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[NME]

THE OFFICIAL UFC 75: CHAMPION V. CHAMPION THREAD

The Official Website of UFC 75

The show is free! Everybody, watch it!
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SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
The shows leading up to and including

Wednesday, 9/5/2007
11pm – (Spike TV) - UFC 75: CHAMPION v. CHAMPION Hype Special

Friday, 9/7/2007
10:30am EST - (UFC.com) – UFC 75 Weigh Ins, Live!! (apparently re-airing on Spike prior to UFC 75)

Saturday, 9/8/2007
9:00pm EST – (Spike TV) – UFC 75: CHAMPION v. CHAMPION, from the 02 Arena, London, England
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NME’S PLUG

I want to once again invite everyone to check out my online MMA talk show, SWEEP THE LEG, which airs every Thursday at 8pm eastern/5pm pacific. Each week, we discuss all of the latest MMA news and rumors and bring you previews and recaps of all of the important MMA events. Here’s what to expect on this week’s show:

- Our WEC 30 recap
- Our UFC 75 preview
- An update on Fedor’s status
- Two new UFC related shows on the horizon
- Updates on Evan Tanner, Karo Parisyan, Dean Lister, Mike Swick, and Joe Lauzon, among others
- Our overview of several of the fighters you’ll see on The Ultimate Fighter 6

If that sounds like it’s worth your while, then check us out this Thursday, 8pm eastern (5pm Pacific) at www.fightersmind.com. You can listen to our show as it streams live, or download any of our current or previous shows in the archives.
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THE FIGHT CARD
including partial odds courtesy of NEWBODOG.com (NOTE: Card and odds subject to change):

The Under Card (may not air due to time constraints)
Jess Liaudin v. Anthony Torres - Welterweight
Naoyuki Kotani v. Dennis Siver - Lightweight
Gleison Tibau v. Terry Etim - Lightweight
Thiago Silva v. Tomasz Drwal - Light Heavyweight

The Main Card (Guaranteed to air…unless there’s a stinker)
Paul Taylor v. Marcus Davis - Welterweight
Houston Alexander (-185) v. Alessio Sakara (+155) – Light Heavyweight
Michael Bisping (-225) v. Matt Hamill (+185) – Light Heavyweight
Mirko Filipovic (-360) v. Chieck Kongo (+280) - Heavyweight
Quinton Jackson (-140) v. Dan Henderson (+110) - UFC/PRIDE Light Heavyweight Title Unification Match
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BREAKDOWN
The info on the fighters, and the picks to win each match in bold.

Jess Liaudin (11-8-0) v. Anthony Torres (5-0-0) – Welterweight

Jess Liaudin is a joruneyman fighter who defeated Dennis Siver at UFC 70 in an upset. Against Paul Daley, Shonie Carter, and Paul Taylor (Liaudin’s only opponents of note prior to Siver), Liaudin is 0-3.

Liaduin faces off against Anthony Torres from The Ultimate Fighter 2. Torres has a UFC victory over game fighter Pat Healy via rear naked choke and carries an official professional MMA record of 5-0. Injuries have prevented Torres’s last couple of fights from taking place, but he is healthy and will look to utilize his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to get the best of Liaudin.

I was inclined to give this fight to Torres based on Torres’s superior Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, against Liaudin’s preferred style of submission wrestling. However, it seems the win over Siver lit a fire under Liaudin’s butt. In addition to coming off a big win, Liaudin has been training with Dan Henderson at Team Quest California in preparation for this fight. This should easily get Liaudin the best prepared for a fight he has ever been, and with that perperation and his wealth of experience, it’s hard to discount his chances against Torres who, despite having the superior ground game, does not have many fights to his credit. Also, this will be the first time that Torres has fought outside of the Hawiian or Pacific time zone, and while as a professional athlete he should be more than capable of handling the time change, there’s no telling what the huge time change will do to Torres’s system. I don’t discount Torres’s abilities, though. But what pushes me over the edge is a little rule I have coming out of UFC 70 (more on this later): always bet on English fighters who are fighting in England. Ok, so technically Liaudin is French, but his main fight camp is based in London. That’s just enough to tip my prediction in favor of Liaudin.

Naoyuki Kotani (17-6-5) v. Dennis Siver (10-4-0) - Lightweight

Dennis Siver was upset at UFC 70 when he lost to Jess Liaudin via armbar. He will have to watch out for that same hold against Naoyuki Kotani, who, in 5 of his last 6 victories, has won via arm bar. Fortunately for Siver, Kotani has lost 6 times since the first of those arm bar victories, and has drawn with his opponents three times in that period of time.

I’m inclined to write Kotani off entirely for having lost to Rich Stinking Clementi, but then Siver lost to Liaudin who was 10-8 when they fought (which is actually worse than Clementi if you can believe it). Kotani is more comfortable at 155lbs., which Siver will have to drop to for this fight, but that should give the strength advantage to Siver. Though Kotani has lost to a who’s who list, he has only lost twice since 2005, to Luiz Azeredo September 2005 and to Thiago Tavares this past April, taking Tavares to a decision. In Azeredo and Tavares, Kotani faced superior opponents to Siver, and in the cases of Tavares, took an extremely talented fighter to the judge’s score cards. Ultimately, I’ll go with Kotani’s resume, despite his losses, over the probable strength advantage Siver should have, and I’ll pick Kotani via submission (and what the hey, via arm bar), in the second round.

Gleison Tibau (14-4-0) v. Terry Etim (10-0-0) - Lightweight

Now here’s an interesting fight that I imagine very few people actually care about.

Terry Etim last fought on UFC 70 against Matt Grice, who wrestled for the University of Oklahoma between injuries (which seemed to pile up one after the other). In typical wrestler fashion, Grice attempted to take Etim down and fed Etim his neck, which Etim promptly used to sink in a guillotine for the win.

