Wanderlei Silva sends Cung Le back to the movies

I can’t read minds, but as Cung Le was shown on the pay-per-view broadcast in the dressing room, looking over his face and shaking his head, I thought I knew what he was thinking: “What am I doing here?”

Le, who clearly does not have the burning desire to compete that he once did and whose love of making Hollywood films and eating cookies is well documented, was administered a nasty beatdown by a full-time fighter on Saturday night.

Please don’t misunderstand me; making movies and eating cookies are not bad things. They are splendid activities that I would almost surely enjoy more than fighting in the Octagon, as well. However, it can’t be denied that Le simply doesn’t need to be fighting at this point in his life, and his bout with the bloodthirsty Wanderlei Silva only served to bolden and underline that point.

For Le, it was a reminder that you can’t be half-in and half-out at this level of MMA. For Silva and his fans, it was a rejuvenating moment that provided, at the very least, another vintage “Axe Murderer” highlight. For me, it was a humbling reminder that I have no idea what I’m talking about.

I’m happy to eat crow, though, if said crow happens to be watching Wanderlei Silva knee dudes’ heads off like it’s 2003. What else can be said about Silva at this point? Sure, he’s got a glass ceiling at this point in his career, but the champion is Anderson Silva- who at 185 doesn’t have a glass ceiling? The best thing that I can say about Silva’s performance is that he had friends of mine who have seen dozens of UFC events both cringing and unable to look away in the waning moments of the bout. That’s vintage Wanderlei Silva right there.

Welcome to the UFC, Urijah Faber

Speaking of vintage performances, we finally got Urijah Faber’s first truly dominating effort in the UFC on Saturday night, and it’s been a long time coming. Though the bantamweight and featherweight classes have provided some great fights already since the WEC folded into the UFC, many of the best performers in each weight class- Faber, Miguel Torres, Mike Brown, even Jose Aldo- had yet to show non-WEC fans what they’re all about. Now, you can cross Faber off that list.

This is the kind of performance against a quality opponent that can get Faber in line for another crack at Dominick Cruz. Sure, Cruz handled Faber last time, but if Faber can keep fighting like the WEC version of himself, fans will be clamoring for another Faber-Cruz fight in no time.

Quick Shots

–Welcome back, Ryan Bader.

–One of the best ways to sum up Stephan Bonnar is like this: no matter who his opponent is, if they don’t come ready to fight, they’re going to have a tough go at it. Also, that decision loss to Jon Jones isn’t looking so bad, is it? Jones has fought Jake O’Brien, Matt Hamill, Brandon Vera, Vladimir Matyushenko, Ryan Bader, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson since fighting Bonnar, and who’s the last one to go the distance with Jones? Bonnar.

–I was a bit disappointed with Joe Rogan on Saturday night, who I usually think does a great job, especially when it comes to holding officials accountable. However, he was quiet as can be regarding the lack of a 10-8 fifth round in the Shogun-Henderson fight, not calling it into question afterward or directly bringing it up in the post-fight interviews. Yet, he managed to question the perfectly rational Silva-Le stoppage, saying right away that it was a bad stoppage even though replays showed that Le had lost his grip on Silva’s legs and was no longer “going for a takedown”, as Rogan put it, when the fight was stopped. It was a good stoppage, and I think Rogan would have seen that had he not rushed to judgement.

Say What?!?

I’m sorry! I’m sorry!- Stephan Bonnar, apologizing to the “fans” afterward because he wasn’t able to do what none of them could do: finish Kyle Kingsbury.

There are no words to indicate how much I hate seeing fighters apologize to ADD-riddled, drunken, booing fans after a fight that wasn’t even that dull to begin with. My position on the matter is well documented, but here’s the Cliff Notes version: the booing idiots in the stands aren’t going to chip in and pay Bonnar his win bonus if he gets knocked out while trying to have an exciting fight rather than just getting the win.

I get it- the prelims were ridiculous, with finish after finish, and then Bonnar-Kingsbury was fought at a much more measured pace. However, haven’t we gotten to the point where we don’t boo and whine like children when a fight isn’t an instant classic? And furthermore, Bonnar should know better than to encourage that kind of stupidity. Kudos to referee Dan Stell, though, for not succumbing to the pressure from the fans and unnecessarily standing up the fight when the boos started to fill the air. Many referees would have made that mistake, but Stell didn’t.

The Sound of Violence Award

“Working for the Weekend” by Loverboy is an inspired choice for Kyle Kingsbury. Sure, it’s not going to get you pumped up to scrap, and yeah, most of the people in the crowd will think you’ve gone nuts, but at least a couple of 80′s music lovers somewhere in Iowa will be impressed with the choice.

