Tag: Georges St. Pierre (Page 8 of 11)

Top 5 storylines heading into UFC 129

April 25, 2011 / Drew Ellis

In just six days the UFC will put on one of its biggest shows of all time in UFC 129 from the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

The card is solid from top-to-bottom and filled with intriguing storylines. Here are the top 5 storylines I will be looking out for on Saturday night.

1. Is Jake Shields really a threat to GSP? I am a Georges St. Pierre mark. I won’t deny that. The man is my favorite fighter. Watching Jake Shields fight Martin Kampmann at UFC 121, I thought to myself “is this guy really supposed to contend with GSP?” He looked tired. He looked very poor with his striking. He basically didn’t look like a contender. But, then you look at his past and realize he dominated Dan Henderson for four out of five rounds and still got past Kampmann despite fatigue. Shields clearly does one thing well, and that is wrestling and submission. But, is Shields really any different than Jon Fitch in terms of grappling skills? GSP ran through Fitch and I think Shields’ striking ability is even worse than Fitch’s. GSP was taken down by Josh Koscheck at UFC 124, but Koscheck has a lot of explosion in his takedowns that I don’t see from Shields. Saturday night will really show if Jake Shields is as good as his record says he is.

2. Will Randy Couture go out on top? I am also a big fan of Randy Couture. I think he has been one of the best strategists in all of MMA in terms of finding holes in his opponents and exploiting them. Randy has been far better at being the underdog than being the favorite, but I wonder just how he is going to solve the Lyoto Machida puzzle. Couture can’t afraid to chase, but he also has to remain active. I think Couture can out-grapple Machida, but Machida has under rated strength and takedowns in his own right. After watching Couture fight for most of his career, I would prefer to see him end his legendary run on top. I would like him to retire knowing he could still contend in the division. I don’t want to see him with a broken nose and a glazed look in his eyes while he thanks the fans for their support like he did at UFC 57.

3. Does Jose Aldo have a weakness to exploit? I know I am being repetitive, but I love Jose Aldo too. His kicks are devastating and his hand speed is right up there with any pro boxer. He is a fighter that truly breaks his opponents down and then finishes them. He took out the leg of Urijah Faber and he slowly picked apart Manny Gamburyan in his last two title defenses. Now Aldo faces Mark Hominick. Hominick isn’t what one would consider a pound-for-pound great, but he has done very well against strikers. Hominick’s weakness has been grapplers, while Aldo is yet to be tested by a technically sound striker like Hominick. I have always been one to believe that it would be a strong wrestler that would spell the end of Aldo’s reign, but when looking at his fight history, you haven’t seen Aldo face a legit boxer with the skills that Hominick has. While I still think Aldo will win this fight, Hominick is the one guy that can land a powerful jab in Aldo’s face when the champion throws one of his signature leg kicks.

4. Where does Ben Henderson rank among lightweights? This Saturday marks the UFC debut of former WEC lightweight champion, Ben(son) Henderson. Henderson takes on dangerous grappler, Mark Bocek. The WEC got a bum wrap coming into the UFC, as some felt they weren’t good enough to compete in the octagon. However, fighters like Donald Cerrone and Shane Roller have already picked up wins over UFC vets, and Henderson owns wins over both those men. Bocek has been somewhat of a gate keeper in the division. He has beaten some quality fighters, but lost to more of the top-tier guys. A win for Henderson on Saturday would show that he can be a legit threat to the UFC lightweight crown.

5. Diaz or McDonald – Which welterweight can sneak into the top 10? – In one of the featured prelim fights on Saturday, welterweights Rory McDonald and Nate Diaz will square off. McDonald, a native of Canada, is considered one of the rising stars of the division. He took Carolos Condit to the limit before losing by TKO late in round three at UFC 115. McDonald is just 21-years-old while Diaz is 25. Nate Diaz is 2-1 since his move to welterweight but coming off a close decision loss to Dong Hyung Kim at UFC 125. Diaz is a lot like his brother, Nick, but has struggled with grapplers. If Diaz can stay off his back, he can win. If McDonald can use his wrestling to his advantage, he will win. Whichever fighter wins, they should move up into the top 10 of the UFC welterweight division and probably land a big fight in their next outing.

Events, Fighters, UFC

Ben Henderson Georges St. Pierre Jake Shields Jose Aldo Lyoto Machida Mark Bocek Mark Hominick Randy Couture UFC 129

Your weekly MMA TV Schedule update

April 24, 2011 / Drew Ellis

It is Sunday night, so that means it is time for your weekly MMA on TV update.

Here is a look at the MMA content that will be airing this week:

– On Wednesday at midnight (late Tuesday night) the Countdown to UFC 129 will debut on SpikeTV. The preview show will highlight all the major bouts of Saturday’s UFC 129 and give you a behind the scenes look at the fighters involved. The show will re-air on Thursday at 3 p.m. and Saturday at 6 p.m. on Spike and Thursday at 7 p.m. Friday at midnight on Versus.

– On Wednesday, the fifth episode of The Ultimate Fighter will air on SpikeTV at 9 p.m. ET. Team dos Santos now holds a 3-1 advantage on Team Lesnar. It is clear that Brock Lesnar is getting somewhat frustrated with the losing and if may be affecting his team. Will the former champ be able to rebound this week?

– On Thursday at midnight (late Wednesday night) UFC 129 Primetime airs its last of the three episodes. The show is following Jake Shields and Georges St. Pierre as they prepare for their UFC 129 welterweight championship fight, which takes place this Saturday. The third episode airs on SpikeTV and will be replayed at 1:30 a.m. and 11 p.m. It will also be aired on ESPN2 at 11 p.m. on Wednesday night.

