and he's undefeated at 6-0 in his UFC career, beating the likes of Kurt Pellegrino and Joe Stevenson. There seems to be a lot of hoopla behind him, and this will be a good test to see if it's warranted, or if he's the beneficiary of wins over strictly middle-tier opponents with bigger names than their actual games.
In Lauzon, we have a solid striker with unquestionable jiu-jitsu skills. He transitions from one submission to another in a seamless, flawless way that almost seems fluid and somewhat poetic. That's what makes him so good and so dangerous. But he is long and lean, and Sotiropoulos is more compact and powerful. So I think the course of the fight will be dictated by which fighter is able to handle the difference better. In other words, can Sotiropoulos use his size and strength to his advantage, or will Lauzon be able to nullify it? That's the question, and it's a big one, one that will ultimately determined which of these fighters is actually deserving of a spot in line for title contention.
Phil Davis v. Tim Boetsch
Davis is a prospect, but personally I'll leave it at that. I don't want to say he's a blue-chip, certainly not in the way I considered Jon "Bones" Jones before he legitimized himself as a title contender. Jones, by the way, will have a chance to solidify his stature against another blue-chip in Ryan Bader in February. But back to Davis, who is 3-0 in his young UFC career, and for the most part has look pretty impressive albeit against middle of the road talent, if that. He won a decision on former WEC Light Heavyweight Champion Brian Stann, but in case you haven't heard, "All-American" is dropping to middleweight to face Chris Leben on the New Year's card. That should say something.
Boetsch, meanwhile, fights like his nickname: "The Barbarian". Some of you may remember his mauling of David Heath back at UFC 81, when he tossed Heath around like a ragdoll. It was an incredible scene, and many thought Boetsch may be a force in the UFC until he met Matt Hamill, who silenced him inside of two rounds. Boetsch stepped out of the UFC for a brief three fight winning streak before returning with a lackluster win at UFC 117 over Todd Brown. He has good wrestling, and obviously a ton of strength.
The interesting dynamic of this fight is how Davis will stack up against Boetsch in terms of strength. Davis' wrestling is superior in terms of resume, and his striking is still evolving. If he can handle Boetsch's strength and get him to the mat, working from top position will probably be his best bet. If he keeps it standing in an attempt to display improved striking, it could be a dangerous affair for the up and coming prospect. He'll need to be cerebral and stick with what works. If Boetsch lures him into exchanges, or gets his hands and/or arms on him, he could employ some of that brute strength we saw in the Heath fight, and that could stop the prospect train in its tracks.
Gerald Harris v. Maiquel Jose Falcao Goncalves
Harris is the guy you saw on Sportscenter's Top 10 after slamming Dave Branch to near death at UFC 116. He's a talented guy who was the favorite to win TUF 7, but ran into a guy named Amir Sadollah. A lot of people did the same, and none of them won against the mma novice, so certainly it was nothing to hang his head about. But he's proven his worth with a three fight win streak inside the UFC, and a win Saturday will earn him another step up the ladder. He's still pretty far down, but an impressive win might earn him a couple steps.
His opponent is making his UFC debut, and I know two things: 1) He owns a 25-3 record; 2) He didn't impress me in this training video posted last month:
Here's the thing...he's obviously big, strong and very athletic, but it looks to me like he's not getting enough oxygen to his muscles. He looked fatigued, his strikes, although powerful, were somewhat slow and I anticipate may be predictable to a solid fighter. You have to be careful with guys that come into the UFC with inflated records. Jason Reinhardt made his UFC debut against Joe Lauzon with an 18-0 record, and Lauzon made him look like a training partner he uses to warm up. I sense we may see the same thing here. Goncalves is a guy that can dominate lesser opponents on the small shows, but in against a more competent fighter, even someone still on the rise like Harris, he may struggle. If Harris can avoid serious damage on the feet in the first round, and perhaps take this to the mat for a bit, I could see Goncalves tiring and breaking down. But Harris will need be cautious with his striking. The guy didn't get the name "Big Rig" because he drives one.
And now, onto the actual picks:
Rampage v. Machida
Besse: Rampage via (T)KO late in round 1 - everyone says Rampage won't catch up to him. Shogun did, why can't he?
Keefe: Rampage via (T)KO in round 2.
Hughes v. Penn
Besse: Penn via (T)KO in round 2 - Baby Jay slowly breaks down Hughes in round 1, avoids a late takedown and finishes in the 2nd.
Keefe: Penn via decision.
Lauzon v. Sotiropoulos
Besse: Lauzon via submission in round 3 - Lauzon survives some scary moments and pulls off a leg lock, potentially behind on the cards.
Keefe: Lauzon via decision.
Davis v. Boetsch
Besse: Davis via decision - Boetsch's strength and competence prevent Davis from the stoppage.
Keefe: Davis via submission in round 1.
Harris v. Goncalves
Besse: Harris via decision - Goncalves starts strong, but Harris survives with a takedown and tires out "Big Rig" for a strong decision victory.
Keefe: Harris via KO in round 2.
There you have it. We'll check in after the fights with results and see how both of us did in picking the winners. Enjoy what should be an exciting fight card in Detroit!
-Bess
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
MMA Rankings 2-10-10
Heavyweight
1. Fedor Emelianko
2. Brock Lesnar
3. Frank Mir
4. Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera
5. Randy Couture
6. Josh Barnett
7. Cain Velasquez
8. Shane Carwin
9. Alistair Overeem
10. Brett Rogers
Junior Dos
Light Heavyweight
1. Lyoto Machida
2. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
3. Quinton “Rampage”
4.
5. Rashad Evans
6. Gegard Mousasi
7. Forrest
8. Thiago Silva
9. Antonio Rogerio Noguirea
10. Randy Couture
Luiz Cane, Rich Franklin, Jon Jones, Brandon Vera, Keith Jardine
Middleweight
1.
2. Dan Henderson
3. Vitor Belfort
4. Chael Sonnen
5. Nate Marquardt
6. Jake Shields
7. Robbie Lawler
8. Yoshihiro Akiyama
9. Michael Bisping
10. Yushin Okami
Demian Maia, Jason “Mayhem” Miller, Ronaldo Souza, Nick Diaz, Wanderlei Silva
Welterweight
1.
2. Jake Shields
3. Jon Fitch
4. Thiago Alves
5. Nick Diaz
6. Paulo Thiago
7. Josh Koscheck
8. Paul Daley
9. Martin Kampmann
10. Matt Hughes
Dan Hardy, Marius Zaromskis, Matt Serra, Jay Hieron, Mike Swick
Lightweight
1. B.J. Penn
2. Shinya Aoki
3. Eddie Alverez
4. Joachim Hansen
5. Tatsuya Kawajiri
6. Kenny Florian
7. Diego Sanchez
8. Frankie Edgar
9. Gilbert Melendez
10. JZ Cavalcante
Gray Maynard, Mizuto Hirota, Satoru Kitoaka, Sean Sherk, Josh Thomson
-The Sports Brief
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Besse's UFC 107 picks
Several months ago, tonight was a night we couldn't wait for. We were finally going to see Quinton "Rampage" Jackson square off against Rashad Evans after some of the most intense sh*t talking this sport has seen. And TUF10 was going to get us even more jacked up for the fight. Unfortunately, "Rampage" got cast as the old Mr. T in the new "A-team" flick - with Liam Neeson, who's a badass, and Bradley Cooper, who was the man in "The Hangover". According to Dana White and "Rampage" himself, he'll return soon to settle the score.
