MMA Analytics 12.30.07: UFC 79 Delivers Surprises

Posted by Leland Roling on 12.30.2007

Dana White and company should be pleased. UFC 79 delivered on what it promised. Liddell vs. Silva was an epic matchup that surprisingly didn't end in a knockout, but showed promise for both fighters. Machida outclassed Soukoudjou and proved why he is one of the top fighters in the Light Heavyweight division. St. Pierre crushed Matt Hughes and may have showed us the type of skill that could keep him atop the Welterweight division for quite some time. We'll look at all of this and more in this edition of MMA Analytics.

The UFC's end of the year event was spectacular as far as matchup quality goes. Two welterweight marquee fighters faced off in the main event, two mixed martial arts legends tried to outstrike one another, and the tactician took on the African Assassin. Even with those great bouts scheduled, the event's undercard also had some interesting outcomes. How did Pierre overpower the Illinois farmboy in Matt Hughes? Was Liddell really better than Silva? Will Machida frustrate nearly everyone in the division? Let's take an analytical look at UFC 79.

Liddell edges out Silva

One of the most highly anticipated matchups of the year took place at UFC 79. Wanderlei Silva has been a mainstay in PRIDE for years and years before the eventual buyout of the promotion by the UFC. He was dominant in crushing opponents, but has been criticized of fighting lower-echelon talent during his 20+ fight win streak that he has been touted for in the past. He ran into stiff competition in his last two fights in Mirko "Crocop" Filipovic and Dan "Hollywood" Henderson. Both fighters have devastating power, although Henderson's win was viewed as a brawler's chance that paid out. Silva would be in for a tough night against Chuck Liddell.

Liddell has come off two horrible losses in the UFC. Losing to Keith Jardine by a narrow split decision and being knocked out clean by Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, Liddell had much to prove to the UFC fanbase that backed him. On Saturday night, Liddell proved that his longer reach and ability to through straight jabs in combination with overhand rights was the key to defeating an always dangerous Wanderlei Silva.

Although Liddell had to avoid being caught inside with Wanderlei Silva, Liddell stuck to the range game and peppered Silva with big jabs and overhands throughout the fight. Silva was unable to catch Liddell in a counter due to his small reach and looping style. Liddell was too dangerous for Silva to move in for the clinch because of his devastating counter attack, and he used his takedown ability to eat time off the clock to solidify a decision win over the veteran.

Surprisingly enough, Silva showed something that fans have not seen before. His chin was steel throughout this fight. The correlation between intense cardio training and recovery has been an aspect to a fighter's game that many fighters have tried to obtain over the years. Silva took it to a whole new level. During his "All Access" appearances, Silva showed an excruciating cardio regiment that involved a snorkel to breath through the mouth. His nose would be closed up, and the snorkel would restrict some of the air intake. In turn, this built up lactic acid in his muscles quicker, allowing him to work through the pain of being fatigued. This surely helped greatly during his fight as Liddell landed some huge flurries that would have knocked anybody out.

Silva will be back. He's still a powerful striker who has some very good Muay Thai skills in the clinch. Unfortunately for him, Liddell is a tough man to clinch with. Look for the UFC to feed Silva a fight, then possibly a mid-echelon striker, and if he wins, look for the UFC to build up a rematch at some point before Liddell moves away from the sport.

Liddell, on the other hand, has some lofty options. There has been talk of Lyoto Machida being thrown into the mix. Let me say one thing about Machida. Machida's elusiveness and tactical ways would most likely embarrass Liddell. The UFC should stay away from that matchup. Of course, Liddell's stance in the division is instantly sprung to the top because of this win, so to logically figure out who he will fight is beyond anyone's ability.

Pierre is to Silva as Hughes is to Franklin

That analogy is very accurate. Pierre looked unstoppable last night in his unbelievably dominating performance against Matt Hughes. One of the most significant improvements to Pierre's skillset is his power. He's grown more muscle even since his last fight, and still maintains a stunning array of skills that nearly every fighter has problems with. Georges St. Pierre could be the next Anderson Silva in that he may sit on top of the division with no legitimate challengers to face him.

Pierre's wrestling skill is scary. Not only did he dominate a D-1 champion in Josh Koscheck in his last fight, but he absolutely outclassed a wrestling legend in the UFC in Matt Hughes. Pierre's superior skill and power were overwhelming for Hughes, and his only chance was to outlast the onslaught. Unfortunately for Hughes, he found himself in bad situations at nearly every turn in the fight.

This loss could be the end of a career for Matt Hughes. He undoubtedly will never beat Pierre using his wrestling ground and pound gameplan that he has used for a number of years. Pierre's skillset is too vast, and it'll most likely take a striker who can catch him to defeat Pierre. If Hughes can't defeat Pierre by pure wrestling ability, nobody will. Hughes has had a great career, but his days in the Octagon look to be over.

