Archive for category Hobbies
Chuck Liddell Vs. Wanderlei Silva Ufc 79
Raymond Burton asked:
Having a hard time picking a winner on this one! There is an interesting background to it all. This fight has been in the works since early `06 and likely prior to that, we just do not know about. It has the makings of a great war and hopefully can live up to the hype!
Back in July 2006 at UFC 61 Dana introduces Silva to the UFC crowd and brings him in the cage. This is prior to the whole Pride purchase so this was a huge event at the time as there was always question as to which organization had the better fighters. Wandy gets the mic and says he wants to the fight the best in the UFC, i.e. Mr. Iceman, so in comes Chuck and they have a little stare down. The announcement was for the fight to be in November with one stipulation, Chuck had to beat Renato Sobral ‘Babalu’ in August and retain his title.
*Side note: Babalu got fired from UFC for not relinquishing a choke hold in a later fight after the ref told him to stop when his opponent tapped, serves him right!*
August came and went and Babalu, a Jiu-Jitsu black belt tries to go toe to toe with Chuck. As expected he took a little nap in the ring and now the fight with Silva should be a go for November, except for one big problem. Cro-Cop kicked Wanderlie in the head with bad intentions in September at the Pride Open Weight tourney. Now, I do not know if he got hurt but the fight never happened. There were a lot of reasons floating around, but who knows for sure which one is true. Either way does not matter. Fight was off, and appeared to be off forever. Rumors came and went but then UFC owners, the Ferttitas, bought Pride. What a great move setting up the best against the best! So, lots of stuff has happened but the fight is now on for Dec 29!!!
I usually have a gut feeling who I think will win but this time I am not sure. Both fighters have lost their last 2 fights. Wandy got KO’d twice (Henderson & Cro Cop), Chuck got rocked by Rampage and then lost a brutal fight to The Dean of Mean Keith Jardine. The mental game has to be a factor now. These guys are used to having their hands raised so 2 losses in a row has to affect them mentally, it can’t not! Chuck has even gone so far as to seek help from Tony Robbins to help him get his fire back as he really looked lack luster against Jardine. More than just a couple of guys who want to prove them selves this is a career fight for both of them. Someone walks away with their record showing L-L-L and that is going kill main event status and title contention for a very long time. The winner however jumps up the ranks. So, if the stress of losing two fights prior was not enough, throw that into the mix for them!
Chuck’s record is 20 - 5. Using 2003 as a cut off he is 8 - 4. I use 2003 as to be an indicator of the more recent performance as all fighters evolve in their career. I see a lot of wrestlers in that list of opponents. He lost to Randy Couture once who is proven to be a hall of famer over and over again. He fights him 2 more time and knocks him out both times. He put Tito to sleep 2 times. Looks to me like he has the wrestlers figured out, except one. Quinton Jackson. Like Iceman has Tito’s number, Jackson has Chucks. He has 2 straight losses to Rampage, both by KO. The rest of his fights are against some good fighters but not top tier by any means. The stand out is the fight against Jardine. No doubt that was a tune up match for him that UFC expected him to use to get back on his feet after losing the belt to Rampage. Well, that sure back fired. He lost a decision and that sets him back, way back in the rankings! Lucky for him he is likely the most famous UFC fighter around and after 2 straight losses he still gets a co-main event for his third fight. I am not sure there are many fighters that would get that chance from the UFC. Correction, there are none.
The name Quinton Jackson comes up again when you look at Wandy’s record. Except it’s the other way around, Silva has KO’d Rampage 2 times! Like they say, it’s all about styles. This by no way, shape, or form confirms he can beat Chuck, but it is an interesting stat! Silva is 10 - 4 since 2003 with quite a list of opponents. Most notable wins over Sakuraba, Jackson, Arona, & Fujita. I saw Fujita beat Bob Sapp (google him and look at how immense Sapp is at 350lbs of muscle) and impressed how he just manhandled a complete monster in SAPP. I was even more impressed when Silva got the TKO over him. A big difference in the Pride world is they end up fighting guys who are way bigger in the open weight tourneys. When Wanderlei fought Mark Hunt he was at an 80lb weight disadvantage but he went the distance in the fight but lost the decision. Was felt by many he deserved the win given the huge size difference. His four losses come from Hunt, Arona, Henderson, and Cro Cop. If your going to lose 4 fights, those are the guys to help you do it.
