Pretty good night of fights. Let's get right to it.
Court McGee dec Kris McCray via Submission (rear-naked choke) Rd 2
Court McGee is the new Ultimate Fighter and he deserves it. It's pretty crazy how both finalists were previously knocked out of competition; McCray was chosen as the wild card entry (having lost in the quarterfinals), and McGee falling victim to a bullshit decision and getting lucky with Rich Attonito had to bow out with an injury. This match boiled down to who the better wrestler was. McCray had been using his wrestling to rack up victories during TUF, but McGee had shown a bit of a more well rounded game. Well McCray said McGee hadn't faced anyone with takedown defense like his, but whether or not that was true didn't matter because McGee took him down several times and it didn't look too difficult for him. After asserting his dominance early in the fight, it was clear who the better fighter was and it was just a matter time before McGee collected the W. Personally thought this one would go to the judges, but I'm glad it didn't.
Matt Hamill def Keith Jardine via Majority Decision 3rd Rd
I was really rooting for Jardine here just because I didn't want to see him lose 4 in a row, which I'm sure has put him on the chopping block if he isn't already cut. Jardine could be a top 10 fighter if he could just be more consistent and learn that there is such a thing as defense. Jardine always gets exposed by aggressive fighters because his defense is shit, so you know he's going to wilt if you put a lot of pressure on him. He started things off very nicely and displayed a solid gameplan in staying outside and scoring with leg kicks and jabs, but when Hamill wanted a firefight Jardine unwisely obliged. It left him bloodied up and on the defensive later on in the fight. And for the record I think the point deduction for the eye poke was complete bullshit, not that it would've helped Jardine win the decision anyway (he would've lost by split decision instead). If Jardine is actually allowed to stay with the company I think he should be given an opponent who isn't a top fighter and doesn't present a bad matchup for him. His UFC record is pretty lackluster at first glance, but that's because he's given top dogs all the damn time. Cut the guy a break. Hamill hasn't exactly looked fantastic as of late; maybe he needs a fight to get his confidence back as well.
Chris Leben def Aaron Simpson via TKO (punches) Rd 2
I had Simpson winning this fight due to his wrestling pedigree and good chin/heart. I didn't think there'd be much Leben could do to stop Simpson from taking him down and subbing or decisioning him. Once I saw that Simpson couldn't get Leben down I changed my tune. For me Simpson was only really dangerous if he got Leben to the ground, where Leben is a game opponent with a decent guard, but not enough technique to prevent a wrestle stomping from Simpson. Without those takedowns, it leaves us with Simpson's overrated knockout ability (the commentators made him sound like a KO machine...he's not) trying to get the better of a chin made of adamantium. I knew that if Simpson had to stand it was a matter of time before he feels Leben's power and realizes that his strikes aren't going to do much to stop Leben from moving forward. That's pretty much how it went down. I thought the stoppage was weak, but at the same time I don't think Simpson would've turned things around anyway. I'd like to see Simspson rematch Ed Herman as Leben requested, as Simpson hasn't looked so great in his last couple of outings with the step up in competition. As for Leben, I think Demian Maia could be a nice test for him, and vice-versa.
Dennis Siver dec Spencer Fisher via Unanimous Decision rd 3
I thought this was a very close fight that Siver just eked out. He threw a high volume of strikes, but initially Fisher was beating him to the punch by throwing tighter and more precise strikes. As the fight wore on Siver landed more and more, and dictated the pace with well timed kicks and punches. Fisher started to come alive in the 3rd but it was too little, too late. Siver has enjoyed a steady diet of kickboxers, so I'd like to see him take on a grappler next. Someone like Gleison Tibau should give him a challenge. Fisher is still a game opponent, and despite losing two straight I don't think he's fallen too far. A rematch with Aaron Riley would be a helluva fight.
