Thoughts From Across The Pond 02.03.12: Wackier Than A Chael Sonnen Promo
Posted by Alex Watt on 02.03.2012
Thoughts on Rashad Evans and Chael Sonnen's wins at UFC on FOX 2 as well as the rest of the show and whether it was a success, the latest pound for pound rankings, a preview of Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit and more!
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UFC 143
This Saturday the UFC present their second PPV event of 2012 and on paper it has the potential to be a very entertaining event. The card is stacked from top to bottom with great fights, plus we will see a brand new intro video too! But it is the main event which, amongst faithful MMA viewers at least, is most anticipated.
Indeed, the main event fight for the UFC Interim Welterweight Championship is as close as you can get to a guaranteed thriller. Although this contest may be flying under the radar of some of the "casual fans," it is one which nobody who follows Mixed Martial Arts closely has any intention of missing.
You see, Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit are two of the most exciting fighters in Mixed Martial Arts today. Neither man comes into a fight looking to lay and pray en-route to a judges' decision; they hunt for the finish. Their aggression and intensity inside the Octagon means that their fight on Saturday night is as close to a guaranteed fight of the year contender as you are likely to get. After all, when was the last time you witnessed either man in what could be classed as a "dull fight"?
As well as having a multitude of finishes to their name, Diaz and Condit are also highly experienced competitors at the top level. Nick Diaz enters the Octagon tomorrow night with a 26-7 (1NC) record to his name, and Condit with an equally impressive 27-5. Both men have held championships during their careers too and they are used to the bright lights and pressure of a championship fight. In fact, an interesting side note of this UFC title contest is that Diaz was the last man to hold the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship and Condit was the last man to hold the WEC Welterweight Championship.
Nick Diaz rides an impressive 11 fight win streak into this contest, with his last defeat being the controversial stoppage due to cuts in his fight with KJ Noons in 2007. His impressive run outside of the UFC showed his growth as a fighter as his skills improved to the point where he now stands as one of the best Boxers and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners in the entire sport. Many claimed that Diaz was facing lesser opposition in Elite XC and Strikeforce and would not be able to do the same against the top UFC welterweights. However, at UFC 137 Diaz silenced many of his critics with an extremely dominant performance against BJ Penn in which he battered the Hawaiian to such an extent that "The Prodigy" retired in the middle of the Octagon after the loss.
Carlos Condit is 10-1 in his last eleven fights, with his sole loss during that period coming in his UFC debut in which he dropped a very close split decision to Martin Kampmann. Since then he has defeated top contenders Jake Ellenberger, Rory McDonald, Dan Hardy and Dong Hyun Kim. The wins over Hardy and Kim were particularly impressive, both coming by virtue of first round knockouts; the first via a powerful right hook and the second with a picture perfect jumping knee. His kickboxing stands as, arguably, the best in the division and his ground game is ever improving. Although he is only a purple belt in BJJ, Condit is extremely active on the ground.
Most would anticipate this fight being contested, for the most part at least, on the feet. Diaz and Condit both have advanced striking skills, but varying styles.
Nick Diaz has evolved into one of the most talented Boxers in the sport of MMA. He uses his long arms to his advantage, throwing different punches from a variety of angles whilst being able to avoid significant damage of his own. Of course, it also helps that Diaz has one of the best chins in the sport as it allows him to throw rapid combinations in the pocket and remain confident that his durability can see him weather any strikes which his opponent throws back in the process. Diaz's strategy against Carlos Condit is likely to be the same as it is in every Diaz fight; that is, constantly pressure his opponent and try to corner him against the fence in order to land a multitude of punches.
One of the things which Diaz does best is swarm on an opponent when he has them hurt. His style of throwing punches to both the body and the head is perhaps the best in MMA (and, indeed, Diaz has to be considered to work the body better than anyone else in the sport). Diaz's cardio and conditioning is unparalleled and it is this which he uses to his advantage. With no fear of getting tired, Diaz will relentlessly batter his opponent until they start to wilt under the pressure. Carlos Condit has phenomenal cardio of his own but there is no chance that it is as good as Diaz's. If this fight reaches the championship rounds it is very likely that Condit will have begun to tire significantly due to Diaz's constant pressure.