As much as I want to say Silva had better competition to face it is a bold statement given Chuck put down Couture two times. I will say that Couture’s stand up is not as good as Silva and that Chuck has an edge over the wrestlers as he is very good at standing when he is taken down. I have yet to see him be held down. That alone is impressive. Silva is not a wrestler but a BJJ black belt and a gifted stand up fighter with awesome knees. Take the BJJ out of the equation though, they want to slug it out, no way it’ll be a ground fight. The cage comes into play as Silva is used to a ring, sounds like a small thing, but it is a mental barrier for guys to over come. Silva has moved to Florida and trains at Extreme Couture (trained there with Ray!) so I am sure he is ready for the adjustment. Both guys want to redeem themselves after 2 losses.
Silva - 2nd round.
Having a hard time picking a winner on this one! There is an interesting background to it all. This fight has been in the works since early `06 and likely prior to that, we just do not know about. It has the makings of a great war and hopefully can live up to the hype!
Back in July 2006 at UFC 61 Dana introduces Silva to the UFC crowd and brings him in the cage. This is prior to the whole Pride purchase so this was a huge event at the time as there was always question as to which organization had the better fighters. Wandy gets the mic and says he wants to the fight the best in the UFC, i.e. Mr. Iceman, so in comes Chuck and they have a little stare down. The announcement was for the fight to be in November with one stipulation, Chuck had to beat Renato Sobral ‘Babalu’ in August and retain his title.
*Side note: Babalu got fired from UFC for not relinquishing a choke hold in a later fight after the ref told him to stop when his opponent tapped, serves him right!*
August came and went and Babalu, a Jiu-Jitsu black belt tries to go toe to toe with Chuck. As expected he took a little nap in the ring and now the fight with Silva should be a go for November, except for one big problem. Cro-Cop kicked Wanderlie in the head with bad intentions in September at the Pride Open Weight tourney. Now, I do not know if he got hurt but the fight never happened. There were a lot of reasons floating around, but who knows for sure which one is true. Either way does not matter. Fight was off, and appeared to be off forever. Rumors came and went but then UFC owners, the Ferttitas, bought Pride. What a great move setting up the best against the best! So, lots of stuff has happened but the fight is now on for Dec 29!!!
I usually have a gut feeling who I think will win but this time I am not sure. Both fighters have lost their last 2 fights. Wandy got KO’d twice (Henderson & Cro Cop), Chuck got rocked by Rampage and then lost a brutal fight to The Dean of Mean Keith Jardine. The mental game has to be a factor now. These guys are used to having their hands raised so 2 losses in a row has to affect them mentally, it can’t not! Chuck has even gone so far as to seek help from Tony Robbins to help him get his fire back as he really looked lack luster against Jardine. More than just a couple of guys who want to prove them selves this is a career fight for both of them. Someone walks away with their record showing L-L-L and that is going kill main event status and title contention for a very long time. The winner however jumps up the ranks. So, if the stress of losing two fights prior was not enough, throw that into the mix for them!
Chuck’s record is 20 - 5. Using 2003 as a cut off he is 8 - 4. I use 2003 as to be an indicator of the more recent performance as all fighters evolve in their career. I see a lot of wrestlers in that list of opponents. He lost to Randy Couture once who is proven to be a hall of famer over and over again. He fights him 2 more time and knocks him out both times. He put Tito to sleep 2 times. Looks to me like he has the wrestlers figured out, except one. Quinton Jackson. Like Iceman has Tito’s number, Jackson has Chucks. He has 2 straight losses to Rampage, both by KO. The rest of his fights are against some good fighters but not top tier by any means. The stand out is the fight against Jardine. No doubt that was a tune up match for him that UFC expected him to use to get back on his feet after losing the belt to Rampage. Well, that sure back fired. He lost a decision and that sets him back, way back in the rankings! Lucky for him he is likely the most famous UFC fighter around and after 2 straight losses he still gets a co-main event for his third fight. I am not sure there are many fighters that would get that chance from the UFC. Correction, there are none.
