411 MMA Fact or Fiction 07.23.08: Fedor's Win More Impressive than Silva's, Jackson Will Never Return to Form, 'The Pitbull' is Back, & MORE!

Posted by Bren Oliver on 07.23.2008

Will Cain Velasquez one day be UFC Heavyweight Champion? Can Vitor Belfort be beat at Middleweight by anyone outside of the "Top 5"? Should Brandon Vera stick to Heavyweight? 411Mania's Wendell Mitchell and...well...ME...debate these topics and more in this week's MMA Fact or Fiction!

Contrary to popular belief, I did in fact survive my trip to Anaheim for "Affliction: Banned", and, in the process, made sure to avoid upsetting any tattooed Russians using their tongue for an ashtray. For those wondering, I contemplated hammering out a "Punch Drunk Hangover" this week upon returning from the West Coast, but a two-and-a-half hour layover in Phoenix decided to take issue with the notion. Rest assured it will be back, with stories in tow, this upcoming Monday and I'm certain 411Mania's Morgan Marx has a few to share as well in today's MMA News Report.

Hey, who threw that rotten tomato at me?!? Fine, fine...on to the "Fact or Fiction" portion of this "Fact or Fiction" column. I'm giving one side of the story this week, while joining me will be our site's dabbler Wendell Mitchell. Dub-Mitch, as we in the hood refer to him, has his fingers in a number of Zones around 411Mania, writing about subjects ranging from his consistent work in MMA ("Eight Sides of Steel") to professional wrestling reports to DVD reviews, providing quite the smorgasbord of entertainment-related commentary. How will his diverse palette stand up to the heat of "Fact or Fiction" stadium? Let's find out!

Fellow 411Mania columnist...are you ready? Then, America, with an enlarged heart and an empty skull, I say unto you the words of my Uncle...


ALLEZ FACT OR FICTION!!!!!!!


1. In light of his recent legal/mental struggles, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will never return to championship form.


Wendell Mitchell: FICTION. We all have our bad days. Rampage just had a really bad one. As a fan of the guy, I hope he takes this opportunity to be with his family and take a break from the sport. I believe that if and when he's ready to come back, he will be back in championship form. Rampage doesn't strike me as the sort of fighter that will accept being a shell of his former self.


Bren Oliver: FICTION. My answer is based purely on the available information on Jackson's status. If he ends up behind bars for an extended period of time, or his emotional problems are more severe than what's been reported thus far, then I would likely change my opinion on the matter. However, such is not the case, and he's still a relatively young fighter who should be entering the best years of his career from an age standpoint. He's gotten help, and appears to have a strong support group in terms of friends and family, so I think it's perfectly reasonable to assume "Rampage" will get over this hump in his life and be a better person for it. I see Jackson as the kind of individual who will want to redeem himself in the eyes of his family, friends, and fans, and will work twice as hard in order to achieve that noble goal.


SCORE: 1 for 1.


2. It would be a mistake for Brandon Vera to drop to Light Heavyweight again based on his performance at Fight Night 14.


Wendell Mitchell: FICTION. I think Vera is a good fit at 205. Despite Light Heavyweight being one of, if not the, deepest division, I see no ,mistake in Vera competing; especially if you consider his first fight was not horrible. Lacking in excitement, yes, but not a bad debut. What would be a mistake is if he bounces back and forth between 205 and Heavy. For now, I anticipate his next fight at 205.


Bren Oliver: FICTION. I'm willing to give Brandon Vera one more shot at Light Heavyweight before finalizing my take on his future at 205 pounds. I assume the first time a fighter drops to a lower weightclass is generally the toughest, as the individual is still feeling out the process and may even suffer a mental setback where he/she takes an overly cautious approach in the ring to supplement a perceived lack of power brought on by the reduced weight. However, if Vera is unable to finish his next opponent at LHW, as he should have against Andy, or appears to gas early in the fight, I think it's safe to say he's better off sticking to Heavyweight (especially given the divisions' differences in depth).


SCORE: 2 for 2.


3. Cain Velasquez will one day be UFC Heavyweight Champion.


Wendell Mitchell: FACT. This is a difficult one because though I'm half way decent predicting winners of fights, my foresight only extends so far. I say "fact" only because the Heavyweight Division is not as deep as it was even four months ago. Cain is untested, having yet to leave the first round in his first four fights, but I have a feeling he would match up well with any of the other Heavyweights.


Bren Oliver: FACT. I'm only saying "fact" because he is young, has received a high amount of praise from anyone who has seen him train, and not only is the UFC's Heavyweight Division a bit thin, but it's also a bit long in the tooth. Velasquez has a good 4-6 years before he's reached the age most-associated with a fighter's prime. After the same time span, and to Cain's benefit, the bulk of the UFC's current top Heavyweights will be in their mid-to-late thirties - a time typically viewed as the dog days of a Mixed Martial Artist's career. With more experience under his belt, and assuming he progresses outside of the ring as he's expected to, I definitely can see Velasquez eventually bringing the title home to American Kickboxing Academy.


