UFC 74

[Nate 0]

card from MMAWeekly.com:

 

Randy Couture vs Gabriel Gonzaga

GSP vs Josh Koscheck

Joe Stevenson vs Kurt Pellegrino

Kendall Grove vs Patrick Cote

David Heath vs Renato "Babalu" Sobral

Travis Lutter vs Ryan Jensen

 

rumored fight:

BJ Penn vs Diego Sanchez

[Mik 0]

Very much looking forward to this one.

[jwpeer 0]

Gonna be a doozy.

 

I really think Gonzaga has a very good chance to win, he's a matchup problem with Couture.

 

However if it gets past the 2nd round, Couture will grind out a decision on him with superior conditioning.

[Ced 0]

Interesting card so far. I'm intrigued in how the Gonzaga-Couture pans out. There are matchup problems on both sides of the table. Like jwpeer said, Gonzaga's going to be a tough challenge for Couture and has a legitimate chance of taking this one, but Couture is Couture when it comes to winning when things look bad. With all the unexpected outcomes that has been going on lately, it's hard to tell who's going to win anymore.

 

I really hope GSP has recovered from his loss to Serra and takes out Koscheck. I'm also wondering who Sylvia will end up fighting.

 

The only name unfamiliar to me is Pellegrino.

[starvenger 0]

If you've got a copy of UFN 9 he was a bonus match there. Beat Nate Mohr with a nice leglock and did some horrible breakdancing afterwards.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

We should work towards enforcing the "Don't post unless you have something to add" rule that other boards have taken up, otherwise this folder is just going to turn into copy-and-paste city.

[Nate 0]

yea its a very interesting card to say the least, this show should be called UFC 74: Do or Die because these fights are Do or Die, i think the GSP vs Koscheck will be a do or die for both men, GSP is looking to rebound from a shocking loss and Koscheck is lookin to establish himself and prove his win over Diego Sanchez was no fluke, and Tim Sylvia's fight will see if he can restablish himself in the Heavyweight picture, and Randy has to prove that his win was for real and Gonzaga has to prove his win over Cro Cop wasnt a fluke, and Diego has to rebound from his loss to Koscheck, and Sakurai is looking to make his name at Diego's expense

[Lord of The Curry 0]

This show also does a good job of booking the #1 Contender fights in the WW and LW division. The winners of GSP/Koscheck and Pellegrino/Joe will be next in line for shots at the champ, though in the case of GSP/K-os the winner will likely be waiting until sometime in 2008 for the shot. I can't remember the last time UFC had a show headlined by a title fight with two top contender fights on the undercard. Perhaps UFC 69 but that didn't turn out how they'd hoped.

[Darthtiki 0]

Have tickets gone on sale for this yet? It may be worth the roadie to Vegas.

[Insanity 0]

Couture is awesome, but Gonzaga is going to fuck him up. And I was one who believed he was going to beat Tim.

 

If he beats Gabriel, then it really is a David vs Goliath story/fucking miracle.

[starvenger 0]

Couture is awesome, but Gonzaga is going to fuck him up. And I was one who believed he was going to beat Tim.

 

If he beats Gabriel, then it really is a David vs Goliath story/fucking miracle.

Randy's reaction to Gonzaga's performance against Cro Cop kinda says it all... and we really only heard the audio part of it. This is a guy who works like Batman and 95% of the time can come up with a basic gameplan right away for an upcoming fight, and he had no answer for how to approach Gonzaga. Huge compliment for the Brazilian.

 

All in all, this should be a great fight. Noone's underestimating Gonzaga now, and if anything, we're probably underestimating Randy.

[AboveAverage484 0]

So when did Gonzaga become this unbeatable monster? Remember how beating Cro Cop skyrocketed Kevin Randleman's career? If he beats Randy, then I'll start singing his praises.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Due to the Kick Of Death 2007 Gonzaga has taken on a little more praise then he deserves but he's still a tough fight for Randy, tougher then Mirko some would say. Gabe has good standup (and we now know he can kill you with kicks), great wrestling and phenomenal jiu-jitsu which makes this fight harder for Randy because his gameplan is different then it would've been for Cro-Cop. Randy may not want to stand with him but it's not like his chances improve if he takes Gonzaga down. Moreover, there was never a worry about Mirko going in for a shot but there's a damn good chance we'll see Randy wind up on his back in this fight.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

I think Randy vs. Gonzaga will come down to how Randy will be able to implement his strategy. The first 2 rounds will be his, in my view, because he is a superior wrestler and is good enough to know how to keep his opponent down and score points. Randy won't be looking for a finish, he will be looking to just win 3 rounds. That is Randys biggest advantage over Gonzaga - the fact that he looks at this on a round-by-round basis with no intent to win the fight, but rather, to win rounds and then the fight will come when he wins just as many as he needs. Whether Gonzaga will play into that or not is the key - if Gonzaga looks to finish within the first 3 rounds and fails, the fight could be Randys. If Gonzaga lets Randy win 2 and then turns it up in the third and fourth, it could be his.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

