Essential The Official MMA Thread

[8====D]

Nah silva was an "honest" mistake he took it to rehab. Not to gain an advantage plus he didn't know it was on the ban substances.

i know and completely understand that, but it is not an excuse. . ."willful ignorance is not excusable"

silva and his camp should have done their research and had an extensive list of what not to ingest, plain and simple. . .it is what it is ; the UFC is all messed up now, though i still love the sport

 

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http://blogs.theprovince.com/2015/07/07/ufc-189-title-view-jose-aldo-and-the-featherweight-division/

UFC 189 Title View: Jose Aldo and the Featherweight Division

Normally the layout of one of these pieces is pretty cut and dry – champion, challenger, contenders and ones to watch – but his time around, however, things are a bit more complicated as the champion won’t be defending his title on July 11 but a belt is still on the line.

This is UFC Title View: Jose Aldo and the Featherweight Division.

The Champion

Jose Aldo Record: 25-1, 7-0 UFC
Won Title: def. Mike Brown by TKO (Strikes) at 1:20 of Round 2 (WEC 44, November 2009)
Title Defences: 7 in UFC, 9 total

Jose Aldo is the first and only man to wear the UFC featherweight belt, having been installed as the champion when the division was brought over from the WEC where the Brazilian had reigned atop the 145-pound ranks for the previous 13 months.

Despite people lining up to knock Aldo “frequently” missing title fights, the truth is that only the light heavyweight and lightweight titles have been defended more often than the featherweight strap since Aldo first claimed it from Brown in November 2009. Even if you include interim title fights across the board, Aldo’s nine defences is in line with how things have gone in the other weight classes; he’s simply pulled out of fights rather than being injured for extended periods.

In terms of his abilities in the cage, Aldo is one of the most talented fighters in the sport today – a blend of speed and precision while standing and owning some of the best takedown defence we’ve seen thus far. He’s so good on the feet and defending against fighters looking to instigate grappling exchanges that we haven’t ever really seen his ground game, though like everyone coming out of the Nova Uniao camp, we’re told it’s top notch.

Think about that though: he’s been fighting the best of the best in the featherweight division for half a dozen years and we still haven’t had any real situations where Aldo has been forced to showcase his submission game or do work off his back. That’s a testament to how good the champion is.

While he’s mostly quiet and unassuming outside of the cage, Aldo has a mean streak that shows up once he’s inside the Octagon. He brutalized Urijah Faber’s lead leg, kicked Chan Sung Jung’s dislocated shoulder and has been happy to exchange in the pocket with any number of fighters that thought they could go shot-for-shot with the undisputed champion.

It’s a shame that Aldo won’t be fighting on Saturday; he is the one and only champion of record in the featherweight ranks and though an interim title is on the line, whoever wins won’t be able to rightfully call themselves the UFC featherweight champ until they get in the Octagon and earn a victory of the man who hasn’t lost nearly a decade.

The Interim Title Combatants
Chad Mendes Record: 17-2, 8-2 UFC
Last Fight: def. Ricardo Lamas by TKO (Strikes) at 2:45 of Round 1 (UFN 63, April 2015)

Mendes is 17-0 against everyone else and 0-2 against Aldo, including his recent first-round blistering of Lamas back in April. Once a grind’em out wrestler, the Team Alpha Male standout showed marked development under former coach Duane “Bang” Ludwig and has continued to improve on the feet follow his departure. While he still has outstanding wrestling, Mendes has gotten so comfortable standing that he’s spent the majority of his recent outings throwing hands, rather than shooting doubles.

Coming in on short notice would be a major concern for just about anyone else, but the Sacramento-based fight squad always stays in pretty good shape and they never allow their weight to get too far out of hand, so conditioning and cutting weight shouldn’t be an issue.

The key for Mendes will be getting inside where he can use his wrestling and land compact, powerful blows. Aldo stopped him in their first fight with a nasty, unexpected knee, but Mendes took the best the Brazilian champion had to offer the second time around, so it will be interesting to see how he holds up this weekend.

