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UFC Live 5 (Milwaukee): Chris Lytle retires with win, Shawn Tompkins dies at age 37

By Zach Arnold | August 14, 2011

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Main card


Click the image to see Dana’s interview with Ariel Helwani on NBCSports.com

An interesting interview, not so much for news content, but because of some of the reactions Dana had to a few of the questions.

Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 66 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |

66 Responses to “UFC Live 5 (Milwaukee): Chris Lytle retires with win, Shawn Tompkins dies at age 37”

  1. 45 Huddle says:

    1)Miller/Henderson should be 5 rounds, not Hardy/Lytle. That LW fight should determine a #1 contender. I’m super excited for that fight. And the loser of Hardy/Lytle should be cut from the UFC but probably won’t be.

    2) Benevidez/Wineland should be on the main card, not Sadollah/Ludwig. But I uinderstand why Benevidez is being placed on the undercard. He has 2 losses to the champion and is really fighting a weight class above what he should be. I hope they streamline him to a title shot once they open up the Flyweight Division.

    3) Should be interesting to see how Hamman looks at Middleweight. His conditioning wasn’t great at LHW, but losing the weight could help him with that.

    Besides that, not much of the card interests me.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      And Volkmann is going 4-0 at Lightweight in the UFC…

    • edub says:

      Benavidez and Johnson shouldn’t be fighting this weekend and for the title soon. They should be taking the first fights at 125 to get accustomed there, and fight for the title down the road.

      The UFC didn’t learn when they made Pettis-Guida 3 rounds. If they did they never would have made Miller-Henderson 3.

    • Chromium says:

      @45 Huddle:

      1) Hardy/Lytle is not 5 rounds either. The first 5 round non-title fight isn\’t scheduled until Chris Leben vs. Mark Munoz in the U.K.

      2) No disagreement on Benavidez needing to be on the main card, although as far as a Flyweight title shot, I kind of like the idea of a Flyweight title tournament, which Dana White has said at least once that he\’s open to. I know in an 8-man tournament that 7 people leave on a loss, but the UFC won\’t have all of the top Flyweight talent as soon as they open up the division anyway, so there will still be an influx of challengers that won\’t need to be built up too much.

      3) It does kind of seem like it\’s missing a main-event, yeah, even for a Versus card.

  2. Chuck says:

    Thank God this is a free one! There are some decent fights (Henderson/Miller, Benevidez/Wineland) but this is a pretty mediocre card on paper.

    I say that, and it will turn out awesome (like the last UFC on Versus).

    • Tradition Rules says:

      “I say that, and it will turn out awesome….”

      Yes, that is entirely possible.

      I always hold off criticism till AFTER a fight card.

      There have been too many cards with a “great” line-up that are a bust and several that are “lacking in marquee” match-ups that are very enjoyable.

      And, especially for a non PPV show.

  3. edub says:

    I wonder what fight will be moved to the main card eventually. These events always have at least 4 fights.

    Im with 45 in thinking it should be Wineland-Benavidez. Although I wouldn’t mind Volkman ripping on the president if he wins.

  4. jack says:

    Yeah I bet volkmann (and edub) are voting for that nut Bachmann…

    • edub says:

      You would be betting wrong then.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      Fighting and politics should not mix. Unless they are running for office in Japan and still wear their mask throughout….

      Bachmann scares me. So does Palin. Of all the smart, conservative women out there, those can’t be the two best…

  5. RST says:

    Wow, can you say “Who”?

    Mildly interested in Sadollah, (how can you not love an arab that chews Skoal?!)

    Mildly less interested in Hardy.

    And thats about it.

    This should be an SF card.

    • klown says:

      Not sure what you mean about Sadollah, but he’s not Arab. His background is Iranian and Irish.

      • edub says:

        Iranian would fall into the Arabi category.

        • fd says:

          Actually, no it wouldn’t – Arabian is a specific term referring to people who is descended from one of the tribes of the Arabian peninsula and speaks Arabic, neither of which is true of Persians/Iranians. They’re a separate and distinct people.