Rich Attonito def Jamie Yager via TKO (punches) Rd 2
I didn't like Yager at all during TUF (mission accomplished for the producers I'm sure), but he was pretty classy in defeat here. He did well in the beginning of the fight as usual by throwing fast and powerful strikes that beat Attonito to the punch; and as usual he slowed down fast and broke down at the first shot that connected with his face. Yager's a talented guy, but he'll get nowhere if he doesn't learn how to take a punch and use skill and technique instead strength and athletic ability alone. Attonito looked relatively sharp and weathered the early storm to take a quality win, though he's still got a ways to go if he really wants to compete with the higher-ups at 185. Next for Yager: who cares? They probably won't even keep him on. Next for Attonito: It'd be interesting to see him take on Court McGee, seeing as how McGee took his spot in the house following Attonito's injury. It would almost prove who the real winner of the competition is.
Travis Browne def James McSweeney via TKO (punches) Rd 1
McSweeney looked pretty good early, showing nice footwork and working a measured range game of striking. Then Browne closed in. Browne dropped him with a right and swarmed in, and although McSweeney held on for a bit, Browne's strikes were too much for him and his position too dominant. The ref had to intervene. I don't know much about Browne other than he's very big and that hes a good prospect. For some reason I want to see him fight Mike Russow. McSweeney is one of those guys I don't know what they should do with. He won't really make it anywhere in the division, but at least he's not terrible to watch with his minutely flashy kickboxing style. Maybe Antoni Hardonk would match up well with him.
I didn't catch the rest of the fights, as they were unaired. The only impressions left on me from the results were that Josh Bryant looked shitty against Kyle Noke (one of the early favorites to win the competition), which was surprising given his performances on the show, which weren't fantastic but decidedly less shitty; and that Brad Tavares had a much harder time defeating Seth Baczynski than was thought. He needed all 3 rounds, and Sherdog even thought Baczynski should have taken the decision. Hopefully it was enough to keep him because I want to see where he goes from here, although I don't see any of the guys from this season apart from possibly McGee (and even then, I'm not holding my breath) amounting to much in the middleweight division. Well that's all for tonight. I'll have to wait to start the WEC 49 recap, as it's now late as hell and I need sleep.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Strikeforce LA recap
It's been a very, very busy week in MMA so I'll try to keep this brief (at least brirf for me) because I have other events to cover. I know I'm way late but I'd still like to offer my recap of the Strikeforce: Los Angeles event. Thankfully, the only fights Strikeforce really airs (or are even relevant, for that matter) are the main card bouts.
Renato Sobral def Robbie Lawler via Unanimous Decision Rd 3
I've always liked Sobral and I'm glad he's back on the winning track with this fight. It was actually a pretty close fight and was hard to score because while Sobral (and surprisingly) outstruck Lawler with volume, it was Lawler who scored the more damaging strikes. What really won the fight for Sobral was his penchant for body kicks and overall willingness to throw. He was definitely the more busy of the two, which looks good to the judges, and Lawler was visibly slowed down and worried by the body shots. Lawler's problem in this fight was the same problem he's pretty much always had: he relies too much on a hypothetical hail-mary KO shot. It saved his ass against Melvin Manhoef, who was utterly destroying him until he got a little too aggressive after sensing a finish and left himself wide open to a haymaker right to the chin. Sobral fought too smart and cautious to let that fight ending shot land, and got a well-earned decision to show for it. I'm actually glad Sobral doesn't want King Mo for the belt next; I think Mo will lay n pray his way to victory just like he did with Mousasi. Plus, the rematch with Dan Henderson he requested actually does intrigue me. As for Lawler, the loss shouldn't keep him out of the inevitable middleweight tourney. But if it were up to me, I've always wanted to see Lawler fight Cung Le.
