The Juggernaut MMA News Report 10.28.09: UFC Controversy
Posted by Jonathan Solomon on 10.28.2009
The Juggernaut runs through UFC 104 and DREAM 12 and all the submissions, knockouts and the CONTROVERSIAL decision. Did Machida really deserve the decision victory? Brock Lesnar pulls out, Gomi to UFC?, Joe Stevenson wants to fight a DREAM lightweight and and much more, so click now.
UFC 104 Ends in Controversy
The night started off with quite the bang as Anthony "Rumble" Johnson knocked out Yoshiyuki Yoshida almost as quickly as Josh Koscheck did. Who knows exactly how big Johnson was when he stepped foot into the octagon as he reportedly had to cut roughly 50 POUNDS to make weight. That's just wrong. Johnson was too quick and powerful for Yoshida who was knocked out with a straight right hand. That's rough for Yoshida who likely cannot fight another powerful striker because we all know how that is likely to end.
It was a great win for Johnson but the man has to prove he can consistently make weight before he gets any BIG fights in the future. Hey, maybe I'm wrong though, Vitor Belfort is getting a title shot after all.
Spencer Fisher has perhaps the best entrance theme out of any fighter I can recall, Johnny Cash's "God's Gonna Cut You Down." Sweet~! Too bad that is all Fisher had going for him against Joe Stevenson. Joe Daddy cut Fisher under the eye early in the fight and besides a short period where Fisher defended the takedown well, Stevenson had the rest of the fight in his back pocket. Stevenson locked Fisher up on the ground to where he was defenseless, then rained down elbows to the head until referee Herb Dean stopped the fight.
Stevenson is in an interesting position amongst the UFC lightweights. He is a top fighter no doubt, but he has recent losses to B.J. Penn and Diego Sanchez. His road to another title shot is a long one assuming B.J. Penn loses the belt. If he doesn't, I wonder if the UFC would ever book a rematch.
Best line of the night came from Joe Rogan (of course). The camera cuts to Chris Tucker in the audience wearing sunglasses and not playing to the camera at all. Rogan deadpans, "Is it bright in here?" Tucker, at one point (not sure if he still holds the record), was the highest paid actor in Hollywood, don't ya know.
Well, the UFC championship chances for Yushin Okami have finally and undoubtedly taken a dirt nap. The murderer is none other than Chael Sonnen. Sonnen simply outworked Okami for most of the fifteen minutes they fought. In round one, Sonnen's wrestling was on display and Okami had no answer. Sonnen's leg kicks and punches earned him the round as well. Okami, in round two, may have answered some shots but Sonnen was the clear aggressor. In the final round, Okami may have been coming back to life with more strikes but Sonnen ended that momentum with a takedown. The crowd may not have been into the fight but Chael Sonnen looked good against a legitimate top contender.
As for Okami, he can now be in the same class as Karo Parisyan (not the drug test failure class...) as for people who at one point were on the cusp of getting UFC title shots, didn't due to injury or other reasons and ended up losing and ending that hope. Let's just hope Okami's UFC run does not go down the same path as Parisyan's.
As for the 411mania MMA rankings, I am highly anticipating the next round for the middleweights. How much of a fall will Okami drop after being a consistently top-five ranked competitor for so long? Plus, will Chael Sonnen make his first appearance after this win? We will have to wait until Thanksgiving week to find out.
In other lightwe.....catchweight action, Gleison Tibau and Josh Neer went to battle. Tibau is a strong fighter and continuously took Neer down early with big takedowns. However, Neer did everything he could to keep Tibau off of him and took the fight back to the feet. Tibau had four big takedowns in the first round although there was no substantial damage otherwise in either corner. To kick things off in round two, Tibau just threw Neer down. Situations like this make it clear how big of a lightweight Tibau really is. To his credit, Neer did not allow Tibau to pass guard and do much of anything...until Tibau found the mount position, changing to Neer's back. Neer lucked out and got out of an armbar attempt from Tibau, dropped a bomb or two and things returned to the feet. Neer was impressive.