The name Quinton Jackson comes up again when you look at Wandy’s record. Except it’s the other way around, Silva has KO’d Rampage 2 times! Like they say, it’s all about styles. This by no way, shape, or form confirms he can beat Chuck, but it is an interesting stat! Silva is 10 - 4 since 2003 with quite a list of opponents. Most notable wins over Sakuraba, Jackson, Arona, & Fujita. I saw Fujita beat Bob Sapp (google him and look at how immense Sapp is at 350lbs of muscle) and impressed how he just manhandled a complete monster in SAPP. I was even more impressed when Silva got the TKO over him. A big difference in the Pride world is they end up fighting guys who are way bigger in the open weight tourneys. When Wanderlei fought Mark Hunt he was at an 80lb weight disadvantage but he went the distance in the fight but lost the decision. Was felt by many he deserved the win given the huge size difference. His four losses come from Hunt, Arona, Henderson, and Cro Cop. If your going to lose 4 fights, those are the guys to help you do it.
As much as I want to say Silva had better competition to face it is a bold statement given Chuck put down Couture two times. I will say that Couture’s stand up is not as good as Silva and that Chuck has an edge over the wrestlers as he is very good at standing when he is taken down. I have yet to see him be held down. That alone is impressive. Silva is not a wrestler but a BJJ black belt and a gifted stand up fighter with awesome knees. Take the BJJ out of the equation though, they want to slug it out, no way it’ll be a ground fight. The cage comes into play as Silva is used to a ring, sounds like a small thing, but it is a mental barrier for guys to over come. Silva has moved to Florida and trains at Extreme Couture (trained there with Ray!) so I am sure he is ready for the adjustment. Both guys want to redeem themselves after 2 losses.
Silva - 2nd round.
Bjj for Beginners
James Liu asked:
Have you ever been in a situation that required you to act against an attacker? Have you ever thought that learning martial arts is the need of the hour? If these questions hold good for you, then learning Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the answer!
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is from the Japanese martial art that uses a system of throws, strikes, blocks, sweeps and locks to overcome an attacker. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is both practical and defensive. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu helps the defender to make use of the attacker’s strength, size and momentum for his/her advantage to overcome the attacker. One can become very good at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu because of this reason. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training is a gradual process and one has to pass through a belt structure and face and overcome increasingly demanding armed and unarmed attacks. Since Brazilian Jiu Jitsu involves learning techniques by practicing together, trust develops among the learners and the teacher and there is a congenial social life in the clubs.
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is very popular in many areas like the military and law enforcement. It is also a very popular sport. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu techniques are used as military unarmed combat techniques in many countries like UK, USA and Russia. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu techniques are being used by police in many countries to overcome criminals. Most notably, the Tokyo Police employs Taiho Jitsu-a form of Jiu Jitsu to arrest criminals. There are many forms of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu that are used as a sport. Of all the forms, mixed type competitions are most common. In mixed competitions, participants use a variety of holds, throws and strikes to score points. There are also freestyle competitions, where the competitors take turns being attacked by other competitors. The defender is judged on the basis of performance.
Physical fitness is not a constraint for learning Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Regular training will improve physical fitness, coordination time, strength and agility and the most important of all-self-confidence. Regular training also increases one’s strength of character. Jiu Jitsu lessons learned during training in the mat will influence thinking in day to day life.
The best way to learn Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is by joining the local Brazilian Jiu Jitsu club. There are many Brazilian Jiu Jitsu clubs in Orange County. Learning a martial art is a very daunting task. Learning it all in a go is not possible for a novice. In most of the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu clubs care is taken to ensure that the rate of learning is normal and comfortable for the novice. All that one needs to learn Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the willingness to learn and some loose clothing. As mentioned before, the lessons learned on the mat will influence the way of life for the rest of the days.
Have you ever been in a situation that required you to act against an attacker? Have you ever thought that learning martial arts is the need of the hour? If these questions hold good for you, then learning Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the answer!
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is from the Japanese martial art that uses a system of throws, strikes, blocks, sweeps and locks to overcome an attacker. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is both practical and defensive. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu helps the defender to make use of the attacker’s strength, size and momentum for his/her advantage to overcome the attacker. One can become very good at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu because of this reason. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training is a gradual process and one has to pass through a belt structure and face and overcome increasingly demanding armed and unarmed attacks. Since Brazilian Jiu Jitsu involves learning techniques by practicing together, trust develops among the learners and the teacher and there is a congenial social life in the clubs.