Etim will face Gleison Tibau, who has a background in both Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and wrestling. Tibau works a slower pace than Etim does, but it has been largely effective to this point in his career (7 victories via submission, 5 via decision). Tibau will be dropping down to 155lbs. for this contest.

Tibau is a good fighter if not yet distinguished. He has lost to the likes of Nick Diaz and Marcelo Brito, who are good opponents, but he’s also lost to, I kid you not, ANACONDA ANACONDA. Of course, coming from Brazil, we cannot rule out the possibility that Tibau actually fought an Anaconda at some point. Seriously though, Tibau has not distinguishing wins on his record that I can cite as evidence of his superiority over Etim. What Tibau does have, however, is a ground game, which he will certainly have fined tuned now that he is training with American Top Team. I have a hard time imagining that Tibau will be submitted, and that may make the difference, as Etim has won 9 of his 10 fights via submission. But I cannot pick against an English fighter in England, especially one with the motor of Etim. I predict Etim will outwork Tibau and win via decision.

Thiago Silva (10-0-0) v. Tomasz Drwal (7-1-0) – Light Heavyweight

This is an interesting matchup between two powerful strikers. Silva comes out of Chute Boxe in Brazil, which says it all, really. Drwal may be an unkown, but 8 of his 14 victories have come via KO to TKO, with only two decisions, and one of his submission victories, where he avenged his only career loss to Ulf Fritzmann, was a submission due to strikes. Drwal is a very powerful fighter who, as his record indicates, likes to ground and pound his way to victory and has done so very successfully. In Thiago Silva, Drwal will face by far his toughest test to date.

And that’s where the science of fighting ends for me when predicting this one. You see, there are a few rules in the UFC. Everyone is very familiar with the Roger Huerta rule, of course. After the last UFC even in England, the rule became “always bet on English fighters who are fighting in England.” The corollary to that rule was “never bet on German fighters who are fighting in England” (see: Siver, Dennis). And while Drwal is not German by decent (he’s from Poland), he does train with the German Best Team. But even for me that’s quite a stretch to determine the winner in this fight. However, there is another rule I’ve yet to mention: the Tiago rule, which states that “No man named Thiago shall lose unless he faces a title contender.” This has held true for Thiago Alves (4-2- in UFC), who has only lost in the UFC to Jon Fitch and Spencer Fisher, both contenders in their respective weight classes, it has held true for Thiago Tavares, who recently dismantled Jason Black to go 2-0 in the UFC, and it will hold true for Thiago Silva, who will get the best of Drwal in the stand up and win via TKO to remain undefeated in the UFC.

Paul Taylor (8-1-1) v. Marcus Davis (12-3-0) – Welterweight

Paul Taylor won in his UFC debut at UFC 70, defeating Edilbeto de Oliveira. By his own admission, he was a bit overwhelmed in his ocatagon debut, not knowing what to expect leading up to the fight. I point that out because his opponent at UFC 75, Marcus Davis, felt that Taylor looked as though he was unaffected by all of the goings-on leading up to his match. Davis should be ready, then, to face a composed Taylor, who says he knows exactly what to expect in his second foray in the UFC, at least in terms of distractions leading up to the fight. When Taylor gets in the ring, it is unlikely he will be ready for what Davis will bring into the cage.

A former professional boxer with a record of 22-1-2, 17KOs, Davis has impressed with his boxing ability in the octagon thus far. However, it is Davis’s refined submission skills that have been the talk lately, as Davis says he wants to prove that he is more than just a stand up fighter. He may have another opportunity when he faces off against Taylor, who has defeated Zelg Galesic, who many call “Mini Cro Cop” based on his impressive stand up abilities, via TKO. Taylor’s victory over Oliveira also came by way of TKO due to strikes. However, Taylor’s striking shouldn’t be overstated. He was able to TKO a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighter in Oliveira, a feat not particularly impressive. A TKO victory over Galesic is noteworthy, although Taylor bested Galesic in only Galesic’s second professional fight. Against a seasoned veteran with the boxing prowess of Davis, I do not expect Taylor to fare nearly as well as he did at UFC 70. Look for Davis to win the stand up battle and keep his win streak rolling.

Houston Alexander (7-1-0) v. Alessio Sakara (11-5-0) – Light Heavyweight

We don’t know much about Houston Alexander, but we do know that he shocked the world when he knocked Keith Jardine into oblivion at UFC 71. In that contest, Alexander displayed not just tremendous striking ability, but one hell of a chin, as despite being rocked, Alexander was able to re-compose himself and send Jardine rocketing to the moon with one of the prettiest uppercuts you’ve ever seen in MMA. Alexander’s only professional loss was in his first contest; a distant memory at this point as Alexander looks to make it two in a row in UFC.

His opponent is journeyman Alessio Sakara. Although he has an 11-5 record to his credit, Sakara’s first victory over an opponent with a winning record came at UFC 70 against Victor Valimaki. While his resume is undistinguished, Sakara is very skilled on his feet, as he comes into MMA as a former professional boxer. If Houston Alexander wants to stand and trade, Sakara should be all too keen on that idea.

On the surface, one might say “sure, Alexander’s uppercut was executed like a professional boxer would, but Sakara WAS a professional boxer.” However, Sakara has managed to disappoint mightily in his MMA career thus far. In addition to having defeated only one opponent with a winning record (and Valimaki is a journeyman in his own right), Sakara was knocked out when he dropped to Middleweight to face Drew McFedries. Considering Sakara has also ventured up to Heavyweight, and given his background in boxing, there is little excuse for such a loss. With Sakara’s disappointments in mind and Alexander’s seeming toughness in absorbing some of Jardine’s best shots, I believe Alexander will rack up his second victory in the UFC.

