The UFC's Light Heavyweight Title is on the line this Saturday night in Montreal. The Champion Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida faces Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in a much anticipated rematch.
Check out the story from BostonThrowdown.com to see why the belt will change hands.
Lyoto Machida is one scary, scary dude. Should be a lot of fun watching him take on "Rampage" Jackson later this year. There are rumors swirling about him and Jackson taking opposing sides as coaches on the next season of The Ultimate Fighter. I have mixed emotions about this. The positive in doing this is that it would give Machida even more exposure to American fans, perhaps even moreso to casual fans who may be checking the show out. It's hard to believe that a lot of hardcore fans still watch TUF because of the antics within the house, the fact that it's the same boring format every season, and quite frankly, the fighters are decent at best. But for a casual or new fan to the sport, it's a solid way to become introduce to MMA and UFC, and also gives them exposure to some of the sports stars who are serving as coaches.
However, I'm weary of Jackson and Machida being coaches on this show for a couple reasons. First and foremost is that show starts filming in the first week of June. It wouldn't start airing until September and thus Jackson and Machida would not square off for "The Dragon's" belt until the end of the year, most likely headlining the final card of 2009. Secondly, Jackson has already served as a coach on the show against Forrest Griffin. Admittedly, Jackson said he didn't really enjoy it and that he got extremely overweight being on the show. Obviously it could serve as a nice PR move to continue rebuilding his reputation with fans after his meltdown following the loss of his title to Griffin, but I'm skeptical. I want to see the best Rampage take on Machida because it could make for an all-time classic matchup. Rampage has terrific standup with his boxing skillset and his defense, and he also brings great wrestling and tremendous ground and pound to the table. I honestly don't know if he has the tools to take out Machida - he is one dangerous BAMF - but it could make for an exciting fight. Rampage always brings the fight, and it would be interesting to see Machida karate take on such an aggressive, yet calculated and disciplined style of boxing and wrestling. Dana White's announcement comes on June 2nd, so we'll just have to wait and see, but with every other title currently scheduled for upcoming matchups, all signs point to it happened. Unless they're bringing Tito and Ken Shamrock back for another grudge match.
If anyone's happened to tune into HBO last night for episode 2 of Calzaghe Jones 24/7, you would have heard Jones at one point exclaiming, "I'm baaaaack." While victories over Anthony Hanshaw and a washed-up Felix Trinidad are nothing more than confidence builders in my eyes, Jones has looked significantly better in those fights than he did during his horrific three-fight losing streak to Antonio Tarver (twice) and the brutal KO loss to Glen Johnson.
I've been a Jones, Jr. fan for almost 10 years. He was the pound for pound greatest when I first started sitting down to watch boxing matches, and with the likes of YouTube, I've had a chance to enjoy highlights and fights before my spectating began. He was the best in the world in five different weight classes, an entertainer and the most exciting fighter in the world. To see him plummet drastically, almost overnight, like he did against Tarver and Johnson was terrifying to me as a fan and boxing as a sport. Let's face it, Tarver is no where near the businessman, entertainer and fight mogul that Jones is. He can talk a fair game, but after his deflating performance in Rocky Balboa, he's been nothing but a disappointment in the light heavyweight division, particularly following losses to Bernard Hopkins and "Bad" Chad Dawson in his last fight. Couple that with uninspiring decision wins over Elvir Muriqi and Clinton Woods and you no longer have a major draw in the sport.
Glen Johnson, meanwhile, has a lot of John "Quietman" Ruiz in him. Well, actually, maybe it's more the nickname and nothing else. Johnson doesn't build up fights much, he lets his fists do the talking. And while he's probably legitimately lost no more than 3 fights in his career (he's gotten screwed in numerous decision losses), Johnson isn't much of a draw either. Which is why Joe Calzaghe chose Roy Jones, Jr. as his next opponent at Madison Square Garden this Saturday, Nov. 8. Regardless of whether Jones still has the speed, agility and ferocity in his fists that he possessed in the 90's and earlier this century, his aura and mystique along with his personality, confidence and gab are enough to crank out yet another blockbuster fight. I loved what Roy Jones, Sr. said last night:
"If Roy trained for this fight, Calzaghe can't beat him."
What is this guy Karo Parysian? I don't doubt that Jones, Jr. abstained from training for a good portion of his fights, particularly during the height of his career against bums like Antoine Byrd, Tony Thornton and Merqui Sosa. But it raises and interesting point. Calzaghe is the ultimate workhorse, a come at you type of fighter who is constantly busy and putting on the pressure. Ironically, he's a heavier version of Ricky Hatton. Jones, however, likes to circle and move, picking his spots and working in spurts, but exploding when he does and unleashing a fury that most have been able to endure. Who's that like? Floyd Mayweather.
Are Jones' skills declining? I don't doubt it. But can you argue that his brief, 3-fight losing streak could also be attributed to complacency and a declining work ethic? I don't doub that either. Personally, 24/7 may have been the best thing for him, because it gave him reason to establish a legitimate, hardcore training camp to prepare for this fight. And while he still thinks he's the best, no one else does. Perhaps he said it in the first episode:
"If I lose on the 8th, who cares? But if he lose, his streak has ENDED."
To me, nothing is more dangerous than a motivated Jones with nothing lose. I'll be tuning in on Saturday to watch the fight. One reason is because I'm still a tremendous Jones fan and still enjoy watching him compete at this level. To see him win the fight, the title, and thus a showdown (and re-match) with Bernard Hopkins could be the best possible scenario for the sport of boxing. Two of the boxing's best meeting over 10 years later to settle a score, and doing it at a different weight class which they both sat at the top of.
The other reason I'll be watching is because of the 24/7 series that HBO keeps pumping out. If you haven't been watching these, you should. The De la Hoya/Mayweather series set the standard, and Mayweather/Hatton was pretty tremendous, as well. This latest has met that standard and De la Hoya/Pacquiao will soon follow on the 16th. Below is episode 1 of Calzaghe/Jones. Check it out. I'll post episode 2 once it's available and you can catch episode 3 this Thursday night.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this matchup, where you think Jones stands today as a fighter and how you think things will play out on the 8th and beyond.
