UFC 87 Flashback: Lesnar, GSP Steal The Show
The last time that Georges St. Pierre defended his UFC welterweight title, it quickly turned into the low point of his career. Already facing a number of personal issues away from the cage, he looked sloppy and distracted as Matt Serra defeated him by brutal TKO. This time, things were different as GSP brutalized Jon Fitch over five rounds to win an easy unanimous decision. The judges scores of 50-43, 50-44, 50-44 underscored the one sided victory.
After a dominant takedown to open the fight, followed by a barrage of GSP punches it looked as if Fitch wouldnt make it out of the first round. He managed to survive, though generated little offense the rest of the way as the champion had his way with him both on the ground and in standup striking exchanges. Fitch landed enough counterpunches to open a cut near the champions eye, but never even came close to winning a round. Fitch had to gut his way through another tough moment in the 4th, where a big knee followed by a flurry of kicks and punches had him on the verge of a TKO loss yet again. It may have been the champions strategy that saved him, as GSP decided to take Fitch down again rather than continue the striking onslaught as the round closed.
As the final horn sounded, GSP bowed down in front of Fitch in a nice, Muay Thai inspired show of respect. In yet another moment that is thankfully commonplace in fighting and all too rare in other sports, Fitch and GSP sat knee to knee in the center of the cage congratulating each other for over a minute as their respective cutmen worked on their wounds.
And theres very likely not another athlete like Brock Lesnar even within the ranks of fightsport competitors. In his 3rd professional MMA bout the amateur wrestling legend turned WWE champion displayed a brutally effective new fighting style along with stellar patience and cage control as he obliterated tough and highly experienced Heath Herring.
From that point forward, Herring was completely out of the fight though he repeatedly demonstrated his toughness by staying in the fight and not tapping out to strikes as had Min Soo Kim in Lesnars MMA debut. Unlike Lesnars gameplan against Frank Mir in his UFC debut”when he clearly wanted to overwhelm his opponent for a quick win”perhaps the most impressive element of his improvement as a fighter was his patience. There were a number of occasions where Lesnar could have tried and finished the fight by placing himself at greater risk, but took the conservative approach.
Overall, Lesnars performance bordered on amazing”a serious case could be made that he won all three rounds by 10-8 margins, though all three judges scored the fight 30-26. He repeatedly took down and threw around the 64 250 Herring like he was a welterweight, and controlled the fight to such a degree that his opponent didnt land more than a half dozen strikes during the entire fight”and none which were particularly effective.
Lesnars win gives a much needed boost to the UFCs barren heavyweight division. While it may be premature to consider him a top 10 heavyweight, should Lesnar continue to develop and do such a good job of fighting within his abilities his potential in the sport is limitless.
Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and highly respected authority on sports betting odds comparison. He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and betting odds portal sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.
MMA Flashback: Kimbo Slice Comes To Prime Time
It wasnt the decisive blowout that EliteXC was hoping far to send Kimbo Slices stardom into the stratosphere but with some seriously tense moments for the former street fighter against a game James Thompson everyone concerned is likely happy with a victory of any sort. Kimbo at times displayed some surprising skill on the ground, while at other times looked amateurish and lost. Slice clearly had the edge in the standup exchanges, and appeared to have Thompson on the verge of going down for the count several times in the fight.
Though “The Colossus” kept his feet through several punishing combinations, the beginning of the end came when a Slice punch nearly sheared his ear off. The bloody, grotesque ear was clearly at risk of being seriously damaged and Kimbo punctuated this with four or five uncontested power punches. Thompson by this point was out on his feet and the ref jumped in to bring the proceedings to a halt giving Kimbo a TKO victory. After the fight an exhausted and relieved Slice flopped onto the mat, clearly relieved to have survived the toughest test hes faced in his embryonic MMA career.
While Thompson and his corner complained of an early stoppage, given the severity of the ear injury and the four or five uncontested power shots by Kimbo its a tough case to make. Furthermore, it was consistent with the officiating all night which obviously was trying to err on the side of caution in the first MMA event on prime time major network television. The ref was quick to call several of the earlier bouts, and the ringside physician was involved in two more bouts. Clearly, everyone concerned wanted to take no chances and risk an ugly late stoppage or serious injury with a huge broadcast TV audience”many of whom were assumed to be MMA neophytes.