Michael Bisping (13-0-0) v. Matt Hamill (3-0-0) – Light Heavyweight

Season three of The Ultimate Fighter saw the breaking out of Michael Bisping into the main stream of MMA when he won the Light Heavyweight tournament. That doesn’t mean that Bisping was new to the fight game, however. Bisping has fought professionally since 2004, including two fights in Cage Rage. Bisping is a well rounded fighter, but his striking is the most dangerous aspect of his game. We were given a reason to question Bisping’s ground game when he fought Elvis Sinosic at UFC 70, when Sinosic very nearly submitted Bisping early in the second round. While Bisping worked his way out of the predicament and onto victory via TKO, he apparently wanted to leave nothing to question, deciding to train with Quinton Jackson and Juanito Ibarra at their Big Bear facility in preparation for his fight against Hamill. Bisping says he has been working on his wrestling and jiu jitsu primarily in order to be able to prevent Hamill’s takedown.

Matt Hamill was also introduced to the world during his time on The Ultimate Fighter 3, often times butting heads with Bisping. Hamill displayed his strength and wrestling ability on the series, and thus far in the Octagon, with two TKO victories in three matches. Hamill is still very new to MMA, but looks to progress rapidly with his training camp, Team Punishment, headed up by Tito Ortiz. Under Ortiz’s tuteledge, we should expect Hamill’s wrestling ability to be adapted to MMA in superb fashion, in addition to Hamill’s conditioning being the best it can be.

This is an interesting fight. This is a matchup of a well rounded fighter who has shown weakness on the ground and who many folks feel is being protected, against a yet one-dimensional fighter who has the ability to capitalize on his opponent’s weakness but offers little else at this point in his fighting career. Many MMA observers who are far closer to the UFC than I feel this fight will be a largely boring, grind ‘em out victory for Hamill. Who am I to doubt these people, people who I have the utmost respect for in this business? Well, though I may look foolish in hindsight, I will go the other way and predict Bisping to come out on top.

I grant you that Bisping appears to be the British version of Roger Huerta, and that, unlike Huerta, Bisping has had a greater degree of difficulty with his UFC opponents thus far. At the same time, Bisping has finished all three of his opponents via TKO within two rounds, so you cannot completely discount his abilities. Likewise, Bisping has won all 13 of his professional fights, or ten more professional fights than Hamill has ever competed in, and experience means a lot to me. Bisping is also the superior fighter standing, where, as Bisping put it, Hamill “cannot strike a match.”

While it’s true that Hamill is a power wrestler and should be able to wrestle Bisping down and control him, I don’t know that I am sold on Hamill’s wrestling ability. Hamill is a NCAA division III national wrestling champion three times over across three different weight classes, which I don’t want to disparage in any way. If anyone is going to teach Hamill to translate his amateur wrestling into successful wrestling for fighting, it will be Tito Ortiz. But that transition will take time; more time than three UFC fights, I believe. And though Bisping’s UFC opponents have been mediocre thus far, Hamill’s opponents have been that much worse. Hamill first defeated TUF3 underachiever Jesse Forbes and Rex Holman, but wrestlers-turned-fighters who simply did not compare to Hamill on the ground and (and here’s the key) had no other aspect of the fight game to fall back on. Between those fights, Hamill faced TUF 2 heavyweight contestant Seth Petruzelli, who represents Hamill’s toughest opponent to date, and who, despite being a largely underwhelming fighter in all aspects of the game, took Hamill to a decision.

I feel like I’m piling on Hamill at this point. I don’t mean to discredit the guy, but I do doubt him when he faces off against someone with the experience and the well-roundedness of Michael Bisping. I would love to say that Hamill will be the better conditioned fighter heading into this match, but even his training at altitude is mitigated by Bisping training quite literally just down the road from Hamill at the same altitude. And while I don’t think it will affect Hamill much (I mean, he is deaf after all), the home town advantage could be another weighing factor that tips the scale towards Bisping’s side in this fight. Bisping is already suprememly confident going into this fight without, in my opinion, spilling over into becoming cocky or arrogant. With the home town crowd pulling for him all the way, I certainly can’t imagine Bisping not being emotionally energized for the fight.

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (22-5-2) v. Cheick Kongo (10-3-1) – Heavyweight

Cro Cop is looking to rebound in front of the English crowd, having most recently been knocked out by his own maneuver, the high kick, by Gabriel Gonzaga. The stunning upset caused many to question whether Cro Cop had prepared properly for his opponent. Well, put any questions about Cro Cop’s preparation to rest this time around; Cro Cop has added a cage to his training facility, as well as brining in Gilbert Yvel and Remy Bojansky to help him sharpen his stand up, as well as Dean Lister to work on his ground game. This should be the most prepared we will see Cro Cop in the UFC to date.

Cheick Kongo is coming off a decision victory over Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighter Assuerio Silva at UFC 70. Although Kongo was able to avoid being submitted and earn the victory, it had almost nothing to do with Kongo’s ground game. While Kongo is an extremely talented kickboxer, he has no ground game to speak of. To help remedy this, Kongo has taken to training with Juanito Ibarra and the rest of his camp, which leading up to UFC 75 included Rampage and Michael Bisping. Of course, against an opponent like Cro Cop, the ground game is unlikely to play a major part in the match, which is sure to please Kongo, who would be more than glad to test Cro Cop’s kickboxing abilities.

