Wednesday, December 27, 2006

UFC 66 Pre-Fight Analysis and Picks

UFC 66 can go either way. The fighters who are on the card have been both great and disappointing, depending on the bout. If we get the "great" out of each fighter, it should be very entertaining. I will only break down what I see in the Main Card. The card looks like this.

Main Card Bout
Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz II (LightHeavyWeight Title)
Jason MacDonald vs Chris Leben
Andrei Arlovski vs. Marcio Cruz
Forrest Griffin vs Keith Jardine
Micheal Bisping vs. Eric Schafer

Preliminary Bouts
Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Carmelo Marrero
Yushin Okami vs Rory Singer
Anthony Perosh vs. Chistian Wellisch
Thiago Alves vs. Tony DeSouzatitle

Tito vs. Chuck
I honestly believe (and not just because I always wish Chuck's demise) that Ortiz can and will get the belt back. In one comercial he says he doesn't care about the belt, in the other, he says it is his life. I believe the latter. Tito has turned into a class act with all he does for the military and his students as their coach. He has always proved to be one of the hardest workers. The only issue I see with him against Liddell is his conditioning. He faded too early against Forrest Griffin, thinking he would put him away early. The one thing he will NOT do is beat Chuck in the first round. He needs to be ready.
From Chuck's side, I am not sure what his plan will be. It is always to knock everyone out, but in the last fight Ortiz proved to have a good chin and good defense against Liddell's punches until the eye gouge. I think Liddell needs to go for the ground and pound over Tito, or try to let Tito wear himself down by escaping Tito's clinch until Tito tires, and then knock him out if possible. !!Or just eye gouge him again

Jason MacDonald vs. Chris Leban

This is the exact type of fight I was refering to with "great." Leban came into the middleweight division full of fire and tore off win after win, then when running into the eventual champ, he showed how his lack of discipline holds up to proffesional skilled fighting. I think he has a chance to win this fight, but I see MacDonald taking it. I think he will do just enough to hold him off for a while, but MacDonald should get the submission vistory. Leban has a lot of raw brawling ability with enough skill to keep him near the top of the Middleweight division to date, but if anyone studies his lack of discipline in fighting style, they should be able to win.

Andre Arlovski vs. Marcio Cruz

This is a soft fight in the comeback of Arlovski. I do not see him losing by any means. A submission victory is possible, but I think this win will come from a first or second round TKO. They will work Andre up the chain a bit until Silvia is no longer champ, and then give him another shot at the belt. No one wants to see Arlovski vs Silvia 4!

Forrest Griffin vs Kieth Jardine

I am no Forrest fan. I think he is funny, I think he is near the top of the Light Heavyweight Division, but I think he will never be champ. That being said, having to fight Jardine is an insult. Many people thought he came close to beating Tito. Some people insist he did (I do not). Either way, Forrest has enough talent and fan fare to warrent a fight with the undefeated Rashad Evans, not a sorry looking Jardine. It seems the UFC has resigned to believe that Jardine and Forrest will never hold the belt and are brawlers at best, and therefore belong in the ring against other brawlers only. I think there is something to be said about that, but I still believe Forrest has earned the right to fight Evans, or maybe even be the first to face Quinton Jackson next year. Maybe that is what the winner of this fight will recieve. Who knows.

Michael Bisping vs Eric Schaffer

This is the second most interesting fight for me for two reasons. Bisping needs to come in and prove himself in the first UFC PPV of his career, and second, he is facing a very talented Schaffer. I saw schaffer fight once and he took every advantage given to him and showed impressive grappling skills. I think it is a beautiful first test for Bispings first time into the ring and I think he will prove himself worthy of the fan fare given to him thus far.

As I said previously, I hope this UFC turns out to be in the great category. It will be hard to compete with the prior UFC which was outstanding in every way. If Tito wins I see a matchup with Chuck and Quinton Jackson and Tito probably will defend his title against Rashad Evans. If Chuck wins I see no one else ready. Rashad may get the fight anyway. Enjoy the UFC on Saturday!

Nate!

Ultimate Fight Night - Miramar

Finally I have a minute to write my review.

First off let me say that i think it is absolutely awesome what the UFC did for the Marine Corps. Their sponsorship (and vice versa) is very much appreciated. The Marine Corps was right to get on board and promote the UFC. It is what being a Warrior is all about.

