UFC on Fuel 6: Franklin vs. Le Main Card Recap

The knockout blow from Cung Le.

The UFC’s sixth event on Fuel TV and first to China came with mixed results, but was ultimately a success. It had several great fights, breakouts of future stars, and a spectacular knockout and comeback. It also showed us several fighters who don’t have what it takes to be in the UFC. Let’s see what these fights were and give them some matchups. 

Takeya Mizugaki vs. Jeff Hougland: Takeya Mizugaki unsurprisingly ran through the submission wrestler in Jeff Hougland. For the full 15 minutes Takeya Mizugaki out grappled and out struck Hougland en route to a dominant unanimous decision win. Hougland is a one dimensional grappler and he was out grappled by a striker, leading me to believe that he isn’t UFC quality. With this being his second brutal unanimous decision loss, I would suspect that he would be released.

Tieqhan Zhang vs. Jon Tuck: I have got to say, I am very surprised as to how great this fight was. From the opening bell these two slugged it out and had some crazy scrambles on the ground. Zhang’s standup certainly looked improved, though it was still very sloppy, but his ground looked to still be on the same level as before, though he never even attempted a single guillotine. Tuck was on another level as Zhang had to constantly defend armbars and triangle attempts from the Guam native. Tuck also showed much more technical striking with punches down the middle as Zhang was throwing wild haymakers. Ultimately, Tuck would win a unanimous decision and spoil the Chinese native’s homecoming. With this loss making Zhang 1-4 in his last five fights, he will inevitably be released from the UFC.

Possible matchups for Tuck: This guy looks like a stud. He has a great all around MMA game and I can’t wait to see where he takes his UFC career. I want him to fight a bigger name (that's actually UFC quality) and I believe I have found just that man. Mac Danzig lost a close split decision to MMA legend Takanori Gomi which makes him 3-6 in his last nine, which is less than impressive. If Danzig wants to stay in the UFC, he should fight the up and coming Jon Tuck.

Takanori Gomi vs. Mac Danzig: This fight was awesome for more than just the fact that it was a great fight, but it looked like the return of vintage Gomi. No, not the one that would knockout people like it was nothing, but the Gomi who actually took his time and planned out combinations rather than the Gomi that joined the UFC and was trying to knock everyone’s head off. He would pick shots and stuff good takedown attempts from Danzig. Eventually, Gomi would squeak by Danzig but not without looking very impressive.

Possible matchups for Gomi: I thought heading into this fight that Danzig would easily win this and most likely retire Gomi, but that was not the case. I want Gomi to continue fighting good fighters. Melvin Guillard and Jamie Varner are fighting at The Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale in what will definitely be a Fight of the Year contender. I want Gomi to fight the winner of that lightweight showdown for what should be another Fight of the Year contender.

Dong Hyun Kim vs. Paulo Thiago: I have to say, I am extremely impressed with Kim’s performance. I really felt as though Thiago was going to win this fight, but Kim dominated this fight from beginning to end everywhere that the fight went. Whether it was standing, on the ground, or in the clinch, Kim controlled this fight. He was clearly on a mission to win this fight and bring himself back into title contention. I have to say though; I am really disappointed in how Thiago’s career has played out. I really felt as though he was going to become a title contender, or at least one of the top welterweights in the world. But now, he will most likely be released from the promotion. He needs to either make MMA a full-time job, or give it up completely.

Possible matchups for Kim: Following this very impressive win, Kim started asking for a rematch with Demian Maia. Honestly, now that they are both coming off of extremely impressive performances, I would like to see this. His loss to Maia was a crazy accident where he had some bizarre muscle spasm in his torso where it ended the fight before anything good could even happen.

Thiago Silva vs. Stanislav Nedkov: This fight was pretty awesome and I was pretty darn impressed with Nedkov through the first two rounds. He nearly finished Silva on multiple occasions and came especially close to winning in the second round. If Nedkov could work on his all-around technique, he could certainly turn into a title contender. He also desperately needs to work on his cardio, which was quite evident in the third round. After two strong rounds in his favor, he was visibly fatigued and Silva took advantage. Thiago took him down early and eventually secured an extremely tight arm-triangle choke for the great comeback finish.

Possible matchups for Silva: Thiago Silva is still a contender in 205 pound division, despite not looking all that stellar as of late. Because he nearly lost this fight on a few occasions, I want to see him fight against one more up and comer. That person would be Ryan Jimmo, who is coming off of a 7 second knockout of Anthony Perosh. This could be a fight to launch Silva back up the rankings or it could be a fight to truly show the skills that Jimmo possesses.

Possible matchups for Nedkov: Despite the loss, Nedkov certainly impressed many with his dominant first two rounds over Thiago Silva. If he can work on his overall technique and cardio, he will become a force at light heavyweight. Another fighter who is climbing his way up the ranks is James Te Huna. These guys could put on one of the best fights of the year with a crazy slugfest.

Rich Franklin vs. Cung Le: This fight was shocking. It actually made me gasp out loud when the finish happened. Not much was really happening for the first few minutes but Rich kept on throwing leg kicks while leaving his hands down. There were blatant counters open for Le to capitalize on. He inevitably did and it put Franklin as unconscious as unconscious gets. It was an extremely impressive finish from Le. I would like to have both these guys retire, but that’s wishful thinking.

Possible matchups for Le: With this devastating knockout, Le has become a legitimate contender in the UFC. Even though most of us probably want him to retire on such a high note, for a guy like Le, he will most likely want to keep going. A fighter that is looking to get back into title contention is Mark Munoz. This fight would certainly bring out fireworks.

Possible matchups for Franklin: I really, really wish that Franklin would retire after this fight. I wanted to believe him that he could go for another title run, but it just simply wasn’t the case. If he doesn’t retire, I’m sure he wants to go out with style. The fighter to do that is Chris Leben, who is fighting Karlos Vemola at UFC 155 in December. Win or lose, Leben vs. Franklin would be an awesome fight.

Click here for the prelim recap.