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MMA Live (June 11th, 2009) show recap
By Zach Arnold | June 12, 2009
If you want me to continue doing these recaps, please leave a comment on this post. Even if you aren’t interested in the recaps, at least let me know if you have no interest. I need to gauge the interest level here. Thanks.
This week’s show hosts: Jon Anik, Miguel Torres, and Franklin McNeil
The show opens with discussion of the WEC Arco Arena event in Sacramento last Sunday. Miguel said the results from the card set up WEC’s future matchmaking nicely. Franklin said it was the best card ever for WEC and that the show drew an impressive 1.1 cable rating on Versus.
Next, Jon Anik interviewed WEC Featherweight champion Mike Brown. Brown said that he was happy with his performance, going five rounds and grinding out a decision. He said that Faber fought like a warrior and put on a good show. Did Faber’s broken hand take away anything from his victory? Brown said no, it didn’t, because Urijah’s right hand is not his only weapon and he’s such a dangerous and versatile fight with all sorts of elbow strikes. Faber wasn’t 100%, but Brown felt that the broken hand didn’t really change the outcome of the fight. Brown stated that his corner was confused as to what hand of Faber’s was injured and that it led to confusion on his part during the later rounds. The champion said that he hopes his win last Saturday proves that the first win wasn’t a fluke and that he gains a measure of respect. Brown said that it’s Jose Aldo’s turn for the next title shot, but that he would be open to fighting Faber a third time if there was high fan demand for it.
Next up was an interview with Kenny Florian, who did commentary for the WEC show on Versus. Florian said that Faber’s broken hand impacted the fight but that he also impressed with Urijah’s ability to adapt with his big power punching taken out. The broken hand happened when Urijah punched Brown on the top of his head with an overhand right. Florian said that any time a fighter gets an injury, you have to expect these things happening in a fight and deal with it. As for why Brown didn’t attack the broken hand, Kenny said that it’s tough to do because when you are in the cage you are so focused on what your game plan is that you don’t automatically just exploit a broken hand or attack a certain side right away because it could alter your game plan negatively. Urijah also did a good job of disguising the injury.
Miguel Torres said that it’s time for Jose Aldo to get the next title shot.
Florian talked about Donald Cerrone’s win over James Krause and how much the Cowboy wants to fight Jamie Varner in the Fall. Cerrone is one of the hardest worked guys out and he really wants to hurt Varner.
Franklin McNeil said that it was the end of Jens Pulver’s career after losing to Josh Grispi last Sunday because Pulver went down to 145 pounds and is losing fights there like he did at 155 pounds. Miguel says that Grispi has a bright future and is very impressive at the age of 20.
Discussion of Strikeforce’s show last Saturday in St. Louis was the next panel topic. As for Jake Shields beating Robbie Lawler, Torres said that he always takes a fighter with technique over power any day of the week. Franklin said that Jake’s stand-up game leaves a lot to be desired. Both men agreed that Shields should move back down to 170 pounds and stay active.
Brett Rogers made an appearance on the show for an interview with Jon Anik.
Q: When did it first hit you that you could do damage in MMA? Brett said fight by fight, he’s getting more confidence and he always wants to be pushed. Getting a win over Andrei Arlovski was a huge win because it proved that he could hang with the big boys.
Q: What was the strategy in the fight? Keep the pressure on Andrei, jump the gun. Don’t treat it like a normal fight.
Q: Was the key to being accurate in your striking? Take training real seriously, work real hard at ambition, and focus on accuracy being crisp and clean because of Andrei’s stand-up skills.
Q: How is it to move from a job at Sam’s Club to MMA? It’s a fun sport, the sport is growing, and looking back at what Brett used to do in the past versus now, he said it’s like living a dream come true. He wants to keep things strong and put on good fights.
Q: Will Brett fave Alistair Overeem for the Strikeforce title in August? Rogers says he’s expecting the fight in either August or September and he hopes that Alistair watched the Arlovski fight to see how serious of a contender he is.
Franklin McNeil said that Andrei’s chin is a real problem especially going into boxing. He noted that Andrei does not move his head and he keeps his chin up a lot. The key for success is to make himself less of a target to strikers and that this will be a problem for him.
