The Verbal Submission 08.12.08: Super Fights

Posted by Chris Robinson on 08.12.2008

The UFC delivered a straight-up knockout show on Saturday night. And coming off the heels of that show, we have the potential super fight between GSP and BJ Penn. Will this start a trend of super fights in the UFC? Here's hoping! In today's column, I'll list my top four potential super fights under the ZUFFA banner.











From a rain soaked apartment in Jersey, this is "The Verbal Submission" and I am Chris Robinson. The big event on everyone's mind still is UFC 87 and it was a blow away card. Every fight on the televised card delivered, whether it was entertainment value or just great MMA action. I'll get into some in depth post-show thoughts in today's column. Also, I want to talk about the potential "super fights" that could happen under the ZUFFA banner in the near future. It seems like some of the top names are just plain tired of these "weight classes". Pssh, weight classes are sooooooo 2006. Let's go.

Here's one of Dana White's video blogs prior to UFC 87 featuring the always entertaining Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.


QUICK THOUGHTS ON UFC 87
As I said in the opening, UFC 87 exceeded my expectations even though they were already pretty high. Now I've read most of the comments here at 411 and on message boards all over web. It seems that most fans enjoyed the show, but of course some fanboys got on Lesnar's case for lack of action, some Fitch fans had their panties in bunches, and even some Roger Huerta fans threw their sombreros on the ground in disgust. The highlight of the show for me was Rob Emerson's 12 second KO of Madvil "The Advil" Gamburyan. I've never been a fan of Manny or his lovely cousin Karo, so this loss was especially sweet for me. Hopefully Mr. Emerson will continue to improve and we could have ourselves a new top prospect at 155.

We also had the very hyped Demian Maia pick up a hard fought submission over Jason MacDonald. MMA LIVE on ESPN.com had a feature on Maia on their recent episode where they touted him as an up and comer at 185. Frankly, I wasn't impressed. If this guy wants to succeed at all he's going to have to stray away from the one dimensional BJJ attack. Granted, he has short, stubby arms according to the reach provided in the pre fight graphic. Still, the guy sitting on top at 185 is a master striker, and other top contenders like Michael Bisping and Chris Leben are all about brawling, so Maia needs to improve that aspect of his game.

Now MMA purists (read psychotics) are always going to be all disgruntled about Brock Lesnar's abilities until he displays some sort of Couture-esque magic in the Octagon. For me, this fight was exactly what Lesnar needed to do. He took Herring down and used his supernatural strength to hold him down and grind out a win. The fight was virtually mistake free for Lesnar and you could tell he was avoiding any position that could result in a submission attempt by Herring. Up next for Brock will probably be Cheick Kongo, or possibly Cain Velasquez. That's just two guesses off the top of my head, so if you disagree, that's fantastic.

Roger Huerta and Kenny Florian had a solid fight, but definitely not the barn burner I was hoping for. It seemed like Huerta was tentative to pull the trigger on his strikes during the fight, and KenFlo took full advantage. He beat on Roger the whole time and looked happy doing it. Does this mean we get Florian vs. Penn next? Hell no! I'm not sure what's next for Kenny, but I think one more fight might be in order before he gets another shot at the gold.

The main event absolutely blew my mind. I've never seen someone take so many shots on the button and keep coming. I was not a fan of Jon Fitch coming into this fight, but I am a fan of his now. Just wow. GSP looked better than ever and the fact that this fight went the full five rounds is a testament to the determination and heart of Fitch. I hope Fitch gets a chance to put away two or three top guys at 170 before getting a second chance because I would definitely pay to see that fight again. I think Fitch should work on his muay thai and kickboxing because striking still seems to be a weak point of his. As for GSP, bring on the Prodigy.

If only Jon Fitch had the ability to bend time and space, he would've seen this coming.


TOP FOUR POSSIBLE SUPER FIGHTS UNDER THE ZUFFA BANNER
#4: GSP VS. BJ PENN
Seriously though this fight is going to happen. Now the first time this fight occurred, BJ Penn lost a split decision to GSP. Georges was coming off a three fight win streak at the time, and BJ was returning to the octagon for the first time in 2 years. Oh what a difference two more years makes. Flash forward to their upcoming rematch in 2008, and you have two of the best P4P fighters in the world going to war. Will we see a five round classic? Will we see a flash knockout? Who cares! This fight has all the makings to top the buyrate from Liddell/Ortiz 2. Am I crazy? A little. All I know is, when these two step in the cage, someone will cement a legacy, and someone will add another great fight to their history. The striking from both is top notch and the ground game for both is top notch. The only advantage I see for either fighter is Penn probably has superior BJJ, but Georges might have better wrestling. It's a toss-up and I hope this fight becomes a reality in December.

