Ufc 65

[IX_Equilibrium]

Saturday night is when the event takes place. I have been waiting a long time for Hughes vs. St. Pierre. It has the potential to one of the greatest fights in history. We'll see what happens.

Main Card Bouts:

-Matt Hughes vs. Georges St. Pierre

-Tim Sylvia vs. Jeff Monson

-Brandon Vera vs. Frank Mir

-Joe Stevenson vs. Dokonjonosuke Mishima

-Alessio Sakara vs. Drew McFedries

-Nick Diaz vs. Graison Tibau

-Jake O'Brien vs. Josh Shockman

-James Irvin vs. Hector Ramirez

-Antoni Hardonk vs. Sherman Pendergarst

[LEONARD]

Give me...

GSP via KO
Sylvia via KO (although it would be delicious to see Monson submit Tim!)
Vera
Mishima
Sakara
Diaz

[Mr Dio]

Give me...

GSP via KO
Sylvia via KO (although it would be delicious to see Monson submit Tim!)Mishima
Sakara
Diaz


Concur for the most part.
'Cept I think JoeS is no slouch & could win.
Vera over a washed up Mir, 'less Mir finally got back to being serious about his training which I doubt.

L, have any current pics of Mir? He still lookin' soft?

[LEONARD]

I thought I posted that Vera would win too? I added that...

No, I don't...but Vera says he's in good shape...

This from brandon vera's blog page.

"On the way to training tonight we saw Frank Mir in front of the hotel and you heard it from us first, he’s not FAT!!!! He looked like the old Frank Mir, we’re glad that he’s in shape. We prepared really hard for this one and look forward to a all out WAR!!!"

We'll see though...

[cornbread]

^^^That's great news. I hope Mir is really in shape. Either way, I have to put my money on Vera but it would be great to see Mir have a performance that's more in line with what he's capable of.

[Rip-Hamilton32]

i think monson will submit sylvia as soon as he gets him to the ground but thats the biggest problem tim has 11 inches and way better striking on him so it will make it hard but not impossible i think monson wins by tapout, gsp by ko

[LEONARD]

I'd laugh til Sunday night if Sylvia loses...seriously... :lol

[IX_Equilibrium]

-Matt Hughes vs. Georges St. Pierre

-Tim Sylvia vs. Jeff Monson

-Brandon Vera vs. Frank Mir

-Joe Stevenson vs. Dokonjonosuke Mishima

-Alessio Sakara vs. Drew McFedries


My pics in bold. Miletich Fighting Systems has alot of haters out there. I predict they will hate even more after Saturday night.

Although I am picking Vera, I read an interview and saw pics of Mir and was impressed. He admits he hates getting in top physical shape, but understands it is essential to success in MMA, and he is in top form. If there will be an upset of the night, it will be Mir's.

I won't be able to watch it live Saturday night. I have tickets to go to the Deftones concert at Sunset Station.

[cornbread]

I won't be able to watch it live Saturday night. I have tickets to go to the Deftones concert at Sunset Station.

Not a bad alternative to the fights!

[IX_Equilibrium]

Not a bad alternative to the fights!



Yeah, Deftones put on a badass concert and Sunset Station is my favorite venue to see live music.

[LEONARD]

Although I am picking Vera, I read an interview and saw pics of Mir and was impressed. He admits he hates getting in top physical shape, but understands it is essential to success in MMA, and he is in top form. If there will be an upset of the night, it will be Mir's.

I won't be able to watch it live Saturday night. I have tickets to go to the Deftones concert at Sunset Station.

Deftones = :fro

Where'd you see pics of Mir? The only one I've seen is on the UFC 65 page, and it's probably an old picture.

I have a hard time believing he's in his old form after what he looked like against Christenson??? :dizzy

[LEONARD]

Weigh-ins are live on yahoo sports right now...

Vera...230 lbs
Mir...254 lbs...looks to be in decent shape...