EliteXC overall has to be very happy with how the event came off. The presentation was highly professional all night, and the announcing was superb. There was no question that Gus Johnson and Mauro Ranallo are solid pros, and Frank Shamrock is obviously a well spoken and experienced expert commentator but the three meshed together exceptionally well.
The emphasis from the start was on selling the sport of MMA, with the promotion taking a secondary role. This was done via nicely produced and informative instructional videos, which would be helpful to a first time MMA viewer but didnt come off as sophomoric to the seasoned aficionado. Given the often unpredictable nature of the sport, EliteXC has to be pleased with how everything came off and the results of the fights on the card.
Overall, it was a professionally produced and entertaining night of action. The end result is that both of their marquee names among the general public–Slice and Carano–remained undefeated.
Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and respected sports betting expert. He is also a staff handicapper for Sports-1 Sportsbook and is in charge of setting NFL lines. He has written extensively on sports handicapping theory along with a wide range of other topics including fencing, self defense and falconry.
Belfort Knocks Out Franklin In UFC 103 Main Event
Vitor Belfort made his first appearance in the UFCs iconic octagon in five years, headlining the main event of UFC 103 in Dallas, Texas. Just over three minutes later, he had already become a top contender in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions. Belfort dominated veteran Rich Franklin en route to a devastating knockout victory, and following the bout talk quickly shifted to The Phenom as a potential future opponent for both Anderson Silva at 185 and Lyoto Machida at 205.
The fight against Franklin was contested at a catchweight of 195 pounds, and Belfort took several tries to finally make weight on Friday afternoon. If he had been weakened by a difficult weight cut, he sure didnt show it as he entered the cage on Saturday looking noticeably larger than his opponent. The pace of the bout was tactical and deliberate until the very end”Belfort landed a few leg kicks, but for the most part it was several minutes of the fighters circling each other. Belfort was clearly measuring Franklin for a big power shot, and he found it after a brief flurry in which neither man gained an advantage. Out of nowhere, Belfort floored Franklin with a nasty uppercut and quickly mounted a ground and pound assault on his fallen adversary. It only took three or four big shots to Franklins head before the referee jumped in to call a halt to the proceedings.
At the post fight press conference, Dana White quickly endorsed the prospect of a matchup between Belfort and UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva”either for the title or at a 195 catchweight. Silva has only three fights remaining on his UFC contract, after which hes insisted that hell retire (although he continues to toy with the idea of boxing against Roy Jones, Jr.). Obviously nothing has been signed, but White clearly wants to get his moneys worth out of the fights remaining on Silvas deal.
A changing of the guard was in evidence in the co-main event, as Junior Dos Santos defeated former PRIDE Open Weight GP champion and MMA legend Mirko Cro Cop by verbal submission. Cro Cop appeared to be moving much better on his surgically repaired knee than in recent fights and through the early part of the bout he was doing well with his straight left hand counter. As the fight wore on, however, Dos Santos began to pick Cro Cop apart and in the third round began to use his Muay Thai knee strikes to good effect. It was a knee strike to Cro Cops head followed by an uppercut that ended the fight”Cro Cop suddenly indicated to the referee that he couldnt see and was unable to continue.
Earlier in the card, Paul Daley made the most of his role as a late substitute for injured Mike Swick as he stopped Martin Kampmann by second round TKO. Kampmann complained of an early stoppage, but Daley gave him trouble throughout with his sharp strikes and fast hands. Kampmanns defense was nonexistent, and his decision to stand and trade with a noted power striker was highly suspect. The end came after a brutal left hook knocked Kampmann to the canvas, after which Daley followed up with some ground and pound until the stoppage.
Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and respected sports betting authority. He is also a staff handicapper for Sports-1 Sportsbook and is in charge of setting NFL lines. He has written extensively on sports betting theory along with a wide range of other topics including fencing, self defense and falconry.