I was not amused by UFC 118. Not at all amused. While it had some shining moments, as a whole the event was pretty lackluster. But 7 decisions in 11 fights will do that. And here we go!
Frank Mir def. Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic via KO (knee) Rd 3
Prediction: I decided to be bold and predict that Cro Cop would outstrike Mir on the feet and use his takedown defense to keep things upright, leading to a gassed Mir being TKO'd in the 3rd round.
What happened: An utterly boring fight (that Mir was winning by default since Cro Cop was barely attacking) ended in abrupt and surprising fashion with less that a minute left in the fight, as Mir threw a knee that connected with Cro Cop's chin just as Cro Cop was trying to turn up the heat.
Thoughts: Like so many others, I thought this would be a helluva a fight. We were all wrong. Neither man wanted to engage. Cro Cop was content to do nothing more than think about striking a damn near immoble Mir; while Mir was obsessed with clinching against the cage. I was disappointed in both men (and I don't even like Mir), but mostly in Cro Cop, who instilled a little hope in me after his win against Pat Barry. Now I just want to see him retire. I'm glad Mir trashed his own performance, and props to Dana White for refusing him the KO of the night reward, even though it was the only knockout on the card.
Next for Mir: A rematch with Roy Nelson....because I want to see it. Realistically, the Mir from this fight might not destroy Minotauro Nogueira after all so maybe this rematch should finally materialize once Big Nog's knee heals.
Next for Filipovic: If it were up to me, Cro Cop would get an easy target, beat him into oblivion, and retire. But that probably won't happen. Give him someone beatable but exciting like Gilbert Yvel, who could either bring back a little of the old Cro Cop or retire him once and for all. I still like my idea better.
Ryan Bader def. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira via Decision (unanimous) Rd 3
Prediction: A replay of Nogueira's match up with Jason Brilz, except Bader would dominate enough to actually get the decision.
What happened: Bader used his wrestling somewhat sparingly and stuck to striking with Lil' Nog. While he looked good early on, his cardio problems resurfaced again, and he had his takedowns stuffed and was soundly outboxed by Nog in the last round. However, none of the judges cared about this and all of them scored the fight 30-27 for Bader.
Thoughts: I realize it was a close fight, but I really think Nogueira took the last two rounds (AT LEAST the 3rd). It's even more surprising to me that no one seemed at all annoyed by this. The majority of the last two rounds were Nog chasing Bader down and tagging him. Bader didn't do much with the takedowns he secured, but of course the judges treat them like fight ending bombs. But enough of that rant.
Next for Bader: There seems to be a lobby for Jon Jones, but Bader looked pretty bad against Nog and Keith Jardine (until he KO'ed him). I don't think he's at all ready for Jones. Rich Franklin could make for a good match up, or the winner of Tito Ortiz/Matt Hammill.
Next for Nogueira: I thought he looked relatively impressive in this fight, and shouldn't be dropped too much in the division. I like the idea of pitting him against he winner of Brandon Vera vs. Thiago Silva.
Chris Lytle def. Matt Serra via Decision (unanimous) Rd 3
Prediction: Serra's heavy hands and aggression would lead to him taking a close decision.
What happened: In a match that was about 98% boxing, Lytle used his superior hand speed and technique to dominate Serra on the feet. The second round in particular saw Serra rocked on a few occasions. No one was surprised to see Lytle's hand raised after 15 minutes.
Thoughts: Apparently I didn't give Lytle enough credit. I know he's got some of the better hands in the division, and a vastly underrated ground game, but I expected him to regress to a brawler and end up getting himself in trouble. He was one step ahead of Serra the whole way, and made a serious claim to being in the welterweight mix.
Next for Lytle: I like that he could face Jon Fitch to fight. Make it happen.
Next for Serra: It should be 155 lbs, but if he insists on staying at 170 he should put his boxing once again against Marcus Davis, OR we could maybe force him to actually use his grappling against the winner of Dennis Hallman vs Karo Parisyan.
Sean Sherk def. Evan Dunham via Decision (split) Rd 3
Prediction: Evan would use his reach to outstrike Sherk, who would continue to box with his T-Rex arms. Wouldn't be enough to put Sherk away, but it would be enough to take a dominant decision.
What happened: The fight started off well for Sherk, as he went back to his vintage wrestling and ground n pound to open up a nasty cut above Dunham's eye. That would go on to be the most offense Sherk could muster, as Dunham caught Sherk in no less than 4 guillotine chokes and battered him with strikes in throughout the 3rd round. Apparently two judges were watching another fight, and gave it to Sherk.
Thoughts: I don't like to throw around the term "robbery" but this was a robbery. I was rooting for Sherk, but he definitely lost this fight. However, with this loss I can really say I'm sold on Evan Dunham. He has a bright future in the division, and the fact that his first career loss came this way is a shame.
Next for Sherk: He was supposed to fight Joe Stevenson ages ago. I think they should revisit it. If not that, a rematch with Kenny Florian.
Next for Dunham: He should stay around the top of the division. He should face a fellow near top-heap lightweight like Jim Miller or fellow unlucky loser Rafael dos Anjos.
Melvin Guillard def. Jeremy Stephens via Decision (split) Rd 3
Prediction: An absolute slugfest would end in a decision for Stephens.
What happened: In a much more tactical match than expected, Guillard used his superior speed and footwork to move in and out with well-timed punches. Stephens gave about as well as he got and was the aggressor for more of the bout. A close fight ended up with Guillard being awarded a split decision.
Thoughts: I honestly don't see the uproar over this decision. People seem to be very selective about whether a patient stick-and-move style is worthy of a decision. I'm not saying Guillard won the fight hands down, but judging from the responses I've seen it seems the consensus was that Stephens comfortably took the fight just because Guillard was being more defensive. I'd like to know what fight they were watching.
Next for Guillard: Willamy Freire, because they both dye their hair blond for some ridiculous reason....and I think that would be hilarious to watch. Seriously though, I think that would make a good match up, along with his next post match challenge: Takanori Gomi.
Next for Stephens: Ross Pearson would make for straight-up entertainment.
The Prelims
- C.B. Dollaway impressed the hell out of me with a beastly guillotine choke victory over a tough Joe Doerkson. I thought Dollaway would be a force in the middleweight division after his TUF stint and win over Jesse Taylor, but since then I was pretty underwhelmed. Another performance like this one and I think he could go places.
- Another impressive showing from Mitrione against a game Joey Beltran. Mitrione is proving to be an unlikely prospect out of the otherwise unimpressive TUF 10 house. Once he improves his ground game I think he can do great things at heavyweight.
- Thiago Tavares didn't miss a step after his long layoff in an impressive guillotine choke victory over Pat Audinwood. Hopefully he can hop back in the fray at lightweight and stay injury free.
- Mark Hunt needs to hang 'em up. I thought he'd have the sense to keep it off the ground against McCorkle since hes such a submission magnet, but he dove right down there instead of just staying with his strength. As per usual, he left his arm right out there for the taking and McCorkle took it. I really wanted to see Hunt make a comeback, and I hope he gets another chance after this crappy performance.
Okay, that's all folks. Nothing more to say here. OUT.
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