Once again the Canadian dream is quashed. At least for now. The UFC will not be coming to Canada in January, as previously stated by Dana White; it will hold it's first event of 2008 in Newcastle, England at UFC 80.
To a lot of Canadian fight fans, this is devastating. The UFC has been continuously promising Canadians an event to be held in Montreal but these plans keep running into road blocks. The first event in Montreal was supposed to be in April 2007 where Georges St. Pierre was supposed to defend his Welterweight title against Matt Serra. This was not to be as Dana White couldn't secure a free Saturday at the Bell Centre in Montreal during hockey season.
St. Pierre would lose in his bout against Serra in Houston, Texas.
But word came that Dana White and the UFC were once again toiling at the idea of bringing the UFC to Montreal; this time in October for UFC 77. This, whether it be rumour or fact, would not become a reality. The reality here is that St. Pierre would almost definitely have to headline an event held in Montreal - pretty much in his backyard. St. Pierre, however, hadn't fought since April and making him wait 6 months to fight again just didn't make sense. That, and the fact that hockey season starts in October and the Bell Centre's Saturday nights were taken.
Instead, St. Pierre would have his next fight in August against Josh Koscheck at UFC 74 in Vegas and UFC 77 would be held in Cincinnati, Rich Franklin's hometown. St. Pierre went on to dominate Koscheck for 3 rounds to win via unanimous decision.
After the fight, St. Pierre grabbed the mic from Joe Rogan just like he did after his fight with BJ Penn and made the public request to Dana White to bring the UFC to Montreal. "My people will go crazy!", said St. Pierre. During the post-fight press conference, Dana White told reporters that, yes, the UFC will be definitely be coming to Canada in 2008. He said that the event would most likely be in January. He then said that a January event in Montreal would mean that St. Pierre would most likely NOT be on the card.
St. Pierre is slated to fight the winner of the Serra-Hughes fight in December for the Welterweight title. That fight being in December would mean that neither Hughes nor Serra would be ready for a fight in January.
When I heard that the UFC might be coming to Canada in January I thought to myself "NOOOOOOOOO!" St. Pierre is huge in the UFC and is the biggest thing to come out of Quebec since Patrick Roy. A UFC event held in Montreal just didn't make sense to me without St. Pierre in the main event, let alone not being on the card altogether!
UFC's canadian debut (in Montreal, nonetheless) without St. Pierre would be like eggs without bacon...it just wouldn't be right.
The UFC, I believe, realized this and abandoned the thought of bringing a live event to Montreal in January. Some people might be disappointed, but really this is for the best. This means that there is still a chance that St. Pierre will fight for the title in Montreal.
Dana White said that he needs to secure a free Saturday at the Bell Centre during hockey season. Well there are two Saturdays in March that are open to whoever wants them. March 8th and March 29th are free! I am aware that this means that St. Pierre will have waited seven months since his fight with Koscheck to fight another opponent, but seven months is do-able; Hughes hasn't fought since March and will have not fought for nine months by the time he fights for the title in December.
A title fight in March will have given the winner of the December fight enough time off to recover from that fight and prepare for the next. I'm sure St. Pierre would gladly wait seven months to fight for the title instead of fighting someone else in a non-title bout in the next few months and then wait another few months to get a shot at the title. And so would I.
If the UFC comes to Montreal in March with St. Pierre vs the Serra-Hughes winner as the main event, I will be there with bells on! DANA WHITE MAKE IT HAPPEN!!! MARCH 8th or MARCH 29th...MAKE IT HAPPEN!!
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Liddell vs. Silva Finally a Reality
It's a fight years in the making. It's the fight that fight fans around the world have been waiting for. The biggest fight in Mixed Martial Arts history: Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell vs "The Axe Murderer" Wanderlei Silva has been inked for December at UFC 79:Nemesis.
The question that some people have been asking themselves is "Does this fight still have the impact that it had a year ago?" Liddell, some people think, has lost his edge and seems to be on the downhill slope to retirement. He has lost his last two fights; first by knockout to Quinton Jackson and most recently lost via split decision in a lackluster performance against Keith Jardine. With two consecutive losses, one might think that this fight shouldn't even take place since Liddell hasn't performed too well as of late.