But instead of that being tonight's main event, we get a lightweight title fight between BJ Penn and Diego Sanchez. Penn is uber talented at lightweight, and Sanchez is maniacal. I can't help but think part of the antics Sanchez displays are merely an act, but good lord this dude is awkward. I just don't see anyone beating Penn at lightweight. I thought Florian had a chance, but his brother is retarded and developed the worst gameplan in the history of MMA. And instead of holding Keith culpable, Ken-Flo dumps one of the best trainers in the game, Mark Dellagrotte, so he can go hang on GSP's nuts a little more with Firas up at Tri-Star. Here are my picks for the three main fights tonight...
BJ Penn defeats Diego Sanchez via submission (rear-naked choke) in the 3rd round
Frank Mir defeats Chieck Kongo via submission (kimura) in the 1st round
Kenny Florian defeats Clay Guida via decision
-Bess
But instead of that being tonight's main event, we get a lightweight title fight between BJ Penn and Diego Sanchez. Penn is uber talented at lightweight, and Sanchez is maniacal. I can't help but think part of the antics Sanchez displays are merely an act, but good lord this dude is awkward. I just don't see anyone beating Penn at lightweight. I thought Florian had a chance, but his brother is retarded and developed the worst gameplan in the history of MMA. And instead of holding Keith culpable, Ken-Flo dumps one of the best trainers in the game, Mark Dellagrotte, so he can go hang on GSP's nuts a little more with Firas up at Tri-Star. Here are my picks for the three main fights tonight...
BJ Penn defeats Diego Sanchez via submission (rear-naked choke) in the 3rd round
Frank Mir defeats Chieck Kongo via submission (kimura) in the 1st round
Kenny Florian defeats Clay Guida via decision
-Bess
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Keefe's Pick 3 for Week 14 & UFC 107
Ravens (-13.5) over Lions
Dolphins (+3) over Jaguars
Chargers (+3) over Cowboys
Last week: 1-2
Overall: 20-16
Week 14 starts tonight with Steelers at Browns.
Goodluck to all of you in fantasy football, whether it's week 1 of the playoffs or the final game of the regular season. After 13 weeks, 3 teams, I had an overall record of 21-18... 1 team in the playoffs, 1 with a chance, and 1 preparing for next August's draft.
UFC 107
B.J. Penn over Diego Sanchez (for Lightweight Championship)
Frank Mir over Cheick Kongo
Kenny Florian over Clay Guida
Overall MMA Record (since keeping track of Pick 3's): 8-4
Enjoy the fights and football this weekend!
-Keefe
Dolphins (+3) over Jaguars
Chargers (+3) over Cowboys
Last week: 1-2
Overall: 20-16
Week 14 starts tonight with Steelers at Browns.
Goodluck to all of you in fantasy football, whether it's week 1 of the playoffs or the final game of the regular season. After 13 weeks, 3 teams, I had an overall record of 21-18... 1 team in the playoffs, 1 with a chance, and 1 preparing for next August's draft.
UFC 107
B.J. Penn over Diego Sanchez (for Lightweight Championship)
Frank Mir over Cheick Kongo
Kenny Florian over Clay Guida
Overall MMA Record (since keeping track of Pick 3's): 8-4
Enjoy the fights and football this weekend!
-Keefe
Monday, September 21, 2009
The Sports Brief's MMA Rankings (9/21/09)
Heavyweight:
1. Fedor Emelianenko
2. Brock Lesnar
3. Josh Barnett
4. Frank Mir
5. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
6. Alistair Overeem
7. Shane Carwin
8. Randy Couture
9. Cain Velasquez
10. Brett Rogers
Junior Dos Santos, Chiek Kongo, Andrei Arlovski, Gabriel Gonzaga, Ben Rothwell, Fabricio Werdum, Heath Herring, Aleksander Emelianenko, Mirko Cro Cop
Light Heavyweight:
1. Lyoto
2. Quinton Jackson
3. Rashad Evans
4.
5. Forrest
6. Gegard Mousasi
7. Maurcio ‘Shogun’ Rua
8. Luiz Cane
9. Thiago Silva
10. Babalu Sobral
Rich Franklin, Keith Jardine, Brandon Vera, Chuck Liddell, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Tito Ortiz, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Vladimir Matyushenko, Jon Jones
Middleweight:
1.
2. Dan Henderson
3. Vitor
4. Yushin Okami
5. Nathan Marquardt
6. Robbie Lawler
7. Jorge Santiago
8. Yoshihiro Akiyama
9. Demian Maia
10. Cung Le
Michael Bisping, Thales Leites, Jason “Mayhem” Miller, Matt Lindland, Denis Kang, Chael Sonnen, Paulo Filho, Patrick Cote, Nick Diaz, Kazuo Misaki, Ronaldo Souza, Jake Rosholt
Welterweight:
2. Jake Shields
3. Jon Fitch
4. Thiago Alves
5. Josh Koscheck
6. Mike Swick
7. Paul Daley
8. Martin Kampmann
9. Matt Hughes
10. Paulo Thiago
Marius Zaromskis, Jay Hieron, Nick Thompson, Dan Hardy, Karo Parisyan, Matt Serra, Carlos Condit, Marcus Davis, Drew Fickett, Frank Trigg, Ricardo Almeida
Lightweight:
1. BJ Penn
2. Shinya Aoki
3. Eddie Alverez
4. Joachim Hansen
5. Tatsuya Kawajiri
6. Kenny Florian
7. Diego Sanchez
8. Frankie Edgar
9. Gilbert Melendez
10. JZ Cavalcante
Gray Maynard, Mizuto Hirota, Satoru Kitaoka, Sean Sherk, Josh Thomson, Takanori Gomi, KJ Noons, Nate Diaz, Victor Ribero, Joe Stevenson, Roger Huerta
Pound 4 Pound
1.
2. Fedor Emelianenko
4. BJ Penn
5. Lyoto Machida
6. Mike Brown
7. Quinton Jackson
8. Brian Bowles
9. Gegard Mousasi
10. Brock Lesnar
-The Sports Brief
Check out how The Greek did in his Week 2 NFL picks, below.
Monday, July 20, 2009
The Sports Brief's MMA Rankings (7-20-09)
Not going to hit you with a lot of fluff on this addition of the MMA Rankings. August is going to be a big month with many of our top fighters in action against each other, starting Aug. 1st with Affliction's latest card. Sengoku, Strikeforce, WEC, and two count em 2 UFC events all take place next month. Since our last rankings we've had a few cards highlighted by UFC 100 and last night's Dream 10. Let's get to the rankings.
