Welcome back folks for another edition of the Friday Night Throwdown here on MMAmania.
This latest installment will be one of a three-part series that takes a look at the three key fights that will headline UFC 84: “Ill Will” on May 24. In part one today, I’ll go in-depth on the upcoming light heavyweight tilt between Wanderlei Silva and Keith Jardine.
In the coming weeks, the Throwdown will also cover both the Tito Ortiz vs. Lyoto Machida and BJ Penn vs. Sean Sherk match ups.
Put simply, a stellar card takes place 22 days from now as UFC 84 will feature not only a grudge match for the lightweight title, but two key light heavyweight super fights that will determine who could be in line for a title shot.
One of those encounters features the return of Silva and Jardine, who both fought Chuck Liddell at one point last year with mixed results. Wanderlei went to war with Liddell in arguably one of the greatest slugfests ever in the sport while Jardine outworked Liddell to a split decision win.
There are two BIG questions that have to be answered on May 24th: Is this Wanderlei’s last stand?
There is no question heading into this fight that the fighter who needs to win the most is Silva. One must give credit to Silva because of the fact that the fighters who have defeated him in the past three fights are no slouches. It’s almost a murderer’s row of fights in Henderson, Liddell and Cro Cop. It’s because of this that Silva is already a living legend in this sport.
But the fact still remains that he is on a three fight losing streak and he can ill afford to lose four in a row.
In looking back at the Liddell fight, Liddell’s significant reach advantage was the difference maker. Liddell kept Silva at bay throughout the fight. Silva didn’t have the opportunity to get inside of Liddell’s range without getting caught. Had he been able to close the distance, Silva would’ve been able to utilize his dangerous clinch game. The one thing that Silva should’ve done was to soften Liddell with leg kicks as Jardine did in his fight with Liddell.
But it wasn’t to be and in the end, Liddell won the fight.
Silva will have no problem getting in Jardine’s range in this fight. It’s no secret that Jardine will look to use his effecting kickboxing game to keep Silva from getting too close to throw bombs. Wanderlei has to look to the kicking game as well to soften Jardine to strike with him. Wanderlei has more power than Jardine and his best way to finish the fight is with his strking.
At the end of the day, Silva clearly needs to win this fight to get his esteemed career back on track.
The big money fights are in the light heavyweight division for him. Although many are clamoring for Silva to move down to 185, the man still has the talent to dominate the 205-pound class. The only way I see a move to middleweight is if he doesn’t get back to his winning ways on May 24.
Why does Jardine doesn‘t get any respect?
I’m a big Forrest Griffin fan, but it’s a travesty that Griffin got a title shot before Jardine did.
The reason I say this is because let’s get real here. Griffin defeated Hector Ramirez and Shogun Rua, but Jardine defeated Liddell and GRIFFIN! It’s painfully obvious that the UFC felt a Griffin-Jackson PPV would sell more than Jackson-Jardine, which is the reason Forrest got the title shot.
And what is Jardine left with to prove he should be next in line … a date with the Axe Murderer that’s what!
I’m not the biggest advocate of Jardine but I feel that Jardine deserved the first crack at Rampage. He has the more qualified resume. Granted, Shogun was arguably still the number one light heavyweight in world when Griffin defeated him. By the same token, Jardine defeated the greatest light heavyweight champion in the history of the UFC.
Who was the more popular fighter at the time … Shogun or Liddell?
Back to this fight. A win here for Jardine clearly puts him ahead of Lyoto Machida for the winner of Jackson-Griffin. A loss for Jardine puts him right back on the bottom of totem pole. It’s a travesty folks, yet all Jardine has to do is win this fight and win it convincingly. And he has a hell of chance of winning this fight. All Jardine has to do is not slug with Silva but outwork him on the feet and he walks away with a decision win.
If he decides to get reckless (see Houston Alexander) it will a very short night for Jardine and POOF there goes that title shot!
Who wins this fight?
Tune in to our UFC 84 fight predictions in three weeks of course! Shameless plug to remind you guys to keep coming to the site for all the latest updates and fight predictions!
