[Archived] Ufc On Setanta

[T4E]

Reminder to those that follow, UFC89 on Setanta at 8pm tonight.

[M-K]

Really disappointed with Bisping. I know he was a clear winner and all, but fighting in front of his home fans and spending the entire fight jabbing and running wasn't what I'd call entertainment. When Leben dropped his hands at the end and Bisping still didn't dare swing at him.... He gets the winner of Franklin vs Hendo next, and either of those would beat him senseless on Saturday's form.

Shane Carwin looked impressive on the undercard - that's the kind of fighter Brock Lesnar should be facing.

Hopefully next weekend's event will be more exciting...

[T4E]

Apparently the winner of Ace/Hendo gets Bisping after they've coached TUF 9 UK vs US. Rich Franklin is probably my favourite fighter so I think I'd be pulling against Bisping if that one comes off.

He did a good job on Saturday, Leben is just too powerful to be risking getting KO'd against. Unfortunately it was just one of this he had to use his superior skills to get through and put it behind him, thankfully he managed it.

Anderson at the weekend. Monster.

[MarkBRFC]

Didnt bother watching this at the weekend, the whole event had a "Fight Night" feel to it rather than a "PPV" feel.

Glad Bisping won, if he beats the winner of Ace/Hendo then he must be line for a shot at Anderson Silva next year.

Speaking of which, will enjoy watching him this weekend, hard to beleive that the guy wants to retire in 18 months time.

[M-K]

Another letdown! Couple of nice leg kicks from Pitbull, fat Werdum wobbling onto an uppercut, and Anderson spending six minutes doing Tai Chi exercises before Cote slipped on a puddle of pure, concentrated boredom exhaled by the crowd and busted his knee.

That's two poor ones in a row. I hope the rumours about Lesnar struggling with an injury aren't true.

[T4E]

You thought 90 was poor? I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Werdum got tagged big time, a newcomer knocking out a top 5 contender is always big news.

I like Gray Maynard a lot so I was pleased he beat Clementi, I think Maynard is up there with the Stevensons, Florians and Sherks at 155.

Thiago Alves was awesome, that guy looks like a genuine threat to GSP at 170, although I must admit I'm rooting for BJ when they fight on SuperBowl Sunday.

The end of the main event was very disappointing, but I can't get enough of Anderson Silva - you wait 6 months to see him fight and it's usually over pretty quickly, so I'm just pleased I got to see more of him than usual. Cote did very well, I'm sure a rematch will happen. Apparently it's not his ACL so he may be ready by the time BJ/GSP comes around.

I can't wait for Lesnar/Couture, thats a huge huge fight and I genuinely think Lesnar will be too strong for him. Stevenson/Florian on the undercard will be a war too, and Amir Sadollah has his first fight since winning TUF7. Have you heard about the line up for UFC92 on Dec 27th? Forrest vs Evans for the LHW title, Minotauro vs Mir for the interim HW title, and Rampage vs Wandy, all on the same night. Thats gotta be the best card ever.

[M-K]

I think I was just extra disappointed about the main event. There can't have been more than 15 shots thrown in the entire fight. Was it the Maynard fight where the ref kept telling them to 'do something' while they were grappling? If the same standards applied to Silva vs Cote, both of those two would have been warned for inactivity. I certainly don't want to see a rematch - Cote was atrocious and Silva clearly couldn't be bothered to fight him properly.

Alves looked solid, but remember how GSP threw Koscheck around like a rag doll?

[T4E]

Dude I think thats pretty harsh. Anderson was making the most of his reputation, and Cote was being cautious as he had to be. It had me on the edge of my seat, that fight would have exploded at some point, the slow pace was just building the intrigue for me.

Anyway, moving on, I cannot wait for Couture - Lesnar. There's been some huge fights in the past but I don't think I've ever been excited about one as much as I am about this. Everything points towards Lesnar, but this is Randy Couture..........I have no idea whats going to happen.

[M-K]

Randy gets pounded. That was a good UFC in general, I was really hyped for the main event and I thought maybe Randy had a chance when Brock couldn't hold him down. Same feint with the left and straight right arm-punch that put down Herring. If he can get get past Nog (or Mir) I don't think there's anyone in the UFC who's going to give him much trouble.