This fight should be a lot closer than most people think it will be. It’s funny. Cro Cop was knocked out in spectacular fashion at UFC 70, and it was almost a better outcome than the decision victory Kongo earned in a horrid match on the same event. Cro Cop is still seen as a killer of men, though now even his greatest supporters are forced to admit that he can be bested in the one area he seemed to have an advantage over all his opponents in, the stand up game. Of course, that doesn’t mean Cro Cop is a slouch on the feet by any means; he is still a world class striker, among the very very best in the sport to be sure. However, Kongo may be as well. It’s difficult to say that, especially when comparing him to Cro Cop, but while Kongo lacks a highlight reel on the level of Cro Cop’s, that doesn’t take away his success in K1. In time, Kongo may be the new Cro Cop, who also developed into the MMA fighter he is today as a former K1 standout. That’s the difference to me: Kongo could one day be what Cro Cop is right now, and, of course, Cro Cop is what Cro Cop is right now. While a matchup between two strikers of their caliber can yield a result in either’s favor, I have to respect Cro Cop’s veteran savvy, with nearly twice as many fights on his MMA record as Kongo. But when the leather flies, it’s anyone’s guess as to how the match will unfold. It should be a really exciting show from these two, either way.

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (27-6-0) v. Dan Henderson (22-5-0) – UFC/PRIDE Light Heavyweight Title Unification Match

Rampage Jackson is coming off the biggest victory of his career, knocking out Chuck Liddell in the first round at UFC 71 to win the UFC Light Heavyweight Title. While the fight didn’t last long enough for us to determine whether Rampage’s new camp, led by Juanito Ibarra, made all the difference or if Rampage simply has Liddell’s number, we do know that Rampage is riding a huge wave of momentum as he head into his fight with Dan Henderson. Of course, Rampage’s slams have become the stuff of legend, but no one should discount the tools he brings to a fight. Rampage is a very good wrestler, who more than held his own in his fight against Olympic Silver Medal Wrestler Matt Lindland. Rampage’s striking ability is superb and to be feared, as evidenced against when Rampage beat Chuck Liddell at his own game. For this fight, we may see Rampage’s striking taken to a whole new level, as Rampage has been training with “Sugar” Shane Mosely, fine tuning his stand up game. Rampage’s weakness would be his jiu jitsu game, which he should be able to get away with against Henderson.

Not to be outdone, Dan Henderson is also riding a huge wave of momentum, having knocked out former PRIDE Middleweight (205lbs.) champion, Wanderlei Silva, at PRIDE 33 in February. While Henderson’s stand up is very good, his KO of Silva left many observers at a loss. After all, Dan Henderson’s bread and butter is his tremendous wrestling ability. A two-time member of the US Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling team (’92 and ’96), Henderson is among the very best wrestling talents in MMA today. Henderson also has the impressive distinction of being the first man in PRIDE (or UFC) history to hold a championship in two weight classes at the same time, as Henderson currently reigns as PRIDE’s Welterweight (185lbs.) champion.

This is one hell of a matchup. On the one hand, a casual observer would say that with Henderson fighting above his natural weight class, Rampage should have the clear size advantage. Another casual observer may point out Henderson’s impressive wrestling credentials, giving him the advantage on the ground. However, both conclusions may be somewhat faulty. Both Rampage and Henderson stand at 6’1”, so while Rampage will have the strength advantage, it’s not as though Rampage towers over Henderson or has a tremendous reach advantage. At the same time, while Rampage is the stronger of the two fighters, as a wrestler, Henderson is more than capable of mitigating the strength of an opponent. Of course, that’s where Rampage’s wrestling ability will come into play. While he’s not nearly as decorated a wrestler as Henderson, Rampage is similar to Tito Ortiz in that Rampage has tremendous MMA wrestling ability. We’ve seen him handle Matt Lindland’s wrestling ability, and we’ve seen him ground Ricardo Arona only to slam him into oblivion. To put it plainly, the matchup on the ground should be really, really close and exciting. Of course, the fight may not end up on the ground, as both Rampage and Henderson are comfortable on their feet. On paper, Rampage brings the superior striking game into the octagon, and his training with Juanito Ibarra, Cheick Kongo, and Shane Moseley is only going to improve his stand up game. But who among us will be quick to discount the stand up skills of a man who knocked Wanderlei Silva out, the man who twice knocked Rampage out in PRIDE?

I keep going back and forth with this one. These two are really evenly matched (it feels like it’s easy to say that about most UFC matches these days) . I had felt Henderson would be able to get the best of Henderson until very recently. I now like Rampage to unify the PRIDE and UFC titles with his ability to limit what Henderson can do on the ground as well as Rampage’s standup, which I feel is better than Henderson’s. If Henderson wins, though, I will not be surprised in the least.

 

[dolph]

Great preview again! I'm pumped for this card and I'm very happy it's free. I've been spending way too much on UFC PPV's this year.

I really want to see Alexander fight again, does he have what it takes if the fight goes into the 2nd and 3rd rounds?

I'm rooting for a Cro Cop win for the possible matchups down the road. Did he sign a 4 fight deal, this would be the 3rd correct?

 

[ToxicAdam]

Bisping gets another tomato can to fight, eh?


A very top-heavy card otherwise .. probably one of the weakest undercards all year (at least, to this casual fan).

It's going to be hard to avoid spoilers that day.

 

[NME]

Did he sign a 4 fight deal, this would be the 3rd correct?

Yes, this is the third, and...I'm pretty sure it was a four fight deal, yeah.

 

[dskillzhtown]

I forgot all about this. What a full weekend this will be.

Why not give Quinton and Henderson some weak competition to beat, and then have them fight. A UFC-only fan has no clue who Dan is. I just think this fight could have been built up alot more and made into a freaking monster battle that casuals and hardcore fans would eat up.

 

[dem]

i think crocop signed a 6 fight deal..

