All Things MMA: UFC 68 Review

Since PRIDE fighting's latest card was so incredible, I was hoping for big things from the UFC. And in my opinion, UFC 68 delivered. Every fight was exciting, even if all the matches weren’t close.

Fight fans came away with these insights...

* Matt Hughes’ skills are deteriorating, not the fighter he once was;

* Renato Sobral’s lack of striking abilities prevent him from becoming a top 5 light heavyweight;

* Randy Couture regains the heavyweight championship.

50 or so friends joined me in watching UFC 68 and by the end of the night, both guys and girls, were emotionally involved in the fights. What makes MMA such a compelling sport is that the excitement generated by a good fight can literally captivate a group of people.

Despite the emotion, here are my perspectives on the fights...

 
Renato Sobral vs. Jason Lambert: “Mistake By Sobral Gives One Dimensional Lambert The Win”

I have seen Lambert fight several times, and the guy is one dimensional. He can strike, but has limited submission skills and few take down maneuvers. When he fought Rashad Evans, he only threw punches. He does not appear to be a fully developed MIXED martial artist.

Despite Lambert being the more physically imposing fighter, I expected Sobral to beat Lambert by a wide margin. At first, it looked like things would unfold that way. Sobral had a nice take down, and grounded and pounded while attempting to lock in a rear-naked-choke.

Yet Sobral made two very big mistakes.

First, he went for a leg kick at the end of the first round and dropped his hands. Lambert caught him with a stiff right and dropped him.

In the second round, Sobral's second mistake was his last. He again attempted a vicious leg kick. Lambert countered, and the end result was a TKO of Sobral. Despite being a fantastic submission artist who uses an array of tactical takedowns, Sobral showed himself here to lack sufficient striking power to be great—and he left himself open for big shots and a knockout.

This was a big upset, and needless to say, I am disappointed in Sobral. He should work hard at his striking, and we will see if he learns his lesson next time he fights. If he is going to attempt a leg-kick he needs to keep his hands up or protect his head as Tito Ortiz and Georges St.Pierre do very well.

As for Lambert, his skills are not nearly as impressive as his strength and size. Right now, I think he is a mid-tier fighter, at best. He’s one of those guys in sports like pro-basketball player Darius Miles.

I remember watching Miles get drafted out of high school. The guy had some serious skills and incredible physical tools, but he was just unable to translate them into greatness. Lambert looks to me like a stout athlete with good athletic ability, but I don’t know if he has enough to be groomed into a very good fighter.
 

Matt Hughes vs. Chris Lytle: “On Off Night, Hughes Still Dominates Improved Lytle”
 
I give Lytle a lot of respect. By the end of the fight I could tell he had put a lot of work in and trained hard. Although Lytle was dominated, his ground game was much improved and he didn’t take any MONSTER shots.

On the other hand, Hughes was a little disappointing. He dominated the fight but didn’t look overly impressive. I wonder if his skills are declining, or perhaps he cruised a little, looking ahead for a title shot. He clearly didn’t attempt to strike. His seemingly inhuman strength displayed earlier in his career doesn’t seem to be there as much anymore.

According to Dana White, he is next in line for a title shot, but not because of his performance in this fight, in my opinion.  While I realize he is the former champion, I think there are some more exciting fights out there.

Yet, from a purely fan entertainment perspective, how can you argue with the UFC staging a final fight to complete the GSP/Hughes trilogy? I think Hughes will be beaten just as convincingly as the last time they met. GSP should just try and avoid the takedown (which he is fairly good at) and stay on his feet to strike with him. Hughes has proved continually, that despite his effort and improvement, he will never be a dominant striker.

GSP on the other hand is a beast. He can throw great leg kicks along w/ maniac high kicks, he is elusive, has good footwork and head movement, and can deliver a serious punch and is a dangerous striker.

On a side note, Matt Hughes’ personality threatens to make him a jerk-off. His pompous, “high and mighty” attitude is such a turnoff. I realize the guy has accomplished a lot, but the way he talks about himself and others, makes him sound the like a tool.

Former NFL running back Rickey Waters used to talk about his own skills in such a distasteful, boastful way that his teammates and fans soured on him. Despite all his skills, the guy’s personality turned people off and I feel the same way about Hughes.

 

 
Rich Franklin vs. Jason "The Athlete" McDonald: “No Surprise—Franklin Wins; Silva Next?”

I don’t have much to say about a fight with no surprises. It went exactly as I expected, and Franklin looked good. There was a little bit of hesitation on his part, but ring rust wasn’t a problem. After the beating he took at the hands of Anderson Silva, it is understandable that he’d be a little tentative in his return fight. A rematch is most likely in store for him next if Silva gets past Nate Marquardt.

The way I see it, I don’t know if he stands a chance against Silva. The Brazilian is possibly the best striker in MMA; he is an assassin out there. He can drop you with a punch from any direction, and if he gets you in the clinch his knees are deadly. I’m so confident in his abilities I’m going to go as far as to say that I do not believe the UFC has a middleweight in their division that can beat him currently. PRIDE fighters Dan Henderson and Paul Filho are the only two contenders I can see giving him problems. Matt Lindland is also a possibility.

Get on that Dana, let’s make that shit happen.

 

Tim Sylvia vs. Randy Couture: “An Octagon Full Of Historic Drama”

This was one of the most compelling and historic fights I have ever watched. A number of my party guests watching UFC 68 were not UFC fans, yet they found themselves mesmerized by the match and fixated on the fighters.

Couture’s legend made him a favorite to the people in the room, but they just couldn’t wrap their heads around the idea of an aging fighter beating such a huge opponent. It was a classic old David vs. big, young Goliath scenario.

The Natural didn’t disappoint—he fought the fight of his life. It was one of those truly special moments in professional sports where everything comes together for the athlete, in a flawless and dramatic performance.

This was the Natural’s equivalent of throwing a perfect game—like when I watched on TV, David Cone’s perfect game on June 18, 1999.

I remember being unable to avert my eyes from his performance. Being rabid New York Yankee fans, my Dad and I frequently watched games together. On this day, when David Cone was on the mound  as the game progressed, you felt something special happening; you felt the anticipation of everyone in the stadium watching the drama unfold. Watching Cone pitch, my Dad told me this was something I would remember for the rest of my life, and it was. This was one of the great sports moments of my young life.
 
On the evening Couture fought Sylvia, I felt the exact same way.

Couture had a game plan. He wanted to use a lot of head movement, avoid getting hit with the big punch, take Sylvia down, and simply perplex him. He executed his plan with deadly precision and fought remarkably well. Couture saw a hole in Sylvia’s game and exploited it beautifully—which was his clumsy lack of movement and the inability to identify what his opponent is trying to do.

In the opening round,  Couture set the big, lumbering Silvia up with a fake leg-kick, and then connected with a huge overhand right which dropped Silvia.

Want to know about the emotional pull of UFC? At my party, girls who I had never seen so excited were screaming and hugging one another. I had buddies patting me on the back, ripping down vodka shots, and clanking their beers together in cheers.

It’s moments like these in sports which are unforgettable. It’s moments like these which help explain why America is such a sports driven society. And it’s moments like these which make the UFC and MMA in general, the next big thing in sports.

Kids my age rarely react that way to any sporting event. I, too, couldn’t maintain any semblance of calm and allowed myself to go just as ballistic as everyone else, once Couture was announced the winner.

I took a shot of Patron, grabbed a girl and kissed her as hard as I could, and let out a triumphant scream as if I had just won the heavyweight title.

If you don’t believe the UFC does not offer a new brand of something different and exciting, the phenomenon that took place at my house, is being replicated on campuses nation wide.