But then again, neither has Silva. Silva is also under the gun after he, too, has lost his last two fights - both by knockout, nonetheless; First he was knocked out by the signature Cro Cop headkick, and lastly by Dan Henderson.
With these two both coming off back-to-back losses, my answer to the question is "Damn right this fight has impact! Damn right this fight should happen!"
Most people said the same thing about Keith Jardine getting a shot at Liddell and not Alexander, and look what happened there. There's no doubt in my mind that Alexander would have pummelled Liddell but Jardine did well also and ended up winning the fight - even knocked the former champ down! So who's to say that Liddell shouldn't get a shot at Silva. Silva, too, has lost two fights in a row and that's the bottom line. This fight makes sense.
Not to mention the fact that there sometimes exceptions to the rules; this exception being that the hype behind this fight far exceeds the requirement to give deserving fighters their just dues. Don't get me wrong; I believe that if a fighter has worked hard, has worked his way up the ladder, and has given exciting performances, that he should be given the fight he deserves.
But lets face it, if this fight doesn't happen now it may never happen. For example, say Dana puts this fight off until both Liddell and Silva have fought other opponents first. Worst case scenario is Liddell loses to his opponent and Silva beats his. Then what? There's no way the UFC can pit Liddell against Silva with Liddell coming off 3 consecutive losses and Silva on his way back to the top. It wouldn't make sense to anyone. So now's the time.
The timing right now still makes this fight a dream come true. We are going to see the former UFC and former PRIDE 205 pound champions going at it after both have lost 2 in a row. If it doesn't make sense now, it never will.
It's a fight that's been promised over and over again but never came to fruition. Let's just hope that it hasn't been destiny that was preventing this fight; if so, destiny might rear it's ugly head again and have one of these fighters become injured and force them to pull out of the fight.
I think that this fight is going to be spectacular. Two of the fight game's best strikers going toe to toe for the first time! I get chills just thinking of it. I'm counting down the days until December 29th when these two will finally "GET IT ON!"
The question that some people have been asking themselves is "Does this fight still have the impact that it had a year ago?" Liddell, some people think, has lost his edge and seems to be on the downhill slope to retirement. He has lost his last two fights; first by knockout to Quinton Jackson and most recently lost via split decision in a lackluster performance against Keith Jardine. With two consecutive losses, one might think that this fight shouldn't even take place since Liddell hasn't performed too well as of late.
But then again, neither has Silva. Silva is also under the gun after he, too, has lost his last two fights - both by knockout, nonetheless; First he was knocked out by the signature Cro Cop headkick, and lastly by Dan Henderson.
With these two both coming off back-to-back losses, my answer to the question is "Damn right this fight has impact! Damn right this fight should happen!"
Most people said the same thing about Keith Jardine getting a shot at Liddell and not Alexander, and look what happened there. There's no doubt in my mind that Alexander would have pummelled Liddell but Jardine did well also and ended up winning the fight - even knocked the former champ down! So who's to say that Liddell shouldn't get a shot at Silva. Silva, too, has lost two fights in a row and that's the bottom line. This fight makes sense.
Not to mention the fact that there sometimes exceptions to the rules; this exception being that the hype behind this fight far exceeds the requirement to give deserving fighters their just dues. Don't get me wrong; I believe that if a fighter has worked hard, has worked his way up the ladder, and has given exciting performances, that he should be given the fight he deserves.
But lets face it, if this fight doesn't happen now it may never happen. For example, say Dana puts this fight off until both Liddell and Silva have fought other opponents first. Worst case scenario is Liddell loses to his opponent and Silva beats his. Then what? There's no way the UFC can pit Liddell against Silva with Liddell coming off 3 consecutive losses and Silva on his way back to the top. It wouldn't make sense to anyone. So now's the time.
The timing right now still makes this fight a dream come true. We are going to see the former UFC and former PRIDE 205 pound champions going at it after both have lost 2 in a row. If it doesn't make sense now, it never will.
It's a fight that's been promised over and over again but never came to fruition. Let's just hope that it hasn't been destiny that was preventing this fight; if so, destiny might rear it's ugly head again and have one of these fighters become injured and force them to pull out of the fight.
I think that this fight is going to be spectacular. Two of the fight game's best strikers going toe to toe for the first time! I get chills just thinking of it. I'm counting down the days until December 29th when these two will finally "GET IT ON!"