 

[MaX_PL]

wow this is gonna be a good show. three really good fights.

 

[NME]

i think crocop signed a 6 fight deal..

Right you are. Via UFCJunkie:

According to a post-event press conference, Filipovic has apparently signed a two-year, six-fight deal with the UFC, assuring the heavyweight won’t be going to a rival organization any time soon.

 

[Xater]

Can't wait for this UFC. As much as I love Jackson I see Henderson winning here.

@NME: Are you the NME that is also part of the EMPIRE~! ???

 

[NME]

Can't wait for this UFC. As much as I love Jackson I see Henderson winning here.

@NME: Are you the NME that is also part of the EMPIRE~! ???

Poder~!

 

[cthoaa]

Poder~!

I like your show -- very easy to listen to. I started w/ the second episode of "Sweep the Leg" from the link on the F4W board and I prefer it to that site's current alternate MMA audio program, which is a little too loud and coarse for me.

 

[NME]

I like your show -- very easy to listen to. I started w/ the second episode of "Sweep the Leg" from the link on the F4W board and I prefer it to that site's current alternate MMA audio program, which is a little too loud and coarse for me.

Thanks for the support!

I love Coughlin. He is about 80% of the reason I have this show. But I can understand where you're coming from. I don't personally have a problem with the swearing, but I figured that if I was going to do an MMA show, I may as well pretend I have a future with the show; In case we ever wind up on radio, we might as well keep the swearing to a minimum now, make any future transitions easy.

But for my money, no one breaks down a fight better than Mike Coughlin.

 

[Bishman]

My picks:

Rampage
Cro Cop
Bisping
Sakara

You guys are crazy if you think that Henderson will beat Rampage. He is a 185'r. Rampage will KO his ass back to 185, so Anderson Silva can KO him too. I got $$ on Rampage.



Make sure to make your picks!

 

[dem]

Looks like Fedor will be attending UFC 75... being reported on mmaweekly.com


I think Dana was probably fuckin with everyone when he said negotiations werent going well. I'd bet money that they announce the heavyweight unification fight on saturday.

 

[Sinatar]

Houston Alexander (7-1-0) v. Alessio Sakara (11-5-0)

Alexander is still an unknown, his knockout of Jardine was one of the most vicious I've ever witnessed, but he was almost put out himself by a sloppy punch from Jardine. Sakara on the other hand is mediocrity made manifest. He hasn't impressed... well ever, but his boxing skills are decent. I just don't know how to call this, but I'm going to go with Alexander for the win if only because I love it when a fresh face rolls in a shakes things up.

Michael Bisping (13-0-0) v. Matt Hamill (3-0-0)

Matt Hamill has a long way to go before he can handle someone of Bisping's caliber. Sure his wrestling is fantastic, but this isn't a wrestling match, it's MMA. His opponents prior were hand picked for being wrestlers of substandard ability in hopes of making Hamill look good. Now he's going to fight someone who is well rounded in all of MMA's facets and who packs some serious striking power. We saw on the show how Hamill reacts to being hit even mildly hard and I think he's in for a rude awakening on Saturday when Bisping starts driving his knees through Hamills chin.

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (22-5-2) v. Cheick Kongo (10-3-1)

One thing is certain about this fight, someone is getting knocked the hell out. Who isn't as clear cut as some may think. Kongo as an MMA fighter is incredibly weak. His ground game is not just poor, it's pathetic. However in this match, the odds of it going to the mat (beyond someone getting knocked there) is pretty much nil. In a straight kickboxing match Kongo's odds look a lot better. He has great all around strikes and a vicious Thai clinch, something Cro Cop isn't too strong at. In the end I think Cro Cop's more extensive experience both in MMA and in pure kickboxing gives him the advantage, but if Kongo keeps on him and makes use of his clinch, he could pull an upset here.

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (27-6-0) v. Dan Henderson (22-5-0)

This match is very even. They both pack a lot of power on the feet and they are both solid wrestlers. I don't think Rampages match against Chuck proved much of anything, not to discount his victory but it was the first punch he threw that won the fight. I won't call it lucky, but I'd hardly call it a decisive victory. So in my mind the question still remains, is the Rampage of old back for good or do we still have the wishy washy Rampage we've seen as recently as his Lindland fight and his Eastman fight. I think Rampages odds are good here if he's got his game back, but Henderson is an extremely dangerous guy no matter where this fight goes, so it's a tough call. I'm gonna side with Rampage on this one due to the size advantage but it really could go either way.

 

[Fusebox]

These two fights...

Bisping v. Hamill
Mirko v. Kongo

..are exciting the hell out of me. I am expecting GREAT things from UFC 75.

I'll take The Count and I'll take Cheik as well thanks.

 

[whytemyke]

where's boogie?

 

[Brian Fellows]

Terry Etim last fought on UFC 70 against Matt Grice, who wrestled for the University of Oklahoma between injuries (which seemed to pile up one after the other). In typical wrestler fashion, Grice attempted to take Etim down and fed Etim his neck, which Etim promptly used to sink in a guillotine for the win.

Thats a pretty shitty description of how things went down. Grice beat the shit out of him for a while and it was very close to being stopped before that guillotine. Etim just barely escaped.

Tibau will be dropping down to 155lbs. for this contest.

Tibau has been at 155 for his last two fights.

 

[Tchu-Espresso]

The live stream will air at a perfect time for me.

If Cro Cop doesnt win, then im going to be pissed off.

Im also gunning for Jackson to win, but who knows - he hasnt hit the ground in his 2 fights in the ufc except to land the final blows. It's going to be interesting to see if he can do big damage to henderson on the ground now that he cant use knees for the added variation in offense.