Beautiful Loser Award

This clearly goes to Shogun, although perhaps it shouldn’t since that fight was just as clearly a draw. But hey, history is sometimes written by the incompetent, and Shogun won the last two rounds of that five-round bout by a score of 20-17. He showed tremendous heart after being hurt multiple times and nearly stopped once, and even though Dan Henderson’s cardio isn’t exactly legendary, I was surprised that Shogun outlasted him in that regard.

Movin’ On Up Award

This is a tie for the two uber-prospects whose talents were on display on the prelims Saturday night, Michael McDonald and Chris Weidman. McDonald’s finish was more explosive, but Weidman was in there with a crafty veteran in Tom Lawlor, and showed great technical skill in finishing Lawlor with a nicely executed brabo choke. These two are certainly future top ten fighters, and possibly even future champions.

Holy $#!% Award

This rather obviously goes to Shogun and Hendo for their otherworldly efforts in the main event, though there were plenty of other deserving moments. Though Shogun outlasted Henderson, Hendo found Shogun with his lethal right hand many times and even overcame adversity by recovering when he was hurt a couple of times and surviving a grueling round five, much of which saw him underneath the stifling mount of Shogun. And though Shogun somehow lost the decision, to win the last two rounds clearly after nearly being finished in the third (and moreover, to win the last minute and a half of a round where you were a hair away from being stopped) shows great determination and heart.

That being said, I don’t think either of these guys have anything for Jon Jones.

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Wanderlei ‘The Axe Murderer’ Silva talks about his round 2 TKO win over Cung Le at UFC 139.

Here’s the full UFC 139 post-fight press conference.

Following Fighters were awarded $70,000 bonuses:

Fight of the Night: Wanderlei Silva vs. Cung Le and Mauricio Rua vs. Dan Henderson
Knockout of the Night: Michael McDonald
Submission of the Night: Urijah Faber

As always, all rankings cited are those of Fightmania.com.

Stephan Bonnar vs. Kyle Kingsbury

Bonnar has carved out a career as a hard-working, gutsy fighter who is a jack of all trades, but a master of none. In that way, he’s kind of a poor man’s Forrest Griffin, though they differ in that Bonnar prefers a more classic boxing style than Griffin’s leg-kick heavy approach.

Meanwhile, Kingsbury has found a groove in the last three years, rattling off four straight wins in the Octagon. Bonnar may not only represent the stiffest test he’s faced, but the most recognizable name, as well. Pair that with the coveted main card slot this fight has received, and this represents a big opportunity for Kingsbury. Of course, it’s also a chance for Bonnar to further prove that he’s got plenty left in the tank, following impressive wins over Krzystof Soszynski and Igor Pokrajac.

Bonnar showed in the Soszynski fight that he can beat an opponent similar to Kingsbury, and you can expect him to use his solid standup technique and maybe even some wrestling to try to win this one. However, Kingsbury is very athletic and will likely win the wrestling battles if and when they occur. In the standup, it’s a lot closer of a battle, though Kingsbury has more power than his opponent.

In a fight like this one that could be very close, I like to look at who has the edge in strength, athleticism, and other areas. That makes me favor Kingsbury. Throw in that Bonnar is easily cut (and judges are easily swayed by cuts), and I can see Kingsbury taking a competitive decision.

Prediction: Kingsbury by decision

Martin Kampmann (#10 WW) vs. Rick Story

Story was the flavor of the month in the welterweight division after upsetting Thiago Alves at UFC 130, but a last-minute replacement took the wind out of his sails not much later, as Story lost to Charlie Brenneman. Brenneman was a bad style matchup, as his dogged determination to getting takedowns and superior wrestling put Story in a tough place throughout the fight. This matchup is a bit more favorable for Story, though Kampmann is a tough fighter, himself.

Kampmann has had to make a career out of fighting opponents who simply wanted to take him to the mat. This will be business as usual then, to an extent. Also, Kampmann has had two controversial losses in a row by split decision to Diego Sanchez and Jake Shields. If Story can beat Kampmann decisively, that’s another big feather in Story’s cap.

Kampmann will undoubtedly win the standup. Though he sometimes gets caught and doesn’t have the best defense, it’s doubtful that Story will use his rather basic standup fighting approach to do more than score points and lead into takedowns. Where this fight is decided is when Story shoots in on Kampmann. Can Kampmann stay off the mat? Sometimes he will, but I think Story gets enough takedowns to win a close one.

Prediction: Story by decision

Brian Bowles (#4 BW) vs. Urijah Faber (#2 BW)

Bowles may not be the big name in this matchup, but he’s got a lot going for him besides looking a lot like Dirk Diggler in “Boogie Nights”. His resume is dotted with quality wins (Miguel Torres, Damacio Page, Takeya Mizugaki) and just one loss (to Dominick Cruz, so no shame in that), and he’s got concussive power at 135 pounds that not only poses a danger to his opponents, but to his own hands as well.