SCORE: 3 for 3.


---SWITCH!!!---


4. Vitor Belfort will remain undefeated as a Middleweight until facing "Top 5" competition.


Bren Oliver: FACT. I'm torn here. While I was impressed by Belfort's performance against Terry Martin, I can't forget Martin has been separated from conciousness before and on more than one occasion. There are plenty of good Middleweights who aren't considered "Top 5" (Cung Le, Frank Shamrock, Robbie Lawler, Frank Trigg, etc.) that I could see beating Belfort, yet I think his association with XTreme Couture will only make him a better fighter and it's not as if he's ever lost to a chump in his career. His eight defeats read like this - Randy Couture, Kazushi Sakuraba, Liddell, Couture again, Tito Ortiz, Alistair Overeem twice in a row, and then Dan Henderson. Hardly losses to hang one's head over, eh?

I'm going to stick with "fact" simply because I'm not sure he will ever face "Top 5" competition, at least outside of the UFC, and I'm unsure as to whether or not ProElite is willing to work with Affliction. That leaves Matt Lindland as the only other legitimate Middleweight under Affliction contract and I'd say it's a toss-up between the two. "The Law" didn't look particularly good against an inferior opponent (Fabio Negao), plus he's shown his chin is vulnerable and Belfort packs dynamite in his gloves.

Also, I'd like to add that if Vitor is able to rack up three wins in Affliction, and thereby fulfill his contractual obligation to the organization, I would urge the UFC to consider signing the veteran of twelve Octagon appearances to a deal and bringing him back to the organization he made his name in. The crowd in Anaheim was as loud for Belfort as they were for Fedor Emelianenko. It was truly a bit awe-inspiring to witness an arena of 13,000+ chanting "Bel-fort, Bel-fort" and their enthusiasm made it clear to me that the MMA community has a soft spot in their heart for the Brazilian. After what he's been through in his life, and the success he's known in Mixed Martial Arts, it's hard to fault them for it.


Wendell Mitchell: FACT. I respect Belfort and that was an awesome finish to his fight this past Saturday, but if and when Affliction signs a "Top Five" Middleweight, my gut tells me to bet against "The Phenom."


SCORE: 4 for 4.


5. Based on "The Pitbull" picking apart, and eventually knocking out, Ben Rothwell, it's safe to say the "old" Andrei Arlovski is back.


Bren Oliver: FICTION. I don't think he ever left. Sure, he jabbed the crowd unconcious in a decision-loss to Tim Sylvia at UFC 61, and he got bitch-slapped in a boring decision-win over Fabricio Werdum, but I fault Sylvia and Werdum as much for their unwillingness to engage as I do Arlovski. Beyond those two forgettable performances, which are the only decisions of his career, he has been involved in a number of slugfests where he or his opponent got a nice look at the rafters due to a brain-fizzling exchange of punches. Ben Rothwell is simply another name in that series of strike-based stoppages.


Wendell Mitchell: FACT. Two straight knock out victories leads me to believe that the old "Pitbull" is back. The question is, for how long? Will the change in environment allow the animal to run free? Only time will tell. From what I see, up next for him is a professional boxing bout, so who knows how it will affect his next MMA fight?


SCORE: 4 for 5.


6. Fedor Emelianenko's performance against Tim Sylvia was more impressive than Anderson Silva's domination of James Irvin at Light Heavyweight.


Bren Oliver: FACT. Anderson Silva may have been fighting out of his usual division, but he naturally walks around at over 200 pounds and the additional weight fits his frame quite well. Plus, if weight is truly a determining factor in the equation, then it should also be said Emelianenko gave up 20-30 pounds to Tim Sylvia even though each fights as a Heavyweight. James Irvin was knocked out by Mike Kyle and submitted by Stephan Bonnar. He has never defeated a "Top 10" opponent. Tim Sylvia is a three-time UFC Heavyweight Champion, even carrying the belt in 2007, and Fedor destroyed him in less than a minute.


Wendell Mitchell: FICTION. We all went into Saturday knowing "The Spider" and "The Last Emperor" were going to emerge victorious in their fights. Originally, I was leaning towards "fact", but I just felt that Silva knocking Irvin out cold was slightly more impressive than Fedor taking half that time to choke out Sylvia. I chalk it up to me thinking Irvin had a much better chance of sneaking away with a victory than Sylvia did so, in essence, Silva beat a superior opponent.


SCORE: 4 for 6.


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Join us next week when two more participants discuss more fallout from "Fight Night 14" and "Affliction: Banned", plus DREAM Grand Prix results, and a few other issues lingering out there in the land o' MMA ...