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« | Home | »

Hell in a handbasket after UFC 146

By Zach Arnold | May 27, 2012

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Think the fights were crazy on Saturday night in Las Vegas? Everything else surrounding the show is just as crazy. A cliff notes version of what to keep your eye on:

Vitor Belfort broke his hand, having surgery. He’s out for the UFC 147 Brazil card.

If there is any possible way for UFC to back out of that Brazil show, they should run from it as fast as they can. That and relying on Vitor Belfort for a top slot on a fight card at this point is something you do at your own peril.

Mayhem Miller reportedly had a backstage incident at UFC 146.

Mayhem Miller has had two of the most frustrating fights you could possibly imagine in the UFC. He looked awful against CB Dollaway, who himself also looked stagnant & stale. Get position, do nothing. That’s basically what happened here.

Darren Elkins exposed Diego Brandao’s gas tank.

Elkins did what Dollaway should have done on offense. He took a beating but administered one of his own. It was gritty, gutty, and awesome.

Dana would prefer not to have TUF Live on Fridays but Fridays is what works for FX.

Friday night is a death zone for MMA given the core audience. The major flaw for having live fights on Friday is that the only base of fans you’re going to attract are the hardcores. Given the fighters selected for TUF shows and the fact that the majority of fans watching the show don’t think any of the selected fighters have much of a long-term prospect of making it as a top-tier contender in the UFC, the show’s purpose is inherently paralyzed.

It’s also been strange to see the way UFC has promoted Urijah Faber. In WEC, he was the big fish in a small pond. Predictably, UFC presents him as just another guy. The aura of superstardom got stripped — and I’m not talking about just the losses to Mike Brown, either. I can’t put my finger on it, but something is badly missing here in terms of enthusiasm.

Dana and Brock may work out a deal for Brock to fight in UFC and WWE.

Brock/Mir III will do hot numbers on PPV. And then everyone will wonder why Lesnar didn’t draw well on PPV against John Cena.

First of all, WWE’s PPV market outside of Wrestlemania is fried like a bucket of KFC. Wrestlemania is the one PPV that draws for them now. Wrestlemania is as big, if not bigger than the WWE brand at this point. When WWE tried to push The Rock & John Cena against R-Truth & Miz in that tag match at Madison Square Garden for Survivor Series 2011, the PPV number there was way below expectations. If The Rock can’t save WWE’s PPV business, Brock Lesnar isn’t going to, either. It’s a company thing as opposed to being the fault of the stars.

Dana thinks Daniel Cormier should go to 205 but will honor him with a shot against the UFC big boys.

If Dana makes the offer to set up Cain Velasquez vs. Daniel Cormier, will the teammates split apart to make the fight happen?

Thoughts of the day from our friend MMA Supremacy:

“Not only will Overeem stick around, but he will most likely get a title shot… or close to one, when he returns.

“Regarding Lesnar coming back, it makes total sense. UFC is struggling big time selling PPV’s and Lesnar not doing great drawing on WWE.”

It looks like a Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos rematch is coming. Even money fight?

A truly illuminating (in a horrible way) moment for the Nevada State Athletic Commission when an NSAC official asked Frank Mir where he was after the first round and Frank said, “Mandalay Bay.” The fight happened at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Yes, the same commission that let Tito Ortiz fight Forrest Griffin while Tito said he had a ‘fractured skull’ and Forrest had a broken foot. The same commission that is letting TUF Live guys fight two or three times in three weeks in the State. Health & safety, kids.

I found the choice of Jamie Varner as Evan Dunham’s replacement against Edson Barboza to be mind-boggling and it was even crazier once Varner, a 4-to-1 underdog, pulled off the upset. I figured UFC would want a replacement for Edson in which if the upset happened, the replacement would be a prospect with a future. I don’t think anyone believes that Varner has a future against the top Lightweights in the UFC. It’s a really bad loss for Edson and hurts UFC.

I am happy to see Varner make the most out of his final chance with UFC. He was put in a tough spot and he won. Congratulations.