He faces another guy who has had trouble with broken hands in the past in Faber. Faber, however, will not be looking to stand and trade for long. Very few men have been able to keep Faber at a distance for long, and he will use his wide hooks and overhand punches to close the distance for takedowns and clinches while trying to wear Bowles down and get him to the mat. If he does, Bowles will have an uphill battle against an opponent who has an uncanny ability to control, improve position, and submit in relatively short order.

Bowles may give Faber some scary moments, but I’ve got Faber here in a fight where he just out-wills an opponent like the Urijah Faber of old used to. This should be a great fight.

Prediction: Faber by submission

Cung Le vs. Wanderlei Silva

If this was the Silva of 5-6 years ago against a motivated, active Le, this would be a great fight. As it is, this is a fight that had me apprehensive from the word “go”. Silva has shown in his recent appearances that he simply can’t refine his style- at least, not for long. The moment he thinks he smells blood, he goes to the beast mode that made him great for so many years, but which now puts him at considerable risk whenever he fights.

Le is tailor-made for this fight, a pin-point striker and counter puncher who can keep his cool under pressure and pick his spots with patience, precision and just a bit of cruelty, to boot. Watch his fight against Tony Fryklund back in his Strikeforce days for a display of some of the most awe-inspiring striking you’re likely to see at this level, for instance. Le doesn’t just score points, though, he punishes opponents with his kicks.

I’m not going to go into a long recap of the last couple of years of Silva’s career, which have been hard to watch as a guy who was a big Wanderlei fan going back to the Pride days. We all know the story, and though it’s easy to look for reasons for optimism (the Bisping fight, the fact that Leben is one of the hardest punchers in the division), Silva is breaking down in front of our eyes and I have a hunch that this might not be pretty.

Le is a bit of an x-factor because of his inactivity and the fact that we’ve only seen him fight Scott Smith in the last three and a half years. However, Silva is an even bigger question mark due to concerns about his chin, his recent knee problems, and his all-or-nothing approach. I’d be happy to be wrong about this one, but I can’t simply pick Silva due to what he used to be or because I’d like to see him return to form.

Prediction: Le by KO/TKO

Dan Henderson (#5 LHW) vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (#3 LHW)

From one question mark to another, now we take a look at Shogun Rua, who has been a mixed bag since coming to the UFC in 2007. Sometimes he looks great, sometimes he looks awful, and many times he just looks okay. It’d be hard to pick anyone over Shogun if you knew he was going to be on top of his game, but who can predict that?

Then you have Dan Henderson, one of the more consistent fighters of all-time, and…well, you know where I’m going with this. Still, let’s go through with it and take a closer look, shall we?

Rua can fight one of two ways. He can come out and swarm on you, overwhelming you en route to an impressive victory, or take the space you give him and pick you apart (as many of us thought he did successfully in the first Lyoto Machida fight). Henderson is not going to allow him to do that, though. He’s a pressure fighter with a sturdy chin who can withstand the early storm and keep coming back. I don’t think Rua is necessarily a front-runner, but he does have a limited gas tank and tends to fade in the face of constant pressure. Being that this is a five-round fight, there’s even more reason to doubt Shogun here.

Henderson’s wrestling really presents an added bonus, here. Should he choose to, he can unquestionably take down Shogun at some point and win some favor with the judges. Shogun is a capable jiu-jitsu player, but Hendo is savvy enough to stay out of trouble while delivering some ground and pound. Then you have one of the most destructive weapons in the history of the sport, Hendo’s right hand. Shogun should, and probably will, look to keep Hendo at bay with consistent leg kicks, but that approach hasn’t slowed Hendo much in the past. This is a great fight, but Hendo is the better overall fighter and presents an approach that Shogun has struggled with in the past, which gives me enough reason to pick him.

Prediction: Henderson by decision

For ducking Chuck Liddell and finding every reason from their past friendship (which Liddell still says wasn’t that big of a deal) to injuries to movie commitments to settling the score with Ken Shamrock, the fans had begun to turn on Ortiz. Liddell and Couture were the talk of the UFC’s light heavyweight division, while Ortiz was an afterthought of sorts, despite still being the official champion of the weight class.

In the years to come, the sport would not be very kind to Ortiz. While his contemporaries experienced even greater levels of success, Ortiz floundered through injuries and underwhelming performances. Couture would win the title from Ortiz later in 2007 and go on to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship again, as well. Liddell would take the light heavyweight strap from Couture and go on to have more successful consecutive title defenses than anyone in the history of the division, including Ortiz. Silva would win the 2003 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix, beating Quinton “Rampage” Jackson brutally in the final round, then defeating him again the following year in an official title defense.

Meanwhile, Ortiz would win five straight after consecutive losses to Couture and Liddell, but they weren’t the most impressive wins. One was against Patrick Cote, an inexperienced true middleweight; two more were against an aging Ken Shamrock. His two wins against reputable competitors were both by narrow split decisions, as he got the nod over Vitor Belfort and Forrest Griffin. After that? He went five straight years without a win as a second TKO loss to Liddell kicked off a long slide.

