bolleje

Wow...very excited for Lesnar-Overeem! And as Davidmarrio says, also excited for whatever comes next for UFC's heavyweight division. The former 'worst' division of the UFC is now their most exciting: Overeem, Lesnar, Velasquez, Dos Santos, Carwin, Mir, Big Nog, ... that's some mean dudes, people! Must suck though for Big Foot Silva... allthough the winner of the Heavyweight GP (and possibly the runner-up) will be UFC-bound by 2012 as well. Also booked (as was rumoured some time allready): Ben Henderson vs Clay Guida on "UFC on Fox 1" (makes me think that this event needs a better name, but ok). The fight won't be guaranteed for the Fox-broadcast but if Dos Santos & Velasquez make it quick, the lightweights will get the air-time :-)

Sorry... but I don't get "the hate" for bjj-guys who are not rushing in like idiots against better strikers. If you think Maia should approach Silva striking then Silva should have gone to the ground with Maia as well. He didn't... he showboated and danced and did stupid stuff. At least when Maia was on the ground he just waited for Silva to engage instead of making an *** of himself. Silva was clearly the better striker... so it was up to him to attack standing. And just for the record... I also blame both Overeem & Werdum for the boring fight.

Kind of agree, allthough I wouldn't put money on either Jones or Silva in a fight between those two. I also wonder if nobody would be able to outwrestle Silva. We saw him in trouble against Sonnen (due to the wrestling) so bigger wrestlers could give him something to worry about (neither Griffin nor Irvin, the two 205's he's beaten are world-class wrestlers... Evans and Rampage are something else all-together).

Well... add Rua-Henderson to the list of rumors. Dunno if this would be for the FOX-card though. Anderson Silva... I don't really like the guy. I can't stand arrogant guys like him (or Diaz). The 'putting your hands down so your opponent gets a free shot' is soooo cocky. I hope Diaz does it against GSP and gets knocked out as a result :-D. But the Spider pulls it off... and does it brilliantly. Greatest fighter ever? I'd still say GSP because he's more consistent. But most intriguing fighter ever? Definitely Anderson Silva. He's a legend already. I'm wondering what to do as his opponent when Silva puts his hands down and dares you to take a shot. Would a front-kick or head-kick work? Do something unexpected? A flying knee perhaps? I believe it's time for Silva-GSP or Silva-Jones now, rather then Henderson or Sonnen.

There are rumours that at UFC 140 Brock Lesnar could return against Alistair Overeem... With the recent Golden Glory vs UFC stuff it seems a bit unlikely but then again... stranger stuff has happened. Would love to see it though!

Wouldn't a BAMMA/Golden Glory partnership be an option too? BAMMA is quickly gaining recognition and could be a big European MMA player... They allready have Marquardt signed... adding Coenen, the Overeems could give them a lot of extra star power. Europe is a very complicated territory though... (with a lot of different laws and television channels and (sports) cultures). Golden Glory is Dutch though and has some influence in Russia too, and BAMMA is the biggest player in UK...

Yeah... sure. You know as well as I do that my "know not for sure" was focused towards what would attract viewers, not towards the 'Its clear after round 1 that its going to the judges'. But I agree with you on one thing. No real need to go any further on this one. You believe in nonstop 5-round wars, I believe more in KO's/subs. Fortunately we both get our wishes sometimes :-)

"The more blood thirsty" is a bit of a strange word choice as a KO doesn't involve much blood. A 5 rounds slugfest with blood dripping of their faces however (think Clay Guida or Leonard Garcia)... So I'm also not sure if a KO is 'more spectacle' then two guys making each other bleed for five rounds with elbows. With a lot of these 'wild' brawls or technical matches, it's clear after round 1 that this one is going to the judges. Neither guy has the power left to knock the other one out... With a lot of these fights (not all btw) rounds 3, 4 and 5 are just the same as rounds 1 and 2. I don't know why that would make the casual-fan-evolving-to-a-long-time-mma-fan suddenly have an interest spike in the sport. It's a bit... well, boring. Compare it to euhm...dance music. A huge beat is nice... for a short time. Then, it's getting boring. The way most (good) dance music works is that it first slows down (has a lesser beat) and then suddenly... adrenaline rush. Black Eyed Peas do it. The Prodigy do it. The comparison with the fights is this: 5 rounds of lesser-damaging kicks and punches gets boring. I (and I have doubts about most other people too) prefer some relative calm and then suddenly something spectacular happens. That's why you are glued to the screen. "Blink and you'll miss it". That kind of stuff... Btw... unlike you I don't pretend to know for sure. I guess UFC will do some research into it and evaluate how Cruz-Johnson appeals to new fans. I just have some DOUBTS about it... I don't know if a 5-round technical fight will convice a lot of new fans. I hope it does however. All new MMA-fans are welcome :-)

