411 MMA Fact or Fiction 01.27.10: Carano/Celeste, Diaz/Zaromskis, Mir/Carwin & MORE!

Posted by Jeremy Lambert on 01.27.2010

Is Gina Carano hotter than Arianny Celeste? Is Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Cain Velasquez February's most interesting fight? Will Robbie Lawler vs. Melvin Manhoef be the best fight this Saturday? Should Frank Mir vs. Shane Carwin be for the Interim Heavyweight Title? 411's Larry Csonka and Daniel Bonnizzio debate these topics and more in this week's edition of 411 MMA Fact or Fiction!

January comes to an end with a big Strikeforce event this weekend followed by a February that features two UFC events.

To debate those topics and more this week we have the man, the myth, the legend, THE Larry Csonka. His opponent is back for the second week in a row, his Takedown MMA News Report makes even Georges St. Pierre jealous, he is Daniel Bonnizzio.

In the words of John McCarthy…LET'S GET IT ON!

1. Nick Diaz vs. Marius Zaromskis won't make it to the Championship Rounds.

Larry Csonka: FACT. I thought about this a good bit, and I do think that this will end by round three. I hate various versions of MMATH and such, but looking at the records, the evidence supports the answer. Nick Diaz's last six fights have all ended in the first three rounds, and five of those were wins. Diaz fights a style where he just peppers you repeatedly with punches. He will throw hundreds of punches in a fight, he will do damage, his size and wing span for lack of a better word keep people on the outside and allows him to dictate the pace. And of course, if it goes to the ground, his opponent is in trouble. While records on his first two fights are sketchy, Marius Zaromskis' last 14 fights have all finished in under three rounds. These include several first round finishes, including his last three fights, which all ended in the first round, via HEAD KICK. With all the being said, we'll either se Diaz pick apart another opponent, or Zaromskis will decapitate another man. Should be a hell of a fight, but it will be over in three rounds or under.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT. Unlike Mr Csonka I didn't quite give this one as much deliberation. Diaz is known for having a terrific ground game (his Black Belt under Cesar Gracie is only evidence of that) but also for being able to throw literally hundreds of strikes in a manner of a few minutes. Add onto that each punch does in fact have some juice behind it, and we might get another Diaz/Shamrock fight where the sheer amount of punched thrown is too much for the Whitemare to handle. On the other side of the coin, Zaromskis has built quite a reputation for his KO power, something that is lacking somewhat amongst the welterweights of the world. He's always looking for that huge knockout to happen and even though Diaz is going to be able to keep him on the outside and working hard for it, it only takes one sometimes. Yeah, this is going to end before the fourth.

SCORE: 1 for 1.

2. Melvin Manhoef vs. Robbie Lawler will be the Fight of the Night this Saturday.

Larry Csonka: FACT. I will go fact on this one as well. Melvin Manhoef is an exciting fighter. He is big, he is jacked, and he comes out there looking to punch a hole in the head of his opponent. His strikes are fast, vicious, and he has charisma, which I appreciate. But the other thing is that he will go out there and do all of that, and then against the wrong opponent, gets choked out since he has NO ground game. But that is why Robbie Lawler is a perfect opponent for him. In 21 fights, Lawler has only submitted a man once. Lawler likes to hang and bang, and so does Manhoef. I imagine that they will go out there and try to kill each other, and that some one will gas out and then get knocked out. But it should be extremely gun. In closing I would like have the option to change my answer the night of the fight if Wes Sims wears his ninja outfit.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT. I hate to agree on this one too but sadly, that fight's only real competition for a FOTN candidate is Riggs/Hieron and let's face it, those two - while highly skilled - are not known for putting on the classics that will be called legends once time passes. Manhoef has tremendous striking and always comes to bang - his 23 career KO wins show that - but he and Robbie Lawler are cut from the same cloth. They both come to strike, and both of them are somewhat lacking when it comes to submissions defense. This is another fight not going the distance but - and hopefully we don't see a repeat of Kimbo/Houston - it's ending with someone taking the canvas nap.

SCORE: 2 for 2.



3. You agree with AskMen.com: Gina Carano is hotter than Arianny Celeste.

Larry Csonka: FACT. Dear God this is a hard question! The bottom line is this, both women are fine, and while I will never get the chance, it isn't like I would kick either of them out of bed if you hear what I'm saying. But I will go fact. I have a thing for Gina, and she has the "I can kick your ass and dominate you" deal going and I have to say, I kinda dig that. But if you want a truthful answer, I'll take them both, because I'M HARDCORE!