Arianny Celeste getting arrested in Clark County, Nevada (Vegas) based on allegations of domestic violence.

Whether she is guilty or not guilty, the legal system will sort that out. However, the wisecracks from (men) commenting online and joking about domestic violence because it’s a woman who got arrested for it is just stupid. We don’t celebrate domestic violence when men are the instigators, so what’s the point in celebrating women when they’re the instigators?

Dana’s full-throated defense of Arianny here is what it is.

When it rains, it pours.

Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 35 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |

35 Responses to “Hell in a handbasket after UFC 146”

  1. David m says:

    Zach, before JDS embarrassed CV on national television in under a minute, I told you JDS was going to expose Cain’s glass jaw, and you said no, Cain was the rightful favorite, a torn shoulder was no big deal, nor were the multiple knockdowns against Kongo.

    Then came the Fox fight. Last I checked, one cannot improve one’s chin; it is what it is. To suggest that because Cain looked good against Bigfoot, that he is somehow even money against JDS, represents some rather “questionable” thinking on your part. Junior hits everyone he fights hard. Roy and Carwin showed chin to take it for 15 minutes, Mir survived a round, and Cain survived 40 seconds.

    Unless your Cain fanboyism allows you to come up with a scenario in which Cain gets injections in his chin to harden it, I can’t conceive how you could think JDS v CV 2 is an even money fight. I don’t even think Cain is definitively the best hw in his own camp. Cormier is a better wrestler with better hand speed, and I don’t recall seeing his chin fail him multiple times in a fight like Cain’s did against a mid-level fighter like Kongo.

    • RST says:

      So you figured out that Cain had a glass Jaw before he ever lost a fight.
      And getting KO’d in his first fight back after a year long layoff by the current successfully defending HW champion is your proof?

      Interesting.

    • Zach Arnold says:

      Zach, before JDS embarrassed CV on national television in under a minute, I told you JDS was going to expose Cain’s glass jaw, and you said no, Cain was the rightful favorite, a torn shoulder was no big deal, nor were the multiple knockdowns against Kongo.

      I don’t recall saying that his torn rotator cuff wasn’t a big deal – they are painful to rehab & fully recover from.

      Velasquez admitted after the fight (or his camp did) that he fought JDS with an injured knee. Injuries are part of the game. To what extent they played a role in his loss, I don’t know enough information to make a determination.

      I don’t know what my personal odds for the rematch will be, but I reckon that the rematch being a pick ’em is no less absurd or credible than Faber/Barao being declared a pick ’em.

      • david m says:

        I’m sorry, I don’t follow your logic on Faber v Barao somehow being as much of a pick ’em as Cain v J2S. Did Faber knock Barao unconscious in under a minute? Sherdog tells me they never fought. I really don’t see a parallel. Faber is 33 and on the downside of his career, while Barao is 25 and closing in on his peak. On the other hand, Cain is 29 and J2S is 27, so there is no real age disparity.

        One thing I have ascertained in the years I have watched mma is that throwing kicks leads to getting taken down. J2S doesn’t kick. If there are no kicks being thrown at a wrestler, he has to get past your hands. Cain is a great wrestler and has brutal/effective ground and pound, but trying to close the distance on J2S is super dangerous. Mir’s 1 takedown attempt was actually quite impressive; he slipped the punch (if I recall correctly) and got inside, and I think would have finished the takedown against most opponents. Junior has gotten quite good at takedown defense, and has the length/hand speed/foot speed/chin to throw punches at Cain without getting taken down.

        On an aside, I don’t think it is right for Cain to get another title shot immediately; it seems like he would be getting the title shot on a silver platter, rather than earning it.

  2. Megatherium says:

    I honestly can’t remember the last time a doctor ordered a fight stopped in Nevada or anywhere else at a UFC event. It happens almost never, letting Koschek fight for two or three rounds with a badly fractured eye socket/cheekbone was nuts.
    Seems like every other week a fighter is telling a doctor he can’t see and the fight goes on, it’s getting worse and worse.

