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[Boogie]

Here we go again.

Time to put a cap on an exciting year of mixed martial arts with a pair of exciting events. (Okay, one awesome event, and one event full of bizarre matchups).

A reminder to spoiler tag any talk of the Pride results until the event has aired in North America on Jan. 2. Don’t bother spoiler-tagging K-1 results, since it isn’t airing in N.A.

I’ll start with Pride:

Anderson Silva (12-2) vs. Ryo Chonan (7-4)

Both events have a lot of fighters that I’m not very familiar with, and Chonan is one such fighter. He has wins over Hayato Sakurai, and Carlos Newton. Anderson Silva, however, is one of the fighters who could probably lay claim to the title of #1 in the 185-pound division. He’s almost definitely the best striker at that weight, and he’s fairly slick on the ground as well. I predict that Silva will win this fight by TKO in round 3.

Yoji Anjo (0-4-1) vs. Ryan Gracie (4-2)

Okay, I never said that EVERY matchup in this event was stellar. Anjo’s record speaks for itself. Gracie by submission, round 1.

Paulo “Giant” Silva (1-3) vs. Mu Bae Choi (4-0)

It’s hard not to like Silva because of his pleasant personality. However, he has minimal skill and does not belong in Pride. I was really disappointed that Choi’s fight last Pride wasn’t broadcast, but he’s been fairly impressive thus far. I pick Choi by submission, round 1.

Stefan Leko (0-1) vs. Ikuhisa Minowa (26-20-8)

We’ll get to the good matchups soon, I promise. Let’s see, Leko is a K-1 fighter, whose MMA debut may have been a work. Minowa is over 40 pounds lighter than Leko. Oh yeah, and the betting websites aren’t putting up odds on this fight. Minowa by submission in a fishy fight.

Makoto Takimoto (0-0) vs. Henry “Sentoryu” Miller (1-1)

Takimoto is an MMA newbie, but is an Olympic gold medallist in Judo. Miller is another minimal-skilled fighter like Giant Silva. Takimoto by submission, round 1.

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (13-2-2) vs. Kevin Randleman (15-9)

Ah, here we go. The rematch of the year’s biggest upset. (Okay, maybe second biggest next to Hughes-Penn). Was Randleman’s knockout a fluke? Again, I believe that Filipovic shoud win. My head and heart says that he should. He is the best striker in MMA, his takedown defence is amazing, and he has been improving his ground skills with top-notch trainers.

Randleman, however, is an enigma. He has lightning quick reflexes, heavy hands, and amazing takedowns. But he is such a hot and cold fighter. After knocking out Cro Cop, he turns around and loses to Ron Waterman. Mirko has the skills to beat Randleman. He should be able to outstrike him, his takedown defence should be good enough to keep the fight on the fight long enough, and his ground skills have been improving enough that he should be able to defend well if Randleman gets a takedown. But Mirko has to fight smart, and be more aggressive with punches and low kicks. I will be cheering for Mirko, but will be nervous all the way until he manages to connect with his home run kick. Mirko by KO, round 1.

Takanori Gomi (17-2) vs. Jens Pulver (18-4-1)

Pride has announced that they are going to create a lightweight division, and this is an awesome match to help usher it in. Pulver has had amazing success recently in the 145 pound division, so going back up to 155 means he could have problems with Gomi having a size advantage over him. Both of these fighters are amazing, but I do think that Pulver has the tools to beat Gomi. Pulver has developed an excellent striking game, and I think that he has the wrestling skills to keep the fight standing where he should have the advantage, but it is by no means a sure thing. Pulver by decision.

Dan Henderson (15-3) vs. Yuki Kondo (43-14-5)

Here’s another matchup that promises tons of excitement. Henderson has heavy punches,
awesome wrestling and submission defence, while Kondo is a dangerous striker himself, with solid submission skills. I see tons of action both standing and on the ground, with Henderson eventually going for the takedown and winning by TKO in round 3.

Wanderlei Silva (27-3-1) vs. Mark Hunt? (1-1. 16-7 Kickboxing)

Well, this is good news. Sakuraba is injured, and (thankfully) cannot fight Silva. So instead, we get this interesting matchup. Silva’s style is devoted to beating people in the stand-up game. But Mark Hunt is a K-1 Grand Prix champion who has never been KO’d and known for his solid chin. Plus he’ll be 30-40 pounds heavier than Silva. So where does that leave us? Well, for starters, Silva has at least been training for a fight, while Hunt may not have been. However, Silva has been training for a smaller opponent who he has been able to beat standing up. He now has to come up with a different gameplan for Mark Hunt. Also, Silva has faced K-1 stars before. He fought Cro Cop under special rules in 2002, and fared very well. And Silva is a BJJ black belt, even though he rarely needs or chooses to show those skills.

I believe that Silva will win. He will be aggressive in the standup to put Hunt off balance, and will eventually get a takedown, where he will either work his vicious stomps and soccer kicks, or pull off a submission. I’ll say Silva by submission, round 3.