I suspect we *might* see rampage open his slam account in the ufc on hendo's smaller frame - In an recent interview dan said he was "hoping" to hit 200 pounds for this fight.

Tibau has been at 155 for his last two fights.

He's fucking massive for 155 though, like Sherk.

 

[Piscopink]

Damn.


I just got finished watching UFC 74. They were fighting on a mat that looked like something straight out of slaughterhouse. They never showed it on PPV, but the massive blood stain was from David Heath vs. Renato Sobral. Babalu cut Heath really bad, and also held his choke on him two seconds too long. Sobral has been subsequently fined half of his purse.

After finding this picture, I'm glad I missed that fight.

 

[mackaveli]

The live stream will air at a perfect time for me.

If Cro Cop doesnt win, then im going to be pissed off.

Im also gunning for Jackson to win, but who knows - he hasnt hit the ground in his 2 fights in the ufc except to land the final blows. It's going to be interesting to see if he can do big damage to henderson on the ground now that he cant use knees for the added variation in offense.

I suspect we *might* see rampage open his slam account in the ufc on hendo's smaller frame - In an recent interview dan said he was "hoping" to hit 200 pounds for this fight.


He's fucking massive for 155 though, like Sherk.

when is this live?

its tape delay right on saturday? man i should place bets with friends who dont know about this hahaha. people didn't know cro cop lost and i should have bet them 100 bucks or something haha.

 

[Brian Fellows]

My picks.........

Henderson
Cro Cop
Bisping
Sakara
Taylor
Tibau
Silva
Siver
Liaudin

 

[Ned Flanders]

Let me preface my post by saying that I DO NOT WANT TO SEE RAMPAGE AND HENDERSON FIGHT. Fuck...this is one of those fights that, in spite of the fact that its a great matchup as well as a compelling piece of MMA history (perhaps not as momentous as hyped, but still a unification bout is a pretty big deal), I just don't want to have to choose between these two fighters. I wouldn't know who to root for, and I couldn't feel as good for either one of them winning considering one of them has to lose, if you know what I mean.

Either Rampage is diminished as a "fluke champion" who only lasted a couple of months before some (*UFC Fan*) "unknown" came in and sent him packing, or Henderson is an overhyped stiff not worthy of being in the octagon. I love what both of these guys bring to the table, and while in order to prove themselves as competitors, its only natural that they'd have to cross paths at some point, I can't help but think that it will suck having to watch one of them lose. I'm hoping for an exciting, competitive fight that goes to a close decision (split?), so that either in victory or defeat, each fighter will get the respect he deserves.

No I'm not picking a winner either.


I hope to god that they make an announcement with Fedor there. Him and Randy together at an event would be amazing to see in and of itself, and a Fedor signing/title shot would be one of the greatest announcements in MMA history. Then you can imagine if CroCop wins, and in talking with Rogan post-fight, acknowledges Fedor and Randy and proclaims his desire to seek the belt...no matter who's holding it. EPIC FUCKING POTENTIAL.

And Bisping. WHO GIVES A FUCK ABOUT BISPING ANYWAY?!?! He's a Brit yadda fucking yadda. You line up the cans for him, in his home country, and refuse to make him stand in with the gatekeeper's gatekeeper's gatekeeper. Oh wait, that was ELVIS SINOSIC. My apologies to Joe Silva and Dana White on that one...please...I seriously hope that the poster boy gets his scripted ascension to stardom derailed by a mumbling retard. Oh wait, that's MATT HAMILL.


I'm highly compelled to see how Thiago Silva performs (maybe turn him loose on poster boy Bisping next..?), and I definitely want to see if Alexander has any rocket fuel left in his gloves after violently placing Jardine into the firmament.

CroCop is either gonna wind up on his second consecutive highlight reel (much to the glee of one Wanderlei Silva, I'm sure), or he's going to put Cheick Kongo on one. Of course I'll be looking to see CC victorious, only to slight Congo not for his skills but rather the misnomer that he is in any way an MMA fighter. CroCop's groundgame makes Congo's look bad, which is insulting enough, but would be slightly more justified if Congo were a more devastating striker in the vein of CC or Melvin Manhoef. Regadless, it should make for an exciting fight, and will truly be a measuring stick as to whether CC is back and/or better. Lord knows that CC training with Remy Bonjasky does not spell good news for Congo. Can't wait.


In all, its a pretty nice card, and RETARDEDLY nice for free..(the last free PPV was nice, on paper at least, and it didn't have a world title unification match on it), albeit a tad bittersweet. 76 (aka "Knockout") will probably be more gratifying for me personally, simply to see Shogun, Nakamura/Lyoto, and hell, even the return of Liddell has me a bit excited. And the WEC is on TV for free tonight as well...so much great MMA from here on out this year! I'm friggin hyped!

Fuck the NFL baby, I got the only three letters I need!!

 

[Tchu-Espresso]

Damn.


I just got finished watching UFC 74. They were fighting on a mat that looked like something straight out of slaughterhouse. They never showed it on PPV, but the massive blood stain was from David Heath vs. Renato Sobral. Babalu cut Heath really bad, and also held his choke on him two seconds too long. Sobral has been subsequently fined half of his purse.

After finding this picture, I'm glad I missed that fight.

He was released from his contract.

 

[Piscopink]

I want to reiterate what I said here:

People are not commenting enough on this man.

Your next champion.

 

[Piscopink]

He was released from his contract.

Wow...

September 3, 2007

UFC President Dana White confirmed last Thursday that Renato “Babalu” Sobral has been released from his contract. Sobral's dismissal is the result of his refusal to immediately break a chokehold after his opponent, David Heath, tapped out at UFC 74.

