UFC on Fox 5: Henderson vs. Diaz Main Card Recap

Rory landing a vicious headkick on BJ.
Photo via sportsnet.

From top to bottom, this card was one of the best in UFC history. With several “Fight of the Night” contenders, three vicious knockouts and a great submission, fans are unbelievably lucky to have been able to receive this event for free. Every fight but one was on network television for millions to witness an amazing night of fights.

Mike Swick vs. Matt Brown: This was exactly how the UFC wanted to start off the best fight card in network television history. And we may just have a new contender at 170 pounds. Brown started off this fight in typical Matt Brown style with lots of aggression and even landed a takedown and cinched up a D’arce choke, but he didn’t exactly know how to finish it as he went on his back and pulled guard rather than on his side with his butt scooted out. Swick ended up getting out of it because of that but Brown went right for a really tight triangle choke. Swick defended well and slipped out. In the second round, Brown came out and landed a two punch combo that put Swick stiff and unconscious. It was a shocking and brutal finish.

Possible matchups for Brown: Wow, I am seriously impressed by Matt Brown’s performance. His submission game and standup looked better than ever and I really look forward to see how much more he can progress. A fight with Siyar Bahadurzada would be one of the best fights of the year. It would certainly produce a barnburner.

Possible matchups for Swick: This was a terrible loss for Swick. He was looking to continue his career comeback on a good note but that was a no go. Perhaps a fight with Yoshihiro Akiyama could be a good fight for both men.

BJ Penn vs. Rory MacDonald: MacDonald impressed on so many levels in this fight, the potential that he holds is truly insane. Like the skills that he could one day possess is almost incomprehensible. I felt that going into this fight Penn would have a significant standup advantage but MacDonald completely and utterly dominated the legend. From beginning to end Rory landed jabs, body punches, and head kicks and easily won the biggest fight of his career over one of the best fighters to ever live. Thanks to BJ for an amazing career and all the amazing moments in his UFC career.

Possible matchups for MacDonald: This fight puts the 23 year old in the top-5 in my opinion. After the fight, he called out the former interim welterweight champ, Carlos Condit for a rematch. Now that is a matchup that I love. MacDonald has matured as a fighter and as a person since their fight back at UFC 115.

Shogun Rua vs. Alexander Gustafsson: I was pretty confident in my prediction of Gustafsson going into this fight, but Shogun made me nervous on several occasions. He landed a lot of huge overhand rights to the temple of Gustafsson, but those made me more impressed by Alex for a great chin. We haven’t really seen his chin tested before this fight, it certainly was this fight, and it looks solid. In the second and third round, it was a different story. Gustafsson dominated the former champion en route to a unanimous decision win.

Possible matchups for Gustafsson: Before this fight, Dana announced that the winner would receive a title shot against the winner of Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen. Gustafsson undoubtedly deserves a title shot after this fight.

Possible matchups for Rua: Time is definitely starting to close in on Shogun, but he is definitely still one of the top guys at light heavyweight. Lyoto Machida and Dan Henderson are fighting in a number one contender bout themselves at UFC 157. Shogun should fight the loser for either a rubber match with Machida or a rematch to one of the greatest fights of all time. Either way, the fans will be happy.

Ben Henderson vs. Nate Diaz: I was extremely confident going into this fight that Diaz was going to handily defeat Henderson. Not only did the champ prove me wrong, he made me look stupid for picking Diaz. From the beginning of the fight, to the last bell, Henderson out grappled, out struck, and even dropped the durable Diaz on multiple occasions, both with leg kicks and punches. There was only one time that I remember where Diaz was in control was when he had Henderson’s leg and was working both a heel hook and a toe hold. But other than that, Henderson completely dominated the younger Diaz brother for all five rounds, even to the point that one of the judges gave it a 50-43 for the champion.

Possible matchups for Henderson: I feel that it is pretty clear that the winner of Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis at UFC on Fox 6 will be a number one contenders bout. Either a rematch to Anthony Pettis or a third fight with Cerrone will make an amazing fight.

Possible matchups for Diaz: Now that Diaz has finally received his title shot and lost very definitively, it’s time for him to take a step back. Even though technically Gray Maynard is 1-0 against Diaz, Diaz had a win over Maynard on the fifth season of The Ultimate Fighter by submission. I’m sure that they feel they are 1-1 against each other and I’m sure they would love a rubber match.

Click here for prelim recap.