    UFC 147 seems destined for Fuel TV. They wouldn’t really go through with their plans for a PPV?

    Or would they?!?!

  3. RST says:

    I haven’t seen these wisecracks, I cant read MMA forums anymore, but if I were to crack wise on the situation it would be because of the politically correct double standard and assumption of guilt people display regarding any offense by a man against a women, while stonewall disregarding offenses by women against men.

    But they want to be equal when payday comes.

    I wonder if Dana would be full throat defending a man if a man were the instigator?

    Jones cant even crash his own car without Dana being “terribly disappointed”, but arriany puts her private parts on display to the world and assaults her domestic partner and she’s “…our baby …and an amazing ambassador for the sport”.

    I already cant tolerate the forums anymore.
    I’m considering not even reading the news so that I dont have to hear what dana has to say anymore either.

  4. The Judge says:

    Does Vitor have a history of getting hurt before fights? He has more of a history of getting creamed in them. What am I forgetting?
    The “backstage incident” that Miller had was that lousy match with CB.
    Elkins-Brandao was good, you were right. Overall, I thought the fights were exciting. And Brandao didn’t fight bad, just got bettered.
    Cormier said he won’t fight Cain. Can Dana make them?
    Maybe it’s just that all these casinos look alike? I couldn’t tell you where most of these cards take place, either.
    Maybe once Dana stops hyperventilating about how guys in other organizations are ranked in top ten, he should take a look at how guys in his own top ten choke up. I am glad Barbosa lost, because it hurts UFC.
    What a lot of people don’t realize is when a woman commits an act of domestic violence, if a guy does anything back, instead of call the cops, she will probably be viewed as the victim and he as the culprit for the investigation. It’s hard to prove who started it.

    • Jason Harris says:

      “I am glad Barbosa lost, because it hurts UFC.”

      You know, I don’t follow a lot of team sports, but do they get this crap too? “I just want to see the NFL hurt, because I’m a weird sports hipster and I think hurting the organization that puts on the events I watch is cool”

      Also, I don’t quite think the UFC was banking heavily on Edson Barboza.

      • The Judge says:

        It makes perfect sense to cheer against a promotion, if you don’t like the direction they lead the sport or the people who run it. Especially when they are not the only game in town.
        I agree that UFC was not banking heavily on Barboza.

        • Light23 says:

          If the UFC were to die, I’d fear for the future of MMA. It would continue on, sure, but I don’t think it’d ever be as big.

  5. 45 Huddle says:

    In a movie, typically if a guy hits a girl it is shown as a violent evil act. If a girl hits a guy, it is because he did something where he “deserved” to get hit. All you need to do is reverse the roles of the one getting hit in most instances, and it would be jarring to the viewer.

    As for the fights…. An all Heavyweight PPV was bound to have quick fights. What did they end up showing? Like 10 fights on a 3 hour card? It was crazy. But the fights were good.

    Mayhem should be cut no matter what. He just isn’t very good right now.

    I am glad to see Mike Thomas Brown retire off a win. Nice way to go out for him.

    Vitor Belfort is a headcase. Always has been.

    I am 100% AGAINST Lesnar doing both the WWE and UFC at the same time. Just like I am 100% against Lawal doing the same thing on SpikeTV. These things should not be blurred. One or the other. That is it.

    I don’t think the Barbosa loss hurts the UFC. They have more then enough contenders at Lightweight…. And he wasn’t super popular anyways.

    Former Strikeforce Heavyweights went 0-3 on that card last night. Outside of Cormier looking like a shining future star…. The SF guys aren’t looking that good when they go up against better UFC level competition.

    And I have no problem with JDS vs. Cain 2 happening now. It was obvious that Cain wasn’t himself for that fight.

    • david m says:

      Can you please explain how you get that Vitor is a headcase from breaking his hand? What a silly comment.