Heavyweight
1. Fedor Emelianeko
2. Brock Lesnar
3. Josh Barnett
4. Frank Mir
5. Antonia Rodrigo Nogueira
6. Randy Couture
7. Alistair Overeem
8. Shane Carwin
9. Cain Velasquez
10. Brett Rogers
Honorable Mention: Andrei Arlovski, Gabriel Gonzaga, Cheick Kongo, Ben Rothwell, Fabricio Werdum, Heath Herring, Aleksander Emelianenko, Mirko Cro Cop, Junior Dos Santos, Roy Nelson
Light Heavyweight
1. Lyoto Machida
2. Quinton “Rampage”
3. Rashad Evans
4. Forrest
5. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
6. Renato “Babalu” Sobral
7. Luis Arthur Cane
8. Rich Franklin
9. Keith Jardine
10. Thiago Silva
Honorable Mentions: Gegard Mousasi, Chuck Liddell, Brandon Vera, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Tito Ortiz, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Vladimir Matyushenko, Jon Jones
Middleweight
1.
2. Dan Henderson
3. Gegard Mousasi
4. Yushin Okami
5. Vitor Belfort
6. Robbie Lawler
7. Nate Marquardt
8. Demian Maia
9. Jorge Santiago
10. Yoshihiro Akiyama
Honorable Mention: Michael Bisping, Cung Le, Nick Diaz, Wanderlei Silva, Matt Lindland, Denis Kang, Chael Sonnen, Paulo Filho, Frank Trigg, Patrick Cote, Frank Shamrock, Kazuo Misaki, Chris Leben, Ricardo Almeida, Ronaldo Souza
Welterweight
1.
2. Jake Shields
3. Jon Fitch
4. Thiago Alves
5. Martin Kampmann
6. Josh Koscheck
7. Mike Swick
8. Matt Hughes
9. Paulo Thiago
10. Marius Zaromskis*
Honorable Mention: Carlos Condit, Nick Diaz, Dan Hardy, Marcus Davis, Matt Serra, Nick Thompson, Jay Hieron, Karo Parysian, Frank Trigg
*Winner of the Dream Welterweight Grand Prix
Lightweight
1. BJ Penn
2. Shinya Aoki
3. Eddie Alvarez
4. Kenny Florian
5. Joachim Hansen
6. Satoru Kitaoka
7. Tatsuya Kawijiri
8. Gray Maynard
9. Frankie Edgar
10. Diego Sanchez
Honorable Mention: JZ Cavalcante, Gilbert Melendez, Sean Sherk, Josh Thomson, Clay Guida, Nick Diaz, Joe Stevenson, Roger Huerta, KJ Noons
-The Sports Brief
Monday, June 15, 2009
The Sports Brief’s MMA Rankings (6/15/09)
It’s been a while since we updated these, so a lot has changed in the last several months. With several UFC cards in the books, as well as Strikeforce, Dream, Sengoku and Bellator putting on fights, there’s been a lot to process. But UFC 100 looms in the next month, so what better time than now to release our latest rankings.
One disclaimer is the ongoing issue in ranking fighters that are competing in multiple weight classes. The most notable are the likes of Nick Diaz, Wanderlei Silva, Gegard Mousasi, Rich Franklin, and Dan Henderson. While Silva, Franklin and Henderson seem to be settled, or settling, into new homes, Diaz and Mousasi, among others, are impossible to nail down at this time.
That being said, they’ve been included in multiple weight classes. For example, Mousasi has only had one fight outside of 185, so he’s still ranked 3rd there but also received an honorable mention in the 205lb weight class. The guy steamrolled his opponent in the super heavyweight tourney put on by Dream, and he’s taking on Sokoudjou in his next fight. Diaz, however, has fought at a catchweight in his last two contests. Who knows what class he falls into at this point, so you’ll see him as an honorable mention in both welterweight and middleweight. He could most likely be ranked in the top-10 of both, but he hasn’t exactly fought in either weight class recently either. We’ll have to wait and see where he settles, if he settles at all. I’m willing to bet he could give two middle fingers to our rankings, or anyone’s rankings for that matter. The guy just wants to fight you (yeah, you).
Heavyweight
1. Fedor Emelianeko
2. Brock Lesnar
3. Frank Mir
4. Josh Barnett
5. Antonia Rodrigo Nogueira
6. Randy Couture
7. Alistair Overeem
8. Shane Carwin
9. Cain Velasquez
10. Brett Rogers
Honorable Mention: Andrei Arlovski, Gabriel Gonzaga, Cheick Kongo, Ben Rothwell, Fabricio Werdum, Heath Herring, Aleksander Emelianenko, Mirko Cro Cop, Junior Dos Santos, Roy Nelson
This division will get another considerable shake up in the coming months, as our top-6 heavyweights will all be in action. It’ll almost resemble a tournament of sorts, with #1 v. #4, #2 v. #3, and #5 v. #6 in a consolation match of legendary former champions. Big movers are Carin, Velasquez and Rogers, all whom entered the top-10 with respective wins over top-10 opponents. Rogers may have been the most surprising with his blitz of former top-3 heavyweight Arlovski, who has dropped out after back-to-back KO losses.
By the way, am I the only person wondering and dying to know if Kimbo has already fought during the taping of TUF 10? Can’t help but be jacked up for that upcoming season.
Light Heavyweight
1. Lyoto Machida
2. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
3. Rashad Evans
4. Forrest Griffin
5. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
6. Renato “Babalu” Sobral
7. Luis Arthur Cane
8. Rich Franklin
9. Keith Jardine
10. Thiago Silva
Honorable Mentions: Gegard Mousasi, Chuck Liddell, Brandon Vera, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Tito Ortiz, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Vladimir Matyushenko, Jon Jones
Please note that while Wanderlei Silva is arguably still a top-10 205 fighter in the world, he’s gone from these rankings as he makes the transition to the middleweight division. More on that in a bit. Franklin, meanwhile, enters the fray after an incredible battle with “The Axe Murderer”. Nice to see “Ace” pull that one out. With a big frame, incredible strength and technical, well rounded, skills, Franklin will make for a lot of interesting fights at light heavyweight. And he could make a little run at the title while he’s at it. Anyone interested in a rematch between he and Machida, who handed him his first career loss, down the road?
Speaking of Machida, there’s no question he’s the top guy; it’s been a long time coming, and he has the potential to run this division for a long time. Interesting that Jackson chose to bypass a title shot to settle the score with Evans, who is fresh off an embarrassing KO loss in his first title defense. That will make for great TV. “Shogun” is the beneficiary, but you have to wonder how much of a challenge he’ll pose to Machida. Liddell drops out as he ponders retirement. He could probably still beat Tito, though.
