411's UFC 97: Redemption Report 4.18.09
Posted by Jeremy Lambert on 04.19.2009
Anderson Silva successfully defend his Middleweight title in a rather lackluster decision against Thales Leites. Also, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua defeated Chuck Liddell in what could be the last time we see "The Iceman" in the Octagon. Click for the full report.
UFC 97: Redemption
From The Bell Centre in Montreal, Canda
Live on PPV
-Warrior intro with Liddell, Shogun, Leites, and Silva talking up their fights.
-Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan are the hosts. Goldberg talks about Silva going after the record for most consecutive UFC wins. Rogan says Leites has the best style to beat Silva.
-A video package with Dana White saying that tonight could be Chuck Liddell's last fight.
-Rogan talks about Liddell and Rua changing things up in their training camps for this fight.
-Video preview for Cantwell vs. Cane
Light Heavyweight Fight: Steve Cantwell (7-1) vs. Luiz Cane (10-1-1)
Round One: Cane doing the stalking and scoring with jabs. Cantwell throwing leg kicks. They clinch and quickly break. Plum clinch and knees to the body by Cane. Cane throwing and connecting with good combos ending with the uppercut. Cantwell throwing a lot of head kicks but all missing or blocked. Cane scoring a lot with the straight left. Round ends. 10-9 Cane.
Round Two: Good right by Cantwell but Cane answers back with a double right, left combo. Cane still pressing the action and putting good combos together. Cantwell now scoring with the right hand. Head kick by Cantwell followed by a big right. Cantwell looking more comfortable this round. Cantwell countering well with the right hook. Round ends. 10-0 Cantwell.
Round Three: Cane with big punches ended with a body kick. Cantwell covering up well. They trade stiff jabs. Cane with a knee to the body as Cantwell leans in. He follows that with another knee. Cantwell with a hook and Cane looks gassed. Cane blocks consecutive head kicks. Cane connects with power shots and a knees to the body. They miss with jabs as the round ends. 10-9 Cane.
Official Decision: Luiz Cane by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
-Video promo for UFC 98: Evans vs. Machida. Serra vs. Hughes is also on the card.
-Video preview for Kongo vs. Hardonk
Heavyweight Fight: Antoni Hardonk (8-4) vs. Cheick Kongo (23-4-1)
Round One: Big exchange but neither connects clean. They trade leg kicks. They clinch with Kongo pressing Hardonk against the cage. Knees to the thigh by Kongo. The ref breaks them. Kongo catches a body kick and trips Hardonk down. Kongo kicks the legs of Hardonk. The ref allows Hardonk to stand. Uppercut by Kongo. Another clinch with Hardonk against the cage. Knees to the thigh by Kongo. Kongo gets a takedown with Hardonk pressed against the cage. Hardonk doing a good job controlling the posture of Kongo. The round ends. 10-9 Kongo.
Round Two: Leg kick by Hardonk but he slips. Kongo comes down with a big right hand. Kongo in the guard of Hardonk. Elbows to the body by Kongo followed by a few hammerfists. Hardonk cut above the left eye. More hammerfists by Kongo. Hardonk rolls and turtles up. Kongo pounds him until the ref stops it.
Official Decision: Cheick Kongo by TKO at 2:29 in Round Two
-Video preview for Stann vs. Soszynski
Light Heavyweight Fight: Brian Stann (6-1) vs. Krzysztof Soszynski (17-9-1)
Round One: Dirty boxing by both followed by a break. Body kick by Stann. Inside leg kicks by Stann. Soszynski initiates a clinch. Dirty boxing and Stann pulls away. Soszynski shoots and gets the takedown. Soszynski quickly passes to mount. Stann bucks Soszynski into side control. Stann gets to his feet but Soszynski puts him right back on the ground in half guard. Soszynski passes to side control and locks in the kimura. Stann taps out.
Official Decision: Krzysztof Soszynski by Submission (Kimura) at 3:53 in Round One
-Soszynski says winning in his hometown is the best feeling ever.
-Video preview for Liddell vs. Rua
Light Heavyweight Fight: Mauricio Rua (17-3) vs. Chuck Liddell (21-6)
Round One: Leg kick by Rua. Big right by Rua. Body kick by Rua. Right by Liddell answered by Rua. Leg kick by Rua. Rua coming over the top with the right. Takedown by Rua. Liddell gets up but Rua grabs a leg. Rua has the back on the feet. Liddell turns into him. Right hand by Liddell as they break. Liddell blocks a takedown and scores with a right hand. Takedown by Liddell. He lets him up. Left hand by Rua drops Liddell. Rua pounds him out for the win.
