UFC this weekend anyone?

[speakEZ]

I was just wondering if anyone else keeps up with UFC. Should be some good fights this weekend!!:D

[Nemo128]

I haven't watched UFC since Royce Gracie was the big name. :)

[speakEZ]

In his prime he was turning 300+ lbs. guys in pretzels.:cool:

[Nemo128]

I hear Brock Lesnar is doing damage in the UFC world right now.

[speakEZ]

yeah he is fighting this weekend. Should be a good show.

[jamie2112]

I watch it all the time. I am looking forward to this weekends fights....

[Matt34]

I'm hosting it this weekend. One of the best fight cards ever.

[jamie2112]

I'm hosting it this weekend. One of the best fight cards ever.

Wish I lived a little closer......:D

[adwilk]

I don't follow it that closely, but I'll be somewhere watching it this weekend. I dont understand it, I dont want to understand it. You gotta be wired funny to do that. Mad respect for some of those guys. Superb athletes for sure...

[alphaiii]

I'm hoping to watch it too.

It's a good card - really looking forward to the Hendo/Bisping and GSP/Alves fights.

[speakEZ]

I'm hosting it this weekend. One of the best fight cards ever.

We should have about 15 people for this one, should be awesome. I have been watching the 100 Greatest Fights catching up. Certainly some bad dudes have entered the ring.

Interesting to watch how MMA has evolved from the days of no weight class and bare knuckle carnage to a reputable sport full of world class athletes. I like that it is not yet as corrupt as boxing but would like to see the fighters get some real $$.

[j_garcia]

I am watching for GSP this weekend. One of my favorite current guys. I've been watching for many years.

Brock is just a lummox. Yes he is an actual wrestler, but in here he basically just lays on the guys and pounds them into submission. Put someone in there who is his size and see if that makes a difference. Mir already beat him once with a submission...maybe he can do it again.

I like Bisping but I think he needs a little attitude check from Dan.

[jostenmeat]

Yeah, Mir's knee bar was pretty sweet. The sportscaster kept saying that Brock better be careful, over and over again. :p

Anyone else suspect that Machida is going to reign for quite some time? No one is going to have arms that are longer than Machida's legs! And his fist is at the dude's face about .1 second after the foot lands. :eek: I predict he will reign for a good long while.

Speaking of kicks, I thought Loiseau, GSP's homeboy, was a lot of fun to watch. He must not have the whole package, or have some bad injury, because he's off the map now. Anyways, he had amazing kicks!

BJ Penn is one of my favorites to watch as well.

[jamie2112]

Machida is the man.He will be a force for some time I think.....

[j_garcia]

Machida is the man.He will be a force for some time I think.....

Machida has been beat by some of the other Pride guys who are also bouncing around the UFC now, but I really like him and I think he will be at the top for a while. That is a very competetive weight class though, so you never know. I liked Rashad early on, but he sort of got a big head about all the wins, so it was kind of good seeing Machida knock him out.

[oppman99]

I really lost interest in UFC when they started having weight classes and time limits. I know they had to clean things up and add rules to go mainstream, but it's a far cry from what it used to be. I like the old format of not knowing who you would be up against. I guess the time limit is what really bugs me. Favors strikers and penalizes grapplers for the most part. It's about the ratings now, since most people don't understand the strategy of grappling/submission and just want to see a brawl. I know I'm generalizing, but for the most part it's true. It seems overcomercialized. Don't even get me started on the "reality" show. I know someone will argue with me, but today it's more about the money and recognition than testing your skill.

[lsiberian]

I really lost interest in UFC when they started having weight classes and time limits. I know they had to clean things up and add rules to go mainstream, but it's a far cry from what it used to be. I like the old format of not knowing who you would be up against. I guess the time limit is what really bugs me. Favors strikers and penalizes grapplers for the most part. It's about the ratings now, since most people don't understand the strategy of grappling/submission and just want to see a brawl. I know I'm generalizing, but for the most part it's true. It seems overcomercialized. Don't even get me started on the "reality" show. I know someone will argue with me, but today it's more about the money and recognition than testing your skill.

Yeah but with the demise of boxing we need something to take it's place. It seems UFC is poised to do that. Anderson Silva, and Fedor are just monsters. Brock has great potential and is a great boon for UFC. He brings people in that wouldn't watch otherwise. As an old WWE fan(WWE has declined a lot) I enjoy seeing one of them do alright in UFC.

