Laying The Smackdown On UFC 86

Marcus Aureilo v. Tyson Griffin

Now, Ive seen both guys fight, but didnt really remember how Marcus Aurelio performs.  The prematch video definitely jogged my memory.  Even with the height advantage I could tell Tyson was A LOT stronger. The fight went pretty much along those grounds.  With the exception of dangerously close submissions, Tyson dominated the entire fight and it was an easy 30-27 fight to call for anyone.  30-27 fights to me are usually very frustrating.  If you can beat someone down for 15 minutes and can't finish them you have only proved that your better than your opponent, but not likely moving up in the title picture.  BJ Penn is likely to get the winner of Florian/Huerta and even with Griffin's impeccable record in the UFC it doesnt seem he has any business in a fight with Penn at this time

Josh Koscheck vs Chris Lytle

Kos played the heel role well. He's one of my favorites because my background in professional wrestling has given me an affinity for shit-talkers and Kos is one of the best UFC has today.  It pretty much all stems from his ultimate fighter days and his post-fight Diego match fight interview (19 and OOOONNNNNEEE).  Anyway, Kos dominated this fight and cut Lytle extremely badly in round 2.  The fight was one sided and went to decision but was more entertaining than the previous.  Kos was pwning Lytle the entire time but Lytle kept coming back having lost a lot of blood. I found myself cheering for Lytle because it would have been a tremendous victory and story for him.  In the end Kos was victorious in a hard fought fight, he seemingly did everything he could to finish Lytle and didn't pussyfoot around when it was clear he was going to win.  Kos is absolutely in the title picture. It looks like they are going with Alves v. Diego for the next shot at GSP or Fitch, which is a shame because the only guy Kos has lost to recently was GSP and he has beaten Diego.  Out of the televised matches besides the main event, this was probably the most entertaining fight.  The judging was whacky, every judge had it different but all for Kos.  I had it 30-26 with the second round 10-8.  

Joe Daddy Stevenson v. Gleison Tibau

Stevenson needed this fight to prove he still belonged in the elite lightweight class after getting destroyed by Penn in January and he did. Tibau was controlling the entire fight with strikes, submission attempts, and slams.  However one small opening gave Stevenson the opportunity to apply his patented guillotine  and get the win. Not much else to say, probably very frustrating for Tibau. This fight is probably only notable because it was the only non-decision fight of the 5 live fights.

Patrick Cote v.  Ricardo Almedia

So I was stoked to see this fight because the countdown hyped it up, and it was booked as the semi main.  I was looking forward to some world class BJJ from Ricardo and Cote trying to keep it up and go to war.  The first round had an unorthodox  takedown from Ricardo early, and from there the fight went nowhere. Ricardo easily won the first round and Cote the second, both uninspiring. The final round to me was a draw.  This fight was the worst on the show, and for it to be the semi main event that people were already complaining about due to lack of name recognition...let's just say it was a let down for everyone. Cote won and is closer at a shot to get pulverized by Anderson, but it could have been Ricardo and either way I (and probably many others) could care less.  These guys did nothing. 

I find it funny that when you  have two strikers going at it, promoters promote it as two people who love to go to war, when to ground specialists go at it promoters say its going to be an excellent display of technical skill, and like in this fight we had a striker with a ground specialist they promoted just as a great matchup due to their differences.  Note to UFC:  a world class BJJ specialist against a Canadian boxer is going to suck. Not every combination of styles is going to be good and this was an example of that.  I think Jim Rogan did the best job of spinning when he said something on the lines of :" I love it when you see the difficulties of fighters trying to get their opponents to fight their game and you end up in a stalemate and frustration...you can really see how the fighters are thinking and what they need to do". To me that translates to, "I love it when fights suck because its an excuse for be to be an ass and still get paid!"

Forest Griffin v Quinton Rampage Jackson

Few pre fight thoughts I'd like to share first.  1) If they ever make a logo for UFC similar to that of major sports Forest should be the logo ala Jerry West for the NBA 2) Forest's nickname should be "the ultimate fighter".  3) In the countdown I found out that due to being held back Rampage started high school at 17.  Watching video footage of him wrestling in high school was funny, because he looks like a man amongst boys and not necessarily due to physique but because he's 3 years older then everyone.  Seems unfair. I know I woulda been pissed if I had to wrestle him as a freshmen.

This was the fight tying the entire show together and the only one that really mattered. Many reports said that this fight was bomb.com and possibly fight of the year. I personally disagree and still have Shamrock v. Le in that spot.  However it was a good fight. My friends and I were pretty much all cheering for Rampage, namely because we went to school in Irvine and Rampage represents the 949 and all the beautiful asian women it has to offer.  

