Velasquez vs. Dos Santos: The trilogy the UFC needed
Posted by Drew Ellis (05/26/2013 @ 10:29 am)
There was a time when two men ruled the UFC heavyweight division.
Those men were Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski.
The two had established themselves as the best heavyweights in the UFC at the time, and had a trilogy of fights for the UFC to capitalize on.
At that time, it was also clear that there were better heavyweight fighters out there, mainly in PRIDE, thus the trilogy didn’t have that feel of greatness.
Now, years later, the UFC finds itself with the heavyweight trilogy that it always longed for.
There is no question that heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and top contender Junior dos Santos are the top two heavyweight fighters in the world. They verified as much on Saturday with their knockout wins over Antonio Silva and Mark Hunt, respectively.
Now, the UFC is able to market a rubber match between the two after each one has decisively beat the other.
Velasquez and dos Santos have provided a legitimacy to the heavyweight division that has been lacking for a long time.
Sure, there have been some impressive fighters over the last decade, but none that were as technically skilled as Velasquez and dos Santos.
Brock Lesnar was a draw, and a physical freak, but he proved he wasn’t a fighter when he cowered in a ball at the first body kick he took.
Velasquez and dos Santos would have dominated the UFC in the early 2000s and the winner of this upcoming trilogy fight could rule the roost for quite some time.
The UFC finally has its mega heavyweight fight, and it is Velasquez vs. Dos Santos III.
Posted in: Events, Fighters, News, Results, UFC
Tags: Andrei Arlovski, Antonio Silva, Cain Velasquez, Dos Santos vs. Hunt, Junior Dos Santos, Mark Hunt, MMA, Tim Sylvia, UFC, UFC 160, ufc heavyweight championship, Velasquez vs. Dos Santos, Velasquez vs. Silva
UFC 146 Results & Recap – Junior Dos Santos Keeps Rolling
Posted by Drew Ellis (05/27/2012 @ 12:29 am)
Junior Dos Santos verified himself as the top heavyweight in the UFC as he knocked out Frank Mir in the second round of the main event of UFC 146 on Saturday from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Coming into his bout with the former UFC champion, Mir, Dos Santos was expected to win with his crisp striking, and that is exactly what led to the win.
After somewhat of an eventful first round that saw Dos Santos win thanks to his striking, the champion managed to finish off the fight in the second thanks to a big right hand that caught Mir flush on the cheek. JDS then followed up with a flurry on the ground to earn the TKO stoppage.
The win for JDS was as big for him as it was a big loss for Mir. The former champion likely won’t see another title shot anytime soon after losing his last three matches where a belt was on the line by devastating knockout.
Mir has had quite the career, but it is clear he doesn’t have the ability to contend with explosive strikers that have the ability to keep the fight standing. He has been brutally beaten by the likes of Brock Lesnar, Shane Carwin, and now Dos Santos.
In the co-main event, Cain Velasquez destroyed Antonio Silva in Silva’s UFC debut. The former heavyweight champ bloodied Silva thanks to a big elbow across the nose and he followed up with a number of strikes thereafter.
The win for Velasquez probably pushes him right back up to the No. 1 contender spot, as Dos Santos knocked him out in their meeting last November.
For complete results from UFC 146, check out the jump.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in: Events, Fighters, News, Results, UFC
Tags: Antonio Silva, Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez, Dos Santos vs. Mir, Frank Mir, Junior Dos Santos, MMA, Shane Carwin, top 10 heavyweights, UFC, UFC 146, ufc heavyweight championship, UFC heavyweights, Ultimate Fighting Championship, Velasquez vs. Silva
UFC sets Lesnar vs. Overeem for Dec. 30
Posted by Drew Ellis (09/06/2011 @ 4:48 pm)
The UFC has been big with their announcements and another big one dropped on Tuesday.
The organization released through the L.A. Times that on Dec. 30, Alistair Overeem will make his UFC debut against none other than Brock Lesnar.
Brock Lesnar will return to the UFC octagon in a five-round main event Dec. 30 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, facing newly signed former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem.
“Brock is a big name, a dangerous guy, and this is a dream matchup,” Overeem told The Times on Tuesday, just after signing a standard UFC fight contract in the office of Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta. “Brock’s a big guy, an exciting wrestler with his takedowns.
“I want to see this fight myself. Overall, I’m a different fighter. A striker, athletic, big. These are going to be two big trucks going at it on a collision course.”
This fight will be as anticipated as the Velasquez vs. dos Santos bout on Nov. 12, if not more, as Lesnar has the drawing power and Overeem was the last Strikeforce champion.
It is expected that this will be the main event of UFC 141 from Las Vegas and will take place on a Friday night, with New Year’s Eve being on a Saturday this year.
In terms of the fight, this should be explosive and very interesting. Overeem has the clear striking edge, but will he be able to fend off the explosive takedown attempts of Lesnar?
Either way, I don’t see this fight lasting too long.
Posted in: Events, Fighters, News, Strikeforce, UFC
Tags: Alistair Overeem, Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez, Dana White, heavyweight division, Junior Dos Santos, Las Vegas, Lesnar vs. Overeem, Lorenzo Fertitta, MMA heavyweights, mma matchups, strikeforce heavyweights, top 10 heavyweights, UFC 141, ufc heavyweight championship, UFC heavyweights, ufc matchups, UFC vs. Strikeforce, Ultimate Fighting Championship