Fast forward to last Saturday night. Tito came in as a heavy underdog against Ryan Bader, a top ten light heavyweight who appeared to be better than Ortiz at most facets of MMA. With greater athleticism, a better wrestling pedigree and heavy hands, the fight seemed to be a bad matchup for Ortiz from the get-go. However, we all know what happened, as Ortiz cracked Bader with a short right hand and tapped him out with an arm-in guillotine in just a couple of minutes.

Meanwhile, the formerly dominant Silva competed on the same card and was knocked out by Chris Leben in just 27 seconds. Couture and Liddell? They’re both retired now and watched from the audience as Ortiz soundly defeated a very talented young light heavyweight fighter.

Who would have thought that of those four current or future Hall of Fame light heavyweights, Ortiz would be the last to have any sort of relevancy? Who would have thought that when Ortiz was struggling with multiple back surgeries and lethargic performances? Who would have thought that when Ortiz was losing decisively to the likes of Matt Hamill at UFC 121?

Love him or hate him, you have to admit that Ortiz has fought through a lot to get to this point. I don’t know of any fighter of his stature that has probably gone through more in the late stages of his career and rebounded to this level. From having the fans turn on him and becoming one of the most-jeered fighters in MMA to going five long years without having his hand raised, Ortiz has had a lot to fight through in recent years. Let’s not forget the multiple surgeries and even the personal issues with former girlfriend Jenna Jameson, as well.

Sure, a lot of the stuff Ortiz has gone through has been because of his own actions and decisions, but it’s still a lot to come back from. I think that’s why there’s a resurgence right now in his popularity, as many fans have gotten caught up in Ortiz’s improbable win last Saturday night. Maybe for many of us, it’s just fun to see one of the last guys from that old era of MMA actually enjoying a little success. No matter what though, even those who aren’t Tito fans should agree that he’s got a little more in the tank than we had thought. And even if his win last Saturday turns out to be his last in the UFC, it was both surprising and impressive to see that he had outlasted some of his fellow greats, after all.

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Okay, well, if you ask me, our 24-hour news cycle where events that happened just five days ago are “old news” has gotten out of hand. No? That one not working for you either?

At any rate, let’s get right into my thoughts on UFC 132:

Faber plays Cruz’s game and loses

Throughout the Cruz-Faber bantamweight title bout on Saturday, I just kept thinking one thing over and over: “Why is Faber playing Cruz’s game?”

As Cruz danced, Faber danced with him. Several times when Faber had managed to close the distance, he was the one to finally break away and establish that distance again. To me, it seemed strange when the better strategy would seem to be to chase Cruz down and keep on him. Now, we did see Faber stick to his takedown attempts as long as he could and was tenacious throughout in trying to get Cruz to the mat. However, when you look at the overall fight, it was really just another Dominick Cruz fight. So far, no one has been able to get in there, break up Cruz’s rhythm and stop him from doing what he wants to do.

I was surprised to say the least to see Faber’s reaction to the decision. Some of the rounds were close, but the only clear rounds in the fight belonged to Cruz, so how did Faber think he was going to be named the winner? Perhaps it’s just different when you’re actually in there, but landing some of the most powerful shots matters little when your opponent recovers instantly and still out-lands you almost 2:1 throughout the fight.

There are some other things that probably help Cruz out with the judges, too. His style itself is a very active one, and he tends to throw a lot of strikes while moving in and out, which presents itself to the judges in a way that makes him get a lot of credit in the areas of Octagon control and aggression, alike. His opponent can’t do a whole lot other than just chase him around in order to counter that impression, either.

What will somebody have to do to take Cruz out of his comfort zone? I really don’t know. I think that staying on him and closing the distance whenever possible is a start, and I think that style would be a good fit for Faber, who has a nearly-unlimited gas tank and good wrestling skills. Nobody’s saying it will be easy, but I’d like to see Faber give a better go at it than he did last weekend.

Should Wanderlei Silva be done?

My first thought upon seeing perhaps my favorite fighter of all-time, Wanderlei Silva face-down on the mat eating a barrage of left hands from Chris Leben was that he should be done for good. After all, contemporary thinking is that once a fighter in his 30′s has been put out the way that Silva has multiple times- by Cro Cop, by Dan Henderson, by Rampage Jackson and now by Leben- it’s time to call it a day.

However, look at that list again. Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic was one of the most feared strikers ever in MMA during his run from 2002 to 2006. Henderson’s ridiculous power is well-documented. Rampage is one of the hardest hitters in the light heavyweight division, period. Leben is also one with very heavy hands.

