411 MMA Fact or Fiction 04.02.08: The IFL's Camp-Based Format, Nate Diaz's Readiness for Kurt Pellegino, Karo Parisyan More Deserving than Jon Fitch and More

Posted by Bren Oliver on 04.02.2008

Can Vladimir Matyushenko retain his IFL Heavyweight Championship against Jamal Patterson? Did the IFL make a good decision in terms of changing the team-format? If Karo wins at "Fight Night XIII", has he earned an opportunity at UFC Welterweight gold? The always-cool "special guest" feature returns once again as the IFL's Mark Miller takes a break from preparing for his April 4th fight to discuss these things and more in this latest edition of 411 MMA Fact or Fiction.


I'm back and it appears as though I will in fact be handling "Fact or Fiction" duties for at least the immediate future. Please excuse any mess, as things are still a bit "under construction" at the moment and there are some growing pains we're still experiencing (though fortunately without Kirk Cameron's involvement). Moving on, while many readers out there have long-desired to see a MMA journalist stuck inside the cage against an actual fighter, I'm happy to bring you all the next best thing - 411Mania's Lofti Sariahmed taking on the International Fight League's Mark Miller! Miller, as fans of Mixed Martial Arts may know, is a member of the IFL's Midwest Combat team and was last seen knocking out Josh "The Dentist" Neer this past May. He will be stepping into action against Jay Hieron this Friday night in New Jersey in an attempt to lay claim to the IFL's Welterweight Championship. Miller is a man of few words, but I think it's safe to say he's more than versed in speaking with his actions given his success in the ring.

In full disclosure, these topics were submitted by the late, great Michael Huckaby whose shoes I am doing my best to fill. It should also be said that Jay Hieron was scheduled to square-off against Mark Miller in this "Fact or Fiction" column, as well as at "IFL: New Blood, New Battles (New Jersey)", but he was unable to complete his entry due to time constraints. However, our resident IFL guru, and Planet Tapout columnist, Lofti Sariahmed was willing to step in at the last minute like one of MMA's great journeyman fighters to round out this week's "Fact or Fiction". That being said, here we go...


1. The IFL's new camp format is exactly the shakeup the organization needed.


Mark Miller: FACT. I believe the new format will provide more flexibility to the line ups and provide exciting match ups for the fans.


Lofti Sariahmed: FICTION. It's not as much the camp format as it is not forcing each team to have five match-ups. There were only three good heavyweights, if that, in the IFL to begin with so what was the point of having these mediocre bouts? Now the IFL only showcases the two or three (sometimes four) best bouts it can put together between each of the camps competing. I believe the phrase is quality over quantity.


SCORE: 0 for 1. I'm a little shocked neither mentioned how much cooler "American Top Team vs. Team Quest" sounds as opposed to the old team names. Frankly, I'm more interested simply because of who the competitors represent as opposed to the city the team fights out of...

2. A win over Thiago Alves should earn Karo Parisyan a title shot over Jon Fitch.


Mark Miller: FICTION. I think Jon Fitch is the most deserving candidate for a title shot. He has beat everyone that the UFC has put in front of him and his list of opponents has been stronger than those of Alves and Karo.


Lofti Sariahmed: FACT. I've been saying this all along but I still don't understand why Fitch jumped ahead of Parisyan. If Parisyan does beat Alves I think he should get the title shot before Fitch. After I mentioned this last time people told me that Parisyan actually ducked Fitch. But didn't he later say he never ducked Fitch and in fact wasn't ever offered the fight? I don't know. Either way the real solution is putting Fitch against Parisyan next but if both get their shot this year we're all really nitpicking in the end.


SCORE: 0 for 2. I watched the "Inside MMA" broadcast where Karo stated he wanted to help solidify his contendership by taking on someone he felt would deliver an easier win. I'm not sure "ducking" is the right term, but he definitely did not want to suffer the setback another loss in the Welterweight division would earn him.


3. Kurt Pellegrino is too big of a step up in competition for Nate Diaz.


Mark Miller: FICTION. Nate Diaz is ready to fight a guy like Pelligrino. Diaz has the skills necessary to compete with almost anybody in the 155lbs weight class.


Lofti Sariahmed: FICTION. Based on what? Pellegrino's sterling record? He's a nice fighter but he's certainly not among the ranks of Penn or Sherk. Diaz is ready for this. Don't get me wrong it's still a challenge for him and will be an exciting fight. But this isn't too big of a leap. If you think that's the case then what's in between Alvin Robinson and Kurt Pellegrino?


SCORE: 1 for 3.


4. Jamal Patterson will upset Vladimir Matyushenko for the IFL Heavyweight Title.


Mark Miller: FICTION. Patterson and Vlady will be a great match up, both fighters have amazing jiu-jitsu but I believe that Vlady's wrestling will prove too strong for Patterson.


Lofti Sariahmed: FACT. Just go back to my IFL preview for this one. If Matyushenko wins he will look less than impressive because I don't think he could handle Patterson's jiu-jitsu. He has the appropriate game plan and this will be Renzo Gracie's second time around coaching a fighter to take on Matyushenko. Patterson will pull off the upset.


SCORE: 1 for 4. 25% thus far. On the bright side, you're still beating the bulk of my test scores in Calculus...


5. Frank Shamrock will have little trouble handling Cung Le. (This was submitted prior to this past weekend's StrikeForce event)


Mark Miller: FACT. Frank has fought the best of the beat for many years while Le is relatively new to the mma game. Frank's experience and overall abundance of skills will be too much for Le to handle.


Lofti Sariahmed: FACT. Listen, I don't like Frank Shamrock. But at least he's had experience fighting big name fighters. He's been on the big stage and performed well in big time fights. Le could surprise me and put together a great performance. But what am I supposed to go off of? His win over Sam Morgan? Tony Fryklund? Stop me when I'm supposed to be impressed.


SCORE: 2 for 5. Shamrock did in fact have trouble handling Cung Le...but then again, after the broken arm Cung gave him, I hear he also is having trouble when it comes to handling a glass of orange juice.


Thanks again to Mark Miller for taking time out of his training to supply us with some actual fighter-based insight. You can check him out this Friday night on HDNet or learn more by visiting the IFL website!




--------

Join us next week when two more participants discuss the fallout from "Fight Night XIII", IFL results, the new season of TUF, and other lingering issues in the Mixed Martial Arts world...