There's really not much I can say that will make this any more awesome than it already is.  Full comic, translation and explanation after the jump.  Make sure to read right to left.

Continue reading this post »

How much does Takanori Gomi have left in the tank?

Gomi's been on a recent slide, losing three of his last five fights.  If he loses to Tyson Griffin, we can add his name to the long list of formerly dominant champions whose talents seem to be slipping away.  This fight is essentially a must win for Gomi if he wants to remain relevant in the lightweight division.  With a win, Gomi could conceivably fight another challenger and be right back in the hunt for a title shot.  A loss means that he's lost four of six fights, and if he does lose it's unlikely that he'll ever make it back near title contention.

How good is Jon "Bones" Jones, and how hard will the UFC push him with a win?

It's no secret that Jon Jones is one of the most talented prospects in all of MMA.  Jones faces the biggest fight of his life Sunday night for two reasons; because Vladimir Matyushenko will be his toughest opponent to date, and because this is his third main event in a row on free television (counting the TUF 10 finale, where he and Matt Hamill graced the fight posters).  The UFC is clearly ready for Jones to absolutely explode.  They've already pushed him incredibly hard for a 23 year old prospect, as evidenced by the three consecutive headlining fights he's had on free television.  My guess is that if Jones wins, his next fight will be as a co-main event on a large PPV card.  Dana White and Joe Silva know a potential PPV star when they see one, and Jones is definitely that.  Dana White recently said that with a win, Jones will probably next face a 'top 8' light heavyweight, so if 'Bones' walks out of this fight with a win, expect the hype to continue to grow.

Read the rest over at Cageside Seats

How much does Takanori Gomi have left in the tank?

Gomi's been on a recent slide, losing three of his last five fights.  If he loses to Tyson Griffin, we can add his name to the long list of formerly dominant champions whose talents seem to be slipping away.  This fight is essentially a must win for Gomi if he wants to remain relevant in the lightweight division.  With a win, Gomi could conceivably fight another challenger and be right back in the hunt for a title shot.  A loss means that he's lost four of six fights, and if he does lose it's unlikely that he'll ever make it back near title contention.

How good is Jon "Bones" Jones, and how hard will the UFC push him with a win?

It's no secret that Jon Jones is one of the most talented prospects in all of MMA.  Jones faces the biggest fight of his life Sunday night for two reasons; because Vladimir Matyushenko will be his toughest opponent to date, and because this is his third main event in a row on free television (counting the TUF 10 finale, where he and Matt Hamill graced the fight posters).  The UFC is clearly ready for Jones to absolutely explode.  They've already pushed him incredibly hard for a 23 year old prospect, as evidenced by the three consecutive headlining fights he's had on free television.  My guess is that if Jones wins, his next fight will be as a co-main event on a large PPV card.  Dana White and Joe Silva know a potential PPV star when they see one, and Jones is definitely that.  Dana White recently said that with a win, Jones will probably next face a 'top 8' light heavyweight, so if 'Bones' walks out of this fight with a win, expect the hype to continue to grow.

Continue reading this post »

In the most recent edition of ESPN's MMA Live, Jon Anik and company interviewed Dana White.  White shared a number of interesting tidbits.

• He thinks Jon Jones 'still has a lot to prove'.
• Jones is not yet close to the top of the division, but will fight a top 8 light heavyweight if he beats Matyushenko.
  
• He doesn't think Anderson Silva will repeat his UFC 112 performance.
  
• The winner of Junior Dos Santos vs Roy Nelson is guaranteed a title shot against the winner of Brock Lesnar vs Cain Velasquez.
  
• GSP still has to take care of Josh Koscheck, as well as potentially the Jon Fitch vs Thiago Alves winner and Jake Shields before any superfight with Anderson Silva will occur.
  
• Shogun will be sidelined until spring of 2011, but the UFC is unlikely to create an interim belt at light heavyweight.
  
• James Toney has lost significant weight and is training hard.
  

Last week we took a look at how the main event between Jon Jones and Vladimir Matyushenko breaks down.  Now let's break down the other three fights on the main card for UFC on Versus 2.

