UFC 92 in Review

UFC 92 turned out to be the ultimate event of the year even if my predictions were a bit off (I was 2 for 5 this night).

Still the way things went were so amazing I could care less.

Cheick Kongo vs Mustapha Al Turk - Kongo wins via TKO in the 1st (4:37)

Kongo did exactly what he does. He used his size and power to control the match against Al Turk. The start of the first and only round had Al Turk trying to stand up and strike against Kongo but he quickly reverted to his old strategy of going for some ground and pound.

Unfortunately Kongo had none of it and was able to defend the take down attempts. Instead Kongo knocked Al Turk down and began to smash through Al Turks guard with elbows and fists before securing the win.

One odd thing about this fight was the exchange of low blows. Al Turk accidentally kneed Kongo in the crouch. In response Kongo clinched Al Turk and purposely kneed him in the groin. I thought Kongo should have lost a point for that but it wouldn't have mattered.

Wanderlei Silva vs Quinton Jackson - Jackson wins via KO in the 1st (3:21)

Jackson finally got his revenge after being made a fool in their last 2 Pride matches and he was elated after scoring the perfect left hook to deck Silva.

Silva pressed the action for the most part till the near the end of the bout. Jackson was able to knock Silva down but wasn't able to secure a good ground position for some ground and pound. Instead Silva rose back to his fight and unloaded a fury on Jackson. None of the punches really connected and Jackson wound his whole body back and unloaded a left hook that sent Silva to the mat. He was done while Jackson leaped onto his unconscious body for some ground and pound before the ref called it.

CB Dollaway Vs. Mike Massenzio - Dollaway wins via TKO in the 1st (3:01)

This match was really even and could have gone either way. Both fighters were doing well during their stand up exchanges and once things got to the mat it looked like Massenzio was going to take it.

Massenzio locked a really tight Guillotine choke on Dollaway that turned him red but Dollaway was able to pull out of it and then began raining some blows to seal the match in his favor.

I have no idea what was up with Massenzio's left knee. He had it wrapped heavily, it seemed like he may have injured it during training, but I'm not sure if that really is the case.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira Vs. Frank Mir - Mir wins via TKO in the 2nd (1:54)

Mir fought the perfect fight. He kept the match on his feet and kept attacking Nogueira. In fact Nogueira really did nothing in this match up besides eat punches.

In the 1st Round Mir secured a take down againist Nogueira but quickly stood up instead of attempting any submission. Then in the rest of the 1st Mir landed a couple of punches that sent Nogueira to the mat twice. Both times Nogueira fell he pulled guard but Mir just stood and waited for Nogueira to stand up.

In the 2nd Mir came out even more confident and landed a punch that dazed Nogueira and made him fall empty headed to the mat. Mir pounced on top of Nogueira and ground and pounded him to victory.

Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans - Evans wins via TKO in the 3rd (2:46)

Griffin kept control of the fight the first 2 rounds. He used his size and reach to keep Evans at a distance. He used his kicks very similarly to his bout against Quinton Jackson. Unfortunately he was never really able to secure any hard hits againist Evans to slow him down.

The entire bout was Evans bouncing around. Quickly dashing in for a jab here and there. Then in the 3rd Evans caught one of Griffins kicks and landed a punch that sent Griffin to the mat. Evans pounced and gave Griffin some powerful ground and pound using hammer fists before Griffin was able to close guard. However Griffin guard was weak and after awhile Evans was able to posture up and rail down some big blows onto Griffin that sealed his victory.

This was my favorite match of the night. Evans boxing style and quick foot work have made him one of my favorite fighters;


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UFC 92 was a solid event, with 2 titles switching hands and a great upset victory, the UFC definitely ended the year with one of the Ultimate Events.

So what did you think about UFC 92? Were the fight worth the hype? Or were you just disappointed by some of the match ups?

PREVIEW: UFC 92

As the end of the year draws near UFC will hold its final event of 2008 which promises to be its most spectacular. With 3 fights that could be the main event of it's own Pay Per View UFC 92 seems to be well worth the money.

