Could you have possibly asked for a better way to start 2011 than an instant classic in the main event?
Here’s what we learned from the opening event of the year.
No Complaints about Outcome
There are controversial fights (see Machida/Rua 1 or Beebe vs. Easton) and then there are close fights, and the UFC 125 main event was an ultra-close fight. As such, you won’t hear any complaints about the outcome from me.
My personal scorecard ended with a 47-47 draw; Maynard took a 10-8 in Round 1 and a 10-9 in Round 3, while Edgar pulled a trio of 10-9 rounds in the remaining three. That said I can understand a 48-46 for Maynard if he won the fifth on your card. The only score that doesn’t make sense to me is the 48-46 for the champ, as that would mean he won every round but the first, and that wasn’t the fight I watched.
To say Maynard was robbed or that this fight is proof that we need judging reforms would be a stretch in my opinion; there have been shakier scorecards handed in over the last couple of years and if they haven’t forced changes to the way fights are judged, this fight isn’t going to be the impetus of change either.
That was arguably the best championship fight we’ve seen in the UFC in some time, a true classic that had you captivated from the opening until the final bell. If the rest of 2011 is anywhere close to being that incredible, we’re in for the most exciting year in mixed martial arts history.
No More Questions for “The Answer”
There is no more room for questioning Frankie Edgar’s legitimacy as lightweight champion or his resolve as a fighter. Any lingering doubts had to have been removed with his improbable performance on Saturday night.
You cannot teach the kind of heart and steely resolve that Edgar showed in coming back after one of the most dominant first rounds in recent memory to easily take the second frame from Gray Maynard. Yves Lavigne could have stopped the fight in the first frame without anyone having a legitimate complaint; that’s how badly the champion was beaten in the first five minutes. In being afforded the opportunity to continue, Edgar silenced all his critics and orchestrated a tremendous performance.
Not to take anything away from Maynard, who also proved his legitimacy as a top-tier lightweight in this bout, but the champion’s ability to battle back from that initial onslaught to make a draw even possible is incredible and puts Edgar amongst the absolute best in the business in my books.
The Fight of the Year Bar Has Been Set Really High
I never thought I would be saying this after the first day of 2011, but we may have witnessed the Fight of the Year. At the very least, the bar has been set exceptionally high.
The UFC 125 main event incorporated everything you could hope for in a high-calibre fight: a compelling story heading into the bout playing out accordingly in the cage, with close calls, an inspiring comeback, technique, tension, drama and even a cliff-hanger ending. Professional wrestling couldn’t put together a better storyline and their work is scripted.
While being just a few hours removed from the contest and admittedly still caught up in the awesomeness, I’m hard-pressed to find a fight that tops Edgar/Maynard 2 in my list of all-time favorites.
That said, I kind of feel bad for everyone else who steps into a ring or cage in the coming 364 days because it’s going to take a lot to take Fight of the Year honors away from the first main event of 2011.
Tough Decision Ahead Regarding Anthony Pettis
The UFC did the right thing in recanting their initial announcement that Anthony Pettis would be the next man to face Edgar, but it sets up a difficult decision regarding the future of the final WEC lightweight champion.
As outstanding as “The Showtime Kick” was, there is a shelf-life on Pettis’ momentum and having him sit on the sidelines as Edgar and Maynard resolve things could be a risky move. While you would expect to see Round 3 of this battle fought sometime in the next five months, anything can happen and a minor injury could push the bout back into the six-to-eight month range, which would leave Pettis on the sidelines for close to a year.
Though he would certainly be a viable option in an interim title fight if either Edgar or Maynard was to suffer a serious injury, the best course of action might be to capitalize on his current buzz before it reaches a crescendo. While promises were made and a title unification bout was supposed to take place, you can’t fight the winner of a bout that has no winner, and sitting on the sidelines is a colossal waste of positive momentum.
It will be interesting to see what happens.
Middleweights Should Be Afraid of Brian Stann
The former WEC light heavyweight champion wasn’t supposed to be able to stand-and-trade with Chris Leben; it was a recipe for disaster that many other men had cooked up for themselves in the past. Nevertheless, Stann did just that and came away with a massive win that should make the rest of the middleweight division a little nervous.
The decorated Marine showed everyone that he has serious power, putting the notoriously tough to finish Leben on rubber legs with a few different strikes en route to the first-round finish, but what is most intriguing about Stann is how his athletic and military background seem to be working quite well under the guidance of the MMA Jedi Council that calls Albuquerque, New Mexico home.
You can’t teach athleticism and Stann has it in spades, as well as being ready and willing to accept all the instruction passed on to him by Greg Jackson, Mike Winklejohn and everyone else at Jackson’s Gym, and those traits will continue to serve him well moving forward. If Jackson and company could turn Keith Jardine into a contender in the 205-pound division with his “Hunchback of Notre Dame” stance and limited athleticism, it will be interesting to see what they can do with a specimen like Stann.