Yushin Okami (24-5) -215 vs. Mark Munoz (8-1) +175

Yushin Okami has an 8-2 record since joining the UFC, with his only losses coming to Rich Franklin and Chael Sonnen.  Okami is known for his wrestling ability and his ground and pound game, but recent fights have shown an improving kickboxing game as well.  His most recent fight was a battering of Lucio Linhares, where Okami dominated on the feet as well as with ground and pound.  Okami has a reputation as a grinder, a fighter who wears down opponents and is not afraid to win ugly fights.  He can be outstruck (Rich Franklin), and he can be outwrestled (Chael Sonnen), but both of those losses were to elite fighters in the top five of the division.  BloodyElbow's consensus rankings currently have Okami as the #8 middleweight in the world.

Mark Munoz is a former two-time All American wrestler and NCAA champion at Oklahoma State.  After moving from the WEC to the UFC, Munoz was knocked out by a Matt Hamill head kick in his first UFC bout.  After that fight, Munoz dropped from the light heavyweight division to the middleweight division and has rebounded to win 3 consecutive fights.  Munoz utilizes a ground and pound game based off his amateur wrestling ability, and he has finished his last two fights via powerful ground strikes.  He's got major power on the ground, but he has had trouble keeping his opponent down at times.  His stand up is not terrible, but it can be exploited by good strikers.

The central question of this fight is which fighter can impose their wrestling onto the other.  Munoz is more decorated as a wrestler, but Okami seems to be every bit the MMA wrestler that Munoz is.  Munoz seems to have at least a bit more powerful ground and pound than Okami does, but he doesn't seem to be able to completely smother and grind out opponents like Okami can.  If Munoz wins this fight, it will likely be because he was able to get Okami down and finish him quickly with a flurry of strikes.  Okami has more paths to victory:  he's a more well-rounded fighter, and should have an advantage standing.  Okami may look to take down the Filipino wrestler, or he may simply use his wrestling to neutralize Munoz's takedowns in order to win the fight standing.  It's hard to say which fighter will be able to dictate the wrestling game, but Okami is a more well-rounded fighter and is rightfully the favorite.  Watch for Okami use his wrestling to keep the fight standing and wear down Munoz en route to a decision victory.

Yushin Okami over Mark Munoz via decision

Jake Ellenberger vs John Howard and Tyson Griffin vs Takanori Gomi after the jump.

Continue reading this post »

This Fanpost was promoted to the front page.

The central question leading up to UFC 117 concerns UFC breakdancer middleweight champion Anderson Silva.  Most MMA fans want to know which Silva will show up on August 7th.  Will it be the focused, determined Silva who made short work of Rich Franklin, Forrest Griffin, Dan Henderson and others?  Or will it be the impetuous, infantile Silva who was more interested in dancing and mugging for the camera against Demian Maia?

While this is an appropriate question to ask about Silva, I believe there's a better, more relevant version of the same question.  Does Anderson Silva even understand why his actions, especially against Demian Maia, aren't acceptable?  Does Anderson Silva get it?

Continue reading this post »

This Fanpost was promoted to the front page.

Who do you love to hate?  Who do you want to lose every time they step inside the ring or the cage?  MMA has a long, rich history with heels like Frank Shamrock, Tank Abbott, Phil Baroni, Tito Ortiz and too many others to count.  Even the most dispassionate, analytical fans still get riled up by certain trash-talking fighters.  So who are the most hated heels in MMA today?

10. Chael Sonnen

Chael Sonnen might be trying harder to sell himself as a heel than anyone on this list.  Largely regarded as a boring lay-and-pray fighter before he came to the UFC, he's reinvented himself in the UFC as the man destined to beat Anderson Silva.  At least, that's what he'll tell you.  He's talked more outlandish trash about Anderson Silva than can be recounted, pitching himself as a savior come to rescue the UFC from the curse of the dancing Brazilian.  In the process, he's somehow generated a good deal of hype for a fight where the oddsmakers have him as a very large underdog.

Top Moment:

"Ed [Soares], pray to whatever Demon effigy you prance and dance in front of with your piglet tribe of savages that I decide not to CRUCIFY you."

 

"He’s a grown man with earrings. He’s a grown man with saggy pants, pink t-shirts and crooked hats. Go join a gang, don’t get in the UFC."