Conor McGregor Record: 17-2, 5-0 UFC
Last Fight: def. Dennis Siver by TKO (Strikes) at 1:54 of Round 2 (UFN 59, January 2015)

Everyone needs to stop with the “he hasn’t earned it; he’s all talk” nonsense when it comes to McGregor as he’s turned back five straight opponents including the best up-and-coming talent in the division (Max Holloway) and a pair of fighters who were ranked in the Top 10 at the time they fought, Siver and Dustin Poirier.

The Irishman would have been an intriguing challenger for Aldo and this match-up with Mendes is going to answer the few remaining questions most observers have about the charismatic challenger. While everyone knows about his striking prowess and unique movements inside the cage, his grappling skills have yet to be tested, but sharing the Octagon with Mendes should change that.

Thus far, McGregor has backed up all of his words inside the cage and that is what makes him such an compelling figure. If he’s able to continue his run of dominance on Saturday at UFC 189, the SBG Ireland product will earn an interim title and set up an even bigger showdown with Aldo later this year.

The Contenders
Frankie Edgar (19-4-1, 13-4-1 UFC) is the odd man out right now, having rattled off four straight victories to put himself in position to potentially challenge for the title again, but with Aldo out and an interim belt being created, “The Answer” is likely going to need to fight at least once more before he gets that chance now.

Ricardo Lamas (15-4, 6-2 UFC) lands in the “Carlos Condit” position in the featherweight ranks; he’s better than the majority of the fighters in the division, but he’s already lost to the two top dogs, so his options are limited for the time being. While he might have a longer road back to contention, “The Bully” will remain a tough out in the upper echelon of the featherweight ranks for the foreseeable future.

Max Holloway (13-3, 9-3 UFC) has rocketed up the rankings over the last two years to go from prospect to contender. The 23-year-old Hawaiian has won six straight and is coming off a third-round finish of former contender Cub Swanson. If he beats Charles Oliveira this summer in Saskatoon, “Blessed” might find himself in a No. 1 contender’s bout.

The Ones to Watch
Mirsad Bektic (10-0, 3-0 UFC) is a force to be reckoned with and looks like a future champion. Training out of American Top Team, the 24-year-old wrecked Lucas Martins last time out and should find himself facing ranked opposition before the year is out.

Yair Rodriguez (5-1, 2-0 UFC) showed tremendous growth between his first and second fight in the UFC. The TUF: Latin America winner is just 22 and should continue to improve by leaps and bounds between each fight, especially given that he’s working with Izzy Martinez and Mike Valle, to terrific coaches with ties to Team Jackson-Winkeljohn. His timeline is a little longer than Bektic’s, but Rodriguez is no lesser a prospect than the ATT standout.

 

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If you watch the episode where he got popped he is on the phone telling his manager to call his wife to get all the stuff he is taking to recover from the medicine cabinet. he believes he didn't take anything

Link to the episode?

 

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Lucky for Dana that Rory will get his ass kicked.

I got $20 in Coli cash on Rory

 

[TheDarceKnight]

Isn't that the way it's suppose to be? Rookies come in the NBA and mlb and get barely 10% of what established stars get. Yoel's time may be now for the engaged and educated viewer like yourselves. But for the casual fan, the new fans who are bringing new kidney and views to the ufc, last wk was their real 1st introduction to Yoel.

If u pay young fighters big money what wld be their incentive to go out and go ball to the wall and fight every 3 months. They'll start to get comfortable and act like the Diaz Bros, sitting out, smoking weed, picking and choosing their fights like their entitled. And only person who loses then are the fans.

It's hard to compare mma to other sports. That 10% you speak of a rookie gets in any other league is as much as the number 1 superstar in mma gets for fighting per year. And that's arguable whoever you put up in that position. Regardless there isn't enough exposure/marketing build up behind these fighters and a shirt with their name on the back isn't gonna change UFC's lack of pr for their new up coming fighters.

The crazy backlash Yoel got was good and bad. Good because it generated some much needed noise for the UFC. Bad because now people wanna see him lose because of his sentiments.

The Diaz brothers are anaomly but before they even got to the point they are now they have had many fights. They feel like they don't get paid what they deserve because they bring in views you can't stop people from being complacent when they get money. Only thing is educated them. That's why in the NBA and NFL that I know of not sure in other sports they have rookie programs to educate these young guys about money management and pr relations etc. There are still a few screw ups in the NFL and NBA people smoking weed, still can't handle the fame, look at the domestic violence issue in the NFL.

