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.

MMA Lightweight Rankings: September Edition

As we at CR continue our rankings, we now head into the most stacked division in MMA, and possibly combat sports, history: lightweight.

There are so many fighters that you could argue to be top-10 guys like Joe Lauzon, Eddie Alvarez, or even guys like Rick Hawn. The division is so unbelievably stacked that there are UFC cards that have 3 or even more fights that either feature lightweights, or former lightweight fighters. Fortunately, they are also extremely entertaining so there is no shortage of Fight of the Night performances.

Let’s try and sort out the standings of this chaotic division:

10. Michael Chandler – Many people wouldn’t exactly consider Chandler a prospect considering he is the champion in the 3^rd largest MMA promotion, but Michael arguably has the promising future out of everyone on this list. At only 26 years old, he already has wins over some of Bellator’s biggest names like Lloyd Woodard, Patricky Freire, Akihiro Gono, and Eddie Alvarez. The biggest fight of note is the win over Alvarez. That fight was a back-and-forth brawl that ended with a Chandler win via 4^th round RNC. With powerful wrestling and striking, the sky is the limit.

9. Jim Miller – Jim Miller is, in a nutshell, a tough SOB. “Jimmy Redbeard” is the type of fighter that I love. He always puts on a good fight and always figures out a way to win. His ground game is very solid, one of the best at 155, and it shows in his wins over Charles Oliveira, Melvin Guillard, and Duane Ludwig. His only “glaring” weakness is his standup. It’s good, but not good enough to hang with guys like Nate Diaz and Ben Henderson. If he can get his standup up to par with his ground game, or at least closely up to par, then he can be right back in there in the title picture.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

8. Anthony Pettis – Anthony Pettis is one of the most dynamic strikers in the UFC today. His kicks are absolutely nuts. And I’m not just talking about his wild crazy spinning kicks, I’m talking about simply his technique. Watch his wins over Danny Castillo and Joe Lauzon. He is a master at the KO (head kick and punches) finish. The main reason that he is this low though is because his loss to Guida and lackluster win over Jeremy Stephens didn’t do him any favors. But if he can beat Cerrone in his next fight, he will undeniably be top-5.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

7. Clay Guida – Say all you want about his last fight with Gray Maynard, but Guida is still one of the most entertaining fighters in UFC history. Go back and watch his fights with Benson Henderson, Rafael dos Anjos, Diego Sanchez, and Roger Huerta and tell me he’s not. He even arguably beat Gray Maynard, which most likely would have earned him a title shot. I see his next fight possibly being with Jim Miller.

6. Donald Cerrone – Cowboy is a badass. Seriously, he fought Jeremy Stephens, dominated him, and then came out saying that he had some horrible intestinal issue going into the fight (and during) that felt like he was being stabbed in the gut. My lord. I would be incapacitated and he fights in the UFC against a solid fights and destroyed him for 3 rounds. And he is one of the only people who could win Fight of the Night with a fight that only lasted 76 seconds. His Muay Thai is one of the best in the lightweight division. I cannot wait for his fight with Pettis.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

5. Gilbert Melendez – I have always personally felt that Melendez is overrated. His last two wins over Jorge Masvidal and Josh Thomson are further proving my point. Now how can wins prove something negatively? Watch the fights and think about what I said. They are both guys that he should have not only beaten but finished. Especially Jorge Masvidal, it almost seemed like he wasn’t motivated for the fight. You’re the champion; you should be motivated for every fight. With that being said, I still can’t wait to see him come to the UFC and finally fight the best in the world.

4. Gray Maynard – Gray Maynard was just a few punches away from being a UFC champion, twice. How much more heartbreaking can you get? He had Frankie Edgar down and this close to out. He has been one of the best fighters at 155 for some time now in the UFC and now that there is a new champion in the UFC at lightweight, he may receive another title shot against the winner of Henderson and Diaz if he can beat Joe Lauzon.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

3. Nate Diaz – The younger of the Diaz brothers has become one of my personal favorite fighters lately. His wins over Gomi and Miller really made me realize that he truly has what it takes to become the next champion at 155. His standup is crisp and accurate and his ground game is slick. You can’t get much more well rounded then Nate Diaz. His title fight with Ben Henderson has what it takes to be a Fight of the Century.

2. Frankie Edgar – Despite having lost two in-a-row, Frankie Edgar is still undeniably the second best lightweight in the game in my book. He beat BJ Penn twice when Penn was considered unbeatable. He went to a draw and beat Gray Maynard when he was knocked silly in the 1^st round of both fights. He has more heart than any fighter in MMA. I personally believe that he should be champ still but perhaps a move to featherweight is the best thing for his career.

This picture shows just how apt his nickname is.

1. Ben Henderson – Henderson just absolutely loves to go to war. His last three fights are all stable mates for Fight of the Year. Say all you want about how he shouldn’t be champion and about how Frankie beat him both times. He is the champion of the UFC! He deserves the appreciation, no matter how close the fights were; the fact that he is the champion means that he is the champion. I love Henderson because he fights with all his heart every time. Let’s give him the appreciation he deserves.