Carlos Condit is a versatile kickboxer and will offer a much more varied striking game than Diaz on Saturday night. His kicks and knees have caused problems for many opponents, particularly because he stays unpredictable in his timing and can throw a variety of different kicking techniques. Although Nick Diaz has an incredible chin, it is usually seen weathering hard punches. If Condit can land a powerful knee or shin on Nick Diaz, then it will be interesting to see how the Californian's durability holds up.
The key to victory for Condit in this fight could well be the leg kicks. As a hard kicker Condit can cause Diaz a lot of trouble by constantly kicking at his legs, as Evangelista Santos showed that Diaz is liable not to check them. By constantly attacking that lead leg, Condit can take away the base and movement of Diaz and limit his ability to keep moving forward and applying pressure. If Condit can do this then he can keep Diaz exactly where he wants him; on the outside.
Both men hold an identical reach of 76 inches, and it is a rare occurrence for neither Diaz nor Condit to hold the reach advantage over their foe in a fight. Usually both men would use that 76" reach to their advantage and dictate the pace of the fight using their striking. However with the reach unable to play a role in this fight, it is Condit who would be better served to fight on the outside. With his kicks and knees, "The Natural Born Killer" can do a lot of damage on his boxing oriented opponent from a distance. Diaz, on the other hand, is more likely to want to exchange in the pocket as this is an area in which he is very comfortable. Condit will want to avoid getting caught in that middle area as he showed in his fights against Jake Ellenberger and Martin Kampmann that he struggles to fire back effectively when pressured in the pocket.
Condit may then be tempted to clinch up with Diaz if he finds himself caught exchanging punches in the pocket. If Condit can tie Diaz up as he pushes forward then he could find success landing strikes inside the clinch, provided he can stay away from the fence; the position in which Diaz uses his boxing best. Diaz is also susceptible to takedowns from the clinch and so Condit may be tempted to look to get this fight to the floor. And if this fight does go to the ground then the contest becomes very interesting.
In his first UFC stint, Diaz was very hot and cold. His striking and BJJ caused several fighters problems but when he competed against high level wrestlers, Diaz came unstuck. Consistently Diaz would be taken down, planted on his back and held there for the full three rounds. Nowadays, however, Diaz is a much more dangerous fighter off his back. As a BJJ black belt under Cesar Gracie and with extensive Sambo training under his belt, fighters are now fearful of taking Nick Diaz to the ground. Those who have made that mistake have quickly realised the error of their ways. Evangelista Santos was on the ground with Diaz for a mere 24 seconds before he found himself tapping to an armbar.
Carlos Condit has a great ground game of his own, with a particularly active guard and effective ground and pound skills. Against Rory McDonald he was able to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat with a relentless ground and pound assault as he had the young Canadian on his back. If Condit is able to secure top position on Diaz, something which is likely as Diaz tends not to sprawl on takedowns or attempt to stop trips, then he can definitely cause Diaz some problems with his ground and pound. However, Condit will have to be careful not to be too overeager in hunting for the TKO finish, lest he leave openings for Diaz to counter with a submission.