Evangelista Santos def Marius Zaromskis via TKO (punches) Rd 1
I didn't really expect this one to go past the first round, as both fighters tend to throw with ill intentions from the opening bell, but I thought it would go the opposite way. Ignoring Santos' obvious size advantage, I just thought Zaromskis' speed and overall technical advantage would notch him another highlight reel stoppage. Santos had other plans, as he decided to take a much more methodical approach and used his reach advantage to land repeatedly. The opening was pretty even, then Santos just found his range and started tagging Zaromskis repeatedly. After getting rocked a couple times Zaromskis for whatever reason decided a blindly executed flying knee would get him out of harm's way. It just got him punched in the face and dropped out of mid-air, then finished. I feel bad for Zaromskis, as his run in DREAM really made him out to be a contender, but his 0-2 Strikeforce run really shows the competition gap between the US and Japan. Give him a doable fight in Japan to get his confidence back up. I think Santos can do some damage at welterweight if he stays with the more conservative gameplan. He's finally not small for his division so he could pose problems, but let's see how his cardio holds up. OK, thats the last long one. I swear.
Tim Kennedy def Trevor Prangley via Submission (rear-naked choke) Rd 1
Kennedy really solidified his mark as an up and coming contender at 185 with a great showing against Prangley. I had Kennedy pegged to win, but not before Prangely roughed him up a bit and gassed. Prangley did score a couple nice throws as expected, but Kennedy popped right back up and ended up controlling Prangley en route to a quick RNC victory as Prangley was still standing. I'm pretty sure Kennedy will get a slot in the middleweight tourney for his troubles. As for Prangley, he's been in the game a while but he's still got the skills to hang with some notables at 185. A fight with Joey Villasenor might be a novel idea, keeping in mind how well he did with Jacare's takedowns and ground game.
KJ Noons def Connor Heun via Split Decision Rd 3
I agree that Noons has some of the best boxing in MMA, but seriously, where's that KO power I keep hearing about? But my hat goes off to Heun even more than Noons for not only taking the fight on short notice, but for really taking the fight to Noons. He was by far the more aggressive of the two and wasn't afraid to jump in for heated exchanges despite being a grappler. He even came close to ending the fight in the first, but props to Noons for showing some skills at getting off the ground. But broken rib or not, Noons hasn't looked impressive enough since his return for all this talk of him taking the 155 and 170 lb belts. And next I would really like to see him rematch Krazy Horse. Since Noons won't be looking to take it to the ground (where KH is 90% guaranteed to lose), Krazy Horse has a legit chance at landing another big upset.
Renato Sobral def Robbie Lawler via Unanimous Decision Rd 3
I've always liked Sobral and I'm glad he's back on the winning track with this fight. It was actually a pretty close fight and was hard to score because while Sobral (and surprisingly) outstruck Lawler with volume, it was Lawler who scored the more damaging strikes. What really won the fight for Sobral was his penchant for body kicks and overall willingness to throw. He was definitely the more busy of the two, which looks good to the judges, and Lawler was visibly slowed down and worried by the body shots. Lawler's problem in this fight was the same problem he's pretty much always had: he relies too much on a hypothetical hail-mary KO shot. It saved his ass against Melvin Manhoef, who was utterly destroying him until he got a little too aggressive after sensing a finish and left himself wide open to a haymaker right to the chin. Sobral fought too smart and cautious to let that fight ending shot land, and got a well-earned decision to show for it. I'm actually glad Sobral doesn't want King Mo for the belt next; I think Mo will lay n pray his way to victory just like he did with Mousasi. Plus, the rematch with Dan Henderson he requested actually does intrigue me. As for Lawler, the loss shouldn't keep him out of the inevitable middleweight tourney. But if it were up to me, I've always wanted to see Lawler fight Cung Le.
Evangelista Santos def Marius Zaromskis via TKO (punches) Rd 1
I didn't really expect this one to go past the first round, as both fighters tend to throw with ill intentions from the opening bell, but I thought it would go the opposite way. Ignoring Santos' obvious size advantage, I just thought Zaromskis' speed and overall technical advantage would notch him another highlight reel stoppage. Santos had other plans, as he decided to take a much more methodical approach and used his reach advantage to land repeatedly. The opening was pretty even, then Santos just found his range and started tagging Zaromskis repeatedly. After getting rocked a couple times Zaromskis for whatever reason decided a blindly executed flying knee would get him out of harm's way. It just got him punched in the face and dropped out of mid-air, then finished. I feel bad for Zaromskis, as his run in DREAM really made him out to be a contender, but his 0-2 Strikeforce run really shows the competition gap between the US and Japan. Give him a doable fight in Japan to get his confidence back up. I think Santos can do some damage at welterweight if he stays with the more conservative gameplan. He's finally not small for his division so he could pose problems, but let's see how his cardio holds up. OK, thats the last long one. I swear.
