Bleacher Report - Articles by Mitch Wiles

UFC 98: An Amazing Card

Mitch Wiles — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 14:02:09 -0500

Every MMA fan is excited for the much-anticipated UFC 100, but let's forget about that for a moment. UFC 98 on May 23 is going to be an amazing card.

MAIN CARD
Brock Lesnar vs.Frank Mir - Heavyweight Championship Unification
Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra - Grudge Match
Frank Edgar vs. Sean Sherk
Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Wilson
James Irvin vs. Drew McFedries

UNDERCARD
Kyle Bradley vs. Phillipe Nover
Brandon Wolff vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida
Houston Alexander vs. Andre Gusmao
Pat Barry vs. Tim Hague
David Kaplan vs. George Roop

Every match is interesting. Fireworks are guaranteed!

Lesnar vs. Mir—This is the easiest fight to market of all time. Lesnar gets a chance to unify the championship and redeem his only loss.

Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra—Two former welterweight champions and TUF coaches finally square off. Both fighters are out of their prime, but that makes it even more interesting. Who will end his career with a bang?

Frank Edgar vs. Sean Sherk—Former lightweight champion Sean Sherk attempts to climb back into contention against up-and-comer Frank Edgar. Is Sherk a contender or a gatekeeper?

Josh Koschek vs. Chris Wilson—America loves Josh Koschek. Dana White loves Josh Koscheck. Koscheck needs to win this fight to stay in contention.

James Irvin vs. Drew McFedries—The return of the Sandman. After being destroyed by Anderson Silva, the very popular Irvin will provide some fireworks in this bout.

Also on the card: Crowd favorite Houston Alexander, TUF 8 runner-up Phillipe Nover, and Fight of the Night winner David Kaplan.

UFC 98 will be the best card thus far. UFC 97 does offer Anderson Silva vs. Thales Leites and Chuck Liddell vs. Maurico Rua, but Leites will most likely be destroyed in the first round and Rua will probably run out of gas like he did against Mark Coleman in a very sloppy fight. Unless Leites performs a miracle, UFC 97 will be forgotten quickly.

It will be interesting to see if UFC 100 can outdo this card.

UFC: Inconsistent Stoppages

Mitch Wiles — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 12:56:17 -0500

From no rules to the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts, MMA is ever evolving and some work still needs to be done.

The Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts places safety for the combatants as a high priority. No one wants to see a fighter injured, especially due to a late stoppage. Having a fight stopped before a bone is broken, or when a fighter can no longer defend himself makes sense, but what does "Intelligently Defending" mean?

UNIFIED RULES FOR MIXED MARTIAL ARTS, AS ESTABLISHED BY THE NEW JERSEY STATE ATHLETIC

13:46-24A.12 Stopping a contest

The referee and ringside physician are the sole arbiters of a bout and are the only individuals authorized to enter the fighting area at any time during competition and authorized to stop a contest.

The term "Intelligently Defending" is not found in the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. This term is often used by UFC commentators, but a definition in black and white doesn't appear to exist. UFC.com fails to define or discuss the term in their RULES section.

"Intelligently Defending" appears to be a subjective term referring to the Referee's discretion. Because of this subjectivity the UFC is flooded with questionable stoppages.

Turtling can be seen as not intelligently defending. In the recent Cain Velasquez vs. Denis Stojnić contest at UFC Fight Night: Lauzon vs. Stephens, Velasquez had Stojnić back and Stojnić was not able to better his position. Stojnić "Turtled" or covered up to defend himself. Once Stojnić covered up the fight was stopped, even though Velasquez was unable to inflict more damage.

At UFC 87, Brock Lesnar faced Heath Herring. For the majority of the match, Lesnar had Herrings back, and Herring was more or less immobilized. Herring covered up while Lesnar tried to finish the fight with hammer-fists and knees. This fight went to a decision because Lesnar had difficulty inflicting more damage.

Herring's actions were intelligent. Fights are not won by Turtling, but whatever happened to the idea of letting your opponent punch themselves out?

If neither fighter is causing damage, then the fight should continue. When a fighter gives up his back, he should not be expected to fight back for the fight to continue, but rather defend himself to the best of his ability by covering up.