Hidehiko Yoshida (4-1-1) vs. Rulon Gardner (0-0)

Yet another MMA newbie and gold medallist. Rulon Gardner won the Olympic gold medal in
2000, beating wrestling legend Karelin. He has been training with Dan Henderson for the last three months to get ready, but is three months enough to adapt to MMA? I have my doubts. He will have a considerable size advantage over Yoshida, however. His best strategy may be to use his wrestling skills to keep the fight standing and beat Yoshida with punches. I have to believe, though, with Yoshida’s greater experience that he will manage to get the fight on the ground at some point and apply a submission. Yoshida by sub, round 3.

Pride Heavyweight Championship, Grand Prix Championship, “This one’s for all the marbles” bout:

Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira (24-2-1) vs. “Darth” Fedor Emelianenko (19-1)

All right, let’s do this again. I felt so cheated in August when Fedor got cut on his forehead. Now we get to see it again, and I will be praying for no freak cuts or cheap endings. I really hope that Fedor’s forehead is all healed up so that he doesn’t get cut again.

These are the best two fighters in the world. Period. Even though Cro Cop may have a chance against both of them, right now, they are the best. The only question is, how closely matched they are. As far as their second fight went, Nogueira had shown a lot of improvement in
defending against Fedor’s attacks from guard, and was far more aggressive with his submission attempts. Nonetheless, I still feel that Fedor was winning the fight when it was stopped. I said in an earlier thread that I felt they were closely matched so that if they fought 100 times, Fedor would win 70, Nog would win 30, and for now I stand by that statement. Nonetheless, I believe that Fedor is better and that he will win, by decision.

I’m also going to do a quick run down of the K-1 event, though I’m not really impressed by it and haven’t been following its development.

 

[Boogie]

K-1 Dynomite:

Kickboxing rules fights:

Masato (18-2-1) vs. Norifumi “Kid” Yamomoto (1-0)

Kid is an MMA fighter (and, from all accounts, a total jackass in the ring), while Masato is one of the top 3 kickboxers at his weight in the world. In a kickboxing match, Masato wins.

Ray Sefo (23-12-1) vs. Gary Goodridge (4-7-1)

Sefo wins via better technique over the brawler Goodridge.

Musashi (36-18-5) vs. Sean O’Haire (0-0)

Musashi wins over the pro wrestler and MMA fighter O’Haire.

MMA rules fights:

Yoshihiro Akiyama (0-0) vs. Francois Botha (0-0, 2-6 kickboxing, I don’t know his pro boxing record)

I don’t know who Akiyama is. He’s some Japanese Judo guy. But he doesn’t have an MMA
record. Neither does Botha. In a reversal of the normal striker vs. grappler results, I say Botha takes it by KO.

Cyril Abidi (0-0, 15-13 kickboxing) vs. Bobby Ologun (0-0)

Who’s Bobby Ologun? Apparently he’s just some random Japanese celebrity. Abidi by I-don’t-give-a-damn.

Bob Sapp (5-2, 7-4 kickboxing) vs. Jerome Le Banner (0-1, 32-10-1 kickboxing)

In this freak show of a bout, the rules alternate between MMA and Kickboxing every round. LeBanner by KO, unless his arm gets messed up yet again, which it probably will.

Caol Uno (15-6-4) vs. Chandet Sorpantrey (0-0)

I don’t know who the hell Sorpantrey is. Sherdog.com says that he’s an accomplished Muay Thai fighter. I say Uno by sub, round 1.

Don Frye (14-4) vs. Yoshihiro Nakao (2-0)

I think Frye’s getting too old for the game. Nakao by TKO.

Kazuyuki Fujita (9-4) vs. Karam Ibrahim (0-0)

Ibrahim is another Olympic gold medallist wrestler that they’re dragging out to face an MMA veteran. Fujita by TKO.

Royce Gracie (12-2-2) vs. Akebono (0-0)

And to cap off this bizarre card, we have Royce Gracie versus ex-sumo star Akebono. Royce by submission, probably a RNC in round 3 after running around the ring in circles to tire Akebono out and have him trip to get the fight to the ground.


Looking over those K-1 matchups, I realize that there is not a single serious, compelling matchup in the entire event. Pride has K-1 thumped in this year’s New Year’s battle already. K-1's card is downright embarrassing in comparison.

 

[EviLore]

Yeah, the final Pride matches are going to be pretty incredible.

-Fedor/Nog 2. Fedor has a crushing spirit and amazing survivability. Randleman's SLAM? Fujita's RIGHT FIST? Crazy. Nog I haven't seen too much of, but he looks very complete, physically and technically refined. This'll be a great battle, but I'll give it to Fedor.

-Silva/Hunt. Already said what I wanted to say in the other MMA thread today. Silva obviously has more versatility and MMA experience. Hunt may be a tank but Wandy's a rack of hellfires. And I gotta use the picture again.

