From this weeks Cardio Freak on 411Mania
UFC 91: “Pain Arrived” Review
If you didn’t see him after UFC 87, I’m sure you see him now. Then again how could miss that gigantic man in the first place?
Brock Lesnar caused the MMInternet to collapse just after midnight Saturday when he knocked down former UFC Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture and then pounded him out to become the new UFC Heavyweight Champion.
The talk after the weigh ins was that Lesnar was nervous and possibly hiding an injury. He wasn’t his usual cocky self and something just seemed a little off. Even during his walk in he didn’t look to have any type of fire in his eyes. I’m usually the first person to read into these types of things and while I thought something may have been off with Lesnar, I put that doubt away the moment he was smiling and jumping around during the introduction. He worked us. Maybe he was hurt, maybe he wasn’t. But Lesnar showed everyone that you shouldn’t put too much stock into what you see at the weigh ins and walk ins. At least with him anyway.
As I said last week, nothing that happened was going to shock me in this fight. I wasn’t shocked when Randy bullied Brock into the fence, I wasn’t shocked when Brock put Randy on his back, and I wasn’t shocked when Brock dropped Randy. I was a little shocked that it took the ref seemingly forever to stop the fight but at the same time everyone would have been up in arms if Mario Yamasaki jumped in early. Then again, everyone is up in arms that a former WWE Superstar is the UFC Heavyweight Champion. That doesn’t shock me either.
Brock Lesnar is now the current king of the UFC Heavyweight division. Like it or not, learn to accept it. That could change when he faces Antontio Nogueira or Frank Mir but until that time, Lesnar is recognized as the true and linear champion. The scary thing about this man is that he can only improve. He’s still relatively young and he’s got size and speed that can’t be taught. He’s also in a big fight every time he steps into the Octagon, which is very similar to Randy Couture. In fact, Lesnar might just be a better version of Randy Couture when Couture first started his career. Now that’s scary.
As for Couture, he gave a hell of a fight. He made no excuses for the loss and was the class act we all know and love. He just got caught right on the temple and when you get hit there, you go down. He put up a better fight than any other 45 year old man on the planet would have and up until he was dropped, you always believed he had a chance at winning. I don’t know what’s next for Couture. He said that he feels the best he’s ever felt and that he’s still improving you have to wonder how long he can hang with the young guys like Lesnar, Cain, and Carwin. I’d love to see Couture vs. Liddell 4 (and maybe 5) but that’s a selfish line of thinking and maybe not something everyone involved would be interested in. I have to believe that Couture has another fight or two left in him and if that’s the case, UFC has to book him smartly. I think UFC should look more at super fights than ranking fights. Couture vs. Cain Velasquez, Shane Carwin, or Cheick Kongo aren’t really great business fights and the risk is too much for the reward. Fights against Chuck Liddell, Anderson Silva, or Forrest Griffin (put the training partners aspect aside, you don’t think Griffin would love to be the last person to ever fight Couture and you don’t think Couture would love to “pass the torch” to his start pupil? Thought so) are all good business fighters where there’s really no loser.
Also, add “God bless you…..God” to my list of worthy things to say in a post-fight interview.
Although Lesnar turned in an impressive performance, Kenny Florian turned in the most impressive performance of the night. I thought this would be Florian’s toughest fight to date but he rolled through Joe Stevenson and proved that he’s ready for BJ Penn. It always gets said but it always rings true, Kenny Florian improves with every fight. He looks like Ben Stiller, his ribs badly want to escape his body, he should probably be a lawyer, and he has a dyslexic nickname. Yet he keeps on winning. Has there ever been someone who didn’t look like they should be doing what their doing yet they succeed at the highest level? The first person that jumps to my mind is Kate Winslet, who I don’t find very attractive but recognize that she’s a really good actress.
I’m now more excited to see Kenny Florian vs. BJ Penn then I am for Penn vs. St. Pierre. Obviously I think St. Pierre vs. Penn will be a great fight and one that interests me but there’s that sour taste in my mouth that feels like Penn is only getting this fight because he MUST avenge this loss before his career is over and instead of defending a belt that he’s only defended once, he’s getting a shot at another belt. Say what you will about Florian’s chances of winning the fight against Penn, you can’t deny the fact that he’s won six straight fights, finishing five, since losing to Sean Sherk and he looks even more impressive every time out. I don’t know if he’ll, “kill the master” but I think he’ll be a tough test for the master.
Is everyone on my Dustin Hazelett bandwagon now? Don’t worry, there’s plenty of room. I’ve been singing the praises of this kid all year and he came through for me again. Not only did he grow an epic beard that I could only dream of growing but he finished with another sweet armbar that I could only dream of doing. He looked rocked early by Tamdan McCrory but he survived, started looking good on his feet, got the fight to the ground, and ended it. He’s still a number of wins away from a title shot but the kid is only 22 and he looks more impressive with every outing. My only concern about Hazelett is that he trains with Gurgel, which means he may always be a bridesmaid and never a bride. Right, Rich Franklin?
Gabriel Gonzaga continued to get back on track with a win over Josh Hendricks. Gonzaga looked impressive in a fight he should have looked impressive in. Good for him. There’s still the question about his heart and that won’t get answered until he takes a step up in competition. No knock on Justin McCully and Josh Hendricks but just because you training with Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture, doesn’t mean you’re Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture. Gonzaga is still a threat in the Heavyweight division because he’s got power on and in his feet and he’s really good on the ground but I have a feeling that if Brock Lesnar bullied him around for a round, Gonzaga would wilt. Until he proves he can survive an onslaught, my lasting memory of Gabriel Gonzaga is still, “I can’t see.”
Shame on those of you who doubted Demian Maia. I’ve been saying for a couple of fights now that this man has the skills to take out Anderson Silva and he proved me right with his performance against Nate Quarry. His striking is still good enough to get by, he gets it to the ground by any means, and he’s second to none on the ground. Maia suggested fighting Michael Bisping after his win and I for one support that fight. The only reason I would be against it is if it leads to Maia coaching against Bisping on TUF 9: US vs. UK. I don’t think UFC is dumb enough to have a Brazilian coach a US team but it seems like they didn’t plan this season too well (Dana White ripping the concept, the timing of the Henderson/Franklin fight and the lack of interest from Franklin and Henderson in coaching on the season) so maybe we will see Maia coach a team of Americans.
Quick Thoughts on the Preliminary Fights:
*Was this the first time ever all of the prelim fights were shown on PPV? I believe so.
*Matt Brown learned submissions. I’m starting to come around to ol’ Matt Brown although he’s got to lose that, “The Immortal” nickname.
*Bocek is better than Robinson.
*Stephens has a hell of an uppercut.
*Gurgel continues to put on good fights in a losing effort. Was anyone shocked when they saw that fight and the way it ended?
UFC 91 was hyped as the biggest fight of the year. Instead it turned out to be the best event of the year. There was no fight of the year candidate but we were treated to some outstanding fights, some outstanding submissions, an outstanding knockout, and an outstanding main event. Plus 50 Cent was there and proved he knows more about MMA than half the people watching as he picked Brock Lesnar over Randy Couture. Ok, we all know that’s not true but I am a fan of 50 Cent (don’t shoot me….nine times) so I enjoyed his presence.
It’s a stacked December for Zuffa with one WEC event, two UFC on Spike events, and a finale that features Evans vs. Griffin, Nogueira vs. Mir, and Silva vs. Jackson. What more could you ask for as a MMA fan?