      Why are you still talking about Strikeforce like it is a separate entity? Your weird fetish with promotional territory borders on the absurd. Everyone came from a different promotion at some time, get over it. However, to play your game, Cormier is a top 5 hw right now, Overeem probably is too. I would put Barnett in the top 10. There, 3 Strikeforce guys in the top 10.

      Let’s not forget that “WEC guys” own the 155 and 170 belts, and a “Pride guy” owns the 185 belt.

      • 45 Huddle says:

        People were never claiming that the WEC had the best fighters in the world besides Feather & Bantam. People were claiming that the Strikeforce Heavyweight Division was better then the UFC’s. And that is quickly being proven false.

        And Belfort is a headcase. He is mentally weak. It wouldn’t shock me if he was purposely doing workouts the wrong way to injure himself. Nobody in the history of the sport has ever had more problems commiting to a fight then Vitor Belfort.

        • david m says:

          I think you have finally lost it. You have now theorized that Vitor intentionally broke his hand so as to avoid facing a guy over whom he has every conceivable advantage.

          Vitor, who has faced guys from Overeem to Liddell to Couture to Tank Abbott to Anderson Silva to Dan Henderson to Heath Herring to Wanderlei, has now developed a fear of a man he massacred, a man who has since lost all semblance of a chin.

          What kind of counterpoint is “nobody thought the WEC guys were good”? You are all about the UFC having the best talent, and at 155 and 170, the best fighters were fighting outside of the promotion. Your comment about Strikeforce being presumed to have better HWs than the UFC is entirely irrelevant. I am trying to figure out who you are bragging to that Antonio Silva lost; nobody else cares .

        • Jason Harris says:

          “guys from Overeem to Liddell to Couture to Tank Abbott to Anderson Silva to Dan Henderson to Heath Herring to Wanderlei”

          One of these things is not like the other

    • nottheface says:

      Before last night I believe the SF HW were 5-1 so they’re still up 5-4. But even that stat is pointless because as the WEC fighters showed us a promotional label doesn’t mean much, only the abilities of the individual fighters. They might not be able to beat Cain or JDS but Cormier, Werdum, & Overeem will probably end up rounding out the rest of the top 5.

      I picked JDS to beat Cain & I’ll be picking him again in the rematch, only I won’t be as confident this time.

      • edub says:

        I didnt pick him the first fight, but i still wont pick him here. I think its a toss up. 2 things are for sure though: Cain will be ready for an overhand right, and he does not have glass jaw.

  6. Jonathan says:

    Good cover Zach.

    And of course Dana is going to treat Ariany different given the circumstances….she is a ring girl. If one of the guys were to do it, they would be professional fighters who punched someone. There is a BIG difference there.

    • fd2 says:

      Moreover, Arianny is dating Tiki, who IS a professional fighter. So yeah, if he hit her the context would be extremely different than her hitting him… just like if Cyborg had a boyfriend who was a 110 lb underwear model, the context of her hitting him would be very different than the context of him hitting her.

    • RST says:

      And there is a big double standard there.

      So if a guy is a professional fighter he is not allowed to defend himself from assault?

      If some chick thrusts herself into overeems face and he pushes her away he haw to go to anger management and pay restitution.

      But if arriany goes lorena bobbit of scratches the isht out of a guys eyes and face, everyone is gonna say that she’s just a tiny harmless little girl and he must have been mean to her.

      Assalt is assault.
      Women commit assault to, and its not that rare.

      Guys just usually dont report it because THEY’LL get arrested for it.

      I’m fine with it if you want to call a man doing the same this as a woman a big difference.

      But then dont talk to me about gender equality and how women are the same, when it suits them.

      Thats called a double standard.

      • fd2 says:

        “And there is a big double standard there.
        So if a guy is a professional fighter he is not allowed to defend himself from assault?”