Middleweight
1. Anderson Silva
2. Dan Henderson
3. Gegard Mousasi
4. Yushin Okami
5. Vitor Belfort
6. Robbie Lawler
7. Michael Bisping
8. Nate Marquardt
9. Demian Maia
10. Jorge Santiago
Honorable Mention: Cung Le, Nick Diaz, Wanderlei Silva, Matt Lindland, Denis Kang, Chael Sonnen, Paulo Filho, Frank Trigg, Patrick Cote, Frank Shamrock, Kazuo Misaki, Yoshihiro Akiyama, Chris Leben, Ricardo Almeida, Ronaldo Souza
Cung Le is still inactive. Anderson Silva fought (and tooled with) a bum. Robbie Lawler just lost to a welterweight (albeit a good one) by 1st round submission. For a division that is slowly growing in talent, there are still many questions to be answered. To start, Silva’s next fight is at 205 against Forrest Griffin. He’ll most likely retreat back to defend his title after Hendo and Bisping go at it. Okami, meanwhile, is the great question mark in that division, particularly from a UFC perspective. He’s the last man to beat Silva (on a DQ), and has more or less earned his stripes, winning every fight aside from a decision loss to former champ Franklin. Marquardt and Maia are knocking on the door, and a fight between those two would make for a great battle.
Meanwhile, Affliction will pit Belfort against Santiago on its next card. Santiago was a second choice after Mousasi declined to return to 185. Instead, he’s fighting in the super heavyweight tourney over in Japan, and he’s winning. What a psycho. Plus on the same Affliction card he takes on Top 10 LHW Babalu. We can keep him here for now, but if it may not be long before he’s entering another top 10. And Wanderlei still looms as he prepares to enter the middleweight division. His fight against Franklin could have gone his way, but it was a classic, and he showed that while he still takes abuse, he’s as a game a fighter as there is today. He’ll pose a threat to anyone in that division, including his newfound rival in “The Spider” (not to be confused with “Da Spyder”).
Welterweight
1. Georges St. Pierre
2. Jake Shields
3. Thiago Alves
4. Jon Fitch
5. Paulo Thiago
6. Martin Kampmann
7. Josh Koscheck
8. Mike Swick
9. Matt Hughes
10. Carlos Condit
Honorable Mention: Nick Diaz, Dan Hardy, Marcus Davis, Matt Serra, Nick Thompson, Jay Hieron, Karo Parysian, Frank Trigg
St. Pierre is clearly the best welterweight in the world, but after watching Shield steamroll Lawler with his ground game, you have to wonder if he could pose similar problems to such a diverse, phenomenal athlete in GSP. We’ll probably never find out though. Alves, meanwhile, takes a stab at the gold at UFC 100.
As long as GSP doesn’t get “Serra’d” again, he should come out on top; it won’t be easy though. Thiago is still undefeated after knocking Koscheck’s block off, and if he takes out Fitch, we’ll have ourselves a legitimate contender. And Swick enters fresh off his relatively easy win over pseudo contender Ben Saunders; that was a mismatch from the start, and as Jake Rossen of Sherdog.com wrote over the weekend, you have to feel bad for Saunders, he was rushed by Dana White & Co. A couple guys to watch out for are Hardy and Trigg. “The Outlaw” is on the cusp after his ballsy win over “The Irish Hand Grenade”. He’s got pop in his hands and is tough as balls. Trigg, meanwhile, returns against Koscheck at UFC 101. Kampmann is in the mix, but he ducked a fight against TJ Grant on this weekend’s TUF Finale card. What a pussy, take the fight.
Lightweight
1. BJ Penn
2. Shinya Aoki
3. Eddie Alvarez
4. Kenny Florian
5. Joachim Hansen
6. Satoru Kitaoka
7. Tatsuya Kawijiri
8. Gray Maynard
9. Frankie Edgar
10. Diego Sanchez
Honorable Mention: JZ Cavalcante, Gilbert Melendez, Sean Sherk, Josh Thomson, Clay Guida, Nick Diaz, Joe Stevenson, Roger Huerta (where are you, Roger?), KJ Noons (probably with Roger)
It’s hard to honestly compare lightweights when a large portion of the echelon compete overseas. That’s what makes HDnet so valuable for hardcore MMA fans. The big fight coming up is the Penn-Florian showdown. Based on name alone, a lot of people are writing off “Ken-Flo”, but you have to like this matchup stylistically for him. It’s certainly more favorable than being smothered by Sherk for five rounds, plus he’s training with GSP; we’ll see if that reaps any rewards.
Kitaoka is a new addition (thanks to reading about him on Sherdog.com) and he’ll compete for Sengoku’s lightweight title in the coming months. Meanwhile, Kawijiri’s stock rises after his decision win over Cavalcante. Maynard’s next move will be intriguing, as well. After Edgar outboxed Sherk for three rounds, media members were calling for a potential title shot down the road. Lest we forget that Maynard outwrestled the wrestler Edgar for three rounds during their bout last April. “The Bully” has wins over Edgar, Jim Miller, Rich Clementi and Denis Siver. This guy is rolling through dudes. Perhaps we’ll see a rematch and the opportunity to challenge the Penn-Florian winner? Or will that go to Diego Sanchez or Clay Guida, following their headline bout this weekend? Many interesting matchups in the UFC.
One disclaimer is the ongoing issue in ranking fighters that are competing in multiple weight classes. The most notable are the likes of Nick Diaz, Wanderlei Silva, Gegard Mousasi, Rich Franklin, and Dan Henderson. While Silva, Franklin and Henderson seem to be settled, or settling, into new homes, Diaz and Mousasi, among others, are impossible to nail down at this time.
That being said, they’ve been included in multiple weight classes. For example, Mousasi has only had one fight outside of 185, so he’s still ranked 3rd there but also received an honorable mention in the 205lb weight class. The guy steamrolled his opponent in the super heavyweight tourney put on by Dream, and he’s taking on Sokoudjou in his next fight. Diaz, however, has fought at a catchweight in his last two contests. Who knows what class he falls into at this point, so you’ll see him as an honorable mention in both welterweight and middleweight. He could most likely be ranked in the top-10 of both, but he hasn’t exactly fought in either weight class recently either. We’ll have to wait and see where he settles, if he settles at all. I’m willing to bet he could give two middle fingers to our rankings, or anyone’s rankings for that matter. The guy just wants to fight you (yeah, you).
Heavyweight
1. Fedor Emelianeko
2. Brock Lesnar
3. Frank Mir
4. Josh Barnett
5. Antonia Rodrigo Nogueira
6. Randy Couture
7. Alistair Overeem
8. Shane Carwin
9. Cain Velasquez
10. Brett Rogers
Honorable Mention: Andrei Arlovski, Gabriel Gonzaga, Cheick Kongo, Ben Rothwell, Fabricio Werdum, Heath Herring, Aleksander Emelianenko, Mirko Cro Cop, Junior Dos Santos, Roy Nelson
This division will get another considerable shake up in the coming months, as our top-6 heavyweights will all be in action. It’ll almost resemble a tournament of sorts, with #1 v. #4, #2 v. #3, and #5 v. #6 in a consolation match of legendary former champions. Big movers are Carin, Velasquez and Rogers, all whom entered the top-10 with respective wins over top-10 opponents. Rogers may have been the most surprising with his blitz of former top-3 heavyweight Arlovski, who has dropped out after back-to-back KO losses.
By the way, am I the only person wondering and dying to know if Kimbo has already fought during the taping of TUF 10? Can’t help but be jacked up for that upcoming season.