Before I forget...I might be on MSNBC this January. They did a documentary on the UFC that I was interviewed for and my predictions are perfect...as you might see if they select my piece of the video!

My overall experience was great. Watching a UFC live is every bit as entertaining as a football game and more so that baseball. Though the overall matchups on this card were not that spectacular, I still had an exciting time. I was able to meet the likes of Dana White, Dean Lister, Jason Lambert, "JJudo" Gene Label, and Diego Sanchez. I sat right behind Diego's parents (you can see me for a split second in the live clips just before the fight and after the knockout right behind his parents) and had the pleasure of escorting them to the VIP section after having a 20 minute conversation with them in the waiting line. Just like regular people, they came out into line and sat down 1 hour early!! I introduced myself and then it dawned on us 20 minutes into it, that they could get in VIP. Being the senior rank in line I decided to escort them. VERY, very gracious people. Like Diego himself, they are very humble.

OK...The fights!!!

Logan Clark vs. Steve Byrnes

Steve Byrnes was a Marine before his UFC career began. Though he was not horrible, he may have wanted to stay Marine. He had the power and control of the fight but every move he made to finish the fight came from his MCMAP training, and as I said to the MSNBC guys, MCMAP and MMA do not match up. You will lose in MMA if you soley rely on MCMAP training. Steve was able to take Clark down and control the ground, but he almost never threw strikes! His attempts at an achilles leg lock (many MANY times) were embarrasing. That was the MCMAP showing through. He did not control the body of Clark in the attempts, and there is no way in hell a professional will submit from the achilles lock. You better be willing to break that ankle! Over all, Clark deserved the win, and Byrnes has some work to do.

Keita Nakamura Vs. Brock Larson

This was a very entertaining close fight. I do not have much to say except both these boys can scraap. I thought the call to give the fight to Larson was incorrect in that he seemed to sustain the most punishment, and ground control was equal. I think the decision was crowd based. You do not give a new Japanese UFC fighter the win over an American in a very close fight, in front of a bunch of Marines. That may be harsh, but that is how I felt watching it.

Dave Menne Vs. Luigi Fioravanti

This fight was very good, and it was finally a good showing by an ex-Marine. Luigi dominated every aspect of this fight. You could see the heart of Dave Menne leave him as the fight continued. I do not have any specifics on the happenings, but luigi pressed Menne the whole time and beat him up pretty good. It is nice to see someone not tainted by MCMAP.

Alan Belcher Vs. Jorge Santiago

The fight between Santiago and Belcher was perfectly scripted. They were on their feet the majority of time, and Belcher could handle the takedowns of Santiago. As most fighters in the American Top Team tend to do, Santiago began to wear down toward the third round. This fight I was particualrly proud of because I had been yelling for Belcher to kick Santiago more. Fianlly in the third round Belcher started to wear out the tired Santiagos leg and I began to yell "to the head, to the head." About 1-2 minutes of punishment to the leg later, Belcher finally brought a kick to the side of the head which caught Satiago perfectly for the knockout. Loved it!!! It is always nice to talk about fighting with friends and have them witness your instincts proven to be accurate!

Victor Valimaki Vs. David Heath

Many people thought this fight was entertqaining. The antics of Heath showing off were definetely interesting, however I prefer to see fighters like Vera and Sanchez who are focused and humble, not cocky and half-ass. Heath won the fight and deservedly so but he will amount to nothing. Being a light-heavyweight, with guys like Lambert, Forrest, Rashad, Bisping, Tito and Chuck, will ensure Heath and his game playing will remain an undercard.

Marcus Davis Vs. Shonie Carter

As a person I cannot stand Shonie Carter. As a fighter he is washed up. As a warrior with heart, all props go to him. Shonie put his heart on display this entire fight. He should have been knocked out in the first round and in the second was sure to fold. He was so tired from the punishment by Davis we all thought for sure he would go out. However, in the thrid round, Shonie came back and put on a show. You could see he wanted to fight well before his fellow Marines but was not the better fighter. He never quit and perservered to the end. I gained a new respect for him that night.

Drew Fickett Vs. Karo Parisyan

Great fight! This was the second best fight of the night. Very entertaining, bloddy and hard fought on both sides. I was about to get very upset at Parisyan. What people watching Spike did not see is that Parisyan almost threw in the towel due to his cut. It was mostly upsetting because we all knew he could continue. He was winning the fight and just needed to show heart. He wanted to quit and his corner would not let him. Many people may doubt that about Karo, however he WANTED to quit! You could here his cornerscreaming at him. Karo was telling them to throw in the towel and the corner would not let it happen. They were winning the fight and they knew it. I am glad Parisyan continued, but Fickett was seconds away from a forfeit victory.


