Whew! I hustled hard to get this up. But it was a good time. As the title suggests, I give my thoughts on how I reckon UFC 106 will play out. I’d have to say Koscheck/Johnson was the toughest to call. I am a fan and a believer in Kos, but I don’t think the guy often makes the best use of his skills. He loves to slug and just doesn’t seem to incorporate his wrestling into his game plan as much as I’d like. Hopefully he’s got his mind right this time ’round ’cause Johnson is for real.
It can’t be easy being you… even at the best of times when the Coors Light is flowing. The job of squeezing stuff through that enormous body must get a little overwhelming. Imagine the special challenges you must face as the intestines of a giant man who loves to eat wild game meat! And then… well I don’t want to begin to put words to your pain. Who knows all that you’ve been through these last months. One can only imagine how long you cried out in pain before your suffering was eased. Now your privacy is invaded, your status is scrutinized, and the rumors… well… it’s a lot of attention to bear.
Heal. Regenerate. Recover miraculously like Frank Mir after his motorcycle crash. Or, actually, maybe not quite like that. Get well soon. MMA needs you, Brock Lesnar’s Intestines.
Well, the half hour commercial achieved its aim. I am curious to see Tito Ortiz back in the octagon. It’s always amusing to listen to Ortiz speak. Telling us how he exploded onto the MMA scene with “ferocity.”
I tend to believe Ortiz’s injury excuses for his performance in the first bout with Griffin. He did seem to slow down inexplicably in the second round.
The countdown show brought the lulz with a brief retelling of the Dana White/Tito Ortiz feud. Who insults their boss repeatedly on record? LOL!
But what about Griffin with his 50’s hair, wind burnt face, and muted-personality? Dude seemed off… perhaps still a bit depressed and embarrassed? It was interesting that they edited Griffin/Silva to make it appear that Griffin wasn’t punked. They didn’t include the finish in the highlights, and Griffin didn’t address his bizarre post-fight behavior. In fact, he didn’t say a word about his last fight.
But back to what this event is really about. Tito Ortiz is BACK. Tito Ortiz is a LEGEND. Tito Ortiz is the healthiest husband to a porn star there has ever been in the history of the world! Oh yeah and some other guys are fighting who are way more fun to watch but you wouldn’t care about that.
Which reminds me to remind you about WEC 44 Brown vs Aldo. This goes down Wednesday, November 18 and you just have got to see it, brah. WEC is where it’s at for mixed martial arts entertainment.
1. Denis Kang being referred to as “unknown.” Ok, maybe it’s because I live in Vancouver, or because I’m aware of MMA organizations outside of the UFC, or because I visit an MMA message board now and then… nevermind, that is just a crazy statement! Kang is unknown!? WTF?!
2. Dana White saying that Brandon Vera and Randy Couture will be trying to put each other away. To suggest that Couture vs Vera won’t end in a decision is just straight up false advertisement.
3. Brandon Vera saying that he “understands what it takes to be the champ.” But… you’re… not… one… so… how can that be possible?
4. Randy insisting that he is the best fighter he’s ever been. His fight with Nog was truly awesome but dude is slowing down. I can’t be the only one who sees this.
5. Randy’s mountain lion analogy. I just don’t even know where to start with this one. I guess the editors included it for drama, but it had WTF written all over it.
6. Vera saying “You can’t break Randy.” Ok, I understand the challenge of dancing the line between being confident and recognizing your opponents strengths. But this statement is a bright, billowing, neon red-flag.
7. Bisping back down to earth. Hungry, humble, and gritty… who is this guy?
8. Did ya notice that Kang’s nose is busted up on the bridge like Fedor’s was prior to his bout with Rogers? Foreshadowing?
9. Bisping saying “Every minute of this fight I will be in his face.” Bisping will bring the fight instead of dancing and countering… sure, sure. Tell me another one.
10. Hardy rhymes with party. Right? Get it? He’s all punk-looking and whatnot. What do you want from me? I gave you 9 great WTFs, ok?
There’s no news like old news, right? Now then, my predictions for UFC 103 were posted on the Sun website. I came out alright, but of course the one time I bet on Rich Franklin he gets knocked out. You can read my predictions here if you are interested for some strange reason.
Oh yeah and I interviewed Cung Le. He’s pretty cool. We talked about Rampage Jackson and when fans might expect to see Le back in the octagon. Peep it here.
I know that there is no such thing as a MMA wrestler. Few mixed martial artists rely solely on one discipline to bring them success. However, while most fighters are trained in numerous disciplines, some have a predictable style. I mean no disrespect in this post when I refer to a mixed martial artist as a wrestler. I do so for clarity.
I’m confounded by the way people have been talking about Antonio McKee. I advise people to put on their thinking caps before they go spouting off about the way some fighters with a strong wrestling base approach MMA.
