Any Mixed Martial Arts Fans Here?

Cain looked great did what I expected him to do can't wait for the rematch with Dos Santos. After watching JDS and Mir I think Overeem will take out Dos Santos when he comes back if Cain doesn't do it first. Mir wasn't doing to bad that was kind of a weird stoppage but I doubt it would have mattered Mir was getting tagged to much. I don't know why he stood on the end of his punches so much if you can't get him down push him up against the fence and dirty box him don't stand at the end of his reach and let him pepper you..



Mioic was a D1 wrestler that is why he outclassed Rosario on the ground. Rosiaro is a great kick boxer but needs to improve his take down defense and getting back up a la Chuck Lidell style. Still its hard to get a good wrestler off you once they are on top they have such a good base.

Hardy looked good. Bang was looking sharp to but kept dropping his right and Hardy as winging that left hook quite a bit I figured it was just a matter of time before he caught him with it.

Big country was awesome. You could see him wind up that over hand from out in right field LOL!

Struve definitely impressed he is a pretty sharp submission artist. That was a tough position to get that arm bar but he did it.

Varner Barboza was fight of the night for me that was awesome to see him come back and kick ass after all he has been through in his career.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


Seen a bunch of fights were the syncronicity is pretty dead on with the announcer saying something or that the fighter should do something and the very next second the exact same thing happens.

But in the Varner vs Barboza fight it was just common sense, you know Barboza is going to be tendering that lead leg for the whole fight if he can. And Varner was not checking any of the kicks at all from what I remembered that Barboza threw at him. If he did not do as he did and let Barboza keep tenderizing him, he would of been limping come the second round, and his punches would of lost a whole lot of power and accuracy because of it.

So ya Joe Rogan was dead on, and Varner had to know the same thing to. He was just waiting for Barboza to throw something that let him get in on him. And that seems to be exactly what he planed and did as he caught that high kick Barboza threw and took him to the ground. And from there he owned the rhythm and tempo, and as they say....The rest is history.

reply to post by hawkiye


I am not so sure on Overeem taking out Dos Santos as easy as that, infact I dont see Overeem winning if they fought. Sure Dos Santos could of been more crisper and more showy in the fight with Mir but you got to remember Mir did break Nogieras arm in there fight. Dos Santos is part of Nog's team and trains with him all the time, and he knows what he can do on the ground and what he can not do. And if he overreached himself or took to many chances the fight would of gone to the place he did not want to fight at, at the place were he is most likely to lose...The ground.

If anything he did what he had to do, he probably could of went all out on Mir and finished him off all fancy and stuff. But if he tried he was taking a big chance that he would get all tangled up and end up fighting on the ground for longer then was necessary, which is Mir's world. Its always better to fight at your strengths then at your weaknesses as they say.

Overeem is a whole different thing though in some ways Overeem and his style I think will play right into Dos Santos strengths. Its to bad they canceled the fight, I really was looking forward to it, It had the makings for a back and forth stand up slug fest.

reply to post by galadofwarthethird


I did not say he would take him out easy but Reem will leg kick the crap out of Dos Santos and put him up against the fence and open up with knees and elbows. Mir landed when he was backing Dos Santos up. Reem is a much better striker then Mir and on par with JDS he will not stand on the edge of JDS reach. I see Reem taking it.

reply to post by hawkiye


You see this is why I hate these type of things. You always wonder what could of been or who would of won, only one way to find out really. They will probably give Cain another shot for the tittle and if Dos Santos beats him again they will need somebody to step up, and not that there aren't plenty of heavieweight willing to do that. But still freaking Overeem needs to get his ass clean so he can step in the octagon and see what all that talk was about.

If anything I am pretty sure if he really wanted to he could of passed the drug test, this just shows that he is not all that serious about it or the UFC. I am not into mma as I used to be years ago, but I seen enough Overeem fights to know how he will come out. And ya he will gauge Dos Santos first, throw a few leg kicks and if they work he will try it for a bit till Dos Santos expects them, then if he drops his guard he will most likely come in with a knee from a striking exchange or the clinch, as he tries to overpower Dos Santos.

And the thing is I dont think he is that much better striker then Dos Santos, in fact I think Dos Santos is better with his hands a bit, were as Overeem is better with his feet and the clinch in a kickboxing way. And Dos Santos seems to find spots to the chin when people don't expect it, which could be another thing that may play into his favor as Overeem is cocky as hell now a day.