Official Decision: Mauricio Rua by TKO at 4:28 in Round One
-Rua wants to fight anyone.
-Liddell is on the verge of tears. He doesn't announce his retirement but you can tell he's leaning that way.
-Video preview for Wiman vs. Stout
Lightweight Fight: Matt Wiman (10-4) vs. Sam Stout (14-5-1)
Round One: They both come out swinging but not connecting. Left hook and a right by Wiman. Takedown by Wiman. Stout gets to his feet. They trade leg kicks. Superman punch by Wiman. Good right by Wiman. Stout sprawls out of a takedown. Wiman goes for a guillotine but loses it as he drops down. Back on the feet. They trade superman punches. Stout sprawls and lands knee to the body on the way up. Body kicks by Stout. Wiman gets a takedown but Stout is right back up and then gets Wiman down. Stout stands up. Superman punch by Wiman. Round ends. Very close round. 10-9 Wiman.
Round Two: Good exchanges early with Wiman getting the better of them. Left hook by Stout. Wiman shoots and slips to the back of Stout. Stout turns into the guard of Wiman. Wiman goes for a leg but Stout escapes and gets to his feet. Left hook by Stout. Stout getting the better of the exchanges now. Body shot by Stout drops Wiman. Stout pounces on him but Wiman has his legs up and covers up. Wiman goes for an armbar but Stout pulls out and lets Wiman up. Another body shot by Stout. Wiman looks hurt but he fights on. Straight right by Stout. Round ends. 10-9 Stout.
Round Three: Wiman very aggressive to start the round. Body kick by Stout. Wiman working hard for a takedown but Stout's takedown defense is good. Wiman gets the back on the feet and gets a body triangle. He drags Stout to the ground. Stout turns into Wiman and is now in his guard. Wiman doing a good job covering up and taking limited damage. Back on the feet. Wiman catches a leg kick and gets the takedown. Stout is cut under the eye and from the nose. Stout tries to get up but Wiman keeps him on the ground. Big exchange as the round ends. 10-9 Wiman.
-Close fight. Could go either way.
Official Decision: Sam Stout by Unanimous Decision (29-28 across)
-Stout gave credit to Wiman's stand up.
-Channing Tatum and Cung Le join Mike Goldberg to promote Fighting. The movie.
-Silva lands 80% of his strikes and is going for 9 straight wins. Leites is on a 5 fight win streak and 27% of his wins have come via arm triangle.
-Video preview for Silva vs. Leites
Middleweight Title Fight (Main Event): Thales Leites (14-1) vs. Anderson Silva (23-4) (c)
Round One: Not much happening two minutes in. Silva stalking but not engaging. Leg kick by Leites. Body shot by Silva. Silva with a leg trip. Leites shoots and pulls half guard. Silva gets up but Leites has his back against the cage. The round ends. 10-9 Silva.
Round Two: Inside leg kick by Leites. Leites shoots and has the takedown into half guard. Silva moves him to guard. Elbows from the bottom by Silva. Silva gets to his feet. Crowd starts booing as nothing happens back on the feet. Silva pressing and Leites running. Body punch by Silva. Round ends. 10-9 Leites.
Round Three: Silva sprawls a quick takedown attempt. Right hand by Leites. Leites shoots and then falls back. Looks like he got poked in the eye. No stoppage. Silva lets Leites up. Silva sprawls again, Leites goes to his back, Silva kicks the legs and then lets him up. "GSP" chants from the crowd. Leites shoots, Silva sprawls, Leites goes to his back. Silva getting frustrated. Body kick by Silva. Leites ducks a hook and drops to his back. Side kick to the knee by Silva followed by a head kick. Silva scoring with the straight right. Leites tries to leg sweep Silva to the ground and Silva moves. The round ends. 10-9 Silva.
Round Four: Side kick to the leg by Silva. Over and over with it. Silva dancing around. Head kick blocked by Leites. Leg kicks by Silva. Silva sprawls. Straight right by Silva. Silva tries a back leg sweep that did nothing but looked awesome. Silva tries to punch Leites in the leg. Another sprawl by Silva. Round ends. 10-9 Silva.