All-to-often, a Fighter will capture his opponents back, land a flurry of weak glancing blows and the fight would be stopped. The UFC is filled with elite fighters, if they want to quit, they will tap-out.

Mounted position is a far more dangerous position then controlling the back. When a Fighter captures his opponents back, there is a danger to submission, but far less can be achieved with striking.

Rules are in place to protect the back of the head.

For consistency, Turtling should either be a foul or accepted as intelligently defending, not both.

Kenny Florian: UFC's Uncrowned Champion

Mitch Wiles — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 17:51:06 -0500

Kenny Florian (11-3) defeated Joe Stevenson (29-9) at UFC 91 to become the No. 1 contender for the UFC Lightweight Championship. Florian is on a six-fight win streak, all six fights in the UFC, ending five of the six fights via submission or knock-out.

Kenny Florian has a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and ever-improving Muay Thai skills. Will current Lightweight Champion B.J. Penn accept the challenge?

B.J. Penn has revealed in recent interviews that he was thinking about retiring if he defeated Georges St. Pierre at UFC 94. Penn would have redeemed a UFC 58 loss, and would have been the first Fighter to hold two UFC titles at the same time. Penn's legacy would have been set in stone.

However, Penn was destroyed by Pierre at UFC 94. Penn was unable to answer the bell for the fifth and final round. What was built as a fight for the ages turned out to be a lopsided contest.

Penn would later make excuses for his poor performance—illegal use of Vaseline. In a Video Blog, UFC President Dana White and Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell appear outraged by the Vaseline incident. Penn has friends in high places—his legacy will not be easily tarnished.

With Penn unable to retire as a reigning double-champion, he must defend his Lightweight Title against No. 1 contender Kenny Florian...right?

Penn's cry for justice from the UFC 94 incident has sparked Pierre to offer a rematch. Pierre walked out of the Octogon at UFC 94 unscathed, $400,000 richer, and winning on all scorecards—Pierre has little to fear from a rematch with Penn. But, No. 1 contenders for both Championships have already been decided:

Welterweight No. 1 Contender Thiago Alves (UFC 90)
Lightweight No. 1 Contender Kenny Florian (UFC91)

Georges St. Pierre fights on average three times a year, Penn only twice. Team Pierre has suggested a Summer '09 rematch. Via a Blog on BJPENN.COM, Penn has accepted the challenge.

That means both fighters will have to fight in May and August respectively. But will Penn risk losing his title to Florian before the Superfight rematch?

It has been nine months since B.J. Penn has defended his Lightweight Championship. If Penn chooses to have his next fight in August against Pierre, the UFC Lightweight Championship will be dormant for over a year.

When it comes down to legacy, and retiring at the top of the sport, I see B.J. Penn dodging Kenny "KenFlo" Florian—the UFC's Uncrowned Lightweight Champion.

Don't believe me? Let's wait and see.

UFC 94: A Vaseline Smear Job

Mitch Wiles — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 15:54:41 -0500

B.J. Penn has allegedly filed a complaint with the Nevada State Athletic Commission against Georges St. Pierre's cornerman Phil Nurse for rubbing Vaseline on Pierre's chest, shoulders, and back between rounds.

Rubbing Vaseline on your body is illegal in MMA.

Breakdown of the Incident

End of Round No. 1: Nurse applies Vaseline to GSP's face. He then rubs GSP's chest, shoulders, and back. Nurse should have wiped his hands off with a towel before touching GSP's body.

End of Round No. 2: Nurse applies Vaseline to GSP's face. He then rubs GSP's chest, shoulders, and back. A Commission Officer observes this and yells at Nurse. The Officer then wipes GSP's back off with a towel.

End of Round No. 3: Nurse can be seen rubbing GSP's shoulders. A Commission Officer then wipes off GSP's back with a towel.

End of Round No. 4: B.J. Penn quits.

All of the above can be seen in the original feed of UFC 94.

Only at the end of Round No.1 could there be a case for illegal use of Vaseline. Phil Nurse's hands went from GSP's face to GSP's chest and then back to his face. It appeared that Nurse wiped his hands off on GSP's chest, this is illegal.

After massaging GSP's temples, Nurse would rub GSP's shoulders and back.

At this point, any leftover Vaseline would be minimal. Some analysts have reported that Nurse applied more Vaseline to his fingers before rubbing GSP's back, this is not true.

The original feed of UFC 94 supports my conclusion.

Phil Nurse had a reserve of Vaseline on the top of his left hand. At no time did Nurse remove Vaseline from the back of his hand and directly apply it to GSP's chest, shoulders, or back.

In my opinion, The Nevada State Athletic Commission took control of the incident in a timely manner.

The Commission made sure the fight was fair. Any attempt to smear GSP's victory, will be seen as an act of poor sportsmanship from B.J. Penn's corner.

A History of MMA's Pound-for-Pound Best

Mitch Wiles — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 12:53:31 -0500

The Pound-for-Pound Best Fighter in MMA is always in question, and is always a wild debate. The following list shows the Pound-for-Pound Best Fighter on an annual basis from 1993-2009. Below is a more thorough descriptive timeline of the history of the Pound-for-Pound Best MMA fighter.

MMA: History of the Pound-for-Pound Best

1993 - Royce Gracie - UFC 1 Open-Weight Tournament Champion
1994 - Royce Gracie - UFC 2 and UFC 4 Open-Weight Tournament Champion
1995 - Rickson Gracie - Vale Tudo '95 Open-Weight Tournament Champion
1996 - Mark Coleman - UFC 10 and UFC 11 Heavyweight Tournament Champion
1997 - Mark Kerr - UFC 14 and UFC 15 Heavyweight Tournament Champion,
World Vale Tudo 3 Champion
1998 - Mark Kerr - Undefeated 10-0
1999 - Bas Rutten - UFC Heavyweight Champion
2000 - Randy Couture - UFC Heavyweight Champion
2001 - Matt Hughes - UFC Welterweight Champion
2002 - Matt Hughes - UFC Welterweight Champion
2003 - Matt Hughes - UFC Welterweight Champion
2004 - Fedor Emelianenko - Pride Heavyweight Champion,
Pride Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion
2005 - Mauricio Rua - Pride Middleweight Grand Prix Champion
2006 - Chuck Liddell - UFC Light Heavyweight Champion
2007 - Anderson Silva - UFC Welterweight Champion
2008 - Anderson Silva - UFC Middleweight Champion
2009 - Fedor Emelianenko - WAMMA Heavyweight Champion

Starting in 1993, Royce Gracie wins the Ultimate Fighting Championship's inaugural 8-Man Open-Weight Tournament. UFC 1 took place on Nov. 12, 1993 in Denver, Colorado. This event marked the birth of the modern era of Mixed Martial Arts.

Royce Gracie continues to dominate the MMA world throughout 1994, winning both UFC 2 and UFC 4. Gracie's record stood at 11-1, with the only blemish coming from pulling out of a tournament due to injury. Royce breaks ties from the UFC in 1995; he does not fight again for five years.

In 1994 and 1995, Royce Gracie's half brother Rickson Gracie wins the Vale Tudo Open-Weight Tournament in Japan. Rickson dominates all challengers. He leaves Vale Tudo with a record of 8-0. Rickson does not fight again until 1997.

The UFC returns to a Tournament structure in 1996. Mark Coleman wins both UFC 10 and UFC 11 Heavyweight Tournaments. Mark Coleman's record peaked at 6-0 defeating Dan Severn in February of 1997. He then went on to lose four straight.

Undefeated Mark Kerr makes waves in 1997. He wins the World Vale Tudo 3 Tournament, and both UFC 14 and UFC 15 Heavyweight Tournaments. In 1998, Kerr has continued success in the Pride Fighting Championship. His 1998 record stood at 10-0. Kerr would not loose a contest until May of 2000.

In 1999, Bas Rutten stole the spotlight by winning the UFC Heavyweight Championship. Bas's 1999 record stood at 27-4-1. He was undefeated in his last 22 fights. Bas would retire from MMA in 1999 due to an injured knee and biceps.

In the year 2000, Randy Couture goes 3-0, capping off the year with a victory over Kevin Randleman for the UFC Heavyweight Championship. This is Couture's second reign as UFC Heavyweight Champion. He would make two successful title defences in 2001, but first lose to Valentijn Overeem at Rings: King of Kings, in February 2001.

Matt Hughes fights nine times in 2001. He loses his first fight before going on a 9-fight win streak. Hughes becomes the UFC Welterweight Championship at UFC 34. He successfully defends his title five times. He would not lose a match until 2004; against B.J. Penn. Penn would leave the UFC in 2005, and suffer a defeat to Lyoto Machida in the same year.

With Matt Hughes suffering defeat, the title of Pound-for-Pound Best in 2004 would shift to Pride Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko. Emelianenko's record in 2004 stood at 20-1-1. He successfully defends his title against Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira at Pride Shockwave 2004.

In 2005, attention shifts to a rising star of Pride; Mauricio Rua. With a record of 12-1, Rua would win the Pride Middleweight Grad Prix. He was at the top of his game and only 24 years old. Unfortunately, he would dislocate his elbow in a fight against Mark Coleman in 2006. Rua would come back from his injury and win four straight fights, but additional injuries and conditioning concerns push Rua out of the Pound-for-Pound spotlight. Rua would face defeat in 2007.

Similar in style and stature, Chuck Liddell would take the Pound-For-Pound title away from Mauricio Rua in 2006. With Rua mending his dislocated elbow, Liddell would defend his UFC Light Heavyweight Championship successfully three times. First at UFC 57 against Randy Couture, then at UFC 62 against Renato Sobral, and finally at UFC 66 against Tito Ortiz. At the end of 2006, Chuck Liddell held a record of 20-3. He would loose his first fight of 2007 against Quintin Jackson at UFC 71.

In 2007, Quintin Jackson successfully defends his title at UFC 75 against Dan Henderson, but most analysis see Jackson as a one-dimensional fighter and not the Pound-for-Pound best in MMA. They instead look to UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. With a record of 23-4, Silva would defend his title twice in 2007, and twice in 2008. His utter destruction of his opponents propels him into iconic stature. He even finds success at Light Heavyweight against UFC veteran James Irvin.

As of January 2009, Anderson Silva has been dethroned by Fedor Emelianenko. Fedor has defeated higher quality opponents. In his last two fights, Emelianenko has defeated Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia, and Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski.

The Heavyweight division is filled with former champions and rising stars while the Middleweight division is weak in comparison. Anderson Silva is a big fish in a small pond. Until Silva moves permanently to Light Heavyweight, the MMA world will not know the extent of his talent. Fedor Emelianenko is the Pound-For-Pound Best Fighter in MMA today.

UFC 95: A Big Waste of Time!

Mitch Wiles — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 17:06:50 -0500

Thank God UFC 95 is free on Spike TV. On paper, this event is lackluster to say the least. Just because an event is outside American timezones doesn't mean the UFC should book such a weak card.

Dana White talks a lot about expanding the UFC brand world-wide, but UFC 95 brings nothing to the table:

No UFC Title Matches
No Former UFC Champions
No #1 Contender Matches
No Grudge Matches

UFC 95 is a better card than the upcoming free Spike TV event UFC Fight Night: Lauzon vs. Franca, but not by much.

Diego Sanchez and Joe Stevenson should be an exciting hard-hitting fight. Also, rising-star Josh Koscheck squares off against undefeated Paulo Thiago.

But most numbered UFC events (UFC 92, 93, 94) showcase four or five marketable fights. I have no idea how the UFC is going to market this event...Sanchez moving to the lightweight division? I don't think so.

Why tune in to UFC 95? Because it's free.

UFC 93: Mark "The Hammer" Coleman Vs. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua

Mitch Wiles — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 06:40:56 -0500

UFC 93 Preview

Mark Coleman and Mauricio Rua will meet for a rematch at UFC 93 on Jan. 17. Their first encounter—at Pride 31 on Feb. 26, 2006—ended with a TKO victory for Coleman via a dislocated elbow. Tempers erupted after the injury, as Coleman threw the referee aside and the ring quickly filled with fighters, trainers, and Pride officials. Will we see such fireworks at UFC 93?

Tale of the Tape

Mark Coleman
Wins: 15
Losses:8
Age: 44
Columbus, Ohio, USA

Maurico Rua
Wins: 16
Losses:3
Age: 27
Curitiba, Brazil

There is much bad blood between the two fighters, and some fans hope for a stand-up slugfest. However, looking at their past performances, both fighters will most likely stick to their respective bread and butter, Coleman to the "Ground and Pound," and Rua to kicks and full-guard.

Rua has a great stand-up game, and he is well versed in head-kicks, which I suspect he will attempt early on in Round 1. However, Coleman will most likely shoot a double leg within the first 30 seconds and take the fight to the ground. Coleman has repeatedly gone to an early takedown game-plan, using it against Fedor Emelianenko (April '04 and October '06), Rua (February '06), and Mirko Filipović (February '05).

Another reason why this fight will go to the ground is that Rua does not sprawl. Rua pulls guard immediately after a shot is attempted. Rua only has one submission on his record, but he is quite comfortable on his back and has put many fighters in danger. Rua favors heel hooks and ankle locks (Rua vs. Randleman, October '06).

Coleman has a weak submission game (submission losses: 4). Coleman has won by submission, but with low technical maneuvers such as neck cranks. If Rua pulls guard on Coleman, I would predict a Rua submission victory.

Fans of Coleman tout his "Ground and Pound" skills. I agree that Coleman is very strong, but the MMA world has witnessed Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners tapping-out strong wrestlers since the beginning of the UFC. (Royce Gracie 1993-2000, Frank Mir vs. Brock Lesnar, February '08).

MMA is quite unpredictable with four-ounce gloves. Coleman has a puncher's chance, but Rua is the more complete fighter. Rua has a technical ground game and KO power (KO wins: 13). Coleman would like to take advantage of his "Ground and Pound", but Rua is just as a dangerous fighter on his back.

Betting Odds: Coleman +250, Rua -400

Coleman is going into UFC 93 as a heavy underdog, but as everyone who watched UFC 92 (Mir vs. Nogueira, Jackson vs. Silva) knows, underdogs can find a way to win. I would not bet on this fight, but If I had to make a pick, I would go with Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.

Lyoto Machida: MMA Pound For Pound Best?

Mitch Wiles — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 09:52:47 -0500

I know most MMA fans have yet to give Lyoto Machida the nod as one of the pound for pound best in the sport, but with wins over Tito Ortiz, B.J. Penn, Rich Franklin, and Stephan Bonnar, he is right on the brink of stardom.

Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida
Wins: 13 Loses: 0
6'1" 205lbs 30yrs
Salvador, Brazil

A win over undefeated Thiago Silva at UFC 94 should result in a LHW title shot. Rashad Evans vs. Lyoto Machida will be another battle of undefeated fighters, and in my bias opinion, I believe Machida's counter-striking will win over Rashad's ever evolving boxing skills.

Machida is well-rounded, his Shotokan Karate has yet to show a weakness in the Octagon, and his BJJ skills have produced two submissions. I will even go as far to predict a Lyoto Machida vs. Anderson Silva LHW championship match in 2009...if Dana White lets it happen.

Dana White believes, "A lot of people think (Machida's) style is too evasive and not engaging" (CBSSports.com). Rampage Jackson's exciting knock-out style may bump Machida out of the No. 1 contender spot and keep Machida in the shadows of the LHW division.

2009 would be a breakthrough year for Machida if the UFC promotes Machida as one of the pound for pound bests in the sport, but instead they appear to be giving in to some fans who think he is a boring fighter.

Nonetheless, I still believe that Lyoto Machida, title shot or not, is one of the Top 5 pound for pound MMA fighters in the world. He would offer a difficult challenge to Anderson Silva, GSP, and even Fedor Emelianenko.

If you don't believe me, tune in on January 31st and see Lyoto dismantle the popular, hard hitting, exciting, marketable, Thiago Silva. Then you can update your P4P list and put Lyoto Machida in your Top 5.