Monday, October 22, 2007
Silvia Back To His Unanimous Decision Ways
"The winner by unanimous decision: Tim 'The Main-iac' Silvia!"
Is the CD skipping?
We've heard this many times before and it is exactly why Tim Silvia gets booed. He is not an exciting fighter. Sure he's finished opponents in the past, but he is slow and awkward and has been very boring to watch as of late. He said in a pre-fight interview that he wants to finish his opponents and that we'd see a different, more exciting Tim Silvia. For a guy who doesn't like to go to a decision, he has sure done it a lot lately.
If he would only let his hands go and use his kicks and knees in a more aggressive fashion, he could be one of the most exciting fighters to watch.
Right from the get-go Silvia clinched with Vera and pushed him into the cage. This was basically the entire fight. A lot of hugging and kissing and calling each other George. Vera seemed to be very frustrated at the way the fight was going; you could tell he wanted to get some distance and drop bombs, but Silvia would have none of it. Silvia seemed content to press Vera into the cage and pretty much lean on him the entire fight. Vera unable to move the monster that is Silvia, was stuck in this position, and as much as he wanted to stand and trade with Silvia, he couldn't get the big man off of him. Frustrating not only for him but frustrating for everyone watching. There is not a single person in the world who wanted to see these two hug it out against the cage for the entire fight.
Silvia doesn't impress me with his fighting skills. He is so dominant because he is so big. He's tall and heavy. His reach is enormous and there's few fighters who can deal with those traits. If he were a smaller man, Tim Silvia would not be at the top of the heavyweight division.
After the win, Silvia called out Cheick Kongo. This, in my opinion, was simply because he does not want to fight Minotauro. Silvia knows that Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is one of the best heavyweights in the world and would rather beat up Kongo on the ground than be beaten around by Nogeuira in a very Couture-esque fashion. Before Silvia's fight with Vera, there was much talk about the winner of the fight facing Nogeuira for the vacant heavyweight title. Tim most likely heard about this and decided it would be in his best interest to win a fight against a guy like Kongo who has no ground game. He wants to hype up a fight between him and Kongo to the point that the UFC decides it might be a good idea. Tim Silvia will beat Cheick Kongo, there's no doubt in my mind. Silvia will only finish Kongo if he takes him down and pounds him out. If the fight is left standing, it will be much like Silvia vs Vera or Kongo vs Cro Cop. Either way, I don't like the prospect of this fight. This is Tim's way of saving his own ass so that he doesn't go 1-2 in his last 3 fights; although I don't believe that that type of record would push Tim Silvia out of the UFC, it would severely hurt his chance for another shot at that title he craves so badly.
Vera, on the other hand, will fight anyone the UFC puts in front of him; his opponent at UFC 77 for example. Vera is the real deal. If Vera hadn't broken his left hand in the first round of the fight, he could have quite possibly won that fight. I believe he took round 2; broken hand and all. Round 3 I gave to Silvia, but Vera didn't throw much in the third. He seemed tentative and a little concerned about throwing combinations. Had he been able to fight without the worries of a broken hand, he most likely would have taken round 3. For a guy who's been out of the fight scene for nearly a year, he showed no signs of rust. Vera will be back very soon and will be, in the words of Tim Silvia, "someone to be reckoned with".
Vera vs. Gonzaga in the future? I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Is the CD skipping?
We've heard this many times before and it is exactly why Tim Silvia gets booed. He is not an exciting fighter. Sure he's finished opponents in the past, but he is slow and awkward and has been very boring to watch as of late. He said in a pre-fight interview that he wants to finish his opponents and that we'd see a different, more exciting Tim Silvia. For a guy who doesn't like to go to a decision, he has sure done it a lot lately.
If he would only let his hands go and use his kicks and knees in a more aggressive fashion, he could be one of the most exciting fighters to watch.
Right from the get-go Silvia clinched with Vera and pushed him into the cage. This was basically the entire fight. A lot of hugging and kissing and calling each other George. Vera seemed to be very frustrated at the way the fight was going; you could tell he wanted to get some distance and drop bombs, but Silvia would have none of it. Silvia seemed content to press Vera into the cage and pretty much lean on him the entire fight. Vera unable to move the monster that is Silvia, was stuck in this position, and as much as he wanted to stand and trade with Silvia, he couldn't get the big man off of him. Frustrating not only for him but frustrating for everyone watching. There is not a single person in the world who wanted to see these two hug it out against the cage for the entire fight.
