411 MMA Fact or Fiction 02.03.10: Diaz's Performance, UFC 109, WEC on PPV & MORE!

Posted by Jeremy Lambert on 02.03.2010

Will Randy Couture earn a title shot with a victory over Mark Coleman at UFC 109? Did Nick Diaz turn in the most impressive performance at Strikeforce: Miami? Will Wanderlei Silva vs. Michael Bisping be the Fight of February? 411's Daniels Bonnizzio and Jeffrey Harris debate those topics and more in this week's edition of 411 MMA Fact or Fiction.

January ended with Strikeforce delivering another top notch show and the MMA doesn't stop as this weekend UFC presents UFC 109: Relentless.

To review Strikeforce and preview UFC 109 this week we have the man who has the best Takedown MMA News Report in the business, the newly dubbed Mr. Fact or Fiction, please welcome Daniel Bonnizzio. His opponent is an all-around personality here at 411, you know him best for his great interviews, he is The Vile One, he is Jeffrey Harris.

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



1. Nick Diaz turned in this most impressive performance this past Saturday.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FICTION I would actually have to give that honor to either Robbie Lawler or Herschel Walker, to be honest. While Diaz was certainly impressive with his one-round demolition of the "Whitemare", Lawler was fighting a renowned striking expert who was consistently beating him to the punch before landing a nicely placed counter-right. Walker also made a really nice impression. Sure he was facing a 1-1 guy but still, the man is 47 and it was his debut. He controlled Nagy in two rounds before teeing off to win in the third. He's not going to be a world-beater but I was impressed by him big time.

Jeffrey Harris: FICTION I agree with Bonnizzio. I don't think Lawler gets enough credit for that win. Calling what happened in the fight luck is garbage. Lawler might've been getting beat up, but when Manhoef made a mistake, Lawler made Manhoef pay. Lawler was also smart enough to know that what Manhoef did was a mistake Manhoef has made before in previous fights. And Lawler almost got his leg kicked off but still came back and win. Hughes is right. Lawler deserves a lot more credit.

SCORE: 1 for 1.

2. Randy Couture will earn a Light Heavyweight title shot with a win over Mark Coleman at UFC 109.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FICTION But only because I think so much rides on who wins between Shogun and Machida. If Machida wins again then yea they will give him the shot because let's face it, half the world would pay to see if Randy can beat the Dragon. If Shogun wins though (which I honestly think he will) then they will most likely give the shot to someone like Rampage (if he beats Rashad) or (honestly) Forrest (if he gets past Rogerio) or even Rogerio (if he gets past Forrest) because all three of those fights would sell big time. All three would be rematches (one of which he lost) and we know, as the saying goes, the money is in the rematch.

Jeffrey Harris: FICTION If Machida and Couture wins, yes I think they will make the fight happen. But honestly, I'm looking at Rogerio right now. Rogerio if the fight with Griffin happens and he beats Griffin needs to step up and go for the title. The problem is Machida and Machida being champion after the rematch or not. I personally want justice to be served and Shogun to win so we can see the rematch to one of the greatest MMA fights of all time (Shogun/Rogerio). And they can still do the Machida/Couture fight if they want to.

SCORE: 2 for 2.

3. You wouldn't mind seeing Herschel Walker fight again.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT Of course, not in any HUGE fights like Fedor or Rogers, but someone who is still climbing the ranks. At 47, there is no way Walker will be gunning for any title in his career unless by some catastrophic event every heavyweight not named Fedor, Alistair, or Brock decides to die. That said, I feel that he is willing to do what it takes to be a real fighter (he did do a 'legit' training camp as Scott Coker forced him to) and take on guys who are willing to fight him (and who the various commissions will clear to fight him). I'm sure that Strikeforce would be hard-pressed to find guys who meet those criteria, but if they can then I would be all for Herschel strapping on the 4 oz gloves again.

Jeffrey Harris: FICTION I really have no desire to see him fight again. Yes I think what Walker did was impressive and he deserves credit for being in such great shape and condition for his age and beating a guy who still had more fights than him. But honestly, that fight is the type of fight you should never see on a main TV card. That was an amateur hour fight. I think if Walker wants to continue in MMA, he needs to take fights on smaller shows to prove himself. I know he brings some name value and attention, but that was just an ugly fight. Not to mention Walker's stiff stance. I especially do not want to hear Mauro Ranallo commentary during a Walker fight again either.

