The fight between Tito Ortiz and Lyoto Machida at UFC 84 on May 24 lends itself to a fair bit of irony. Ortiz will be making his final appearance in the UFC, while Machida prepares for his coming out party.
Ortiz, who has headlined 17 out of his 20 fights with the organization, has long expressed dissatisfaction with his pay, as well as the behavior of UFC president Dana White.
Their feud goes back several years, to when White was Ortiz’s manager, but they had their biggest falling out when Dana and the Fertitta brother’s created Zuffa and bought out the UFC from its previous owners in 2001.
White went from negotiating for Tito’s pay to negotiating against him, and they were even set to have an exhibition boxing fight before it was cancelled due to Ortiz not showing up, and reportedly being unhappy with his compensation for the bout.
Ortiz helped the UFC survive throughout its “dark ages,” and holds the record for longest reigning champ (he held the light-heavyweight title for three and a half years from April 2000 until September 2003).
Ortiz has publicly stated that he will be leaving the UFC after his fight with Machida, which will be the last of his current contract. There are several rival competitors (Elite XC, Affliction, DREAM, Adrenaline, among others) who should be eager to compete for Ortiz’s services, as he brings an established name and recognition to their promotion.
Machida, on the other had, has been proverbially flying under the radar, and recently gained some popular attention after his submission victory over the “African Assassin” Sokoudjou at UFC 79. He is currently 4-0 in the UFC, and 12-0 overall, holding notable wins over Rich Franklin, BJ Penn, and Stephan Bonnar.
Machida will be looking to become a household name and inch closer to a title shot with a victory over the always controversial and talkative Ortiz on May 24.
There are currently several fighters seeking a title shot in the light-heavyweight division, and if Machida continues his undefeated run he may get a chance to fight for the belt sooner rather than later.
“The Dragon,” a nickname Machida is also known by, presents an unusual and unpredictable fighting style to his opponents. He is trained in Shotokan Karate, Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Sumo, and wrestling.
He is a counter-puncher, using great footwork and accuracy to punish his opponents for any mistakes they commit.
His southpaw stance, well-roundedness, difficulty to finish, and overall unorthodox style make “The Dragon” a tough challenge for any UFC light-heayweight.
Ortiz, known for his vicious ground and pound capabilities, provides an antithetical counterpart to Machida’s more methodical style of chopping down his opponent bit by bit.
If Ortiz can repeatedly take Machida down and land some of those elbows, he could walk away with a tko or decision victory.
Machida has great sweeps off his back, and will have the edge standing up where he will look to evade Ortiz’s strikes and counter with his own.
If he can keep the fight standing, or even put Ortiz on his back with a sweep or takedown, he should earn the victory.
Ortiz’s cardio and recurrent injuries may play a factor in this fight, hindering how long he can stay on the offensive against the ever-elusive Machida. Ortiz will need to keep a strong pace for at least two rounds; otherwise Machida will pounce on him when he sees an opportunity.
If Ortiz wins, don’t look for him to receive a grand send-off or be granted a post-fight interview.
Dana White will be praying that Machida wins so that he can mock Tito as he departs for greener pastures. For his part, Machida will be looking to get some recognition amongst casual fans, and a victory over Tito would serve him well in that regard.
The career of one UFC legend will be over, but the career of another future legend may be just about to begin.
Whether you love or hate Ortiz, he always brings it, and Machida is a more than worthy final opponent for the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” as he makes his last stand with the company he helped create and in turn molded him.
It is the beginning of the end for one, and the end of the beginning for the other.
Let the games begin.
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4 months ago
Really liked the article. I think you summed up the situation very well. The fact I don't have much to add here is a good thing. :P
4 months ago
Yeah, thanks. Positive comments are always encouraging.
4 months ago
well jad, as the only known tito fan on bleacher report, I clicked on your story ready to rip it apart, and im kinda let down, it was a good story and I actually agree with you. SO THERE! lol.
good job!
4 months ago
Ha ha, thanks. I like Tito too because he is brave enough to speak his mind and demand more pay and better treatment. Other fighters are just content to be fighting in the UFC and they don't want to get on Dana's bad side.
Couture is doing the same thing now as Ortiz but he gets preferential treatment because he's supposedly "Captain America." I'm glad a guy like Tito isn't afraid of the UFC brass and tells it like it is.
With plenty of heavyweights leaving, UFC's oppressive business practices and contracts are perhaps being exposed. Sadly though, Ortiz will be deleted from UFC history, just like what happened to Frank Shamrock, Josh Barnett, Matt Lindland, Phil Baroni, and now Randy Couture, among others.
If it wasn't for Ortiz, the UFC may not have survived to this day, and they owe him some respect in that regard.
4 months ago
amazingly enough, I think there is a chance that tito will sign with the UFC. after watching the post fight interviews, tito and dana werent all that harsh on each other, minus a few exchanges. dana said they needed to sit down and talk like men, and tito said he was open to the idea.
I think after the reaction that tito got as well as the numbers they did, plus the thought of tito going to elite xc and possibly helping that organization get out of the red, dana white is starting to reconsider things.
4 months ago
Yeah, and I think Ortiz gained some fans while Machida may have lost some after their fight. Can you imagine if Tito had subbed him in the last minute and then left the UFC? That would have been one of the most dramatic finishes to any fight or tenure with an organization.
I wouldn't mind Ortiz hanging around and fighting other light-heavyweights, because that division is stacked. The best competition is in the UFC. How about a rematch with Wanderlei? That fight could headline a ppv.
from 4 months ago
it could headline UFC 85, which should be renamed "Hard Shoes To Fill" or even better "Shuffling Of The Deck"
I really would love to see a rematch of these two. It would be everything that Machida vs Ortiz wasnt. The first fight was wandy winning the exchanges on the feet, and tito taking him down and working some gnp. wandy hurt tito once i think, which seems to happen in every tito fight, but he fought thru it, put wandy on his back, and worked his way to a decision.
I see a rematch going in a similiar fashion, unless wandy can knock tito out, which im not convinced of. I would favor tito by decision again in that one, in a highly dramatic match because of the chance of tito getting knocked out on the feet, and the chance of him pounding wandy out on the ground.
Im not sure if the UFC wants to go that route though, as I think they are prepping wandy for a title shot. A rematch with tito is a 60/40 swing in tito's favor in my opinion, and I think they may want another W for wandy and then a title shot.
If they decide to put the axe murderer in again before giving him a title shot, look for it to be against a stand up fighter and not a super strong wrestler, such as tito or a rashad evans. I would put him in with Machida and give the winner a title shot.
4 months ago
I agree with your line of reasoning, but I wouldn't put Silva in with Machida, because I think Machida would win that one. I would have him fight someone like Thiago Silva, who would most likely stand with Wanderlei and lose.
Silva/Rampage 3 could sell big bucks, so I think that the UFC will make sure to give Silva a decent fighter who he can beat, and then give him a title shot. A fight with Machida or Ortiz would be risky, because the UFC wants to promote an exciting fighter like Silva as the champ, not someone like Machida.
Either way, I think Rampage is much improved and it will be difficult for Silva to beat him again. If Rampage can defend the Thai clinch, it may be a 50/50 fight. I hope it happens.
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