MMA news and other notes
Rich Franklin moving up to 205?: Rich is between a rock and a hard place at this point. He is perhaps the second best middleweight in the world. But it doesn’t mean a damn thing if the man atop of the division is your kryptonite in two fights. I would trade Franklin to light heavyweight and Wanderlei to middleweight in a heartbeat.
Franklin is clearly still a top draw and fan favorite in eyes of many. I would pick him to defeat the likes of Jardine and Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou. It wouldn’t hurt for Franklin to even fight Liddell — he would likely him a run for his money. The only fighter I would recommend Franklin to stay away from is Machida, of course, the reason being that Machida KTFO’d Franklin in Japan years ago.
Now I may be getting far ahead of myself here because there is one more big fight for Franklin at 185 against Dan Henderson. Add that with the inevitable middleweight showdown between Anderson Silva and Yushin Okami, and you have one star studded card that could take place in the fall. If Franklin indeed does get by Henderson, it would be wise to move up to 205.
NO ONE WANTS TO SEE FRANKLIN-SILVA III!
Chris Leben turns himself in to clear off a past DUI charge: At first, everyone I knew assumed that Leben was back to his old ways during the first season of the Utimate Fighter. Turns out that it wasn’t the case and that Leben turned himself in to allow him obtain his visa for his fight with Michael Bisping at UFC 85 in London. First off, big props for Leben because he’s one of my favorites and he’s one of the main reasons I was watching that first season of TUF. To see the way he was in that season to the man he is today, got to give respect to the man.
He’s changed for the better and is riding a two fight winning streak since his last defeat. Leben has a hell of chance in the fight with Bisping. I don’t think that Bisping has fought anyone who has power in his hands like Leben. Plus, Leben’s ground game is seriously underrated and if it goes to the ground the edge has to go with Leben. All in all it should a great fight but once again great job Chris on cleaning up your life to be a better fighter.
What do you take from DREAM 2?: For me if there was anything that stands out after the first round of the DREAM 2008 Middleweight Grand Prix is simply one thing. Until he gets a win, Denis Kang is the most overrated middleweight in the world right now. Many sites and experts have Kang in the top 10, but I just don’t see it. He was the prohibitive favorite in this tournament and came up small again. When he gets a win, then people can argue with me if he’s top 10 material or not.
Loser of the Week: CBS Chairman Sumner Redstone was quoted in a report that he doesn’t support his network’s decision to air MMA on free TV. The typical reason of an incompetent moron who doesn’t know a damn thing about MMA is simply this, “I just don’t like the sport.“ Add that with his statement that he thinks it’s not “socially responsible†to air the fights for free. That’s a bad sign for EliteXC with its first card on CBS just four weeks away.
The head honcho of the network doesn’t even support the decision to have MMA on his network!
This is clearly another hurdle MMA must go through to get respected as a legitimate sport and not a flash in the pan like the XFL. Add to the fact that the President of Fox Sports, Ed Goran was quoted as saying about a possible deal with the UFC as “We don’t need money badly.†These guys are clearly unbelievable and just doesn’t give the sport the chance to succeed. The fact of the matter is that FOX, the network that airs shows like Moment of Truth and Celebrity Boxing will eventually have to get a deal done with UFC.
At the same time, if the EliteXC show bombs it could be a huge setback for the sport in regard to being on national television. It doesn’t matter if you a fan of EliteXC or not, if you truly love the sport then you will watch the May 31 show on CBS. Do it for the sport folks, we all know they need the support because it’s clear that the big man upstairs at CBS doesn’t.
That ends another edition of the Friday Night Throwdown here on MMAmania.com. Next week is part two of my UFC 84 preview. Part two will highlight the other light heavyweight bout between Lyoto Machida and Tito Ortiz. Should be a fun FNT next week and I’m looking forward to it. Agree or disagree with the statements made in today’s column? Then be sure to reply in the comments section at the bottom of the page or e-mail me at
chris_Fridaynightthrowdown@yahoo.com.