I can see Dos Santos catching him coming in, in fact that knee Overeem throws is down right predictable, like clockwork. He does not do it for out of range no more like he used. Now a days he seems to only do it when he overpowers dudes or from the clinch only, but still I think Dos Santos can catch him either way. And if not, I think he is much quicker then Overeem, and a good enough striker that he can out-strike as long as its more a boxing type of string instead of a kickboxing type of fight, and if it turns into a brawl I still see Dos Santos sneaking in something, and I think he just may be better on the ground as well.

But you never know till it happens, I seen plenty of fights were things went in all kinds of crazy unexpected ways. So till then I suppose.

reply to post by galadofwarthethird


Reem will be back in 8 months Dana White said he will get an immediate title shot so we will find out soon enough. I actually bought his explanation for the test and I never thought I would. the NSAC did too but they had to give him a sanction because he did not tell them beforehand. Watch the video I posted its really good...

Reem vs Santos -
I agree with both of your assessments, in that Overeem will give a better fight because he can and will stay in Santo's face and crowd him against the fence. I think this may be Dos's only weakness. However, if he does like Condit did against Diaz, and refuse to stay in front of Reem and backed against the cage, Santos may avoid Overeem's strength.

I also agree with galodof, in that Santos could maintain a reach that allows him to tag Overeem, either idly or as he comes in. What do you guys think of Overeem's chin? I am not sure about that aspect. I think Santos will be training specifically for Reems style, so he may be too prepared for damage, but, it is Overeem the hulk we are talking about. If he can endure a few punches, he may do some damage.
It will be an interesting fight, but my money would go on Santos.

But heck, one thing at a time, and Cain/Santos will be a great battle me thinks. Cain has the skills to beat Santos and I do not think he will allow any space between them next time. As far as beating Santos, I think Cain has a better chance than Reem, but I would never count Reem out. Again, I think his chin will make the difference, for better or worse.

On a side note, ran across this Bas Rutten interview with Rampage, and I thought it was really well done.
www.mmashare-board.com...

Also, watched a great kickboxing war championship between Badr Hari vs. Anderson "Braddock"Silva

reply to post by hawkiye


8 months jeez, that's a long time. Who knows what may happen by then, I could get hit by a car or have a meteor fall on me and die. I really cant wait that long to see him get smashed. I call bull on him saying he did not engage on performance enhancement drugs willingly, in fact I seen a vid months ago were someone asked him that same question, and his answer was " well everybody in Holland does drugs" or something along those lines.

To tell the truth personally I don't care if he is on roids or whatever, I just wanna see the fight, but now that it became all melodrama, now I wanna see him get smashed, just because I am pretty dam sure he is bull#ing and ruined a awesome UFC card. Ya roids it may be a booster physically but I tend to agree with Bas Rutten on perfectly healthy people like Overeem who would get that big anyways without roids and with a little bit more effort, I mean the dude was always a tall lanky fighter for fighting at light heavyweight, even back in pride he just has the bodytype and physic to put on all that mass without steroids.

Saying all that I hope they let him fight and I got nothing against Overeem, but like I said I tend to agree with Bass Rutten on the whole roids thing.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


You know I have not watched kickboxing in a long time that I dont know the new faces I see on the kickboxing scene. I may have seen this anderson silva before that i can remember if I did. However I seen more then a few Badr Hari fights, he seems more mellow now a days.

Here are some Badr Hari fights, and vs Overeem under kickbloxing rules, the first fight Overeem KO'd him, the second time they fought Badr Hari TKO'd Overeem.

The first fight.


The second fight, you may wanna turn up the sound on this one as its really low.

Just watched Fedor's latest

Love his jab hook, and he still has dynamite in his hands. I don't think Rizzo posed much of a threat but I still think Fedor is competitive enough to stay in the mix o things.
Who do you think they will match him up with next? I would love to see a rematch with both Henderson and Bigfoot.

Just ran across a new Fedor highlight and it really does show the span of a master of his craft.

Okay, well regarding the above post, Fedor IS officially retiring, from his own mouth. Twas a great run warrior!!