UFC is very selfish when it comes to money part of it is because they don't have as much as these other sports another part is because they are a private company. They also can switch up on you at any time because apparently there isn't any clear guidelines and no Union or association to help argue for their behalf when there is an eyebrow raising issue. The sponsors fighters could bring into the ring helped with costs the majority of the UFC fighters couldn't do on their own. If you listen episode I just had with Jonas speed he's Aldo training partner he even speaks on how the fighters now won't get what they woulda gotten in 1 or 2 fights they will make in a year now on how this is structured. UFC is literally squeezing out their up and coming talent slowly but surely. Not because these guys can't hang but because they do not have the money to be able to hang. There were already complaints fighters didn't get paid enough. I predict this deal will be a huge breaking point for the fighters because most of these guys are broke.

You guys both make some good points. I feel bad for the fighters in this deal, but only to a point. I hate to repeat Luke Thomas' position on this issue, and I don't like when some people default to the "free market economy" stance, but I think it kind of applies here.

It's in the UFC's interest to promote its own brand, and get as much money as it can from its sponsors, contractors/fighters, TV deals, etc. The fighters are a commodity for them, and it's also true that the fighters basically "are" the brand, and that without the fighters there is clearly no UFC.

I think the Reebok deal isn't great for the fighters, and I hope that the situation gets better. We have a UFC fighter and a Bellator fighter at the gym where I train. The Bellator guy has actually said he might not even be interested in going to the UFC anymore, depending on how the Reebok stuff is looking in another year.

I guess where the fighters lose me just a bit is that they just for some reason will not organize and get some kind of union or unified front together. They complained when their likeness rights got signed away for the video game, and Jon Fitch and AKA were basically the main team that put up a fight. I'd rather some of these fighters get together and work for a better situation for themselves instead of complaining on Twitter about the situation and doing nothing.

It will be interesting when some contracts expire. If Bellator gets a couple top 5 guys from some different divisions, the UFC might be forced to give some better payoff to their fighters. That's another way the fighter pay issue could change.

Brendan Schaub also suggested a possible deal where fighters get paid even when they aren't fighting. Not even that much money, and there's definitely not enough in the pot to pay all the fighters a yearly salary or anything, but maybe even just paying some of your more established guys/gals a bit when they're off. That way they also won't feel as pressured to fight constantly and then you might also cut down on injuries.

As a random note, I heard Machida may have taken that last fight on such short notice to get in one more fight with his own sponsors before the Reebok deal.

 

[BlackSuperman]

I got $20 in Coli cash on Rory

Bring it. Rory doesn't do good against good strikers.

 

[TheNatureBoy]

 

[WhodatWhoadi]

still haunts him huh?

I wouldn't doubt it he got his ass BEAT in that fight...

should rematch

 

[LinusCaldwell]

You guys both make some good points. I feel bad for the fighters in this deal, but only to a point. I hate to repeat Luke Thomas' position on this issue, and I don't like when some people default to the "free market economy" stance, but I think it kind of applies here.

It's in the UFC's interest to promote its own brand, and get as much money as it can from its sponsors, contractors/fighters, TV deals, etc. The fighters are a commodity for them, and it's also true that the fighters basically "are" the brand, and that without the fighters there is clearly no UFC.

I think the Reebok deal isn't great for the fighters, and I hope that the situation gets better. We have a UFC fighter and a Bellator fighter at the gym where I train. The Bellator guy has actually said he might not even be interested in going to the UFC anymore, depending on how the Reebok stuff is looking in another year.

I guess where the fighters lose me just a bit is that they just for some reason will not organize and get some kind of union or unified front together. They complained when their likeness rights got signed away for the video game, and Jon Fitch and AKA were basically the main team that put up a fight. I'd rather some of these fighters get together and work for a better situation for themselves instead of complaining on Twitter about the situation and doing nothing.

It will be interesting when some contracts expire. If Bellator gets a couple top 5 guys from some different divisions, the UFC might be forced to give some better payoff to their fighters. That's another way the fighter pay issue could change.

Brendan Schaub also suggested a possible deal where fighters get paid even when they aren't fighting. Not even that much money, and there's definitely not enough in the pot to pay all the fighters a yearly salary or anything, but maybe even just paying some of your more established guys/gals a bit when they're off. That way they also won't feel as pressured to fight constantly and then you might also cut down on injuries.