-Crocop/Randleman. Crocop by 1080º flying left high kick. Randleman's shown some damned impressive feats lately, but I don't think Mirko will be making the same mistakes.

-Yoshida/Gardner. Haven't seen any wrestling footage from the American. Yoshida's MMA experience should come through for the win, unless he gets scared and turtles up for ten minutes (*cough*).

Ryan Gracie, Royce Gracie....you aren't helping your family name by taking retarded fights.

 

[Vinzer Deling]

Anderson Silva (12-2) vs. Ryo Chonan (7-4)

Yoji Anjo (0-4-1) vs. Ryan Gracie (4-2)

Paulo “Giant” Silva (1-3) vs. Mu Bae Choi (4-0)

Stefan Leko (0-1) vs. Ikuhisa Minowa (26-20-8)

Makoto Takimoto (0-0) vs. Henry “Sentoryu” Miller (1-1)

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (13-2-2) vs. Kevin Randleman (15-9)

Takanori Gomi (17-2) vs. Jens Pulver (18-4-1)

Dan Henderson (15-3) vs. Yuki Kondo (43-14-5)

Wanderlei Silva (27-3-1) vs. Mark Hunt? (1-1. 16-7 Kickboxing)

Hidehiko Yoshida (4-1-1) vs. Rulon Gardner (0-0)

Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira (24-2-1) vs. Fedor Emelianenko (19-1)

 

[Boogie]

Silva Claus ROCKS.

 

[Minotauro]

Here are my thoughts on the Pride event (with official odds included):



user posted image
Fedor is ready - are YOU?

Put your nonexistant money where your yammering fingers are, tough guys!

Some would say that a final Prognostication Battle for 2004 would be a pointless affair in ligh tof Tom Hackett's year-long dominance. To those fatalists, I retort HACKETT IS A DORK!

So welcome back to our PRIDE Wagering Battle, where a little luck and some bold betting make all the difference. Unlike our more traditional Prognostication Contests where every fight is counted as being equivalent to every other, in the DVDVR PRIDE Wagering Battle, YOU determine which fights are important and how much of your bulbous keester you're willing to put on the line to prove it!

The rules are simple:

- Each member receives a hypothetical $1500. Canadian members may request the USD equivalent of $1500 Canadian ($75) if they wish.

- Using the current line from Sportsbook.com, each entrant wagers on at least 5 of the 9 listed fights that evening. I'm upset about Giant Silva getting the shaft too, but I will endure.

- Any amount greater than $100 can be wagered on a given fight. I would prefer round numbers for tabulation purposes, but I'm not the boss of you.

- Odds change over time, so list your current odds for each wager.

- You can hold off on the Wanderlei Silva match until an official opponent is announced. In the event that Wanderlei doesn't fight, I'll post odds on the 'missing' fights from another sportsbook and you can pick from those.

- The prize? Don't sweat it. Mike has your hookup.

Current odds:

Fedor Emelianenko -160
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira +130

Whatever happens, I just hope that it's a decisive conclusion. Another ending like the one in their last fight would be really, really disappointing for everyone involved. Personally, I think Nog is going to hand Fedor his first loss in his MMA career (ignoring that flukey fight with TK). Until now, Fedor has looked pretty much invincible but I thought Nog looked good in their last fight. Despite ending rather quickly, he looked really agressive on the ground. I really don't think he wants to eat anymore of Fedor's punches from the guard. Plus, he seems extremely motivated to prove that he's the top MMA fighter in the world. I'm not completely dismissing Fedor by any stretch and in fact he'll probably take it but I wouldn't be surprised to see Nog victory here. Nog by submission round 3.

Hidehiko Yoshida -260
Rulon Gardner +200

This is a very, very interesting fight and it's another one where I think an upset could occur. Sure, Yoshida is a world class submission guy and he definitely has the experience but I just can't see him taking Gardner down due to the size difference. Unless he somehow pulls off an armbar or a triangle choke from the bottom which is certainly possible, I don't see Yoshida finishing this fight. I also think Rulon's training sessions with Team Quest and Couture subsequently claiming that Rulon could be a heavyweight champion in a year says a lot. Sure, Couture could just be blowing smoke but he's fairly trustworthy and he definitely knows his shit. Gardner by TKO round 2 (or decision).

Mikro Filipovic -450
Kevin Randleman +300

While stranger things have happened (shit, they already did), Randleman should not beat Cro-Cop...especially this time. Cro-Cop is going to come into this one looking to prove the naysayers wrong and I think he's going to do just that. Then again, Randleman could be in his head and this point so it could really go either way. That said, I'm going with Cro-Cop round 1 KO and Randleman's head ending up in the fifth row.

Silva -260
Hunt +200 ($200)

Another one that could go either way. As others have said, Hunt is tough-as-nails and hits hard. Then again, Wanderlei is Wanderlei. If Silva respects Hunt like he should, I think we're going to see a more cautious version of him come fight time much like in his meeting with Cro-Cop. Either way, it should be a really exciting fight and really a no-lose situation for either fighter based upon the short time frame, Hunt's size, and Silva's stature. Silva by submission round 2.