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

UFC on Fox 3 Predictions

First off, let us know on Twitter what you guys think of our picks!!

Sam’s Picks

Main  Card

Jim Miller vs. Nate Diaz: When I first saw that this fight was set up, I thought that I would be an easy win for Miller. That he would cruise to a decision victory. But then my brother Dave made a good point. He said, “Can you see Miller really dominating him in the standup and the ground game?”. I was like “Sure!”, so I tried to imagine it, but I simply couldn’t. Diaz has the more technical standup, a huge reach advantage, and way better BJJ. But the thing about Miller is that he simply finds a way to win a fight. I truly believe in my heart that Miller will win this fight but Diaz will be one of his toughest fights in that he will win = Miller by split decision. My 1st pick for FOTN!

Johny Hendricks vs. Josh Koscheck: Really good fight here. They are similar fighters in that they both have huge over right hands and dynamic wrestling skills. Originally, you might look at this fight and say that Koscheck should win this fight based on his past opponents. But one thing that my brother and I have noticed about Koscheck is that he cannot adapt in the middle of the fight. If he says that he is going to KO someone, that will be what he will go for the whole fight, never changing even if he is being picked apart by jabs ala GSP. Hendricks does have that skill. He CAN adapt and as of late, he is simply the better fighter = Hendricks by unanimous decision.

Alan Belcher vs. Rousimar Palhares: Paul Harris has really become a very serious fighter to take notice of. He is showing some world caliber BJJ with his slick and shockingly precise leg locks. It also very awesome to see that Belcher is back and ready to go but I think that just his second fight back after being gone for so long is a little tough considering who he is fighting. Paul Harris will leg lock him but will probably have trouble getting it to the ground at first. This fight will launch Rousimar just one win away from a fight for the title = Paul Harris by 3rd round heel hook. My pick for SOTN!

Pat Barry vs. Lavar Johnson: This fight is probably just going to be a stand up war. But if you look at each one of their ground games, Barry’s is probably better. And considering the fact that Barry is continually working on his ground game, he might actually try and take this fight to the ground. It’s a possibility, but it is very slim. I’m still going with Lavar based on his power and that Barry’s chin looked bad against Kongo. Going with the power! = Johnson by 2nd round KO. My pick for KOOTN!

Prelims

Tony Ferguson vs. Michael Johnson: I personally find this fight very weird. Ferguson has been quickly establishing himself as a serious contender as Johnson has been struggling to keep himself relevant to the UFC brass. Johnson literally has no chance of winning this fight = Ferguson by 2nd round TKO.

John Dodson vs. Tim Elliott: Dodson is an animal! He has some crazy power for his size along with some blinding speed. I’m serious; his speed is some of the fastest punching that you will ever see. Elliot, on the other hand, I do not know much about but I do know that he has a bright future in the UFC but he doesn’t have anything against Dodson, considering the fact that he also took this fight on very short notice. = Dodson by 1st round TKO.

John Hathaway vs. Pascal Krauss: I find this fight very interesting. Krauss is a virtual nobody and Hathaway is a huge young prospect from England. Krauss also has not fought in a very long time. That is a big deciding factor in this fight. Hathaway will win this fight based on all around skills, but Krauss will give him a run for his money. = Hathaway by split decision. My 3rd pick for FOTN!

Louis Gaudinot vs. John Lineker: At first, I counted Lineker out of this fight based on the fact that he has no name in MMA, yet. I was just going with Gaudinot by decision because I have heard of him. Research can be very resourceful. I looked at the fighters that Guadinot has faced and the accumulation of the records of the fighters he has beaten is 32-17. It is mainly made up of a guy he has recently beaten with an 11-2 record. That would knock it down to 21-15. That’s not so good. Lineker on the other hand, has a record of 19-5 and is riding a 13 fight win streak against guys with good records. Gaudinot has yet to impress me and Lineker has the chance to on Saturday. = Lineker by unanimous decision. My 2nd pick for FOTN!

Danny Castillo vs. John Cholish: I really feel that Cholish will one day be a contender for the belt but for now, Castillo will put those dreams on hold. Castillo really still hasn’t impressed me; the only thing that he has done that actually made me go “wow, that’s impressive” was when I read that he is the only one who has defeated Dustin Poirier. Cholish will be tough but Castillo will out grapple him, but I won’t be surprised if Cholish wins = Castillo by split decision.

Pablo Garza vs. Dennis Bermudez: The betting lines really surprised me for this fight. Bermudez is the very small favorite but I would have guessed that Garza would be a decent favorite. Garza is a future contender for the belt while I can never see Bermudez fighting at that high caliber level. Along with that, Bermudez has lost 3 straight all in the first round by submission. Garza is a submission guy. See what I’m getting at? = Garza by 2nd round submission (choke).

Roland Delorme vs. Nick Denis = Denis by unanimous decision.
Mike Massenzio vs. Karlos Vemola = Vemola by 2nd round TKO.