I predicted Rampage in 2, which I admit was a popular prediction.  However when I saw the first few second and how they came out of the gates , I changed my prediction to Forest. I even vocalized by newfound uncertainty but my man-love for Rampage prevented me from saying something I would regret (even if I turned out to be right).  Every time these guys locked up and went blow for blow it seemed rampage got the best of the exchange.  To me Rampage had the first round 10-9 as it was just a standup war with Page clearly getting the better.   The second round went to the floor quickly and Page's knee buckled badly. I, like many, thought it was over for Page and that he couldn't even walk. Forest dominated the round easily.  I absolutely gave the round 10-8 to Forest.  People sitting with me thought I was nuts, but in today's age UFC (and rightfully so) has been more liberal with the 10-8 round.  Page did nothing the whole round, and nothing is an understatement.  So at this point I have the fight 19-8 Forest.   The third round is pretty much where I am the only one on the planet who disagrees with everyone.  Yeah, Forest almost got the triangle on, but he got slammed....and every head to head exchange was won by Rampage giving Forest a clear knock.  I dont think an almost submission ever warrants an automatic round win, and this was a case where I think the triangle was overplayed.  Everyone gave this to Forest, I gave it to Rampage.... so I got 28-28 at this point.  The fourth round was just a stand up war, with Forest getting a lot more damage including falling to the ground.  This, along with the first was the easiest round to call in my opinion, 10-9 Page...38-37 overall.  The final round was pretty even, Forest landed alot of good shots and Page was notably fatigued.  Forest has heart and  went all out every round and in this one it was very obvious.  Despite that it was a tough round to call and I had it 10-9 Forest for a 47-47 split decision. I honestly thought one judge wasn't going to give Forest that 10-8 round so I thought it was going to be a majority Draw with 1 judge for Jackson.  I was surprised at the scoring, but since I had the fight 47-47, I wasn't shocked or appalled. This wasn't Hamil v. Bisping where it was clear one guy won and the other did. However this was a lackluster title victory.  The crowd was very pro Forest.  In a fight that Forest should have taken due to Page's knee, a decision victory that to many was controversial and close has spurred anuninspiring title win for Forest.  A rematch is absolutely needed before either fighter can move on. Rampage does not need a fight in between (but Im guessing they might have to give him someone).

Rampage seemed sluggish, a tad out of shape, and just not scary. I have no idea why  they didn't have them face off from inches away like usual.  It seemed like the intimidating face of Rampage was the sign of things to come in his fight with Lidell and Henderson, but absent here.  Rampage did not set the pace and tone of the fight like before, and he simply was not the Rampage of 2007. Whether it was because he's done or not prepared is up for the future to decide.  Rampage should stop TRYING so hard to force humor and work on his conditioning and strength.  Don't get me wrong, Rampage is a funny guy but it seems like after his newfound popularity he has tried harder to pursue his comedic career rather than his day job.

 The Ultimate Fighter was probably the worst season of recent memory, and the UFC's attempt to manufacture a rivalry between Forest and Page was unsuccessful, the buy rate will probably display that shortly.  These guys have distinctive name recognition but the fight could have meant a lot more business if promoted properly.   Hopefully the rematch will happen at the end of the year and we will see the Rampage that destroyed Chuck and went toe to toe with Henderson.  If Rampage is indeed done from fighting at an elite level (which I doubt), at least maybe we can see Forest win more decisively and be an undisputed champion rather than a guy who survived an injured Rampage to squeak by with a decision victory.

I do have to say I commend Forest and Page for being very classy in their post fight comments. Both guys didn't get where they are for talking trash and having no respect for each other or the sport, and this is very clear from almost ALL of the main eventers in UFC.  For anyone who thinks UFC is human cockfighting, I ask you to look no further then post fight comments from guys like these or St Pierre, Hughes, Serra, etc and compare them to other sports and you will see a level of class in UFC athletes that is simply not bred into other sports.

This was a great fight but this was one that should not have gone to decision.  When Henderson and Rampage fought, everyone was pretty much for Rampage due to his personality.  He didn't have to win by knockout, especially after coming off the Lidell victory.  In this fight you had two beloved fighters.  The fans needed a clear cut champion that only a knockout or submission could have provided.  Does anyone think Rampage was at his best? Does anyone have Forest as a favorite in a rematch or match against Lidell, Wanderlei, or Machida? I certainly don't.   The Lightheavweight division in UFC is the flagship division of the company, providing legacies for such greats as Lidell, Ortiz, and Couture.  Neither Jackson or Griffin fits into that elite company yet based on their victories in that division.  The rematch will hopefully answer some questions on which fighter is more likely to take a step towards greatness and which one is a step below.

Melvin Guillard beat some Shmo in 10 seconds.  Melvin is an athletic freak of nature and hopefully he has his act together because he could do some tremendous damage in his division if he is mentally strong enough. He is one of the most exciting fighters the UFC has.

All in all this pay per view was slightly above par, and all because of the main event. UFC was on fire at the beginning of the year with tons of knockouts on each show, but have slowed down lately. Its obvious that MMA is unpredictable,  if a card is subpar its not always the company's fault. This card on paper looked phenomenal and seems as though it was going to produce some great finishes, but sadly it failed to deliver much more than a high caliber main event fight, semi controversial decision, and melodramatic title change.   Hooray for the ultimate fighter.  I am not bitter cause my boy lost, but if he was going to lose I would have liked to see him get knocked out at his best rather than lose by a decision on a bad day.

UFC 87 looks way better on paper.  I know I'm a huge mark for pro wrestlers doing things outside of pro wrestling...but either way I'm still predicting Brock Lesnar to be the next big thing.  Lesnar over Herring in round 1 via Ultimate PWNGE...book it.

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