Intelligently Defending 11.15.07: Five Questions for UFC 78
Posted by Ken Kobel on 11.15.2007
The UFC returns to New Jersey this Saturday with 'UFC 78: Validation.' The card features solid fights from top to bottom and as always there are a ton of questions to be answered. In this edition of Intelligently Defending we will take a look at five questions in particular and try to sort things out.
It is the Thursday before ‘UFC 78: Validation' and that means it's question time here at Intelligently Defending.
1. Who is TUFer?
You can often question the marketing gurus who come up with the names of UFC PPV's. Bad Intentions? The Uprising? Victory? What were they thinking?
‘Validation' however, suits this event well since both Rashad Evans and Michael Bisping have something to prove.
After Evans won TUF2 he gained a reputation for being a one-dimensional wrestler who couldn't finish a fight if his life depended on it. This reputation continued until he suddenly turned into a monster. He brutally TKO'ed Jason Lambert and then nearly took Sean Salmon's head off.
All of a sudden, there were no seats to be found on the Evan's bandwagon. He looked like the next big thing and his fight with Tito Ortiz was going to be his coming out party.
Unfortunately for Rashad, he was hesitant and jittery in his bout with Tito. As a result, it was a boring affair which ended in a draw. The bandwagon was evacuated as quickly as it was filled.
Rashad now has a chance to get regain his momentum against Bisping. If Rashad can finish this contest in impressive fashion he will show the world that his bout with Ortiz was the exception and not the rule regarding the kind of a fighter he has evolved into.
Michael Bisping has felt plenty of backlash himself.
On TUF3 ‘the Count' came across as arrogant and obnoxious, but no one seemed to mind since he was backing up his lip by demolishing every fighter in his path. He won the series with ease and looked unstoppable in doing so.
This dominance stopped after the show ended.
For starters, it became clear that he had defeated undoubtedly the worst division in the series' history. His opposition included such names as Tait Fletcher, Kristian Rothaermel, and Josh Haynes. On top of this, he wasn't as impressive in his fights following the season. He defeated both Eric Shafer and Elvis Sinosic, but flirted with defeat in both bouts. It was a far cry from the talent he displayed on TUF.
Bisping then fought Matt Hamill and won possibly the most controversial decision in MMA history. It was so bad that even his home country fans of England booed the judges' – imagine how the rest of the world felt.
Many fans will easily forget the Hamill fight if Bisping defeats Rashad on Saturday. A win would also show UFC management that Michael is indeed a contender -- which would be much more important than fan approval.
2. Will Houston Alexander finally be tested on the ground?
Did you know that Houston Alexander once single-handedly knocked-out five men with one swing of his fist?
OK, that's not exactly true, but such myths are starting to grow about the mysterious man who shocked the UFC six months ago. And why not? He has been unstoppable since entering the octagon. Alexander has two UFC knock-out wins and still hasn't fought a total of two minutes.
Still, as legends of his stand-up power start to grow, so do legends of his ground skills – or lack thereof.
It has been rumored that Houston's grappling ability is well below the UFC average. Fans have not gotten a chance to see Alexander on the mat since he has been so quick to knock his opponents cold. This could all change on Saturday when he faces Thiago Silva.
Silva is an undefeated product of Brazil's famous Chute Box camp. He is 2-0 in UFC competition and is looking to crack the ranks of the UFC light-heavyweight division. Thiago also has something that Houston's previous two UFC opponents did not – a BJJ Black Belt.
It appears that Thiago is going to put Houston in serious trouble if this fight reaches the ground. But can Silva get Alexander to the mat?
Houston has freakish athleticism – the type of ability that makes it extremely hard to wrestle him to the canvas. On top of this, he appears to have Liddell-like ability to get back up after being taken down. He was taken down in his fight with Alessio Sakara and immediately popped back up.
There is also a question of whether Silva will even attempt a takedown. The Chute Box boys have never been ones to steer clear of throwing leather with whoever is in front of them. Thiago has displayed powerful hands and seems to be a brash fighter who may decide to play Houston's game by engaging on the feet.
If Silva does take this route he will be another name on Houston's growing list of victims. However, if Alexander is put on his back we will see what the enigma is made of.
3. Will Karo Parisyan stumble against Ryo Chonan?
When Karo Parisyan was forced to pull out of his title fight with Matt Hughes two years ago most fans thought ‘no worries, he will get his shot soon enough.' Well, it's funny how things work out sometimes.
The welterweight division got deeper as Karo sat on the sidelines for nearly a year. In turn, Parisyan fell down the rankings. He then lost to Diego Sanchez and dropped further shortly after he returned.