UFC on Fox 5 Predictions

Sam’s Picks

Main Card

Ben Henderson vs. Nate Diaz: This event is absolutely ridiculous. The amount of awesomeness that it exudes is overwhelming and this is the perfect fight to cap it off. Many people believe that Ben Henderson should not be the champion and I am certainly one of those people, I personally felt it was quite obvious that Frankie won that second fight. But anyways, Nate Diaz has looked insanely good in his last three fights, and I mean like he completely changed as a fighter. After the ill-advised trip up to welterweight, Diaz came back down to lightweight and absolutely dominated his next three opponents. But those weren’t just any opponents, he destroyed Takanori Gomi everywhere the fight went, landed the most significant strikes in a three round fight against Cerrone, and became the first ever person to finish Jim Miller after destroying him for one and a half rounds. Henderson is the type of fighter who is almost impossible to finish.  Diaz certainly has the skills to be able to finish him, but the chances are slim. Diaz has the better technique and striking, but the grappling department is hard to choose. Diaz has the much better submissions and Judo while Henderson is extremely strong with very solid wrestling. This is simply Nate Diaz’ time and he will continue to dominate = Diaz via unanimous decision. My 1st pick for FOTN!

Alexander Gustafsson vs. Shogun Rua: This fight is fairly easy to predict in my opinion. Shogun looked horrible in his last fight against Brandon Vera while Gustafsson has barely shown a blemish in his last 5 victories. Shogun’s gas tank has shown to be pretty terrible in his last few fights while Gustafsson hasn’t shown much of a problem in that department. I see Gustafsson picking Shogun apart from the outside while his much longer reach en route to a dominant unanimous decision victory = Gustafsson via unanimous decision.

BJ Penn vs. Rory MacDonald: I am so pumped for this fight. It’s great to see BJ come back for one last fight before calling it quits to one of the greatest careers the MMA world has ever seen. But the main thing I am looking forward to in this fight is how Rory will do against the very best fighter he has ever fought. Many people could argue that the best fighter he has fought is Carlos Condit, but that was the fight before Condit really turned up his game and became a top welterweight. BJ has shown unbelievable motivation for this fight and looks to be in the best shape of his entire career. MacDonald will certainly have his hands full but he will simply be the hungrier, stronger, and larger fighter = MacDonald via unanimous decision.

Mike Swick vs. Matt Brown: BARNBURNER ALERT – Now this is the way to kick off this Fox card. Matt Brown never disappoints in putting on barnburners and Fight of the Night contenders and with a similar fighter in Mike Swick, this will be even better. If this fight stays standing I personally believe that Brown will win this fight, but once it goes to the ground Swick has a significant advantage. Swick’s last performance wasn’t very good for a reason, he had been out for over two years. Now that he has most of his ring rust gone, he will look much better in this fight. This will be a war from the beginning and I see Swick securing a late guillotine for the finish = Mike Swick via 3rd round submission (guillotine). My 2nd pick for FOTN! MY pick for SOTN!

Prelims

Yves Edwards vs. Jeremy Stephens = Stephens via 3rd round KO.

Raphael Assuncao vs. Mike Easton = Easton via unanimous decision.

Ramsey Nijem vs. Joe Proctor = Nijem via unanimous decision.

Daron Cruickshank vs. Henry Martinez = Cruickshank via unanimous decision.

Marcus LeVesseur vs. Abel Trujillo = Trujillo via 3rd round TKO.

Nam Phan vs. Dennis Siver = Siver via 2nd round KO. My pick for KOOTN!

Scott Jorgensen vs. John Albert = Jorgensen via 3rd round submission. My 3rd pick for FOTN!

Dave’s Picks

Main Card

Ben Henderson vs. Nate Diaz: Wow what a fight! I rarely pick against champions. The two most recent times were JDS over Cain and Frankie over Ben Henderson. So I’m 1-1 recently when picking against champions. Here I hope to make it 2-1. I truly think Nate Diaz has perfected his game and has entered into his prime. The way he tore apart Gomi, Cerrone and Miller blew my freaking mind! He made it look easy! He has become an elite killer and I have to pick him here. Diaz’s takedown defense is not great but his grappling skills are ridiculous and I think Henderson will have to be on top of his submission defense. This is how the fight will go: Diaz is beating Henderson on the feet, Henderson gets the takedown and is almost submitted a few times. He decides he rather try and land that one big bomb instead of being submitted. Diaz continues to win on the feet and takes it by a close decision. = Diaz by unanimous decision. 

Alexander Gustafsson vs. Shogun Rua: Another amazing fight. This pick has a lot to do with Shogun’s last performance. Shogun barely won a fight against Brandon Vera. Gustafsson is infinitely better than Vera. Gustafsson will use his reach and technically superior striking to stay out of Shogun’s range. But never ever count out Shogun. He has enough power to KO anyone at 205 but I think Gustafsson is going to own this match and take a huge step in his career. = Gustafsson by unanimous decision. 

BJ Penn vs. Rory MacDonald: And another crazy fight! I agree with Sam that this will be Rory’s hardest fight to date. I think he will struggle in this one more than any other fight. I know that BJ’s name alone with scare Rory a little bit but nothing he can’t handle. I think BJ will have the better standup, I really do. But Rory is so rangy and hard to control. I think Rory’s best bet to win is to get the takedown and stay out of trouble. BJ never submits anyone off his back so I think Rory will be ok. Rory is a big welterweight and I think he will be able to get the takedown after a couple attempts. Luckily Rory has great coaching and they will once again find a way for one of their fighters to win against Penn. = MacDonald by unanimous decision. My Pick for Fight of the Night!