So I heard this interview with Chael and Anderson for the upcoming July 7 fight, which I will surely come here and open up comments. This is the first time I have ever heard Anderson speak with vengeance and violence. He says Chael is a criminal and does not belong in the UFC. He also said he was going to "break Chaels face and break all of his teeth!! He also said Chael was going to have to see a plastic surgeon after the fight.

I have a feeling Anderson is going to go all out and really try to hurt Chael. He certainly has the tools to do so, but Chael can take a lot of damage(not like Anderson can though). I watched their first fight again and was amazed at Silva's chin. He really can take serious punches to the head! He sounds very intense and pissed in this interview, and says he will show the UFC something it has never seen, a dominant and thorough ass whooping! I think Silva is going to come in and just start wailing everything he has. I can't wait to see this one folks!!!

reply to post by speculativeoptimist

Okay, well regarding the above post, Fedor IS officially retiring, from his own mouth. Twas a great run warrior!!

Knew that it would only be a matter of time before he decided to call it quits. Its hard away to walk away from fighting or such a thing, because life becomes much more boring and mundane you lose focus on things when you have nothing to focus on. Kind of like a gray toned down version of it. But there comes a time for every-fighter to seriously consider calling it quits...And they all know when it comes. I think we will still see fedor still stick around as coach or training fighters, or he will still train, he just wont be doing it with the fire and intensity he had that preparing for fights does to you.

Its sad but it's bound to happen to every-fighter sooner or latter.

And I think Chel Soonen has a death wish or something. Really the guy just does not stop talking #, and the every time I seen Anderson Silva get pissed the dude just gets that much more focused which just makes him that much more dangerous. In fact last time I seen him kind of pissed was when he fought Lee Murray, I think there was some beef there because Lee Murray beat one of his partners and mentors Pele. Murray KO'd Pele, and got a big head over it, and so Anderson took up the challenge.

Anyways he handled Lee Murray in the fight. And I think he will handle Chael Soonen as well.

Here the weight ins for the fights show you how pissed Anderson was, he is usually all cool and profesional, but in that fight he was ready to tear up Murray then and there.

The Pele fight staredown.


And the stare-down with Anderson he had, notice Anderson is mimicking what he said to Pele during there weigh in, get down get down. or something.


So ya I'f Chael does not take it to the ground and keep it there Anderson is more then capable of treating his head like a ping pong before putting him face first on the canvas.

reply to post by galadofwarthethird

Yea Silva is one dude that can focus his rage in a successful manner me thinks. Chael can take a good beating, but not the epic one I think Anderson wants to serve. I just feel that Anderson is the caliber of fighter that adjusts their workouts to their specific opponent when they are a real challenge and have exposed a weakness. So I think Silva has practiced relentlessly, defending the take down, and what do from(underneath) the side mount. I do think Chael will take him down, and more than once, but I think Silva will endure and still come out victorious.

I agree with you about the # talk and imo family and country should stay off the table for insults, I think some call it class. Chael has been great for the sport and a formidable warrior, but his craziness, criminal actions, delusional stances and denial have turned me off personally. I still like to see him battle though.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


Just looked and did not know the fight is going down on July 7th, but hells yes.

I really don't know what more to say on the whole Sonnen thing, I think the dude may know that this could possibly be his last fight. And he may want to go out with a bang, and given that he has pretty much talked # and insulted Anderson, his country and pretty much everything else about him possible even talked # about his pets as well. Who knows whats going on in Chael Sonnens head, the first time it worked because wrestling is Anderson weakness, and Cheael fights with a sort of broken rhythm that most strikers have a hard time dealing with...But if this does not light a fire under Anderson ass then nothing will.

But another fight that should be good is Cote vs Cong Le it should be a really interesting fight, mostly because Cote is more in your face type of fighter and Le is a range fighter, and the dude has some really tricky kicks, it may not work on Cote as he will be expecting them and even counting on Le throwing them so he can move on Le, but either way if it gets close or turns into an all out brawl then its Cotes world....But I really like Cong Le as his style brings much needed flavor to the octagon and is entertaining and fun to watch.