Dan Henderson -325
Yuki Kondo +250

Another fantastic fight on paper. Kondo will be looking to bounce back after being stomped into the canvas by Silva a few months back and Hendo will be looking continue his pursuit of the middleweight title. Unless one of them gets in trouble, I don't see this one going to the ground. It should be excellent either way. Henderson by decision.

Ryan Gracie -800
Yoji Anjoh +500

Ryan Gracie by submission round 1. Anything else will be an [extra] embarrassment to the Gracie name.

Anderson Silva -325
Ryo Chonan +250

This should be another war. Silva has been a real tear as of late with wins of Lee Murray and Jeremy Horn. He will most likely continue his streak here but I wouldn't be too terribly surprised to see a Ryo Chonan upset. He looked real sharp against Carlos Newton but then again, Newton hasn't really been himself lately and was dispatched by Silva in 2003 in a more convincing fashion. Anderson Silva by decision.

Jens Pulver -125
Takanori Gomi -105

I've only seen a couple Jens Pulver fights (WEF events) and honestly wasn't that impressed with either. He does have an impressive record and a strong reputation though so I could be wrong. On the other hand, I've been very impressed with Gomi in his recent Bushido fights. After back-to-back losses in 2003, he's really stepped it up in 2004 with a few dominant TKO victories. He seems to be the guy that DSE wants to build their lightweight division around and I don't see Jens compromising this. Gomi by TKO round 2.

Makoto Takimoto -285
Henry Miller +225

As unimpressive as Miller was in his first fight with Giant Silva, I thought he looked much, much better in his second fight however brief it was at the last Bushido show. His punches look powerful and they were able to find their mark. I know next to nothing about Takimoto except that he's a judo guy so he'll most likely want to take this to the ground. I really think Sentoryu's sumo experience and the balance that goes along with it will serve him well in this fight. Miller TKO round 1.


Even though I won't have any way of seeing it for a few weeks, I'm fairly interested in the K-1 show. As a wrestling fan, I'm curious to see whether O'Haire can continue his success and Royce/Akebono should be interesting in a freakshow-kinda way. Overall though, the K-1 card is nowhere near as awesome as the Pride show. On paper, it really seems like the best MMA show of all time. The fact that K-1 will beat Pride in ratings in Japan is really mind-boggling to me. The fact that Japanese audiences would choose Royce/Akebono and Sapp/LeBanner over Nogueira/Fedor and Garnder/Yoshida is really quite depressing. Oh, well, at least I'll enjoy it.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

Anderson Silva (12-2) vs. Ryo Chonan (7-4)

I wish I could write more about this match up, but I don't know enough about either fighter. I know Anderson Silva better though, and he's said to be the striker in his division. So...

Anderson Silva by KO rd2

Yoji Anjo (0-4-1) vs. Ryan Gracie (4-2)

What a sucky fight. Anjo is most famous for getting his shit wrecked by Rickson Gracie in a closed door match 2000 years ago, and Ryan "blue tape" Gracie is a bully in the ring who I don't enjoy watching.

Gracie by KO rd 1

Paulo “Giant” Silva (1-3) vs. Mu Bae Choi (4-0)

Augh, this fight sucks too. I kinda like both guys, but this is pretty much a joke. That boy choi became famous for taking a bunch of punches in his last fight, and Giant Silva is well...Giant Silva.

Choi by sub rd 1, I'm guess RNC or mounted punches.

Stefan Leko (0-1) vs. Ikuhisa Minowa (26-20-8)

Man, I don't even know what to think about this one. I'll say...

Minowa by sub rd1.

Makoto Takimoto (0-0) vs. Henry “Sentoryu” Miller (1-1)

Takimoto sub rd1

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (13-2-2) vs. Kevin Randleman (15-9)

Hard one to pick. No one gave Randleman a chance in his last match, and its still hard for most to pick him in this one. People bring up his mixed performances, which is definitely valid. However, Crocop could use some of that criticism too. I think he relies way to much on his high kick, and I thought he had learned his lesson after seeing him fight Fedor's brother. That was his best performance IMO. However, he goes right back to predicatable mode throwing the left high kick in the first minute of the fight and falling in his ass in his last fight. WTF Mirko?

Kevin is a favorite of mine because when he's on, and he's fucking great. Supe powerful, explosive as hell. He lost to Waterman, but their styles are so similar that it wasn't surprising the bigger Waterman would take it. What I'm wondering is Kevin still hungry? Does he want to prove himself fo rthis one, because I know Mirko does.

Mirko by Highkick rd1

Takanori Gomi (17-2) vs. Jens Pulver (18-4-1)

Another great fight. Both are two of the best at the lower weights. I'm going to say Jens wins this one, but not in a dominant fashion. Keep in mind he does have the striking ability to end it though. But, Gomi is good and smart, so I'll say...