I’m not saying that I wouldn’t understand if Silva decided to call it quits, but I don’t think it’s necessarily a travesty if he decides not to, either. Just as with Chuck Liddell, I’m going to give a living legend the benefit of the doubt until I see something really bad, as when Liddell was clipped by a short Rich Franklin punch that he would have shrugged off five years ago and was knocked out.

For now, if Wandy wants to fight, give him Yoshihiro Akiyama. Give him Demian Maia. Later on down the line, give him “Mayhem” Miller or even Bisping again. I think that since Wanderlei is several fights away from true title contention, if he wants to fight and the fans want to see him, we might as well put him against some of the many middleweights in the UFC that don’t pack concussive power in both hands. If Akiyama or Maia clip him and knock him out cold, then fine. His chin is gone, he needs to go.

In the meantime, the greatest threat to Silva’s career is his technique. Aggressiveness is one thing, but the bad habits that Silva has accumulated are quite another. Swinging wildly (and widely) with your chin up in the air isn’t a good idea for any fighter, and I’m kind of surprised it didn’t catch up to Wanderlei earlier. Now, I don’t want Wanderlei to be less aggressive, but could he go for the kill with his chin down and with the occasional straight punch or leg kick thrown in for good measure? It’s just too easy for fighters to counter such a predictable strategy these days.

Quick Shots

–Everyone’s talking about how Tito Ortiz hadn’t won a fight in five years before he beat Ryan Bader, but I think the more impressive stat is this: before Saturday night, Ortiz hadn’t finished anyone by KO, TKO or submission that wasn’t named “Ken Shamrock” since June of 2001. That’s over ten years! It has to suck to be Ryan Bader right now. I feel for the guy, actually. He’s still going to be a very good fighter and a long-time contender, but nobody wants to be the guy that gives Tito his mojo back.

–I’ll have more on Tito later this week, but for now, should we get excited about Ortiz being better than we thought? I say probably not. It was a great win, and it reminds us that a fighter like Ortiz can beat just about anyone at any given time, but it’s not like we’re going to see Ortiz knocking people down and submitting them regularly. If Ortiz had out-boxed Bader for several minutes and taken him down at will, I’d have said that we’re seeing a resurgence. But in a fight that quick and that included Ortiz’s first knockdown from a standing punch since- ever? I don’t know, but it’s been a long time- in a fight like that, you can’t really take anything away from it in regard to Ortiz being better than we thought. I think he still is who he is and he’ll continue to be competitive, but he still has a lot of challenges ahead to worry about.

–Kudos to Carlos Condit, Melvin Guillard and Rafael dos Anjos for their great knockouts against Dong Hyun Kim, Shane Roller and George Sotiropoulos, respectively. All deserve more attention than they’ve gotten, but they were unfortunately on a card that featured Ortiz’s crazy upset win, a great five-round title fight and Leben putting Wanderlei to sleep in 27 seconds. Of the three, I did like Condit’s the best. What a beautiful flying knee and great instincts to finish. Condit should be a fight away from a title shot at this point. Guillard should be close, too.

You Stay Classy

Urijah Faber was called “gracious in defeat” by announcer Mike Goldberg even though he spent his entire post-fight interview with Joe Rogan saying that he thought he won his fight with Dominick Cruz.

Why You Don’t Bet on MMA

Is there any doubt? Tito Ortiz was a massive +400 underdog when he got in the cage with Ryan Bader, which meant that betting $100 would earn you $400 if he won. How many journalists or fighters went on record predicting Ortiz to win, exactly? And what happened? Short right hook/uppercut, guillotine, tap.

The Sound of Violence Award

This goes to Urijah Faber for his longtime walkout song “California Love” by the late 2Pac, even if it’s kind of a Julia Roberts/Denzel Washington/Karl Malone-style lifetime achievement award situation. I’m not really a fan of the song, but it fits and I appreciate that he uses it each and every time. It’s cool when fighters like Faber, Matt Hughes (“Country Boy Can Survive”) or Mike Brown (“Simple Man”) find something that works and fits for them and go on to make it their own.

The Bob Seger “Beautiful Loser” Award

This event’s most impressive loser was Matt Wiman, who many thought deserved to win his bout with Dennis Siver, which went to Siver by unanimous decision. I don’t really have a problem with the decision, but Wiman did look okay against an opponent who is just outside the lightweight top ten right now.

Movin’ On Up Award

It could be Guillard, but I’ll go with Condit instead. Condit is right in position for a welterweight title shot, and should receive one following the much anticipated Georges St. Pierre-Nick Diaz fight this October. If I was Condit and I had the choice, I would not fight in the meanwhile and instead focus on improving my all facets of my game (especially wrestling) while awaiting such a tough challenge.

Holy Crap Award

This is a no-brainer and goes to Tito Ortiz for resurrecting his career, avoiding the UFC chopping block and returning to the “W” column against a very tough opponent in Ryan Bader. How many people really expected the fight to go that way? (Okay, put your hand down, Tito, you don’t get to vote.) See? Exactly.