Light Heavyweight
1. Lyoto Machida
2. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
3. Rashad Evans
4. Forrest Griffin
5. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
6. Renato “Babalu” Sobral
7. Luis Arthur Cane
8. Rich Franklin
9. Keith Jardine
10. Thiago Silva
Honorable Mentions: Gegard Mousasi, Chuck Liddell, Brandon Vera, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Tito Ortiz, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Vladimir Matyushenko, Jon Jones
Please note that while Wanderlei Silva is arguably still a top-10 205 fighter in the world, he’s gone from these rankings as he makes the transition to the middleweight division. More on that in a bit. Franklin, meanwhile, enters the fray after an incredible battle with “The Axe Murderer”. Nice to see “Ace” pull that one out. With a big frame, incredible strength and technical, well rounded, skills, Franklin will make for a lot of interesting fights at light heavyweight. And he could make a little run at the title while he’s at it. Anyone interested in a rematch between he and Machida, who handed him his first career loss, down the road?
Speaking of Machida, there’s no question he’s the top guy; it’s been a long time coming, and he has the potential to run this division for a long time. Interesting that Jackson chose to bypass a title shot to settle the score with Evans, who is fresh off an embarrassing KO loss in his first title defense. That will make for great TV. “Shogun” is the beneficiary, but you have to wonder how much of a challenge he’ll pose to Machida. Liddell drops out as he ponders retirement. He could probably still beat Tito, though.
Middleweight
1. Anderson Silva
2. Dan Henderson
3. Gegard Mousasi
4. Yushin Okami
5. Vitor Belfort
6. Robbie Lawler
7. Michael Bisping
8. Nate Marquardt
9. Demian Maia
10. Jorge Santiago
Honorable Mention: Cung Le, Nick Diaz, Wanderlei Silva, Matt Lindland, Denis Kang, Chael Sonnen, Paulo Filho, Frank Trigg, Patrick Cote, Frank Shamrock, Kazuo Misaki, Yoshihiro Akiyama, Chris Leben, Ricardo Almeida, Ronaldo Souza
Cung Le is still inactive. Anderson Silva fought (and tooled with) a bum. Robbie Lawler just lost to a welterweight (albeit a good one) by 1st round submission. For a division that is slowly growing in talent, there are still many questions to be answered. To start, Silva’s next fight is at 205 against Forrest Griffin. He’ll most likely retreat back to defend his title after Hendo and Bisping go at it. Okami, meanwhile, is the great question mark in that division, particularly from a UFC perspective. He’s the last man to beat Silva (on a DQ), and has more or less earned his stripes, winning every fight aside from a decision loss to former champ Franklin. Marquardt and Maia are knocking on the door, and a fight between those two would make for a great battle.
Meanwhile, Affliction will pit Belfort against Santiago on its next card. Santiago was a second choice after Mousasi declined to return to 185. Instead, he’s fighting in the super heavyweight tourney over in Japan, and he’s winning. What a psycho. Plus on the same Affliction card he takes on Top 10 LHW Babalu. We can keep him here for now, but if it may not be long before he’s entering another top 10. And Wanderlei still looms as he prepares to enter the middleweight division. His fight against Franklin could have gone his way, but it was a classic, and he showed that while he still takes abuse, he’s as a game a fighter as there is today. He’ll pose a threat to anyone in that division, including his newfound rival in “The Spider” (not to be confused with “Da Spyder”).
Welterweight
1. Georges St. Pierre
2. Jake Shields
3. Thiago Alves
4. Jon Fitch
5. Paulo Thiago
6. Martin Kampmann
7. Josh Koscheck
8. Mike Swick
9. Matt Hughes
10. Carlos Condit
Honorable Mention: Nick Diaz, Dan Hardy, Marcus Davis, Matt Serra, Nick Thompson, Jay Hieron, Karo Parysian, Frank Trigg
St. Pierre is clearly the best welterweight in the world, but after watching Shield steamroll Lawler with his ground game, you have to wonder if he could pose similar problems to such a diverse, phenomenal athlete in GSP. We’ll probably never find out though. Alves, meanwhile, takes a stab at the gold at UFC 100.
As long as GSP doesn’t get “Serra’d” again, he should come out on top; it won’t be easy though. Thiago is still undefeated after knocking Koscheck’s block off, and if he takes out Fitch, we’ll have ourselves a legitimate contender. And Swick enters fresh off his relatively easy win over pseudo contender Ben Saunders; that was a mismatch from the start, and as Jake Rossen of Sherdog.com wrote over the weekend, you have to feel bad for Saunders, he was rushed by Dana White & Co. A couple guys to watch out for are Hardy and Trigg. “The Outlaw” is on the cusp after his ballsy win over “The Irish Hand Grenade”. He’s got pop in his hands and is tough as balls. Trigg, meanwhile, returns against Koscheck at UFC 101. Kampmann is in the mix, but he ducked a fight against TJ Grant on this weekend’s TUF Finale card. What a pussy, take the fight.
Lightweight
1. BJ Penn
2. Shinya Aoki
3. Eddie Alvarez
4. Kenny Florian
5. Joachim Hansen
6. Satoru Kitaoka
7. Tatsuya Kawijiri
8. Gray Maynard
9. Frankie Edgar
10. Diego Sanchez
Honorable Mention: JZ Cavalcante, Gilbert Melendez, Sean Sherk, Josh Thomson, Clay Guida, Nick Diaz, Joe Stevenson, Roger Huerta (where are you, Roger?), KJ Noons (probably with Roger)
It’s hard to honestly compare lightweights when a large portion of the echelon compete overseas. That’s what makes HDnet so valuable for hardcore MMA fans. The big fight coming up is the Penn-Florian showdown. Based on name alone, a lot of people are writing off “Ken-Flo”, but you have to like this matchup stylistically for him. It’s certainly more favorable than being smothered by Sherk for five rounds, plus he’s training with GSP; we’ll see if that reaps any rewards.
Kitaoka is a new addition (thanks to reading about him on Sherdog.com) and he’ll compete for Sengoku’s lightweight title in the coming months. Meanwhile, Kawijiri’s stock rises after his decision win over Cavalcante. Maynard’s next move will be intriguing, as well. After Edgar outboxed Sherk for three rounds, media members were calling for a potential title shot down the road. Lest we forget that Maynard outwrestled the wrestler Edgar for three rounds during their bout last April. “The Bully” has wins over Edgar, Jim Miller, Rich Clementi and Denis Siver. This guy is rolling through dudes. Perhaps we’ll see a rematch and the opportunity to challenge the Penn-Florian winner? Or will that go to Diego Sanchez or Clay Guida, following their headline bout this weekend? Many interesting matchups in the UFC.
Friday, January 30, 2009
2009 NBA All-Stars: Closer Look
The reserves were announced last night for the 2009 NBA All-Star game which will be played Valentine's day weekend out in Phoenix. Let's take a look at the squads. Who has a beef? Who lucked out?
