– Apparently not everyone is as invincible as the title suggests.
– Live (sort of) from Abu Dhabi.
– Your hosts are Mike Goldberg & Joe Rogan
Middleweights: Mark Munoz v. Kendall Grove
I’ve always liked Grove, although he’s hardly ever seemed like an elite fighter or anything. First round sees Munoz getting some good shots, but Grove blocks a takedown and controls with a series of good choke attempts, using his huge height advantage and good ground game for an easy 10-9 round. Second round and another few submission attempts, but Munoz gets the top and unleashes some vicious ground and pound. I mean, he was throwing punches with mustard on them, and Grove turtles on his back and isn’t defending, so the ref stops it at 2:50 for the TKO. Good fight to start and great heart from Munoz to survive the first round.
Lightweights: Terry Etim v. Rafael Dos Anjos
Etim with a couple of high kicks, and he blocks a takedown attempt with a deep guillotine choke, but Dos Anjos is a BJJ guy and just rides it out until Etim gets tired and releases. Dos Anjos gets side mount and starts throwing knees to the back, at which point the ref warns him against throwing ELBOWS to the back. No wonder the guy was confused, because he started throwing more knees, resulting in the ref standing them up. Someone please explain the difference between a “knee” and an “elbow” to these refs. 10-9 Etim. Second round sees Dos Anjos absolutely schooling Etim on the ground, fighting for a kimura and then changing his mind and finishing with an armbar instead. This was some TEXTBOOK jiu-jitsu on the ground from Dos Anjos.
– I missed the prelim fight between Gustaffson and Davis because I was making nachos. Returned to see Davis winning it with 5 seconds to go in the first round with a choke. Must have been some choke.
Welterweights: Matt Hughes v. Renzo Gracie
It’s really interesting for me to watch Matt Hughes now, because I’ve been reviewing his very early stuff over at Heavy.com so I’m kind of seeing both extreme ends of his career rather than the glorious middle that everyone remembers. Case in point, this fight, as Hughes seemed really tentative to do anything against a legend like Gracie, making for a dull first round. 10-9 Hughes, just because. Second round was more of the same, as Hughes finally gets a takedown and goes nowhere with it, letting up again. 10-9 Hughes again. Third round and Hughes is done fucking around. He goes with leg kick into uppercut combos, dropping Gracie to the ground a few times as a result, and then pummels him against the fence for the stoppage at 4:41. Joe Rogan, never one to bullshit around, asks Gracie if maybe he should have taken a warmup fight before this one. Gracie: “Now what kind of a fighter would I be if I did that?” I dunno, one who didn’t look like a total embarrassment to the sport out there?
Lightweight title: BJ Penn v. Frankie Edgar
The early story is Edgar’s inability to take BJ down, much like everyone else in the division. Penn gets some good punches in while defending, but not much else going on. 10-9 Penn. Second round and Edgar tries more standup with Penn since he can’t go to the ground, but can’t really get anywhere near BJ. He finally gets a takedown, but it’s a brief moment of victory. Still, 10-9 Edgar. Third round and obvious Edgar really wants that takedown, but can’t finish it. More sparring, nothing else. 10-9 for Penn, I guess. This is turning into boxing and I hate boxing. Fourth round and Edgar is still moving quickly and pushing forward, as opposed to BJ standing in the middle and circling. He gets a few jabs in to end the round, but the rest is Edgar sticking and moving. 10-9 Edgar. Penn seems really bored, but he’d better get motivated and fast. Fifth round and Edgar cleanly takes him down! Huh, you don’t think that…nah. Edgar looks HUNGRY though, and he’s pressing. Penn blocks the takedowns, but Edgar is the one trying them, not BJ. This is gonna be close, and I’m going 10-9 Edgar in the final round. I’ve been told that judges don’t want to change titles on close decisions, and by my card it’s 48-47 for Edgar. By the judge’s cards it’s 50-45, 49-46 and 48-47 for the winner, and NEW CHAMPION!?! Holy shit. I mean, I agreed with the decision 100%, but you don’t see BJ Penn losing every day. Given that I’m a big Kenny Florian fan and he looked like a contender at Fight Night, I’m hoping this means another shot for him now. Good for Edgar, I was getting bored with all the same champions for months on end.
Middleweight title: Anderson Silva v. Demian Maia
And then there was THIS fight. My wife loves Silva because he’s apparently hot, and I explained to her that most people think he’s kind of a dick. This fight showed why. Total domination by Silva in the first round, as he does his usual taunting and clowning, but this time he doesn’t finish and just rides out the round. 10-8 Silva. Second round and it’s turns into parody, as Silva is now pounding the mat and yelling at Maia to hit him, even though he refuses to engage himself. Maia looks so scared that he’s shitting bricks out there. 10-8 Silva. Third round and Maia finally hits him. Once. The rest is Silva dancing around and being a clown, but looking very tired at the same time. 10-8 Silva. Fourth round sees the crowd actually chanting for Maia now, as a bored Silva circles around the Octagon, having moved from taunting to outright stalling. And now MAIA is yelling for contact. Jesus, Anderson, just finish the guy already. 10-9 Maia. Fifth round and Maia’s left eye is swollen shut, but he’s still fighting, while Silva is doing fuck all. He gets a huge flurry, trying to get something out of Silva, but the “champ” keeps running away. 10-9 Maia, but Silva dominated so much in the first three that Maia was already in a 30-24 hole at the end of the third. Bruce Buffer doesn’t even read the scores and just announces Silva the winner. A disgusted Dana White doesn’t even stick around to strap the belt on Silva, a fitting conclusion to one of the worst main events in UFC history.
That was looking like a good show after the stunning upset of Penn, but the main event really left a bad taste in my mouth, and also in Dana White’s mouth as well. I’d call it a marginal thumbs up, but only check out the main event if you’re into “so bad I have to see it” type of self-punishment.