        • edub says:

          Not that’s not true either though. Iran is a Persian based country that has many ethnic Arabians living in it’s midst, along with Kurds and others.

          However, I should of specified it as a Arab-neighboring state. Persia used to stretch across the arab world so the fact that they are mixed in with one another isn’t surprising.

        • klown says:

          FD is correct.

          There is a minority of ethnic Arabs (and other minorities) in Iran but I wouldn’t say Arabs and Iranians are “mixed in” with one another. They have a separate language, culture, cuisine, etc.

          Back to the original point, Amir Sadollah isn’t an Arab.

        • Nottheface says:

          Don’t ever tell a Persian or a Turk that they’re Arabs – they’re completely different ethnic groups. I would be like saying Germans and Russians are Poles.

        • edub says:

          Fuck it, he’s irish.

  6. 45 Huddle says:

    I like the retirement stuff by guys like Hamill and Lytle. It’s nice to see some fighters know when it’s time to get out.

    • klown says:

      I agree.

      Let’s hope they find ways to transition into new careers so we don’t see them staging comebacks in a few months – or years.

  7. David m says:

    Chris Lytle is one of my favorite fighters in mma; a humble guy, someone who knows what the fans want to see, and someone who evolved from a boxer to a high level mma fighter with great jits. I hope he never takes another shot to the head as long as he lives.

    • edub says:

      Agree with all of this.

      He’s had a slight lisp develope recently, and its time for him to hang em up. I’ll miss him.

  8. 45 Huddle says:

    2 rounds into Miller/Henderson, and Miller needs to fire his coaches if this was his gameplan.

    Why even go for one submission against a guy who can’t be submitted? Horrible gameplan.

  9. 45 Huddle says:

    What a great night of fights. The Facebook prelims were decent… With the Hamman/Dollaway fight being fantastic. And basically the entire main card was extremely exciting.

    Time to cut Dan Hardy….

  10. David M says:

    Guys fighting to win > guys fighting not to lose.

    Lytle is the man.

    I really like the post-fight show on Versus; it makes mma feel like an actual sport.

    I tried posting this earlier but Zach’s server is bipolar–I don’t know why the UFC commercials for Silva v Okami keep referring to Okami as “a strong MW”. Wouldnt it be about 100x more compelling/effective to call him the last man to beat Anderson? Oh wait, Dana has low T when it comes to mma outside of teh Octagon. He likes to pretend mma never existed outside of the UFC. Fucking pathetic.

    • Zach Arnold says:

      My server apparently can’t handle your honesty tonight. Win on the Okami comment.

    • edub says:

      Wouldn’t the way he won be a little hard billing him as the last guy to beat him? Maybe something along the lines of “unfinished business”?

      • david m says:

        edub my friend, when have the details ever gotten in the way of Dana? I mean, he just blatantly lied to the world about the GG contracts; what a fucking joke he is. Further, Anderson intentionally got himself DQ’d. I don’t think an upkick from the bottom should be banned (I think mma rules in America are a disgrace, but that is a story for another night), but he knew it was, and did it anyways. Okami won. Dana is just loathe to admit that a mma event ever took place outside teh Octagonz.

        • 45 Huddle says:

          How did Dana lie about the GG contacts.

          He said GG wanted the money to go to them. GG confirmed it.

        • david m says:

          Marloes Coenen’s check direct from Zuffa: http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/774003/Coenen_Check.jpg

          Regardless, everyone, including you, knows that the reason Dana cut GG had nothing to do with the checks; what a laughable assertion. Coenen says that GG getting paid straight was for tax purposes; if the fighters know they are getting a better deal by getting paid from GG, then what legs does Dana stand on saying that he cut the fighters because of their management? GG isn’t exactly a fly-by-night operation. Clear nonsense. Dana cut GG because he didn’t want Overeem to win the Strikeforce tournament and then hold out. Don’t be intentionally dense, please.