Let's go over the card, starting from the main event, and predict who will come out on top.


Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans

Griffin(16 - 4) will be defending the light heavyweight belt for the first time after wining a decision over Quinton Jackson at UFC 86.

Griffin has come a long way since winning The Ultimate Fighter light heavyweight division in 2005. Since then he steadily climbed the ladder beating opponents Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and narrowly losing against Tito Ortiz.

Griffin is a fan favorite because of his fighting spirit. He often goes into the ring as the major underdog only to take his opponents the distance.

Evans(16 - 0 - 1) has yet to lose a match up. His latest victory was against Chuck Liddel which he won via a stunning knock out in the 2nd round that is sure to make highlight reels for decades to come.


look at the way his neck bent.

Evans is a really well rounded fighter with great take down defense and excellent movement around the ring. His agile nature in the ring makes it hard for him to get caught in take downs or strikes.

A major concern for Evans will be his conditioning. Since he has never been in a championship match it's hard to say if he can truly last 5 rounds in the ring without slowing down in the later rounds.

My pick: Rashad Evans by decision
Evans is too quick for Griffin. He'll easily be able to move away from any dangerous situations Griffin and can throw a powerful counter punch when he can catch Griffin off guard.


Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira Vs. Frank Mir
Nogueria (31 - 4 - 1) is the current UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion. He is one of the best Jiu Jitsu practitioners in MMA. 19 of his previous wins were by submission including victories over opponents Jeff Barnet, Heath Herring, Tim Sylvia, and Dan Henderson.

He is also one of the few opponents to really challenge Fedor Emelianenko, forcing their 2 fights to go to decisions which Fedor would win. Many argue that if one of these bouts could have gone beyond the normal round limits Nogueira could have pulled away with the victory.

What seperates Nogueira from other Jiu Jitsu practitioners is his threshold of pain. Nogueria is famous for taking a pounding from his opponents till the match goes his way, the ground, and then it is moments before Nogueira pulls off a submission.

Mir (11 - 3) held the UFC Heavyweight title after defeating Tim Sylvia back in 2004 at UFC 48. Unfortunately Mir was in a horrible motorcycle accident that took him out of the MMA world for 2 years.

Mir returned a different man in 2006. He was no longer as agile and quick as before and it hurt him in a couple of matches he should have won. Still in last match against Brock Lesnar, he was able to pull of a knee bar after being dropped by a heavy right delivered by Lesna. Mir has said he feels better than ever before since the accident and finally nears being a 100%.

Mir is also a Jiu Jitsu practitioner but his ground game is no where near the level of Nogueira. Mir will have to use his Jiu Jitsu skills to avoid take downs and keep the match off the mat. If Mir can keep himself off the ground and force Nogueira into a 5 round stand up match he can win the decision.

My pick: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by submission
Nogueira is too good at the ground for Mir and can take too much of a pounding on his feet. Mir won't be able to knock Nogueira out and when the oppurtunity for a take down presents Nogueira, Mir will soon be tapping to whichever submission Nogueira uses from his arsenal.


CB Dollaway Vs. Mike Massenzio
Dollaway (7 - 1) is the runner up of The Ultimate Fighter 7 losing to Amir Sadollah via an armbar in the finale.

In his next and most recent fight Dollaway was able to secure a Peruvian Necktie against Jesse Tyler in the first round, being the first person in the UFC to successfully pull off this maneuver.



Dollaway definitely has a good ground game with his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Collegiate Wrestling background. Yet a majority of his fights end with him winning by knock outs.

Massenzio (11 - 2) has fought only once before in the UFC against Drew McFedries. Before that he was in the IFL, Ring of Combat, and Reality Fighting.

6 of his victories come in the way of submission while the majority of the rest are decision wins.

Basically Massenzio is a great ground fighter.

My pick: Mike Massenzio by submission
This match up should be pretty close. However Massenzio has a great ground game and pushes the matches to the floor so either wins via submission or by decision.


Wanderlei Silva Vs. Quinton Jackson
This will be the third time these 2 have met in the ring. The 2 previous times were in pride where Silva made a highlight reel from his TKO victories over Jackson.