Tibau...171...he's a big mofo
Diaz...171

Monson...237.5
Sylvia...262.5

Hughes...missed his weight (he was boo'd though)
GSP...169

Looks like Diaz is on the main card now instead of Stevenson?? Nevermind, looks like 6 fights on the main card somehow...

[IX_Equilibrium]

Hughes...missed his weight




170

[IX_Equilibrium]

have any current pics of Mir? He still lookin' soft?


No, and I would say he looks to be better than in "decent" shape.

http://www.bloodyknux.com/forum/showpost.php?p=643543&postcount=487

[IX_Equilibrium]

Here is a clearer pic of Mir.
http://69.46.29.2:8080/absoluteig/gallery/ULTIMATE%20FIGHTING%20CHAMPIONSHIPS/UFC_65/weigh-ins/17-FrankMir.jpg

[Rip-Hamilton32]

gsp destroyed hughes and sylvia almost submited monson but came out with a decision

[desflood]

That's the third time in a row I've fallen asleep during a Tim Sylvia fight. That man should be fired.

[cornbread]

By round 4 of the Sylvia fight i was seriously considering going out in the street and walking into traffic. That fight was horrible! Props to Sylvia for performing well on the ground though. It did seem like he was content with cruising to victory at the end. That's two snoozefests in a row for Sylvia.

What about GSP?! His shit was another level that Hughes could not keep up with. Simply incredible. I'm happy for GSP. It's always cool when the nice guy finishes first.

[IX_Equilibrium]

On the fights I've watched so far:

Vera completely destroyed Mir. I thought Mir would at least give a good showing. It was no contest.

The Sylvia - Monson was pretty good in my opinion, until the end. The first couple of rounds Tim displayed awesome takedown defense, which really tired Monson out. Also to Tim's credit, he did very well on the ground when Monson finally achieved top position. He delivered a damaging elbow, reversed positions, and went for sub attempts. As for the end of the fight, Tim was being cautious because he knew he won, so he didn't want to get tangled up with Monson and lose to a dumb mistake. So, he was content with keeping Monson at bay with his jab. Unfortunatley, his playing it safe made the last round very boring. All in all, Tim impressed me. I thought if he and Arlovski fought again, AA would take him down and submit him since he couldn't beat Tim on his feet last time. Now, I have to wonder how successful AA would be at doing that, especially given Tim's great display of takedown defense and added proficiency on the ground. Man, so many people hate that guy that the positives I saw in his performance will probably be overlooked, but oh well.

I am astonished by Hughes - GSP. Country Breakfast must not have eaten his country breakfast. Matt's standup looked pretty bad. GSP's standup looked crisp and direct (except for hitting Matt in the balls twice). Matt definately could not hang with GSP on the feet, and I wondered why Matt was not more aggressive in taking him down. GSP was really frustrating and hurting Hughes with inside leg kicks. I think that got into Matt's head and made GSP's confidence during the match soar. I was for Matt, but I am very happy for GSP. He is such a class act and a terrific competitor. I think it's refreshing for the division to have him as a champ. We will definately see a rematch, and Hughes will come back with a vengance I am sure. Not sure if everyone caught this, but one of the owners of the UFC told GSP that the next UFC would be in Montreal. GSP freaked out with elation about this, on top of already being elated by becoming champ.

[LEONARD]

Mir showed nothing despite "looking" in shape...

Sylvia showed that he has some ground skills, but he couldn't (or wouldn't) finish Jeff Freakin' Monson in 25 min's? WTF? Pathetic excuse for a HW champ. Dana looked so pissed putting the belt on him. Surely he'll bring somebody in now!!

GSP is the man...Hughes has said that he's the future of the division, but I don't think he thought the future was now.


Give me...

GSP via KO
Sylvia via KO (although it would be delicious to see Monson submit Tim!)
Vera
Mishima
Sakara
Diaz

Missed on Mishima and Sakara...and Sylvia finish. Mishima looked slick on the ground, but damn...he stuck his head in the same spot about 4 times! What the hell was he thinking???