Silvia doesn't impress me with his fighting skills. He is so dominant because he is so big. He's tall and heavy. His reach is enormous and there's few fighters who can deal with those traits. If he were a smaller man, Tim Silvia would not be at the top of the heavyweight division.
After the win, Silvia called out Cheick Kongo. This, in my opinion, was simply because he does not want to fight Minotauro. Silvia knows that Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is one of the best heavyweights in the world and would rather beat up Kongo on the ground than be beaten around by Nogeuira in a very Couture-esque fashion. Before Silvia's fight with Vera, there was much talk about the winner of the fight facing Nogeuira for the vacant heavyweight title. Tim most likely heard about this and decided it would be in his best interest to win a fight against a guy like Kongo who has no ground game. He wants to hype up a fight between him and Kongo to the point that the UFC decides it might be a good idea. Tim Silvia will beat Cheick Kongo, there's no doubt in my mind. Silvia will only finish Kongo if he takes him down and pounds him out. If the fight is left standing, it will be much like Silvia vs Vera or Kongo vs Cro Cop. Either way, I don't like the prospect of this fight. This is Tim's way of saving his own ass so that he doesn't go 1-2 in his last 3 fights; although I don't believe that that type of record would push Tim Silvia out of the UFC, it would severely hurt his chance for another shot at that title he craves so badly.
Vera, on the other hand, will fight anyone the UFC puts in front of him; his opponent at UFC 77 for example. Vera is the real deal. If Vera hadn't broken his left hand in the first round of the fight, he could have quite possibly won that fight. I believe he took round 2; broken hand and all. Round 3 I gave to Silvia, but Vera didn't throw much in the third. He seemed tentative and a little concerned about throwing combinations. Had he been able to fight without the worries of a broken hand, he most likely would have taken round 3. For a guy who's been out of the fight scene for nearly a year, he showed no signs of rust. Vera will be back very soon and will be, in the words of Tim Silvia, "someone to be reckoned with".
Vera vs. Gonzaga in the future? I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Silva the Sniper
It may have took a little longer this time around, but the UFC Middleweight Championship bout was an instant replay of the one that took place just over a year ago.
Silva, once again, dominated Rich Franklin in very impressive fashion. This guy is unbelievable. Silva has left no doubt in my mind that he is the deadliest striker in the UFC. His strikes are as accurate as a shot taken by a sniper and are just as deadly. He connected with pin point accuracy with everything in his arsenal; punches, knees, kicks, spinning backfists, spin kicks, etc...Silva threw everything but the kitchen sink at Franklin and made short work of the former champ.
Franklin fought off the attempted clinch early on and faired OK during the first minute of the match; this due to the fact that Silva's first strike came nearly 55 seconds after the opening bell. Franklin worked his kicks and used a good double jab to keep Silva from teeing off; however, Silva was a lion waiting in the grass to make his move. Silva started throwing some punches and went for the clinch. Franklin fought this off quite well and when the two were battling it out against the cage, Franklin scored a takedown. Silva wasn't on his back long though and soon was back to his feet. Once "The Spider" was up and standing again, he began to unload in spectacular fashion and dropped the former champ at the bell.
Franklin had to be carried to his corner and at this point anyone watching the fight knew that it was only a matter of time. By the look in Franklin's eyes, you could see that he, too, knew he was finished.
He came out firing, though, in the second. This aggressive push didn't last long as Silva once again opened his bag of tricks and unleashed a ferocious barrage of strikes that crumpled Franklin. After a couple of shots to the downed Franklin, Big John stopped the fight and Silva remained the champ.
With such a decisive win, one must ask "Is there anyone out there who can even compete with Silva?" Silva is on a totally different level than any other fighter in the 185 pound class. The UFC's middleweight division has lost its appeal now that it only consists of Silva beating Franklin and Franklin beating everyone else.
There is one other fighter who might give Silva a run for his money and that's Dan Henderson, the PRIDE 185 pound champion. Henderson, however, would rather fight at light heavyweight which doesn't cause me any grief because there are a lot of interesting fights that could potentially take place with Henderson at Light Heavyweight. Although, I would eventually like to see him come down to middleweight for a fight with Silva and another title unification bout.
