Cardio Freak MMA News Report 01.11.10: New Year, New Changes
Posted by Jeremy Lambert on 01.11.2010
This week in Cardio Freak: more changes suggested to help better the sport of MMA including a rule that forces fighters into retirement, a way to keep fighter reputations safe, and something that will help the judges. Also, a preview of tonight's Fight Night event that lacks name value but should be a very good card headlined by an important Lightweight showdown plus thoughts on new fights being rumored for upcoming UFC and Strikeforce events. It's better than back to back nights of fights, it's Cardio Freak on 411.
Headline News
It's that time again. Time when there's a short break between major MMA events and I have no good ideas floating around in my head so I resort to my go to "lack of a of a good idea" column: CHANGES! The "Changes in MMA" is a big hit around these parts but if you're new to program the idea is that I suggest changes that need to be made to MMA to make the sport even better.
Retirement Rule: If you're at least 40 years old, have lost three of your last five fights, and have been finished in two of those three losses then you must retire. We all know that no MMA fighter ever retires (did you know Ken Shamrock is going to fight Seth Petruzelli sometime this year?) despite everyone wanting them to because they become sad to watch. Well now we have a rule that forces fighters into retirement when they reach the point of sadness.
Frank Mir on UFC Countdown Shows: Frank Mir must be on every single UFC Countdown show for the rest of history. No one is better at selling a fight than Frank Mir as evident by his recent performances on Countdown shows and his recent buyrates. Not only can Mir sell his own fight but I'm certain he can sell any fight he needs to simply because he's Frank Mir and he knows everything about everything.
Olympic Style Drug Testing for Certain Fights: Because MMA needs to piss off their fans more than boxing.
Fedor Presented by M-1 Global Negotiations: I can't be the only one tired of hearing/reading about these negotiations. All MMA websites should take an oath not to report on Fedor & UFC negotiations because all it does is give naïve fans reason to believe that he'll actually sign. All sites should just report when he's signed and then go from there.
No More Backstage Interviews: These are the most useless things ever. Strikeforce does them all the time and UFC has started doing them on their SpikeTV shows in order to fill time. The questions are usually terrible and the answers are usually generic. They're even worse than post-fight interviews because at least with those there's a chance someone says something stupid because he's on an emotional high but with backstage interviews everyone sounds like they went to the Derek Jeter School of Answering Interview Questions. That's a real school. Look it up.
Injuries Must be Disclosed Before the Fight: I'm tired of certain fighters (Tito Ortiz) saying they're healthy heading into a fight and then making injury excuses after the fight because they don't perform well. I understand not giving away your injury to the public before the fight because if you say you have an injured leg, you're going to get leg kicked to death. I propose that all fighters disclose their injuries to a doctor who signs a confidentiality agreement before the fight. Don't say you're 100% healthy heading into the fight and if it comes out after the fight that you were injured, the doctor can confirm or deny the story.
Judges Need Monitors: We all want to fix judging in MMA. Instead of a complete revamp of the system, we just need to put monitors in front of the judges. That way they see what all the fans at home see and it will hopefully cut down on questionable judging decisions. Judges need a lot more than monitors and the system could use some work but we need to work in baby steps.
Feel free to post your own MMA changes in the comments section.
Major UFC/WEC News
UFC Fight Night: Diaz vs. Maynard is tonight on SpikeTV at 9PM east. Here is the main card:
*Nate Diaz vs. Gray Maynard
*Evan Dunham vs. Efrain Escudero
*Tom Lawlor vs. Aaron Simpson
*Amir Sadollah vs. Brad Blackburn
I'm excited for this event even though it's the UFC 108 of Fight Nights as far as name value goes.
I'm a big Nate Diaz fan so I'm obviously looking forward to his fight against Gray Maynard. It's a big fight for the Lightweight division as well seeing as a win for Maynard will likely earn him the right to be murdered by BJ Penn while a win for Diaz will be his biggest inside the Octagon. Diaz defeated Maynard on the Ultimate Fighter 5 show with a guillotine choke in the second round but that fight was two and a half years ago. Both guys are different fighters now with Maynard really improving his boxing and Diaz continuing to sharpen up his striking and jiu-jitsu. On the feet things are about even. Maynard has good crisp hands, good head movement, and power. Diaz brings his punches from weird angles, has accurate striking, and is constantly throwing punches. Diaz doesn't have the power to hurt Maynard but at the same time Diaz has the legendary Diaz chin/recovery so while Maynard may knock him down, he's going to be really tough to finish.
In his last two losses, Diaz was controlled in the clinch by better wrestlers. Diaz made a big mistake in those fights against Clay Guida and Joe Stevenson and that was getting into a wrestling match with them. Given his ground game, he's better off conceding the takedown to Maynard and working his guard to threaten with submissions and sweeps. If he tries to get into a wrestling contest with Maynard, he's going to lose. And given Diaz' stubbornness, he'll likely try to get into a wrestling match with Maynard and that will lead to him losing another decision.
Dunham vs. Escudero is my pick for fight of the night. Both guys are well rounded with a wrestling background and they're both undefeated. Dunham has the better ground game of the two but Escudero showed in his fight with Philippe Nover that he has a very good base on top and good submission defense. Both are good striking with Dunham being the more technical of the two but Escudero having more power. Escudero has scary strength and if you don't believe then just watch him pick up and slam down Cole Miller like it was nothing at UFC 103. I think this will be a fun scrap on the feet, if it hits the ground then they'll both be very active looking for submissions and scrambles, and they're both tough to finish so I think this will go to a decision with Escudero edging things out.
