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Round One: Even With A Broken Arm, “Ace†Breaks The “Icemanâ€
After a fourteen month layoff from octagon action, a revitalized Chuck Liddell returned to the UFC to make one more run at the UFC Light Heavyweight Title. Chuck Liddell started off looking like the Chuck Liddell of old, even breaking the arm of his opponent in Rich Franklin. Then it happened, moments before the opening round was set to conclude, Rich Franklin knocked out Chuck Liddell with a series of punches to the face. In just a few moments, the man who was at the forefront of MMA during its biggest boom period, was flat out his back and out cold. Television announcers Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan were then forced to talk about the end of a legacy as Chuck Liddell saw his final action in the octagon. Rich Franklin now will continue on his path to a UFC Light Heavyweight Title shot being known as the man who put Chuck Liddell out of the UFC for good.
Next Round For Rich Franklin: Lyoto Machida, Quinton Jackson or the Jon Jones/Vladimir Matyushenko winner.
Next Round For Chuck Liddell: Retirement
Round Two: Right Leg…Hospital, Left Leg…Cemetery, Rear Naked Choke…Tap Out
When Pat Barry and Mirko Cro Cop stepped into the octagon on Saturday Night, fans were expecting nothing short of a brutality filled slugfest. However, when the final bell sounded, the fans got the one thing they never would’ve expected, a tap out. In the fights opening round, Pat Barry looked like he was on his way to a knockout victory over the MMA legend, but a few smiles and hugs later changed that outcome. Mirko Cro Cop then used the next two rounds to remind those MMA fans who may have forgotten that he is one of the most volatile fighters in MMA today. While Pat Barry was seeking his autograph from his MMA idol, Mirko Cro Cop took the opportunity to leave an impression on Pat Barry, in the form of a rear naked choke.
Next Round For Mirko Cro Cop: Mike Russow, Todd Duffee or Antoni Hardonk could be interesting
Next Round For Pat Barry: Joey Beltran or Rolles Gracie
Round Three: Ten Seconds Makes All The Difference
For two rounds, Rory MacDonald was prepared to do to Carlos Condit what John Hathaway did a few weeks earlier to Diego Sanchez at UFC 114, pull a huge upset in the UFC. Then Greg Jackson gave Carlos Condit one of the most volatile verbal bitch slaps in recent memory in between the second and third round, which lead to Carlos Condit laying a whipping on Rory MacDonald. Carlos Condit left a beating on Rory MacDonald that not only won him the fight, but left the right side of his face looking like it went through a blender. While Carlos Condit will be moving onto bigger and better things in his immediate future in the UFC, Rory MacDonald walked out of the octagon with a loss and a lot more fans then when he entered the very same octagon. Carlos Condit was the last WEC Welterweight Champion and is now a step closer to potentially becoming the UFC Welterweight Champion.
Next Round For Carlos Condit: A rematch with Martin Kampmann or a battle with Dustin Hazelett
Next Round For Rory MacDonald: Amir Sadollah, Paulo Thiago or Mike Swick would be fun.
Round Four: He Didn’t Tap, He Wasn’t Out Cold, Why Was The Fight Stopped?
Don’t get me wrong here, the guillotine choke is a very dangerous hold to be put in, but don’t you think a fighter should tap out of being knockout unconscious before a referee stops the fight? Apparently referee Yves Lavigne doesn’t believe so, because the referee decided to prematurely end the Mac Danzig/Matt Wiman bout despite the fact that Mac Danzig never tapped out or what out cold at any point. It was such a horrid stoppage that even the fights victor, Matt Wiman, was consoling Mac Danzig on his unfortunate loss inside the octagon. Hopefully, the UFC recognizes the error in judgment shown by Yves Lavigne and gives these two another opportunity against each other down the line. On a side note, the UFC didn’t let go of Matt Wiman after the fight for choking his opponent, despite the mounting political pressure from the state of Connecticut.
Next Round For Matt Wiman: A rematch with Mac Danzig
Next Round For Mac Danzig: A rematch with Matt Wiman
Round Five: Team Couture vs. Team Couture, Who Won?
Following the controversial ending of the Matt Wiman/Mac Danzig fight, Team Couture teammates Tyson Griffin and Evan Dunham stepped into the octagon. The rivalry exploded into three rounds of entertaining action with plenty of stand up and ground battling. While Evan Dunham stepped into the octagon an undefeated fight, he would also walk out of the octagon an undefeated fighter with a performance that left those wondering if he should be a top contender in the UFC Lightweight Division. While Tyson Griffin will always remain a threat in the UFC Lightweight Division, he was definitely dropped down a few pegs in the divisions rankings. What will truly prove to be an interesting situation is how these two fighters will react to each other once they resume training together at Team Couture.
Next Round For Evan Dunham: Melvin Guillard, Spencer Fisher or Ross Pearson could be interesting.
Next Round For Tyson Griffin: Matt Veach, Effrain Escudero or Cole Miller would be a test.
You can contact David Tees at bigtees360@yahoo.com