What's Gonzaga's conditioning like? According to his record, Gonzaga's never gone past the third round, so that could be where Randy needs to extend the fight to have the best chance to win

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

Randy will be gassed after or in round 3, guaranteed. Moving around a grappler the size and skill of Gonzaga is something that kills cardio. However, Gonzaga will also have to move around Randy. It's a good question, that of Gonzagas conditioning and the reality is no one can really say, we can only speculate that because he is younger than Randy and appears to be in relatively top shape for heavyweights, that the later the fight goes, the more it benefits Napao. It's hard to go on his previous fights because so much time has elapsed and cardio is something that can change in just a year.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

This even is being called UFC 74: Respect.

 

Add Patrick Cote vs Kendall Grove to the list of rumored fights.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

This even is being called UFC 74: Respect.

 

Add Patrick Cote vs Kendall Grove to the list of rumored fights.

 

Cote is going to get fucked up by Grove big time.

[Insanity 0]

Due to the Kick Of Death 2007 Gonzaga has taken on a little more praise then he deserves but he's still a tough fight for Randy, tougher then Mirko some would say. Gabe has good standup (and we now know he can kill you with kicks), great wrestling and phenomenal jiu-jitsu which makes this fight harder for Randy because his gameplan is different then it would've been for Cro-Cop. Randy may not want to stand with him but it's not like his chances improve if he takes Gonzaga down. Moreover, there was never a worry about Mirko going in for a shot but there's a damn good chance we'll see Randy wind up on his back in this fight.

 

He didn't just get a lucky kick and KO Mirko. He took him down and completely fucked him up in the first round. Then Herb Dean stood them up because he's the shittiest ref in the world.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

Then Herb Dean stood them up because he's the shittiest ref in the world.

 

You're really clueless.

[Nate 0]

could a mod change the title to say UFC 74: RESPECT, thanks

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Due to the Kick Of Death 2007 Gonzaga has taken on a little more praise then he deserves but he's still a tough fight for Randy, tougher then Mirko some would say. Gabe has good standup (and we now know he can kill you with kicks), great wrestling and phenomenal jiu-jitsu which makes this fight harder for Randy because his gameplan is different then it would've been for Cro-Cop. Randy may not want to stand with him but it's not like his chances improve if he takes Gonzaga down. Moreover, there was never a worry about Mirko going in for a shot but there's a damn good chance we'll see Randy wind up on his back in this fight.

 

He didn't just get a lucky kick and KO Mirko. He took him down and completely fucked him up in the first round. Then Herb Dean stood them up because he's the shittiest ref in the world.

 

And the part where I said it's a lucky kick is.......where? Oh, right. Nowhere.

 

Carlito- While the comment about Dean being the worlds shittiest ref is a bit off base (I reserve that honor for Stevie Mazz) the standup in the fight was bullshit. Watch Gonzaga constantly work Cro-Cop over with elbows as he slowly worked him towards the fence. The minute he gets near the fence Dean stands it up. Shitty reffing and quite obviously biased.

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

This even is being called UFC 74: Respect.

 

Add Patrick Cote vs Kendall Grove to the list of rumored fights.

 

Cote is going to get fucked up by Grove big time.

 

Agreed.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Man, was I high when I thought Cote was anything but a mid-level fighter?

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

Knowing how often you are high: probably.

 

I don't see where Cote gets pwned in this. Granted, Kendall has looked great in his last few fights, but Cote usually gets outdone by wrestling, and Kendal isn't exactly known for his. Not saying Grove isn't the favourite here, but odds are it will end up being a stand up fight and Kendall will try to impose his clinch game and Cote will press him against the fence for most of the contest. I can see Kendall getting a submission in later-rounds, capitalizing on a Cote mistake, but not in a fashion that represents a "big time" "fuck(ed) up".

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

I think Grove outclasses Cote in most areas, though Cote looked to have improved wrestling in his last fight. Grove just seems to be another example of a TUF fighter who is slowly learning all aspects of the game, mixing it in with conditioning work. He's improved leaps and bounds, so I am expecting the same here.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

How do you see the fight going, then?

[starvenger 0]

I think Grove chokes out Cote R2. But of course, to see how well the last time I made a prediction:

 

<--

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

How do you see the fight going, then?

 

Ha, I don't know if this is trying to be sarcastic, but I really couldn't tell you exactly, it's almost pointless to predict the way a fight will go. I would predict Grove tags him on the feet for awhile, gets taken down or gets the takedown, then submits him.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Shuffle? Am I high again?