But it is economics. There is a point of diminishing returns where the MMA fan isn't going to be willing to fork over for 3-4 PPV's a month. People are already getting tired of lack luster cards costing an arm and a leg 2x a month roughly. I don't see how they can expand the number of cards even further.
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But it is economics. There is a point of diminishing returns where the MMA fan isn't going to be willing to fork over for 3-4 PPV's a month. People are already getting tired of lack luster cards costing an arm and a leg 2x a month roughly. I don't see how they can expand the number of cards even further.
Surely the amount of fighters available for selection will increase, raising the standards. I reckon we are likely to see more Fight Nights and therefore better PPVs
There is really only a dozen or so guys outside of the UFC right now that are at that level. Their depth hasn't increased that much. What we've lost is an alternative, that is almost on the UFC's level.
They will probably run strikeforce for a little while, and then cherry pick all the top Strikeforce fighters as their contracts run out. Then they will just cancel strikeforce and the biggest showcase for guys not in the UFC will be gone.
I'm a big proponent of competition, it makes people work harder to improve the product. I just can't see any angle that is good for the fans and the fighters long term. For the fans we have the short term prospect of maybe seeing The Reem in the UFC, or some other big named guys, but long term where does a professional fighter go after the UFC cuts him now?
The moment the UFC cuts you, you're basically no longer a professional fighter based on the idea that as a professional you can support yourself financially. Fighting in small regional shows is going to be a part time gig, these guys won't be able to train full time unless they get support from some other area.
The UFC were going to cherry pick the top fighters already when their contracts ran down, like with Shields.
And right now White is talking up the competition to be as usual, they'll compete for the signings rather than the UFC taking them all at lowest purse possible. If they see that through and continue to do it, there shouldnt be a problem with the lack of competition.
Also Bellator and the rest will continue to grow and attempt to step in where Strikeforce has left off.
And right now White is talking up the competition to be as usual, they'll compete for the signings rather than the UFC taking them all at lowest purse possible. If they see that through and continue to do it, there shouldnt be a problem with the lack of competition.
Also Bellator and the rest will continue to grow and attempt to step in where Strikeforce has left off.
I'm of the opinion that full ppv fights should no longer be 1 main draw 'sometimes 2' and a bunch of lesser guys.
3 main card fights including a title fight and two contender fights.
Example
GSP v who ever 'title fight'
Lesner v who ever 'contender fight'
Griffin v who ever 'contender fight'
Lay it out so you have 2 title fights for each division every year and four contender fights. Fill the rest in with lesser fighter and then give the stronger UFC ppv pre lim fights to fight night to entice viewers.
As much as Dana wants it to be, UFC isn't boxing in its pomp 'yet' and people want more fights with big names.
Looking forward to UFC 129
3 main card fights including a title fight and two contender fights.
Example
GSP v who ever 'title fight'
Lesner v who ever 'contender fight'
Griffin v who ever 'contender fight'
Lay it out so you have 2 title fights for each division every year and four contender fights. Fill the rest in with lesser fighter and then give the stronger UFC ppv pre lim fights to fight night to entice viewers.
As much as Dana wants it to be, UFC isn't boxing in its pomp 'yet' and people want more fights with big names.
Looking forward to UFC 129
Who's pumped for Bones/Shogun??
This is a UFC card that I'm actually excited about.
Uriah Faber makes his UFC debut and with Nam Pham pulling out we get a rematch of Garcia vs Korean Zombie.
This is a UFC card that I'm actually excited about.
Uriah Faber makes his UFC debut and with Nam Pham pulling out we get a rematch of Garcia vs Korean Zombie.
Cant wait for it. John Jones is my prediction. Shogun out for nearly a year. It will be tough for him
Never seen Faber fight but I have head all about him and seen you tube stuff.
Never seen Faber fight but I have head all about him and seen you tube stuff.
Shogun is going to floor Jones and it's going to be hilarious to watch.
Its one of those fights where I dont want to see either fighter lose, but I feel either could. Whoever connects first in the standup will likely win the fight. I dont know why Jones is the favourite, Shogun has the power in his striking to knock him out if he can get inside.