        • 45 Huddle says:

          Dana White said he paid the fighters diretly. Coenen providing a check just backed up what he said. White said GG had a problem with them doing that. And GG even confirmed later that the management receiving the checks had been a practice for them before Zuffa took over Strikeforce.

          So White, Coenen, and Boon all confirmed the same thing.

          And LORENZO FERTITTA cut the fighters because GG said Overeem wasn’t going to be available until 2012. And used an injury as an excuse. And then said he could fight on the September card for much much more money.

  11. EJ says:

    Great night of fights tonight, here are some of my thoughts on the fights…

    1. I have no clue why people were sayin that Bang Ludwig didn’t have a shot against Amir. While I like the kid he’s still green and his striking while improving was taylor made for Ludwig’s style. Amir needs to learn some wrestling asap because he’s not going to last too long at WW with his style.

    2. I’ve been saying for awhile the Oliveira was overated, whey he’s been hyped like he has baffles me. Cowboy on the other hand is the guy who should have all that hype, he’s legit and once he started wrestling and using all of his skills he became a guy to watch at LW.

    3. Love Jim Miller but hated that gameplan wasting so much energy and effort on trying to sub a guy who’s shown that he’s got great sub defense was horrible. But that’s not to take away from Bendo who’s proven to be legit and I would love to see the UFC book him against Guida for the #1 contender spot next.

    4. What can be said about Lytle that already hasn’t been the guy is all class and I loved seeing him go out not only on a win but giving Hardy the pink slip.

    Overall one of the best cards of the year and I hope the ratings bounce back because this was a hell of a show.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      Guida vs. Henderson for a legit #1 contender’s fight makes the most sense. It ends up turning into a 4 man tournament anyways. And once the winner of that fight gets his title shot, Gilbert Melendez can be next….

      • edub says:

        Yep it seems my attempts at hyping Guillard-Henderson for #1 contender is dying out. Oh well.

        I Cannot complain about Guida-Henderson. That fight would be non-stop.

        Guida-Henderson for the next shot at title. Guillard/Lauzon winner fights winner of Masvidal/Melendez. Miller and Pettis fight. Step 2 __. Step 3 profit.

  12. david m says:

    If Clay Guida ever gets a title shot, I will never watch mma again. The worst good fighter in the history of the sport. Not a single tangible skill to speak of. I would love to watch Bendo beat the shit out of his talentless, stalling ass. Dumb fucking fans love him because he appeals to the white trash demographic with his hair and inability to land a punch, but he is about as action-packed as a bag of prunes. Jumping up and down herky jerky like he is having a seizure, then lying on top of someone doing nothing does not a champion make. Please God let BJ move back to 155 and do to him what he did to Diego.

    Melvin Guillard will likely be champion within 2 years, maybe less. He is by far the best athlete in the division, and his wrestling defense seems to have finally caught up enough to his hand speed to make him very hard to beat. It will take someone like Gray, who has sick wrestling and is an excellent in his own right, to have a shot against this Melvin. If BJ goes back to 155 he would probably be favored against Melvin as well. Melvin v Melendez would be epic.

    Melendez IMO is better than Gray, Frankie, obviously Lay Guida, and Bendo as well. I think he would struggle against Guillard just due to the latter’s athleticism and takedown D, but he is the most well-rounded fighter in the division after BJ Penn.

    • EJ says:

      The fact that guy buried Guida while hyping up Melvin basically shows you have no clue what you are talking about. Guillard is vastly overated and will get exposed once again when he faces a top wrestler while Guida on the other hand is actually an all-around mma fighter. One is all hype the other destroys it, it’s too bad that they both train at Jackson’s because i’d love to see Guida beat Melvin and make your head explode.

      • david m says:

        Guida is an all-around mma fighter? lol. Now I know you are just making things up as you go. He got gift decisions against Mac Danzig and Nate Diaz, and did nothing at all against Guida. Nobody inflicts less damage or goes for the finish less.