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Even Tito Ortiz got in on the action! Yes, Tito Ortiz.

In the night’s only title fight, though, Cruz showed off his once-novel, now familiar style in a five-round win over Faber, who seemed all too content to play Cruz’s game throughout the fight. Both had their moments, but in the end there are probably few that would disagree that Cruz won at least three of the five rounds. The unanimous decision victory ensured that Cruz’s title reign, which is looking more dominant all the time, would continue on.

Most of the talk will surround the other fights, though, especially two bouts that featured a couple of the best light heavyweight fighters in MMA’s short history, Wanderlei Silva and Tito Ortiz.

Silva competes at middleweight these days, of course, and the weight difference and changed appearance due to surgery that removed scar tissue above his eyes (and fixed his nose, to boot) aren’t the only things different about him. He made it just 27 seconds against Chris Leben, a fighter who is solid enough but wouldn’t have lasted a ten-minute round with the Wanderlei Silva that was terrorizing Japan years ago.

Leben, like many of Silva’s opponents these days, was undeterred by Silva’s mystique and clipped him behind the ear early on, visibly wobbling the former Pride Middleweight Champion. Silva reacted by going to what he’s most comfortable with: the Thai clinch. Before he could ever get his hands secured behind Leben’s head, though, Leben was firing away with crisp uppercuts that easily found their mark on the groggy legend, who face-planted as a result. Follow-up shots sealed the deal as Silva was knocked out once again in ugly fashion.

Ortiz fared much better against a legitimate top ten fighter in Ryan Bader, as he was able to land a short right uppercut of his own that hurt the younger fighter, then choke him out for the submission in round one of their fight. The uppercut, which was thrown at an angle and was almost a half-hook, half-uppercut landed flush and rocked Bader. Then, Ortiz followed him to the ground and when Bader went for the desperation takedown, the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” cinched on a guillotine choke. Bader had one arm in, but still had to tap several seconds later as he was trapped in Ortiz’s guard.

The other finish on the main card belonged to Carlos Condit, who was able to knock out Dong Hyun Kim in their bout. If Leben’s KO of Silva was hard to watch, Condit’s was easier on the eyes, as he kicked things off with a beautiful flying knee that tagged Kim. Kim ended up sitting with his back on the cage and Condit was all over him, throwing lefts and rights that left him unable to defend himself, then unable to retain consciousness, as well. Kim showed an eagerness to work his gameplan and hit takedowns early on, but he wasn’t able to stick around long enough to put Condit on the defensive.

The other main card bout pitted Dennis Siver against Matt Wiman, who worked hard throughout for takedowns and control but ultimately lost a unanimous decision. Siver fought well, though he wasn’t as impressive as in his win against George Sotiropoulos. At one point in the second round, Wiman had opened up two cuts on the forehead of Siver, both of which were bleeding heavily, but Siver pushed through it and did enough off of his back and standing up to get the “W”.

On the preliminary card, Melvin Guillard added another highlight-reel knockout to his total against Shane Roller, who Guillard tagged with an uppercut and left hook that put him down, then a knee that hurt him again as he was getting up. A perfect left hand to Roller after he fell to his back put him away for good and gave Guillard another win. George Sotiropoulos was the victim of a knockout in his fight against Rafael dos Anjos, as dos Anjos clipped him less than a minute into their fight, causing Yves Lavigne to get in and stop the fight quickly.

Elsewhere on the prelims, Brian Bowles and Aaron Simpson took one-sided decisions over Takeya Mizugaki and Brad Tavares, respectively. Anthony Njokuani dominated Andre Winner and had long stretches where he landed unanswered blows, but was unable to finish Winner and settled for a unanimous decision. In the first fight of the night, Jeff Hougland showcased several submission attempts during his unanimous decision victory over Donny Walker.

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Here’s the preview of UFC 132: Cruz vs. Faber event which will be held on July 2, 2011 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Main card

Dominick Cruz vs. Urijah Faber
Wanderlei Silva vs. Chris Leben
Tito Ortiz vs. Ryan Bader
Carlos Condit vs. Dong Hyun Kim
Dennis Siver vs. Matt Wiman

Preliminary card

Melvin Guillard vs. Shane Roller
George Sotiropoulos vs. Rafael dos Anjos
Brian Bowles vs. Takeya Mizugaki
Brad Tavares vs. Aaron Simpson
Nigeria Anthony Njokuani vs. Andre Winner

>>> Discount UFC 132 Tickets <<<

And so it begins…

This week, our first story on the Roundup is the brewing rivalry between former training partners Jon Jones and Rashad Evans. Turns out that Jones has been talking about his training experiences with Evans to the media, most notably ESPN.com’s Josh Gross. Jones told Gross that “We fought each other in practice. A finish has been possible several times and it has always been me finishing him. I never did it out of respect that he was the elder of the school. It’s against protocol in a way. Some people would do it but I believe in tradition.”

