D. S. Veteran Posted October 5, 2011 Veteran Share Posted October 5, 2011 October 8, 2011 brings us UFC 136, the 2nd of a serie of great cards built around championship fights. Here is the promo, which is very good. And here's the card: Main card Frankie Edgar © vs. Gray Maynard - 3rd time is the charm right? Frankie, who a bit undersized for a LW, fights Maynard, a very big and strong wrestler. It should be an intense battle but I think Maynard will take it this time. Edgar is fast, slips and rips very well but doesn't have the power to put Maynard away. If Maynard has a first round like the last one, he will be relentless in getting a finish. Should Edgar lose, he should probably think about dropping to FW as it's better suited to his small frame. José Aldo © vs. Kenny Florian - Florian gets a title shot pretty much instantly but we know his track record with title shots. Aldo is a beast and will probably put a severe beating on Florian. Should be fun. Chael Sonnen vs. Brian Stann - Decides the next MW contender. I think Chael takes it. Stann is a good but not great MW and Chael's wrestling is top notch as seen against Anderson Silva. If a striker like Silva couldn't hit on Chael, I don't think Stann will have enough time between takedowns to do some real damage. Chael by UD. Joe Lauzon vs. Melvin Guillard - Guillard is on a tear in the LW division's murky title shot waters. If the issue with the belt is finally resolved tonight and he beats Lauzon (very likely) then either he fights the winner of Guida vs Henderson, gets the next title shot after them or fights Anthony Petis (provided he also wins his fight). Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan - The rematch from one of the most ridiculous decisions of 2010. I hope Garcia wins, fair and square this time. I just can't stand Nam Phan. Preliminary card (Spike TV) Demian Maia vs. Jorge Santiago - Battle of the close-but-no-cigar MW fighters. Both Santiago and Maia come in from losses against current top contenders in the MW division. This fight will define who sinks and who swims in the MW mid-tier. If Maia continued to improve his striking, he could possibly take this as his BJJ is as elite as it gets. If he didn't, then Santiago has a great change to slay a previous top contender and prove that his coming to the UFC was well deserved and not built upon false pretenses. Anthony Pettis vs. Jeremy Stephens - Pettis will try to rebound from his loss to Guida by beating Stephens who is on a 2 fight win streak but hasn't beaten anyone significant. They're basically throwing him a tune-up fight to get him ready for a possible title run. Despite his loss to Guida, he's still a very good LW and was the last WEC LW champion. Preliminary card (Facebook) Joey Beltran vs. Stipe Miocic - Seeing how Beltran lost to Pat Barry and Meathead, I don't think he knows what he's getting himself into. Miocic is one of the top HW prospects out there. He was a D1 wrestler and a golden gloves champion. Also he's part Croatian so he can surely channel Mirco Filipovic. I hope he takes it and this fight gets televised. Zhang Tie Quan vs. Darren Elkins - Zhang Tie Quan is the chinese ace for the UFC. He's 15-1 and has shown to be a pretty good fighter. In front of him is Elkins, a fighter who just recently dropped to FW but he beat Omigawa in his first fight so he's no slouch. Should be an interesting fight. Aaron Simpson vs. Eric Schafer - Nothing special here. Steve Cantwell vs. Mike Massenzio - Cantwell is fighting for his job, losing his last 3 fights. Massenzio is also on a tricky spot, this fight is more a courtesy by the UFC since he came in on short notice to fight Krzysztof Soszynski at LHW despite being a MW. It's a totally stacked card on paper and it will surely deliver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. S. Veteran Posted October 8, 2011 Author Veteran Share Posted October 8, 2011 Tonight! Will probably watch it live as it unfolds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin.B Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Wow! Edgar Vs Maynard did NOT disappoint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebiacsi Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 That was an awesome card! Wonder what will happen between Sonnen and Silva now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. S. Veteran Posted October 11, 2011 Author Veteran Share Posted October 11, 2011 This PPV WAS AMAZING! Great all around. Comments in bold as usual. Preliminary card (Facebook) Joey Beltran vs. Stipe Miocic - First thing, just look at them. Beltran is flabby and Miocic is very fit and lean, even showing a set of abs which is rare for a HW. Miocic showed why he's a top prospect: crisp striking, very