Sobral dominated most of the fight, bloodying Heath before resorting to an anaconda choke in order to force a submission. The 31-year-old Brazilian fighter held on to the choke even after Heath gave up, completely ignoring referee Steve Mazagatti's commands. Mazagatti tried to pull Sobral off Heath, who eventually lost consciousness.


Showing no remorse for his actions, Renato Sobral told UFC interviewer Joe Rogan after the fight that he purposefully held on to the choke as revenge for Heath's pre-fight trash talk.

"He has to learn respect. He deserved that. He called me mother [expletive],” Sobral told Rogan.

The crowd showed their disapproval by booing him, but Sobral fired back in an interview with Las Vegas Review Journal columnist Ed Graney.

"The crowd didn't like it? Who cares? At least they had a reaction. [Heath] had enough blood, so maybe he could have gone another round,” Renato Sobral said.

After the incident, the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) announced it was going to withhold half of Sobral's five-figure purse pending an explanation. For his unsportsmanlike behavior, Sobral can be fined and suspended or have his licensed revoked by the NSAC.

At a media conference call geared towards the promotion of UFC 75, White told CBSSports.com that Sobral made a “big mistake,” later saying that if Sobral had used a more potentially damaging move, he would have recommended that Sobral be permanently banned from mixed martial arts.

"I think if he had an arm, or a knee or an ankle, I think he should never fight in this sport ever again," White said. "He held the choke a little too long, and yeah, it was wrong. I think you saw the response from the fans. Babalu was a fan favorite. They turned on him immediately."

What a dick!

 

[Brian Fellows]

We'll see how he does against a fighter who is not completely over looking him and knows what to expect.

 

[Keen]

Looks like Fedor will be attending UFC 75... being reported on mmaweekly.com


I think Dana was probably fuckin with everyone when he said negotiations werent going well. I'd bet money that they announce the heavyweight unification fight on saturday.

That would be a dream come true! But it's the perfect opportunity, so one can keep dreaming a few more days at least.

Other than that it seems like a great card, if a little top heavy. Still those top fight sounds awesome. Hopefully CC will come out hungry as fuck and make short work of Kongo. Wtf happened to the CC that demolished Wandy last year?? He looked way too tentative against GG =( CC to win.
Looking forward to the Alexander vs Sakara fight as well, even though I know fuck all about Sakara. Alexander to win.

Henderson vs Rampage sounds cool as hell on paper. Just hope that it won't go the way of the Rampage vs Lidell, which, as sweet as it was, still was waaaay too short. Hopefully it'll live up to it's potential so the "casual" ufc fans (I consider myself a casual fan as well, just a casual fan of both ufc and pride for quite a few years now) will realise that the Pride fighters are for real. Rampage to win.


On a more nostalgic note I recently rewatched a number of Pride FC cards (23 and 25) and damn what matchups. Those were loaded with great fights. RIP Pride =(

 

[hukasmokincaterpillar]

or do we still have the wishy washy Rampage we've seen as recently as his Lindland fight

Ehh? Rampage looked great in the Lindland fight. I mean it was close and all, but Lindland is a world class opponent (arguably top 5 in the division at the time) and he went toe to toe with him, looked great in the clinch and fought a smart fight. If anything it helped prove Jackson had a chance to rebound from the Chute Boxing of his melon (and his will).

But agreed on the picks.

 

[Tchu-Espresso]

From Sherdog on Fedor (i can hear the groans already):

He has inked a deal with the UFC. Don't believe me? Thats fine. However the announcement will be on Saturday night and they will announce Fedor versus Randy sometime early in 2008.

This is from the same guy who apparently revealed the news about the Cro Cop signing a week before it was announced.




ALSO:

Cro Cop/Kongo Promo piece (possibly from the UFC 75 countdown that hasnt aired yet):
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2wpy9_ufc-75-interview-avant-fight-mirko_sport

 

[yacobod]

i'll take

hendo
crocop
bisping

and a fedor announcement would make me

 

[op_ivy]

I seriously hope that the poster boy gets his scripted ascension to stardom derailed by a mumbling retard. Oh wait, that's MATT HAMILL.

thats a pretty offensive thing to say... [/backseat mod]

 

[Timedog]

thats a pretty offensive thing to say... [/backseat mod]

I thought so too. Matt Hamill is one of the good guys.

 

[Big-E]

Im with Flanders on Hendo vs Rampage. I like both of these guys so much and having one of them lose is going to be hard to take.

 

[dem]

Hendo needs to lose so we can see Anderson Silva vs Dan Henderson..

2 belts will take too much time for title defenses..

 

[NME]

This is from the same guy who apparently revealed the news about the Cro Cop signing a week before it was announced.

Was this the bobsappfan post? Because the real bobsappfan confirmed that the guy CONFIRMING Fedor having signed was an imposter.

Also, and this is from yesterday, so who knows what may have changed, but according to a UFC contact, four different sources close to the Fedor negotiations denied anything was done; their reactions to the claim ranging from, and I quote, "fuck no." to "FUCK NO!"

But, it seems like the negotiations should wrap up sooner rather than later, if Reed Wallace, who manages Fedor's business interests in the US, is to be believed:

I can say that they are very close to a deal, but some last minute players have stepped up as well…I’d be happy for him to go to the UFC. He would get great exposure there. The world need’s to see Fedor fight. I get excited when I watch him. He’s the greatest. I’d just love to see him fight.

In any case, Fedor will be at UFC 75, at this point to help promote the Affliction brand, which he recently signed with. But if he's going to be in the building, and the talks are really heating up...it's easy to draw a conclusion.

 

[Timedog]

I want Rampage to win so that his taste of LHW title is not so fleeting.

 

[Brian Fellows]

thats a pretty offensive thing to say... [/backseat mod]

Fuck the deafy I hope he gets his face smashed in.