[speakEZ]

I really lost interest in UFC when they started having weight classes and time limits. I know they had to clean things up and add rules to go mainstream, but it's a far cry from what it used to be. I like the old format of not knowing who you would be up against. I guess the time limit is what really bugs me. Favors strikers and penalizes grapplers for the most part. It's about the ratings now, since most people don't understand the strategy of grappling/submission and just want to see a brawl. I know I'm generalizing, but for the most part it's true. It seems overcomercialized. Don't even get me started on the "reality" show. I know someone will argue with me, but today it's more about the money and recognition than testing your skill.

I agree to a point. I know others that feel the same way. But there are advantages to the "new" UFC IMO.

As opposed to looking at the time limit as taking away from grapplers, I look at it as forcing the grapplers and strikers alike to add MORE to their game and hold themselves to true MMA.

The time limit, weight classes, and use of gloves, IMO have upped the ante for world class fighters and brought out more talent than any other sport of it's kind.

As far as "overcomercialized"....yeah there are some issues there. The main thing I would like to see is the fighters get $PAID$. Of coarse then, over time, it would wind up with the same corruption as boxing is now (but I don't know if that can ever be stopped). I think that was the main reason that EliteXC went bankrupt. Paying their fighters not use certain techniques for a "better" show.

UFC is still a young sport with a lot of growing to do. It has been, and will be, interesting to see how it progresses.

[j_garcia]

The main thing I don't like is the trash talking before the fight. I don't really care what they have to say because it all comes down to what happens in the octagon. They do it to add drama, but it isn't working IMO.

Weight classes are necessary, period, and at heavyweight they still have a problem with guys like Lesner because he is so huge. Lesner is fast and a solid wrestler, but I don't see much else to his game so far.

[speakEZ]

A wrestler he may be....but I sure would hate to get punched by those cinder blocks connected to his arms :eek:!

[j_garcia]

A wrestler he may be....but I sure would hate to get punched by those cinder blocks connected to his arms :eek:!

Yeah, I laughed when Randy said "It was like getting hit with a canned ham." LOL.

[ragged]

Did I miss this? I hope not. If not, yeah I'll be watching. I watched a re run of a fight couple weeks ago, can't remember the fighters name, but in pre fight interview, he had the funniest quotes ever.

"My prediction? My prediction is PAIN!"

"My strategy? My strategy was developed by West African Warlords!"

[speakEZ]

Did I miss this? I hope not. If not, yeah I'll be watching. I watched a re run of a fight couple weeks ago, can't remember the fighters name, but in pre fight interview, he had the funniest quotes ever.

"My prediction? My prediction is PAIN!"

"My strategy? My strategy was developed by West African Warlords!"

That is good stuff. lol...The fight is Saturday 7/11/09. You haven't missed it yet.

[Matt34]

Awesome KO by Henderson!!

[jamie2112]

Just got done watching it...Henderson had the punch of the night for sure.....Brock is a freakin animal.......:D:D

[speakEZ]

Just got done watching it...Henderson had the punch of the night for sure.....Brock is a freakin animal.......:D:D

No doubt that was a great shot by Henderson. Think he caught him with his mouth open!:D

I knew right after Lesner said all that sh!@ that Dana was going to be pissed. I bet Dana reminds him that he is not in the WWE anymore.

[speakEZ]

here you go

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBEs130CjYI&feature=player_embedded

[Matt34]

No doubt that was a great shot by Henderson. Think he caught him with his mouth open!:D

I knew right after Lesner said all that sh!@ that Dana was going to be pissed. I bet Dana reminds him that he is not in the WWE anymore.

Brock got his pee-pee slapped by Dana after the fight.

It will be interesting who they can match up to Lesnar now. The HW divison is weak as a whole.

For the next ppv, I don't see forest making it out of the 2nd rd against Silva.

[speakEZ]

I think that is why the next Ultimate Fighter will be HW. They have to get some good competition in there. They also need a fighter who will be good for more than 5 fights. I am sure that once Brock gets KO'd he won't be returning.