So, to conclude, who do I favour in this fight? On the feet this contest is very evenly matched. If Condit can maintain his range and use his kicks and knees then he has the potential to pick Diaz apart. However, if Diaz can move in close using his constant forward movement, keep the pressure on Condit and use his numerous punching combinations to wear down his opponent then he could dominate this fight. On the ground, this contest is also fairly evenly matched but you have to favour the Cesar Gracie black belt, Diaz. Even if Condit is able to secure top position and attack with his quality ground and pound, Diaz's BJJ from the guard is of such a high quality that I would expect him to always threaten with submissions and sweeps. This is a fight which could go either way but personally I favour Nick Diaz. The Californian, with his high pressure style and unending cardio, has a habit of forcing his opponent to fight his style of fight. Because of this, I see Diaz pressuring Condit for the first three rounds and picking him apart with his brilliant boxing. In the fourth round, "The Natural Born Killer" exhausted from Diaz's pressure will take the fight to the floor and Diaz's world class BJJ will come to the forefront. I'm picking Diaz by fourth round submission in an early Fight of the Year contender.
For the full staff's picks for the whole of the UFC 143 card, be sure to check out the official preview on the main page.
Video Interlude
If you missed episode 2 of UFC Primetime then check it out below. It's another great piece of work and arguably even more well done than the first episode. Don't forget too that the third and final episode airs tonight.
An interesting interview with Josh Koscheck ahead of UFC 143:
And Mike Tyson speaks about the rise of Mixed Martial Arts:
The UFC made their second foray onto FOX last Saturday and, unfortunately, it was a bit of a letdown. Although most of the preliminary fights on FUEL TV were entertaining affairs, featuring some memorable fights and finishes, the main card was disappointing overall.
That is not to say that the show itself was not a good piece of work, because it was. The production values were top notch and the presentation was a vast improvement on the inaugural UFC on FOX. The panel of Curt Menefree, Randy Couture and Jon Jones worked well together and Couture, as a recognised MMA legend, and Jones, as a reigning UFC champ with a vested interest in the night's main event, gave good insight into the fights. The use of Ariel Helwani as interviewer and insider analyst also worked very well.
However, after their two showings on FOX the UFC must now recognise that they have not made the most of their opportunities. Of course, it is easy to say with the benefit of hindsight but the fact is that the company has not played to the strengths of the fighters they have on their books by putting together fights which could be considered sure-fire thrillers.
It is commendable that the company opted to place a UFC Heavyweight Championship contest as the main event of UFC on FOX 1 and that they put together two No. 1 contenders' bouts for UFC on FOX 2. This showed their commitment to their output on the channel as each of these fights were important ones which held ramifications for their respective divisions. However, in the case of UFC on FOX 2 you have to question why the UFC made the decision to place so many wrestlers on the main card, and thus increase the chances of slow, grappling heavy fights which were unlikely to appeal to the new viewers whom these shows on FOX are intended to attract.
Instead, why have the UFC not played to their strengths? We all know that the 135lbs, 145lbs and 155lbs divisions are more likely to produce exciting contests than any other due to the pace, technique and cardio of the majority of the competitors in those divisions. One of the best examples of this was the Clay Guida Vs. Ben Henderson contest which took place on the undercard of UFC on FOX 1. It turned out to be one of the most exciting fights of 2011 and yet it did not appear on the television broadcast on FOX, something which was widely criticized.
A similar point can be made about UFC on FOX 2. You see, they opted to place this light heavyweight and middleweight contests on FOX, yet at UFC 143 and 144 the main events are about as close to guaranteed excitement as the UFC can get. It could be said that the cards headlined by Nick Diaz Vs. Carlos Condit and Frankie Edgar Vs. Ben Henderson may not perform as well on PPV due to the fact that the fighters involved are not the most well known or popular. I, and many others, have questioned then why the UFC did not choose to put one of these championship contests on FOX. The UFC 144 headliner in Japan would have been a particularly good choice considering that that particular card will likely perform poorly in the U.S. due to it being an overseas event. Edgar Vs. Bendo is one of the most anticipated main events of 2012 amongst the hardcore MMA fanbase and providing it for free on FOX would have been a great way to show new fans of the sport the kind of excitement that the lightweights can provide.
For UFC on FOX 3 the company needs to learn from their mistakes and look to put together fights between the lighter weight classes which involve fighters with fan-pleasing styles competing. The announcement of Jim Miller Vs. Nate Diaz (in a possible No. 1 contender's match) is a great start in that regard and hopefully the UFC will continue in this vein.