SCORE: 2 for 3.

Video Intermission



4. Nate Marquardt is the fighter with the most to lose at UFC 109.

Jeffrey Harris: FICTION. I think regardless of who wins Marquardt/Sonnen, both guys will still have jobs. I think even in a loss for Marquardt he will still be a top ranked worldwide middleweight and still be a top UFC fighter. Of course this is the closest he's ever been to another title bout again, but I think even in a loss he's still in the hunt and can beat most everyone else at middleweight. Who has the most to lose? The loser of Serra/Trigg is most likely out of the UFC or quite frankly out of MMA for good. Serra/Trigg is the definition of a loser leaves town fight.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT We all know Randy will never be released from his contract as long as he fights, so let's get that out of the way. I agree that, regardless of who wins, both Sonnen and Marquardt will finish the week still employed by Zuffa. However, Nate has been fighting an uphill battle since his first time around against Silva. If he loses to Sonnen tonight, then any hopes he may have at anther shot at Silva will be dashed. Sure he may eventually get another shot at the champion, but it is getting more and more possible that by the time that comes around, Silva will no longer be him and while it may seem favorable to some to be able to get a shot at a guy he's sure he can beat, the fact is it would eat Nate up that he became the champ because he couldn't beat the other guy. And while I agree that the loser of Serra/Trigg will be cut, we all know that neither of them will be contending for a title shot anytime soon, so the loss will do nothing more than remove a middle-to-lower tier Welterweight and not a future contender.

SCORE: 2 for 4.



5. WEC on PPV in May for $44.95 won't do over 100,000 buys.

Jeffrey Harris: FACT. I want WEC to be on PPV and I want it do well. But the viewership for WEC has been down in their recent events. They still aren't back on DirecTV. If they do a $44.95 PPV in a couple of months without pushing this thing hard, and I mean harder than ZUFFA has pushed just about any event so far, I think it will be unsuccessful. I think ZUFFA needs to make a stronger push in reaching the casual fans for a Faber/Aldo fight, even though Faber is already a significant draw. The thing is, so far we've gotten Faber's fights for free on Versus. And while I think Aldo/Faber is definitely an awesome PPV worthy fight, the WEC and ZUFFA need to do more to convince hardcore fans and casual fans why we should buy a fight on PPV we would normally get on Versus. That means maybe another title bout on the card and guys like Mike Brown and Miguel Torres in featured bouts as well. However, $44.95 is a steep price tag for a first time ever WEC PPV in this economy. I fully realize the PPV providers have something to do with it as well, but I just think it's a bad idea to go about this with that price tag and to do it as soon as WEC 48. I'm all for WEC going to PPV, but there needs be a stronger push to get there.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FACT. Tons of FACT. In fact, last time I suggested that for the WEC's debut on PPV they should set a lower price, but if they are charging $45 a pop for a PPV in a month STACKED with other PPV events, they will do terribly. Mayweather/Mosley on the 1st, UFC 113 on the 8th, UFC 114 on the 29th? In the midst of it all does anyone think that anybody would pay to see WEC for that much? I think not. The only feasible way for that to happen is to have the card as stacked as UFC 100 was, and currently, I just don't think that the WEC can pull that off.

SCORE: 3 for 5.

6. Wanderlei Silva vs. Michael Bisping will be the Fight of the Month.

Jeffrey Harris: FICTION. I wouldn't bet on it. The one I'm super psyched about is Nogueira/Velasquez. That I predict will be fight of the month. I'm also very excited about Jardine/Bader as well, especially to see if Jardine will protect his chin this time. Joe Stevenson/George Sotiropolis also has potential to be a great lightweight fight.

Daniel Bonnizzio: FICTION For some reason I think that Bisping/Silva will be exciting, but more for a KO of the Month instead of a Fight of a Month style. Instead, I'm looking at the Stevenson/Sotiropolous fight as well for the Fight of the Month. Joe "Daddy" Has gone back to his wrestling roots which I was always a fan of, and while George is more than competent on the ground, I think that Joe will be able to make it more than competitive enough, and if they both come out aggressive it should be fun.

SCORE: 4 for 6.

Daniel and Jeffrey agree more often than not but these two legendary 411 hall of fame keyboard warriors still put on a fantastic show.

Come back next week as two more 411 writers review UFC 109 and debate the latest MMA news in MMA Fact or Fiction.

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