Passing the Guard 09.27.08: Dinosaur Times

Posted by Stephen DeAugustino on 09.27.2008

This week, we take a glimpse at what went down in the far east at DREAM 6, as well as some of the biggest stories developing in the MMA world today. Gomi Vs. Penn 2? Johnson Vs. Burns 2? All that, plus David Blaine getting punched in the sternum. Don't miss out!

Good day my friends. Welcome to another edition of Passing the Guard, the best source for all that is MMA on the net today. This past week was generous enough to provide us with an awesome card in DREAM 6, and we will waste no time in reviewing the action that went down in Japan last Tuesday. Along with that, we've got some pretty interesting videos and as always, all the news you care to know. Let's get started!



Review

DREAM 6




Shinya Aoki defeats Todd Moore by way of Submission

People often judge the character of a champion not by his victories, but by his defeats. With that said, Shinya Aoki needed to show his resilience in the face of his upset loss to Joachim Hansen at DREAM 5, and did so but immediately jumping on the very next card. While Todd Moore was not the toughest obstacle the promoters could have signed up for Aoki, it was a start for the Baka Survivor.

The first few seconds saw each combatant circling and keeping the distance, with Aoki working some leg kicks and Moore throwing his jab sporadically. Aoki would make one takedown attempt, but would back out after Moore sprawled some doubt into his mind. It wouldn't be long however before Aoki snagged the body lock. In an attempt to escape, Moore flailed his body away, only to expose his back to the submission machine. As you can imagine, Aoki quickly acquired the back and worked for the choke. While Moore was able to get to the turnbuckle and fight off the limbs from under his throat, he failed to defend the neck crack that immediately followed. Aoki forced the tap at 1:10 in the first round.

Sure, Todd Moore isn't the biggest name DREAM could have provided for Aoki, but how can anyone been unimpressed with a performance like that? Aoki showed how dangerous he still is and it should be expected that he will see some more action as soon as DREAM finalizes another card. Aoki has started his road back to the top, and he did so with a bang Tuesday night.



Mirko Filipovic Vs. Alistair Overeem (No Contest)

With the way each of these guys have been fighting lately, fans were already accepting that fact that and upset here could have been a real possibility. However, what ended up going down that evening was more upsetting than anyone really could have thought.

As expected, the fight begins as the two strikers circle one another and throw a few kicks in between the stagnation. The action picks up when Overeem snags the clinch and utilizes it to send the Croatian to the canvas. Overeem works from his opponent's guard and drops some elbows and hammer fists that succeed in opening up a cut on Cro Cop. Filipovic, who seems to be simply holding on in hopes of forcing the standup, finally gets his wish. Cro Cop throws his signature head kick, but Overeem catches and utilizes it to sling Filipovic to the floor a second time. Once again the action is stood up, and once again Overeem clinches. This time however, Overeem throws a few knees to the midsection of Cro Cop, with one catching the groin. The fight is halted to allow Filipovic to recover, and when the fight resumes, the same thing happens again. A few minutes later a third time occurs, and Overeem is given a yellow card, however it really doesn't matter; the fight is halted soon after as Filipovic is ruled unable to compete.

I've seen some bad low blows in my day, but never have I seen so big of a deal made out of them. Towards the end of the fight, doctors and corner men were swarming all around Filipovic as if he had just been knocked out or slammed on his head. Towels were draped all over his body during the resting period, as if that were to help the pain in his crotch. It's hard to soak all of that up, and not think that Filipovic tried to sell it off in order to find a way out of the fight. Prior to the low blows, Filipovic was being dominated. While we may never know the truth, you can bet that rematch will happen, and we'll finally figure out how this thing should have ended.


Yoshihiro Akiyama defeats Masanori Tonooka by way of submission
Considering Akiyama is supposed to be the best middleweight DREAM has, it is rather odd how they have been using him lately. After Akiyama had to exit the DREAM middleweight grand prix due to injury, Akiyama found himself against the never dangerous Katsuyori Shibata, who was then riding a winless four-fight streak. Tonooka, while considerably a step up from Shibata, is still nowhere neat the level of competition Akiyama has seen before. The results of Tuesday night proved that.