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is very popular in many areas like the military and law enforcement. It is also a very popular sport. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu techniques are used as military unarmed combat techniques in many countries like UK, USA and Russia. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu techniques are being used by police in many countries to overcome criminals. Most notably, the Tokyo Police employs Taiho Jitsu-a form of Jiu Jitsu to arrest criminals. There are many forms of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu that are used as a sport. Of all the forms, mixed type competitions are most common. In mixed competitions, participants use a variety of holds, throws and strikes to score points. There are also freestyle competitions, where the competitors take turns being attacked by other competitors. The defender is judged on the basis of performance.
Physical fitness is not a constraint for learning Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Regular training will improve physical fitness, coordination time, strength and agility and the most important of all-self-confidence. Regular training also increases one’s strength of character. Jiu Jitsu lessons learned during training in the mat will influence thinking in day to day life.
The best way to learn Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is by joining the local Brazilian Jiu Jitsu club. There are many Brazilian Jiu Jitsu clubs in Orange County. Learning a martial art is a very daunting task. Learning it all in a go is not possible for a novice. In most of the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu clubs care is taken to ensure that the rate of learning is normal and comfortable for the novice. All that one needs to learn Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the willingness to learn and some loose clothing. As mentioned before, the lessons learned on the mat will influence the way of life for the rest of the days.
George St Pierre Gets Ufc Title Shot
Raymond Burton asked:
Matt Serra is out with a injury for the Dec 29 fight against Matt Hughes (the most dominant welter weight in UFC history).
Hughes is a machine. He has won 41 fights with the same wrestling style over his career which says something for the guy. Most fighters with one style get picked apart early in their career but Matt has proven he can over come almost anyone. He’s a strong, hard working, tough farm kid with a “Must Win” mentality. And all the power to him! He had a ton of fans prior to the UFC’s Ultimate Fighter series where he coached and then came off as cocky and a bully. Call him what you will, anyone with wins over BJ Penn, Carlos Newton, Georges St Pierre & Hayato Sakurai is a machine. No matter what happens in the future he is a champion and a role model for MMA fighters. His work ethic and ability to find a way to win are incredible and as a competitor you just have to respect the guy.
However..
He has also lost to BJ and GSP and the win against Newton, well, that’s tough call as he was asleep at the same time he slammed Carlos to the mat. The win could be argued either way.
In no way shape or form am I taking away from his abilities because I have watched him from early in his career and all I can say is “Wow”, but the power of the media has him beat. When a guy wins 41 fights most of them are televised which hurts him. Your style is known and your best moves you use to win are visible. Enter BJ Penn and George St Pierre.
BJ beat him the first time they fought (and I was there!). BJ had lost the title fight at 155lbs to Jens Pulver. He was ticked off. So BJ, being BJ, said I’m moving up a weight category to win the 170lb title. Unheard of at the time. Hughes called him disrespectful for it. But BJ was able to rattle Hughes with a punch to the head while he was on top and then grab him from behind in a rear ***** choke. Matt could have got out but he was still dummied from the punch and had to tap out. Wow. NO ONE saw that coming. Side note, I got a photo with BJ that night, it was amazing. This was before UFC got to where it was today. Myself and a buddy met him outside of Mandalay Bay by himself waiting for a cab. How times have changed. BJ ended up leaving UFC due to “reason unknown”. A lot issues with himself and UFC and the title got vacated. Hughes recaptures it after that.
An up and comer in George St Pierre is tearing up the competition and gets a title fight. GSP dominates the first 2:55 of the fight against Hughes. But GSP frees an arm and Matt (when did he learn BJJ? ) grabs an arm bar and GSP taps with 1 second left in the first round. That is a mistake on GSP’s part and more importantly his corner. No way should he have tapped like that. Suffice, he lost.
Rematch.
Guess who was there! George controls the whole fight. Has an answer to everything Matt throws at him. Now, here’s where the idea of the televised fights comes in. GSP knew every move Matt had from studying video and it was obvious. He controlled the whole fight and beat him 3X in my opinion. 1 - leg kick that Matt claimed was a groin kick and got a time out 2) End of round 1 Matt is out but saved by the bell 3) GSP gets the TKO. WOW!
GSP dominates. Now he has huge crowd support.
Enter Matt Serra.
Always liked him but never thought he’d make it far. Low and behold he wins ultimate fighter series of ‘has beens”. Proved to be a great team mate and a coach. Good on him. Well done Serra. He wins the series and a chance at GSP. I missed the fight aginst GSP as I was in Thailand but was surprised when I heard he won by TKO. Congrats to the millionaires who bet on him cause the odds were nuts!
