Lei Tong

There's been dozens and dozens of other MMA that were much better 3 fights into their careers than Kimbo. It's another issue entirely when you consider the training for MMA he's had, but in terms of how good a fighter he actually is, Kimbo is ranks pretty low amongst supposed prospects, even at HW.

Werdum will be the best ground fighter Vera has faced, but he doesn't have the wrestling to put him down and keep him there unless Vera gasses out.

Not every fight can be a thrilling spectacle between two gassed-out HW's.

Someone at BK summed my feelings up pretty well... And for what it's worth, the post fight-talk at the clubs was pretty much lackluster at the bars. Comparatively, you can usually hear people talking excitedly about the night's UFC event. Pretty much the only two references I heard to the event was: -"Hey guys, did you see Kimbo tonight?" *silence* "...hey, guys. Did you see Kimbo fight?" *friends continue talking about something or other* - *as IFL replays on big screen TV* "This actually a bit better than what they had on CBS."

Emerson via submission (sprawl), Rd.1

Hatton def. Lazcano via Unanimous JD (120-110, 120-108, 118-110) Hatton looked pretty average despite the scores, getting rocked a few times by Lazcano and benefitting from some erratic reffing. Granted, Lazcano's no bum, but for a rusty former lightweight who was supposed to be a bounce-back opponent after the Mayweather KO, he gave Hatton more scares than he was supposed to. Volume-punching pressure fighters rarely have long careers, and when they start going downhill, it happens quickly (Ouma being a recent example). There seemed to be hints in the fight that Hatton could be on a similar downturn.

I don't think he has the power in his hands to challenege Rampage standing, who will also control the realm of the fight with superior wrestling. That being said, if Rampage chooses to try and egage Forrest in a ground game (and assuming Forrest remembers that his jiu jitsu has always been his strongest asset), I could see him using good defense from his guard to open up submission opprotunities. Overall, I'd split the odds something like 70/30 in favor of Jackson.

O'Brien is also good deal more experienced than Lesnar, in terms of MMA, BJJ training and the fact that he has experience in 15 minute MMA bouts. Also, while I've always been a big detractor of the Herring Hype Machine, Heath is if nothing else extremely tough to finish on the ground and has enough power in his strikes to KO most HW's.

*dons T-Shirt printed with Tong & Tito picture* LEWIS/PEDERNEIRAS VALE TUDO REPRAZENT!

Tito still has enough goodwill in SoCal that this shouldn't be a problem for me.

In more important news... BOWMAN VIA HEADKICK!!!

Best fight of the season in my eyes. Klein was a bit sloppy with his submission attempts, but he never stopped trying and did as good as anyone on the cast could hope against C.B. My opinions have meant shit so far this season, but on the quarterfinals... - Dante seriously dissapointed me against Sene, while Jesse has done pretty much what he's supposed to thus far. Jesse via unanimous decision seems likely, but considering that he actually got armbarred by Jesse Forbes, a Dante submission doesn't seem improbable. - Both Brown & Sadollah get hit way too much, but it seems like Matt takes a hit slightly better than Amir. On the other hand, Amir looks a bit bigger and stronger, so he could probably control the fight in the clinch or if he decides to opt for a ground fight. Toss up, IMO. - Creduer should learn pretty easily from Luke's mistake, taking Pretty Boy down & subbing him quickly. - C.B. kills Cale however he chooses.

He did so via superior wrestling & ground control. McCrory hasn't really shown me anything impressive in terms of wrestling or jitz, so it's unlikely he'll win this bout on the mat like Luigi did.

Dollaway & Harris definitely advance. Schultz' best chance is that he fights Cale, and Yarborough obliges him with a stand-up fight.

Jesus fuckin' Christ... way to lose double underhooks, neglect the takedown and generally give the victory up for four minutes, Luke.

It's a bit subjective, as one could argue guys like Roger Gracie & Marcelo Garcia compare, but Jacare has the style most easily adaptable to MMA, and is more active in his MMA fighting and training.

There's been no real evidence since the Macaco fight to say one way or another if Jacare's chin is weak or not. That being said, no one ever really learns to take a punch better. Like the saying goes, "You can't grow muscles on your chin."

Using spoiler tags for those who catch the West Coast feed:

Actually, I think it was the first season (along with a couple of other Canadians).

*cue Sweet Georgia Brown*

I was going to post something or other in regrds to MacDonald's former piss test failure, but was still a bit hungover from a weekend in Vegas. Besides, I simplified my prediction to Hironaka only dropping Goulet prior to the event, as the thought of Hirofumi fuckin' Hara putting Kuniyoshi on the deck wouldn't leave my head. Besides, fandom aside, Goulet has superior striking and wrestling, so in a Makoto Ishikawa-esque way, he had the tools to win before his chin failed him utterly.

It's hard to be taken seriously when you've turned into a sissy.

Hironaka dropping Goulet is going to be gold.

Maybe "competency" is the wrong word. How about the phrase "eye for talent?" Besides, I'm sure that (for example) Tito Ortiz knows more about fighting than 99% of the world's population, yet he still couldn't see that Ed Herman was a better choice than Mike fuckin' Stine.