Tim Kennedy def Trevor Prangley via Submission (rear-naked choke) Rd 1
Kennedy really solidified his mark as an up and coming contender at 185 with a great showing against Prangley. I had Kennedy pegged to win, but not before Prangely roughed him up a bit and gassed. Prangley did score a couple nice throws as expected, but Kennedy popped right back up and ended up controlling Prangley en route to a quick RNC victory as Prangley was still standing. I'm pretty sure Kennedy will get a slot in the middleweight tourney for his troubles. As for Prangley, he's been in the game a while but he's still got the skills to hang with some notables at 185. A fight with Joey Villasenor might be a novel idea, keeping in mind how well he did with Jacare's takedowns and ground game.
KJ Noons def Connor Heun via Split Decision Rd 3
I agree that Noons has some of the best boxing in MMA, but seriously, where's that KO power I keep hearing about? But my hat goes off to Heun even more than Noons for not only taking the fight on short notice, but for really taking the fight to Noons. He was by far the more aggressive of the two and wasn't afraid to jump in for heated exchanges despite being a grappler. He even came close to ending the fight in the first, but props to Noons for showing some skills at getting off the ground. But broken rib or not, Noons hasn't looked impressive enough since his return for all this talk of him taking the 155 and 170 lb belts. And next I would really like to see him rematch Krazy Horse. Since Noons won't be looking to take it to the ground (where KH is 90% guaranteed to lose), Krazy Horse has a legit chance at landing another big upset.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
UFC 115 recap
Rich Franklin def Chuck Liddell via KO (punch) Rd 1
Up until the end of the fight I was pretty impressed with Chuck's game. He looked faster and more powerful than Rich, and he absorbed some blows that I thought would test his chin and just walked through them. I picked Rich to win a decision but I was beginning to think it would go in Chuck's favor, then BOOM. One punch KO from Rich. Regardless of how good Chuck looked before that, it doesn't matter. He's done, and hopefully he realizes that. He thought he had Rich in big trouble against the cage, got reckless like he always does, and paid the price. And I could totally see that Rich was playing possum a bit and wasn't as hurt as he led on. Good tactic. It's also impressive that Rich broke his arm earlier in the match and continued to fight like nothing happened. However, Rich did look a bit slow and tentative in this fight, even for himself. I'm hearing talk about Rich being ready for LHW elites, and I personally think he'd get steamrolled by Bones, picked apart and beaten again by Lyoto, and all it would take is one clean shot for RAmpage to put him away (although I think this is the most intriguing of the 3 matches).
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic def Pat Barry via Submission (rear-naked choke) Rd 3
It's no secret that I'm a huge Cro Cop fan, and even I thought he was doomed in this match and is damn-near irrelevant. Pretty ecstatic he proved me and everyone else wrong. I've encountered some opinions that Cro Cop didn't look good in this fight, but I think that's far from the truth. They say he looked as bad as he has in past fights during the first round, where he was dropped twice. He did absorb some shots but hardly seemed to be affected, and he was a lot less reluctant to pull the trigger and actually attack Barry. I consider that a big difference. In the 2nd round he turned it up, landed some nice shots, and took things to the ground where he controlled and peppered Barry. The 3rd was all Cro Cop, and I was very impressed with his hands. There was the issue of Barry being tired, as well as reportedly suffering a broken and foot during the fight, but I don't think that takes anything away from Cro Cop's dominating performance. I thought he might actually finish Barry during the late flurry, but the RNC was a sweet finish. Not sure who I'd like to see Cro Cop fight next; maybe they should actually get that match with Rothwell going. It could definitely be exciting since Ben has a lesser chance of laying on him. As for Barry, he really needs to work on his ground game and killer instinct but I think another kickboxer should be given to him while he learns. Maybe Yvel can get another shot. Oh, and that mid-fight embrace between Cro Cop and Barry was one of the most awesome things I've seen in a while.
