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A very impressive fight card from the O2 Arena in Dublin, Ireland over the weekend as The Ultimate Fighting Championship put on UFC 93. The main event saw Dan Henderson notch a split-decision win over Rich Franklin in a very entertaining 3 round bout. Also of note on the card was an unimpressive TKO win for Mauricio “Shogun” Rua over Mark Coleman and a second round submission loss for Canadian Denis Kang at the hands of Alan Belcher.
Lets start with the main event, where Dan Henderson did just a little bit more than Rich Franklin in a 205 pound war. For Henderson, I thought he executed an almost perfect gameplan. He looked more than comfortable standing and striking with Franklin, and was content to take the fight to the ground whenever Rich started to land any dangerous strikes. It was Hendo’s dominating ground game that won him this fight. At no point did Henderson relinquish top position and he was actually able to land some effective punches and elbows while in Franklin’s guard. One judge scored the bout 30-27 in favor of Franklin, which was ridiculous…the other 2 had it 29-28 Henderson, which is how I had it scored as well.
Next up for Henderson is a middleweight bout with the UK’s Michael Bisping, a fight that could move the winner into the defacto “Number 1 Contender” slot at 185 pounds. Before the 2 square off inside The Octagon, they’ll be put to the test in the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter. The 9th season will not only be a coach vs. coach scenario, it’ll also be run on the premise of Great Britain vs. The United States. It’s another new wrinkle to the show which some believe is getting stale…I am not one of those, I thought this past season was very engaging with a lot of likeable personalities and some damn good fighters.
As for Rich Franklin, the future is a little less clear. The fight with Henderson was years in the making and was talked about when they were both at the top of the middleweight division. But in my estimation, Franklin no longer has any value at 185 pounds…he’s beat everyone not named Anderson Silva. So who does he fight next at light heavyweight? Well, names like Jackson, Liddell, Rua, and Jardine are out of the equation (details in the next few paragraphs). The matchup I’d like to see is with Forrest Griffin no question. They both have really affable personalities and are both extremely skilled, and extremely popular, fighters needing a win to get back on track towards the strap.
The other main event wasn’t what I called a classic. In spite of himself in many ways, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua took a 3rd round TKO win over Mark “The Hammer” Coleman. It was a fight where neither guy had any sort of cardio to speak of…the 44 year old Coleman was noticeable gassed by the end of the opening round, while Shogun’s cardio failed him midway through the 2nd round. Coleman plodded and limped his way through the fight, showing great heart, and that’s about it. There were times when he was hard to watch, as he was so painfully tired and not prepared for the test…it could have been the age difference, the 25 pound cut, or something else. What it wasn’t was impressive. Almost more annoying was Rua’s inability to finish. Shogun was also gassed and could not finish from the ground, including a painfully boring attempt at an oma plata shoulder lock in the 2nd round. He finally finished the fight with an uppercut and a few follow up shots late in the 3rd round…but in Rua’s 2nd UFC fight, he certainly did not look like a guy who had been talked about as the top 205 pounder in the world. Shogun will now fight Chuck Liddell at UFC 97 on April 18th in Montreal.
Speaking of Canada, Vancouver’s Denis Kang made a very impressive, yet unsuccessful, UFC debut with a 2nd round loss to Alan Belcher. Kang got caught in a guillotine choke with an arm in and was forced to tap. Credit Belcher for catching Kang, but I really believe Kang showed enough to keep him in the mix among the top middleweights in the promotion. The entire opening round was dominated by the Canadian, as he landed combination after combination, showing some of the most devestating punches to the body I’ve ever seen. His leg kicks were very good, and he showed some great ground and pound as well. It’s too bad he was unable to come away with the victory, but once again, I came away very impressed by one of Canada’s best MMA exports.
Rounding out my thoughts, I was fairly impressed with the opening bout of Marcus Davis and Chris Lytle. It lived up to the bill of being a strictly standup fight…in fact, in the leadup, Davis said the first guy to attempt a takedown “was a pussy.” No pussy’s here, as neither tried to take the fight to the ground. Instead, Davis used his boxing background to work his superior standup and pick Lytle apart. I was also very impressed with Rousimar Palhares as he took a unanimous decision over Jeremy Horn. Palhares dominated on the feet and took Horn down at will, including some devestating slams.
On top of the Liddell-Rua announcement for UFC 97 in Montreal (which also features Anderson Silva), the UFC also confirmed the headliner for UFC 96. The March 7th card in Columbus will be headlined by a light heavyweight battle between Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Keith Jardine. Lots of praise for the hot crowd in Dublin as well, as UFC President Dana White said “pound for pound, probably one of the best arenas and best crowds we’ve ever been to.” And don’t forget, they’re back home for UFC 94 on January 31st with GSP taking on BJ Penn at 170. Like I’m not excited out of my mind for that.
Well, pat. I’m not as ecstatic with the Henderson/Franklin match as you are. I guess I’m a little perplexed by the whole ‘finger in the eye’ thing that Franklin had to deal with. More specifically, I’m wondering if fighting with the fingers open is allowed. If we use this fight as an example, then I guess it is. I thought it was a major factor in the outcome of the fight. The incident where Henderson caught Franklin in the eye with a finger wasn’t the only time Henderson had his hands open when moving into a striking position. He constantly had his hands open. Maybe this isn’t against the rules, but it certainly had an affect on the fight.
- DarrenJust me again, Pat. Just wanted to know what the UFC and White sees in Michael Bisping? I don’t see it, sorry. He got away with at least one fight (maybe two) in his home country with homie judges that he obviously lost to Matt Hamill.