Matt Serra is in for a nightmare. Not only is St. Pierre in fantastic shape, his skills combined with his power is going to absolutely crush Serra on the floor. Regardless of Pierre being beaten by Serra, Pierre has much better standup skills, and it should be an easy win for Pierre. Of course, we've said that before, but Pierre will be training to win this time around. Look for Pierre to win the "real" Welterweight title.

Machida is your worst nightmare

Most fans hate Lyoto Machida for one reason alone. They believe he is boring in the way he fights. They watch his elusive style and wonder why fighters can't just overwhelm him. The fact of the matter is that Lyoto Machida is a tactical genius in the cage, and personally, I love to see his gameplan and fighting style every time he fights, it's interesting to see him pick apart fighters with relative ease. Machida's ultimate test was on Saturday evening against the "African Assassin" Soukoudjou.

Soukoudjou came out in an oversized Predator mask that was a replica of the Predator's head from the movie series. Most likely a genius marketing move for Sokoudjou, it also fit in with his African heritage. Very interesting concept, but it sure didn't help his fight game.

Machida was fairy undersized to Soukoudjou's physique. It was evident that physical power was on Soukoudjou's side. Machida took power out of the equation instantly. Through a patient gameplan of punching and avoiding any counter from Soukoudjou, Machida brilliantly executed one of the most baffling strategies that Soukoudjou has ever seen. He looked confused, disoriented, and not sure as to how to handle the Brazilian. After a few rushes in which Machida simply evaded the onslaught, Machida began to work counter punches in to his gameplan as Soukoudjou tried to rush in. Eventually, Machida caught the "African Assassin" and put him to the canvas.

One of the more impressive factors in the fight was Machida's jiu-jitsu tactics on the ground. He truly showed that technique can defeat power. Soukoudjou used his power to stop an early kimura attempt, but Machida was able to easily maintain half guard and exposed Soukoudjou's weak ground game. Not once did Soukoudjou attempt a sweep or reverse, and he looked out of his element on his back.

Eventually, Machida capitalized on another spectacular counter punch that put Soukoudjou to the floor again and into Machida's jiu-jitsu strengths. The man who holds wins over "Little Nog" and Arona looked helpless as Machida impressively worked his ground game and sunk in an arm triangle to defeat the African.

Machida is a nightmare for any opponent he faces. His tactical and elusive gameplan is brilliant, and frustrates nearly all of his opponents even though those opponents probably know that it will be implemented by Machida. Who can't Machida beat? Liddell would have trouble since Machida doesn't come forward. Griffin would have much of the same problem. Jardine isn't quick enough to catch him. Even someone like Rampage would have problems with Machida's style, and for that reason alone, I could see Machida getting a contender matchup and moving into a title shot role. Finishing Soukoudjou only solidifies the fact that Machida is working to finish his fights. The Light Heavyweight division should be watching out for Lyoto Machida.

Other matchups

James Irvin made his return to the Octagon after a knee injury he suffered in his last bout against Thiago Silva. Irvin was knocked out cold by an illegal knee to the head on the ground by Luis Cane, and earned a DQ win over Cane. Manny Gamburyan came back after sustaining a shoulder injury in his Ultimate Fighter Finale battle with Nate Diaz. Gamburyan showed off his strength by getting Nate Mohr in an ankle lock. The lock ended up either tearing something in Mohr's knee or breaking his leg as Manny twisted. Unfortunate for Mohr.

Dean Lister won a lackluster fight over Jordan Radev, and Roan Carneiro took a caveman looking Tony Desouza's back and punched him into TKO. Both uneventful victories that were expected to go the way they did. Bocek edged out Alaskan Doug Evans by unanimous decision.

In main card fights, Eddie Sanchez proved that Australian MMA is still in its infancy as far as skill goes. He outstruck Soa Palelei for most of the fight and ended it late in the third round. Rich Clementi ended the feud between himself and Melvin Guillard by choking out the always submission susceptible Guillard in the first round.

Interesting moments

After Clementi's win, he got up over Guillard and DX'd Guillard. If you are not familiar with the motion, it involved crossing your arms in an "X" over your groin area. Guillard responded by getting up and moving at Clementi again. This causes Clementi to start a war of words with Guillard and say some pretty unclassy things in the interview after the bout.

Machida talked a little smack of his own after his fight, telling Soukoudjou to go back to Africa and learn some karate. Machida seems to have the right to do so considering he has decisively beaten all of his competition and looks to do so to more good Light Heavyweights.

Overall thoughts

This is by far going to be the best event of all the end of the year events. Liddell vs. Silva didn't deliver a great knockout, but it was exciting due to the amount of blows Silva took and then delivered a few of his own. Machida's domination of the much stronger and bigger Soukoudjou was impressive as well. Pierre looks to be a dominant force at the top of the Welterweight division for years to come. He's already in phenomenal form and only at the age of 26 years old. He should be a champ for the long haul.

Leland Roling is the editor-in-chief of MMA-Analyst.com