There are some theories floating around, including from the mouth of the UFC’s own Joe Rogan, that Jones knows exactly what he’s doing with his remarks and that he’s playing Evans to get him upset. If you look at Evans’ Twitter responses, it’s clear that it’s working:

“@jonnybones must b high! Cuz remember him looking at me begging me 2 let him up cuz he couldn’t get back 2 his feet in training..”

“@Jonnybones it’s been on!! Get off your own fan bus cuz nobody is driving!! U ain’t as raw as u believe & I’m gonna show ya!!”

“@jonnybones u ain’t forgot what I can do 2 u! Dont believe your hype! As your coaches! I’m gonna introduce the world 2 the real u!”

“he is fake! The fighting is off the hook but as a person he is fake!”

And so on. Rashad even noticed a striking similarity between Jones’ choice of attire on The Tonight Show and a suit that he had previously worn himself.

Now, this “fake” thing has been going around about Jones, particularly that he’s not as humble as he claims. However, he himself isn’t running around calling himself humble. He’s a very confident person and he is apparently adept at playing mental games with opponents, as well. Sure, he’s done some good deeds that have gotten publicity, but there’s nothing saying that because you helped out a single mom that you’re above busting a dude in the face or talking a little crap to another fighter.

For whatever reason, Jones seems to get under a lot of people’s skin, most notably that of many fans and now, Rashad Evans.

Wake me up when one of these guys actually boxes

This may be a big story to a lot of people, but it’s a yawner to me. Let’s look at the archives, shall we? Vitor Belfort said he was going to box. Anderson Silva said he was going to box. Andrei Arlovski said he was going to box. Literally everybody from Kimbo Slice to Gegard Mousasi to King Mo Lawal has talked about taking up boxing. So you’ll excuse me if I’m not putting any money down on the chance of seeing Nick Diaz in a boxing ring in the near future.

Nonetheless, Cesar Gracie mentioned recently that they wanted to set up a match with Fernando Vargas, and more recently, Jeff Lacy has been mentioned as a possible opponent. The thing is, Gracie must have overstated their seriousness regarding this move, because Lacy says he hadn’t even been contacted by anyone about the fight.

““Honestly, I was a little stunned,” Lacy stated. “Nick has accomplished a great deal in mixed martial arts and is certainly one of the best in the sport, but getting in the ring with me for a boxing match is a path he needs to be very wary of taking. I’m willing to put it all on the line anytime, anywhere!” Lacy also went on to say that for the right money, he’d face Diaz in the cage, too. Could we see a two-part boxing/MMA matchup? I wouldn’t mind that, actually. Furthermore, a best of three with the deciding contest being a rochambeau style nut-kicking contest would do well on pay-per-view. Hell, do all three fights in one night, and in random order? Imagine the possibilities…what if the rochambeau part came first? Who could fight an MMA bout and a boxing match better while having severely bruised testicles?

Who are we kidding? This isn’t going to happen. It didn’t with all those other fighters, and it won’t with Diaz. Diaz believes that the money is better in boxing, but boxing is a lot like MMA: there’s not that much money in it unless you’re one of the best fighters in the world, and Diaz has a ways to go to prove that inside the squared circle. Also, put me down as someone who is confused by how Diaz complains about fighting too much, but wants to make more money. You get paid per fight, right? You made $175k disclosed for your last bout. Wouldn’t you want to fight more often and make that money more times per year? I’m sure sponsorships and other associated income pay more with more appearances, too. Sometimes you have to work more to make more money…that’s the way the world works for the rest of us, right?

UFC Rio starting to fill out, no opponent for Vitor

The UFC’s return to Brazil is starting to take shape, with Anderson Silva defending his middleweight title against Yushin Okami and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua facing Forrest Griffin in a fight I called for recently, as a matter of fact. Also on the card is going to be Thiago Tavares taking on Spencer Fisher in what will certainly be an entertaining fight, but one name that is still waiting for a dance partner is Vitor Belfort.

Belfort says that Lorenzo Fertitta told him it’s been hard to find him an opponent. Belfort wanted Wanderlei Silva, but Silva is fighting Chris Leben instead a month prior, having said that he would prefer to get his feet wet again before fighting such an important rematch after a long layoff.

It’ll be interesting to see how this card fills out. Will Belfort get an opponent? Will we get Royce Gracie or any other Brazilian legends on the card? With the fights already listed, it does look to be a good show in the making, and you can bet that there will be a lot more Brazilian names on the card before it’s all said and done. I don’t understand having Wanderlei fight Leben a month before instead of in Rio, but whatever.