Onto Nick Diaz’s big win over Scott Smith — Jon Anik asks if people are getting sick and tired of watching Scott Smith take brutal beating after brutal beating? Miguel says that Nick has come a long way and his boxing is dramatically different compared to his UFC days. Franklin said that Smith probably had no idea how great of a boxer Diaz would be and what kind of punishment on the striking he would endure. If Scott knew how much power Diaz had, he probably wouldn’t have taken the fight so soon. Miguel says the next fight for Nick should be against Cung Le and that Nick can put him away.
E-mail question: This past week we saw Nick Diaz and Jake Shields move up in weight and walk away with dominant victories. How big of an advantage do training partners have going into a fight when they are on the same card?
Miguel says it’s a huge advantage, as training partners never have a break — training and fighting all year round, giving them a mental and a physical advantage.
Next up is a UFC 99 PPV preview. Jon Anik asks…
Is UFC 99 PPV worthy? Franklin says with the top two fights on the card, it’s worth it and the undercard makes it enough of a deal for me. Miguel says that given how young Cain Velasquez’s career is so far in UFC, the show should have aired on Spike TV for more exposure.
Onto the main event of Rich Franklin vs. Wanderlei Silva… Miguel says both men need to win and that Rich better watch out for Wanderlei’s clinch game. Franklin McNeil said that Rich needs to keep the pressure on Wanderlei and see how the guy’s body holds up from making the weight cut. If Wanderlei has anything left, he needs to show it here because it could be his last chance.
Will Cain Velasquez be able to beat Cheick Kongo? Torres says yes, and Franklin says he doesn’t like Cain taking this fight at this time given Kongo’s striking ability and better ground game defense. He said Cain’s chin will be tested. Anik points out that Ryan Bader thought this was a terrible match-up for Cain.
As for the undercard matches, Franklin says that Mike Swick is going to have to figure out how to deal with Ben Saunder’s longer reach and that Saunders is a little underrated on the ground. As for Mirko Cro Cop, Miguel says that he’s still a draw and an attraction but that he probably doesn’t have it as a fighter any more.
Time for an interview with Jake Rossen about UFC 99. Three key things Jake will be focusing on:
1) What Mirko Cro Cop has following his surgeries
2) Seeing Uno back in the octagon against Spencer Fisher a great fight
3) What will the German reaction be to UFC?
Then it was time for some notes on Bellator and their next event at Mohegan Sun Arena.
Time for reader Q & A.
Q: How come standing submissions aren’t used more often, such as arm triangles and D’Arce chokes, when fighters are in a clinch for a long period of time? It seems like it would be a good opportunity to surprise the opponent.
A: Miguel says that when you’re in the clinch, you’re thinking a lot about striking or going for a takedown. If you miss on your submission attempt, you end up giving your back or leaving yourself in a bad position.
Q: I have noticed that fighters talk about their age being a factor in their performance. At what age do you feel your decline begins/ at your age, do you feel your body taking a toll from MMA?
A: Miguel says that he’s only 28, but started fighting at age 17 so he does feel some wear and tear. He believes a fighter peaks at age 33 or 34.
UFC 99 Predictions:
Mike Swick vs. Ben Saunders – Both men think Swick wins in R3 by KO with knees.
Cain Velasquez vs. Cheick Kongo – Torres picks Cain, Franklin picks Kongo
Rich Franklin vs. Wanderlei Silva – Torres picks Wanderlei with knees in R2, McNeil picks Rich by decision
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, UFC, WEC, Zach Arnold | 8 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
I enjoy the recaps.
I skip over the recaps for the most part- I tend to watch/listen to the show on Fri or Sat. morning.
If there was a interesting/controversial topic on the show, I would prefer to read an editorial/commentary piece on that specific item.
Awesome, thanks.
I like the recaps.
appreciate the effort zach but would much rather watch the show to be honest or that you put your resources into other articles
and btw, your “Stock Corner” needs some updating
Its a good read.
I’s not familiar with MMA live or where its available. So your recap is all I know about it.
great recaps – pls continue zach!
robthom- You can watch it weekly on ESPN.com I believe.
Rp