[IX_Equilibrium]

Sylvia showed that he has some ground skills, but he couldn't (or wouldn't) finish Jeff Freakin' Monson in 25 min's? WTF? Pathetic excuse for a HW champ. Dana looked so pissed putting the belt on him. Surely he'll bring somebody in now!!




Did you or anyone else think Sylvia would finish the fight by sub?? :wtf Monson is alot better on the ground than Tim, and Tim admitted that. The ground is Monson's world. Your complaint would be the same as someone criticizing Carmelo Marrero for not not knocking out Cheick Kongo on his feet instead of dominating him on the ground.

[LEONARD]

Did you or anyone else think Sylvia would finish the fight by sub?? :wtf Monson is alot better on the ground than Tim, and Tim admitted that. The ground is Monson's world. Your complaint would be the same as someone criticizing Carmelo Marrero for not not knocking out Cheick Kongo on his feet instead of dominating him on the ground.

No no no no!!

That didn't read as I intended it...

I meant that he couldn't finish him with a KO/stoppage. Monson basically had 1 eye for the last 2 rounds too...

How does Sylvia REALLY think he's on the same level as Fedor, Crocop, and even Aleks with his striking?? He's a chump and a joke...nobody likes him and it's time for him to get KTFO...seriously...

[IX_Equilibrium]

No no no no!!

That didn't read as I intended it...

I meant that he couldn't finish him with a KO/stoppage. Monson basically had 1 eye for the last 2 rounds too...

How does Sylvia REALLY think he's on the same level as Fedor, Crocop, and even Aleks with his striking?? He's a chump and a joke...nobody likes him and it's time for him to get KTFO...seriously...

Oh, ok. Well, he played it safe in the last round and didn't engage like he should have. He knew he had the fight won on points. He would have made himself look alot better if he would have gone in for the kill. But, he did have a very solid gameplan and stuck to it, which is a strength of his. You can tell he is a guy that follows what his corner tells him to a T.

As far as him thinking he is on the same level as Fedor, the guy has confidence. If he fought any one of those guys, I'd bet against Sylvia, so I do not personally think he is on Fedor's level. But I don't resent him for thinking that, especially since he hasn't shown Fedor or any of the other guys disrespect to my knowledge.

Again, people hate the guy so much that it causes any shred of objectivity to be erased. But he will be the champ until someone takes his belt away. It may be Vera on Tim's very next title defense. We shall see. Until then, people need to accept the fact that Tim has defended his title against whoever was put in front of him. I give the guy credit for that.

[LEONARD]

I understand that he followed his gameplan and he fought "safe" in the last couple rounds, especially the 5th...

BUT, he should've been able to knock Monson out without too much fear of being taken down and submitted by the 4th and 5th rounds. Monson gave him his best shot in the 3rd and Tim defended it well. He should've finished him off. He deserved the boo's after that fight. And Big John telling them to do something in the 5th was classic...as was the look on Dana's face after the 5th...

I think Vera will beat him...legkicks will be the key...

After UFC 61, Sylvia trash talked GSP on Hughes' behalf...he also said that Aleks E has "slow hands" and can't strike with him...

He also trashed Tito for his training methods and essentially said "Real fighters" get up in the morning and train all day, not get up at 1:00 and train for a few hours.

He hasn't necessarily disrespected the Pride HW's, but he's said some ridiculous things.

From here:
http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=2394

MMAWeekly: With the possibility of Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva fighting, how long until we see a heavyweight unification bout?

Sylvia: I tell you what, I was drooling when I saw that. Hopefully, they’ll bring Fedor [Emelianenko], and he and I will get it on.

MMAWeekly: Looking at the Pride heavyweights, how do you think you match up with some of them? We’ll start with Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic.

Sylvia: I think I would beat Cro Cop. My hands are better than his. He’s got great kicks, but I’m tall, so that’s going to eliminate a lot of power he generates from his kicking. So, I’ll just stay close enough with my hands that hopefully I can beat him that way.