Martin Kampmann def Paulo Thiago via Unanimous Decision Rd 3
Kampmann impressed the hell out of me. I predicted Thiago grinding out a hard-fought decision with top control, and the exact opposite happened and Kampmann absolutely dominated. This was an important fight in the welterweight division to prove who could be next in the title picture, and Kampmann showed that he could be a viable threat. We all knew he had the technical and speed advantage on the feet, and he punctuated that by simply outclassing Thiago and his wild haymaker style in the stand up. However, it was very unexpected that he'd also outclass him on the ground, and threatened with several chokes that would've put Thiago away if his defensive BJJ wasn't more solid than the majority of welters out there. Another 30 seconds and I think Kampmann would've put Thiago to sleep with the arm triangle he had locked in at the final bell. Next for Kampmann, the winner of Fitch vs. Alves. Next for Thiago, how about Carlos Condit?
Ben Rothwell def Gilbert Yvel via Unanimous Decision Rd 3
Boring-ass lackluster fight. I like both Rothwell and Yvel, but I found myself rooting much more for Yvel during the course of the fight. Why? Wrestling, thats why. I respect and often enjoy the application of wrestling in MMA, but at the risk of sounding like a typical absent minded Sherdogger, this wrestling shit is gettin' outta hand. Both Rothwell and Yvel like to stand and bang, so you figure we'll get an explosive stand up war that won't last long, right? WRONG. Instead we get a sloppy as hell ground match. I was more impressed with Yvel's two sweeps from the bottom than anything Rothwell did during the fight, and Yvel easily did the most damage during the fight with his 2nd round barrage. But this is a 10-point must system right? So Rothwell still won the fight 29-28 on my card. If Yvel wouldn't have gassed it would've been a very different fight, but that's a lot to ask when you have a 265+lb dude laying on you. As frustrating as it was to watch this fight, I can't imagine how frustrating it must've been for Yvel, who was the only one to land any real significant shots. Next for Rothwell, Cro Cop. Next for Yvel, Barry or a pink slip.
Carlos Condit def Rory MacDonald via TKO (punches) Rd 3
First of all, great fight. Second of all, Condit needs some damn defense. It's been very apparent in all 3 of his UFC fights that he has very poor stand up defense and just tends to wade in and hope for the best. Even worse, he doesn't learn from his mistakes once opponents time him. In the first 2 rounds MacDonald looked very impressive and definitely won the rounds, though when read it (I read the results before watching. wish I hadn't) they made it sound like Condit was getting destroyed, and he wasn't. Condit really turned it on in the 3rd and really beat the crap out of MacDonald. I thought the stoppage was a bit iffy, but MacDonald was on dream street. When you're done, you're done, and Condit did enough damage to warrant a finish. Next for Condit: now that I think about it, a rematch with Martin Kampmann might be in line. Or Paulo Thiago. Next for MacDonald: he's proven that he's no joke, but I still think they need to build him carefully and get him a few more wins. Jacob Volkmann or Ronys Torres might be nice tests, while still keeping victory well within range.
Onto the Prelims - results and notes
Evan Dunham vs Tyson Griffin bored me, but I was impressed with the fact that Dunham took down and controlled Griffin in a way no one else really could. Should have been a unanimous decision victory, but either way it showed that Dunham should be thrown into title mix sooner rather than later.
Matt Wiman vs Mac Danzig showed was complete bullshit. Yves Levigne did a terrible job calling that finish, and although Danzig has had really tough luck in the octagon I don't think he should get the boot for this fight. An immediate rematch should be scheduled, and that should decide who stays since both of them really needed a win. For the record, I think Danzig probably would've been submitted, but how about we let it actually happen before calling the match, eh Yves?