Tonooka comes out throwing some clumsy haymakers, which comes as a bit of a surprise since he has a solid background in striking. None of the heavy strikes find their target and Akiyama manages to score a takedown not very long into he bout. After passing to side mount, Akiyama traps the arm and begins to rain short strikes down from the crucifix position, however Tonooka is able to free himself. Once again Akiyama traps the arm and searches for a kimora while striking, but once again fails as Tonooke bucks out. In the process if escape, Tonooka gives up his back. Akiyama finds it and searches for a gi choke, but ends up giving up the position as Tonooka gets to his feet. It isn't long before the fight arrives on the ground again, and this time Akiyama finds success in his submission attempt. Akiyama is victorious with an armbar finish.

It seems like this fight was only made to keep Akiyama active while the grand prix played out. You can almost guarantee that Akiyama will be seeing Mousasi at some event in the near future, which will be good since we haven't seen Akiyama tested since his induction into DREAM.





Ronaldo Souza defeats Zelg Galesic by way of submission

After putting on a submission festival against Jason Miller in his last appearance, Ronaldo Jacare was expected to do something similar in his semifinal fight against Zelg Galesic. Galesic, a known striker, would be in some trouble if he couldn't find an answer to the world champion's jujitsu ability. Needless to say, he was in plenty of it.

The fight begins with Galesic throwing a front kick that is avoided and answered with a series of jabs and a double leg takedown. Fluently, Jacare passes from full guard, to half guard, to mount, where a few strikes find their target before Galesic manages to cast Jacare off. In the process, Souza transitions to a slick armbar that finishes the fight rapidly at the 1:27 mark.

Anyone looks for this kind of fight in a multi-bout night; stay as fresh as possible and finish quickly to avoid injury or fatigue that may hurt you later on in the tournament. Jacre did just as everyone knew he would, and did so in a fashion that set him up nicely for the finals. Unfortunately, he would have little advantage over his opponent to come, as his bout would end in a very similar fashion.



Gegard Mousasi defeats Melvin Manhoef by way of submission

Déjà vu. While Gegard Mousasi isn't half of the submission fighter that Souza is, it is clear that his submission ability is miles ahead of Manhoef's, who is not only a great striker, but one of the best in the division. Just like the other semifinal, it was clear that one man would be looking for the ground while the other would be looking to knock him there. Interestingly enough, much like the other semi, it would be former that would claim victory.

At first it is Mousasi that is pressing the stand up action, as he backs Manhoef into the corner with a solid leg kick. However any ideas of standing war are put to rest as Mousasi attempts to takedowns, with the last one being a success. Mousasi easily acquires the mount, where eh sets up a triangle that falls perfectly into place as Manhoef rolls out from under the mount. The Dutchmen makes an attempt to recreate a Jackson-Arona ending by picking Mousasi up in the air for a slam, but the result is much less spectacular; the slam simply makes the hold tighter as the unphased Mousasi forces the choke at the 1:28 mark.

As was already stated, Mousasi finished ideally by avoiding any kind of injury that the feared kickboxer could have dished out. While Manhoef would later voice his displeasure at the fact that Mousasi would not stand with him, who in their right mind would do such a thing knowing that they would have to fight later in evening? The strategy was perfect, and it would pay off later in the evening.

Gegard Mousasi defeats Ronaldo Souza by way of KO

After watching these tow guys in the semis, it was hard to really pick a favorite; While Mousasi did have a bit of a tougher road to get into the finals, it was hard to really expect him to go in a dominate after watching Jacare perform in the quarter and semifinal. However, much like the lightweight grand prix before it, the ending to this fight would more surprising than perhaps any other moment in the tournament.

It didn't take long for Jacare to take the final where he wanted. After blasting into a double leg takedown, Jacare picked his Mousasi up as he tried to grasp on to the ropes to avoid a takedown. Jacare would find himself working out Mousasi's half guard, landing some right hands now and then while looking to transition. It only seemed a matter of time before Souza would latch onto something and force a tap. Surprisingly, Jacare stands up out of the guard and attempts to land so punches, when he winds up for a massive right hand. As Souza comes down, he suddenly falls limp and lands face down off to the side, as Mousasi continues to strike the head of the unconscious Brazilian until the referee pulls them apart. Review shows that the second of two up kicks caught Jacare right on the chin, knocking him out cold.

