The MMA thread
- Thread starter Fortitude
- Start date
Yeah, and all the fights to get a title shot are demanding and draining. He doesn't have time or health on his side to come through a couple of wars and be even the same fighter as he was tonight, I don't think.
Maybe pride keeps him going, but I think we've just seen the best version of him that's remaining.
Last thing we need is Islam as double champ, that said Khamzat, Rakhmonov, Colby and Leon give him all sorts of issues.
Just watch a few Arse Fam TV videos and you’ll be an expert in no time at all.
I think Leon would maul him
2 fights with Usman, then a lineup of Colby, Islam, or Khamzat…..that is some wrestling session
I was joking. Islam isn’t suited to move up. He should stick to LW and occasional maulings of FWs from middle earth.
The scramble for that fight is very interesting. Dana has a cash cow in English venues with Edwards. Conor would make them a fortune, however undeserving he might be for a genuine title shot; Masvidal is a genuine grudge match that Edwards wants (if he has any sway as a champ now); Khamzat probably shouldn't get to jump to the top of a division with so many names who've done their time to get a title shot; Covington has a decent enough claim. There's a couple of others, but it does look like a decision has to be made on $$$$ or prestige, and we know how those tend to go.
Sadly I think this means Colby will take the belt which will turn WW into a wwe clown show.
Volk 2, 3 and 5.
Colby's got a big problem with Edwards' standup, I think. He has the engine and the aggression, but Edwards has a high likelihood of putting him to sleep after making him pay for some sloppy work with the striking. His takedown defense has also come on leaps and bounds, which, for all the effort it takes to get inside, will be a real problem for Colby - I reckon that's a bad match up for him, worse than Usman, whose got a better base level of vulnerability for Colby to interact with. Leon's knees and elbows are custom made to butter and paste Colby's approach play, too.
Aye, I don't think Edwards will be a particularly long-reigning champion but I like his chances vs Colby. His takedown defence looks excellent now, although it should be said that Usman's wrestling might be much diminished due to all his injuries. Colby could potentially put it on him much harder wrestling-wise, but then he lacks any sort of elite power so I suspect Leon will be aggressive when he's coming in and either finish him or outpoint him. I've shamelessly fallen for this guy, but I think Shavkat is the sort of relentless, heavy-handed finisher who might make Edwards wilt.
Yeah agreed; the wrestling should be more intense and aggressive, but achieving that would be so much harder for Colby than Usman due to the quality of his standup and approach play, which is walking into a striking minefield I don't think he's got the tools to tackle. Usman's jab and striking actually became top notch despite being a small pool, and Colby has none of that, nor any power, and we've seen Edwards deal with Usman's power head-on with no problems. I really see a KO in that fight for Colby, or getting really badly sliced up with elbows, worst still, he has only one style and method and has to stick to it no matter what otherwise get destroyed at range.
Colby will go in/out on his shield as usual, but this is a bad stylistic match up for him, especially with Edwards' length.
re. Shavkat, I would like to see more of him as he looks a little slow in terms of the Championship contenders, but maybe he can put that notion to bed when he gets in there with a top 4 guy.
what? that was an actual accent? I thought he was punch drunk or something...
Shavkat vs Belal next 
Leon is a strange one, he comes across as a guy who would rather be doing anything else than fighting (or talking in public). When he was waiting for the fight to start he looked like me at the dentist.
Skill wise, absolutely, but in terms of activity, he hasn't fought any current top 10 WW.
feck it though, will be a good fight.
ps. Didn't knew Colby is 35 years old, same as Kamaru. To the eye test, he seems to be a bit younger still, but these wrestlers have a lot of miles accumulated.
ps2. If Jorge can beat Gilbert Burns (very unlikely), I think Leon will say "feck you" to Dana and end up fighting Jorge.
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Aye, Usman's striking isn't particularly creative but he's developed his jab and straight right into real weapons, way beyond anything Colby can offer aside from sheer volume behind the takedown threat. With Shavkat, I feel it's more his disregard for defence and lack of head movement rather than pure lack of speed that stands out as a weakness. I would say though that Neal was a real test imo, and I don't think that anyone in the top four actually has better boxing or hand speed than Neal. Leon is very sharp and quick with his longer range weapons, yet I still think of him as being vulnerable to a proper finisher somehow - that may well be solely due to the end of the Nate fight in fairness, and if so it's not exactly fair on my part to hold one exchange against him.
Shavkat vs Belal next
Did Dana actually announce that? Now that would be another great test for Shavkat, and if he preserved his finishing streak against a guy as durable as Belal it would be big.