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UFC 130 looking to be a huge card

Five fights were officially announced for UFC 130, and it may end up being the most stacked card of the year when it’s all said and done. First, you have the third bout between UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar and challenger Gray Maynard, who fought to an exciting draw in one of the best title fights in recent memory. That’s backed up by a bout between Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Thiago Silva, two of the more explosive fighters in the light heavyweight division. Both are looking to get into title contention, and this could end up being the type of brawl we haven’t seen from either man in recent bouts.

Frank Mir will return to action against Roy Nelson at UFC 130 as well, and despite Mir’s snoozefest with Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic, this is a compelling matchup where just about anything could happen. Then there are two of the more aggressive fighters in the sport, Wanderlei Silva and Thiago Alves. Wandy will face Brian Stann in what could end up being a fight of the year contender, and Thiago will take on the game Rick “The Horror” Story.

Five outstanding fights right off the bat. I’ll be the first to admit that last year had a few watered-down UFC cards (some of which turned out to be great even without name appeal), but this one should have everyone drooling.

Belfort believes fighters should face all comers

Vitor Belfort has an interesting perspective on the “friends fighting friends” controversy that is always present in MMA. As someone who was the recipient of some comments from Anderson Silva alluding to “loyalty” (or lack thereof, supposedly?) after initially taking the opportunity to fight Silva last year, he thinks that since MMA is a sport, fighters must be willing to face just about anyone.

“People want to see the best fighters fighting the best fighters. It’s hard. I know a lot of people take it personal, but what’s personal? People don’t recognize that. What’s loyalty? Loyalty is you taking care of your family. You being the guy that you preach that you are. Living the words that you say.”

It’s hard not to agree with Belfort, and if MMA is truly a sport, friends should be willing to compete against one another, right? But then again, it is a fight. I know that you could say that in many gyms, the type of sparring that takes place is about as intense as a fight, anyway, but the added presence of fans, the cameras, and all of the other intangibles does change things. Wanting to clock your training partner after he lands a solid leg kick in sparring is a bit different than wanting to beat him up in front of a pay-per-view audience and possibly get him cut from the UFC, right?

Then, there’s the issue that “friends” is a term that means different things to different people. Some fighters just won’t fight their closest friends, while others won’t fight anyone that’s in their entire gym, or even managed by the same agent. Still others don’t want to fight people that they trained with years ago, even if they aren’t exactly “BFF”s anymore (Tito, anyone?). Belfort makes a compelling argument, though: if MMA is a sport and you don’t have to be mad at someone or hate them in order to fight them, why can’t you compete against training partners or friends from the past or present?

Changes made to upcoming Strikeforce events

One of the most interesting upcoming Strikeforce bouts is not going to happen, unfortunately, as middleweight prospect Luke Rockhold won’t be able to face Tim Kennedy due to injury. Rockhold severely bruised his leg and foot in training and will need to take two to three weeks off to heal, according to sources verified by Sherdog.com. Also according to Sherdog, Strikeforce is trying to get slugger Melvin Manhoef to take Rockhold’s place.

Meanwhile, our friends at Sherdog also reported that Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos would probably not be facing Tarec Saffeidine on March 5′s Strikeforce: Feijao vs. Henderson card. No reason was given, but I’m surprised that Cyborg was even thinking of fighting a month after facing Nick Diaz in what wasn’t the longest fight, but was quite a war while it lasted.

Quick Shots

–Bellator has signed former UFC welterweight Ben Saunders, who will debut in the upcoming fourth season of the promotion, though not in the welterweight tournament. Saunders won three fights in a row to begin his UFC career, but was bounced after losing three out of four (including one to Jon Fitch on short notice).

–In other Bellator news, Zoila Frausto has confirmed that she will fight on the season’s debut episode on MTV2, which takes place March 5. What Frausto did not mention on her Twitter account is whether she will defend her title or move up to a more comfortable weight, as she had a lot of trouble making 115 pounds last season.

–Patrick Cote has a big fight coming up against a fellow UFC veteran Kalib Starnes that could help him pave his way back to the big show. Starnes wears the scarlet letter thanks to his non-performance against Nate Quarry that saw him scamper away for much of the fight, but is a tough opponent nonetheless. Cote is confident that he will win and be back in the UFC within the current year.

–Speaking of confidence, Paul Daley believes that Nick Diaz has it all wrong regarding their possible title matchup, which Diaz spoke about, saying he doesn’t respect Daley’s MMA skills. He points out that Nick “doesn’t have great takedowns” and says he believes he moves “three or four times as fast as anybody [Diaz has] fought in the past”. Hey, I like the confidence, and if Diaz doesn’t play a smart game standing up and work his way to the mat without taking a lot of shots, I can definitely see Daley cleaning his clock. He certainly can’t let Daley land the kind of shots he was content to absorb from Cyborg the other night. Of course, the fight is dependent upon Daley winning his next bout outside of Strikeforce, too.

E-Mail Jon Hartley