Eastern Conference:
Dwayne Wade, Heat
Allen Iverson, Pistons
LeBron James, Cavs
Kevin Garnett, Celtics
Dwight Howard, Magic
Reserves:
Paul Pierce, Celtics
Chris Bosh, Raptors
Joe Johnson, Hawks
Danny Granger, Pacers
Jameer Nelson, Magic
Rashard Lewis, Magic
Devin Harris, Nets
Western Conference:
Chris Paul, Hornets
Kobe Bryant, Lakers
Tim Duncan, Spurs
Amare Stoudemire, Suns
Yao Ming, Rockets
Reserves:
Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks
Pau Gasol, Lakers
Brandon Roy, Blazers
Chauncey Billups, Nuggets
Tony Parker, Spurs
Shaquille O'Neal, Suns
David West, Hornets
Earlier in the week I successfully picked 12 out of the 14 reserves. The two I didn't? Rashard Lewis and David West. And I stick by that.
Lucky to be an All-Star:
David West: Yeah he's averaging 20 points per game, but his 7.1 rebounds ties him with Marc Gasol and Anderson Varejao for 31st in the NBA. He's a power forward. Nene, Dampier, Kendrick Perkins, Scola, and LeBron are some of the names pulling down more boards than West. Although some of the catergories are close, West has seen a decline in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and FG% from last year.
Allen Iverson: West is 31st in rebounding, AI is 31st in scoring. Do you know that Billups is averaging more points than the Answer this year? Chalk this one up to the fans who vote AI in, and kept more deserving guards from the East out.
Rashard Lewis: I just don't see it. 19.3 points and 6 rebounds is good, but do the Orlando Magic really need 3 All-Stars? Put him in the 3 point contest, that's fine, but he's not one of the best 12 players in the East this year.
Biggest beef:
Al Jefferson: His team is bad, but they're the hottest team in January. Big Al is a 20-10 guy and much more deserving than say David West. 8th in the league in scoring, 7th in rebounding, but playing on the T-Wolves kept him out. Should have been in.
Vince Carter: Vince vs. Rashard Lewis? Vince scores more, has more assists, and is only 0.9 rebounds worse than Lewis. Carter is 11th in the league in scoring, and makes up the highest scoring backcourt in the NBA for a surprising Nets team. Like him or not he should be in Phoenix.
Other cases can be made for Carmelo Anthony (despite missing time with injury Melo is putting up more points and rebounds per game than David West, and is on a team with a better record. Figure that one out.) Mo Williams, Ray Allen, and Rajon Rondo. However Celtics fans should not freak out about Allen or Rondo. They just weren't good enough in the first half, plain and simple.
-Keefe
Scroll down to see Besse's account of the Price is Right from today as well as why he thinks B.J. Penn can beat Georges St. Pierre... I have no idea who will win that one.
Eastern Conference:
Dwayne Wade, Heat
Allen Iverson, Pistons
LeBron James, Cavs
Kevin Garnett, Celtics
Dwight Howard, Magic
Reserves:
Paul Pierce, Celtics
Chris Bosh, Raptors
Joe Johnson, Hawks
Danny Granger, Pacers
Jameer Nelson, Magic
Rashard Lewis, Magic
Devin Harris, Nets
Western Conference:
Chris Paul, Hornets
Kobe Bryant, Lakers
Tim Duncan, Spurs
Amare Stoudemire, Suns
Yao Ming, Rockets
Reserves:
Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks
Pau Gasol, Lakers
Brandon Roy, Blazers
Chauncey Billups, Nuggets
Tony Parker, Spurs
Shaquille O'Neal, Suns
David West, Hornets
Earlier in the week I successfully picked 12 out of the 14 reserves. The two I didn't? Rashard Lewis and David West. And I stick by that.
Lucky to be an All-Star:
David West: Yeah he's averaging 20 points per game, but his 7.1 rebounds ties him with Marc Gasol and Anderson Varejao for 31st in the NBA. He's a power forward. Nene, Dampier, Kendrick Perkins, Scola, and LeBron are some of the names pulling down more boards than West. Although some of the catergories are close, West has seen a decline in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and FG% from last year.
Allen Iverson: West is 31st in rebounding, AI is 31st in scoring. Do you know that Billups is averaging more points than the Answer this year? Chalk this one up to the fans who vote AI in, and kept more deserving guards from the East out.
Rashard Lewis: I just don't see it. 19.3 points and 6 rebounds is good, but do the Orlando Magic really need 3 All-Stars? Put him in the 3 point contest, that's fine, but he's not one of the best 12 players in the East this year.
Biggest beef:
Al Jefferson: His team is bad, but they're the hottest team in January. Big Al is a 20-10 guy and much more deserving than say David West. 8th in the league in scoring, 7th in rebounding, but playing on the T-Wolves kept him out. Should have been in.
Vince Carter: Vince vs. Rashard Lewis? Vince scores more, has more assists, and is only 0.9 rebounds worse than Lewis. Carter is 11th in the league in scoring, and makes up the highest scoring backcourt in the NBA for a surprising Nets team. Like him or not he should be in Phoenix.
Other cases can be made for Carmelo Anthony (despite missing time with injury Melo is putting up more points and rebounds per game than David West, and is on a team with a better record. Figure that one out.) Mo Williams, Ray Allen, and Rajon Rondo. However Celtics fans should not freak out about Allen or Rondo. They just weren't good enough in the first half, plain and simple.
-Keefe
Scroll down to see Besse's account of the Price is Right from today as well as why he thinks B.J. Penn can beat Georges St. Pierre... I have no idea who will win that one.
Why BJ Penn will beat GSP
This Saturday's UFC 94 main event between welterweight champion Georges "Rush" St. Pierre and lightweight champion BJ Penn is one of the greatest matchups in the history of combat sports. You're got two of the best pound-4-pound fighters in their prime, combined with their history (a split decision victory for St. Pierre at UFC 58) and the bad blood that has developed between these two since that fight, particularly through the latest TV series UFC PrimeTime.
Leading up to the fight, many critics, fans and pundits alike have tried their best to break down the fight. They discuss Penn's jab and heavy hands, but St. Pierre's versatile striking arsenal. Or Penn's superior flexibility and jiu-jitsu and St. Pierre's world-class wrestling. Penn's questionable cardio against St. Pierre's bottomless gas tank. Or even the fact that Penn is moving up from lightweight while St. Pierre will undoubtedly be cutting 15-20 lbs. this week just to make 170. There will be a considerable size advantage, but will it matter? Each fighter will walk into the cage on Saturday night with considerable advantages in different disciplines and areas of the fight game.
But one aspect that may have been overlooked, or perhaps not given enough attention is the mental aspect of this fight. Penn has referred to GSP as a mental midget, a bully and a quitter. And while GSP can say all he wants to refute that, and people can point to his impressive resume of victories over the likes of Penn, Matt Hughes (2), Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck, Matt Serra, Sean Sherk, Frank Trigg, Jason "Mayhem" Miller, Dave Strasser, Karo Parysian, and Jay Hieron, I'm here to point out a noticeable trend in St. Pierre's fights.