Yeah, said they are working on making that fight.
Cheers mate! Oh yes
. That probably does mean Colby next in line for the title shot, which I don't mind too much despite his inactivity. It'll be shite if Conor manages to beat Chandler and jumps the queue after that though.Cheers mate! Oh yes
Red panty night for Leon though. Would be well earned.
Gotta hand it to Colby.
“I wanted to fight him”! Of course you did mate. It’s that burning desire to fight that makes you inactive for years
Colby getting the next shot would be embarrassing. Guy has won 1 fight in over 2 years against that bum Masvidal.
Should be behind the winner of Belal-Shavkat if that gets made, or at least made to fight the winner. Or fight Burns if he beats Jorge.
Should be behind the winner of Belal-Shavkat if that gets made, or at least made to fight the winner. Or fight Burns if he beats Jorge.
It's crazy how human long reigning champions look when they get defeated. Even if the initial defeat seemed like they just got caught like Usman or Joanna Jerdjkvfhjkn.
I don’t think Colby is a great match up for Leon… just because of the pace of the fight. Leon will need to slow him down which he is pretty good at with his footwork and striking but this will be more pressure than Usman put on him last night. Would not be surprised at all if Leon gassed in the later rounds.
Fiziev really needs to work on his cardio. He slowed down so much by the third round that Gaethje was piecing him up… and Fiziev was talked about as maybe the best striker in the division, yet he struggles to keep it up for 3 rounds, let alone 5.
Fiziev really needs to work on his cardio. He slowed down so much by the third round that Gaethje was piecing him up… and Fiziev was talked about as maybe the best striker in the division, yet he struggles to keep it up for 3 rounds, let alone 5.
I tried my best to say that out loud, realized it was the same result as when i tried her actual name.
Burns fight would be pretty good! At least in both cases he would be fighting someone that didn't lose their last 2 fights before he got his hands on them so I agree. I like Colby's game but his record is a little underwhelming if you look at more than just the names.
But I do have to give credit for his performances against Usman, those were good fights considered he lost. Especially the first one. I think he has it in him to become champ, but like you said he doesn't deserve a straight shot at the belt.
In this case, Edwards actually managed to win on points despite the point deduction, as opposed to last time when Usman was clearly winning the fight on points had it gone the distance. I think a situation like last night affects Usman much more psychologically because he gave it his all across five full rounds and with the benefit of a point deduction, and yet still wasn't able to get across the finish line.
That sort of result plays much more on the psychology of a fighter, whereas the head kick can easily be dismissed as a one off fluke that could be corrected in the next fight. Still, the fight was sufficiently entertaining and close enough to where I could see a 4th fight if Edwards gets passed Colby and Usman wins his next fight against someone like Chimaev or Belal. If Colby beats Edwards, then I definitely see a 3rd fight between him and Usman as those are usually box office.
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Say it like it is….Usman looked pretty crap last night. Slow, one-dimensional striking & couldn’t implement his wrestling. The explosiveness had gone
Tbf to him I think the injuries have wrecked him, and Edwards kicking the shit out of his lead leg probably didn’t help.
Jones got a title fight 3 years after last competing in a weight class he was never in and having failed multiple drug tests.
Colby getting a shot would not be embarrassing. Leon is calling for a Masvidal fight because it's an easy fight. Masvidal getting a shot would be embarrassing.
Can't compare Jones to Colby. Jones is one of the GOATs despite whatever had happened... There was massive appetite to watch him at HW.
But I agree that Masvidal getting a title shot would be embarrassing. Man should be fighting in backyards again. Can't stand him.
No I'm not comparing Colby to Jones. I'm just saying that the layoff doesn't matter to the ufc.
Colby made weight after being asked at the last minute to be the backup fighter. He was obviously promised the next shot. I can only think that the ufc were worried one of either Leon or Kamaru were not going to make weight. Otherwise Colby would have been asked ages ago.
Edwards vs Belal is quite uninspiring though. Masvidal, rightly or wrongly, is a big casual draw
Are we really comparing Colby's resume to Jon Jones? Please.
No argument about Masvidal, I'm not saying he's a worthy challenger either.
I'm saying Colby should have to fight a legit contender. He's no more deserving than Gilbert, Belal or Shavkat at the moment.
Leon should hold on for the Masvidal/Burns fight. Hopefully Jorge wins, but if not, then he can fight either Burns or Belal (both more deserving of a shot than Colby).
Remember that Colby already ducked Leon back in the day. Deserves the same treatment.
fecking Dana just want Colby champ so he can go on tour with Donald Trump.