Mike Swick vs. Matt Brown: Another fun fight. I think this fight will be crazy close. I think Brown is better on the ground and has more power in the striking department. But Swick is more technical and much faster. He will have to use that speed in a major way but I think Brown can make it an ugly fight and drag Swick to the ground and grind it out. = Brown by unanimous decision.

Prelims

Yves Edwards vs. Jeremy Stephens = Stephens by KO in round 2. My Pick for KO of the Night!

Raphael Assuncao vs. Mike Easton = Assuncao by unanimous decision.

Ramsey Nijem vs. Joe Proctor = Nijem by unanimous decision.

Daron Cruickshank vs. Henry Martinez = Cruickshank by unanimous decision.

Marcus LeVesseur vs. Abel Trujillo = LeVesseur via split decision.

Nam Phan vs. Dennis Siver = Siver by unanimous decision.

Scott Jorgensen vs. John Albert = Jorgensen by unanimous decision.

MMA Light Heavyweight Rankings: September Edition

As we at CR continue our rankings, we head into one of the most stacked divisions in MMA led by the polarizing Jon Jones: light heavyweight. The weight class is filled with legends and very promising prospects that could be champions for a long time. Let’s check it out.

10. Rampage Jackson - Rampage is an interesting man, to say the least. But let’s not focus on the negative but rather the positive. He is one of the best fighters of all time. I don’t like the guy, but it’s true, how can you deny it? He was a Pride legend and is also a UFC legend. If it weren’t for his poor relationship with Dana, he would be a shoe-in for the Hall-of-Fame.

Photo va MMAJunkie.com

9. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira - The smaller of the MMA legend twins that are the Nogueira brothers has been rocky since entering the UFC. He entered with a dominating TKO victory over Luiz Cane and followed with a very controversial win over Jason Brilz. He ended up losing to two wrestling powerhouses in Ryan Bader and Phil Davis. But with his last win via 1^st round destruction over Tito Ortiz; he’s looking to make it towards a title shot.

8. Ryan Bader - “Darth” is an awesome wrestler. He reminds of Chuck Liddell with his great wrestling and incredible overhand right. Although he was absolutely destroyed by Lyoto Machida in his last fight, his last win over Rampage still has him up there as a top guy.

Photo via MMAWeekly.com

7. Phil Davis - “Mr. Wonderful” is still one of the most promising fighters in the UFC. His first two fights under the Zuffa banner were a dominating decision over Brian Stann and a first round submission over Alexander Gustafsson. He then followed that with wins over Rodney Wallace, Tim Boetsch, and ‘Lil Nogueira. Despite his boring decision loss to Rashad Evans, he will still be challenging for the title in the next two years.

Photo by MMAJunkie.com

6. Alexander Gustafsson - Speaking of Mr. Gustafsson, since that loss to “Mr. Wonderful”, he has become a star in the UFC and one of the top guys to beat Jon Jones. His standup is vicious and his ground game underrated, which was shown in his Matt Hamill win. His next fight against Shogun is definitely a number one contenders match.

5. Mauricio Rua - Shogun is an awesome fighter. He is the perfect example of a Pride fighter. Always fighting to the bitter end and when he has the chance to finish, he finishes brutally. I truly hope he is inducted into the Hall-of-Fame and a win over Gustafsson could cement that.

4. Lyoto Machida – For those of you who don’t know, Lyoto Machida is my favorite fighter currently fighting (my all time being Cro Cop). His last win over Ryan Bader is a perfect example why. He is so amazing to watch, simply mesmerizing. He dodges and the opponent misses by an inch, he then knocks you out instantly. It’s truly incredible. There are rumors circulating that he and Dan Henderson will be fighting in a 1 contenders match.

3. Dan Henderson – Henderson is another one of the perfect examples of a Pride fighter. His last fight with Shogun is one of the greatest fights of all time and will most likely be in the top-3 fights of all time, forever, quite honestly. If Dan Henderson isn’t inducted into the Hal-of-Fame, there shall be a riot, and if there isn’t one, I will start one. The guy is a natural middleweight and knocked out the greatest heavyweight of all time (Fedor) in the first round. I mean, that’s pretty ridiculous.

Photo by MMAJunkie.com

2. Rashad Evans – What makes Rashad ranked over Dan is the fact that he has done the best against Jon Jones. He won the first round in most people’s books and went to a decision. His only other loss is to Lyoto Machida and has beaten so many top contenders recently its crazy. Rashad is also one of the most well rounded fighters in MMA. A drop down to 185 could prove to be an amazing choice.

1. Jon Jones – Joe Rogan said it perfectly; Jon Jones could very well be the greatest talent we have ever seen in the UFC. No one has been able to hurt him. The worst anyone has done was when Machida had him backpedaling twice in the first round. Sure, he’s cocky, but he has a reason to be.

So what do you guys think? Let us know in the comments on what you either agreed or disagreed on.