Until next time … I’ll see right back here next Friday in the Throwdown!
(Because what else are you going to do this weekend?)
For those of you who didn’t get your fix watching the first two Dream events on your computer screens, HDNet has got you covered. They’re airing both Dream.1 and Dream.2 this weekend, so you can bask in all the highly-defined glory.
DREAM.1, which took place March 15 and featured the opening round of a lightweight grand prix, airs tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET.
DREAM.2, which took place April 29 and featured the opening round of a middleweight grand prix, airs tomorrow at 10:30 p.m. ET.
HDNet, which is owned by HDNet Fights founder Mark Cuban, recently inked a deal with the Japanese-based organization to begin airing future DREAM events live. DREAM.3, for example, airs live on May 11 at 3 a.m. ET.
I was about to complain about the first two shows airing at 10:30 p.m., and then I saw the 3 a.m. note tacked on to the end of the live broadcast announcement. Better get a nap beforehand.
We’ve said it before, but whatever you think of Dream as a promotion or HDNet as a cable network, you have to give them both points for production value:
Written by admin on May 2nd, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on General and MMA.
(Mother’s Day is coming up, and the champ’s used shorts sure put flowers to shame.)
When I received an email from the UFC this morning alerting me that I had the opportunity to bid on some of Georges St. Pierre’s old shorts, I was understandably giddy with excitement. Who wouldn’t want to own a pair of autographed, extremely tight shorts that have soaked up gallons of St. Pierre sweat by now? After all, you can’t really stalk someone without owning some of their clothes. Well maybe you could, but it just seems lazy.
The joke’s on us, though, because apparently they’re a pretty hot item. Seriously. The opening bid for these bad boys was $300. At the time of this writing, the bidding is up to $8,050. Do MMA fans really have that much spare cash lying around? If so, can they really not think of a better use for it? We’re supposed to be in a recession.
For those of you who aren’t big fans of GSP or who have a weird hang-up about buying another man’s spandex briefs, there are other items on the auction block. For instance, a pair of autographed gloves worn by Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is currently going for $3,450. His shorts are a mere $3,050, though the bidding on all these items still has another five days before closing, so who knows where things could go from here.
Interestingly enough, the weirdest item for sale, a kilt worn by Marcus “The Irish Hand Grenade” Davis, is still stuck at the opening bid of $300. That’s a steal. Think of it this way, when people make fun of you for wearing a skirt, at least you’ll have a good/sad story to tell them about how you got it. If they still make fun of you, they’re not your friends anyway.
Written by admin on May 2nd, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on General and MMA.
Congratulations, buddy: You’re about to be one shirt-wearin’ motherfucker. By a wide, wide margin, Vrax turned in the most popular comment in our second Triumph United Comment Contest, suggesting that involvement in YAMMA Pit Fighting is more shameful than kiddie-diddling. So Vrax, please swing through Triumph United’s shirt rack, and e-mail us at feedback@cagepotato.com to let us know which one you want; we’ll hook you up ASAP.
Also important: Your homework this weekend is to make one last attempt at coming up with creatively humiliating punishments for Ryan Harkness of Fightlinker when he goes down in flames in our upcoming UFC 84 pick-off. Go here and do your worst!
“No, there is no truth to that at all. It’s bullshit and Forrest Griffin will tell you that it’s bullshit too. The fact is it was a good sparring session and I was training with Forrest and he was talking to me about defending yourself at all times and then he threw a big kick and I was like, ‘WOAH I never even seen that coming’. But no, I never got knocked out. Even if I did get knocked out, saying that and putting that rumor out there just makes you a pussy.”
Wait a minute, so did you or did you not get knocked out? And why are you choking that old lady? Is she your accountant’s wife or something? Did she tap or nap?
I would take this as a clear sign that EliteXC’s welterweight belt is cursed by poltergeists and refuses to be possessed by mortals.