To finish an opponent via KO or submission is high drama and everyone loves drama. I get it. Crank a guys arm back and make him cry uncle. Knock an opponent out- one minute he is spouting taunts, and the next he’s laying on the canvas making a fish faced expression.
It’s cool to dig that stuff but open your mind and take a minute to think about what is happening on the ground when a guy like McKee is at work. Think about being on your back and having a wrestler control you. You try in vain to squirm free. In order to improve your position you take the chance of letting go of the wrestler’s wrist or head for a second, only to be rewarded with a fist to the face. The wrestler in your guard is alternately trying to push down your leg to pass or he’s pummeling you in the head. You realize that you are loosing the fight but you are so busy trying to avoid a TKO that you are helpless to mount much offense. It’s a slow, smothering, frustrating experience.
It could be said that this is a more interesting way to win than by knock out. Consider the phrase: lucky punch. Fighters who win by knock out are often capitalizing on a mistake. Maybe the victim has a weak chin. Maybe he eats a hail mary haymaker thrown by a striker who was ducking his head and had really no idea if or where the punch would land. Winning the way McKee does happens by systematically dominating and controlling an opponent’s body while inflicting damage. He uses leverage, power, strategy and technique. Wrestlers make constant adjustments on the ground to continue to improve their position and inflict damage in order to keep the fight where they are most comfortable. Fighters with a wresting gnp style typically give their opponents no room or opportunity to use their own tools to win.
As there are many styles and aspects to MMA, so are there various ways to win. Some wrestlers are grinders. And that is ok! Would you prefer to see fights like Sherk vs Edgar where a guy like Sherk wastes his wrestling gifts in order to put on a sad display of dull boxing? More and more collegiate wrestlers will enter MMA. Fans and commentators would do well to wrap their heads around this craft and show some respect for fighters such as Antonio McKee.
On August 22 I chatted with UFC fighter Krzysztof Soszynski about fighting in Vancouver, the skills of Kimbo Slice, and his plans for the future. My Q & A with the former Winnipegger was posted on the Vancouver Sun’s website and you can read it here! A week after our interview, The Polish Experiment dropped a decision to Brandon “The Truth” Vera at UFC 102.
My first interview with K-Sos took place just prior to his win against Andre Gusmao at UFC 98. Find that piece here also on the Vancouver Sun Website.
On August 15, Showtime will air the mixed martial arts event Strikeforce: Carano vs Cyborg featuring headliners Gina “Conviction” Carano and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos in a match to determine the woman’s champion. In this vlog I give you my thoughts on the match-up.
To read my post about Cyborg’s last fight clicky here.
While there are more topical MMA vlogs to come from yours truly, I will no longer be producing UFC Prediction videos. To see entertaining and smart prediction videos check out my buddies Osborne & McCarty at osbornemccarty.com
I took a little break after UFC 100 but it’s back on, homies! I haven’t made a vlog in what seems like an eternity but a new one will be poppin’ this weekend. Ima break down the Carano/Cyborg fight for ya so be sure to check it out on this site or on my YouTube channel which you can find here.
Edit: The video is up! Check it out on my home page here!
For five days I was in Vegas to cover UFC 100 for the Vancouver Sun and it was swell! Find my piece about the weigh-ins here and my bit about what it’s really like to attend a UFC event here. The highlight of my trip was personally interviewing Jon Jones and Nate Marquart whose comments you can find here. The city was absolutely crawling with fighters and fight fans so it was rad to be in the mix and march around the shops, casinos and crazy hot streets. Personal photo gallery coming soon.
When Emma was in grade school, her uncle was a world champion boxer and celebrity. Young Emma received exceeding amounts of attention and developed a deep affection for the pugilistic arts.
Watch videos at Vodpod and other videos from this collection.
UFC 106 Prediction Video
November 21, 2009 by Emma May vs MMA
Whew! I hustled hard to get this up. But it was a good time. As the title suggests, I give my thoughts on how I reckon UFC 106 will play out. I’d have to say Koscheck/Johnson was the toughest to call. I am a fan and a believer in Kos, but I don’t think the guy often makes the best use of his skills. He loves to slug and just doesn’t seem to incorporate his wrestling into his game plan as much as I’d like. Hopefully he’s got his mind right this time ’round ’cause Johnson is for real.
Posted in Las Vegas, Sports Blog, UFC, UFC 106, UFC Commentary, UFC fighters, Vblog, Video Blog, combat sports, mixed martial arts, mma, video, vlog | Tagged Amir Sadollah, Anthony Johnson, Antonio Rogerio Noguera, Forrest Griffin, Luis Cane, mixed martial arts, mma, Phil Baroni, Tito Ortiz, UFC, UFC 106 | Leave a Comment »