It looked to me like Tibau gassed late in the second round because his punches had no mustard on them whatsoever. This is a strange fight because besides the takedowns and the one armbar attempt, Tibau could not do much to Neer heading into the third round. Tibau clearly gassed and had nothing left in the third round as Neer stuffed several takedown attempts. Neer could not hurt Tibau and lost a unanimous decision. Sucks for Neer but he put up a good fight while Tibau could not do much despite the takedowns.
Some more great lines courtesy of Joe Rogan, one at the end of the Tibau/Neer fight. After some in the crowd boo'd the fight, Rogan (disagreeing) countered by saying, "...maybe they're L.A. douchebags." Can't say I've ever heard a color commentator say that before about the promotion's live fans. You have to love his honesty though, if nothing else, it's hilarious.
Cain Velasquez is a beast. Ben Rothwell landed a few punches but could not muster up anything to counter Velasquez's wrestling and ground and pound. It may have looked like a bad stoppage but I cannot disagree with it. Rothwell took a ton of unanswered shots, despite the fact he was getting up to his feet in the process. Rothwell is a great fighter but he was simply overmatched here.
Now whether Velasquez can pass right over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and get a title shot, I'm not sure, but I would certainly love to see him challenge Brock Lesnar. Imagine the bombs to be thrown in that one. I feel pain just thinking about it. As for Rothwell, he should be able to bounce back just fine. I'd like to see him challenge the likes of Gabe Gonzaga, Cheick Kongo or even Pat Berry after his impressive showing earlier during UFC 104.
Rothwell sure was pissed.
The main event may not have had a superstar the level of a Lesnar, GSP or Liddell, but it was still an exciting main event. It did not disappoint in any fashion as both Lyoto Machida and Shogun Rua battled for twenty-five minutes to a controversial judges decision. Somehow, it was a unanimous decision in favor of champion Machida, 48-47. That meant each of the three judges believed Machida won three rounds and Shogun just two.
After the fight was over, I thought it was an obvious decision win for Shogun Rua. In my mind, he would win 49-46. Shogun landed about a billion leg kicks and was never in any danger of being finished. He pushed the pace more than Machida did for all but perhaps the closing seconds of the fourth round. Did Machida do enough to win the fight? I don't think so. It is obvious the judges scored it for him based on their belief that the champion get some love in very close rounds.
All three judges scored it 48-47 for Machida. Two of the judges scored rounds 1, 2 & 3 for Machida and 4, 5 for Rua. The other judge scored rounds 1, 5 to Rua and 2, 3 & 4 to Machida.
Check out the FightMetric.com stats for the fight. Even they scored the fight for Shogun based on the amount of strikes. The only area where Machida did more damage was a small lead in shots to the body. Otherwise, Shogun led in head strikes and leg strikes.
When asked after the fight and during the post-show press conference whether he felt he won the fight, Lyoto Machida never firmly said he did. He gave the light answer (threw his interpreter & manager, Ed Soares) that the three judges all thought he won the fight and that was that. Certainly fishy as you would expect a man to say yes, he thought he won.
People can argue whether this decision is as a bad as the infamous Bisping/Hammil fight, but it certainly has bigger implications. First of all, Anderson Silva remains out of the 205-championship picture since his friend, Machida, remains champion. Secondly, if the UFC decides to do an immediate rematch (or whenever the first chance they get comes), do you think for one second that Shogun will employ the same strategy. Hell no he will not. He will have the obvious pressure to keep from going to a decision and will be overly aggressive. The aggressiveness that was not exactly on display in this fight, contrarily, Shogun showed a control and technical side that he is not exactly famous for.
On the positive side, at least for business, Shogun Rua is now a legit star to the American fan base.
Some of the criticism from the pro-Machida club said the commentary from Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan was biased for Shogun and led TV viewers to believe Shogun won. I decided to test that theory and rewatch the main event. My thoughts after the second viewing are up next.
Second Viewing
The first round, much like the rest of the fight appeared as if each fighter was taking their time to find openings. Shogun was the aggressor for the majority of the fight, forcing Machida to back peddle and circle the cage. Neither man did heavy damage although Shogun's early leg work on Machida was evident. What made it difficult to score was when Machida threw a kick or a punch, Shogun threw a counter and vice versa. Each landed some punches and kicks although I would say Shogun landed more. Machida landed a nice punch, kick combo during the round that was unanswered by Shogun. Early in the fight, Shogun did some nice clinch work with knees to Machida's thighs. Hence in Machida's corner, they iced his thighs down after the round. I would say this is the definition of a 10-10 round. Neither fighter did much to dispel any doubt as to who won.