good wrestling and the necessary mental fortitude. Beltran was no trouble for him, took him down at ease, pounded him, kicked him and dominated all around. Shame about the lack of a finish but you can't have everything. Beltran should probably cut to LHW for a chance to revive his career (if the UFC doesn't cut him first). He has heart but is basically a sloppy brawler and just can't cut against good HW fighters (even mediocre ones since he lost to Pat Barry). Zhang Tie Quan vs. Darren Elkins - Didn't watch. Aaron Simpson vs. Eric Schafer - Didn't watch. Steve Cantwell vs. Mike Massenzio - Was televised but I didn't watch it very closely. Cantwell slides to 4 loses in a row and will probably be cut. Preliminary card (Spike TV) Demian Maia vs. Jorge Santiago - Maia showed his new striking chops and beat a decision out of poor Jorge Santiago. Santiago, who came into the UFC as the Sengoku MW champion, now has 2 losses in a row, the latest one to a guy that learned to strike just a few months ago and that previously depended on his elite grappling. I don't think there is anyone currently in the MW division that couldn't beat him. Alright, maybe Cantwell. Anthony Pettis vs. Jeremy Stephens - Pettis picks one hard fought fight, showing some flashes of creative striking but ultimately adapting to the fight going on after a bad first round. He showed good grappling and consistently beat Stephens inside his guard, taking his back, attacking with submissions and strikers. Also showed great work with his clinch. Seeing how the Guillard hype train got derailed tonight, Pettis is picking up steam for a title shot. Main card Joe Lauzon vs. Melvin Guillard - First Sotiropoulos gets slain by Siver, then Pettis loses his title shot at the hands of Guida, then Miller gets a beating at the hands of Henderson and now it has come full circle, Guillard gets his 5 win streak broken by Joe "The Spoiler" Lauzon who wasted no time getting his back and submitting him. It lasted 47 seconds, there isn't much you can write about it. Guillard came out strong with his usual striking and speed but a single jab by Lauzon got him hazy and he was submitted with ease. Lauzon is still some high profile wins away from being a contender but the Guillard hype train has been derailed. Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan - Let me repeat that I hate Nam Phan. And he didn't help my feelings after the fight by saying no to a Garcia vs Phan III. Seriously? You're a mediocre FW who just had a FOTN performance and refuse a chance like that to make some money and name for yourself against an opponent that you can beat? GET OUT! Garcia was his usual self, gassed as all hell in the 2nd round. Had he kept his composore, he could probably have put Nam away when he had him wobbled. How can a guy that fights at FW have such bad cardio? Nam showed his good striking technique and idiocy in this fight. Who's next for him if not Garcia again? Maybe Pablo Garza? Chael Sonnen vs. Brian Stann - Surprised? Yes, Sonnen won by submission. That was the cherry on top of the cake. The fight went as expected: Sonnen closed in, power double and right into side-control. Stann is a good fighter but he was nowhere near the level needed to fight Chael. If Anderson couldn't get a hit on him, Stann had no chance at all. And that call out at the end was... marvelous. Sonnen vs Silva II here we go! WAR SONNEN! José Aldo vs. Kenny Florian - Florian, who looked like a walking skeleton, once again gets his ass handed to him. After a first round that saw him put some pressure on Aldo, he then did his usual thing of withering slowly under the pressure of a title shot. Aldo kept his composure and slowly but surely asserted his dominance over Florian with good striking and good groundwork (which is something you don't see everyday with Aldo). Shame about the lack of a finish but it was a hard fought fight and a very fair decision to Aldo. Florian is still a very good fighter... just not championship material. I hope he doesn't think about cutting to BW... Dominick Cruz is there and he would use his head as a drum. Next up for Aldo? Chad Mendes, who may very well have a chance to beat Aldo if he learns from the mistakes that Florian made. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard - WOW, what a fight. Maynard looked a lot like Carwin, blowing his load again in the first and then withering. The 2nd round was just ridiculous, with Frankie recovering while Gray kept pawing away. Frankie, who hadn't finished a fight in two years (and was 4 years since his last KO) kept moving around and tagging Gray with crisp jabs as is his style. Gray took the 2nd round off and it cost him dearly, he couldn't find his pacing in the 3rd, getting outworked by a dilligent Frankie and the TKO was just great. Frankie must have hit every shot in that combo with full force and put Gray away for the count, he was face flat on the canvas in less than the blink of an eye. Despite the win, Frankie showed in the first round that a composed striker could get the better of him if he kept on the pressure and didn't allow Frankie to recover like Gray did. Guida, with his cardio, Pettis, with his striking and Henderson with his all around beastly strenght will prove to be a tough challenge for the undersized champ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dippednbutter Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 Frankie looks so much like his training partner Alvarez. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rajputwarrior Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 sonnen is a tool... can't wait until anderson embarrasses him. nam pham vs garvia is the fight of the year IMO. kenflow tried, but jose is just too good. i was pulling for florian. and edgar is a stud, and absolutely stud that the gods of heart and will created... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. S. Veteran Posted October 11, 2011 Author Veteran Share Posted October 11, 2011 sonnen is a tool... can't wait until anderson embarrasses him. nam pham vs garvia is the fight of the year IMO. kenflow tried, but jose is just too good. i was pulling for florian. and edgar is a stud, and absolutely stud that the gods of heart and will created... I want to see him against Melendez but that would should scramble even more the title picture that should be unscrambled today. I'm dreaming about let's say: Henderson vs Guida for the next shot and Melendez vs Pettis for the one after that. Or something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rajputwarrior Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 I want to see him against Melendez but that would should scramble even more the title picture that should be unscrambled today. I'm dreaming about let's say: Henderson vs Guida for the next shot and Melendez vs Pettis for the one after that. Or something like that. well melendez has to be in the UFC first ;) his fight in december should be good though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rappy Veteran Posted October 11, 2011 Veteran Share Posted October 11, 2011 :rofl: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rajputwarrior Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 :rofl: didn't brock get in a lot of **** for talking ish and creating drama like it's wrestling ? look at what this tool is doing... i hate this guy more then koscheck. he ducked you for six years :rofl: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbas Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 He actually makes me lol...his post fight comment to Silva was almost...almost as good as Larry Merchants comment to Floyd after his fight. Still chuckling about that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dippednbutter Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 Melendez is good but he will never be a UFC champ. Not in my opinion. Also, Chael's manhandling of Silva was a fluke. It will never happen again. I still laugh though at half the stuff he says and does, you got to hand it to him, he is a better promoter than most people in the business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. S. Veteran Posted October 12, 2011 Author Veteran Share Posted October 12, 2011 Melendez is good but he will never be a UFC champ. Not in my opinion. Also, Chael's manhandling of Silva was a fluke. It will never happen again. I still laugh though at half the stuff he says and does, you got to hand it to him, he is a better promoter than most people in the business. While I agree that Melendez is still a bit unproven against UFC caliber oppponents (ignoring his win in 2005 against Clay Guida), he holds wins against decent mid-tier LW fighters like Aoki, Kawajiri and Josh Thompson. His rankings and MMA record could be looked at 2 different ways: either he will be a dud like Jorge Santiago who built himself up against lower caliber Japanese opponents or he's hindered by the lack of depth that plagues the Strikeforce LW talent pool. Maybe a little bit of both. His fight against Masvidal will prove nothing as he is fighting a no-name LW fighter with notable wins against... IDK Joe Lauzon in 2005? and that got his title shot after a 2 fight win streak. Melendez needs to get into the UFC so he can either sink or swim in the LW rankings and we can see if he is rightfully one of the Top 10 LW fighters in the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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