The second loss to Silva poses Rich Franklin with a huge problem; he can beat anyone in the division other than Silva. So what does a fighter do when he can beat everyone else but can't beat the champ? The only decision I can see Franklin making is to move back up to Light Heavyweight. This division is stacked with talent and there is no shortage of great oppenents for Franklin to fight. Silva is just a terrible style matchup for Franklin and is simply just better than Rich. Although, this move will leave the middleweight division with even less legitimate fighers, I believe that there is nowhere else for Franklin to go.
Silva is also posed with a problem; there is no one who can even be considered a challenge for him. With no threats to his title, he may become a 2-fight-a-year fighter or even worse, 1 fight a year. So until Georges St. Pierre wins the Welterweight title, dominates the division for a few more years and decides to move up to middleweight, Anderson Silva, like Franklin, is in limbo.
As long as no new legitimate contenders come out of the wood work, Anderson Silva will dominate this division for a very long time and will no doubt become bored and begin searching for a decent challenge. In my opinion his only option will also be to move up to Light Heavyweight. This would be the icing on the cake for a division that's already stacked with talent. Could you imagine Anderson Silva vs Chuck Liddell, or Anderson Silva vs Shogun, Silva vs. Alexander, Silva vs. Silva??
This would, however, leave the middleweight division completely empty of elite fighters, but would at least give the rest of the division a shot at a title, and would make for more interesting fights at middleweight.
The result of the main event at UFC 77 has left the middleweight division in disarray and has left the rest of the fighters in the division rethinking their career plans.
Silva, once again, dominated Rich Franklin in very impressive fashion. This guy is unbelievable. Silva has left no doubt in my mind that he is the deadliest striker in the UFC. His strikes are as accurate as a shot taken by a sniper and are just as deadly. He connected with pin point accuracy with everything in his arsenal; punches, knees, kicks, spinning backfists, spin kicks, etc...Silva threw everything but the kitchen sink at Franklin and made short work of the former champ.
Franklin fought off the attempted clinch early on and faired OK during the first minute of the match; this due to the fact that Silva's first strike came nearly 55 seconds after the opening bell. Franklin worked his kicks and used a good double jab to keep Silva from teeing off; however, Silva was a lion waiting in the grass to make his move. Silva started throwing some punches and went for the clinch. Franklin fought this off quite well and when the two were battling it out against the cage, Franklin scored a takedown. Silva wasn't on his back long though and soon was back to his feet. Once "The Spider" was up and standing again, he began to unload in spectacular fashion and dropped the former champ at the bell.
Franklin had to be carried to his corner and at this point anyone watching the fight knew that it was only a matter of time. By the look in Franklin's eyes, you could see that he, too, knew he was finished.
He came out firing, though, in the second. This aggressive push didn't last long as Silva once again opened his bag of tricks and unleashed a ferocious barrage of strikes that crumpled Franklin. After a couple of shots to the downed Franklin, Big John stopped the fight and Silva remained the champ.
With such a decisive win, one must ask "Is there anyone out there who can even compete with Silva?" Silva is on a totally different level than any other fighter in the 185 pound class. The UFC's middleweight division has lost its appeal now that it only consists of Silva beating Franklin and Franklin beating everyone else.
There is one other fighter who might give Silva a run for his money and that's Dan Henderson, the PRIDE 185 pound champion. Henderson, however, would rather fight at light heavyweight which doesn't cause me any grief because there are a lot of interesting fights that could potentially take place with Henderson at Light Heavyweight. Although, I would eventually like to see him come down to middleweight for a fight with Silva and another title unification bout.
The second loss to Silva poses Rich Franklin with a huge problem; he can beat anyone in the division other than Silva. So what does a fighter do when he can beat everyone else but can't beat the champ? The only decision I can see Franklin making is to move back up to Light Heavyweight. This division is stacked with talent and there is no shortage of great oppenents for Franklin to fight. Silva is just a terrible style matchup for Franklin and is simply just better than Rich. Although, this move will leave the middleweight division with even less legitimate fighers, I believe that there is nowhere else for Franklin to go.
Silva is also posed with a problem; there is no one who can even be considered a challenge for him. With no threats to his title, he may become a 2-fight-a-year fighter or even worse, 1 fight a year. So until Georges St. Pierre wins the Welterweight title, dominates the division for a few more years and decides to move up to middleweight, Anderson Silva, like Franklin, is in limbo.