Silva (32 - 8 - 1) comes off a spectacular first round KO victory over Keith Jardine at UFC 84.

While his career in the UFC has only recently begun again he has been in contention for the light heavyweight belt as soon as he came in. This is due because of his astounding career in PRIDE. Silva held the PRIDE Middleweight title for 6 years before losing it to Dan Henderson in 2007 shortly before PRIDE died.

What makes Wanderlei "the Axe Murderer" Silva such a dominant force in the ring is his killer Muay Thai. 22 of his victories are by Knock Outs. Expect Silva to use his Thai clinch and try to finish Jackson off with knees like he has before.

Jackson (28 - 7) has not fought since he lost his light heavyweight title to Forest Griffin at UFC 86 by a decision that caused much uproar in the MMA community. There are many people, including I, who thought the match should have been called a draw.

So now Jackson is fighting to become the number 1 contender for the belt and to do this he will have to win against the man who has stopped him twice before.

Jackson has power and speed. His brawler fighting style makes him hard to predict but in this bout trying to stand up against a technical striker like Silva may end up hurting him. Jackson has to get Silva on the ground and try to out wrestle him for a dominant position.

My pick: Wanderlei Silva by decision
Wanderlei is just a type of fighter that Jackson can not over come. His previous losses will hurt his spirit and he will not be able to get passed Silva's superior striking ability. I doubt this match will end with knees to Jackson's face but I can not see Jackson winning this match.


Cheick Kongo Vs. Mustapha Al-Turk
Kongo (12[22] - 4 - 1) is one of the best up and coming heavyweights in the UFC. He is still climbing the ladder but will soon find himself in contention for the title if he continues to dominate like he does.

Kongo most famously took Mirko "Cro Crop" Filipovic the distance. He went 3 rounds with the former PRIDE heavyweight contender and ended winning the bout via unanimous decision.

Kongo has size and power that challenges many of his competitors but what makes Kongo such a threat is his speed and agility. He moves quickly when attempting take down or in throwing counter punches.

Al-Turk (6 - 3) was the last heavyweight champion of Cage Rage before the company went out of business.

He is notorious for his ground and pound, winning all 6 of his bouts in this fashion.

In this match up Al-turk will have to take Kongo down to win. He has a solid ground game but the speed of Kongo may present a challenge for him.

My pick: Cheick Kongo by KO
This match can go either way. If it stays up Kongo will take it. If it goes down to the mat Al-turk will take it. I favor Kongo because of his great stand up game and I don't think Al-turk will have an easy time getting Kongo to the ground.

There you go. Those are my predicitons of how UFC 92 will go. Do you agree or disagree?

Fight Night! Post Koscheck Victory

Wow what a great event. It does not matter that it was not a pay per view and had little to no big names it was still off the chain.

The main event, I predicated wrong.

I thought Yoshiyuki Yoshida would win the bout via decision but as soon as the match began it all went Koscheck's way.

Koscheck pressed the action the whole time till he was able to land a right that dazed Yoshida, before landing a second one that scored him the KO victory in the first.



Hopefully this will earn him the right to stay in the UFC.

"Fight Night" - Fight for the Troops Preview

Fight for the troops will be a 3 hour live event broadcasted on the Spike network on December 10 to raise money for a charity that supports the families of US soldiers in Iraq.

Since it is a free event the card doesn't have many big dollar names but the main event will be pretty entertaining.

Josh Koscheck vs Yoshiyuki Yoshida

Koscheck (11 - 3) is one of those memorable fighters. He always puts on a great show whether he is winning or losing.

His last fight was at UFC 90 where he lost by decision against Thiago Alves. Koshceck took some pretty big hits from Alves, but kept his composure and was not only able to survive all 3 rounds but fight back solidly.

Even though he lost the match it speaks well for the versatility of Koscheck since he took the fight with only 2 weeks notice, even though he should of just been training for his headlining bout against Yoshiyuki Yoshida.