        What does Guida destroy, except the desire of most fans with an IQ over 60 to ever watch mma again? He is like Jon Fitch with 1/8th the skill.

        Guillard hasn’t fought any high-level wrestlers? Gee, I thought Shane Roller being a 3x All-American made him high level. My mistake. I similarly thought Evan Dunham rag-dolling Tyson Griffin makes him a high-level wrestler too. My mistake!

        If tonite should teach you a lesson, it is that athleticism kills. Jim Miller is a good fighter but not a particularly good athlete. Henderson just was too strong and too fast for him. Guillard makes Henderson look slow.

        Same syndrome as Jon Jones vs Rua or GSP vs anyone or Rory McDonald against Mike Pyle. Once guys get to a certain skill level, it just comes down to who is a better athlete. Guillard may be the best athlete in mma, and now that he has gotten to the requisite skill level, he is going to keep demolishing guys.

        45, I am smiling at your post; apparently you have never predicted a fight incorrectly before. Using your “logic”, apparently picking one fight wrong disqualifies one from future picks. That is great thinking slugger.

        Further, the irony of you saying that beating WEC guys merits a title shot is not lost on me. Luckily, Ben Henderson will crush Guida because the latter sucks and has no athleticism, no striking ability, and no subs.

        • EJ says:

          You’re kidding me right?, Guida beat Danzig clearly saying he got a gift decision against him is wrong on all counts. As far as Nate goes while the fight was close in the end Guida did enough to earn the win, while exposing why Nate will never contend at LW he can be controlled and neutralized by a top wrestler.

          Clearly you’re a guy with an agend against Guida what did he beat one these overhyped guys that you thought was going to be a future champ. Get in line that what he does he takes guys that are hyped to the moon by people who fall for that type of stuff and he beats them.

          Also trying to compare Roller and Dunham’s mma wrestling with a guy like Guida’s shows how little you know. MMA wrestling is a whole other world than college, some guys are great at one and not at the other while a rare few are great at both and they are usually champs. Melvin has skated being put in the cage with an elite wrestler but he won’t be for long and when he does he’ll be exposed for the limited fighter that he is.

          Finally the only thing tonight showed is that if you don’t come prepared with the right gameplan you’ll lose. Miller had a bad gampeplan by trying to submit Bendo and wasted all his energy on something that wasn’t going to happen. Athleticism is meaningless if you can’t stop a guy from taking you down and controlling you just as Pettis about that.

        • Steve4192 says:

          Melvin has all the talent in the world, but he also has a terrible fight IQ and awful submission defense. He reminds me of Denis Kang, and much like Kang, he can look like a world-beater when he is on, but rest assured that he will eventually have a brain fart in the cage and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

          Melvin will never win a title. He will always find a way to sabotage himself and make a boneheaded mistake at exactly the wrong moment. He is his own worst enemy.

        • 45 Huddle says:

          Everybody predicts fights wrong.

          But you were SO CERTAIN that Fedor was going to win that you didn’t even give Henderson even a 1% chance of winning.

          To me, it was a clear cut easy prediction for Dan Henderson.

      • edub says:

        Now this is an insanely stupid comment.

        Both are loads of hype right now. One got subbed by Nate diaz a couple fights ago, and one lost to Kenny Florian more recently (both very close. One is hella exciting because he pushes the pace with takedowns, one is hella exciting because he seems to have the most natural talent in MMA. Guillard has beaten the higher ranked fighter between the both of them in Evan Dunham (it’s funny how everybody forgets how good Dunham looked before guillard iced him, Pettis has already been out-wrestled by Bart Palaszewksi).

        Guida would have a very rough time with Guillard if they fought. More speed, more power, with good takedown defense.

        Neither is overrated, and both are hitting their career peaks.

        • EJ says:

          Guida and hype is something that rarely has ever gone together can’t say the same for Guillard who’s the epitome of it imo.