Claude Patrick looked great against Ricardo Funch. He showed a very well rounded game and had control of the fight the whole way through. I want to see him develop even further against slightly stiffer competition.
The remainder of the fights I didn't see, but its kind of a bummer to know David Loiseau was pounded on for entirely too long before the fight was stopped, and that this really signaled the end of his relevance. However, it did give Mario Miranda a good chance to show why he's considered a such a good prospect at 185. James Wilks apparently played his usual good ground/shitty standup game against Peter Sobotta, and managed to survive this time, taking the unanimous decision. Wilks is very solid on the ground, but if he wants to actually go anywhere in the welterweight division he needs to get some semblance of stand up. Mike Pyle beat Jesse Lennox by outworking him for 2 rds, taunting him in the 3rd, getting put on his ass for his troubles, but luring Lennox into a guillotine. Thats all for tonight folks.
Up until the end of the fight I was pretty impressed with Chuck's game. He looked faster and more powerful than Rich, and he absorbed some blows that I thought would test his chin and just walked through them. I picked Rich to win a decision but I was beginning to think it would go in Chuck's favor, then BOOM. One punch KO from Rich. Regardless of how good Chuck looked before that, it doesn't matter. He's done, and hopefully he realizes that. He thought he had Rich in big trouble against the cage, got reckless like he always does, and paid the price. And I could totally see that Rich was playing possum a bit and wasn't as hurt as he led on. Good tactic. It's also impressive that Rich broke his arm earlier in the match and continued to fight like nothing happened. However, Rich did look a bit slow and tentative in this fight, even for himself. I'm hearing talk about Rich being ready for LHW elites, and I personally think he'd get steamrolled by Bones, picked apart and beaten again by Lyoto, and all it would take is one clean shot for RAmpage to put him away (although I think this is the most intriguing of the 3 matches).
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic def Pat Barry via Submission (rear-naked choke) Rd 3
It's no secret that I'm a huge Cro Cop fan, and even I thought he was doomed in this match and is damn-near irrelevant. Pretty ecstatic he proved me and everyone else wrong. I've encountered some opinions that Cro Cop didn't look good in this fight, but I think that's far from the truth. They say he looked as bad as he has in past fights during the first round, where he was dropped twice. He did absorb some shots but hardly seemed to be affected, and he was a lot less reluctant to pull the trigger and actually attack Barry. I consider that a big difference. In the 2nd round he turned it up, landed some nice shots, and took things to the ground where he controlled and peppered Barry. The 3rd was all Cro Cop, and I was very impressed with his hands. There was the issue of Barry being tired, as well as reportedly suffering a broken and foot during the fight, but I don't think that takes anything away from Cro Cop's dominating performance. I thought he might actually finish Barry during the late flurry, but the RNC was a sweet finish. Not sure who I'd like to see Cro Cop fight next; maybe they should actually get that match with Rothwell going. It could definitely be exciting since Ben has a lesser chance of laying on him. As for Barry, he really needs to work on his ground game and killer instinct but I think another kickboxer should be given to him while he learns. Maybe Yvel can get another shot. Oh, and that mid-fight embrace between Cro Cop and Barry was one of the most awesome things I've seen in a while.
Martin Kampmann def Paulo Thiago via Unanimous Decision Rd 3
Kampmann impressed the hell out of me. I predicted Thiago grinding out a hard-fought decision with top control, and the exact opposite happened and Kampmann absolutely dominated. This was an important fight in the welterweight division to prove who could be next in the title picture, and Kampmann showed that he could be a viable threat. We all knew he had the technical and speed advantage on the feet, and he punctuated that by simply outclassing Thiago and his wild haymaker style in the stand up. However, it was very unexpected that he'd also outclass him on the ground, and threatened with several chokes that would've put Thiago away if his defensive BJJ wasn't more solid than the majority of welters out there. Another 30 seconds and I think Kampmann would've put Thiago to sleep with the arm triangle he had locked in at the final bell. Next for Kampmann, the winner of Fitch vs. Alves. Next for Thiago, how about Carlos Condit?