Jeff Joslin Vs. Josh Koscheck

I was very suprised at how boring this fight turned out to be. Koscheks last showing made me think it would turn out much differently. It is hard to watch the pure wrestlers revert back to their old form. It is great that they can produce good takedowns, but they need to learn to take a page from Tito's book and throw better elbows on the ground. Koscheck controlled Joslin the entire time but could do nothing with it. He won a points decision based soley on his explosive takedowns. Not interesting at all.

Diego Sanchez Vs. Joe Riggs

WOW, WOW, WOW!!!
What an unbelievable fight. I told the MSNBC boys that I was there at the event to see Diego beat Riggs, and I was greatly rewarded. Having to fight Riggs at all is an insult to Diego. Riggs has been more down that up lately and Diego is an undefeated contender. After beating Parisyan you would have thought Diego would get respect. Not at all. Even now after a quick knockout he still gets none. The reason Dieg is the next champ is his focus, fighting instincts and technical talent. Many people were turned off by his Alessio fight, but that is what sold me on him. Alessio was not going to be taken down and he ran away from a real fight the entire 3 rounds. Diego chased him and did all he could to press the fight that Alessio ran from. I was impressed at Diego's heart and perserverance in that fight, and have seen it every time since. He took Riggs out with a beautiful left hook right to the kisser, knocking Riggs down, and then followed up with a perfectly timed knee while Riggs was getting up.

People debate whether the timing was lucky and if Dieg was going for a knee to a downed opponent. It is again another show of the lack of respect people have for Sanchez. He has done nothing to earn that type of criticism, and has always shown a killer instict to press the action when his opponent is vulnerable, yet he gets that type of flak. It was a perfect finish for the first knockout of Sanchez' career. A beautiful reward for my loyal support!!!

On Meeting Dana White...

Dana is a class act who loves to chat with the audience. I was able to speak with him about Brandon Vera, Pride fighters coming to the UFC, and on Sanchez getting a title shot. Though he was not completely open (and how can he be on everything) his hints tell alot.

I first asked Dana about Vera vs. Sylvia and he confirmed that the fight agreement is in the works. He knows this is the fight everyone wants to see. I believe the problems with the contract stem from Vera having only one fight left on his current contract which Vera would like upgraded before taking the belt (which he will). Dana told me to look out for 2007 which he promises will be the best year in the UFC yet. He said they are getting lots of exciting fighters from elsewhere. He did not confirm who they were, but I told him that Vera and Cro Cop wold make an excellent match to which he simple smiled and winked while stating "I agree." He said many others were coming and I told him I had heard rumors of the Pride fighters coming to the UFC and another smile while saying it will be a good 2007. When Sanchez won over Riggs I shouted to Dana that Sanchez is his next champ at 170. Wide eyed after witnessing the quick, unexpected knockout he simple shook his head and said "WOW!" All UFC fans know Dana would love one of his TUF competitors to hold a belt, and soon. It would boost interest i the show which degraded greatly with "The Comeback." I would expect Sanchez to get one more fight, then the title shot provided he is successful.

This was my first UFC experience. Free, exciting, and a great time. I loved it and again thank Dana, the UFC, and the Marine Corps for putting a show like this on.

Nate

Saturday, December 16, 2006

UFC Fight Night


















What an awesome night, one I won't ever forget. I will have pics of me and some fighters along with my breakdown shortly. For now, here is the Diego post fight interview with the UFC. I am the taller big faced Marine to his right behind him the second half of the interview! http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=MultiMedia.Detail&gid=3983





Nate

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Brandon Vera on YouTube

Everyone who reads this should know I have bragged that Vera will be the next champ in the UFC. I feel as confident about this as ever. I also believe he could be the champ at either weight class.

What I stumbled on is some highlight videos from YouTube, which are excellet at showing his well rounded skills. He has some monter kicks and suplexes. I really believe he is the best the UFC has seen at heavyweight since Marco Ruas, and I hope Vera will show us his aggression that he shows in these tapes.

Chuck should not want to face this guy in an exhibition. He will get annihilated.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUajVyfzuMQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWnKt_XD_Ew

Nate