As for UFC on FOX 2, the big stories of the night were that both Rashad Evans and Chael Sonnen emerged victorious and finally secured their highly anticipated title showdowns with the champions of their respective divisions.
In the main event Rashad Evans defeated Phil Davis in dominant, but conservative fashion to book a highly anticipated showdown with Jon Jones at UFC 145. Unfortunately though, he will enter that title fight on the back of an uninspiring win. Although the scorecards of 50-45 across the board showed the dominance that Evans displayed in the bout, he failed to truly push the pace or look for a finish against the overmatched Phil Davis. Still, "Suga" used his footwork to great effect and was able to pick Davis apart on the feet throughout. Rashad also managed to take Davis to the floor, proving that although Davis has the better collegiate wrestling background, Evans is the better wrestler for MMA. Evans came close to finishing Davis in the first round when he secured a mounted crucifix and attacked with ground and pound. Evans also opened up more in the fifth round looking for the finish, but for the most part he fought safe and simply shut out Davis using his superior skills without really pushing for the finish.
So, as noted, Rashad Evans will take on defending UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones next. He will have to turn in a better performance than he did in this UFC on FOX 2 headliner if he hopes to be successful there. You would expect him too though as his conservative fight style in this fight was more likely to be because of Evans' desire to avoid injury and not lose out on his UFC title shot again.
As for Phil Davis, this was simply a step too far for him at this young stage of his career. "Mr. Wonderful" still needs to make improvements to his striking so that he can hang with the top fighters in the light heavyweight division. Expect him to face a mid-tier light heavyweight next like Vladimir Matyushenko as he looks to rebuild himself following this loss.
The co-main event between Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping turned out to be the most entertaining contest of the three fight main card. Prior to the fight many expected Sonnen to use his world class wrestling skills to consistently take Bisping to the floor and dominate him in the grappling exchanges. However to Sonnen's and many onlookers' surprise, Bisping more than held his own in the first two rounds. Whenever Sonnen took him down he scrambled to his feet and, most shockingly of all, was able to find a lot of success and dominance in the clinch. The opening round was close; Sonnen tried to stifle Bisping with takedowns and clinch work but Bisping was able to land good strikes and at one point connected with a powerful right hand which had Sonnen rocked. The second round was close too with Sonnen securing a takedown but Bisping landing the more solid shots. The third round, however, was all Sonnen as he controlled the majority of the round with his wrestling and even had control of the Brit's back at one stage and full mount at another. Still, Bisping was able to fight back to his feet and, incredibly, secured a takedown on Sonnen at the end of the round. It wasn't enough to win him the final round but it was still very impressive. In the end though the judges scored the fight unanimously, and controversially, for Sonnen (29-28, 30-27, 29-28).
After the fight we expected a great interview from Sonnen and he didn't disappoint. Invoking the spirit of "Superstar" Billy Graham, he let forth with this gem:
The pro-wrestling style promo, entertaining though it was, was an attempt to cover for a Sonnen performance which did not live up to the man's self professed greatness. The fact is that this was not a good showing from the consensus No. 2 middleweight in the sport. He looked slow and sloppy and if he were to perform like this against UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva in the summer then he there is no chance that he will be repeating his legendary UFC 117 performance or of bringing that belt back to the U.S.
Michael Bisping, despite losing in the eyes of the judges, saw his stock rise significantly in the eyes of the fans and the UFC brass. That he was able to not only hold his own with high-level wrestler Sonnen, but defeat him in some people's eyes (including mine; I had Bisping winning the fight 29-28), shows that he is indeed a top middleweight who may not be too far from a title shot of his own. It is likely that he will be matched up against Mark Munoz or, fellow UFC on FOX 2 winner, Chris Weidman next.