Jens by decision

Dan Henderson (15-3) vs. Yuki Kondo (43-14-5)

I so want Kondo to win this one by motherfuggin flying knee. It was hard as hell watching him get face stomped by Silva, and I would really like to see him win this. Hendo can probably nullify most of Kondo's offense with his wrestling, but I don't think he should get into a striking matchup with Kondo. As much as I like Kondo, I don't think he takes this one as Hendo is one tough motherfucking nut to crack. I'm going to say...

Henderson by UD

Wanderlei Silva (27-3-1) vs. Mark Hunt? (1-1. 16-7 Kickboxing)

Fight of the night!!!! Only thing that would have made me happier is Igor VS Silva. I've already spoken about my thoughts in deppth, but this fight deserves even mo'!

Silva is a great champion. People bag on him because he has allot of lower names on his record, and that is valid. However, he's proven he is one of the most brutal finishers in MMA, a well rounded fighter, good recuperative skills, and has some of the best intensity we have ever seen.

Hunt is a former K-1 champion, known for one of the best chins we have seen in recent kickboxing history. He's also known for his punching power and overall toughness. He lost to Yoshida, but had a fair showing, and then went to KO Bobish after being smothered most of the match.

Silva weighed in at 214 and Hunt weighed in at 270, guys. That's a hell of allot of weight. Can Silva beat Hunt via sub? I don't see it happening, even though Silva has come close in some of his fights. Hunt proved hard to sub for Yoshida. Can Silva take Hunt down? It'll be hard for him, and I expect him to eat some punches while he tries to do it. Hunt is inexperienced, but is a terrible matchup for Wanderlei. He will hit Wandy, and when he does it will be much harder then Wanderlei is used to. I doubt Hunt will be intimidated by him if he's taken the best guys like Sefo and Lebanner have dished out to his face.

Silva proved he could go to a draw with Crocop when Crocop was a newbie, but I don't see Hunt as being as tenative as Crocop in this fight. This is a great fight, fellahs. Then there's the whole training time and who for aspect that even throws this fight more for me. But, I have to go with the rsounding thought in my head...

Hunt by undefeated reign ending KO Rd1

Hidehiko Yoshida (4-1-1) vs. Rulon Gardner (0-0)

I'm actually very excited to see this fight. Gardner may look like a tub, but he's known for his conditioning and immense strength. I saw him fight Karelin, and he didn't win on a bullshit technicality like so many say. He won by holding onto a body lock longer then Karelin could, and he deserved to beat Karelin. That victory shows he has amazing strength and will. He's also allot bigger then Yoshida. I like what Boogie says when his best bet might be to keep it standing and connect with a heavy punch, but I don't think that will happen. After the two clash withs loppy standup, it will hit the floor and Gardner will lose there. Maybe after some good grappling action though.

Yoshida by gichoke rd2

Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira (24-2-1) vs. “Darth” Fedor Emelianenko (19-1)

I honestly think Fedor is the best in the world and is Nogeira's kryptonite. Any other time I wouldn't bat an eye with saying Fedor wins this. Its just this time I feel something strange. I'm not sure how well Fedor prepared for this fight with letting his cut heal, and his somewhat disarmingly calm demanor might be throwing me off, but I think he might be taking Nog a little lightly. I'm going to say its an upset and

Nogueira by sub rd3

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

K-1 Dynomite (only the "interesting")


Masato (18-2-1) vs. Norifumi “Kid” Yamomoto (1-0)

Kid is a superb wrestler, has an amazing physique, has good striking, and arguably the best gandp we have right now p4p. He's also a fucking punk, and I hope Masato wrecks his shit.

Masato by brutal KO rd3

Ray Sefo (23-12-1) vs. Gary Goodridge (4-7-1)

Sefo KO rd2

Yoshihiro Akiyama (0-0) vs. Francois Botha (0-0, 2-6 kickboxing, I don’t know his pro boxing record)

If I'm not mistaken, Akiyama is the supposed "bad boy" of Judo who cheated in some tournament by greasing his gi. He has silver hair, kinda like Goh from VF. Botha was a sub par boxer and is now a sub par kick boxer. But, he's trying to learn and he works hard. I say...

Akiyama by sub rd1

Bob Sapp (5-2, 7-4 kickboxing) vs. Jerome Le Banner (0-1, 32-10-1 kickboxing)

This fight is stupid. I don't know how in condition either fighter is. Sapp got a Robert Deniro Goodfellahs style beatdown at the uh, feet pf Fujita and he may be messed up in the head from that. Lebanner didn't look good in the MMA fight I saw him in, and he's got injuries. I'm going to say Sapp is finished and Jerome still has something left to ko him in the first rules of their absurd match.

Lebanner KO rd1

Kazuyuki Fujita (9-4) vs. Karam Ibrahim (0-0)

The one fight I am look foward too. I expect Fujita to win this, but Ibrahim is nothing to laugh about. He was an absolute nightmare in his olympic performances, tossing his opponents like ragdolls. He is undoubtedly the better wrestler then Fujita, Greco or not. He's also been said to have been studying Jiu Jitsu and boxing since he was a teen, but that could be bullshit. Regardless of if he wins or not, if Ibrahim stays in he will be a force.