And it seems Forrest is fighting Tito again, this should put the nail in the coffin. Or at least best out of 3 wins. And Forrest besides some pretty crappy fights and some really bad luck is a game fighter, and Tito well Tito I am not so sure I think all the fame went to his head back in the day when he was a star and the champion and he never really quite recovered from it. But really the dude comes to fight as well, so it should be a good end to this trilogy.

reply to post by galadofwarthethird

talked # about his pets as well

Now that's going too damn far!!
Yea, I too have thought about this being Sonnen's last fight. He did say he would leave the UFC if he lost. I think he has numerous business endeavors going on, just heard he opened a pizza joint here in Oregon, and I know he does a bit of real estate(without a license of course since the money laundering). His ginormous ego will probably serve him well now that so many know who he is. Now if he wins, he will be launched into a whole new arena of attention. But my money would go on Silva for this one.

Cote vs Cung Le I agree man, should be an entertaining fight. I think Le has a bit more power in both his kicks and punches, but yea Cote will be in his face and attempting take downs. Not sure if Cote has any cobwebs to shake out, I have not heard from him in a while.

And Forrest besides some pretty crappy fights and some really bad luck is a game fighter, and Tito well Tito I am not so sure I think all the fame went to his head back in the day when he was a star and the champion and he never really quite recovered from it. But really the dude comes to fight as well, so it should be a good end to this trilogy.

Agree 100%, well said, and I am rooting for Forest, because I just like the dudes nature and demeanor. Man I saw a movie recently with Forest in it, and they had another actor overdub his voice, and it was kinda weird! They must not have liked his warrior-like slow draw.

The rest of the summer cards look lack luster to me, and I wish GSP and Diaz were fighting this summer. Looks like Cain and Dos Santos will get another fight. I heard UFC pay per view numbers were down, and I can see why. There are too many good fighters to have any weak cards, but with so many contracts, I guess they have to give everyone a chance. But I think every card should have at least one fan favorite epic battle potential. Hell there are enough heavy weights to fight every damn card, and those are always good fights to watch.

I am looking forward to watching Hector Lombard and glad Carwin is back in the mix.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


Ya its running a bit slow in the mma scene seems lots of older fighters are retiring or have been retired like fedor is doing and new ones are stepping on the scene. But the fights will be coming and coming, and you just never know what may happen in any day on any given card.

As for Sonnen, I really am starting to feel sory for him. I think Anderson is serious this time, and just may retire him in the octagon permanently if Sonnen is not careful. But either way the dude is an interesting fighter even if I think he is a much better talker and instigator then he is a fighter. So we will see come the fight night, it will be something to watch for definitely.

And le last fight I seen he had he was winning it straight out till he got caught in a brawl exchange and got tagged. You best believe Cote is looking to bring it down that way again, and if he can he can and will KO Cung Le, it all just depends on how much Le has learned from his last fight and how well he implements his fighting style and skills to achieve that. And that is always interesting to watch.

Agree 100%, well said, and I am rooting for Forest, because I just like the dudes nature and demeanor. Man I saw a movie recently with Forest in it, and they had another actor overdub his voice, and it was kinda weird! They must not have liked his warrior-like slow draw

WTF

I am imagining some sort of old school bad dubbing kung fu movie. You know the ones that never quite fit in with how there mouths move.

And I read one of Forest books. "Got Fight!" I got to say the book was funny as hell, and interesting definitely a good read if you have the time. If his carer as a fighter ever gets into the pits then he could probably be a comedian. He has some other book out also, heard its pretty interesting as well.

At least its got a catchy tittle...
Be Ready When The Sh*t Goes Down: A Survival Guid to the Apocalypse

It sounds like something I may take a gander at. But come this fight with Tito i think forest may take it, but you never know sometimes forrest comes out on game and on fire, and other times its like a duh WTF moment. Like in the fight he had with Anderson Silva, I know he could of done better but it was like he had a brain fart in that fight. Not to take anything from Anderson but it was definetely a duh brain lapse moment in that fight for Forrest.

Dont watch mma as much as I used to but usually that's how it goes in the fight cards things kind of peak then it sort of smooths out then it peaks again. I am sure they got plenty of fights coming down in the future that may surprise people.

Man completely forgot about UFC 148 card, my mind is completely gone and on other things to forget about this fight card.

Just seen the Anderson VS Sonnen fight real quick. I thought Anderson would dominate more but his wrestling and take-down defense has always been his weak points, and Sonnen is a work horse and his wrestling gave him problems again. It was much like the first fight with Sonnen controlling him in the first fight and when Anderson got his chance he caught him, and it was over from there.