Let me re-phrase my earlier comment Pat. I feel that the poke in the eye was inevitable because of the style of Henderson’s attacks (hands open). I didn’t mean that the actual poke affected the outcome as I think the fight was already going Henderson’s way.
PS: Hey Darren, I’ll respond to both comments here. First, on the Henderson-Franklin fight, I agree with you in terms of the open handed jabs. The UFC has got to do something to get rid of those, because we’ve seen it now in 2 instances, this one, and the Anthony Johnson-Kevin Burns fight a few months ago. They’re dangerous, and I think eventually they’ll be cracked down upon. However, yeah, the fight had already gone to Hendo I thought…he’d done more damage and controlled more of the fight. I still thought it was really good.
As for Bisping, yeah, I can see what you’re saying. The Hamill fight could be called hometown judging, and I think in a lot of ways, he’s not at that top level yet. I think he’s got a lot of potential…he’s got a great chin, he’s very quick, and has lots of punching power. I think his lack of seasoning will be exposed in the cage with Henderson though, I think Bisping is a ways away from being an elite fighter, at least in my eyes.
- DarrenHey Pat – mediocre card on Saturday. I enjoyed it nonetheless – it was a fight.
I thought Henderson’s ground and pound was impressive, but I credit Ace as well for showing some heart in that 3rd round. His striking game was nice. I think both fighters had good gameplans – although Hendo was the better fighter obviously.
The Rua-Coleman fight was horrible. Both fighters obviously ran out of gas and those lazy takedown attempts and wild punches throughout the 2nd and 3rd rounds, were terrible. I expected ALOT more from a HOF’er and one of the best pound-for-pound. Coleman was actually winning the 3rd round before the combo. And what’s even scarier is, if it wasn’t for that incorrect forced stand-up – who knows what the cards would’ve said but, Coleman may have even won. Shogun needs to go back to the drawing board. That’s now back-to-back fights where he looked less than impressive and was gassed. Do you recall any of the rumors about Rua juicing during his days in Pride?! It might explain his 2 UFC bouts and softer physique. UFC’s loaded 205pound division doesn’t have room for a fighter who needs to rebuild. Scary thought but the Liddell fight is do or die – potentially for both fighters. I’d hate to see one of them on the street.
I loved seeing Kang. He was controlling that fight. His stand up and takedowns were crisp throughout the entire fight until he just got caught, plain and simple. But you’re right – he’s someone to lookout for. I thought Belcher’s comments post-fight were ridiculous. He called himself UFC’s top dog and mentioned even title shots. WTF?! Bite your tongue, son!
Let’s talk Rousimar Palhares. Wow, impressive. He broke his hand in the 1st round and STILL pulled out a win. His jiu-jitsu was flawless. If he improves his stand-up he could easily contend and make some moves in the 185 pound division. No one will outstrike Anderson, it’ll take someone with superior ground game to submit him – possibly a contender in Rousimar Palhares. Brazilian Top Team DOES NOT neglect the stand-up game – if that part improves for Palhares, there’s no telling how far he goes. I loved him. Pat, maybe you can answer this but why was Palhares so emotional during his entrance? Not sure if you caught that or not.
I enjoyed the Lytle-Davis bout. Davis’ defensive gameplan and counter-punches were great. His technique was impressive. Their little ‘pact’ to have the fight remain stand-up was stupid. I saw plenty of opportunities where Lytle could shoot and he didnt take them. He probably could have earned points with those – maybe enough for a win.
Anyways, this week Fedor. Following week BJ. I’m smiling cheek to cheek.
PS: Whoo, Ty, way to make me work here! Yeah, I agree, Hendo was the better fighter on this night, but Rich did show some solid chops. Had Franklin been able to keep that standing, and I think he could have utilizing his circling a little better, I think we would have seen a different result to be honest.
The fact that Coleman could have won that fight is ridiculous, but it’s true! I couldn’t believe how terrible both looked, but at least you’re not totally surprised coming from a 44 year old Coleman. From Rua, the guy who was supposedly the best in his weight class in the world, showing that? I never heard any juicing rumours from Shogun, and to be honest, I think his poor performances have been more of a factor of him just not training as hard as he needs to. He said he was in great shape heading in, but then he gasses in the second round. I really believe the Liddell fight is do or die for Shogun, for Chuck, well, he’s a draw, so he can keep coming back. At least we know that one will be a standup heavy battle.
Man, I thought Belcher was being a little ridiculous post fight as well. You got worked for the entire fight and won as much because of a mistake from the other fighter. I bet Kang wins 9 times out 10 in a fight between those 2. Belcher is as close to a title shot as I am, although I would never say these things to his face, because he would quickly dispatch of me with his eyes closed. I think Kang knows he made a mistake which makes him even more dangerous for fights to come. I’m very, very excited to see what’s next for him.
Palhares looked much improved from his last fight against Hendo. His BJJ is top notch, no question, and I am almost a little disappointed he broke his hand so early, because we didn’t really get a fair representation of how far his standup game has come. But I agree, he looks really scary…how good would a Kang-Palhares bout be right about now? I caught him tearing up in his entrance…Joe Rogan basically said he always does this because he’s so overcome with emotion to be fighting in the UFC.
The Davis fight was good…I thought the pact was a little weak too, but they wanted to entertain. Davis is as good a striker as we’ll see in this sport, very interesting to see what he does next and who he fights next.
I’ve got my Affliction coming on Friday…and hopefully am talking to GSP next week, and looks like I might get a chance to talk with Stephan Bonnar as well, so stay tuned!
- Ty