As a random note, I heard Machida may have taken that last fight on such short notice to get in one more fight with his own sponsors before the Reebok deal.

With the rise of bellator I'm very interested to see who will leave UFC. Believe it or not but I believe bellator has a better market strategy than the UFC. I believe UFC is starting to feel the pressure because you have fighters like Gilbert or even Machida who have consecutive loses and technically should be let go but UFC is holding on because they know bellator will scoop these guys right up. It's not just the reebok deal that's irritating fighters but the new drug testing policy will not help these guys out either. As to whether the UFC can accommodate some sorta residue income for fighters? That would be a great idea but they would need to reconstructure their finances big time. You're right about how they are viewing the fighters commodity. UFC is literally taking food outta the fighters mouths. I guess that's one way of making weight.

 

[LinusCaldwell]

Link to the episode?

Can't find it breh but it's tuf Brazil shogun vs the nog bros who replaced silva

 

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Bring it. Rory doesn't do good against good strikers.

I disagree beh. Carlos Condit performed a miracle comeback. He was getting his shyt pushed in all Match until Greg Jackson gave him that pep talk

I don't see Lawler handling Rory, and you gonna gimme my $20 this Saturday breh

 

[LinusCaldwell]

Rampage should win but if he did lose
Im a huge fan of both fighters. This has bellator event written all over it imo

 

[TheDarceKnight]

With the rise of bellator I'm very interested to see who will leave UFC. Believe it or not but I believe bellator has a better market strategy than the UFC. I believe UFC is starting to feel the pressure because you have fighters like Gilbert or even Machida who have consecutive loses and technically be let go but UFC is holding on because they know bellator will scoop these guys right up. It's not just the reebok deal that's irritating fighters but the new drug testing policy will not help these guys out either. As to whether the UFC can accommodate some sorta residue income for fighters? That would be a great idea but they would need to reconstructure their finances big time. You're right about how they are viewing the fighters commodity. UFC is literally taking food outta the fighters mouths. I guess that's one way of making weight.

Good points. Also, I really like Bellator's product. Rogan and co. were kind of shytting on it a bit on the last Fight Companion Podcast---saying it looked too much like pro wrestling and they needed to just use the name SPIKE MMA or something like that. Sort of how you have Showtime Boxing. But I actually like Bellator's production. They were saying that the ramp takes up too much space, and makes it feel like less of a sporting event.

But setting that aside, the pace of the broadcast tends to be faster and more enjoyable, and there's a level of "fun" that is missing from a lot of UFC's events. I've been saying forever that the UFC needs to make things more exciting. Especially on the FOX cards. I mean for most UFC cards you couldn't pay me to watch everything from the Facebook prelims through the main event live. The UFC has the same intro music, the same music for the tale of the tape, the same entrances, the cuts to the FOX studio for long periods of time if a fight ends before the 3rd round. Everything about their shows is pretty dull by now.

Maybe it's because I used to be a pro wrestling fan but I wish the UFC had some more of those PRIDE elements to their presentation. It's so dry. Although UFC 187 was awesome and I'll be watching 189 live too.

 

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With the rise of bellator I'm very interested to see who will leave UFC. Believe it or not but I believe bellator has a better market strategy than the UFC. I believe UFC is starting to feel the pressure because you have fighters like Gilbert or even Machida who have consecutive loses and technically be let go but UFC is holding on because they know bellator will scoop these guys right up. It's not just the reebok deal that's irritating fighters but the new drug testing policy will not help these guys out either. As to whether the UFC can accommodate some sorta residue income for fighters? That would be a great idea but they would need to reconstructure their finances big time. You're right about how they are viewing the fighters commodity. UFC is literally taking food outta the fighters mouths. I guess that's one way of making weight.

I'm a big UFC fan as that's how I've gotten into watching MMA but this gonna hurt them in the long run. I dont know if the Reebok partnership was an attempt to make the UFC more mainstream, but this isn't the way to do it.

 

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The lack of advertisement and talk about Lawler vs Mcdonald is disgraceful by Dana and the ufc

This. It's my most anticipated fight too.