UFC 148 Main Card Recap

Anderson Silva celebrating (David Becker / Associated Press)

Mike Easton vs. Ivan Menjivar: Another close fight and this time Easton took the deicison. It was not the most exciting but Easton looked solid.

Possible matchups: Menjivar should either rematch John Albert or fight Johnny Eduardo. Easton has now won 3 fights in a row in the UFC and is 13-1 overall in his career. I think he needs a step up and Scott Jorgensen would make for a great fight.

Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie: I told you this fight did not make sense and Chad Mendes would kill McKenzie and that is what happened. Chad caught a kick and nailed McKenzie right in the gut and McKenzie was done.

Possible matchups: I think McKenzie will get one more shot. He is now 2-3 in the UFC but is a fan favorite and his first fight at 145 was against the 2nd best 145 pounder in the world. I can see McKenzie facing off with Joey Gambino next. Chad Mendes is easily #2 at featherweight. The only people he should face are #1 or #3. So, I think he should face Ricardo Lamas (our interview with  Lamas here) for a title eliminator bout.

Demian Maia vs. Dong Hyun Kim: This fight was pretty disappointing. Maia came out of the gate like a madman and grabbed Kim and tossed him to the ground and instantly moved to mount but then the fight was over. Turned out Kim injured his ribs and it was stopped.

Possible Matchups: Well that was the welterweight debut for Maia but the “win” didn’t do much for him. But if Maia can find his old self and came out like that everytime he could make a huge impact at 170. So with that being said I would like to see Maia fight Jake Ellenberger or maybe Brain Ebersole.

Cung Le vs. Patrick Cote: Cung Le dominated most of this fight with his tricky unorthodox striking style. Cote never figured it out and never made the attempt to throw caution to the wind and try and end it. Le looked good and should consider fighting again.

Possible matchups: Le said he was considering retirement but he just beat a good fighter in Cote. I think he should get a couple more wins before retiring. He is also super entertaining. I think he should fight Rich Franklin or Chris Leben.

Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz: It was a fun but sloppy fight with two guys past their primes battling it out. Forrest won by decision and in the end Tito Ortiz retired. It was a planned retirement and Ortiz was inducted into the Hall of Fame earlier that day. He had a great career and you can read more about that here. But in the aftermath of the fight Forrest ran out of the cage, then came back and then interviewed Tito Ortiz. I like Forrest but it was disrespectful to make Tito’s last moments in the cage about himself. It was a weird moment and not sentimental at all.

Possible matchups: Tito Ortiz is retired, so it’s all about Forrest. I know Forrest is only 33 years old but he needs to start winding down his career. His chin is bad. I think he has done way more than enough in his career. He helped save MMA and the UFC, he won the first TUF and became champion. There is nothing left to prove. I think he should retire on a high note but he probably won’t go now so I would like to see him fight Stephan Bonnar one last time.

Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen: In this first round Sonnen dominated by being in top control for almost 5 whole minutes. In the second round Sonnen tried to get a couple takedowns but nothing was working. Sonnen went for a sloppy spinning back-fist, Anderson tripped him, Sonnen went down and that’s when Anderson pounced. Anderson kneed him hard in the chest then started throwing hard ground and pound. Then Sonnen stood back up only to get dropped by a big punch. Sonnen was finished off with a few punches after that. Anderson Silva is the best fighter alive. Anderson Silva is the best fighter to ever live. Do you think Ali could defend the takedowns and submissions? No he couldn’t. Silva is the best fighter to ever live and the only person alive that might be able to take that crown is the 24 year old Jon Jones but he has a ton of work ahead of him.

Possible matchups: Sonnen can still beat pretty much anyone not named Anderson Silva. He needs a mic and a place on a main card until he retires. I think he needs to keep having important big name fights. I think he should face the winner of Hector Lombard vs. Tim Boetsch. Anderson has little left to do but the remaining possibilities are: Hector Lombard, Tim Boetsch, Michael Bisping, Brain Stann, Mark Munoz, Alan Belcher and Chris Weidman. But Silva can beat them all. However, Silva is aging and is 37 years old. He will hit the wall eventually (I think) and that day may be soon but looking at his performance last night you would think he was 25 years old. Can’t wait to see his story play out.

Read Prelim Recap here

Farewell, Tito: A Look Back at the People's Bad Boy

Tito Ortiz at his HoF induction ceremony.
Photo by MMAJunkie.com

Tito was once the most polarizing person in MMA. From his comical rivalry with Ken Shamrock to his confusing stand off with Dana, Tito was always himself. He was always loudmouthed and was in your face when he wanted to be, making him a love or hate figure in the sport.