Yeah I have never been a huge Forest fan. I would just like to see a HW in the same caliber as GSP. Speakin of....I wonder how long GSP will continue to out class all of his opponents. Of coarse I guess all it take is one lucky punch.:D

[j_garcia]

Bisping was OUT COLD. Nice one by Dan, but that is what I expected too. Bisping looked slimmer than he was on the show.

The Mir - Lesner fight when how I thought it would as well. Mir would have had to have gotten lucky, though when they were standing for a few minutes, Mir was clearly getting the better of the striking. Lesner knows that ground and pound is his way to win. He did pretty much the same thing this time too: lay on him and hit him, and again, was 20lbs heavier. They should consider capping the weight on that class or find more fighters who are at 265 like Lesner. For his size, Lesner is very quick though.

The GSP fight went as I thought it would too. I hope that groin pull doesn't put him out for too long, though I don't know who they will put against him next.

Forrest won't last against Silva. They put him in there because they know people won't watch those fights thinking nobody can beat Silva. That's why I said maybe it will be GSP vs Silva? Machida vs Silva? Those would be good fights.

Randy vs Minotauro should be a good fight too.

[Matt34]

GSP is a natural 170lb fighter and I think it would be a poor decesion for him to come up to fight Silva. Now silva vs. The Dragon would be a very interesting fight indeed.

[speakEZ]

GSP is a natural 170lb fighter and I think it would be a poor decesion for him to come up to fight Silva. Now silva vs. The Dragon would be a very interesting fight indeed.

I too think GSP is right where he needs to be. If GSP has any sense at all he thinks the same thing. He is on top and that is where he needs to stay until he gets too old to fight.

Which brings up another point.

I have no idea how these old guys are still in the ring. I would normally say that after the early 30's it would be time to retire, but as we saw Henderson cold cock Bisping, he still looks and moves like a young buck!! The only thing I saw was that he (Henderson) pushed his head way right before EVERY punch. During the whole match I was screaming LEFT HOOK! Did anyone else notice this?

[j_garcia]

I have no idea how these old guys are still in the ring. I would normally say that after the early 30's it would be time to retire, but as we saw Henderson cold cock Bisping, he still looks and moves like a young buck!! The only thing I saw was that he (Henderson) pushed his head way right before EVERY punch. During the whole match I was screaming LEFT HOOK! Did anyone else notice this?

Bisping was essentially doing the same thing...circling to the left right into Dan's right hand. Bad idea... Most of these guys are not boxers, so they don't have the best head movement. I notice a lot of these guys leave themselves open (drop the head or hands) and keep doing the same thing over and over.

[lsiberian]

What would yall think of a Fedor vs Brock fight. That would be fun to watch. I have a feeling Fedor would destroy him, but I know Brock needs a lot more experience first.

[jamie2112]

What would yall think of a Fedor vs Brock fight. That would be fun to watch. I have a feeling Fedor would destroy him, but I know Brock needs a lot more experience first.

Fedor is the BEST in his weight class. Brock had to come down 25 lbs just to make weight for the fight. I would love to see Fedor crush him. Its only a matter of time till we get this fight..

[lsiberian]

Fedor is the BEST in his weight class. Brock had to come down 25 lbs just to make weight for the fight. I would love to see Fedor crush him. Its only a matter of time till we get this fight..

True point, but even if he didn't I still see Fedor as a much better fighter.

I really wan't to see some more great athletes enter the sport. I see a great future for it as it's superior to boxing IMO.

[j_garcia]

The thing that irritates me, is I saw the card and there were a LOT of fights I would have watched but they only showed like 4 or 5, though most of them were long and those were the ones that got me to buy it. I still want to see MORE of those fights when I am paying $45.

I didn't expect Bisping to get KOed like that, but I did expect him to lose.

I'm sure Brock weighs in at 265, but walks around a lot heavier than that. Just like Thiago they said is normally around 200lbs and was likely around 190 for the fight, while GSP they said walks around at 185 normally.

[darien87]

Gina Carano's gonna be here fighting Cyborg next month. I'd pay BIG money to see Gina's top come off. :D

[speakEZ]

Gina is one bad B*$ch thas for sure. I love watching her fight!!

[j_garcia]

Article from Yahoo on Carwin's comments about Lesner:

Maybe it was because, at 6-foot-3, 263 pounds, Shane Carwin is nearly the same size as, and actually has bigger meat hooks than, Brock Lesnar.