– On Saturday, UFC 129 takes place from the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. A record crowd of 55,000 is expected to be on hand to watch St. Pierre and Shield battle it out for the welterweight title. Jose Aldo will also be defending his featherweight championship for the first time against Mark Hominick and Lyoto Machida will take on Randy Couture in what Couture has said will be his final fight in the UFC. The PPV will begin at a new start time of 9 p.m. ET and 6 p.m. PT. There will be free prelims starting at 6 p.m. ET on Facebook and two live prelims airing on SpikeTV, starting at 8 p.m. ET.

Events, Fighters, The Ultimate Fighter, UFC

Brock Lesnar Georges St. Pierre Jake Shields Jose Aldo Junior Dos Santos Lyoto Machida Mark Hominick Randy Couture The Ultimate Fighter TV Schedule UFC 129

Silva: GSP fight is something that “must happen”

April 24, 2011 / Drew Ellis

Anderson Silva likes a challenge. Right now, his only challenge may be Georges St. Pierre.

The pound-for-pound king and reigning middleweight champion spoke to Mike Straka on his show “Fighting Words with Mike Straka” and had this to say about a potential superfight with GSP (courtesy of MMAJunkie.com):

“Georges St-Pierre is one of the best,” Silva said through an interpreter. “He’s shown that he’s a great athlete, and I really train hard everyday to fight the best. I do believe it’s a superfight, and it’s a fight that must happen someday.”

Both men still have one test in front of them for this fight to happen as GSP must get past Jake Shields next Saturday and Silva will now face Yushin Okami at UFC 134 in late August.

Both champions seem to be heavy favorites to win their fights but both of their opponents have the skills to pull off the upset.

Shields has the best submission grappling that St. Pierre has ever faced and Okami has the strength and wrestling background to get Silva to the ground.

If both champions win, it likely sets up the long-awaited GSP-Silva showdown around the end of 2011. It would be the biggest fight in UFC history and truly be the showcase of the top two fighters in all of MMA, in my opinion.

Fighters, News, UFC

Anderson Silva Georges St. Pierre Jake Shields UFC Yushin Okami

Going back in time: How the UFC has changed in 6 years

April 23, 2011 / Drew Ellis

The UFC, and MMA in general, has evolved a great deal in a short amount of time.

If you need any proof of that, just take a short trip back to 2005.

Six years ago today, the UFC was one week removed from UFC 52: Couture vs. Liddell II. It was a milestone event for the organization as it was the first PPV event following the debut season of the Ultimate Fighter.

The card featured some of the best fighters in the UFC at the time, but when looking back, it represents just how much the sport has changed since then.

Here is a look at all the champions as of six years ago today, and how their stock has dropped since then.

Heavyweight Champion: Andrei Arlovski – Arlovski had won the interim heavyweight title from Tim Sylvia at UFC 51 and was eventually stripped of the interim label when then-champion Frank Mir couldn’t compete after a motorcycle accident. Arlovski had a dominant run, winning three-straight title fights in the first round. But, “The Pitbull” then suffered back-to-back losses to Sylvia and was never quite the same. At one time he was the most feared fighter in the UFC, but he now is currently on a four-fight losing streak, with three coming by first round knock out. Arlovski’s hands have gotten slower, his chin has gotten weaker, and he never evolved his grappling. That combo caused him to become nearly irrelevant in the MMA. In today’s world, Arlovski would get decimated by current champ, Cain Velasquez.

Light Heavyweight Champion: Chuck Liddell – Liddell was on top of the world at this time six years ago. He just knocked out Randy Couture in 2:06 to win his first UFC Championship. Liddell followed that up with four successful title defenses, all by KO. He was considered an unbeatable champion for two years, but then ran into the powerful hand of Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, who took the title from Liddell in May of 2007. That loss started the complete downfall of Liddell’s career. He would go on to lose five of his next six, four by KO, which forced his retirement. Liddell’s hands were great, but his style never evolved, and became too predictable. With that, his chin got weaker and he was an easy target for other light heavyweights. It is hard to imagine a scenario where Liddell would be able to contend with today’s champ, Jon Jones.

Events, Fighters, UFC

Anderson Silva Andrei Arlovski Cain Velasquez Chuck Liddell Evan Tanner Frankie Edgar Georges St. Pierre Jon Jones Matt Hughes UFC 129 UFC 52

“Mayhem” Miller signs with UFC

April 22, 2011 / Drew Ellis

Let the jail break begin.

The first Strikeforce fighter to defect to the UFC since Zuffa purchased the rival company is middleweight Jason “Mayhem” Miller.

The news broke earlier today from Ariel Helwani at MMAFighting.com.

The 30-year-old Miller (24-7, 1 NC) was able to sign with the UFC due to the fact that his contract with Strikeforce had expired. No word just yet on when his first fight back inside the Octagon will take place.
“Mayhem” had not competed for Strikeforce since last April when he defeated Tim Stout on the undercard of Strikeforce: Nashville. He went on to defeat one of his MMA idols, Kazushi Sakuraba, at DREAM.16 in September, which stands as his last fight to date.
“I will beat the brakes off most of the guys in the middleweight divisions in the UFC,” he said. “I guaran-damn-tee it.”

Miller fought once previously in the UFC, at UFC 52 against Georges St. Pierre. GSP dominated Miller for three rounds to earn the decision.

This move is pretty intriguing as Miller was one of Strikeforce’s biggest names. While they can say his contract had run out, it seems like some string may have been pulled to make that happen.

Now the question is, when will more strings be pulled and whose strings will they be?

Fighters, News, Strikeforce, UFC

Georges St. Pierre Jason “Mayhem” Miller Strikeforce UFC