It will be interesting to see if Jones can keep him down, he managed it with Bader but Bader hasnt spent a lot of his time on the bottom. Shogun is good at getting out of such a spot, so perhaps we'll see how good Jones' top control really is. I do think that if he can keep him down, Jones can stop the fight with strikes and submissions.
It will be interesting to see if Jones can keep him down, he managed it with Bader but Bader hasnt spent a lot of his time on the bottom. Shogun is good at getting out of such a spot, so perhaps we'll see how good Jones' top control really is. I do think that if he can keep him down, Jones can stop the fight with strikes and submissions.
Oh balls. Zombie vs Garcia is actually on the Fight Night card the following week.
Still looking forward to tonight though.
I've actually put money on Shogun simply because he's a 2-1 underdog at the every least but like Randall has said, historically ir's hard for any fighter to come straight back in on top form after a long lay off. I can just as easily see Jones gnp'ing his way to a tko victory.
10-1 on Shogun to win by sub isn't a bad bet (Skybet).
Still looking forward to tonight though.
I've actually put money on Shogun simply because he's a 2-1 underdog at the every least but like Randall has said, historically ir's hard for any fighter to come straight back in on top form after a long lay off. I can just as easily see Jones gnp'ing his way to a tko victory.
10-1 on Shogun to win by sub isn't a bad bet (Skybet).
feck feck feck. I didn't realise this was on, thought it was next week. And I'm in work at 6am. I'll have to sleep.
Should go to sleep now, wake up at 1am. Done done done.
Not going to even try staying up. Sky plus is a god send
Predictions
Brendan Schaub vs. Mirko Filipović
Nate Marquardt vs. Dan Miller
Jim Miller vs. Kamal Shalorus
Urijah Faber vs. Eddie Wineland
Maurício Rua (c) vs. Jon Jones
Predictions
Brendan Schaub vs. Mirko Filipović
Nate Marquardt vs. Dan Miller
Jim Miller vs. Kamal Shalorus
Urijah Faber vs. Eddie Wineland
Maurício Rua (c) vs. Jon Jones
Promised myself I wasn't staying up for this one and catching it in the morning, just gone 2am here I am again. Main event is too good to miss.
Damn missed the start, hope I can find a good feed
What sort you want, I have a cracking sopcast one.
ouch, ko
im okay thanks, got a nice veemi one for now. Might have to pester you for it a bit later though given how often these go down
Right on.
CC should call it a day now.
CC should call it a day now.
Disappointed by Crocop's KO. I'm a huge fan of his, and it's saddening to see him struggle to adapt to the ever improving MMA style. Let's face it, he's a kickboxer first, and his deadly kicks were so effective when he wasn't afraid of the takedown. Can't remember the last time I saw him genuinely dangerous with his feet. In the UFC he's primarily looked to be a counterpuncher and it just doesn't suit him. Besides that his skillset has diminished with age. Just not the man he used to be
Well hopefully the main event is going to be as exciting as we think its going to be.
Can someone please pm me a stream. cheers
Jones is a machine
Phenom
He's just untouchable. He'll go down as the best of all time once he's done.
He's just untouchable. He'll go down as the best of all time once he's done.
I missed it. What happened ?
P4P. Jones destroyed Shogun. I mean Shogun had a great claim for top 3 P4P with his record, and for Bones to literally outclass him in all aspects. Well there you go.
Bones just made Shogun look like a scrub. Dominated him for three rounds, knocked him out in the third after pounding the hell out of him on the ground with some disgusting strikes. Shogun briefly got to his feet, but Bones finished it with a sickening knee up against the cage. It was as one sided as you could possibly imagined, Jones was just untouchable, including a freaking ridiculous 180 degree elbow smash that just made me yell "feck!".
Seriously find that fight on youtube as soon as you can. Jones doesn't just meet the hype, he absolutely squashes it.
Shogun wins it back from Jones I reckon. Don't know why he just does.