The championship fight between top 170-pound contender Jake Shields and challenger Drew Fickett for EliteXC’s vacant welterweight title has been postponed for a second time, as it was announced today that Fickett has injured his knee and will not be able to compete at EliteXC’s June 14th event in Honolulu, Hawaii. The two fighters were originally supposed to meet at “Shamrock vs. Le” on March 29th, but Shields pulled a muscle in his back days before the event, and Fickett took on Jae Suk Lim instead, winning by guillotine choke in the first round. Luckily, Shields doesn’t seem to be too disappointed by Fickett’s injury, as his back may not be 100% recovered yet anyway. As he told MMAWeekly:
“I think I could be okay to fight by (June 14), but I think opting for July would probably be the smartest thing. It would give me more time to rehab before jumping into sparring, and I think there would be a little more exposure with it being on CBS (in July).â€
The June 14th card still features K.J. Noons defending his lightweight title against Yves Edwards, as well as fights between Nick Diaz and Muhsin Corbbrey, Murilo “Ninja†Rua vs. Tony Bonello, Rafael Feijao vs. Wayne Cole, and Ron Waterman vs. Dave Herman.
Speaking of Diaz, the pot-abusing lightweight has joined the lineup of DREAM.3 (May 11th; Saitama, Japan), where he’ll take on Katsuya Inoue, a two-time welterweight King of Pancrase with a career record of 16-5-3. Reportedly, the winner of that fight will face Hayato Sakurai for DREAM’s welterweight title in July or September. (I guess not all the belts will be awarded via chaotic grand prix.) With this addition, DREAM.3’s mighty, mighty lineup is looking like this:
Lightweight GP Round 2
Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Luis Buscape
Joachim Hansen vs. Eddie Alvarez
Mitsuhiro Ishida vs. Caol Uno
Katsuhiko Nagata vs. [whoever fills in for Shinya Aoki]
Middleweight GP Round 1 Fight
Jason Miller vs. Katsuyori Shibata
Middleweight GP Reserve Fight
Melvin Manhoef vs. Kim Dae Won
There has been another setback involving the Jake Shields and Drew Fickett Elite XC welterweight title fight because of an injury. This time it is “The Master” who has the issue, sustaining an injury to his knee that will force the fight for the vacant welterweight tile to be scratched from the June 14 show in Hawaii, according to MMAWeekly.com.
Originally the two were set to meet at the Strikeforce/Elite XC co-promoted event in San Jose in March, which was headlined by Frank Shamrock and Cung Le. However, Shields hurt his back and had to withdraw less than a week out from the fight.
Fickett still went on to compete that night against Jae Suk Lim. He dominated with a first round submission and had an interesting in cage interview afterwards with Shields standing by.
In fact, Fickett predicted the fight on June 14 would end by death from rear naked choke.
Fickett looked great in that fight and a little psychotic afterwards, which was great because at that moment I was finally starting to believe he had a legit shot at being the first Elite XC welterweight champ.
At first this fight had its skeptics. Some felt Shields was superior in talent and confidence to Fickett and would just roll right through him, but now this fight has hype, and this fight is for real. The only thing … is it ever going to happen?
Here’s a snip from Gary Shaw, Elite XC live events president, on moving the fight again:
“Obviously the back injury happened (to Shields) and the easiest thing to do was move him to Hawaii to fight Drew. Unfortunately since then Drew Fickett has hurt his knee and he’s not going to be able to take that fight on June 14 and that will be rescheduled again.”
Shaw went on to say there was still a possibility Shields could fight a replacement fighter in Hawaii, like Fickett did in San Jose, but that was unlikely because he was still recovering from the original back injury.
Here’s Jake Shields on that:
“I think I could be okay to fight by (June 14), but I think opting for July would probably be the smartest thing. It would give me more time to rehab before jumping into sparring, and I think there would be a little more exposure with it being on CBS (in July).”
I have to agree with Jake on that one. I’m more interested in seeing him fight Fickett later than some has been or never will be replacement now. I was curious as to the reason this title fight wouldn’t be on a CBS broadcast anyway … it only makes sense to me to put this fight in front of as many viewers as possible.