Round two: Shogun missed a leg kick and Machida responded with a body kick. Shogun then moved forward with more leg kicks that had Machida backpedaling, away from the cage. Machida landed a nice punch combo that sent Shogun towards the cage to avoid any more shots. Shogun landed knees and kicks to the body. Machida defended a takedown attempt beautifully. Machida landed some nice leg kicks of his own. Shogun had Machida circling the cage and landed a body kick. Machida answered with one of his own. Shogun had a nice combination with punches and strikes that sent Machida backing away. Machida landed a nice leg kick and a punch. Shogun landed a jumping knee to the body. At the end of the round, Shogun landed some knees to the legs of Machida from the clinch. As he walked away, Machida's left side was clearly reddened. This is a 10-9 round for Shogun as he landed more strikes throughout the round and had Machida backing away routinely.
Round three: After trading strikes early, Machida landed a nice combination punch and body kick. Shogun shot in for a takedown but Machida defended it well. Shogun landed a leg kick as Machida landed a punch to the head. Shogun had him in a clinch but Machida landed a knee to the body. The final thirty seconds were a slugfest with Machida landing several punches and kicks. Shogun clinched him to stop the onslaught. This was a clear 10-9 round for Machida.
Round four: They traded leg kicks early. Shogun landed a body kick while Machida threw a high kick. Machida slipped while throwing a leg kick and Shogun went for a takedown but it was defended well, yet again. Shogun landed another body kick but Machida came forward with a punch. Same thing happens a second time. Shogun landed a straight right and a knee to the body. Machida walks back again. Thirty seconds left, they both look for openings. Extremely tough to score as not much happened in the round. The fact Machida spent a large part of the round trying to avoid Shogun's offense, I would lean towards Rua, 10-9.
Round five: Shogun lands a leg kick right off the bat. He lands another. Machida clinches him but lets him go. Machida lands a left straight, then Shogun lands a leg kick. Shogun throws a jumping kick that grazed Machida's shoulder. Shogun lands another leg kick. Shogun catches Machida's leg and lands a punch. Shogun throws a combination, backing Machida against the cage but I don't think anything landed. Three minutes left. Machida throws a punch but it's blocked. Machida lands a pair of knees, Shogun lands a high kick. From the clinch, Shogun lands two knees until referee Herb Dean restarts them in the center of the cage. Shogun lands a leg kick. Two minutes left. Machida throws a right, but it's blocked. Clinch, Shogun lands an elbow and a punch. One minute left. Machida throws a high kick, Shogun backs away. Shogun throws three punches, but Machida moves away. Machida's mouth i clearly bloodied. With seconds left, they trade strikes. This is a clear 10-9 round for Shogun, for landing more strikes and tiring Machida out with the leg work.
The first major Japanese MMA promotion to use a cage, DREAM unveiled said cage on Sunday morning (our time). In a fun moment of Japanese pageantry, they unveiled it by lifting a big curtain to reveal a six-sided white cage. The wiring was said to be a bit flexible but nobody knew how it would take when holding the weight of two men. Size-wise, it appeared to be quite roomy so there was no need to fear a fight inside close confines. Those expecting smooth and tight camera shots like the UFC may have been a bit annoyed. This was DREAM's first time shooting a show inside a cage and at times, camera angles appeared awkward or moving too much. Either way, if they use the cage-format in the future, hopefully the learn and improve on that.
In featherweight action, weeks after a controversial decision loss at the Patriot Center, Chase Beebe returned to Japan. He was submitted by Yoshiro Maeda in an entertaining, quick fight. Maeda hooked him in a rear naked choke near the cage and Beebe was forced to tap out. Maeda told the Osaka, Japan crowd he wants to fight on New Year's Eve.