As long as no new legitimate contenders come out of the wood work, Anderson Silva will dominate this division for a very long time and will no doubt become bored and begin searching for a decent challenge. In my opinion his only option will also be to move up to Light Heavyweight. This would be the icing on the cake for a division that's already stacked with talent. Could you imagine Anderson Silva vs Chuck Liddell, or Anderson Silva vs Shogun, Silva vs. Alexander, Silva vs. Silva??
This would, however, leave the middleweight division completely empty of elite fighters, but would at least give the rest of the division a shot at a title, and would make for more interesting fights at middleweight.
The result of the main event at UFC 77 has left the middleweight division in disarray and has left the rest of the fighters in the division rethinking their career plans.
Friday, October 12, 2007
UFC's Heavyweight Division Dwindling
I'm sure most of you have heard by now that Randy Couture is, once again, retiring. The announcement of his retirement comes a day after it was announced that Fedor had signed with Russia's M-1 organization. The dream matchup that the fight world was praying for will no longer become a reality. Couture vs Emelianenko exists now only in our imagination.
With the UFC's heavyweight division without MMA's top two heavyweights, we are left with heavyweight questions.
There are few top heavyweights left in this division and several of those fighters have big question marks beside their names.
I'll begin with Arlovski. The "Pit Bull" hasn't fought since April 21 and, as of yet, has no fights lined up in the near future. His fight against Fabricio Werdum wasn't exactly Fight of the Year material; Arlovski fought very tentatively and used leg kicks as his weapon of choice. I have no doubt that the fearsome striker that is Arlovski still exists, but he hasn't shown his face in quite some time.
This brings me to Tim Silvia. In his last five fights, has has only stopped one opponent; the other four fights went to the judges' decision with his last fight coming as a loss to Randy Couture. Tim Silvia has also fought very tentatively in his last few fights. Throwing a lot of jabs but nothing significant. If Tim Silvia comes back a hungry fighter on October 20th, then watch out...but if not, he'll be booed back to the hotel once again and will leave Dana White seriously thinking of whether or not to resign him.
There's also Nogueira. This guy is tough and is a serious threat to the vacant UFC Heavyweight title. That being said, he nearly got his head kicked off by Heath Herring in his UFC debut. Heath Herring is another top heavyweight on my list, but he needs to pull off a few exciting wins to be considered as a contender to the title.
Cro Cop is the biggest bust in UFC history. He is 1-2 in the Octagon thus far. His lone victory coming in the form of an unimpressive TKO against Eddie Sanchez, who, basically ran away from Cro Cop the entire time. Cro Cop's future is one of the biggest problems on Dana White's plate. What is the UFC to do with a fighter with a huge salary like Cro Cop, but who is only deemed worthy of prelim fights?
Cheick Kongo can be considered a threat to the title if he works nothing but wrestling and Jiu Jitsu for 6 solid months. Nothing else. No fights, no kickboxing. Just grappling and submissions. He can be an exciting fighter if he becomes more aggressive, lets his hands and feet go, pushes the action and throws combinations. If he can do these things, then we have a serious contender on our hands. If not, then he's just another kickboxer who doesn't have confidence in his standup because he has no ground game to back it up.
Brandon Vera is possibly the real deal; something UFC fans are going to find out October 20th when he takes on former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Silvia. He is 8-0 and 4-0 in the UFC with only one of his UFC fights going past the first round (Beating Fabiano Scherner by TKO in the second round). If he beats Tim Silvia then Brandon Vera should be considered for the vacant title. Vera hasn't fought since November of last year, which leaves him questionable. Will his win over a questionable Frank Mir be seen as merely a result of Mir's motorcycle accident or will he move to the top of the food chain with a win over "The Main-iac"?
Gabriel Gonzaga is probably the baddest dude in this division. Although he lost to Randy Couture, he is, in my opinion, still the top contender for this title. Ridiculous kicks and great Jiu Jitsu, this guy will be champion one day - Guaranteed. Although, I think Randy would have won that fight either way, Gonzaga broke his nose in the first round when taken down by a high single by Couture; this took a lot of the life out of Gonzaga. Now, that being said, Gonzaga fought like an animal with a broken nose and landed some very powerful kicks - one of which broke Couture's arm. Besides Gonzaga, there are very few others who can be considered for the championship.