I got to watch it again when I got the time and also the other fights.

But from what I seen the glaring hole in Andersons game is still there, and if he was fighting somebody who is really good at wrestling and taking people down but also good on there feet he would be in major trouble because of it.

Somebody like GSP can beat him even with the weight difference because of that. Basically somebody who is a good wrestler and a good stand-up fighter and can mix and match those two facets in a fight at will to control Anderson, can and will win against Anderson. Sonnen is good at wrestling but on his feet I think Anderson has him figured out now, and will take him out in any fight 9 times out of 10.

I have yet to watch the other fights got to check them out latterz.

reply to post by galadofwarthethird

Man how can you forget about the most epic fight of all times?!?!
What kind of a martial arts fan are you anyway? How come me and you are the only one's here talking about it?

Twas a great battle and I thought at first,'here we go again' with the take downs. But I knew Chael could not do that for 5 rounds with someone of Anderson's caliber. I saw Silva practicing for the fight and he had several guys in a circle shooting in for a takedown. He was using that short spin as they grabbed him, sending their momentum away from him.. It worked in the 2nd round. I bet Cheal watches the film and thinks "wtf was I doing with that spinning backfist?"

I know that knee to the sternum hurt, and Anderson's hand strikes are devastatingly powerful. I wanted to see more action but it was still a great battle. Hell I want to see them fight again and I bet the fans do too.
Did you hear about Renzo gracie calling Cheal a few days before the fight, and expressing his disappointment with Cheal's disrespectful antics? Chael actually responded with respect and quit the smack talk as a result.
Chael said he has great respect for the Gracies, and seemed to feel a bit of shame actually for his actions/words.

"I just told him that if he kept that trash talking he would be taking the greatness of the task that he had ahead of him," Gracie said. "He is fighting one of the best fighters of our generation, and people would lose the chance to know the real Sonnen, a great athlete who I saw young fighting hard back in the Japan days, building his career as a fierce fighter, a career that ended up turning him into one of the amazing people that populate our great sport.

"I just asked him to behave with the greatness of a champion. Many fighters dream with that opportunity, to fight the best and test themselves in the toughest sport that existed. Be great, be bold, be fair, and above all, be honest. Some will love you, others will hate you, but they will know who you really are. Fight this fight in a way that will be unforgettable to those who had the privilege to watch. I won't miss a second of this great match."

The interview after the call:

I think it was a wise and mature choice on Chael's part.

Did you see how many times Silva grabbed Chael's shorts? I thought it was borderline too much, but Chael said they al did it and did not seem to sweat it, but it looked like Anderson avoided 2 takedowns by grabbing Sonnen's shorts. Even without that, Silva would have won, imo, he is just that good and was better prepared for Sonnen.

So what's next for Silva, and Chael? I'd love to see Silva and GSP or Jon Jones. I think Chael should stay strong and keep fighting too. Dan Henderson I think can/will beat Jones, so him and Silva part 2 would be cool, and I think Henderson actually has a better chance of beating Silva than Jones, he has been dominant lately with huge mega-fighters.

I think Hector Lombard will be a force to reckon with also.
As always, thanks fro chiming in friend.

Peace,
spec

reply to post by speculativeoptimist

What kind of a martial arts fan are you anyway? How come me and you are the only one's here talking about it?

Ya man we seem to be like the only two people who watch mma on this site. I know there are more people out on this site who are into mma, but I suppose there just not all that chatty about it, that or they got themselves banned like Serizawa did. Me, I seem to be not watching or being in that scene or even just in general martial arts related activities in these days.

My mind just seems to be on other things more and more these days, and other then the Silva vs Sonnen fight I have not watched any other fights from that UFC card or really any fight in a while. I know there are a few fights I need to see and want to see, but I just seem to be all out of it or something. Maybe some other time I guess.

reply to post by galadofwarthethird

I hear ya bro, and I'm still grateful for your input and comradeship. MAn Hector was a big disappointment, but I still think he will be a force to reckon with. Maybe him and Chael can bang it out. I am not too excited about other cards this summer except Henderson and Jones. I really think Hendo can take Jones, but we will see.
Until next time man....