Best fight of the night had to be the hillbilly against the guy from Frazier.

[T4E]

Loved it - that had to be the most televised fights in the history of a UFC event. Jeremy Stephens knockout of Dos Santos was incredible, the BJJ shown by Hazelett and Maia (who I think is a real concern to Bisping at this moment in time) was world class, and I loved the main event.

I didn't know what to expect, but if pushed I thought it would be a Herring repeat, Lesnar holding Randy down and winning a UD. Randy showed far more than I thought he'd be able to, just shows the level of wrestling and conditioning he has. Lesnar has many skills but one of his biggest upside has to be punching power - it seems like whenever he connects he puts his opponent down.

He's only been tested once when it comes to BJJ, and he failed that test miserably. Since then he's not had to show if he's been able to improve that side of his game, which is what he will need against Nog or Mir. At this moment in time I'm backing Nog to beat Mir then defeat Lesnar in the same style he beat Sylvia - having been tossed around like a rag doll but then pulling a submission off out of not very much. It's hard to see Lesnar having anything like the BJJ needed to compete with Nog if it goes to the ground.

[M-K]

Lesnar doesn't even put his full weight behind those shots. If he can develop his striking technique he's going to knock somebody's head off. I never realised Couture won the title in only his fourth fight as well, so maybe it's possible that Lesnar could improve enough to be really dominant.

[Tim Southampton Rover]

He was pretty scary when he started hammering down on his face. Personally I probably would have knocked him out with one punch but Randy didn't take that opportunity.

[T4E]

You're right M-K - Lesnars potential makes him truly frightening. I do think Nog will beat him, he's just way too good in the only thing Brock has shown that he can't do. I'm guessing if Nog does beat him, Lesnar will likely face Carwin/Velasquez/Gonzaga/Mir by which time he'll be ready for a rematch with Nog and nigh on unbeatable.

On a similar note, Bobby Lashley has signed a deal with the AFL and is due to fight before Christmas. It will be very interesting to see how he does - if there's anyone big enough to trouble Lesnar its him.

[T4E]

Here's the UFC 91 pay figures btw -

Brock Lesnar: $450,000 (includes $200,000 win bonus)

def. Randy Couture: $250,000

Kenny Florian: $80,000 ($40,000 win bonus)

def. Joe Stevenson: $35,000

Dustin Hazelett: $28,000 ($14,000 win bonus)

def. Tamdan McCrory: $10,000

Gabriel Gonzaga: $110,000 ($55,000 win bonus)

def. Josh Hendricks: $8,000

Demian Maia: $40,000 ($20,000 win bonus)

def. Nate Quarry: $25,000

Aaron Riley: $8,000 ($4,000 win bonus)

def. Jorge Gurgel: $10,000

Jeremy Stephens: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus)

def. Rafael dos Anjos: $4,000

Mark Bocek: $18,000 ($9,000 win bonus)

def. Alvin Robinson: $7,000

Matt Brown $16,000 ($8,00O win bonus)

def. Ryan Thomas: $3,000

[MarkBRFC]

Anderson Silva vs Chuck Liddell in a light heavyweight bout is rumoured to be the main event of UFC 95 at the o2 arena in London.

[T4E]

I was really sceptical about that when I first heard about it, but it's gathering pace and more often than not these things end up coming off. It's an interesting matchup, Chuck might well have a chance against a striker like Anderson, and a win there would make him huge again.

UFC 91 is repeated tonight on Setanta 1 btw.

[M-K]

Interesting to see Lashley going the MMA route. Lesnar's success has proved that power can beat technique, so I think we'll see plenty of these beast-men appearing at heavyweight.

Lesnar looked a lot less ripped against Couture than he did in his fight with Mir, so he's obviously smart enough to balance power against endurance. There are huge fighters like Bob Sapp who look exhausted after throwing five punches.