          Also I don’t think it would be close Guida’s style is made to give Melvin fits, Melvin is a guy who looks great until he’s put in trouble then he folds. Guida can be beat but won’t ever breat in a fight that’s a combination for a long night for Melvin and another hypetrain derailed by Guida.

        • edub says:

          Like when Guida didn’t break against Kenny Florian less than 2 years ago.

          Guida would be in a world of trouble against Guillard, because all Melvin would have to do is avoid the takedown. Guida’s style presents Melvin little trouble (strictly speaking style wise).

          Guida is being hyped up right now by a lot of people, as a non-stop well rounded great wrestler. He is a few of those things, but he is not a great wrestler. Nor does he present that much of a threat if you can stop the takedown. His whole offense revolves around that threat of a blast double, and once you get by it everything is very pedestrian. Hell he was losing to dos Anjos until he quit.

          Melvin hasn’t folded since Diaz, and he’s looked like a completely different person since that fight. All that was ever holding him back from being great was attitude and training. Both of those things have now done a complete 180 in his career.

          Both have their deficiencies. Guillard can fall back into those traps. Guida can run up against someone (like a Penn, Miller, or Kawajiri) that can stop that initial takedown and beat him up in the process. They are both at very similar places and because of the Guillard-Lauzon fight happening guida will probably get a #1 contender fight with Henderson. There’s not anything that bad about that.

        • EJ says:

          If Guida isn’t a great mma wrestler than no one is, the guy is all about takedowns and would have his way with Melvin who is all hype. Also saying that he was losing to Dos Anjos until he made his quit is ridiculous, that’s who Guida is he’s the opposite of guys like Oliveira who get hyped to the moon but never deliver. Guida isn’t pretty, he’s not flashy, he’s not about hype but what he is a guy i’ll take in a dog fight which again is the opposite of who Melvin is.

      • Kelvin Hunt says:

        Guida’s weigh in’s are more exciting than his fights…and he isn’t even close to a title shot in my books..feed him to Ben Henderson since he and Guillard wanna pull the Greg Jackson teammate card.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      Just like Fedor was going to beat Henderson easily….

      If Guida beats Pettis and Henderson, he deserves a title shot.

  13. david m says:

    typo: Gray is an excellent *athlete in his own right.

    typo: Melvin will likely *be champion

    Sorry.

  14. Chromium says:

    Great show, just excellent fights top to bottom. Okay I missed the first two fights but the other ten were great, just about uniformly. I think I was screaming by the time Hamman finished off Dollaway.

    Definitely a B-card that delivered. That being said, I don’t think anyone who isn’t a future Hall-Of-Famer should be headlining a UFC card while coming off 3 consecutive losses, even a B-card.

    With Miller now knocked out of the running for the title-shot-after-next, and Guillard already scheduled for a fight, I think Guida vs. Bendo is the most logical choice for a title eliminator. I’d love to see that fight.

  15. 45 Huddle says:

    According to HH on the UG…

    1) GG and Zuffa talking again. Overeem signing with Zuffa looks likely.

    2) Lesnar test results come back next week and he could headline UFC 140. And this will be the last fight on his contract, as he doesn’t want to sign another one until after the fight (leave the UFC perhaps?? I wouldn’t be shocked).

    3) UFC working on a deal to have 3 to 5 events on FOX, and the rest on SpikeTV. Showtime could be part of that equation as Fertitta meets with them next week.

    Should be interesting. I think a FOX/SpikeTV combo would be perfect. I’d rather them not be on Showtime….

    • Mark says:

      I don’t know if Brock would leave UFC if he’s healthy enough to work anywhere. It’s probably more of a case where either he doesn’t want to waste his time if he has a feeling his tests will come back showing he should retire. Or maybe even a gamble he could get a bigger deal if he wins the last fight on his contract than he’d get re-signing after a loss, a disappointing ratings season for Ultimate Fighter and questions about his health.

      If he leaves it means he’d go back to the WWE. He certainly wouldn’t do that full-time. Of course he’ll take a multi-million dollar Wrestlemania payday, but he could do that within the next 10 years. Why not worry about UFC while he’s still in his athletic prime.