Fujita by sub rd 1

Royce Gracie (12-2-2) vs. Akebono (0-0)

Fight of the motherfucking year!!!!! In this titanic struglle of will and skill we have the primed Akebono, one of the most feared competitors to enter MMA in years. His dreaded sumo slap and yokozuna banzai drop are the thing of legend with him dominating the SF2 circuit for several years. How Royce could agree to fight a beast of this magnitude I don't know.

Sorry...I figured that would be better then the actual matchup. Actually, I'm fairly interested in this match because Royce claims he won't run away from Akebono, but will run straight at him and clinch. Akebono is morbidly obese and then some, but he's shown he has the will and the blubber to stand and take a beating. How doess Royce make him fall down?

He probably doesn't. I pick Akebono to slip or trip on some food he smuggled in during the fight. Once he's down he pulls the beached whale routine and Royce gets the RNC.

Royce Gracie by sub rd 1

 

[Biff Hardbody]

The huge story this hour is on Mark Hunt. MMAWeekly.com has learned that Hunt has been limping around on his right ankle. It's unknown how he sustained the injury, but he has been seen around Japan hobbling around. It's a sprain ankle. It looks as though he will still fight. We will try to get further updates from MMAWeekly's Scott Petersen who is attending the event live.

If Hunt loses its not that my prediction was flawed, its the ankle! The ankle I tell you!!

 

[Biff Hardbody]

bump 4 the other guys who would like this thread.

 

[Vinzer Deling]

I change my pick to Hunt... I just wanna see Silva lose. Just to see the Silva bandwagon crash and burn.

 

[Boogie]

If Hunt loses its not that my prediction was flawed, its the ankle! The ankle I tell you!!

Sure Biff, sure ;P

 

[Vinzer Deling]

Results are in.

Spoiler

Ikuhisa Minowa > Stefan Leko
Mu Bae Choi > Paulo Cesar Silva
Ryan Gracie > Yoji Anjo
Ryo Chonan > Anderson Silva
Makoto Takimoto > Henry Miller
Rulon Gardner > Hidehiko Yoshida
Mirko Filipovic > Kevin Randleman
Dan Henderson > Yuki Kondo
Takanori Gomi > Jens PulverMark
Hunt > Wanderlei SilvaFedor
Emelianenko > Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

8/11 picks, not bad.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

Just watched the fights...

Spoiler

My first thought goes to Hunt/Silva which was an excellent fight. I think this fight was a draw. I gave the first round to Silva by a hair, the second clearly to Hunt, and the third was to close to call. Silva really had balls to take this fight, and I feel bad that he lost in the way he did, even though I wanted to see Hunt win via KO. I don't have problems with them giving the win to Hunt, because I can see that case. He definitely put Wanderlei on queer street in the 2nd round, and this is the first time I can remember it seemed like Wanderlei did not want to take on his opponent standing. At the same time, Wanderlei scored many takedowns, and had fair to good control on the ground, he also bloodied Hunts face.

My favorite part of the fight would probably have to be Hunt countering Wanderlei's keylock. I don't think anyone expected him to roll out of it the way he did, and then follow it up with a nice left hook. That was badass.

Kevin/Crocop had to be one of the more unexpected results of the night. Great win for Crocop, but I don't know...feels unsatisfying because he didn't get the KO.

I haven't seen Nog/Fedor yet, and surprisingly not many people are talking about it.

Gardner is said to have manhandled Yoshida, contrpolling the takedown and ground control, and answrring back with punches of his own. Nice. I really would like to see this fight.

Gomi really taught Pulver a lesson, pro boxer or not.

Akebono didn't score the banzai drop. Kind of dissapointed about that.

 

[Boogie]

Damn those spoiler tags are tempting, but I will be strong.

Biff, could you PM me the K-1 results though? I wouldn't mind reading them, I just don't want to know the Pride results.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

You have mail.

 

[Boogie]

You have mail.

Many thanks.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

You are welcome.

 

[Asbel]

Just watched the fights...

Spoiler

My first thought goes to Hunt/Silva which was an excellent fight. I think this fight was a draw. I gave the first round to Silva by a hair, the second clearly to Hunt, and the third was to close to call. Silva really had balls to take this fight, and I feel bad that he lost in the way he did, even though I wanted to see Hunt win via KO. I don't have problems with them giving the win to Hunt, because I can see that case. He definitely put Wanderlei on queer street in the 2nd round, and this is the first time I can remember it seemed like Wanderlei did not want to take on his opponent standing. At the same time, Wanderlei scored many takedowns, and had fair to good control on the ground, he also bloodied Hunts face.

My favorite part of the fight would probably have to be Hunt countering Wanderlei's keylock. I don't think anyone expected him to roll out of it the way he did, and then follow it up with a nice left hook. That was badass.