Anderson fighting Chuck would be a huge draw but I don't want to see Chuck unconscious and dribbling in the referee's arms again. Also, what's he done lately to deserve a big fight? KTFO by a guy who only just scraped a decision over Bisping, kicked all over the octagon by Jardine and easily beaten by Rampage. It's time for him to retire before he becomes the new Ken Shamrock.

[MarkBRFC]

Anderson fighting Chuck would be a huge draw but I don't want to see Chuck unconscious and dribbling in the referee's arms again. Also, what's he done lately to deserve a big fight? KTFO by a guy who only just scraped a decision over Bisping, kicked all over the octagon by Jardine and easily beaten by Rampage. It's time for him to retire before he becomes the new Ken Shamrock.

He may not have done anything recently, he's still a draw though.

A Chuck/Silva fight has potential to be huge, that's why i can't see them having it in the UK. Suppose you never know though.

If it does happen though, a Chuck win here would probably gaurentee him the next shot at Griffen (depending on him beating Evans of course), which would be really unfair on the likes of Machida & Alves considering there records of late.

[T4E]

Machida will get a shot I'm sure, but he's not a draw and fortunately its far more about money than anything else. I'd much rather see a LHW title fight featuring Chuck than I would Machida, no matter how many people knock him out. The point about the UK is a good one though - hard to see a fight as huge as that happening over here.

Not sure about the Lesnar/Lashley comparison - Lesnar has plenty of technique wrestling wise, probably even better than Couture, he just doesn't have the MMA wrestling down yet, which is very different from amateur wrestling. Lashley isn't even close to Lesnar in that sense, I don't think he'll reach the same heights.

[MarkBRFC]

Silva/Liddell won't be happening in the UK now.

Apparantly Liddell's next fight will be Liddell/Couture IV in Germany, in June, as a heavyweight bout.

Anderson Silva is still expected to headline the next UK show though, with him facing the loser of either Forrest/Evans or Rampage/Silva in a light heavyweight match.

[M-K]

Did anyone see the UFC Fight Night yesterday? One nasty injury, one REALLY nasty injury and a KO that left a guy stiffed out on the floor for several minutes until he was stretchered away...

[T4E]

I've just watched the main event - Kos f'n nailed him. That was the best knockout since Rashad/Chuck.

The nasty injury you mention I guess was Al-Hassan - that was one nasty armbar, the dude had no escape he was an utter fool not to tap earlier. He wont be able to wipe has ass for a year.

I really enjoyed TUF6 alum Ben Saunders' muay thai display, brutal knees and kicks, great to see.

Another great Fight Night card. These shows are really underrated.

EDIT: Actually I'm now thinking you meant Corey Hill's leg snapping. Luc Nilis-esque - NASTY.

EDIT2: Yep, you definitely meant Corey Hill -

[M-K]

That's the one! Man alive... that's what happens when you're 6'4" and just 155lbs. Last time I saw legs that thin, they had rings on them.

It's on the top of the UFC.com homepage in glorious slow-mo, for anyone who fancies a grimace. Joe Rogan starts shrieking when he realises what happened. It almost looks like a Photoshop in that pic, doesn't it?

I agree that Al Hassan was an absolute moron in the other bone-breakage of the night. His opponent seemed a bit too pleased with himself afterwards, though!

[T4E]

My Sky+ did its best to interrupt my enjoyment of UFC92, but I still managed to see most of it. A card full of short fights, Rampage knocked out Wanderlei Silva, Rashad Evans overwhelmed Forrest Griffin and in a massive shock Frank Mir totally destroyed Minotauro Noguiera with his boxing, putting Nog down 3 times before finishing him with excellent ground and pound.

If anyone hasn't seen the fights, head over to www.mmascraps.com.

[T4E]

So there's not even going to be any on Bravo the next day now? That's terrible. I hate Setanta for ripping me off last time and I really don't want to fork out any cash for their sub-standard coverage, crappy news channel and Steve Bloody McManaman.

Man, if I ever see Des Lynam in the streets I'll rip his tache off and make him eat it.

I suspect you're a slightly happier chappy today

The UFC have assured UK fans that 100 will be shown in this country. TBC who by, but very likely Bravo.

I'm hoping Virgin1 pick it up and show it live as Setanta did.