What I would like to see is Gonzaga take on Big Nog and have that winner fight the winner of Silvia vs Vera for the vacant title. I would hope that the UFC holds Gonzaga vs. Nogueira in December and have the Championship matchup maybe in March 2008.
I don't know the length of Fedor's contract with M-1, but I still hope that one day he makes the move to the UFC. And unless the UFC brings in Josh Barnett and possibly Brock Lesnar, the UFC Heavyweight division is going to go right back to where it was...boring.
With the UFC's heavyweight division without MMA's top two heavyweights, we are left with heavyweight questions.
There are few top heavyweights left in this division and several of those fighters have big question marks beside their names.
I'll begin with Arlovski. The "Pit Bull" hasn't fought since April 21 and, as of yet, has no fights lined up in the near future. His fight against Fabricio Werdum wasn't exactly Fight of the Year material; Arlovski fought very tentatively and used leg kicks as his weapon of choice. I have no doubt that the fearsome striker that is Arlovski still exists, but he hasn't shown his face in quite some time.
This brings me to Tim Silvia. In his last five fights, has has only stopped one opponent; the other four fights went to the judges' decision with his last fight coming as a loss to Randy Couture. Tim Silvia has also fought very tentatively in his last few fights. Throwing a lot of jabs but nothing significant. If Tim Silvia comes back a hungry fighter on October 20th, then watch out...but if not, he'll be booed back to the hotel once again and will leave Dana White seriously thinking of whether or not to resign him.
There's also Nogueira. This guy is tough and is a serious threat to the vacant UFC Heavyweight title. That being said, he nearly got his head kicked off by Heath Herring in his UFC debut. Heath Herring is another top heavyweight on my list, but he needs to pull off a few exciting wins to be considered as a contender to the title.
Cro Cop is the biggest bust in UFC history. He is 1-2 in the Octagon thus far. His lone victory coming in the form of an unimpressive TKO against Eddie Sanchez, who, basically ran away from Cro Cop the entire time. Cro Cop's future is one of the biggest problems on Dana White's plate. What is the UFC to do with a fighter with a huge salary like Cro Cop, but who is only deemed worthy of prelim fights?
Cheick Kongo can be considered a threat to the title if he works nothing but wrestling and Jiu Jitsu for 6 solid months. Nothing else. No fights, no kickboxing. Just grappling and submissions. He can be an exciting fighter if he becomes more aggressive, lets his hands and feet go, pushes the action and throws combinations. If he can do these things, then we have a serious contender on our hands. If not, then he's just another kickboxer who doesn't have confidence in his standup because he has no ground game to back it up.
Brandon Vera is possibly the real deal; something UFC fans are going to find out October 20th when he takes on former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Silvia. He is 8-0 and 4-0 in the UFC with only one of his UFC fights going past the first round (Beating Fabiano Scherner by TKO in the second round). If he beats Tim Silvia then Brandon Vera should be considered for the vacant title. Vera hasn't fought since November of last year, which leaves him questionable. Will his win over a questionable Frank Mir be seen as merely a result of Mir's motorcycle accident or will he move to the top of the food chain with a win over "The Main-iac"?
Gabriel Gonzaga is probably the baddest dude in this division. Although he lost to Randy Couture, he is, in my opinion, still the top contender for this title. Ridiculous kicks and great Jiu Jitsu, this guy will be champion one day - Guaranteed. Although, I think Randy would have won that fight either way, Gonzaga broke his nose in the first round when taken down by a high single by Couture; this took a lot of the life out of Gonzaga. Now, that being said, Gonzaga fought like an animal with a broken nose and landed some very powerful kicks - one of which broke Couture's arm. Besides Gonzaga, there are very few others who can be considered for the championship.
What I would like to see is Gonzaga take on Big Nog and have that winner fight the winner of Silvia vs Vera for the vacant title. I would hope that the UFC holds Gonzaga vs. Nogueira in December and have the Championship matchup maybe in March 2008.
I don't know the length of Fedor's contract with M-1, but I still hope that one day he makes the move to the UFC. And unless the UFC brings in Josh Barnett and possibly Brock Lesnar, the UFC Heavyweight division is going to go right back to where it was...boring.
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