I've been watching MMA and UFC for several years now. My first exposure was TUF Season 1, and my first live fight on TV was the classic TUF finale between Stephan Bonnar. I've been hooked ever since and made it a priority to catch every Fight Night, PPV and TUF episode possible in one way or another. So I've seen each and every one of GSP's fights as far back as his destruction of Jay Hieron at UFC 48 in 2004. If you haven't seen that, it's a beauty, reminiscent of Houston Alexander's massacre over Keith Jardine.
The problem with St. Pierre's resume is that all of his fights have, for the most part, been one-sided. His two victories over Hughes and his wins over Fitch, Serra, Koscheck, Trigg, Hieron, Strasser and Sherk were complete dominations in favor of GSP. He controlled the fights from the outset, imposing his will and at no point in any of these fights was he in any bit of trouble. GSP was essentially on cruise control, faced little to no adversity and was able to execute his gameplan en route to a finish or lopsided decision victory. Whether the fight ended via stoppage or went to the judge's scorecards, the fans were left with no doubt from the start of the fight to the end as to who the victor would be.
However, it's important to closely examine those "other" fights. His decision victory over Karo Parysian was said to be closely contested, but I'm tossing that out the window due to the fact that it was five years ago to the date tomorrow. Interestingly enough, five years after his UFC debut, GSP will be competing in perhaps the greatest mega-fight in UFC history. Parysian, meanwhile, is fighting on the undercard against a guy nicknamed "Stun Gun", and reports from mmamania.com indicate the UFC is concerned Parysian may pull out at the last minute. This is after Karo withdrew from UFC 88 hours before the fight due to panic attacks after being KO'd by Thiago Alves in his last fight.
So moving past that early fight in his career we start to see the trend unfold. The loss to Hughes in their first tilt is perhaps the first and most exemplary sign of St. Pierre's weak mental state. Admittedly he was nervous leading up to the fight, which is understandable considering it was his first title fight, only his 8th professional bout, and he was fighting a legend of the sport. GSP could not look Hughes in the eyes during the stare down, but incredibly he dominated the first round. His striking and takedown defense were remarkable, and the highlight of the round was a spinning back kick which caught Hughes and visibly locked up his stomach and chest muscles, knocking the wind out of the opponent and momentarily putting him in trouble. But at the end of the round, Hughes scored a takedown and while trying to impose his legendary ground and pound attack, latched onto an arm from the top, swung his left leg around GSP's head and fell off to the right, locking in an arm bar. St. Pierre instantly tapped, not even attempting to fight off the submission, roll out of it or hold on until the end of the round. And sadly, just as Big John McCarthy stepped in, the horn went off signaling the end of the round. But the stoppage had been declared, and St. Pierre was left to wonder what could have been. He gave up at the first sign of trouble, plain and simple.
Then there was the first fight with Penn. St. Pierre's face was bloodied and bludgeoned by a fighter who was a natural 155, smaller fighter who had a history of fighting bigger opponents and not only holding his own, but holding his own. The guy has a decision loss to Lyoto Machida...remarkable especially with where Machida currently ranks in the light heavyweight division. The second round was more closely contested, with Penn continuing to land strikes, but St. Pierre scoring takedowns and trying to work some ground and pound from Penn's guard. It was competitive and close, and was undoubtedly the swing round in the bout. The third round most likely belonged to St. Pierre, as Penn's gas tank went on empty and shifted the momentum into the Canadien's corner. Many question whether the result would have differed if Penn came into the fight with better cardio. Even so, many including myself argued that Penn did enough early to earn the split decision. But alas, the victory went to St. Pierre although he was immediately ushered to the hospital for overnight observation.
Against Matt Serra, St. Pierre was heavily favored. Serra actually came into the fight as a +800 underdog in Vegas. He was an improbably title challenger, perhaps an undeserving one after claiming the TUF Season 4 welterweight crown via split decision victory over Chris Lytle, a fight that left many in the audience underwhelmed by the action. Serra was certainly a veteran of the sport, a solid resume with fights against Shonie Carter, Din Thomas, BJ Penn and Karo Parysian. But he'd lost all four, and the promotion by Dana White to have the TUF 4 winner fight for a title was undoubtedly an effort to reinvigorate the TUF brand. And in the first round, both fighters exchanged pleasantries in the form of strikes on their feet. A couple minutes in, however, Serra caught St. Pierre with an overhand right that put the champion on queer street. Smelling blood, Serra moved in for the kill, landing bombs almost at will and staggering GSP into the cage, onto the mat and across the octagon. Finally Serra landed a blow that put the champ on his back and into a corner, and a flurry of strikes prompted Big John to step in. But tape revealed that prior to the referee stoppage, St. Pierre was actually tapping out. The strikes were overwhelming him, and he was asking for help. He wanted to be saved from taking any further punishment. Again, he quit in the Octagon in the face of adversity.
Given his history, I can't help but believe Penn will hold a considerable mental and psychological advantage heading into Saturday's fight. Dana White mentioned in his video blog that during the staredown at the press conference, Penn kept telling GSP, "You cut too much weight Georges...you cut too much." He's getting in St. Pierre's head and making him question everything, from his training to his ability to his mental state heading into the fight.
The bottom line is that Penn is right: St. Pierre is a bully. He is able to dominate and walk through most opponents with ease. His superior athleticism, cardio and strength combined with his arsenal of strikes, wrestling and submission skills make him a tall task for anyone. But many opponents have allowed him to impose his will, and once St. Pierre has taken control of a fight, he's been allowed to maintain control and blitz through fighters with ease. Yet as Penn has said, all it takes is for someone to stand up to the bully and challenge him. For years that bully stole money from kids in the lunch line every day, until that one time some unknown stepped out of the line and punched him flush in the nose and put an end to the robbery from that day forth.
Well that unknown is Penn. He will challenge St. Pierre and keep pushing forward, giving the welterweight champion all he can handle. Saturday's fight will prove one of two things: a) Penn is right and St. Pierre will fold under the pressure or b) St. Pierre has evolved and matured and will outlast the lightweight champion. Thus, I see this fight ending one of two ways. Either Penn by stoppage or St. Pierre by decision. But ultimately I think Penn will live up to his word and take on the bully and stop him. As great a fighter as St. Pierre is, Penn is just as great and has the mental fortitude to press forward and pressure his adversary to the tipping point. And on Saturday night, there will be two differences from their first fight. A recommitted fighter in Penn will have the gas to last longer and this time around, he won't need the judges to earn the victory. Penn will become the first fighter to simultaneously hold titles in two weight classes with a 3rd round stoppage over GSP.
-Bess
Leading up to the fight, many critics, fans and pundits alike have tried their best to break down the fight. They discuss Penn's jab and heavy hands, but St. Pierre's versatile striking arsenal. Or Penn's superior flexibility and jiu-jitsu and St. Pierre's world-class wrestling. Penn's questionable cardio against St. Pierre's bottomless gas tank. Or even the fact that Penn is moving up from lightweight while St. Pierre will undoubtedly be cutting 15-20 lbs. this week just to make 170. There will be a considerable size advantage, but will it matter? Each fighter will walk into the cage on Saturday night with considerable advantages in different disciplines and areas of the fight game.