9. Anderson Silva

Anderson Silva joins his UFC 117 opponent on this list due to a string of bizarre fights and condescending remarks made about the fans who buy his fights.  Despite his reputation as the pound for pound best fighter in the world, Anderson Silva doesn't have a lot of fans these days.  Three of his last four fights have been incredibly dull snoozers, and his bout against Demian Maia at UFC 112 was even worse.  Silva spent nearly the entire fight taunting Maia, verbally insulting him several times, dancing around the ring, avoiding engagement, and generally making an ass of himself.  He won the fight via unanimous decision, but lost far more than he gained.  Although initially recalcitrant, at the press conference after the fight he claimed he "owed nobody an apology" and "couldn't please everyone"

Top Moment:

After dancing and taunting Demian Maia for five rounds: "You know, they’re here, they’re fans, they pay for the PPV and sometimes the fans don’t understand exactly what’s going on inside the Octagon."

8. Josh Koscheck

Koscheck has generally taken a heel approach to MMA from day one.  He admits that he doesn't particularly care what the fans think of him or what other fighters think of him.  As a result, he's got a legion of haters, and even Dana White has accused him of not being a team player.  However, despite his generally rude and standoffish behavior, Josh Koscheck's real introduction into elite heel status came when turned his post fight interview at UFC 113 into a heel promo any pro-wrestler would be proud of.  Note the classic heel techniques of insulting the local sports team as well as the hometown hero.

Top Moment:

Continue reading this post »

This Fanpost was promoted to the front page.

In this series, "From Shows to Shoots", we'll take a look back at some of the most important ways in which professional wrestling has helped shape mixed martial arts.  Today's entry deals with one of the most important and influential fighters in MMA history.

If I asked you who the most important draw was in the history of North American MMA, I'd expect to hear many names.  Perhaps the original champion, Royce Gracie.  Perhaps current PPV juggernaut Brock Lesnar.  Many would mention names like Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, and Randy Couture.  But for all these men did for the sport, none was as important in terms of drawing power as Kenneth Wayne Shamrock.

Entire books could be written about Ken Shamrock's pre-WWF years, but for our purposes we can stick to the basics.  Ken Shamrock began his martial arts career as a pro-wrestler in Japan with the promotion Fujiwara Gumi.  Shamrock and several other Fujiwara Gumi wrestlers formed the mixed style, proto-MMA company Pancrase in 1993.  Shamrock would have a very successful career in Pancrase, going 17-3 and winning several titles.  At the same time, he was an integral part of the first dozen UFC events.  Shamrock lost at UFC 1 to Royce Gracie, but after that failure he went 6 fights in the UFC without losing, compiling a 4-0-2 record (which would have been 6-0-0 if not for the lack of judges leading to draws).  Shamrock lost to Dan Severn at UFC 9 in a strange no-closed-fist match due to the meddling of Michigan's governing bodies. 

(pictured:  Shamrock and Royce Gracie after their "draw" at UFC 5)

After one more victory at Ultimate Ultimate 1996, Shamrock left the UFC to join the WWF.  To that point in his career, Shamrock was 23-5-2 in Pancrase and the UFC.  Three of the losses were rumored works in Pancrase, one loss was to Royce Gracie (which was perceived as avenged at UFC 5), and one loss to Severn in the UFC 9 debacle.  Shamrock was still regarded by many, if not most, as the best fighter on the planet.  But unfortunately, even for the best fighter on the planet there was not enough money to be made in MMA.  John McCain's campaign to take MMA off of pay per view began after UFC 9, and as a result Shamrock took his reputation as the top MMA fighter in the world to the WWF and crafted a persona as "The World's Most Dangerous Man"

Continue reading this post »

The UFC makes its second trip to the VS network on August 1st, headlining the San Diego California card with a classic "Young Gun" against "Grizzled Veteran" in the main event. 

via www.fighters.com

Jon Jones may be the most exciting young prospect in MMA today.  He sports a 10-1 record, with his only loss coming via disqualification for beating on Matt Hamill too severely.  Essentially undefeated, he's beaten Andre Gusmao, Stephan Bonnar, Jake O'Brien and Brandon Vera along with his DQ loss to Matt Hamill to compile a 4-1 record in the UFC.

Jones is known for his penchant for dramatic throws, unorthodox striking, and powerful ground and pound.  Jones is an accomplished amateur wrestler, winning the New York state HS wrestling title and the National Junior College Championship at Iowa Lakes Community College before dropping out.  Jones is thought of as an incredible prospect for many reasons.  When he signed with the UFC in 2008 he was the youngest fighter on the roster.  In the two years since his signing, he's gone 4-1 and never been in a losing situation in a fight.  He's still only 23 years old, and displays excellent technical ability as well as superior athleticism.