Kevin/Crocop had to be one of the more unexpected results of the night. Great win for Crocop, but I don't know...feels unsatisfying because he didn't get the KO.

I haven't seen Nog/Fedor yet, and surprisingly not many people are talking about it.

Gardner is said to have manhandled Yoshida, contrpolling the takedown and ground control, and answrring back with punches of his own. Nice. I really would like to see this fight.

Gomi really taught Pulver a lesson, pro boxer or not.

Akebono didn't score the banzai drop. Kind of dissapointed about that.

Spoiler

Well said Biff. I'm sure Wandy will grow from this lost more than all the wins he's had that year. There were some brutal highlights and how could you not mention the giant ass dropping down on Wandy. DAMN!

Add another KO for Gomi. Pulver just looked lost. I don't know how Gomi did it but he totally beat Pulver at his game.

Fedor pretty much got the better of Nog most of the match. It was a unanimous decision. A lot more stand up than thier first bout with Fedor landing quite a few headshots and takedowns while avoiding any of Nog's sub attempts.

 

[nightez]

what the results?

:edit i got em now

 

[Vinzer Deling]

Spoiler

Kondo got robbed.... Pride must be setting up Hendo for Silva with this win, thats the only explanation why they gave him the win.

 

[EviLore]

Spoiler

Silva/Hunt - Wandy looked scared after the first few exchanges. He held his own, and I hate split decisions, but Mark landed some very heavy shots and really didn't let Wandy do much with the takedowns. Fair enough.

Crocop/Randleman was over too quickly, but Mirko saw the opportunity and took it. I'd like to see a third fight.

Fedor/Nog was a good fight, but I don't think much was really settled. They need a final battle with Royce/Saku rules ;b

Henderson/Kondo should've been a draw. Way too close to call, I think. Henderson did very well, but Kondo had some great standup combos and if the fight had continued it'd be hard to guess the outcome.

Yoshida/Gardner - Yoshida's a wash. Gardner didn't actually look great at all out there and he still controlled the action. Pretty boring fight I thought.

Gracie/Anjo - Glad that Ryan didn't get any applause at all.

 

[NLB2]

ttt
I was skiing and I missed this thread

Spoiler

But I just saw CroCop choking Randleman! How the fuck can somebody suck so much at sub defense? :lol. I can't remember the last time I've seen a fight between two skilled fighters that ended with a guillotine. But props to CroCop. That was a great choke.

And I'm dissapointed that Royce didn't win by flying armbar as I had predicted. Has anybody seen the fight? How was he able to pull guard?

 

[Biff Hardbody]

I don't think we need spoiler tags anymore, but if we do...DON'T read the below post!!!!





I just watched the Yoshida/Gardner fight, and I really enjoyed it. Hear me out on this one. Gardner did something I saw no other big name wrestler coming in his first fight try and do, he tried to box. I really admire that someone like him, the best in his field at one time has the ability to realize that his wrestling is only part of fighting, and try and use boxing, which must have been close to alien for him. He could have just shot in and layed on Yoshida for the victory, but he tried to keep it standing. Probably because he didn't want to get caught in a sub, but I admired that he didn't just try and kill time. The man really tried to box.

I think while Yoshida was fighting him he realized he was screwed when he tried to shoot and Gardner sprawled way faster then a man his size should be able to. After that he had to come to terms with the fact his standup was inferior to Gardners. That's a scary situation to be in. Can't hurt the guy with strikes, can't take him down. His only shot was to pull guard, which Gardner was smart and didn't go into much.

Both men have to be incredibly strong. The way Gardner flung Yoshida across teh ring at the end of round 2, and Yoshida just latched onto his arms when they were on the ground. Not terribly exciting, but very impressive if you look at it in strength/grappling terms, to me at least.

I'll say it again, I really like Rulon. It appeared to me he's an incredibly respectful guy with a great mind. He'd probably get KOed quick if he fought a good striker and he didn't play to his wrestling strengths, but I have to admire his ability not to pull a Kevin Jackson and look at MMA as just another wrestling match.

NLB, Roye pulled guard and Akebono followed him to the ground. Royce never clinched with him like he said he would (as I recall), he just pulled guard. Akebono followed him to the ground, smothered him. Royce worked out of it, isloated the arm, all over.

 

[Boogie]

Okay, late to the party. I finally saw the whole event, and I guess I'll still give my thoughts on some of the fights.

Anderson Silva vs. Ryo Chonan. Silva didn't impress me during the fight. I hate superior strikers who don't engage, and Silva wasn't engaging. And Chonan's sub was sick. You don't see many leglocks anymore, and that one was lightning quick.

Gomi vs. Pulver. I thought this was an exciting striking battle. Part of the fight went exactly according to my prediction. Gomi shot in trying to take Pulver down, and Pulver was able to defend the takedown and force Gomi into a standup battle. Unfortunately for my prediction, Gomi was more than capable of winning that standup battle. Great fight.