So far, the results are impressive and the rest of the division should certainly take note.
I know it comes out of order, but the lessons being learned by Brian Stann in New Mexico apply to Guida as well.
In what was easily the biggest win of his career, the charismatic lightweight Lebowski fan submitted Takanori Gomi in the second round to climb into the upper echelon of the 155-pound division. The victory was Guida’s third straight, all of which have come since making the decision to start living in an RV on an Indian reservation so that he can train with the team at Jackson’s. His success is no coincidence.
Jackson and company have taken the Guida’s wild approach and harness it… a little; he’s still all over map, as we saw on Saturday night, but now there is more purpose to his frenetic movement and the skills that accompany his awkward style are sharper than ever.
This is a much different fighter than the guy who couldn’t finish Roger Huerta or that lost an incredibly exciting fight to Diego Sanchez; this is Clay Guida, Version 2.0 and he’s no longer just an entertaining gatekeeper.
He’s a contender.
Thiago Silva Looked Great/Scary
I have no trouble admitting that Thiago Silva frightens me; the dude looks like he wants to do very bad things to people when he steps into the Octagon. Saturday night was no different, and Silva looked very good doing some very bad things to Brandon Vera and his poor, poor nose.
After a year away recovering from serious back issues, Silva was dominant in manhandling Vera for 15 minutes in a bout that turned into a public humiliation. Early on, it was apparent that Silva was the better man, and by the third round, the Brazilian began embarrassing Vera with open-handed strikes and playful drum solos on his back.
It’s easy to forget that just two years ago, Silva stood across from Lyoto Machida in a meeting of unbeaten, up-and-coming contenders in the 205-pound division. Things didn’t go his way that evening or in his meeting with Rashad Evans a year later, but he’s only lost to the two former champions, and now that he’s 100%, Silva should be regarded as a serious threat in the loaded light heavyweight division.
Brandon Vera Might be Done
Three straight losses, back-to-back beatings that required surgical repairs and all kinds of unfulfilled potential – that is what Brandon Vera is facing after his loss to Thiago Silva. He’s also going to have to endure questions about if he can ever bounce back or whether this is the end of the line.
There is no way that Vera survives to fight another day in the UFC, and with another surgery on the horizon and a very underwhelming performance against Silva, I can’t even see the former future star catching on with Strikeforce at this point. Would you pick Vera over “Feijao” or Mo Lawal at this point? He couldn’t beat Keith Jardine and until his last bout, “The Dean of Mean” couldn’t beat anyone either.
As refreshing as it was to hear Vera be candid about getting caught up in his own hype, he was once again unable to deliver inside the Octagon when it mattered, and that is what matters most.
This might be the end of what was once a very promising career.
Kim and Diaz Equally Impressive
If not for the epic encounter at the end of the card, Dong Hyun Kim and Nate Diaz could have very well have been heading home with a Fight of the Night bonus. As it were, the two welterweights will have to make do with a round of applause and new levels of respect following their performance on Saturday night.
Kim fought a very smart fight for the opening two rounds before his endurance put him at risk in the final frame. The South Korean judoka used his size to bring the fight to the floor and keep Diaz from doing much damage off his back; any time Diaz looked for an opening, Kim countered and maintained control. While he’s not quite ready for GSP, Kim is certainly in line for a step up in competition after putting another notch in the win column.
To his credit, Diaz was game in those opening two rounds and turned it on in the third round when he knew a finish was the only way to secure the victory. There are a whole lot of fighters out there cough Gerald Harris cough who could learn from the effort the younger Diaz put forth in the last five minutes; when you need a finish, you have to go for a finish, simple as that.
This is going to be a good learning opportunity for Diaz, and the more he fights at the 170-pound limit, the more he looks as if he should have been there all along. If he adds a little muscle to his current stick-figure frame, “The Kid from Stockton” could be a potential contender.
End of the Line for Davis, Baroni?
Both of the beloved veterans were finished on Saturday night. Considering the retirement talk was making the rounds prior to the two taking losses, you would have to think that the calls to call it a career will come up once again.
Davis looked good in his lightweight debut up until the point that Jeremy Stephens connected with another thunderous uppercut to end the fight. As much as you could make a case for giving Davis another chance against someone less powerful than Stephens, at what point do you stop trying to find fights for a 37-year-old guy who has now lost three-in-a-row and four-of-five?
The situation is even bleaker for Baroni, and “The New York Bad Ass” showed signs that he knew it following his loss to Brad Tavares. Baroni was visibly distraught after the bout and was understandably emotional backstage, but refused to acknowledge that he’d be hanging up the gloves.
While might not be ready to retire, both men could have very well fought their final bouts in the UFC on Saturday night.
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