my fight picks for this weekend (UFC on FX and UFC 147)

While I do consider myself a fan of the UFC I hardly know enough of the fighters to make many calls on either of the cards but here is my best shot.

Guida defeats Maynard. In a three round fight I’d give the edge to the Bully but in a five round fight I expect Maynard to tire and Guida to pour it on in the later rounds.

Swanson defeats Pearson. This is a difficult fight to call. I like both fighter but Swanson is more experienced at Featherweight and looked very impressive in his last fight.

Franklin defeats Silva. Franklin is hungry and I think his chin is strong enough to take Silva’s inevitable onslaught. Franklin may have the distinction of retiring two legends.

Werdum defeats Russow. This seems like the UFC throwing the local crowd a bone. I don’t give Russow much of a chance in this fight (and I’m a fan of his ever since he knocked Duffee out). Russow deserves a step up in competition but facing a guy whose top five in the Heavyweight division should prove too much for him. I hope he puts up a good fight though.

Bezerra defeats Pepey. This is not the final I expected or hoped for. But Damm went down (kidney failure what can you do?) and Wolverine just didn’t seem to want it in that last fight so here we are. Either way Bezerra looked much more impressive during the show.

Ferreira defeats Moraes. I was pretty sad to hear Daniel got injured that would have been an excellent fight.

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And “The Answer” is… Boring

I can’t stand Frankie Edgar. There is just something that rubs me the wrong way about a guy who has six fights in a row against only three guys. I couldn’t believe the UFC caved to his demand for yet another rematch against Ben Henderson. But the biggest thing I can’t stand about him is how boring his fights are.

Just compare The Answer to Joe Lauzon, considered to be a good fighter but by no means a contender. All but two of Edgar’s last seven fights have gone to decision while Lauzon has only been to decision one time in his career. Lauzon has seven fight honors while Edgar has six. Personally I would rather watch Lauzon fight anyone over Edgar and the reason is he takes risks, he finishes fights, and he’s extremely entertaining. Fighters like Lauzon rarely get title shots because they either finish or are finished.

To me Edgar is similar to Roy Nelson (except that when the opponent is overmatched Nelson can finish). Roy is impressive for the amount of punishment he can take and that’s about it. Put Nelson in against a rookie and the poor guy is in for a rough night. Put him in against JDS, Mir, or Werdum and he just looks pretty pathetic. Edgar can fight through a lot of adversity but his days are numbered at Lightweight. Henderson has him outsized, Diaz has better striking and ground game than him, same goes for Pettis, and if Cerrone can get his head on straight he could beat Edgar anywhere.

The way I see it, a few decisions go his way (or no way) and Frankie Edgar holds the Lightweight division hostage for two years and I don’t know about you, but I am tired of it.

Why I love MMA (and the UFC)

 

I love mixed martial arts and especially the UFC. These days there are a lot of folks complaining about basically everything there is to do with the promotion and I wanted my first post to say something positive about the sport.

 

First off I believe that while fighting is not for everyone, it is an excellent workout. Anyone who has wrestled will testify to the amount of strength and cardio that goes into just that aspect of the sport. Throw in punches, kicks, and submissions and you will find that not only your body is put to the test but also your will and mental focus. And there is a certain exhilaration to getting hit in the face (like I said it’s not for everyone).

 

There are some of my personal reasons for doing MMA. These are also factors in why I enjoy watching MMA as a fan. While to the casual observer it may appear barbaric at first glance, there is certainly much more technique and skill involved that can be appreciated easily if watched with a practitioner or longtime fan.

 

Defending the UFC in particular could be a fulltime job right now. Considering the low television ratings, seemingly weak upcoming cards, and an endless list of injuries this summer seems to be a disaster for the organization. While I will grant you that the UFC has a great many flaws I would prefer to look at the last three events the promotion put on rather than wring my hands over the prospects of what appear to be weak upcoming cards.

 

UFC 146 was an amazing spectacle despite losing Alistair Overeem after he was busted for steroid use. The heavy weights put on a tremendous show none of the main card fights going to decision. Stefan Struve even started off the card with a very smart armbar submission of an extremely dangerous opponent. And of course the card featured knockouts to spare.

 

The TUF finale showcased excellent fights from Justin Lawrence, Charles Oliveira, Mike Chiesa, and fireworks in the main event between Kampann and Ellenberger. It put the exclamation mark on what I thought was one of the better seasons of TUF.

 

Then there was Johnson vs. McCall (like the TUF finale shown for free on FX). Although the main event was a little lackluster the three other fights on the main card proved very rewarding for anyone who bothered to tune in.

 

My points is that the UFC delivered on the last three cards (two of which were on cable for free) and if you bother to look back further you see that most of the other recent cards also had very good fights on them. We should quit wringing our hands so much and appreciate that the show a little more.