        No, the expectation is that someone who is a professional fighter would be able to defend himself against an untrained person twenty or thirty pounds lighter than himself without harming them. If Tiki had responded to Arianny punching him by taking her down and holding her till she calmed down, he wouldn’t get charged with DV. If he responded to Arianny punching him by punching her back, he would get charged with DV, and rightly so.

        Again, as I noted, if Cyborg had a 110 pound untrained underwear model boyfriend, the reverse situation would apply. It’s not to do with gender, it’s to do with physical power imbalance.

        • RST says:

          “…the expectation is that someone who is a professional fighter would be able to defend himself against an untrained person twenty or thirty pounds lighter than himself without harming them.”

          I’m sure thats what he would do.
          Thats what we all would do.

          But I’d like to see you gently hold down arriany and reach for the phone to call the police while she’s kicking, screaming, scratching your eyes out and reaching for a knife.

          Because if your not gentle and say you make bruises on her arm from holding her down, you’ll be charged with DV.

          And ironically so.

          “It’s not to do with gender, it’s to do with physical power imbalance.”

          Thats not true.

          If a 110 pound man attacked a 150 pound man and he got his teeth knocked out for it, it would be considered mutual combat.

        • fd2 says:

          “But I’d like to see you gently hold down arriany and reach for the phone to call the police while she’s kicking, screaming, scratching your eyes out and reaching for a knife.”

          I’ve done it to guys larger than Arianny, and I’m not a professional fighter, so yes I don’t consider it that big a deal.

          “Because if your not gentle and say you make bruises on her arm from holding her down, you’ll be charged with DV.”

          In the real world, as opposed to your imagination, this is very unlikely.

          “If a 110 pound man attacked a 150 pound man and he got his teeth knocked out for it, it would be considered mutual combat.”

          And in the real world, this is also very unlikely.

        • The Judge says:

          How exactly do you envision this happening? He gently puts her into a rear naked choke and holds her there till she loses consciousness? A MMA fighter would certainly be able to defeat a girl who is 30 pounds lighter than him, but I don’t know that he would be able to do so without hurting her, especially when she is not restrained by unified rules

        • edub says:

          That is completely insane. A professional fighter couldnt just hold down someone without marking them in some way. Bruised wrists are easily an arrestable offense.

      • fd2 says:

        “How exactly do you envision this happening?”

        I’ve done part-time bouncing work and it’s involved women and men who went after their partners. When I pinned them against the wall, or took them down and held them down, they eventually calmed down and stopped fighting, which resulted in them leaving without anyone getting hurt. Again, if I can do it, I feel confident a professional fighter can do so.

        • Kalle says:

          Probably true but you were in a situation where the cops, if called, are going to give you the benefit of the doubt. In a DV situation the cops will take you into custody if there’s evidence of violence on your partner and then it’s up to the courts to settle guilt.

        • fd2 says:

          If taking someone down and holding them left “evidence of violence”, Sean Sherk’s opponents would be heading to the hospital a lot more.

        • The Judge says:

          Good call–I didn’t even think that this would be roughly an equivalent of a “bouncing” scenario. Restraining without bruising is probably not that difficult and Ariany would be unlikely to call the cops on you in that scenario.

  7. david m says:

    I just want to mention that my favorite unintentionally funny moment of the broadcast came when Rogan (who is really starting to annoy me by always saying that every single fighter is the best version of ______ we have ever seen) and Goldberg were trying to act like Bigfoot was an amazing fighter, and then admitted that he got massacred by a guy in Strikeforce in his most recent outing.

  8. EJ says:

    I don’t ever see the UFC doing a deal that allows Brock to fight for both them and the WWE. That would cause way too big a headache and muddy the waters in a way that would hurt the UFC. To me I think Brock got a wake up call with how he’s been booked in the WWE and that Vince has lost his mind. I won’t be surprised if Brock doesn’t end up getting out of his WWE deal before the year is up. And he decides to go back to MMA, he retired way too fast imo and Overeem being busted maybe made him rethink him calling it quits.

  9. […] Dana White Has One Helluva Bad Week (FightOpinion.com) […]

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