By Joe Ferraro
After his come from behind submission victory over Shane Carwin at UFC 116, UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar is still making news, be it in the rankings, his performance and his evolution as a fighter. The same can be said for Fedor Emelianenko, who is apparently at a cross roads with current employer, Strikeforce.
Lesnar now sits atop most heavyweight rankings list; and I agree. His bout this past weekend, answered a variety of questions, most of which I thought were the complete opposite.
It’s now safe to say that the champ can take a punch. While no one has ever survived a Shane Carwin onslaught, Lesnar did, and was able to recover from losing the first round 10-8, to submitting the number one contender in the following round. While Brock did not show much in the way of technical striking offence or defense, he did keep his wits about him while lying on his back. As Carwin punched himself out, using Lesnar’s face for target practice, the champ was still able to cover up, use his legs to keep Carwin at bay, use his left arm on the challenger’s right bicep to prevent more punches, while also using his right hand to push Shane’s face away, creating distance.
While most may not describe that has technical defense, it is. What’s also important to note is that Lesnar showcased the heart of a champion. You’ve seen this in guys like Randy Couture, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and Anderson Silva - no matter how much abuse they may be taking, do not count them out. They will someway, somehow, find a way to win.
Up next for the champ is Cain Velasquez. Rumour had it that they would likely square off in the main event at UFC 119, but that has now been granted to a long anticipated rematch between Nogueira and Frank Mir.
While most are stating that Velasquez’s wrestling is better than Carwin’s and will more of a tougher test for Lesnar, I sort of disagree. Where this challenger excels over the champion is in the striking realm. This is where I believe Cain has the best chance at winning. Like George St-Pierre and Rashad Evans have proven lately, why bother taking the fight to where their opponent is strongest? Take them to where they are the weakest, and against Lesnar, that is standing. Use wrestling and ground and pound as “Plan B”…”Plan A” should be to stick and move and punish Lesnar with his fists.
As for Lesnar - he shouldn’t change a thing; just work on improving his striking, cause right now, I still believe he is “the baddest man on the planet”.
That tag was what many of us would use to describe Fedor.
As it stands today, “The Last Emperor’s” management team are continuing to jockey for a rematch with Fabricio Werdum. Strikeforce apparently disagrees, opting to try and convince Fedor and his people to fight Heavyweight Champion, Alistair Overeem. Seems strange, to once again offer a losing fighter a crack at the champion, but there is some method behind their madness.
While Brett Rogers getting a title shot vs Overeem was a strange match-up, from a Strikeforce business perspective, giving Fedor a crack at the champ is not.
What they are trying to do is offer him the chance at being the champion, only if he signs the “champion clause” in a new contract, which would lock him with the organization, likely for three straight fights. Fedor has one more fight left on the contract, and if they grant him a rematch vs Werdum, and he wins, his stock value will once again rise, and there is no guarantee he will resign with them. He may opt to sign with the UFC, with Strikeforce losing their biggest star.
If he accepts the title fight and signs the “champions clause”, he is locked in for the foreseeable future, likely until he retires, whether he wins or not. Who knows what the final outcome will be, but I cannot see Strikeforce making the same mistake they made with Jake Shields - a champion being released, as there was no clause, contracting him to stay with the organization.
On a side note, while UFC President Dana White told MMA Connected that he has no interest in signing Fedor, a losing fighter, to the UFC, should the Russian’s stock rises again, White will likely change his public tune. Case and point is when Yahoo’s Kevin Iole told Cagewriter’s Steve Cofield that White was planning a Lesnar vs Fedor showdown at Cowboy Stadium in Texas. A monstrous fight in a monster of a venue. That translates to big bucks for the UFC, and that’s what being in business is all about - making money.
Misc News and Notes
- While Shane Carwin tweeted that one of the reasons he lost to Lesnar was a condition called “lactic acidosis”, a condition which simply means his muscles were unable to replenish themselves with oxygen, as he was not breathing properly while ground and pounding Lesnar, he did make it clear that he takes nothing away from the champ (or referee Josh Rosenthal), for losing the bout. He has vowed to return, stronger than ever.
- With UFC Light heavyweight champion Mauricio Shogun Rua out until March 2011, there is now talk of an interim title fight between Rashad Evans and Lyoto Machida. While it’s a stellar rematch, it should be for the right to fight Shogun, and not for an interim title, which I believe should only be uses for extreme circumstances. On a side note, “The Dragon’s”, Yoshizo Machida, believes his son should retire.
- UFC 119: Nogueira vs Mir II will be taking place on Saturday, September 25th, at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind, and may also feature Lil Nog vs Ryan Bader, Sean Sherk vs Evan Dunham, Melvin Guillard vs. Jeremy Stephens, Joey Beltran vs. Matt Mitrione, former Pride veteran Mark Hunt vs Sean McCorkle, Winnipeg’s Joe Doerkson vs. C.B. Dollaway, as well Cole Harbour’s TJ Grant taking on Julio Paulino.
- UFC 120, expected to take place at The O2 Arena in London, England on Saturday, October 16th, is expected to see a main event between Michael Bisping and Vitor Belfort. Other rumoured fights include Carlos Condit vs. Dan Hardy, Cheick Kongo vs Travis Browne, John Hathaway vs. Dong Hyun Kim (WOW), Spencer Fisher vs. Kurt Warburton, Cyrille Diabate vs. Alexander Gustafsson, Rob Broughton vs. Chute Boxe’s Vinicius Kappke de Quieroz as well as the octagon debut of undefeated heavyweight Paul Sass.
- Strikeforce: Houston was announced for Saturday August 21st, and will take place at the Toyota Centre in Texas. Rumoured bouts include light heavyweight champ Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal vs. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante, Tim Kennedy vs. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (for vacant middleweight title), Sergei Kharnitov vs Antonio “Big Foot” Silva, lightweight K.J. Noons vs. Jorge Gurgel (rumoured to now be dating Bellator’s Zoila Frausto) as well as the debut of Erin Toughill, who will likely be showcased for a future bout vs champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos.
- Speaking of Bellator, season three starts on August 12th at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, with show number 24, while event #25 will see the organization return to the Chicago Theater on Aug 19, 2010, featuring round one of the heavyweight tournament, as Damian Grabowski takes on Scott Barrett while the opening round of the 115 pound female tourney will see the aforementioned Zoila Frausto vs Jessica Pene, while Aisling Daly will take on Lisa Ward.
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