Speaking of which this fight with Yoshida just may be his last in the UFC. Disputes between UFC and his fellow Zinkin Entertainment fighters over a merchandise contract has already ended teammate Jon Fitch's UFC career.

So this will be a do or die bout for Koscheck.

Koscheck's strength in this match up will definitely be his spirit and his wrestling ability. He should go for take downs and mount Yoshida to do some major ground and pound to secure the win. He has the skill to do this.

For Yoshida (10 - 2) this will be his 2nd bout in the UFC. He won his first UFC match against, War Machine (formerly known as Jon Koppenhaver), by submission via an anaconda choke.

Before the UFC, Yoshida competed in SHOOTO and Cage Force where he scored a majority of victories in the first round with Knock Outs or TKOs.

Yoshida is definitely a superior striker. Unfortunately Koscheck has a great chin and can take some great blows while delivering a few good ones himself. Yoshida must be wary of Koscheck's ground game and avoid getting mounted.

MY PICK: Yoshiyuki Yoshida by decision
It's hard for me not to choose Koscheck because I like his spirit in the cage and I honestly believe this do or die situation will make him a better fighter. However Yoshida striking will make the major difference. In the end it will earn him the score cards needed to win the match.

So what do you think? Will Yoshida strike Koscheck down? or will Koscheck prove he should be in the UFC with a win?

WEC 37: Miguel Torres vs Manny Tapia

On December 3, Miguel Torres sucessfully defended his WEC Bantamweight belt againist Manny Tapia.

Torres (35 - 1) is considered by many as one of the top pound for pound fighters in the world. Sherdog.com currently ranks Torres #6 in it's list of top pound for pound figters.

Tapia (10 - 1 - 1) was handed his first loss in this title shot but still seems to be in contention for the title.

The first round of the match seemed even with both fighters pressing the action. Torres was able to catch Tapia with some a good hits that would make the difference in scoring the round.

In the second round a different Torres came out the corner. This time Torres was more aggressive striking Tapia more frequently before knocking him to ground and pounding him for the TKO victory.

Don't take my word for it. Watch the fight.



Torres has some fancy moves and definitly showed them off in this bout. The little kick roll he did at the end of the first had me rewinding the vid a few times.

UFC 91: Review

What an exciting night! Not one fight from the main card went to decision and most of them ended in the first round. Thankfully that had all those undercards to fill up the time or else this event would have ended within the hour.

I was accurate on the picks I made in my PREVIEW: UFC 91 article. I got 3 out of 4 of my picks correct;

Demian Maia

Maia secured a rear naked choke on Nick Quarry at 2:13 of the first round. That rest of that round pretty much went his way as well. His striking game was on par with Quarry and once it went to the ground, Quarry could not respond.

Gabriel Gonzaga

Gonzaga got a TKO(strikes) victory at 1:01 of the first round. He pretty much dominated Josh Hendricks the UFC rookie. However Hendricks deserves a ton of respect for being able to stand with Gonzaga and exchange blows. He really couldn't do much against a fighter of Gonzaga's calibar.

Also I have to say the referee in this match was an asshole. He pretty much made Gonzaga strike a finished Hendricks. Once Gonazaga knocked down Hendricks, he went and struck Hendricks again, who did nothing to defend himself. He winded up for another punch but hesitated expecting the ref to stop the match there. Gonzaga then looked at the ref almost asking him, "you want me to hit him again?"

He did.

Kenny Florian

Florian submitted Joe Stevenson with a Rear Naked Choke at 4:03 of the first round. I thought this match was gonna go to the cards but I really underestimated Florian's ground game. Still I knew Kenny Florian would not lose this match, he couldn't lost contention for the lightweight belt, and he secured his spot as the number 1 contender for BJ Penn's title.

Brock Lesnar

Lesnar was able to drop Couture in the second round and secured the win with a TKO. It was a pretty even fight.

I underestimated the advantage Lesnar had with his size. He was 40lbs heavier and so much larger. When things went to the ground it was hard to even see Couture under Lesnar. Still Couture gave Lesnar a challenge and was slowly wearing him down.