Karo has rolled off two straight wins since losing to Sanchez and has got himself back into title contender talks. This title shot is still a ways away since GSP has already been promised the winner of Serra/Hughes. This means that in the meantime Parisyan can't afford to lose a fight.
This won't be easy for Karo when on Saturday he squares off against PRIDE veteran Ryo Chonan. This has been referred to as a trap fight for Parisyan which could not be further from the truth. A trap fight refers to a top-tier fighter going into a bout against a subpar opponent. Chonan however, is not a subpar opponent by any stretch of the imagination. He has fought some of the best fighters in the world and has even beaten some of them. In fact, he submitted that Anderson Silva character.
Instead of being called a ‘trap fight for Karo,' it should be called a ‘tough fight for Karo.'
Parisyan will need to come into this contest on top of his game because Chonan will capitalize on any mistake he makes. As long as Karo fights his kind of fight he should come out the winner. And if he does win, it will be on to Jon Fitch to determine who gets a shot after GSP.
4. Can Spencer Fisher handle Frankie Edgar's wrestling?
Spencer Fisher is one of the most underrated fighters in the UFC today. The Miletich Fighting Systems veteran holds a 20-3 record and has exciting fights every time he puts on the gloves.
Fisher was knocking on the door of a lightweight title shot when he lost to Hermes Franca in January. He rebounded nicely when he scored a hard fought win over Sam Stout in June. With that victory Spencer got back on track and now is two or three wins away from his elusive title fight.
Standing in the way of his continued ascent up the lightweight ladder is the tenacious Frankie Edgar.
Frankie burst onto the scene at UFC 67 when he handed Tyson Griffin the first and only loss of his MMA career. From there, Edgar scored an impressive first round TKO of Mark Bocek at UFC 73. The young upstart will now be in the biggest fight of his career when he makes his PPV main card debut in his hometown.
Luckily for the New Jersey native, he has something that could give Spencer a lot of trouble – great wrestling.
We have seen Spencer Fisher have problems with grapplers in the past. His sprawl leaves much to be desired and he gets himself into trouble because of it. In his fight with Hermes Franca he gassed terribly after spending much of the first round on his back. With nothing left in his tank he was caught and finished in the second round by the Brazilian.
If Fisher gets taken down in the same fashion by Edgar – who wrestled Division 1 for four years at Clarion University – he will be in trouble. Frankie has shown that he has cardio for days and if Spencer doesn't keep this fight standing he will get worn down and defeated.
5. How many preliminary bouts will be broadcast?
The UFC 78 preliminary bouts are perhaps the best ever put together by the company.
The highlight of the prelims is a bout between rising welterweight Thiago Alves and accomplished veteran Chris Lytle. If this fight would have been placed on the main card it would have received minimum complaints from even the most fickle of fans.
Apart from this showdown, the prelims feature other intriguing battles. Up-and-coming lightweight Joe Lauzon will fight Jason Reinhardt who holds a perfect 18-0 record. Former PRIDE fighter Marcus Aurelio will try to capture his first UFC win when he takes on Luke Caudillo. And in another good match-up the unorthodox Akihiro Gono, who has fought a who's who list of opponents, will fight undefeated 21-year-old prodigy Tamdan McCrory.
The question is will the fans at the Prudential Center be the only people treated to these fights on Saturday night? Or will the PPV audience get to catch one or two of these bouts?
At this point it is a coin toss.
Of the five main card fights, there are two that will likely go the distance – Bisping/Evans and Parisyan/Chonan. There is one that will probably not see the three minute mark – Alexander/Silva. And there are two toss-ups that could either be over in a few minutes or go until the final bell – Fisher/Edgar and Herman/Doerksen.
Given this, there is a very good chance that at least one of the prelim contests will see PPV airtime. Aurelio/Caudillo and Lauzon/Reinhardt being the most likely to get shown since they have the most potential to be short fights.
Still, we can all hope for there to be enough time to show Alves/Lytle. And if not, the $2 spent on ‘UFC on Demand' the next day will be well worth it.
Send answers to the questions proposed in this column to kenkobel1@yahoo.com. The feedback as of late has been great and as always I will respond to every letter received.
Extra Extra: Former UFC heavyweight contender Paul Buentello to join forces with 411mania.com this Saturday for UFC 78
Paul Buentello, who once challenged Andrei Arlovski for the UFC Heavyweight Title, will be joining 411mania.com on Saturday to offer video feedback on the UFC 78 fights. Paul will be filming analysis and breakdowns of each bout -- the videos will then be posted on our live play-by-play coverage. It's kind of similar to -- no wait; it isn't similar to anything because it's the first time something like this has ever been done. You will not want to miss this.
