In the immortal words of Will Ferrel as Mugatu in Zoolander: "I feel like I'm taking crazy pills!"
This was one of the most underwhelming cards I have ever seen from the UFC and it made for a very inauspicious start to 2009. There were no good endings and only one decent fight on the whole televised card.
If I was Dana White, I'd be kicking ass and taking names right now, but instead he makes one of the most rash and bone-headed moves in UFC history. But more on that later. Let's quickly recap the fights because none of them deserve much attention:
Denis Siver v. Nate Mohr: Siver wins by KO in the third getting KO of the night. I got this one wrong.
Tomasz Drwal v. Ivan Serati: Drwal wins by KO in round one. I picked this one right on the nose.
Eric Schafer v. Antonio Mendes: Schafer wins by KO in round one. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Martin Kampmann v. Alexandre Barros: Kampmann wins by KO in round two. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Thomas Egan v. John Hathaway: Hathaway handled himself very well in this fight not succumbing to the pressure of the crowd or his first fight in the octagon. He controlled the fight everywhere it went, and Egan looked absolutely overwhelmed. Hathaway won by KO in the first round. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Marcus Davis v. Chris Lytle: In what was the only good fight of the night, both guys went toe to toe like they promised and even when the other guy went down they both allowed each other to keep the fight standing for the crowd.
Denis Siver v. Nate Mohr: Siver wins by KO in the third getting KO of the night. I got this one wrong.
Tomasz Drwal v. Ivan Serati: Drwal wins by KO in round one. I picked this one right on the nose.
Eric Schafer v. Antonio Mendes: Schafer wins by KO in round one. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Martin Kampmann v. Alexandre Barros: Kampmann wins by KO in round two. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Thomas Egan v. John Hathaway: Hathaway handled himself very well in this fight not succumbing to the pressure of the crowd or his first fight in the octagon. He controlled the fight everywhere it went, and Egan looked absolutely overwhelmed. Hathaway won by KO in the first round. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Marcus Davis v. Chris Lytle: In what was the only good fight of the night, both guys went toe to toe like they promised and even when the other guy went down they both allowed each other to keep the fight standing for the crowd.
It was a great slugfest that really could've gone either way but Davis pulled out the split decision. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Alan Belcher v. Denis Kang: Again, I get caught up in the hype of another promising fighter from the Japanese circuit coming over and fizzling out in their first UFC fight. Kang continuously took Belcher down and actually looked good in the first round.
Alan Belcher v. Denis Kang: Again, I get caught up in the hype of another promising fighter from the Japanese circuit coming over and fizzling out in their first UFC fight. Kang continuously took Belcher down and actually looked good in the first round.
Unfortunately in those take down attempts it was obvious even to a BJJ novice like me that Kang left his neck out far too much and didn't respect Belcher's guillotine (which he broke twice before being submitted).
This was a great win for Belcher over a former top ten middleweight and Kang will most likely get one more fight to prove he belongs before being unceremoniously dumped after this lackluster performance.
I got this fight wrong but big props to Belcher for also taking home submission of the night.
Jeremy Horn v. Rousimar Palhares: Palhares looked really good in this fight. He absolutely dominated Horn on the ground in the first two rounds. Horn couldn't stay standing or launch any offense on the ground which is surprising given his experience and training.
Jeremy Horn v. Rousimar Palhares: Palhares looked really good in this fight. He absolutely dominated Horn on the ground in the first two rounds. Horn couldn't stay standing or launch any offense on the ground which is surprising given his experience and training.
It was just Palhares' superior strength and BJJ that won the fight. Horn launched a little offense in the third round as Palhares started to gas out a little but it just wasn't enough as all three judges still gave Palhares the third round as he won a unanimous decision.
This was a great bounce back fight for Palhares over a quality opponent after a tough loss. I got the pick right but not the prediction as Horn put up a much better fight than I expected.
Mark Coleman v. Shogun Rua: In what will easily be remembered as the worst fight of 2009 (and yes—it's only January folks) Coleman came out and gassed out in the first round (expected) but was still able to land double leg takedowns and survive all the way to the third round before a stiff wind (okay—maybe it was a Rua uppercut) knocked him down.
Mark Coleman v. Shogun Rua: In what will easily be remembered as the worst fight of 2009 (and yes—it's only January folks) Coleman came out and gassed out in the first round (expected) but was still able to land double leg takedowns and survive all the way to the third round before a stiff wind (okay—maybe it was a Rua uppercut) knocked him down.
Coleman is WAY over the hill and should not be licensed to fight anymore. Rua, on the other hand, was the most unbelievably disappointing thing I've seen in the octagon since, well, Shogun's last fight in the octagon! Shogun was once a world renowned light heavyweight who had only lost one legitimate fight in four years!
Now he comes in and gasses out in one round and can barely take out a 44-year-old wrestler!? I don't know what they've done with "Shogun" but wherever he is hiding we want him back. More on the fallout from this fight later. I got the pick right but not the prediction.
Rich Franklin v. Dan Henderson:
Rich Franklin v. Dan Henderson:
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