The loss for Beebe means he is 0-4 in his last five fights with one no contest, dating back to 2008. That includes the controversial fight with Mike Easton from earlier this month that is officially being called a "No Contest" after an investigation from the VIrginia State Athletic Commission. Originally, judges ruled in favor of Easton with a split decision win over Beebe despite many observers feeling Beebe won handedly. Beebe has not won a fight since WEC 30 in September 2007 when he beat Rani Yahya by decision.
Tokimitsu Ishizawa (or Kendo Kashin), a well known pro wrestler competed in his seventh professional MMA fight (he was 1-4-1 heading into DREAM 12 with a win over Ryan Gracie at PRIDE 15). Kashin's wrestling career includes several title wins in Japan, winning New Japan's 1996 Young Lion's Cup and he even infamously competed in Ring of Honor in 2005. His MMA career is not so famous. Katsuyori Shibata considers Ishizawa as a mentor and took said mentor to the woodshed. This was not much of a fight as Shibata knocked him down and threw a few more punches to end the fight.
After a brief intermission, the second half kicked off with a bang. Kazushi Sakuraba is still ticking having submitted American boxer Rubin Williams three weeks ago. Sakuraba had a much bigger challenge at DREAM 12 when he fought Zelg Galesic (9-4 going in). Sakuraba's strategy was not a riddle. Almost right off the bat, he shot in for Galesic's leg, got it and went for a submission. Galesic started throwing bombs at a defenseless Sakuraba but the ref never stopped the fight. Sakuraba also, never let go of his leg. Eventually, Sakuraba maneuvered out of a dangerous position and applied a kneebar that forced Galesic to tap out. Awesome performance but watching Sakuraba absorb so much punishment...again, is not so awesome.
DREAM welterweight champion Marius Zaromskis fought Myeon Ho Bae in a non-title fight and it was action from the word go. Zaromskis started with a flying knee and punches but Bae landed a right and a left that hurt Zaromskis. Out of nowhere, Zaromskis landed a left high kick that knocked Bae out for a knockout. Mirko Cro Cop would be proud! Vicious and malicious.
In the night's true main event, top ranked lightweight & Bellator champion Eddie Alvarez fought the DEEP lightweight champion, Katsunori Kikuno. Neither title was on the line. Alvarez shot in early for a takedown but Kikuno defended it well against the cage with double underhooks. Kikuno turned it into a neck crank and Alvarez had no answer for nearly two minutes. Alvarez showed obvious wear on his neck as he backtracked for position. They threw strikes, then went into the clinch. Kikuno worked body and front kicks into his offense effectively. Alvarez's punches may have landed but Kikuno did not seem too hurt by them. Alvarez landed a left as Kikuno landed a counter. Alvarez landed a nice combination but had another takedown stuffed. At the end of the round, Kikuno landed a body kick. He had a small cut above his right eye but I scored it 10-9 for Kikuno (DREAM was using the U.S. judging rules and round/time rules for this event).
In round two, Alvarez landed a big right that put Kikuno on his butt for the first time in the fight. Kikuno got back up and they went to the clinch. Kikuno threw a knee but Alvarez caught it and took him down for the first time. Alvarez was in side control, looking for the mount but found a guillotine choke instead. Alvarez took it to his back and closed his guard as Kikuno tried to keep the choke from hurting him (it may have had more chin than throat). A minute later, Kikuno popped out and they returned to throwing strikes. Alvarez had a nice combination to the body and head. Both men were tired at this point as Alvarez took him down again. From the half-guard, Alvarez went for an arm triangle and moved out to side control to really synch it in. Kikuno was forced to tap out.
This was a solid performance from Alvarez who, while perhaps never in danger of being finished, had to persevere through a lot early in the fight. With the win, Alvarez becomes the likely opponent for DREAM lightweight champion Shinya Aoki on New Year's Eve. Hard to see that fight being anything other than a grappling display from Aoki. DREAM did continue to tease a Tatsuya Kawajiri/Aoki fight for the Dynamite show, however.
In the main event, the man who won't fight in America, (Strikeforce heavyweight champion) Alistair Overeem fought James Thompson. Even before the fight began, the play-by-play man said "You figure he will make short work of Thompson." Hilarious, but honest. Thompson started with his patented aggressiveness, moving forward with punches but not landing any. Overeem landed one shot then threw a flying knee that nearly saw him fly out of the cage. Thompson went for a takedown but Overeem caught him in a standing guillotine choke, forcing the Brit to tap out.