I'm not convinced that what is believed to be 'non-boring' fights are in reality the fights most fans want to see. 3 5-minute rounds slugfests can appear to be very nice fights but I believe there is a lot of people that just want to see KO's or spectacular submissions. Cruz-Johnson is likely to be a 5-round fight with quiet a lot of action but without any huge moments (guys getting knocked down or close to a submission). I have doubts that this kind of fight will attract a lot of new PPV-buyers or make them UFC fans. Lesnar knocking out Carwin however...

You said the whole season was baffling? Or did you mean that the ratings were high because of Kimbo?

Euh... how is season 10 of TUF a bad one? It's probably one of the better of the last years. Matt Mittrione is 5-0, there's Roy Nelson, Brandon Schaub (4-0 since the finale beating Cro Cop & Gonzaga!), Jon Madsen, ... Then Kimbo beat Houston Alexander (who won his last three fights, one against Soukoudjou). People like to say Kimbo is overrated. I think he may actually be underrated. No, he'll never be a UFC or Strikeforce champion. Probably not even Shark Fights, DREAM or Tachi Palace Fights champion. But he's a decent fighter, Youtube gimmick or not. The two guys that defeated him in UFC were Roy Nelson and Matt Mitrione... perhaps his release was a bit too soon.

I don't think a high-profile matchup like Evans-Machida should be arranged so short before the fight. Evans has been training for months now, Machida probably wasn't preparing for a fight. I understand Ortiz turning it down and would understand Machida too. If he loses, a title shot could be very far away. Would you risk it by accepting a quick match half-prepared against a former UFC champion? Offcourse... UFC has a problem that they don't really have another main-event matchup on the card. Franklin-Noguiera... hmmm. Perhaps five years ago.

I really fail to see why Werdum should be blamed for not willing to stand up with Overeem but Overeem shouldn't be blamed for not willing to fight on the ground with Werdum. If he really 'manhandled' Werdum, why not just ground & pound him. Jump in his guard and show that you're the better man. Except on the ground, he wasn't. It was pretty clear that both Werdum & Overeem knew what their strengths and their opponents weaknesses were. Nothing retarded about that. Not everyone should be a Leonard Garcia who smiles after he gets hit. That's what I'd call 'retarded'. (and the praying: he was just trying to get in Overeem's head I guess. 'Dare' him to get on the ground with him. As this is Mixed Martial Arts and not Standing Martial Arts, I don't really see the problem). So I agree with Mr. Potato Head. Don't blame the fighters, blame the fight.

My predictions for tonight: Dos Santos KO's Carwin in R2 Kenny Florian d. Diego Nunes via UD Demian Maia submits Mark Munoz via wizardry :-) (Go Maia go! My favorite fighter by far) Jon Olav Einemo submits Dave Herman in R1 (and makes a huge first impression) Vagner Rocha submits Cowboy Donald Cerrone (BJJ for the win)

Bad news as I think WMMA really needs her (and Cyborg) to come back in action. BUT...we do get to see Noons Vs Masvidal on the main card now (where it belonged in the first place).

Agreed. He looked much better then he did in the Evans-fight where I found him to look a bit tired/old. And I don't think Hamill is to credit for that... Funny how the top of the UFC Light Heavyweight division is currently made out of 6 (ex-)champs (!!) and one prospect: Jones, Evans, Rampage, Machida, Forrest, Rua and Phil Davis :-) . Am I forgetting anyone? Also impressed with Travis Browne. I wonder who he'll fight next. Maybe Mir? Or Brendan Schaub in a battle of prospects? BTW... I don't know what it is with American fans... but do they even like MMA??? The booing is really annoying and imho it seems much much worse in American shows (perhaps most in Las Vegas) then internationally. It seems in England, Australia, Germany and Canada people are just happy to get to see some fights... Anyone else has this feeling? Rampage vs Hamill wasn't fight of the year, but it wasn't a boring fight either... why they were booing is beyond me.