Dave’s Picks

Main Card

Jim Miller vs. Nate Diaz: Like Sam had mentioned I too believe Miller will win this fight but when I picture it in my head I see Diaz winning the standup and ground game. It’s bizarre! But like Sam said I am still picking Miller to win but it will be a very close and tough fight for both men. This fight will be a very technical match both standing and on the ground. Miller will have the wrestling advantage but Diaz will have the better ground game but Miller is a very smart and conservative fighter. He rarely makes mistakes. This fight is a tough one. = Miller by unanimous decision. My pick for Fight of the Night!

Johny Hendricks vs. Josh Koscheck: I love this fight because, as most of you know, I am obsessed with amateur wrestling. These guys were two very fun guys to watch during their college days. I have always liked Hendricks because I have a special place in my heart for OSU wrestling. It’s my favorite team with my favorite coach, John Smith. So, I am biased towards Johny. But I never let that affect my pcks, however, it just so happens I think he will win. I think he will be stronger, faster and the better grappler. Koscheck is a great fighter and well rounded but his days of being near the top are soon to be over. He is getting older and has simply not improved that much over the last few years. Hendricks has been improving my leaps and bounds since he entered into the UFC. I see this fight mostly being a stand up battle but if Hendricks starts losing that I see him outwrestle Kos. But if Kos is losing that I don’t think he can outwrestle Johny. Not only that but Kos is one of those fighters who refuses to change his approach in the midst of a fight. If he is losing the stand up battle he will not try and grapple and that has been a problem for him his entire career. Should be an interesting match. = Johny by unanimous decision. 

Alan Belcher vs. Rousimar Palhares: This is a classic grappler vs. striker. I like watching both of these guys compete and it should be a fun one. I’m really glad Belcher made a return to fighting after his horrible retina injury. The way I see this going is Palhares eventually getting a takedown or grabbing a leg or arm and ending it at some point. Belcher’s take down defense and clinch fighting is pretty good but Palhares is just such a monster and I just cannot see him losing this fight. = Palhares by submission in the 2^nd round. My Pick for Submission of the Night!

Pat Barry vs. Lavar Johnson: I think this is actually the only fight we disagree on this card! We usually have around 4 but we have been agreeing lately. But anyway, this fight will be INSANE!! Now, my gut says pick Lavar because he punches so hard that it is hard to watch and not cringe. But I just watched his fight with Beltran again. That is arguably Lavar’s best fight to date and I gotta admit Lavar looked not too great before he destroyed Beltran. His jab is awful and his footwork and lack of head movement scares me when picking this fight. Barry’s chin issue against Kongo has me worried but Barry has ten times the technical striking that Lavar does. Barry’s kicks are lethal and if Barry fights smart this fight is his. He should stay outside and leg kick the heck out of Lavar. Then switch it up with head kicks and punches to the head. Plus Barry has better cardio too. And Lavar has the worst ground game I have ever seen in my life but he knows that himself. So, I think Barry has more ways to win, he just has to tuck that chin, = Barry by unanimous decision.

Prelims

Tony Ferguson vs. Michael Johnson: I disagree with Sam that this will be super easy for Tony. I think Tony will win because his striking is much better but Johnson is a scrappy guy who never gives up. But I see Tony out striking Johnson and coasting at the end after winning the first two rounds. = Tony by unanimous decision. 

John Dodson vs. Tim Elliott: Dodson is a freaky athlete. The dude has strength like nothing you’ve seen, especially for his size. Elliott is a decent fighter but this is a tune-up fight for Dodson at flyweight and to get him some exposure. This fight will be very exciting. = Dodson by TKO in the 2^nd round. 

John Hathaway vs. Pascal Krauss: Like Sam mentioned the fact that Krauss hasn’t fought is over a year is a huge deal. Hathaway is a very interesting fighter. He comes in and easily handles Diego Sanchez but then gets handled by Mike Pyle. It’s just confusing. I mean Pyle is a great fighter but it’s just confusing. I have Hathaway pulling this out but he is very unpredictable. = Hathaway by unanimous decision. 

Louis Gaudinot vs. John Lineker: This is a good and exciting fight. I’m loving these flyweight guys!!!! But Lineker, from the small amount of what I have seen, is a level above Louis. Louis has not shown me anything to make me think he can handle Lineker. = Lineker by unanimous decision. 

Danny Castillo vs. John Cholish: I disagree with Sam’s assessment of Cholish. I think the guy is talented but, in my opinion, he is nowhere near title contender talent. And I also disagree with his assessment of Danny. I think Danny is the real deal. He has faced and defeated some very serious competition. I see Danny taking this to the ground and owning it. = Danny by unanimous decision. 

Pablo Garza vs. Dennis Bermudez: Garza has some slick submissions and Dennis is highly overrated with poor submission defense. = Garza by submission in the 2^nd round. 

Roland Delorme vs. Nick Denis = Denis by TKO in round 1.
Mike Massenzio vs. Karlos Vemola = Vemola by TKO in round one.

Make sure to watch the prelims on Fuel TV and the Main Card on FOX for free! Great card filled with top talent and two very important fights with the winner of Diaz vs. Miller getting a title shot and the fight between Hendricks vs. Koscheck moving closer to one as well. Let us know on Twitter what you guys think of our picks!! Enjoy the fights!!