    • Jonathan Snowden says:

      Looks like you need to find a new fake insider to follow for his “scoops” that are accurate 10 percent of the time.

  16. Alan Conceicao says:

    So, when Lytle inevitably returns because he realizes he’s leaving money on the table in the next two years (hell, really, the next 8 months), does that mean everyone will talk about what a terrible guy he is? Because that is obviously going to happen.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      If he returns, I think there will be more of a sense of sadness…. That he couldn’t let it go…

    • edub says:

      Disagree.

      When you’re running for office, and are very popular in your area, money tends to materialize.

      This isn’t Favre, Mayweather, Fedor, or Randy Couture “retiring”. This is a guy who has legit other goals in life, and went out on a story book ending.

      If he comes back it will be a hell of a lot longer than 2 years down the road.

      • Mark says:

        Don Frye wanted to act in Japan, Gary Goodridge wanted to be a full-time dad, Frank Shamrock wanted to retire at his athletic peak, Randy Couture wanted to stay away to prove a point to Dana and do B-movies. Lots of guys have other goals when the retire. To say Lytle is above them would be a stretch. I hope he does, but greater men have been swayed by the promise of a payday.

        • edub says:

          I don’t think so. Chris has also fought more frequently then most of them, and been a full time fire fighter for his entire professional career.

          Couture and Frank might have been greater fighters, but none of those guys are “greater men” then Chris Lytle.

          Definitely not impossible though.

        • Alan Conceicao says:

          edub, a word of wisdom: All you know are the images put on TV for you and occasionally ones in Flash format across the internet. Lots of men with lots of full time vocations and better options entered fighting and thought they could “walk away on their terms” only to find themselves being dragged back seeking paydays far greater than whatever meager business they were involved in could offer. He can talk about his kids all he wants. One day he’ll look at his firefighting paychecks, have people stop talking to him at the store or the street, and he’ll need to come back. They all do.

        • edub says:

          The thing is Alan I could say the exact same for you. All that gets remembered is the guys who couldn’t stay away. They Gary Goodrich who had no money to live on when he tried to walk away. The Randy Couture who couldn’t stay away (and still might not). The Jens Pulver who was forced to “retire” by a long losing streak.

          What gets lost in the shuffle is the Joe Frazier who walked away on his own after the second Foreman loss. Jim Brown who was the best athlete in football, and highest grossing player left in his prime. Lennox Lewis who retired the #1 HW in the world, and had a questionable win over Vitali Klitschko.

          There are more men than this that have stayed away. They all don’t come back.

          Lytle won’t have to work for the rest of his life (but he will). His Fire pension already can kick in if he retired tomorrow. He is hugely respected in his home state, and will most likely win a seat on his state’s legislature later this year (or next). He has little left to fight for, and went out on the best night of his life.

          Chris probably won’t be back.

        • Alan Conceicao says:

          Frazier didn’t leave of his own accord on a high note – he was beaten out of the game. Brown left because the NFL paid jack diddly at that time period and movies paid more. Lennox was an old man who survived a hell of a scare with Vitali. For every example you can give of a guy who left when he was on top without injury or beatings in sport (Barry Sanders) there’s a hundred guys who had to get forced out.

        • edub says:

          Lennox Lewis was still the best in the world when he walked away, with big money offers on the table. Frazier was still top 5, and had multiple opportunities to fight on like Ali did. Brown retired at the top of his game to make a point to the owners, and when they offered him huge money to come back he didn’t take it.

          Most of the guys who stay in are A. Just trying to get that “last win” and B. Have little money with few career options. Chris doesn’t fit either of those. That’s the bottom line here.

        • Alan Conceicao says:

          I will agree to disagree and simply state that I imagine us being back here not long from now having this discussion again.

        • edub says:

          Eh, wouldn’t be the first time.

          But I will also say that Lytle is one of the few people in the game I think has the opportunities and will power to stay away.

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