Maybe it was just a savvy promotional move for Carwin, an unbeaten, top contender for Lesnar’s Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight belt.

Or maybe the “Colossus from Colorado” really was so outraged at Lesnar’s antics at UFC 100 he couldn’t contain himself.

Whatever it was, Carwin pulled no punches on his personal blog, hammering Lesnar for taunting a fallen opponent, tossing middle fingers at the Mandalay Bay Events Center crowd in Las Vegas and acting like anything but a respectful champion Saturday. After a stern talking to by UFC president Dana White, Lesnar apologized for his actions. Carwin was apparently unmoved (he didn’t return a message seeking comment).

“The flipping off of the fans that just lined your pocket with millions of dollars is just LAME,” Carwin wrote. “He may be a champion but he has a long ways to go before he earns the respect of a champion.”

It got better, with the old school Carwin, who sports an 11-0 record, lecturing Lesnar like he was a little boy.

“The fans are why we do this Brock, this sport is not about fat paychecks and drama. It is about hard work and sacrifice for a shot to do what you did [Saturday] night. It doesn’t matter how much money you make if you can’t earn your peers respect and the respect and love of the greatest sporting fans in the world.

“Every autograph I give, every hand I shake I am thankful that you give me the opportunity to be a part of your world. This is the greatest sport in the world and most of the athletes in it deserve the love and respect they get and some just don’t get it.”

The mechanical engineer wasn’t done yet. Next up, a shot at Lesnar’s pro wrestling background.

“We have no scripts in this sport, no pre-determined earning amount and no pre-determined outcomes. It doesn’t matter if you win or lose; it matters how you win or lose.”

And to think Lesnar couldn’t deal with Frank Mir making fun of his jiu-jitsu defense (which was once, admittedly, weak). This alone will fuel him through a long Minnesota winter of training. And who knows what else Carwin has in him?

ADVERTISEMENT

Carwin takes on Cain Velasquez (6-0) in October at UFC 104 in Los Angeles. The winner gets a shot at Lesnar for the title, White has announced.

If it’s Carwin (no small feat against the excellent Velasquez) then this wouldn’t just be an intriguing fight, but suddenly a personal one. Carwin, like Lesnar, is a former collegiate wrestling champion. They’re about the same size; although Carwin’s massive 5-XL gloves are actually two sizes larger than Lesnar’s. It’s one reason none of Carwin’s opponents have lasted past the middle of the first round.

Which is good because the indomitable way Lesnar has looked of late, it’s going to take a special mix of size, speed and skill to challenge him. And he’s only getting better.

Carwin doesn’t sound concerned. Not about Lesnar and not about rattling his cage. His rip job will be appreciated in traditional mixed martial arts, where discipline and respect for an opponent is still paramount.

Since arriving from pro wrestling, Lesnar has expressed little concern for such things. That’s his right and it’ll earn him plenty of supporters who love every second of it. If he wants to sneer and snarl, if he wants postfight interviews complete with sponsor bashing, cheesy histrionics and juvenile statements, there’s only one way to stop him.

“From leaving the venue all the way to the airport I have had fans of the sport ask me to take out Brock Lesnar for them,” Carwin wrote.

The UFC will focus on pursuing the world’s No. 1 heavyweight, Fedor Emelianenko (30-1), who is approaching his final contracted fight with the UFC’s rival promotion, Affliction. That takes place Aug. 1 in Anaheim, Calif.

“We’ll end up getting that deal done and then we’ll do Brock vs. Fedor and we’ll do a huge fight,” White said.

Time will tell on that. In the interim, a contender is waiting to earn his shot and then possibly take the trash talk to a whole new level. That’s what Brock Lesnar has brought to the UFC, visceral reactions all around.

Some loathe him. Some love him. Everyone wants to see what happens next, a string of big pay-per-view cards almost all but assured.

Now here comes a sizeable challenger, issuing preemptive blog posts and lectures to the champion on sportsmanship, humility and class.

Shane Carwin is itching for a fight. You can rest assured, after this, Big Brock will be too.

So that means we probably won't see Fedor until next year. Perhaps we will see a good fight between Shane and Brock. I knew Shane was big, but I didn't realize he was actually bigger than Brock :eek: