UFC Fight Night 32: Post-Fight Stock Report
On paper, UFC Fight Night was an event that many fans felt they could miss without regret. In terms of execution, it was one of the most exciting cards in recent memory.
In total, there were nine finishes in 11 fights. There were brutal finishes on the feet and pretty submissions on the mat. Everything that was executed made the crowd go nuts both in the arena and at home.
Now that the event is over, where do the fighters stand? Here is the post-fight stock report.
Down: Brazilians
1 of 5
Fans are always talking about how the Brazilian cards play to the favor of the hometown fighter in terms of matchup. At UFC Fight Night 32, that distinct advantage was not seen.
On the card, Brazilian fighters went 5-6 (5-7 if you count Argentine Santiago Ponzinibbio, a crowd favorite). Seeing the amount of finishes on the card, that means five of the six losing Brazilians were finished by knockout or submission.
Usually, the Brazilians' record on the home cards is well above .500. Over the weekend, that number took a bit of a hit.
Up: American Dark Horses
2 of 5
Two American welterweights really boosted their stock at UFC Fight Night 32: Brandon Thatch and Ryan LaFlare. Both men came away with impressive wins that had fans talking following the event.
Thatch and LaFlare were both in their sophomore efforts and gave dominant, yet different performances.
Thatch used his trademark knees and power strikes to stop Paulo Thiago in just over two minutes. He was dominant on the feet and was able to get off the mat when taken down by the Brazilian ground specialist.
LaFlare used a balanced, methodical approach in his 15-minute performance against Sanitago Ponzinibbio. He outstruck, outwrestled and outgrappled the Argentine, sweeping the scorecards.
Both men have become names to watch in the ever-crowded 170-pound division.
Down: Rony Jason
3 of 5
Things went from bad to worse for Rony Jason at UFC Fight Night 32.
First, he got brutally knocked out by Jeremy Stephens in just 40 seconds. That was not enough to do anything remotely impressive even in defeat.
Then, reports are that backstage, Jason was so angry about his defeat that he punched a hole through the wall, earning him a trip to the hospital. Talk about injury to insult.
November 9, 2013 is a night that Jason is going to want to forget quickly. The rising star's stock took a pretty significant hit in more than one way.
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Up: Rafael Cavalcante
4 of 5
Often times, it's hard to make a second impression when your first impression wasn't very good. Rafael Cavalcante luckily redeemed himself in his second outing with the UFC.
The former Strikeforce champ came into the fight in the best shape many have seen him in. The Brazilian had a tall task in front of him in the form of Igor Pokrajac and passed his test with flying colors.
We saw the viciousness that we had not seen in a long time from "Feijao," as he unleashed a violent set of knees that crippled Pokrajac. It was so nasty that the Croatian was tapping out before he hit the mat.
That either says that Cavalcante is a beast or Pokrajac was a coward in pain. Could be a tad of both.
Down?: Dan Henderson and Vitor Belfort
5 of 5
Is it just me or did nobody win in last night's main event?
I will give props to Vitor Belfort for being the first man to stop Dan Henderson with strikes, but I just feel cheated. Belfort's use of TRT, given that he has abused steroids in the past, will continue to overshadow his performances until he stops using the therapy.
Sure, Henderson uses TRT too, but he is a 43-year-old man with no recognizable track record of steroid abuse. You can bash him for using it, but testosterone production slows down at around that age.
If Henderson was going to go down for the first time by strikes, I wanted it to be clean and fair. Belfort doing it makes it feel like an asterisk should be there.
However, Henderson is still not looking great coming off this performance. His contract is up, he is on a three-fight skid, and he is the oldest fighter on the roster.
Could he be joining Rampage Jackson and Tito Ortiz in Bellator, or will Dana White give one of his most promotable stars another chance?
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