I would refuse fighting Shane Nelson! But in Aoki's case... I guess he doesn't want to fight a relatively no-name fighter? At least Clementi has quiet some UFC fights in his resumé, so losing against him wouldn't be a total fluke...

I think his age is probably the reason why they don't want him to have to climb the ladder first. You can't give him 4 fights first against lesser competition because then he'll be 37 allready. If he beats Carwin, they immediately have a new contender... especially if he does it in spectacular fashion. Plus, the guy has some pretty good credentials. ADCC world champ, beat Rolles Gracie. In his MMA career he's 6-1 with his only loss against Fabricio Werdum (unanimous decision). And he trains at Golden Glory with Alistair Overeem, Sergei Kharitonov and Gegard Mousasi. If these guys believe he's ready... then he's ready.

Kampmann got robbed in my opinion... I agree with him saying that Diego threw a lot of punches but didn't land a lot. Just look at their faces... Kampmann should have won it allthough this proves once again that fighters should finish to be sure. Kampmann could have finished it in the first I think. Other then that, lots of good fights and impressed with Bowles. He'll get a title shot before the end of the year I think.

Aoki on the untelevised undercard of a Strikeforce event... how deep the mighty have fallen. And how bad is the state of Japanese MMA?! I think the only reason why Aoki would accept such a relatively low-profile fight is because he can't get a fight in Japan. (There are still no scheduled shows in either Sengoku or DREAM). Anybody has an update about the state of those two? I know DREAM is near-dead but I thought at least Sengoku was doing ok...

Agreed. But if he really were to fight again, I'd prefer someone as Walker above one of the Overeems, Del Rosario, Rogers or a rematch with Emelianenko... (that's what I meant with my post).

Does anybody else think that if Arlovski doesn't want to stop fighting Strikeforce should book Arlovski-Herschell Walker? I think that would be an easily marketable fight, Arlovski isn't likely to get knocked out again. If Walker loses, no harm is done. He's never going to challenge for a title anyway... and his credibility won't be tarnished as Arlovski is a (or better was) top fighter. If Walker wins, it would immediately give him a push on the rankings. For Arlovski a win at this point (whoever the opponent) is an important one. If he loses... well, he's not going to challenge for a title anymore either. (I still think Arlovski should retire though... Never ever give him an opponent with KO power ever again... cause the way he went down last fight, I'm starting to fear he will not get up the next time).

My thoughts: - Wow, the show started fast... 4 R1-finishes, I was allready thinking that for the first time Strikeforce would show us an undercard match. But no, they just talked a bit more :-) - I loved the 'over-the-top' tournament fighters introduction. Reminded me of the NBA All-Star introductions... I think for the fighters, this adds to the feeling of this tournament being special. - I think Del Rosario should fight Griggs or V.Overeem next...to eliminate another alternate fighter. - The ending was pretty sad though. Arlovski has really lost it now... 4 KO's in a row, that's gotta hurt and not only in a physical way. I think he should be done, in UFC he probably would be allready (see Liddell). Still very sad to see a former champion slide like this. Same thing with Fedor. He was unbeatable and lost now to two guys that weren't even considered to be THE top-guys. What's more... where you could say that against Werdum he was 'caught' by being a bit too eager, it was clear against A.Silva that he was getting dominated. Doctor stoppage or not, he wouldn't have won this match. - Barnett is still my favorite for the tournament, though. He also has the best interviews :-)

Apparently Wanderlei wasn't very enthusiastic about fighting Stann... he'll probably be fighting Vitor Belfort next, what should be a great fight.

Condit is injured and out of his fight with Lyttle at UFC 127... http://mmajunkie.com/news/22407/carlos-condit-forced-to-withdraw-from-ufc-127-with-knee-injury.mma Rumour is that he'll be replaced with Brian Ebersole (who's at a 7 fight win streak after losing to Hector Lombard in 2008)