But one aspect that may have been overlooked, or perhaps not given enough attention is the mental aspect of this fight. Penn has referred to GSP as a mental midget, a bully and a quitter. And while GSP can say all he wants to refute that, and people can point to his impressive resume of victories over the likes of Penn, Matt Hughes (2), Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck, Matt Serra, Sean Sherk, Frank Trigg, Jason "Mayhem" Miller, Dave Strasser, Karo Parysian, and Jay Hieron, I'm here to point out a noticeable trend in St. Pierre's fights.
I've been watching MMA and UFC for several years now. My first exposure was TUF Season 1, and my first live fight on TV was the classic TUF finale between Stephan Bonnar. I've been hooked ever since and made it a priority to catch every Fight Night, PPV and TUF episode possible in one way or another. So I've seen each and every one of GSP's fights as far back as his destruction of Jay Hieron at UFC 48 in 2004. If you haven't seen that, it's a beauty, reminiscent of Houston Alexander's massacre over Keith Jardine.
The problem with St. Pierre's resume is that all of his fights have, for the most part, been one-sided. His two victories over Hughes and his wins over Fitch, Serra, Koscheck, Trigg, Hieron, Strasser and Sherk were complete dominations in favor of GSP. He controlled the fights from the outset, imposing his will and at no point in any of these fights was he in any bit of trouble. GSP was essentially on cruise control, faced little to no adversity and was able to execute his gameplan en route to a finish or lopsided decision victory. Whether the fight ended via stoppage or went to the judge's scorecards, the fans were left with no doubt from the start of the fight to the end as to who the victor would be.
However, it's important to closely examine those "other" fights. His decision victory over Karo Parysian was said to be closely contested, but I'm tossing that out the window due to the fact that it was five years ago to the date tomorrow. Interestingly enough, five years after his UFC debut, GSP will be competing in perhaps the greatest mega-fight in UFC history. Parysian, meanwhile, is fighting on the undercard against a guy nicknamed "Stun Gun", and reports from mmamania.com indicate the UFC is concerned Parysian may pull out at the last minute. This is after Karo withdrew from UFC 88 hours before the fight due to panic attacks after being KO'd by Thiago Alves in his last fight.
So moving past that early fight in his career we start to see the trend unfold. The loss to Hughes in their first tilt is perhaps the first and most exemplary sign of St. Pierre's weak mental state. Admittedly he was nervous leading up to the fight, which is understandable considering it was his first title fight, only his 8th professional bout, and he was fighting a legend of the sport. GSP could not look Hughes in the eyes during the stare down, but incredibly he dominated the first round. His striking and takedown defense were remarkable, and the highlight of the round was a spinning back kick which caught Hughes and visibly locked up his stomach and chest muscles, knocking the wind out of the opponent and momentarily putting him in trouble. But at the end of the round, Hughes scored a takedown and while trying to impose his legendary ground and pound attack, latched onto an arm from the top, swung his left leg around GSP's head and fell off to the right, locking in an arm bar. St. Pierre instantly tapped, not even attempting to fight off the submission, roll out of it or hold on until the end of the round. And sadly, just as Big John McCarthy stepped in, the horn went off signaling the end of the round. But the stoppage had been declared, and St. Pierre was left to wonder what could have been. He gave up at the first sign of trouble, plain and simple.
Then there was the first fight with Penn. St. Pierre's face was bloodied and bludgeoned by a fighter who was a natural 155, smaller fighter who had a history of fighting bigger opponents and not only holding his own, but holding his own. The guy has a decision loss to Lyoto Machida...remarkable especially with where Machida currently ranks in the light heavyweight division. The second round was more closely contested, with Penn continuing to land strikes, but St. Pierre scoring takedowns and trying to work some ground and pound from Penn's guard. It was competitive and close, and was undoubtedly the swing round in the bout. The third round most likely belonged to St. Pierre, as Penn's gas tank went on empty and shifted the momentum into the Canadien's corner. Many question whether the result would have differed if Penn came into the fight with better cardio. Even so, many including myself argued that Penn did enough early to earn the split decision. But alas, the victory went to St. Pierre although he was immediately ushered to the hospital for overnight observation.
Against Matt Serra, St. Pierre was heavily favored. Serra actually came into the fight as a +800 underdog in Vegas. He was an improbably title challenger, perhaps an undeserving one after claiming the TUF Season 4 welterweight crown via split decision victory over Chris Lytle, a fight that left many in the audience underwhelmed by the action. Serra was certainly a veteran of the sport, a solid resume with fights against Shonie Carter, Din Thomas, BJ Penn and Karo Parysian. But he'd lost all four, and the promotion by Dana White to have the TUF 4 winner fight for a title was undoubtedly an effort to reinvigorate the TUF brand. And in the first round, both fighters exchanged pleasantries in the form of strikes on their feet. A couple minutes in, however, Serra caught St. Pierre with an overhand right that put the champion on queer street. Smelling blood, Serra moved in for the kill, landing bombs almost at will and staggering GSP into the cage, onto the mat and across the octagon. Finally Serra landed a blow that put the champ on his back and into a corner, and a flurry of strikes prompted Big John to step in. But tape revealed that prior to the referee stoppage, St. Pierre was actually tapping out. The strikes were overwhelming him, and he was asking for help. He wanted to be saved from taking any further punishment. Again, he quit in the Octagon in the face of adversity.
Given his history, I can't help but believe Penn will hold a considerable mental and psychological advantage heading into Saturday's fight. Dana White mentioned in his video blog that during the staredown at the press conference, Penn kept telling GSP, "You cut too much weight Georges...you cut too much." He's getting in St. Pierre's head and making him question everything, from his training to his ability to his mental state heading into the fight.
The bottom line is that Penn is right: St. Pierre is a bully. He is able to dominate and walk through most opponents with ease. His superior athleticism, cardio and strength combined with his arsenal of strikes, wrestling and submission skills make him a tall task for anyone. But many opponents have allowed him to impose his will, and once St. Pierre has taken control of a fight, he's been allowed to maintain control and blitz through fighters with ease. Yet as Penn has said, all it takes is for someone to stand up to the bully and challenge him. For years that bully stole money from kids in the lunch line every day, until that one time some unknown stepped out of the line and punched him flush in the nose and put an end to the robbery from that day forth.
Well that unknown is Penn. He will challenge St. Pierre and keep pushing forward, giving the welterweight champion all he can handle. Saturday's fight will prove one of two things: a) Penn is right and St. Pierre will fold under the pressure or b) St. Pierre has evolved and matured and will outlast the lightweight champion. Thus, I see this fight ending one of two ways. Either Penn by stoppage or St. Pierre by decision. But ultimately I think Penn will live up to his word and take on the bully and stop him. As great a fighter as St. Pierre is, Penn is just as great and has the mental fortitude to press forward and pressure his adversary to the tipping point. And on Saturday night, there will be two differences from their first fight. A recommitted fighter in Penn will have the gas to last longer and this time around, he won't need the judges to earn the victory. Penn will become the first fighter to simultaneously hold titles in two weight classes with a 3rd round stoppage over GSP.
-Bess
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