He entered the sport in the UFC at the age of 21 in the year of 1997. He made an immediate impression after dismantling Wes Albritton in 31 seconds, pairing him up with one of the UFC’s top guys at the time in Guy Mezger, sparking one of the most well known rivalries in MMA history (aside from him and Chuck) between him and the Lion’s Den. He would lose the fight by guillotine but that wouldn’t stop him from defeating Jerry Bohlander to get another crack at Mezger, defeating him in under ten minutes by TKO.

A 3-fight win streak gave him a crack at Frank Shamrock for the light heavyweight belt. Tito Ortiz pushed Frank Shamrock like no one else had in the UFC but eventually succumbed to strikes very late in the fourth round. Due to his impressive performance before this stoppage, he received an immediate title shot again after Frank retired. This was against Wanderlei Silva. The dynamic Brazilian didn’t have the tools to defeat Ortiz and lost a decision to the wrestler.

This was the beginning of the hall of fame chapter in Tito’s life.

He ended up defending his title to Yuki Kondo, Evan Tanner with a brutal slam in 20 seconds, Elvis Sinosic, Vladimir Matyushenko, and Ken Shamrock. That was two and a half years of one of the most dominant champions in UFC history and the most dominant champ in the UFC’s light heavyweight division. He would end up losing his title to Randy Couture and losing again to Chuck in their first chapter of their famous rivalry, but their isn’t much disappointment in that.

He would rebound his career with wins over Patrick Cote, Vitor Belfort, Forrest Griffin, and Ken Shamrock twice. Although his wins over Forrest and Vitor are highly disputed, he still won those fights.

Although he only won one in his last nine fights, his early career is anything short of spectacular and he is one of the few who deserves a spot in the UFC’s hall-of-fame.

UFC 148: Silva vs. Sonnen 2 Predictions

Dave's Picks


Main Card

Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen: So, here we go! Chael Sonnen is an amazing wrestler and a polarizing person. Anderson Silva is the best striker in MMA and a captivating one. This will be remembered as one of the best rivalries ever in MMA history. Let me inform you all that if Sonnen wins, the UFC will have a new face for their brand, whether they like it or not. Sonnen will bring the spotlight on himself and there will be no stopping him. I could see him refusing to fight anyone for over a year so he can keep doing media tours. I truly believe that Sonnen could either bring in a ton of fans or alienate 99% of the casual fan base. It is going to be chaos. If Silva wins he will still be the best fighter in UFC history and the best fighter alive on the planet right now. It is completely obvious that Sonnen needs to take this to the floor and Anderson needs to keep it standing. If Anderson is healthy, unlike last time, and Chael doesn’t have 17 times the testosterone of a normal man (he did steroids before their last fight) then Silva should win. I think this fight will be completely different. I think ,and hope, Silva ends this freakish parade. = Silva by TKO in round 3. My Pick for KO of the Night! My Pick for Fight of the Night!

Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz: Uhg. That’s a grunting sigh. This is Tito Ortiz’s last MMA fight. It is a good fight to end his career because this will be the rubber match of their trilogy. Both fights were pretty close and the decisions could have gone either way. But Tito will retire after this. So, that leads me to believe he will go all out and try and kill Forrest. Sadly, I truly think that is how you beat Forrest. Blitz him and aim for his chin. Forrest’s chin has faded quickly over the years of abuse and Tito does have the strength to rock him and then finish him off with a few big bombs on the ground. Forrest should play it smart and force Tito up against the cage and lands knees to the body. If Forrest does anything else, he is fighting a fight he has a greater chance of losing. Anything could happen here. = Forrest by extremely close split decision.

Patrick Cote vs. Cung Le: Patrick Cote makes his return to the Octagon for the first time since 2010 to take on Cung Le who is making his sophomore octagon attempt. Cote has had a bizarre up and down UFC career where he started his UFC career off by losing 3 straight. Cote then ended up a finalist of the fourth season of TUF and he lost in the finale to Travis Lutter making that 4 straight. Cote then won 4 straight and that earned him a chance to face off against Anderson Silva for the title. It was a mismatch but Cote ended up losing because his own knee blew out in the third round. He then lost two more which made that a 3 fight losing skid. Cote has then gone on to win 4 in a row outside the UFC. Cung Le is a great kick boxer but is coming off a vicious KO loss at the hands of Wanderlei Silva. Cote is primarily a boxer and Le might actually have the grappling advantage here. But Le is 40 years old and his days of fighting high level guys are done. I know it is only one loss to Wanderlei Silva but I think Cote is going to be able to pick Le apart and win a dominating decision. = Cote by unanimous decision.

Dong Hyun Kim vs. Demian Maia: One of the other difficult fights to call on this card. Kim is a great fighter with good grappling and strength but this time he will have a better grappler who is coming down from a bigger weight class. I am not sure who will be stronger but Kim has been much more dependable and consistent. Maia burst onto the UFC scene in 2007 and destroyed 5 straight people all by submission including a first round beating of Chael Sonnen. But he has gone 4-4 since then and his wins were not very spectacular and against lower level competition. This is also Maia’s first drop to welterweight. This is an interesting one. Kim should have a mall advantage on the feet but Maia should have the grappling advantage. This one is giving me fits. = Maia by split decision.

Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie: No offense here but like most people, I do not understand this matchup at all. Mendes is the #2 featherweight in the world. McKenzie isn’t even in the top 20. I don’t get it at all and Mendes should be able to dominate this on the feet and on the ground. BUT! McKenzie seems to have this bizarre ability to catch people in this crazy guillotine choke. If McKenzie can pull this off it will be one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. But I doubt it will happen because Mendes fights really intelligently. = Mendes by TKO in round 3.

Mike Easton vs. Ivan Menjivar: Both of these guys got wins in their last fights. Easton beat Jared Papazian by majority decision and Menjivar defeated John Albert by submission in round 1. Now both of these fights were very close. Menjivar was almost finished early on but had an amazing comeback victory that made for one of the best fights so far this year. This fight is going to be a grueling match with back and forth striking and grappling. I think Menjivar should take this to the ground and Easton should keep it standing. This one is going to be fun and very close. = Menjivar by unanimous decision.

Prelims

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Gleison Tibau: Tibau by unanimous decision.

Fabricio Camoes vs. Melvin Guillard: Melvin by KO in round 1.

Riki Fukuda vs. Constantinos Philippou: Philippou by split decision.

John Alessio vs. Shane Roller: Alessio by split decision.

Yoislandy Izquierdo vs. Rafaello Oliveira: Izquierdo by TKO in round 2.

Sam's Picks

Main Card 

Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen: Finally, the biggest rematch in the history of the UFC has finally arrived. I believe that this fight is going to be VERY different from the first. In their last fight, Silva had badly injured ribs and Sonnen had the testosterone levels that of 17 men combined. That is quite the handicap in favor for Sonnen. Silva will have the better striking and grappling, along with much better takedown defense from their last fight. Chael absolutely has nothing on him when he isn’t on steroids and Silva is healthy = Silva by 1^st round TKO. My pick for KOOTN! My 2^nd pick for FOTN!

Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz: I don’t see this fight being as close as their first two. They are both clearly fading but Tito is the one who is retiring and he is retiring for a reason. Although Forrest is no longer the quick and crisp striker he used to be, he still has the better technical standup, and he now is a smarter fighter. I see Forrest aiming for the body and eventually finishing him = Forrest by 3^rd round TKO.

Patrick Cote vs. Cung Le: Cote is, understandably, a hefty underdog heading into this bout. But I disagree. Cote has been on a tear since he was cut by the UFC and Le is a 40 year old vet who is on the brink of retirement, which was shown in his brutal TKO loss to Wanderlei. Cote has the speed that can pick Le apart. The only problem is that Cote is a slow starter. Le will most likely win the first round but Cote will dominate the 2^nd and 3^rd rounds after he finds his range = Cote by unanimous decision.

Dong Hyun Kim vs. Demian Maia: What happened to Maia? The Marquardt loss really messed up his career and he has been trying to stand with people too much. Kim looked amazing in his fight with Sean Pierson. His striking was crisp and powerful; he even threw about 6 crane kicks! That’s going to be a problem for Maia if he decides to stand with Kim. Another problem is that Kim will probably be stronger than him too. Kim is a judo guy and judo practitioners are very strong grapplers. If Maia goes for a takedown, it will most likely be stuffed. I see Kim easily winning this fight = Kim by unanimous decision.

Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie: The question heading into this fight is, “Does McKenzie even have a chance at winning this fight”? Of course he does, with that patented guillotine of his. The only problem with that is that Team Alpha Male is all about the guillotines. Mendes will have the better standup, grappling, and submissions. I don’t see this fight going very well for McKenzie = Mendes by 2^nd round TKO.

Mike Easton vs. Ivan Menjivar: BARNBURNER ALERT: This fight is fantastic. It’s going to be explosive and possibly one of the most fast paced fights we will ever see. Menjivar is one of the most experienced fighters at 135, and I believe that is going to be the deciding factor in this fight. He has fought the who’s who in MMA and has been in this sport for over 11 years. He’s fought GSP, Jeff Curran, Matt Serra, Urijah Faber, Caol Uno, and even defeated Joe Lauzon by calf slicer. The guy has been everywhere while Easton is still a prospect looking to make a name. Easton will rebound from this and do big things at 135 = Menjivar by split decision. My 1^st pick for FOTN!

Prelims

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Gleison Tibau: Nurmagomedov is now getting the attention he deserves. The kid is only 23 years old and is 17-0 with 14 finishes and 9 in the first round. He will be challenging for the title in the next 3 years but Tibau may be too much too fast. Tibau is one of the most underrated fighters in the UFC with a 10-5 record in the octagon, all of the losses to top contenders: Guillard, Joe Miller, Nick Diaz, Tyson Griffin, Joe Stevenson. He is also arguably the strongest lightweight in the UFC. This may all be too much for Khabib, but he certainly has a bright future = Tibau by unanimous decision. My 3^rd pick for FOTN!