This man sticks his tongue out in the face of adversity....or a camera.


#3: ANDERSON SILVA VS. GSP
Whaaaaaaaaaat? It's true. This match is a rumor, BUT it could happen. Would it happen at 185? Probably. Would the extra weight affect GSP? Maybe. This is match-up that MMA fans have been dreaming about, and it could happen in 2009. Imagine if Georges defeats BJ Penn in December and then calls out Anderson Silva. Imagine now he beats Anderson Silva. That could end the P4P argument right there. If this fight does happen, I'd guess GSP takes it to the ground quick like he did against Jon Fitch. Letting Anderson Silva work his magical clinch powers is not in anyone's best interest. Take the man down, wrestle him, and work ground and pound. Avoid any BJJ submission attempts, rinse, repeat, and go for a 5 round decision. If your Anderson Silva, stay on your feet and use your lanky limbs to dismantle Rush. If The Spider takes the win, now you have a guy who holds a win over the welterweight champ, and could move up to 205 for a shot at that crown. Do we want to see Silva vs. Griffin? Well, maybe not this Silva. There is someone at 205 I would like to see go toe to toe with Anderson Silva though.

He does what he wants, when he wants, and how he wants.


#2: CHUCK LIDDELL VS. ANDERSON SILVA
In a perfect world, The Iceman will defeat Rashad Evans, and then go onto a title shot against Forrest Griffin. If the perfection continues, Chuck Liddell regains his LHW title and faces Anderson Silva in the fight of the century. Think about it. The most feared striker in UFC history against one of the most feared strikers IN UFC HISTORY. Liddell could add another big win to his already Hall of Fame career, OR Anderson Silva could take cement a Hall of Fame career with a win. Would Silva be able to handle the looping punches and dominant power of Chuck? Would Liddell be able to handle a barrage of kicks, knees, and elbows from the muay thai master? Anyone else pop a MMA chubby thinking of this fight? The real question for all these potential super fights is will Dana White allow them to happen? Is there enough money to be made while not tarnishing the popularity and drawing ability of his top guys? With this next fight, I don't think he'd have a problem tarnishing either guy.

And here's what Liddell will do after he wins the fight.


#1: URIJAH FABER VS. BJ PENN
How great would this fight be? Urijah Faber's recent battle with Jens Pulver was the most watched fight in WEC history and finally pushed Faber more into the mainstream. Any fight fans out there who still don't know Faber need to pull their head out of their rectum. Being the best 145'er in the world still doesn't mean as much as it should however. And with only a 10 pound weight difference between lightweight and featherweight, the itch to move up to the UFC lightweight division has to be there. Think of all the super fights that could happen. Of course, people will say the extra weight could lead to diminished explosiveness, loss of hand speed, blah, blah, blah. We're talking about Penn vs. Faber here! Urijah's striking has vastly improved and his wrestling ability is world class. Combine that with insane submission defense and you have BJ Penn's worst enemy. Some people will also throw out the argument that Faber has beaten only one "great" opponent in Jens Pulver, and he couldn't finish him like BJ did. Who cares! I'd love for Urijah to finish off two or three more opponents at 145, declare the weight class dominated, and move up to the big stage.

Instead of a funny picture or video of Urijah Faber, I'd like to remind everyone about Rachelle Leah.


END OF THE THIRD ROUND
That ends the tenth edition of "The Verbal Submission". A shout-out is in order to MMA-Core.com for their awesome gif's that I overused in today's column. Also thanks to MMArated.com and MMAweekly.com for pics and vids.

If you've never taken the time, give the Empire Hardcore Podcast a chance at Podomatic.com and on iTunes. We cover pro wrestling, MMA, and whatever else comes to our minds. It's not a serious discussion by any means, just three friends talking and recording it. Be sure to check out my comedic vlogs on YouTube. Also, be sure to go here for more words, pics, videos, etc, etc, etc. I'll be back next Tuesday with a column that will penetrate your soul and sodomize your mind. Have a good week.

Kick. Punch. It's all in the mind.

DAMN!


-CPR