Although the main card was disappointing, the viewing figures were not. The event averaged 4.7 million viewers and a 2.6 household rating, a fact which now puts it as the joint-second highest rated UFC event in U.S. television history.
Quotes of the Week
"I don't walk around looking into cameras and telling people I'm the best fighter in the world to hear myself talk. I say it for the same reason they put warnings on packages of cigarettes. And fighting Chael Sonnen may be hazardous to one's health." – Chael Sonnen talks the talk.
"Okay. One. Let's start with the obvious. He's not the middleweight champion. He's been beaten many, many times. He's been submitted more times than I care to mention. Not to mention, the last time he lost a fight by submission, there were some issues involving performance enhancing drugs. I don't know what the deal is. Apparently, he has one testicle. One testicle! This is why he uses performance enhancing drugs. He's gonna need more than one little ball to fight me next weekend!" – Michael Bisping talks the talk, arguably even better.
"I think you're more in danger of losing a decision to Georges St. Pierre. I think you're more in danger of losing your teeth if you're fighting Condit here." - Nick Diaz with a quote which I had to hastily edit in when I heard him say it at last night's UFC 143 press conference.
"I don't truly hate him as a person. I don't know that he is a bad guy, but I hate what he brings to the sport with the disrespect and the unprofessional things he says and does. It is sort of a professional hatred. He has been nothing but disrespectful and arrogant towards me. During UFC 137 (week) I felt like I had to walk around Las Vegas with my fists ready (to punch Diaz) because every time I came across him he wanted to fight there and then. Every time the elevator opened (in the hotel) I needed to be ready to fight in case he stepped in. I was on edge all week. This guy is crazy." - Georges St. Pierre is not Nick Diaz's biggest fan.
"I think that fighters that just try to win by points and come away with a win are actually bad for the sport. If you never saw MMA before, and you walked in and you saw GSP and Koscheck, and all this jabbing out the whole time, it looks like a boring boxing match. And I don't think you gain any fans with a fight like that. And so I really hope that Nick Diaz beats the crap out of him, because Nick Diaz is entertaining, and he's an entertaining character in general. He might not be popular but I mean I can't but watch every video he puts out Youtube. I think it's funny as Hell. And every single one of his fights is a brawl. It's not like a pitter pat match where afterwards he goes 'We're friends, we're all friends' and then okay let's go home. I think that's boring. GSP was good for the sport for a while. He brought in some big sponsors like Gatorade and UnderArmor. But I think he's done everything he can in a positive way and he needs to step aside and let Nick Diaz kick his ass." – Ronda Rousey is not Georges St. Pierre's biggest fan.
Pound for Pound Rankings
Rashad Evans was victorious on Saturday night against tough opponent Phil Davis. However, his performance was not the most inspiring and so, controversially, despite his win "Suga" actually drops a couple of places in the pound for pound rankings. That means that UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior Dos Santos and welterweight contender Nick Diaz both jump up a place in the rankings. So can Diaz maintain his No. 8 ranking by becoming the new UFC Interim Welterweight Champion on Saturday night?
1. Anderson Silva (29-4)
2. Georges St. Pierre (22-2)
3. José Aldo (21-1)
4. Jon Jones (15-1)
5. Frankie Edgar (14-1-1)
6. Dominick Cruz (19-1)
7. Junior Dos Santos (14-1)
8. Nick Diaz (26-7, 1NC)
9. Rashad Evans (17-1-1)
10. Gilbert Melendez (20-2)
11. Joseph Benavidez (15-2)
12. Dan Henderson (29-8)
13. "Shogun" Rua (20-6)
14. Urijah Faber (26-5)
15. Benson Henderson (15-2)
And that'll do it for another week.
I'll be back next week with my thoughts on UFC 143 and my preview of UFC on FUEL TV: Sanchez Vs. Ellenberger.
If you enjoy the column please do follow me on twitter (@AlexWattMMA).
Thanks for reading and if you have any comments or feedback please leave them below or message me on twitter. Cheers.