 

[Ned Flanders]

thats a pretty offensive thing to say... [/backseat mod]

I meant it to be. Actually I don't have a problem with Hamill (aside from him being a TUF'er..lol), as he seems like a great wrestler and a competent fighter.

The point is, the perception of a Bisping loss to Hamill will be bad, no matter how PC people try and act about it. Can you imagine the UK fans reaction when Hamill gives his victory speech?

"BOLLOCKS!! Captain Invincible bested by a marble-mouthed Yank! Fucking hell lads!!"

 

[op_ivy]

Fuck the deafy I hope he gets his face smashed in.

i hate the guy too, but equating deaf with retardation is just... gay (ha!)

 

[Brian Fellows]

i hate the guy too, but equating deaf with retardation is just... gay (ha!)

Ok then I'm with you. If I were a retard I'd totally be offended.

 

[Ned Flanders]

Ok then I'm with you. If I were a retard I'd totally be offended.

*doesn't hear you*

 

[OokieSpookie]

Fuck the deafy I hope he gets his face smashed in.

What the fuck is this shit?
The Flanders post was bad enough.

 

[Brian Fellows]

What the fuck is this shit?
Go suck a shotgun you inbred twat.
The Flanders post was bad enough.

"YOU CANT CHOKE OUT A BULL!"

 

[Timedog]

I meant it to be. Actually I don't have a problem with Hamill (aside from him being a TUF'er..lol), as he seems like a great wrestler and a competent fighter.

The point is, the perception of a Bisping loss to Hamill will be bad, no matter how PC people try and act about it. Can you imagine the UK fans reaction when Hamill gives his victory speech?

"BOLLOCKS!! Captain Invincible bested by a marble-mouthed Yank! Fucking hell lads!!"

Who gives a flying fuck what the "perception" would be like? It's real fighting, not some WWE scripted crap where they can plan hero's and villains. If he loses it's because he was the lesser man that night.

quit making fun of a stand up guy that happens to be deaf.

 

[Ned Flanders]

Who gives a flying fuck what the "perception" would be like? It's real fighting, not some WWE scripted crap where they can plan hero's and villains. If he loses it's because he was the lesser man that night.

quit making fun of a stand up guy that happens to be deaf.

Who the hell said anything about the WWE? If perception means nothing, then why is such great care being taken to protect guys like Bisping? If perception means nothing, then why was Babalu ran out of the UFC for being boo'd for perceivably poor sportsmanship, and why is Arlovski being blacklisted for mailing in his fight against Werdum?

The fact is, people would view a loss to a deaf Hamill as somehow more degrading to Bisping than a loss to a hearing Hamill. I'm not saying its right, but thats the way the world works, much in the same way a fighter could never live down a loss to an opponent with a severed limb or a missing eye. I would like to see it simply because it would be an especially abrupt way to end the scripted ascension to glory written for Bisping. The "mumbling retard" statement was just an exceptionally abrasive way of communicating that point. I never once bashed Hamill's ability, and I won't apologize for being abrasive.

BTW, many have already compared organizations protecting fighters (Pride handing cans to Wand/having non-title fights for champions, Dana protecting Huerta and Bisping etc) to the WWE already..

 

[OokieSpookie]

Who the hell said anything about the WWE? If perception means nothing, then why is such great care being taken to protect guys like Bisping? If perception means nothing, then why was Babalu ran out of the UFC for being boo'd for perceivably poor sportsmanship, and why is Arlovski being blacklisted for mailing in his fight against Werdum?

The fact is, people would view a loss to a deaf Hamill as somehow more degrading to Bisping than a loss to a hearing Hamill. I'm not saying its right, but thats the way the world works, much in the same way a fighter could never live down a loss to an opponent with a severd limb or a missing eye. I would like to see it simply because it would be an especially abrupt way to end the scripted ascension to glory written for Bisping. The "mumbling retard" statement was just an exceptionally abrasive way of communicating that point. I never once bashed Hamill's ability, and I won't apologize for being abrasive.

BTW, many have already compared organizations protecting fighters (Pride handing cans to Wand/having non-title fights for champions, Dana protecting Huerta and Bisping etc) to the WWE already..

I have to call bullshit on this on a few accounts.
A) how in the fuck are they protecting Bisping?
This is the match that SHOULD have happened in TUF, and as such people have been wanting and waiting for this for some time. Hamill is not some jobber that they are throwing at him.

B) How would it be degrading when Hamill is a fan favorite and gets huge crowd support, as well as being built up during TUF by Tito and Dana and others as being a huge talent and capable of anything and one of the next up and coming stars?

The only people who would see it is degrading are inbred fucking hypocrites who will get all offended at someone throwing racial slurs and shit but think that it is funny to do the same thing to the deaf or handicapped.
And nobody gives a flying fuck about their opinions .

 

[vpance]

I hope Bisping and Hamill get the double KO.

On paper Rampage should win and I think he knows that, but I also think he's not too happy about being matched up with someone like Dan so fast. Plus there's that little All Access curse

 

[Tchu-Espresso]

Plus there's that little All Access curse

You mean the one randy couture broke?

Spoiler

His left arm, that is

 

[pel1300]

Damn.


I just got finished watching UFC 74. They were fighting on a mat that looked like something straight out of slaughterhouse. They never showed it on PPV, but the massive blood stain was from David Heath vs. Renato Sobral. Babalu cut Heath really bad, and also held his choke on him two seconds too long. Sobral has been subsequently fined half of his purse.

After finding this picture, I'm glad I missed that fight.

No you're not. That was one of the most bad ass fights in MMA history.

Babalu choking Heath unconscious, then standing up covered in blood....awesome.