There is so much to cover for this that I'll write a blog dedicated to Couture and Lesnar match within the week

Also there was a main event that I did not cover in my preview since it was initially scheduled an undercard. It turned out to be my favorite match of the night.

Dustin Hazelett
Hazelett submitted Tamden McCrory with an Armbar at the 4 minute mark of the first round. What made it really awesome was the way Hazelett controlled McCrory while securing the Armbar. His use of the rubber guard made it impossible for McCrory to roll out or get out of that position.

The rubber guard is getting more and more popular.

Anyways the UFC awards went down like this

Fight of the Night: Aaron Riley vs Jorge Gurgel (an undercard bout)
Knockout of the Night: Jeremy Stephens (another undercard bout)
Submission of the Night: Dustin Hazelett

Anyways my favorite match of the night was the Gonzaga match, probably just cause that delay in throwing that final punch.



Overall it was a great event and I hope to see more of this calibar.

PREVIEW: UFC 91

This event marks the return of Randy Couture who will defend his heavyweight title against Brock Lesnar in the main event.

The undercard is just as impressive. Let's first examine the main event and then explore the undercards.

Randy Couture vs Brock Lesnar

Couture (16 - 8) will be walking back into the ring after a 14 month break. Whether this will make him well rested or rusty has yet to be seen however since he has been training with Wonderlei Silva it would seem to keep him from being the ladder.

Couture has developed his own style of fighting. Drawing upon his years as a greco-roman wrestler he has impressive takedown ability, as well as takedown defense. In previous matches he has used his wrestling ability to mount opponents and submit them via ground and pound.

Experience and technique are definitely on Couture's side. He will be defensive in this match up and careful not to be caught by one of Lesnars haymakers. Couture will instead be throwing counter punches while he waits for an opportunity to take down Lesnar or reverse one of Lesnar's attempts.

Lesnar (2 - 1) has only been competing in MMA for a year. He has a strong wrestling background and not the WWE bullshit either. As a collegiate wrestler Lesnar was able to win the NCAA Championship and ended his amatuer career with a 106 - 5 record.

In MMA he has yet to really use his wrestling skills. Instead Lesnar relies on his size and speed to take advantage of his opponents. He often throws big haymakers and with a fist as big as his it has sent most of his opponents to the mat.

Count on Lesnar to use his speed against Couture. He will go for takedowns from the outside in between throwing haymakers.

My Pick: Randy Couture with a TKO (strikes) in the 3rd
Randy Couture's experience will let him capture the victory. Lesnar will rush in too much and attack wildly expecting his strength and speed to be too much for Couture. Couture will simply wait for one of Lesnar's mistakes and will capitalize on it just like Frank Mir did.

Kenny Florian vs Joe Stevenson

Florian (10 - 3) got a little screwed over. Ken Flo was the #1 contender for the lightweight championship. He should be facing BJ Penn for the belt. However Penn will be fighting George St. Pierre so as an MMA fan I can't really complain, although I gotta admit I feel bad for Florian.

Anyways Kenny Florian has some amazing elbows. This will be really helpful within clinches and since Stevenson is Jiu Jitsu practioner, Florian elbow strength will assist him when they grapple.

Stevenson (29 - 8) already had a title shots a few months ago against BJ Penn. Penn was able to open up a huge gash across Stevenson's forehead with an elbow during the first round. That gash made it hard for Stevenson to see since he had blood flowing down his face and Penn was able to submit Stevenson in a Rear Naked Choke hold during the second round.

Still Stevenson is a great Jiu Jitsu practioner. He has won 14 of his matches by submission. He is famous for using the Guillotine Choke and is referred to as a master of that move.

My Pick: Kenny Florian by decision

This is gonna be a close match. Florian's elbows may make the huge difference in the match up, probably stopping Stevenson from conducting any sort of submission. It can still go either way, but I'm going with Florian because I think he has something to prove; that he should be contending for the belt.

Gabriel Gonzaga vs Josh Hendricks

Gonzaga (10 - 3) is a monster. This man broke Couture's arm. I repeat this man broke Couture's arm! Gonzaga went for one of his signature kicks to the head and Couture used his forearm to block it. "Snap!" went Couture's arm.