The up kick was one of those endings that makes you wonder; it wasn't a strike that reflected the ability or technique of Mousasi, but it was rather a defensive impulse that really any fighter could have done. It would have been nice to see how the fight played out with out the kick, but as they say, a fight is a fight. For now Mousasi is king of the hill, and will undoubtedly face Akiyama before he fights anyone else in DREAM. Hopefully a rematch between these guys happens sometime in the near future.





News

Gomi talks Sengoku, Penn

Former Pride champion and current Sengoku cream of the crop Takanori Gomi recently sat down and wrote an interesting enter in his personal blog, in which he touched upon fighting for Sengoku, as well as a potential rematch with current rankings king BJ Penn.

"I don't like to have a long break between fights, for it takes longer to condition physically and mentally if I don't fight constantly. Since SENGOKU finally made a TV deal, I want to fight soon and show my performance to my fans. It's ideal if I can fight every 3 months. I want to participate in SENGOKU.6. in Nov, which has semi-final fights of the lightweight tournament so that our fans can compare my ability with others. Finalists are all grappler; therefore, I want to fight someone grappler next. It's too bad for a winner of the tournament, because he has to fight me next. I bet a winner would have hard time conditioning mentally. (There is a rumor that the UFC may have an event in Japan next year and Dana White wants Gomi fight) SENGOKU allows all fighters fight in other events. I wouldn't mind fighting in the UFC. I think fans are excited to see a fight of champions, Gomi vs B.J.Penn."

In their first meeting, it was Penn that walked away with a dominating submission victory, however afterward Penn would become entangled in a legal battle with the UFC, preventing him from competing as much as Gomi, who would go on to rack up a long list of impressive victories as he eventually climbed to the number one slot. Now, thanks to a combination of Gomi's inactiveness and Penn's recent success in the UFC lightweight division, the roles have been swapped. A fight between the two lightweight behemoths would be huge.




Fedor Not Fighting on DREAM New Years Eve Card

Contrary to popular belief, former Pride champion and current WAMMA champion Fedor Emelianenko will not be competing on DREAM's much anticipated New Year's Eve event. Five Ounces of Pain has the scoop.

"As of right now, Fedor is not scheduled to fight on New Year's Eve in Japan," pronounced M-1 Vice President Jerry Millen, speaking on behalf of Fedor's management team. "He is contracted to M-1 and Affliction and he's scheduled to fight in America for them in mid-January."

Word was that Fedor had committed himself to fighting in Japan on December 31st against either Mirko Filipovic or Alistair Overeem, however this has to put any and all rumors to rest. It must be very disheartening for Japanese fans knowing that one of the biggest icons to come out of Pride will not be making a New Year's appearance, a day which the Japanese always hold in high regard.




Anthony Johnson, Kevin Burns to Rematch at TUF 8 Finale

We al hoped that it was coming, and now it seems it will; Anthony Johnson will get a chance at retribution when he faces Kevin Burns in a rematch, possibly during the TUF 8 finale. Cage Today reports.

"Sources close to both fighters today told MMAjunkie.com that the two competitors have agreed to the fight and that it will be finalized in the coming days."

In their first fight, Burns was burdened with a wrist injury that forced him to strike open palm with his punches; a move that would cause several inadvertent eye pokes through out the fight. The final of these fouls would end up sending Johnson to the canvas screaming, however in rather poor judgment call, referee Steve Mazzagatti would rule the exchange a knock down rather than a illegal maneuver. This would eventually force the injured Johnson, who would later require eye surgery, to defend while Burns pounded away until a TKO victory was awarded. Despite trying to overrule the decision, the NSAC would simply not cooperate on the situation.






Random Pass
David Blaine is a crazy man. We've seen him levitate, shove cigarettes though his hand, and send people back to dinosaur times (those who have seen the youtube video know what I'm talking about). Blaine seems to be doing his best to try and hurt himself, and this time he has called upon the assistance of street corner badass Kimbo Slice. The rest is left up to you to watch. My only beef, why not the face?




Oh, how luck you are, two videos for the price (huh?) of one. I just couldn't resist not putting this video up as well; Rich Franklin is such a cool guy and seeing him shoot people up is just so interesting to me. Sure the movie looks like crap, but come on…Rich Franklin.





Well that does it for me this week. Hope you enjoyed the work and thanks for stopping by. Do you mind if we do it again next week, eh? Until then, you've just passed the guard!