Raoul, here's a play by play from Sherdog
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Jon Jones
Round 1
Referee Herb Dean is the referee for tonight’s light heavyweight championship bout. Should it go the distance, the judges at cageside are Douglas Crosby, Cardo Urso and Dave Tirelli. The challenger opens the bout with a leaping knee, then a spinning back-kick that misses. The men clinch and Jones scores a trip takedown with ease against the base of the cage. Rua stuffs Jones back to open guard and looks to isolate the arms from the bottom. Jones spins to Shogun’s right and tries to pass half-guard while looking at a guillotine. Rua puts him back in full guard and Jones mashes with elbows from the top as he tries again to pass. Rua scoots free and stands, but eats a barrage of knees and punches on the way up. The champ is dazed against the cage as Jones backs up to give him space. Rua looks absolutely spent coming forward with 90 seconds still to go in the opening round. Jones corks Rua with more long punches, then a kick to the knee. Shogun scores with a one-two of his own and takes Jones’ back staning, but Jones reverses and finishes the round in Rua’s guard.
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-9 Jones
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Jones
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Jones
Round 2
Jones whips a leg kick at Rua, then backs him up with a teep. They tie up and Jones blasts him with a spinning elbow as they split. Jones going high and low with his kicks, playing matador to the tired-looking Rua. Now Shogun connects with a combination, but Jones instantly ties up. Jones sticks a hand in Shogun’s face to show the distance and backs up when the champion comes forward. Superman punches, elbows and more low kicks from Jones. Shogun throws a leg kick of his own and gets tripped down, winding up with Jones postured up in his guard. Jones smothers Rua and then drives an elbow into his face. Jones cracks Rua with more elbows, then lays his forearm across the Brazilian’s throat. The right side of Rua’s face looks battered and swollen as the last minute of the second frame ticks down. Herb Dean warns Jones not to elbow Rua’s neck. That’s where the round ends.
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-8 Jones
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-8 Jones
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Jones
Round 3
Jones plants a one-two on Rua and misses with a head kick. Rua takes the opportunity to duck inside, then dives for a leg lock. Jones will have none of it and flattens Rua out, then works on advancing past half-guard. Rua breathing heavy on the bottom as Jones opens up with heavy punches and elbows. A series of elbows causes Shogun to cover up. Jones tries to finish but Rua turtles. Jones drives a nasty knee into the body. Rua stands and wobbles backward into the cage. Jones stalks him, finds his opening and drills him with a brutal left hook to the body. Another knee lands on the way down and Herb Dean rescues Rua at 2:37 of the third round, making 23-year-old Jon Jones the youngest champion in UFC history.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Jon Jones
Round 1
Referee Herb Dean is the referee for tonight’s light heavyweight championship bout. Should it go the distance, the judges at cageside are Douglas Crosby, Cardo Urso and Dave Tirelli. The challenger opens the bout with a leaping knee, then a spinning back-kick that misses. The men clinch and Jones scores a trip takedown with ease against the base of the cage. Rua stuffs Jones back to open guard and looks to isolate the arms from the bottom. Jones spins to Shogun’s right and tries to pass half-guard while looking at a guillotine. Rua puts him back in full guard and Jones mashes with elbows from the top as he tries again to pass. Rua scoots free and stands, but eats a barrage of knees and punches on the way up. The champ is dazed against the cage as Jones backs up to give him space. Rua looks absolutely spent coming forward with 90 seconds still to go in the opening round. Jones corks Rua with more long punches, then a kick to the knee. Shogun scores with a one-two of his own and takes Jones’ back staning, but Jones reverses and finishes the round in Rua’s guard.
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-9 Jones
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Jones
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Jones
Round 2
Jones whips a leg kick at Rua, then backs him up with a teep. They tie up and Jones blasts him with a spinning elbow as they split. Jones going high and low with his kicks, playing matador to the tired-looking Rua. Now Shogun connects with a combination, but Jones instantly ties up. Jones sticks a hand in Shogun’s face to show the distance and backs up when the champion comes forward. Superman punches, elbows and more low kicks from Jones. Shogun throws a leg kick of his own and gets tripped down, winding up with Jones postured up in his guard. Jones smothers Rua and then drives an elbow into his face. Jones cracks Rua with more elbows, then lays his forearm across the Brazilian’s throat. The right side of Rua’s face looks battered and swollen as the last minute of the second frame ticks down. Herb Dean warns Jones not to elbow Rua’s neck. That’s where the round ends.
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-8 Jones
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-8 Jones
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Jones
Round 3
Jones plants a one-two on Rua and misses with a head kick. Rua takes the opportunity to duck inside, then dives for a leg lock. Jones will have none of it and flattens Rua out, then works on advancing past half-guard. Rua breathing heavy on the bottom as Jones opens up with heavy punches and elbows. A series of elbows causes Shogun to cover up. Jones tries to finish but Rua turtles. Jones drives a nasty knee into the body. Rua stands and wobbles backward into the cage. Jones stalks him, finds his opening and drills him with a brutal left hook to the body. Another knee lands on the way down and Herb Dean rescues Rua at 2:37 of the third round, making 23-year-old Jon Jones the youngest champion in UFC history.
You watch him and its almost like Anderson Silva with the most dominant wrestling in the ufc. So er... No weakness, at least from what we know. Shogun is a very experienced fighter and he couldnt exploit Jones' lack of experience. We dont know how much Jones chin can take, we dont know how his guard is.
So perhaps the only guy who's going to have a chance is someone who can hurt him on the feet, using that to get him to the ground and finishing him there.
So perhaps the only guy who's going to have a chance is someone who can hurt him on the feet, using that to get him to the ground and finishing him there.
Wow, look at the replay of the knock out. When the ref stepped in to seperate them, Shogun was tapping to the strikes
This I disagree on. Phil Davis can easily negate any leverage advantage imo. Davis Vs Jones is the dream for me. I think Davis cleans him out.
I have to disagree with the first part. He is nothing like Anderson Silva. He is light years ahead of Silva in every aspect. Silva might have better jitz, but jitz doesn't matter when the guy manhandles you.
Silva wouldn't get out of the first round with him! Wouldn't shock me if Jones is the reason Silva went from talking about moving to 205 permanently awhile back, to now talking about dropping to 178 to fight GSP.
This is what an elite athlete looks like in MMA. We haven't seen any elite athletes like this in MMA before. Jose Aldo is about as close as we've come.
If Jones has any weakness, I think it might be his gas tank, he looked actually tired the last 2 minutes of each round, and that was with Shogun offering him basically nothing.
That was frightening and it just killed the division. There is nobody out there at 205 that has more than a punchers chance. IMO 205 just went from being arguably the most compelling division, to being the new 185, except all the other guys at 205 are actually GOOD, Jones is just that much better.
Depends on how fast Davis is ready, he is still pretty green and Jones is such a natural striker it is insane.
We will have to see, but I don't think this fight happens for 2 years or so anyways.
I'm a big fan of Davis, but I think when they come face to face - and they will, probably even right after Rashad, maybe they'll squeeze Machida in there. But still, when we see them face off I think he'll find that he cannot move Jones and he'll get crapped on when they stand.
I see it happening in 2012. Davis is already 8-0 and I think he has a fantastic chance of making it 9-0 when fighting through the week. I might be massively off but I just reckon he is ready for his shot providing he wins at least his next 2 fights.
What made me laugh was the comments near the end about Shogun going down to 185 because "how does he beat this guy?"
Shogun is one of the top p4p fighters in the world. He's a lot better than almost everyone in the division. If he cannot compete and needs to go to 185 then the rest of the division need to as well.
Lets not discount the long lay off, and Shogun didnt look near his best when he fought Forrest after his injuries. So its doubtful we saw him at exactly 100% and without rust. But even so it was so decisive, and Jones destroyed him both standing and on the ground... yeah
Shogun is one of the top p4p fighters in the world. He's a lot better than almost everyone in the division. If he cannot compete and needs to go to 185 then the rest of the division need to as well.
Lets not discount the long lay off, and Shogun didnt look near his best when he fought Forrest after his injuries. So its doubtful we saw him at exactly 100% and without rust. But even so it was so decisive, and Jones destroyed him both standing and on the ground... yeah
This Shogun was nowhere near his best. Jones stepped up and fought an amazing fight tonight but let's just see how he deals with a Shogun free of rust and with a point to prove.
I think he already had the point to prove. But yeah the lay off didnt help at all
Ya, but.
Forrest BARELY beat Shogun who hadn't fought in something like 2 years, who was terribly out of shape.
Shogun just got RUN THE feck OVER. He might do better in a rematch, but how much better? How many times did he actually hit Jones? I'm honestly trying to think of a single time Shogun actually hit him standing and I am a huge Shogun fan.
Jones is only going to improve. His techniques will get better, he will get more seasoned. He's a freak.