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT. But come on, that's like saying one spot on the sun is hotter than the other: it's provable and debatable, but ask the common man and they'll say that they're both pretty hot. I do however agree with Larry on the whole 'I could knock out you out and not even blink' thing Gina has going on. I'm a big man with some combat sports experience and I wouldn't want to get into a fight with her. Gina also has that goofiness factor going on sometimes that is just adorable (yes I said adorable) and I love it. However, I wouldn't kick Arianny out of bed for eating crackers, you know?

SCORE: 3 for 3.

Video Intermission



4. Frank Mir vs. Shane Carwin should not be the Interim Heavyweight Title.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT Especially now since Brock has come out and confirmed he will be fighting again and so soon. Dana White has said he wants to get Brock back into the Octagon at UFC 114 which is a mere 2 months after UFC 111. Besides that fact, if the winner of Mir/Carwin happens to come out injured, then he said the next shot at Brock will go to the winner of Nogueira/Velasquez, and if that happens then what is the point of making Mir/Carwin the interim champion? I think it should be a good old three-rounder for the #1 contender's spot.

Larry Csonka: FICTION: Listen, while I have fought against the use on Interim Title at various points over the years, this time, I actually have to agree with the UFC and support it. Yes Brock Lesnar is getting into a mini-camp to assess where he is at. Yes they tentatively want him to fight at UFC 114. Yes he believes that he has magically been healed. But the fact is that the condition he has can pop back up at anytime, and if he gets sick again, then the title goes into further limbo. As of now the title has not been defended since July of 2009, and if something bad were to happen to put Brock down again, then they would have to talk about the Interim Title anyway. This is simply a safety measure on the part of the UFC, and honestly, I cannot blame them for doing so. Plus, if Mir wins the Interim Title, then they can have fun with the Lesnar vs. Mir III match having the same conditions of their second bout.

SCORE: 3 for 4.



5. The February fight you're most interested in is Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Cain Velasquez.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FICTION I already know how these guys go. Cain is a wrestler with decent striking and a MONSTER cardio tank. Nogueria will end fights once he goes to the ground or take a million shots trying. However, what I'm interested in is the middleweight debut of one Axe Murderer fighting Michael Bisping at UFC 110. How is Wanderlei going to react to the cut? Will he come out like his good old PRIDE days and try to decapitate Bisping at every shot, or will he give us another UFC 99 where he tries to be more technical about his striking? What about Bisping? We saw he weathered the initial storm against Kang and won, but will he repeat it against Wanderlei? This is where I want to see it happening.

Larry Csonka: FACT: Damn skippy I am. While Big Nog looked horrible against Mir, due to the staph infection and knee injury, I thought that he looked very good against Randy Couture at UFC 102. On the other side you have Cain Velasquez, a guy that has so many guys on his balls I am amazed that he can walk. He has wins over Kongo and Rothwell, and the Rothwell victory especially made him like he could be a legit contender. So this fight will answer two big questions. Does Big Nog, after all the punishment he has suffered, still have what it takes to compete at the top level? Or, is Cain Velasquez the real deal? THAT is why I am excited for this fight. Silva vs. Bisping is also a good fight, but Nog vs. Cain is way more important in my opinion.

SCORE: 3 for 5.

6. Georges St. Pierre should not be featured on UFC Primetime again.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT Nearly said FICTION but the fact is there is not a lot more we need to know about GSP just a year removed from the original Primetime series. He's polite, dedicated, a freakish athlete, he lives to train, he's out of Greg Jackson's camp. I'd much rather wait until after UFC 111 to decide to run Primetime again, because I would wait to see how Mir/Carwin turns out. If Mir wins and is healthy, it sets up Lesnar/Mir III which would shatter buyrates. Couple that with a Primetime series all on its own and we have a goldmine waiting to happen.

Larry Csonka: FACT: Damn, I was doing so well in disagreeing with Danny, but it seems as if we agree here. GSP got his chance for the BJ Penn fight, which was a huge fight and deserved the hype. Also, I understand that they are trying to see Hardy as the real deal and also they want to play off of his personality. But they should other wait for the Mir vs. Carwin winner so that they can feature that man and Brock, OR, they should highlight Carwin and Mir. Both are money, and money is what they are making a ton of.

SCORE: 4 for 6.

Larry and Daniel started friendly, hit a rough patch, but ended up agreeing more often than not.

Come back next week as two more MMA writers debate the fallout from Strikeforce: Miami and preview UFC 109 in 411 MMA Fact or Fiction.

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