JUGGERNAUT NEWS BRIEFS
- In UFC 104 bonus news, Stephan Strove earned $60,000 for the best submission of the night. Patrick Barry and Antoni Hardonk each earned $60,000 for the best fight of the night and Barry earned another $60,000 for the best knockout of the night. According to Dana White, Anthony Johnson would have won the KO of the night award but was ineligible due to not making weight. Despite losing the fight, Johnson's opponent, Yoshiyuki Yoshida took home 20% of Johnson's purse money because of the weight issue.
- Brock Lesnar has been suffering from a severe flu for weeks and has been forced to step out of the UFC 106 championship fight with Shane Carwin. According to Carwin's twitter page, the fight has been postponed to UFC 108 on January 2nd, 2010. That would be the same card that features Anderson Silva's title defense versus Vitor Belfort and Rashad Evans versus Thiago Silva. As for UFC 106, no new fight has been added to the card as of Tuesday, and I would expect the Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin fight will be bumped up to the main event.
- WEC 45 is slated to take place on Saturday night, December 19th in Las Vegas with an unofficial card featuring: Donald Cerrone vs. Ed Ratcliff, Chris Horodecki vs. Anthony Njokuani, Damacio Page vs. Takeya Mizugaki and Bart Palaszewski on the card.
- Paulo Thiago is expected to fight UFC rookie Jacob Volkmann at UFC 106. Volkmann has a 10-0 record elsewhere while Thiago is coming off his first career defeat at the hands of Jon Fitch.
- Cecil Peoples, one of the judges at UFC 104 (who scored the first three rounds for Machida) explained to CageReport.net what he saw in the main event fight:
"First of all what you need to understand is that from where the judges are sitting, we get to see things that the fans at home may miss. Mauricio Rua was being aggressive but it wasn't effective aggressiveness which is what we as the judges look for when scoring a fight. The way I saw it, Lyoto was landing the more cleaner and damaging strikes throughout the fight - if you take a look at the judging criteria clean strikes are valued more-so than the quantity of strikes landed. Although Rua threw a lot of low kicks they were not as damaging as Lyoto's diverse attack in the earlier rounds which is why I scored the first three rounds for Machida. You have to keep in mind we always the favour the fighter who is trying to finish the fight, and leg kicks certainly don't do that."
"When both fighters are engaged in a striking match what I always look for is the fighter who is being judicious, picking his spots, being accurate and landing the cleaner strikes which ultimately is what Lyoto did more effectively than Rua. Lyoto made Shogun come after him, he determined where the fight took place which in my opinion constitutes as effective Octagon control. I recognize the fact that Rua did have a few takedown attempts during the course of the fight however Lyoto defended them all successfully which counts as effective grappling in his favour, where as unsuccessful takedown attempts are not scored at all. Therefore going by that criteria, I believe Lyoto won the fight clearly. I'm just glad the other judges on the panel saw it the same way and I'm sure the fans who understand the technicalities of the sport agree with the decision too."
- In a radio interview with MMAJunkie, Anthony Johnson insists his life has changed in wake of not making weight and losing out on bonus money and 20% of his purse money. Johnson cut from 225 pounds to 176 pounds for the welterweight fight (170) and simply could not lose the final five pounds before stepping on the scales last Friday. Johnson said he is "changing everything," and "I'm still dieting right now. That's how serious I am about all this. I'm changing up everything – my training, my dieting. My whole life is changing right now. As soon as I didn't make weight, my life changed."
- According to Dave Meltzer, Dana White wants to book the Machida/Shogun rematch on the New Year's show on January 2nd, 2010 for UFC 108. Shogun has already given his approval for the date and all that remains is whether Lyoto Machida will be healthy in time and approves. Machida is going to need some time to heal his legs and ribs. UFC 108 is reportedly going to feature the Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin fight and possibly even Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort. Needless to say, it is highly unlikely UFC 108 will feature THREE championship fights. I would expect either the Machida/Shogun or Silva/Belfort fight to be pushed back to February or March at the latest.