Round Five: Leg kicks by Silva. Leites shoots for a single but Silva sprawls. Silva stays on top of Leites and punches him. Silva gets to his feet. Leites is bleeding from the nose. Leites drops to his back again. Silva stays on the ground and punches him before letting him back up. "Bullshit" chants by the crowd. Another takedown block by Silva. "GSP" chant. Silva catches a body kick and Leites drops to the ground. Silva lets him up. Straight left by Silva. Leites misses with right and goes to the ground. Round ends. 10-9 Silva
-Easy decision victory for Silva. Could have a few 10-8 rounds.
Official Decision: Still Middleweight Champion, Anderson Silva by Unanimous Decision (49-46, 48-47, 50-46)
-Silva says next time he'll give a better performance.
-Rogan and Goldberg talk about what could be the end of Chuck Liddell's career.
Posted By: Scottyieoittie (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:21 AM
Anderson looked bored, he needs real contenders
Posted By: Wants his money back (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:21 AM
Chuck's done. He's a legend, and one of my favorite fighters but it's over and it's a fuckin shame. Good to see the old Shogun back but not at Chuck's expense :(
Posted By: Guest#2085 (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:29 AM
How ANYONE gave a round to Leites is beyond me. If all it takes to be # 1 contender for a UFC title is dacning around for 5 rounds and falling on your back whenever anyone steps near you well why not give me a shot? I can run in there and turtle with the best of them.
Posted By: Dave (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:31 AM
Worst show ever. Absolutely horrible main event. Dana White and UFC owe the fans an apology for this garbage.
Posted By: checkmatejedi (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:33 AM
-Silva says next time he'll give a better performance.
He said that about the cote' fight !That was October 25, 2008,
7 months later he says the same thing !
Come on ! Once again Anderson proves that if he doesn't beat his opponent in 2 rds or less he becomes a mind numbing cautious fighter that draws for a decision as the rounds get closer to 5 !~!
Posted By: Guest#3929 (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:35 AM
WAR SHOGUN!!!!
Posted By: Guest#1750 (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:41 AM
Chuck should hang em up. He's done. He can't evolve.
Posted By: Rua's left hand (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:52 AM
Show was lame except for Liddel getting his face pounded and fuck dana white
Posted By: Big Dick Johnson (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:58 AM
"Come on ! Once again Anderson proves that if he doesn't beat his opponent in 2 rds or less he becomes a mind numbing cautious fighter that draws for a decision as the rounds get closer to 5"
Yea, you can do a lot better, right?
Posted By: Guest#8765 (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 02:05 AM
dana white is an idiot, he should get in the cage and take an ass whoopin
Posted By: brian (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 02:09 AM
Boring, won't be paying $50 for any card Silva's headlining again. First punch thrown 1:10 into fight. Gimma a f***ing break. Can't blame it all on Leites.
Posted By: Lanphoon (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 02:10 AM
chuck needs to stop or he'll end up a vegetable.
Posted By: rey (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 02:16 AM
Guest#8765 (Guest)
i did when i banged you mother !
Posted By: Guest#7988 (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 02:32 AM
Chuck is a legend, there will never be another fighter that has the ring presents that chuck had, he was one of the main fighters that took MMA to the main stream and helped take it to the top where it is today, and for a long time there was know feeling seeing chuck standing in the octo with some chump knowing he was going to lay him out. Chuck will be missed. Long live the "Iceman"
Posted By: where's sugar (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 03:17 AM
That was the absolute worst main event I've seen in recent UFC history. Both Silva and Leites put forth a pretty lackluster effort there. It was almost 2 minutes into the first round before Silva decided he wanted to play MMA today. It was like watching Machida fight his shadow.
Oh well. At least I got to see my boy Chuck kick some ass!
Posted By: Guest#2608 (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 03:17 AM
Boring, won't be paying $50 for any card Silva's headlining again. First punch thrown 1:10 into fight. Gimma a f***ing break. Can't blame it all on Leites.
Re: You can`t blame it all on Leites, you have to blame it on the UFC for not coming up with better contenders. It is not Anderson`s job to initiate the fight, he has the title and he is defending it, it is up to the opponent because the opponent is the one trying to take the championship away from the title holder. If the UFC had legitimate contenders for Anderson then we would continue to see great performances from him, if not we will continue to see these brutal outings.
Posted By: Wants his money back (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 03:24 AM
you cant blame silva. he just needs worthy/decent opponents... cant blame him tho since he basically cleaned out his division to the process of getting to the title and defending it..
leites wasnt in his league.. but thats what we get when silva has already defeated everyone else worthy at 185.. if lietes isnt going to trade with him. why should silva go to the ground w/ him then?