Fabricio Camoes vs. Melvin Guillard: As I said in our prelim preview (click here), this could truly go either way. I’m sure that Guillard has worked immensely on his ground game following his last two submission losses, but it likely won't be enough for Camoes. Guillard is going to have to explode and finish to make sure it doesn’t go to the ground = Guillard by 1^st round KO.

Riki Fukuda vs. Costa Philippou: This fight is arguably the hardest to pick. Philippou has really impressed me in his last 3 fights. Fukuda looked really good in the 2^nd and 3^rd round against Cantwell, but lost the first. Philippou has the power to defeat the technical striker in Fukuda = Philippou by split decision.

John Alessio vs. Shane Roller: Roller is not looking like UFC material in his last 3 fights. Alessio, although he was rather dominated, easily beat Mark Bocek in the standup. Roller is one of those guys who fights like he has great standup, where he leans forward with a lazy jab, but really isn’t very good. Alessio will dominate him in the standup and although Roller will most likely win a round due to takedowns, he will lose this fight and be released by the UFC = Alessio by unanimous decision.

Yoislandy Izquierdo vs. Rafaello Oliviera = Izquierdo by 3^rd round TKO.

5 Flyweights the UFC Needs to Sign Part I

The flyweight division is the most recently added weight class to the UFC. It ranges from 116 lbs. to 125 lbs. So far, the UFC has failed to sign any of the best flyweights outside the UFC despite Yasuhiro Urishitani and Ian McCall. Not only is the weight class possibly the most entertaining in combat sports, but it also holds some of the best fighters in the world.

I am making a list of all the flyweights that the UFC should sign as soon as they have the chance, not only to make the class deeper, but to also let these guys join the biggest MMA promotion ever and show why they are considered the best in their division. I will also give a rating of 1-10 in how much they need to sign them with 10 being the best and 1 being the worst

Photo by Sherdog

Jussier da Silva: Easily the best flyweight outside the UFC, whom holds a record of 13-1 with wins over Mamoru Yamaguchi, Danny Martinez, and Michael William Costa (twice) along with training at Nova Uniao. He was once ranked as the #1 flyweight in the world until Ian McCall came and scored a huge upset. Da Silva not only holds, arguably, the best BJJ game at 125, but he also has very underrated striking. Personally, I was surprised to see Urishitani in the tournament, rather than Jussier da Silva. The UFC needs to sign him the first chance they get. Rating: 10/10

Photo by MMATKO

Mamoru Yamaguchi: Most of the time when a fighter is known for constantly being a very flashy and crazy fighter inside the cage, they typically aren’t very good. Yamaguchi is an exception. He not only has one of the best afros you will ever see, ever, but he also is immensely talented and experienced. In fact, he may be the most experienced fighter at 125. He holds a record of 26-6-3 and wins over both Yasuhiro Urishitani and Fumihiro Kitahara and 10 KO’s overall. Although he may be old for the weight class, 35, he still is one of the most entertaining, and powerful, fighters at 125. Rating: 10/10

Photo by Bleacherreport

Darrel Montague: The former Tachi Palace flyweight champ is a young gun with a bright future ahead of him if the UFC decides to sign him. He is only 24 years old with an impressive record of 11-2 with the two losses coming to Ian McCall and the oversized Robbie Peralta. He defeated Ulysses Gomez to take the belt, something that is not easy to do, but then lost it to Ian McCall. Montague will be challenging for the UFC title in the coming years after they sign him. Rating: 9/10

Photo by Sherdog

Nam Jin Jo: Although he holds a very unimpressive record of 6-5, most of those losses come at bantamweight, in which he is undersized. He ranks among the top 10 of flyweights in the world and even holds a decision win over fellow top 10 flyweight, Shinichi Kojima. He is very well rounded as he holds 2 TKO wins and 3 submission wins. He made his pro debut at 17 years of age and amateur when he was only 14! He is only 21 now and has a lot of time to improve as a mixed martial artist and deserves a contract with the UFC once he racks up a couple wins, for he just lost a split decision at bantamweight. Rating: 8/10

Photo by MMAJunkie.com

Dustin Ortiz: An underrated and well-rounded mixed martial artist, Dustin Ortiz has fought to two close decision losses to Josh Robinson and Ian McCall. Although he has lost 2 of his last 3, he is still one of the bigger names at 125 and is a very well rounded mix martial artist. With 8 wins, he has 4 KO/TKO and 4 submission wins, showing he is also very entertaining with finishing ability. He would make an immediate dent at 125 in the UFC. Rating: 8/10