(Has Tim seen Crocop's leg kicks? Or seen him kick Aleks' head off??)

MMAWeekly: What about Josh Barnett?

Sylvia: Barnett, same thing... I’ve just got to make sure that I keep the fight standing up. He is very good on the ground. I’ve just got to stay strong with my takedown defenses, and I know my hands are better than his, so just work my hands and knees in the clinch, and stuff like that.

MMAWeekly: How about Mark Hunt?

Sylvia: He’s a really big, strong, tough guy. I’d probably put Mark on his back.

MMAWeekly: What about Fedor?

Sylvia: It’s interesting. The only style we haven’t seen Fedor fight yet is a tall striker who is good at takedown defenses. I would try to keep the fight standing up with him and utilize my hand skills, and hopefully the reach would give him a tough enough time where he wouldn’t be able to hit me.

-----

I'm sure Barnett was thinking "WTF? This is a title fight?" while cornering for Monson on Saturday...

and from here:
http://www.graciemag.com/?c=144&a=5625

Quote of the year: "Against Fedor? I would beat him. I Think my striking is better and I think he hasn’t fought a tall striker like I am."

Striking is better?? WTF? :lol

Has Sylvia heard of Semmy Schilt? Or considered that he's trained with 6'5" Aleks for years??

This one is good too: "After I beat Arlovski for the second time and I beat him real bad."

Hahahaha...that was the weakest HW title fight ever (UFC 65's gives it some competition)...how did he beat him "real bad"??? :lol

[IX_Equilibrium]

I never said Sylvia hasn't said ridiculous things! I think he would be alot less hated if he would just not speak. People might even get along with him like Fedor!

http://myspace-586.vo.llnwd.net/00920/68/56/920236586_l.jpg

[LEONARD]

hahaha...I love that picture...

2 min's tops and Fedor would have him crying... :fro

[LEONARD]

Post Fight Press Conference
http://www.sherdog.net/forums/showthread.php?t=463948

Hughes said the 2nd nut shot wasn't really a nut shot and they had no impact on him. Probably more on GSP...

[LEONARD]

My favorite pics from the GSP-Hughes fight...

http://media.ufc.tv/i.cfc?method=get&w=550&cs=1&s=06FB199C-1422-0E8C-9AC6A315EBA497DE.jpg

http://media.ufc.tv/i.cfc?method=get&w=550&cs=1&s=06FA1C71-1422-0E8C-9A9D05EF30DAB86E.jpg

http://media.ufc.tv/i.cfc?method=get&w=550&cs=1&s=06F87868-1422-0E8C-9A552FE843069DAD.jpg

http://media.ufc.tv/i.cfc?method=get&w=550&cs=1&s=06F72C90-1422-0E8C-9A0EB5F71524D058.jpg

[cornbread]

I can't say enough good things about Brandon Vera. He has had some very impressive performances in the UFC and the Mir fight had to be his best yet. I am so pumped to see him challenge for title! Did you guys notice that Vera looked really nervous before the fight? Dude looked like he was going to pass out or throw up on his way to the Octagon.

[LEONARD]

I can't say enough good things about Brandon Vera. He has had some very impressive performances in the UFC and the Mir fight had to be his best yet. I am so pumped to see him challenge for title! Did you guys notice that Vera looked really nervous before the fight? Dude looked like he was going to pass out or throw up on his way to the Octagon.

UFC 68 in early March...Sylvia loses his title!! :fro

[cornbread]

I'm a little bummed out now because Serra will probably be destroyed by GSP. I liked Serra's chances against Hughes. Oh well. Maybe we'll see eventually see that match.

[IX_Equilibrium]

Post Fight Press Conference
http://www.sherdog.net/forums/showthread.php?t=463948



Thanks for posting. Both fighters showed alot of class. Hughes gave no excuses and took the loss like a man. Pretty refreshing after all of the crying, whining, and excuses that the BJ Penn contingent spewed forth after he lost.