Posted By: wylung (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 03:45 AM
A few points: how about the 3-4 illegal blows to the back of the head that rua dropped on chuck after the knockdown? My lord if that were the maz refereeing he would've stood them up and docked him eight points! second, the wiman/stout decision was pretty suspect (home-cookin' in my book. Finally, shogun didn't impress me much here either. Chuck was winning until he got caught. It wasn't even a heavy blow, poor ol' chuck just doesn't have a chin left.
Posted By: guest guest (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 03:49 AM
The last time a roundtable all picked Chuck Liddell except one, he lost against Rashad Evans. This time is no different...
Posted By: Brad (Guest) on April 17, 2009 at 12:15 AM
Yay for being exactly right, can I have my gold star now?
Posted By: Brad (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 04:18 AM
I didn't think the Silva fight was bad, and I also thought Thales did a great job. Silva didn't engage when he had multiple opportunities, you can't just pin it all on Thales. Thales actually tried a bit but was outclassed, I seriously can't get on a guy that is hopelessly outmatched and nothing works for him. I can get on the guy that however doesn't finish when he is the superior talent. You can chalk it up to feeling out for maybe the first 3 rounds, but after that, well, now you've got to question what was going on, at least a little bit. Although I thought Thales did a great job avoiding damage at some points, either Silva couldn't or didn't want to explode as he has in previous fights to put him away.
RJJ is old now and has definitely lost footspeed, but if Silva thinks he can just win by waiting for RJJ to screw up and counterpunch him, he's completely delusional. Roy still has his handspeed, and frankly his defensive technique is also far beyond anything the Spider can come up with, and the Spider had the aid of his legs and elbows and the ability to hit below the waist against a man who's standup proficiency is far lesser than Roy Jones' ability. I don't see how anyone can give the edge to Spider, especially after the Thales fight (although honestly, even beforehand, it was still unrealistic).
Thales isn't the first guy that has gone to the ground in a fight. Cro Cop dealt with it, and still finished. Fedor dealt with it, most notably against Nog, and nearly beat the hell out of him for trying it. Arlovski...kind of dealt with it against Werdum, although that fight was kinda weak as well. Point is, people have dealt with it all the time, AS really didn't and you can't just make excuses.
AS is still #2 P4P MMA on my list. But the gap between him and Fedor is absolutely astronomical. People really need to understand just how amazing what Fedor has done is.
Posted By: Serp (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 05:08 AM
"Worst show ever. Absolutely horrible main event. Dana White and UFC owe the fans an apology for this garbage.
Posted By: checkmatejedi (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:33 AM"
Dana and Silva put the fights together, it's not their fault if the fighters go in there and fuck it up.
That being said, can Anderson Silva be removed from any future best P4P talk now?
Posted By: Diavo (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 08:12 AM
It's ridiculous to blame Silva for being better than everybody else. It's the challenger's job to beat the champion for the title. Leites' plan was to hope and pray that Silva would volunteer to drop into his guard and give up a body part of his own free will. Since Anderson wasn't going to do that, the onus is on Leites to fight for a takedown or sacrifice for a clinch if he wanted to use his jits. Simple fact is, he was woefully outclassed by a superior opponent and didn't have the ability to do so. At least the best of the division (Henderson, Franklin) come to fight and take their defeats like men. Lesser lights like Leites and Cote come to go the distance and hope they get lucky at some point. It's not Silva's fault that these guys aren't in their league, it's up to UFC to find world-class competition to fight for their title. If they can't, appreciate seeing a champion in his prime who doesn't disgrace himself or the sport by losing to subpar opponents.
As for Liddell, he's a name and a UFC favourite so he'll get fights as long as he wants them, but his time at the top of the food chain is done. Matt Hughes should pay attention to this and not sully his legacy any further, if he cares about such things.
Posted By: Tactix Millington (Registered) on April 19, 2009 at 08:14 AM
I have never been The Iceman biggest fan but I could not help feeling sad seeing him after the KO. He looked extra porty on the gut and after one leg kick seemed to be limping. Credit to Shogun, he looked fit and explosive and maybe now ready to show us he is still one of the best!
Anderson Silva was a joke...he seems disinterested! The other guy did not want to fight but I am sure that he could have destroyed him if he wanted too. Hope he fucks off to boxing and gets KO'ed by Roy Jones!
