MMA Roundup: Silva-Sonnen 2, BJ Penn, King Mo

This has been a very busy week for MMA, and there is a lot to talk about, even without figuring in the events of last weekend and UFC 118 this Saturday night. This week on the Roundup we’ll talk about a rematch between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen, BJ Penn’s thoughts on judging, and “King Mo” Lawal’s immediate future.

Silva-Sonnen 2 to be Silva’s next title defense?

Dana White has all-but-confirmed that he has chosen a familiar face to be Anderson Silva’s next challenger…Chael Sonnen. White noted on SportsCenter while talking about Penn-Edgar 2 that he hates controversy and always wants to know who the best fighter in a weight class is, which would seem to be the prevailing reason for an immediate Silva-Sonnen rematch. Of course, Sonnen did get submitted, though he won the first 23 minutes of the fight and nearly did the unthinkable.

Predictably enough, Silva’s manager, Ed Soares, is not so hot on the idea. Here are his thoughts, as told to FightHype:

“I mean, I don’t necessarily think an immediate rematch is legitimate. It’s not like he won by decision. You got submitted, man. You were on top of him for 23 minutes of the fight and couldn’t finish him. Anderson got a few bumps and bruises, but let’s be realistic, you’re on a guy 23 minutes and you couldn’t finish him? Why should he get a rematch?”

I’m fine with Silva-Sonnen 2, though I’d also be fine with seeing a one-fight break before the two inevitably match up again, too. As much as I hate to say it, Soares does have a point in that Silva finished Sonnen. However, I think Sonnen is still the clear #2 fighter in the division, and deserves the shot more than Vitor Belfort does.

Penn not a fan of MMA’s judging system

You can add BJ Penn’s name to the seemingly never-ending list of objectors to the 10 point “must” judging system. Echoing many of my own thoughts on the subject, Penn had this to say to Sherdog.com:

“My problem with the scoring system is that you can go out and win the first round by 50 points and lose the second round by two points on a takedown or something and it’s an even fight going to the third round. That’s a joke. On another note, what good does a takedown do if I take down Demian Maia? How many points do I get if I mount on James Toney? It’s just ridiculous. I don’t think positions should be any points. The only things that should count as points are power punches and legitimate submission attempts. Add them up at the end of the fight and whoever has the most points or did the most damage wins. That’s how it should be. That 10-9 system doesn’t work.”

I really do see Penn’s points, here. For example, commentators love to point out how fighters can “steal” a round with a takedown in the last ten or fifteen seconds. How so? A takedown simply changes where the fight takes place (except for a slam, obviously). If you take a guy down only for the round to end right after, or if you take him down and he stands back up before you can do anything, why should that factor in?

More than anything, though, I agree with Penn’s points on the limitations of the 10-9 system. Rounds are rarely scored as 10-8 rounds, and 10-10 rounds are even more rare. That means that, like Penn said, a decisive round is worth just the same as a round that could have gone either way. Something’s gotta give here. I still think that the use of half-points and a wider variety of scores is the best way to go if we’re going to stick with round-based scoring.

King Mo to undergo knee surgery

Next week, former Strikeforce light heavyweight champ “King Mo” Lawal will undergo knee surgery after injuring his knee during a loss to Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante last weekend.

Apparently, King Mo injured both his ACL and PCL ligaments during the fight, and will be out for about nine months following the procedure. In other news regarding the fight, King Mo admitted that he “got dumb” when he was caught up in striking with his opponent, largely abandoning his wrestling abilities in the process.

King Mo should still be a very good light heavyweight, and you have to give him his props for not using the injury as an excuse to explain his loss, also.

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Tags: Anderson Silva, BJ Penn, Chael Sonnen, Muhammed Lawal, Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante, Strikeforce, UFC