Kondo vs. Henderson. I thought this fight was somewhat lackluster, but apparently Henderson was sick as a dog before the fight, so it was a great performance considering that fact.

Gardner vs. Yoshida. I was impressed at how Gardner was able to execute his gameplan. I think we all expected that Gardner would try to keep it standing, and he did a great job of sticking to the plan. Nonetheless, I thought he was way too tentative, and could have afforded to be more aggressive, but for his first time out, he did great.

I need to give props to Yoshida, too. He stuck in there against someone who he simply couldn't take down, and was throwing fairly effective kicks to Gardner's legs.

I think it very interesting that a fight between two Olympic champion grapplers was spent almost entirely striking.

Cro-cop vs. Randleman.

I know what you mean, Biff, about it feeling unsatisfying lacking a KO finish, but I still feel Cro Cop got his redemption, and I was also impressed in what we saw of Cro Cop.

First, sure it wasn't a terribly technical submission against someone with great sub defense, but he recognized an opportunity for the sub, and he took it.

Second, in the short time of the fight, Cro Cop stuffed Randleman good. Even if it went longer, I don't believe that Randleman was going to be taking him down. Some people were talking about Kevin's speed like it was Cro Cop's kryptonite, that whether he was throwing a punch, or trying for a takedown, that he was simply too quick for Cro Cop to defend against.

And yet it seemed to me that Cro Cop showed even quicker reflexes than Randleman, and excellent technique in stuffing his takedowns. Sub or no sub, Cro Cop was going to win that fight. And while I would like to see one or two more fights before it happens, I am ready to see Cro Cop vs. Fedor.

Fedor vs. Nog

Not as great as their first fight, and Fedor didn't quite give him a pounding, but I think he showed decisively that he is simply one step ahead of Nog. Nog was expecting, hoping that Fedor would play the guard game like their first and second fights. Instead, Fedor changes gameplans, and beats Nog in a standup fight.

I do not think that Fedor can finish Nog. But Nog will not sub Fedor. The simple fact is, out of two and a half fights, Nog hasn't had Fedor in trouble once. Fedor can simply dictate the pace and form of the fight. And when your opponent can do that, you can't win. He can't sub him. He can't beat him standing. The only chance to beat him is getting a takedown and a sub from the top position, like he tried at the end of the first. But even then, just as the bell rang, Fedor was scrambling out of it.
He can't beat him.

 

[Biff Hardbody]

I really think Fedor is brilliant, and Nog won't ever be able to beat him if they have other matches. I actually enjoyed this fight more then then their first and have watched it a few times over the past couple of days. Some things that strike out to me.

-I know its been said before, but Fedor is just the man when it comes to playing it cool. I watched the fight withs omeone who doesn't follow the sport at all, and she said that Nogueria looked very nervous at the beginning. Maybe, or maybe its just that anyone next to Fedor looks nervous in comparison. The man knows how good he is, and he's truly confident because of that.

-Watch how Fedor just throws Nogueira around. The man is a powerhouse. Nog must be very strong himself, the grip of a high level player like him is like iron, and he's what? 6/2-6/3 220-230? Fedor throws him like he's a boy. The last round of the fight when Nog tried for a submission and Fedor just held him there, upside down and then game him a knee to the face...that is overpowering.

-The way Fedor blends his punching with his takedowns. There's one takedown in particular where he comes forward throwing an overhand right and steps deeply foward with his rear foot so it goes behind Nogueria, then he lands a picture perfect takedown. The man just flows.

-His counters. Nog only got one clean takedown on him. Sure, he's not known for his takedowns but Fedor's counters were fucking nice. He just kept landing on top of him.

-He's got uncanny speed and agility, especially for someone of his frame. Love how he just gets away from the punches.

-Even though Nog held his guard better, Fedor consistently beat him to the punch. Nog got some shots in there, but Fedor just outlanded him. Awesome stuff.

I think the next big fight for Fedor should be Mirko, but even with Mirko's fanastic takedown defense, new ground skill, and superior striking I don't give him much of a chance. I think Fedor will beat Mirko, and he'll do it with some brutal G&P.

I agree about the Chonan sub. Scissor kick takedown to heelhook. That's Virtua Fighter shit.

I agree about Gardner, he was tenative...but man, I was impressed. I hope Gardner sticks around. On a side note, I saw a pic of his feet and holy fuck! Gardner was in a snowmobile ccident and spent a night in freezing snow, he got heavy frostbite and lost 1 toe. Combined with this and other stories I've heard of him, this guy must have a really high pain threshold. He's really tough.

 

[Boogie]

Yeah, Fedor's takedowns, and how smoothly and quickly he blends striking with his takedowns is absolutely insane.

The one caveat to that fact though is the fact that Nog probably doesn't give a damn if he's taken down, so he probably wasn't going to try hard to defend Fedor's takedowns, but that still doesn't take away from Fedor's skill in executing them.