Posted By: Daniel (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 09:17 AM
Anderson had a perfect gameplan... he took out Thales' leg and picked him apart... Thales was just tough and didn't make any mistakes...this IS martial arts people... if u don't like it, go watch Kimbo knock out bums on youtube for free and save your money...personally I think Anderson is a brillant fighter and I enjoy watching his gameplans unfold
Posted By: Deeraymoore (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 10:01 AM
""Come on ! Once again Anderson proves that if he doesn't beat his opponent in 2 rds or less he becomes a mind numbing cautious fighter that draws for a decision as the rounds get closer to 5"
Yea, you can do a lot better, right?"
Which means what, exactly? What's the relevance?
Posted By: guest (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 11:46 AM
I think its a little difficult to get on a guy who just won his ninth straight fight in the UFC. However personally, I just feel that at this point in his career, Silva really should be fighting at 205 in far more interesting fights. Instead he's still farting around at middleweight, looking bored against completely overmatched opponents in what turn out to be glorified sparring exhibitions. This is hardly befitting of the supposed #1 pound for pound fighter in my honest opinion.
Posted By: Josh (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 12:09 PM
Those of you saying the silva fight was a disgrace are retarded and would get your ass destroyed in the ring, silva has some serious skill, not his fault leites didnt want to engage with him.
Posted By: Steve (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 12:16 PM
I have a feeling that if Chuck retires right now, and comes back in a year or so, he'd STILL be favored by most of the internet, no matter who he was being paired against. I only favored him for the Rua fight under the assumption the fight would leave the first round.
Posted By: NDN (Registered) on April 19, 2009 at 12:59 PM
it's also andersons job to defend his title.
when he cleary had the upper hand and could've taken him out at any point, why didn't he? because he wanted to be cautious? if everybodys saying hes so unbeatable then why is he being so cautious?
Posted By: Dom (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:34 PM
Leites was awful. When someone is standing with their hands down around their waist with their chin sticking out right in your face and you don't punch them, you suck. I give Anderson a lot of credit for trying to get the fight going, but it's hard to do when your bitch of an opponent won't try and hit you and when you hit him he lays down on the mat.
I hope Dana fires Leites and gets Anderson some real competition.
Posted By: Chris Connolly (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 01:51 PM
Not so fast Anderson Silva, don't get too bored. The "Axe Murderer" awaits. If Wand can get past Franklin, Silva vs Silva is the match to see at 185lbs. Nuff said
Posted By: Dana (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 02:16 PM
That's a big IF for Wanderlei... Even if he does get past Rich, he is too old and broken down to be any real threat to Anderson.
Posted By: Chris Connolly (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 03:55 PM
So why exactly is Silva not fighting at 205? Is it his decision or the UFC's? Silva just has looked bored at 185 since the Henderson fight.
Posted By: John (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 04:43 PM
Silva could have looked better winning sure, but he looked the only one willing to fight. Leites made sure of a horrible title fight, he's obviously good enough to have a BJJ guard...but surely he could have done something else? It looked like Leites had no intention of throwing a single attack for most of the fight, and when Silva got near him he THREW HIMSELF TO THE FLOOR! That's not "going to ground"... it's deliberately falling over and hoping your opponent will jump into a submission or something. Silva rules, but, unless UFC are growing some middleweight opponents for him in a lab somewhere, there's nothing left for him to do in this weight class.
Posted By: Leites ZZZZ! (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 06:09 PM
Liddell needs to retire. I honestly dont know why he is 1 of the biggest legends in the sport. He is way too predictable, with his 1, 2 punch combo. I like fighters like machida and silva because they confuse people, unlike chuck. Liddell's not a very smart fighter!
Posted By: Guest#1498 (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 06:09 PM
Thales Leites = Gay Fish
Posted By: Kanye West (Guest) on April 19, 2009 at 07:20 PM
I'm sooooo glad I went and watched this at a bar with some buddies. A total tab of $14 (including cover) was about right for this show. I did enjoy the fights leading up to the Silva fight, which me and the rest of the bar found to be boring as hell. When the crowd was chanting GSP in the fifth round so was the crowd in the bar. The only money fights that the UFC has for Silva is GSP or Rampage.
As for the the guy who said that it was like watching Machida fighting his shadow for five rounds; we are about to see that as Evans has basically the same gameplan as Machida, he's just nowhere nearly as good at it and will get beat.
Posted By: King Durin (Guest) on April 20, 2009 at 07:36 AM