If he doesn't submit or knock out his opponent he loses. None of Gonzaga's fights have ever gone to a decision which sounds really awesome. Obviously he has a great kick but he has excellent submission skills as well. He's pulled off some pretty complicated submissions (ie Americana and Triangle) and has competed against some of the best fighters the UFC has to offer

Hendricks (15 -4 ) has never fought in the UFC before so he will have a night to prove his worth.

He has won 10 of his fights by submission. He uses rear naked chokes quite frequently and sucessfully along with an occasional armbar and triangle choke.

My pick: Gabriel Gonzaga by maybe a KO (Head Kick), not really sure.

Gonzaga broke Couture's arm with a kick. He can probably break other bones too. While Hendricks definitly will put up a good fight I just have to go with the UFC veteran.

Nate Quarry vs Demian Maia

Quarry(10 - 2) was a show stopper. He won his first 3 UFC bouts with KOs in the first rounds. Then he fought Rich Franklin for the Middleweight title and was knocked out in the first. After that Quarry took a 2 year break from competition due to injuries but returned in '07 and has won 2 matches via decision.

Maia(8 - 0) is a second degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He is the 2007 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Champion and the 2005 runner up and has won the UFC Submission of the Night honors 3 times in a row. He could probably choke out Superman given the oppurtunity.

My pick: Demian Maia by Submission

I don't think Quarry has ever truly recovered from his injuries or at least not returned to his glorious form before his Franklin fight. Maia has too good of ground game for anyone not at 100%. Expect Quarry to tap in the first or second round.

So there you go. Those are my picks for the nights. What do you think? Do you disagree or agree with any of my picks? Do you think I'm a complete idiot? Well tell me why asshole.

The Return of 'The Natural'

There are no words to describe the excitement for this event. It is the return of "The Natural" Randy Couture!

Simply put, Randy Couture is a great. He is one of the best fighters to ever enter a MMA ring.

And it has been over a year since Couture has.

His last fight was in Aug 27, 2007 where he successfully defended his heavyweight title against Gabriel Gonzaga in a match that ended in a TKO in the 3rd round.

Since then contract disputes with the UFC have kept him from fighting in or out of the octagon.

However in Sept 2008 Couture made a 3 fight deal with the UFC. The first of these 3 fights will be to defend his heavyweight championship against Brock Lesnar .

vs.

Many MMA fans are excited to see this bout, including myself. It should be an exciting match between an experienced veteran and an up and coming star, only one thing bothers me.

Lesnar does not deserve a title shot.

Lesnar has been in a total of 3 fights in his MMA career and is 2 - 1.

His first MMA fight was in June 2007 at K-1 Dynamite!! USA where he was scheduled to fight Choi Hong-man but instead fought Min Soo Kim. The match ended by submission (due to strikes) just after the first minute.

In his first UFC fight Frank Mir used a knee bar to submit Lesnar within the 2nd minute.

In his second UFC fight he fought against Heath "The Crazy Horse" Herring, who took the place of Mark Coleman. This match went the full 3 rounds ending in a unanimous decision in favor of Lesnar.

That is Lesnar's MMA career;

3 Fights

1 win by submission

1 win by unanimous decision

1 loss by submission

And he is getting a title shot against Randy Couture.

It's bullshit. Exciting bullshit, but bullshit none the less.

So the older veteran who has mastered his technique will fight the young up and comer who overwhelms his opponent with his size and speed.

So do you really think Lesnar deserves a title shot? Who do you think Randy Couture should be facing in his return to the octagon?

Welcome

Hello there anonymous Internet user. Thank you for stumbling upon my blog and staying long enough to read this.

This blog is dedicated to covering MMA from every aspect I may wrap my head around. I'll be covering must major events, from previews to post fight commentaries. I'll also be highlight specific fighters and fighting styles.

Well enjoy the articles, pics, and videos. Feel free to comment anything with either love or hate.

-Miguel