First off, Edgar has proven himself worthy of, at the very least, a title contention fight. Edgar is 3-0 in the UFC, one of those wins came over popular and one of the top fighters in the lightweight division Tyson Griffin. His opponent on April 2nd will be Gray Maynard who was a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter 5, Maynard with a UFC record of 2-0-1 is a great opponent for Frankie Edgar to show how much more well rounded he is.
There is no doubt the Maynard is a great wrestler. He wrestled alongside Rashad Evans at Michigan State University, putting together a record of 106 wins and only 26 falls. But this isn't wrestling. Sure they both have did great things in college wrestling, but in MMA who has Maynard really fought? Nate Diaz—who he lost to—is the only name that comes to mind.
Frankie Edgar has gone the distance with Spencer Fisher and Tyson Griffin, winning both fights by decision. I thought he won in an impressive fashion—outworking both men.
Of course, Maynard has a puncher's chance—and that's all I'm giving him. Frankie Edgar deserves a fight with Roger Huerta or Clay Guida.
Here are the top lightweight fighters in the order they should be in:
1) BJ Penn
2) Kenny Florian
3) Frankie Edgar
4)Tyson Griffin
5)Clay Guida
If you're wondering why Roger Huerta did not make the top five, he didn't impress me one bit in his fight against Guida. He was the bigger fighter, stronger, and still almost got KOd. Imagine him trying to strike with Tyson Griffin or Frankie Edgar...or even worse, Kenny...
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6 months ago
Other than Clay Guida, Huerta hasn't really proven himself agasint anyone yet. He was getting manhandled by Doug Evans the first round, so I have to agree with you on that. As for Frankie Edgar. I think this fight could've have easily been a headlining or co-headlining fight. I can't believe it has a chance to not be broadcasted. Whats up w/ that?
6 months ago
Whatsup Patrick thank for the comment, im trying to stay up to date on which fights are on the main card and so far this is what ive come across(someone will correct me if im wrong)
Main Card
Kenny Florian vs. Joe Lauzon
Thiago Alves vs. Karo Parisyan
Matt Hamill vs. Tim Boetsch
Kurt Pellegrino vs. Nate Diaz
Gray Maynard vs. Frank Edgar
James Irvin vs. Houston Alexander
Preliminary Bouts
Marcus Aurelio vs. Spencer Fisher
Josh Neer vs. Din Thomas
Jeff Cox vs. MannyGamburyan
Samy Schiavo vs. Clay Guida
Roman Mitichyan vs. George Sotiropoulos
Anthony Johnson vs. Tommy Speer
and i actually knew Roger huerta personally through my brother and ex gf (she) went to Crockett High school in Austin,TX and went to state against my brother, he was good; but his straight fwd striking style and hes mediocre wrestling is not enough in my opinion to do anything serious in that stacked div.
6 months ago
Frankie Edgar is my favorite fighter, but Maynard has much more than a puncher's chance. I'm a little worried for Frank in this fight. I think that Maynard has better pure wrestling, more power in his hands, perhaps a better chin, and his submission game is developing nicely. He is also a lot bigger and stronger than Edgar.
Frank will have to use all the tools at his disposal to win, and I think this fight will go to a decision. I'm hoping he wins and gets a title shot soon. However, I would not be surprised of Maynard outwrestles or outstrikes him for the victory. Edgar will have to use his speed and sprawl to transition and keep Maynard away to prevent from getting smothered.
Both fighters have a bright future in the UFC, and if Edgar can wrestle with Maynard, then he can dance with anyone else in the division. Remember Maynard is a 3X All-American, and showed good striking power and technique in his last two fights. So don't be surprised if he sneaks out the decision. They are both aggressive and like to put on a show. It should be a great fight.
6 months ago
Sorry it took me so long to reply, man you were right. gray maynard was definetly bigger and stronger. i felt that if edgar would have been just a tad bit more aggressive on his feet he could have done some damage because when he started connecting maynard looked confused and then shot in.
but props to maynard, and i cant wait to see edgar come back from this!
6 months ago
I also had picked Edgar to win the fight, but had I been able to seethe two of them side by side beforehand, I would have been a lot more unsure. Maynard looked like he wasn't in the same weight class as Frankie.
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