Lawlor vs. Simpson is a battle of charisma vs. talent. Tom Lawlor is good wrestler and that's about it while Simpson is a good wrestler who is also athletic and hits like a truck. Lawlor is where he is because he comes from a pro wrestling background and understands how to himself over with the fans. If Lawlor can get the fight to the ground then he can grind out a decision but he's going to have a tough time taking down Simpson and keeping him down. The longer it stays on the feet, the more chance Simpson has to catch Lawlor with one of those bombs and turn his lights out.
I don't know what to expect in the Amir vs. Blackburn fight simply because I don't know what to expect from Amir. He's a good technical striker but lacks power, he seems to have good submissions but all the guys he's submitted just have a weakness in that area, and his cardio looked good against Phil Baroni but he was also facing Phil Baroni. Amir's biggest weakness seems to be an early flurry. Johny Hendricks dropped and questionably finished him at UFC 101 while Baroni had him in trouble early at UFC 106. Blackburn is a good striker with power so it should shock no one if he catches Amir early but if Amir can survive the storm then I think he can out strike Blackburn en route to a decision.
It's a card that lacks name value but I expect it to be a very good event.
The following fights are rumored for the UFC on VS. event scheduled for March 21 in Colorado:
*Jon Jones vs. Brandon Vera
*Anthony Johnson vs. John Howard
*Clay Guida vs. Sean Sherk
A very strong card for UFCs debut on VS.
Jones vs. Vera has me very intrigued. Jones seems to be one of those can't miss MMA prospects but he's looked good against good match ups for him. I think we can all agree that Vera isn't going to live up to his potential and become a gate-keeper in the Light Heavyweight division but he's not a good match up for Jones. Jones is at his best when guys get close to him and try to turn things into a wrestling match. When that happens he's able to use his strength, speed, and smarts to throw around his opponents with flashy suplexes. Vera isn't going to get close to Jones. He's going to stay on the outside, work his kicks, and try to turn things into a striking contest. Jones striking is good but overrated by many as they just see all his flashy strikes and think that he's an amazing striker. Those people are wrong. He's a decent striker who hides his technical flaws with flashiness but the unpredictability of his strikes makes him a threat on the feet.
Johnson vs. Howard is an important bounce back fight for Johnson. Not many people know Howard even though he's 3-0 in the UFC. This is because two of his victories were by split decision (I thought he lost the Tamdan McCrory fight) and his most recent victory over Dennis Hallman came via KO with five seconds left in a fight he was clearly losing. It's a good match up for Johnson. He's a better wrestler so he can likely put Howard on his back anytime he wants although Howard has a good ground game so he'll have to watch out for submissions. On the feet Johnson is more athletic and explosive so he'll likely keep things standing and look for another highlight reel KO.
As a big fan of Clay Guida, I really don't like the match up against Sherk. They're essentially the same fighter expect Sherk is stronger and has better boxing. Guida is going to have a tough time taking down Sherk and if it stays standing I favor Sherk's hands over Guida's. Maybe Guida will surprise me and everyone and come out a new fighter with much improved striking but even then it might not be enough to beat Sherk.
Major Strikeforce/Miscellaneous News
The following fights have been announced/rumored for Strikeforce in Miami on January 30:
*Melvin Manhoef vs. Robbie Lawler
*Bobby Lashley vs. Yohan Banks
*Herschel Walker vs. Greg Nagy
The January 30 Strikeforce show lacks a big name (I'm not buying Bobby Lashley as a big name) but it's shaping up to be a good card.
Lawler vs. Manhoef will be a fun fight if Lawler decides to stand with Melvin. Of course if he goes with that strategy he'll end up knocked out in a matter of minutes but it will still be fun. I suspect Lawler will try to get things to the ground as quick as possible but if his ego gets in the way and he wants to try and prove something by standing with Manhoef then we could be in for a fun scrap until someone falls.
Lashley vs. Banks is a designed win for Bobby Lashley. Banks is unknown but he's a former boxer with plenty of power in his hands. That sounds great on paper until you realize he's facing Bobby Lashley, who is a powerhouse wrestler. I suspext that Lashley will get the fight to the ground immediately and pound out Banks en route to another win against a mid-level at best fighter that really proves nothing.
I don't know what to expect from Walker vs. Nagy. I suspect Nagy isn't very good because Walker is the draw here and they want him to look impressive. Nagy is 1-1 in MMA but I can't find any footage of his fights so I don't know what skills he brings to the table. Walker is 47 years old and making his MMA debut after playing 11 years in the NFL as a running back. Running backs in the NFL breakdown in their early 30's so I can't imagine how Walker is going to perform at 47 years old in MMA. I honestly hope Walker loses and realizes this isn't for him because at his age with the mileage on his body, you just know he has a death wish.
No More News
That does it for me folks. I'll be back next week with late/quick reviews of WEC and Fight Night along with something new. Take care everyone.
They really have to change the weigh in system. Guys put on 15 to 20 pounds after the weigh in, which is bs, and not healthy for them. Maybe have them weigh in on the same day of the fight might help.
Posted By: Guest#7163 (Guest) on January 11, 2010 at 11:45 AM
Weighing in day of fight is far more dangerous. Someone will die from that.
Posted By: A. Coolman (Guest) on January 11, 2010 at 04:11 PM
When you said "Judges need monitors", I thought you were talking about having someone monitor Cecil Peoples to make sure he doesn't nod off when fights go to the ground. That would be good too.
Posted By: Guest#6630 (Guest) on January 11, 2010 at 05:15 PM