Ben Rothwell def Gilbert Yvel via Unanimous Decision Rd 3
Boring-ass lackluster fight. I like both Rothwell and Yvel, but I found myself rooting much more for Yvel during the course of the fight. Why? Wrestling, thats why. I respect and often enjoy the application of wrestling in MMA, but at the risk of sounding like a typical absent minded Sherdogger, this wrestling shit is gettin' outta hand. Both Rothwell and Yvel like to stand and bang, so you figure we'll get an explosive stand up war that won't last long, right? WRONG. Instead we get a sloppy as hell ground match. I was more impressed with Yvel's two sweeps from the bottom than anything Rothwell did during the fight, and Yvel easily did the most damage during the fight with his 2nd round barrage. But this is a 10-point must system right? So Rothwell still won the fight 29-28 on my card. If Yvel wouldn't have gassed it would've been a very different fight, but that's a lot to ask when you have a 265+lb dude laying on you. As frustrating as it was to watch this fight, I can't imagine how frustrating it must've been for Yvel, who was the only one to land any real significant shots. Next for Rothwell, Cro Cop. Next for Yvel, Barry or a pink slip.
Carlos Condit def Rory MacDonald via TKO (punches) Rd 3
First of all, great fight. Second of all, Condit needs some damn defense. It's been very apparent in all 3 of his UFC fights that he has very poor stand up defense and just tends to wade in and hope for the best. Even worse, he doesn't learn from his mistakes once opponents time him. In the first 2 rounds MacDonald looked very impressive and definitely won the rounds, though when read it (I read the results before watching. wish I hadn't) they made it sound like Condit was getting destroyed, and he wasn't. Condit really turned it on in the 3rd and really beat the crap out of MacDonald. I thought the stoppage was a bit iffy, but MacDonald was on dream street. When you're done, you're done, and Condit did enough damage to warrant a finish. Next for Condit: now that I think about it, a rematch with Martin Kampmann might be in line. Or Paulo Thiago. Next for MacDonald: he's proven that he's no joke, but I still think they need to build him carefully and get him a few more wins. Jacob Volkmann or Ronys Torres might be nice tests, while still keeping victory well within range.
Onto the Prelims - results and notes
Evan Dunham vs Tyson Griffin bored me, but I was impressed with the fact that Dunham took down and controlled Griffin in a way no one else really could. Should have been a unanimous decision victory, but either way it showed that Dunham should be thrown into title mix sooner rather than later.
Matt Wiman vs Mac Danzig showed was complete bullshit. Yves Levigne did a terrible job calling that finish, and although Danzig has had really tough luck in the octagon I don't think he should get the boot for this fight. An immediate rematch should be scheduled, and that should decide who stays since both of them really needed a win. For the record, I think Danzig probably would've been submitted, but how about we let it actually happen before calling the match, eh Yves?
Claude Patrick looked great against Ricardo Funch. He showed a very well rounded game and had control of the fight the whole way through. I want to see him develop even further against slightly stiffer competition.
The remainder of the fights I didn't see, but its kind of a bummer to know David Loiseau was pounded on for entirely too long before the fight was stopped, and that this really signaled the end of his relevance. However, it did give Mario Miranda a good chance to show why he's considered a such a good prospect at 185. James Wilks apparently played his usual good ground/shitty standup game against Peter Sobotta, and managed to survive this time, taking the unanimous decision. Wilks is very solid on the ground, but if he wants to actually go anywhere in the welterweight division he needs to get some semblance of stand up. Mike Pyle beat Jesse Lennox by outworking him for 2 rds, taunting him in the 3rd, getting put on his ass for his troubles, but luring Lennox into a guillotine. Thats all for tonight folks.
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