Jones's opponent, Vladimir Matyusheko, is at the opposite point of his career.  Matyushenko has been fighting since Jon Jones was ten years old.  Nicknamed 'The Janitor', Matyushenko has fought a who's who of MMA, including Vernon 'Tiger' White, Yuki Kondo, Tito Ortiz, Little Nog, Pedro Rizzo, and Andrei Arlovski. To put the generational difference in perspective:  He fought Vernon White and Anthony Macias in one night (likely) before Jon Jones hit puberty.  He fought Tito Ortiz for the UFC middleweight title right around the time Jones was entering high school.

Despite his 39 years, "The Janitor" doesn't seem to be slowing down.  Since losing to Arlovski in 2003, Matyushenko has gone 11-1, accumulating the IFL light heavyweight title and most recently two consecutive UFC victories.   The Janitor comes from a wrestling background, having been a member of the Belarusian national team before he began fighting in MMA.  He tends to utilize his wrestling to control fights, and has a reputation as a grinder. 

What should we expect?  Jones is a massive favorite according to the oddsmakers.  Bodog lists odds of

Jones -650
Matyushenko +450

Jones simply has more ways to win.  Jones should have a sizable advantage striking, using his superior length, quickness and unpredictability to batter Matyushenko.  In order for The Janitor to have a chance, he'll most likely have to take Jones down and control him, either winning a decision or finishing Jones on the ground.  Matyushenko has impressive wrestling credentials, but Jones has shown that his wrestling is also superb, and at this point in his career Matyushenko simply doesn't have the speed and athleticism Jones does.  Expect to see Jones have his way with Vlad on the feet, likely mixing his striking with takedowns on his way to an early KO/TKO stoppage.

This Fanpost was promoted to the front page.

The history of mixed martial arts has always been intertwined with professional wrestling.  This fact makes many MMA enthusiasts uncomfortable, but it shouldn't.   Many of MMA's greatest fighters come from a professional wrestling background, and the entire fabric of MMA is so heavily influenced by pro-wrestling that it's impossible to imagine what MMA would look like (or if MMA would even exist) without pro-wrestling.

In this series "From Shows to Shoots", we'll take a look back at some of the most important ways in which professional wrestling has helped shape mixed martial arts.  Appropriately, we'll start with the one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time and certainly the greatest fighter to ever come from a professional wrestling background, Kazushi Sakuraba.

Sakuraba began his athletic career, as so many wrestlers and MMA fighters do, as an amateur wrestler.  After a successful amateur career at Chuo University, he joined the Japanese organization Union of Wrestling Forces International, or UWFi. Now, I can't pretend to be remarkably well versed in the history of Japanese wrestling.  But it doesn't take an expert to realize that the UWFi and New Japan Pro Wrestling didn't think of one another as best friends.

The original UWF was formed in 1984 by a roster of former NJPW wrestlers who wanted to practice a more realistic, shoot-style of professional wrestling.  Although the matches were still worked, the UWF created an entirely new style of wrestling in contrast with NJPW's more theatrical style.  Unfortunately, the original UWF didn't have a long shelf life.  Due to bickering among the promotion's stars, the UWF dissolved in 1986 and most of the roster slunk back to NJPW.  In 1988, most of that same roster left NJPW once again to form the "Newborn UWF".  Newborn UWF integrated legends of wrestling and MMA such as Yoshiaki Fujiwara, Masakatsu Funaki, Minoru Suzuki, Kiyoshi Tamura and others into realistic shoot-style wrestling matches from 1988-1990.  Unfortunately, despite a critically acclaimed product, Newborn UWF was also short lived.  A combination of managerial bickering, economic downturn and waning fan interest forced the promotion to shutter it's doors once again in 1990.

It as at this point Kazushi Sakuraba enters the equation.

Continue reading this post »

Brock Lesnar has been called many things.  He's worn many mantles throughout his career.  Currently, he's called Champion.  Before that, he was called an MMA freakshow.  During his pro-wrestling days, he was often called The Next Big Thing.  As an amateur wrestler, he wore the title of All-American. 

via img829.imageshack.us

But Lesnar's more than just All-American.  Lesnar, and everything about him, IS America.  Don't understand?  Look at the parallels.

Continue reading this post »