- Andrei Arlovski has been doing a video blog while training with Greg Jackson. Check out one of the parts right here:
- French middleweight Karl Amoussou has signed a four fight contract with DREAM. His professional MMA record stands at 11-2-1 and he recently signed on to be represented by M-1 Global.
- In an interview with AOL Fanhouse, Vitor Belfort has said he thinks Nate Marquardt deserves the next shot at Anderson Silva's championship, even moreso than himself. Belfort even said he thinks he should have a fight or two before taking on Silva. I'm sure those are words to Dana White's ears.
- During an interview with ESPN Radio (1100) after UFC 104, Joe Stevenson said he wants to fight Shinya Aoki next. When the hosts told Stevenson that Aoki will never fight in the UFC, Stevenson insisted he will beg Joe Silva (UFC matchmaker) and the UFC to make the fight happen. Stevenson said he would "own" Aoki in a fight. He is not happy that people talk about Aoki when speaking of top lightweights. He said Aoki is not a top lightweight, but a solid bantamweight fighter. Interesting.
- Free agent Takanori Gomi gave an interview Tsutaya Online (translated by MMAMania.com) in which he spoke about his desire to fight B.J. Penn again. Gomi said, "I want to fight BJ Penn again. He knows I'm the unique guy of this division able to knock him out. It would be the biggest champions fighting. Imagine how this match would be … but it's not close to coming true. I don't want to talk over UFC … Mr. Dana White is a great manager and I respect him but is a person hard to deal with. I'm not an art martial beginner, I am a MMA champion. What about him? What would he be?"
The Ultimate Fighter Review and Preview
I wonder what happens if Team Rampage's final two eligible combatants lose in the next two weeks. Do they simply sit idly be, train for nothing in particular and watch Team Rashad's quest for the single heavyweight contract? It is a very real possibility now that there are two preliminary fights remaining. The last fighter picked and man seen by nearly all as the weakest, Zak Jensen (of Team Rampage) was submitted by Darrill Schoonover with a triangle.
Most of last week's episode dealt with Rampage Jackson egging Schoonover on by calling him "titties." The two got into a verbal exchange at the fight announcement which was hilarious. Here is a former light heavyweight champion arguing with some dude about who would knock out who. It's silly and it seemed Rashad Evans knew exactly what was going down, as he backed up his fighter and calmed down the situation.
Speaking of Rashad, the preview for tonight's episode shows another heated verbal exchange between Rampage and Rashad that requires them to be separated. Plus, the highlight of Rampage head butting (then destroying) the door in the training facility. We knew a long time ago how easy it is for Rashad to get under Rampage's skin. Too bad we won't see them fight anytime soon. Too bad.
Schoonover and Jensen came out swinging and both landed some big punches that looked like they would bring down a house. After the clinch, Jensen shot in for a takedown and fell into Schoonover's guard. Darrill immediately went for the triangle and had it loosely on for at least thirty seconds as Jensen landed hammerfists. Jensen never got out of the hold however and passed out momentarily to end the fight.
Earlier in the episode while training, Jensen suffered a cut above one of his eyes and immediately, Kimbo Slice put his arms up as if he won a championship. Slice wants to fight again and it seems his only opportunity is if one of his teammates is injured before a fight. Slowly, it looks as if we have seen the end of Slice's TUF run and we will wait until December to see him fight inside the octagon again.
Oh yeah, Marcus Jones may the nicest six-foot-five plus tall fighter in the history of the show. We will see tonight or next week how dangerous he can be once he flips that switch inside the cage.
Lastly, in case you forgot, Roy Nelson remains the favorite to win the entire season. But hey, if Wagnney Fabinao could be forced to tap out against a WEC newcomer, anything can happen.
JUGGERNAUT VIDEO OF THE WEEK
Only ten days remain until Strikeforce's (apparently) last BIG show of the year. Here is one of the CBS spots promoting the main event. Mysterious Russian Fedor versus big black American dude may be how they are promoting the fight, but you and I know better. I hope.
Thanks for reading as always. Next week, you can look forward to a Strikeforce preview with a look at each of the main card fights. From Fabricio Werdum to Mayhem to Fedor, all next week.