Plus, with the KJ Noons and Yves Edwards title fight still a go for June 14 in Hawaii, I think that card will be just fine. Remember, Nick Diaz vs. Muhsin Corbbrey is also scheduled for that night, and there are other rumors involving Ninja Rua for Hawaii as well.
(You laugh now, but we’ll see who’s laughing when those ice caps melt.)
You might think that Wanderlei Silva, who came up in the old school Vale Tudo circuit in Brazil, would have some outdated training methods. It’s not hard to imagine him carrying several people on his back around a Rio de Janeiro beach, or sparring with pitbulls to increase his courage and the speed at which his blood clots.
Not so, as it turns out. In fact, Silva and his strength and conditioning coach, Rafael Alejarra, are so cutting edge in their training methods that it is literally ridiculous. One wonders how much Silva’s decision loss to Chuck Liddell has him feeling desperate for a victory and willing to try anything, even snorkeling. Alejarra explained it all to MMA Weekly:
Wanderlei is always searching for the best training, and by that he wants the best for me. So he said to me that I will always travel to places where I can learn something to add on to his training. I am very happy to have a boss like him. By that, I have the opportunity to grow as a sport scientist.
Today, I am studying a new training called HIPOXIA, which consist in a few words in a hard training with low demand of oxygen. This kind of training is developed in other sports and I am bringing it to MMA. It’s a very hard type of training because the athlete must tolerate a huge quantity of lactic acid in the blood.
I have made some tests with Wanderlei and brought it to Brazil and presented to a board with Masters of Exercise Biochemistry and the results of the study were that the athlete had a great increase in conditioning of the aerobic and anaerobic (energy systems).
It sounds so crazy it just might work. Silva’s upcoming bout with Keith Jardine will be an important one if he wants to stay in the UFC for very long, and it could also dictate whether he’ll continue competing as a light heavyweight. Alejarra wouldn’t say whether Silva was planning a move to middleweight, commenting only that they were “waiting for the natural process.â€
That could mean a lot of different things. Getting beat up by bigger and stronger opponents could be considered a natural process. The UFC telling you to lose fifteen pounds or find a new line of work? That could also be considered a natural process. Sort of.
Guess we’ll have to wait and see.
EDIT: As it turns out, Wanderlei has used this training before his bout with Liddell. Rachelle Leah has the full story for you.
Chris Wilson (13-4) and Steve Bruno (11-3) will touch gloves in a welterweight prelim bout during the UFC 86: “Jackson vs. Griffin” pay-per-view (PPV) event at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on July 5, according to UFC.com.
Wilson was the man who stepped up on short notice to challenge top 170-pound contender, Jon Fitch, at UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” back in March. He dropped a unanimous decision, however, showed that he is a super tough competitor in the process.
The Team Quest-trained fighter was on a four-fight win streak prior to the loss, including impressive victories over Jay Heiron, Rory Markham and Ray Steinbeis. He was one of the most coveted welterweight free agents before inking a deal with the organization.
Bruno is an American Top Team product who will be making his Octagon debut. He has made a name for himself primary competing under the South Korea-based Spirit MC promotion. Bruno was expected to make his Octagon debut last year at UFC Fight Night 10 against Chad Reiner; however, he was forced to withdraw because of a torn rotator cuff.
This will be his first bout since April 2007 … and it’s going to be a tough test. Both Wilson and Bruno have bright futures and a win for either fighter will be big — there’s not a lot of room for error in the extremely competitive UFC welterweight class.
To check out the latest UFC 86 fight card click here.
(Thanks to MMAmania.com contributor “Mr. NC-17″ for the assist.)
Wilson was the man who stepped up on short notice to challenge top 170-pound contender, Jon Fitch, at UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” back in March. He dropped a unanimous decision, however, showed that he is a super tough competitor in the process.
Bruno is an American Top Team product who will be making his Octagon debut. He has made a name for himself primary competing under the South Korea-based Spirit MC promotion. Bruno was expected to make his Octagon debut last year at UFC Fight Night 10 against Chad Reiner; however, he was forced to withdraw because of a torn rotator cuff.