Enter Politics. GSP deserved an immediate title fight / rematch. But Dana White wrapped up Matt and Matt to coach the Ultimate fighter series and fight for the title as a wrap up for the TV show on Dec 29. Lots of animosity on the show between the two. Built up a good fight that had Hughes being the favorite. However Serra is now hurt.
Dana picks up the phone and GSP says “Yes” on short notice and we have a blockbuster on our hands. Great rubber match!
Reality check, limited time for GSP to train for a real fight. And Hughes has done his homework for sure as he hates to lose.
There is question as to George’s mental stability when it comes to big fights. He blew it against Hughes the first time and Serra 2 fights ago (he dominated Josh Koschek whom I refuse to chat about cause I think he’s over rated). Both were pressure fights for different reasons. Question is, can he over come the mental barrier?
Now if you think cage fighting is just a “fight”, go to a gym with a cage. Walk in and close the door. That alone will freak you out. Now pretend there are 20k people watching, a few million on TV and a guy who wants to smash you 20′ away. Not easy and GSP has a few things to control in his head when the added pressure of a title is involved.
Hughes will be ready for Dec 29. Guaranteed. He’s mentally tough and a warrior. Will George?
Mack’s bet? I am a betting man and I like George St Pierre!
Matt Serra is out with a injury for the Dec 29 fight against Matt Hughes (the most dominant welter weight in UFC history).
Hughes is a machine. He has won 41 fights with the same wrestling style over his career which says something for the guy. Most fighters with one style get picked apart early in their career but Matt has proven he can over come almost anyone. He’s a strong, hard working, tough farm kid with a “Must Win” mentality. And all the power to him! He had a ton of fans prior to the UFC’s Ultimate Fighter series where he coached and then came off as cocky and a bully. Call him what you will, anyone with wins over BJ Penn, Carlos Newton, Georges St Pierre & Hayato Sakurai is a machine. No matter what happens in the future he is a champion and a role model for MMA fighters. His work ethic and ability to find a way to win are incredible and as a competitor you just have to respect the guy.
However..
He has also lost to BJ and GSP and the win against Newton, well, that’s tough call as he was asleep at the same time he slammed Carlos to the mat. The win could be argued either way.
In no way shape or form am I taking away from his abilities because I have watched him from early in his career and all I can say is “Wow”, but the power of the media has him beat. When a guy wins 41 fights most of them are televised which hurts him. Your style is known and your best moves you use to win are visible. Enter BJ Penn and George St Pierre.
BJ beat him the first time they fought (and I was there!). BJ had lost the title fight at 155lbs to Jens Pulver. He was ticked off. So BJ, being BJ, said I’m moving up a weight category to win the 170lb title. Unheard of at the time. Hughes called him disrespectful for it. But BJ was able to rattle Hughes with a punch to the head while he was on top and then grab him from behind in a rear ***** choke. Matt could have got out but he was still dummied from the punch and had to tap out. Wow. NO ONE saw that coming. Side note, I got a photo with BJ that night, it was amazing. This was before UFC got to where it was today. Myself and a buddy met him outside of Mandalay Bay by himself waiting for a cab. How times have changed. BJ ended up leaving UFC due to “reason unknown”. A lot issues with himself and UFC and the title got vacated. Hughes recaptures it after that.
An up and comer in George St Pierre is tearing up the competition and gets a title fight. GSP dominates the first 2:55 of the fight against Hughes. But GSP frees an arm and Matt (when did he learn BJJ? ) grabs an arm bar and GSP taps with 1 second left in the first round. That is a mistake on GSP’s part and more importantly his corner. No way should he have tapped like that. Suffice, he lost.
Rematch.
Guess who was there! George controls the whole fight. Has an answer to everything Matt throws at him. Now, here’s where the idea of the televised fights comes in. GSP knew every move Matt had from studying video and it was obvious. He controlled the whole fight and beat him 3X in my opinion. 1 - leg kick that Matt claimed was a groin kick and got a time out 2) End of round 1 Matt is out but saved by the bell 3) GSP gets the TKO. WOW!
GSP dominates. Now he has huge crowd support.
Enter Matt Serra.
Always liked him but never thought he’d make it far. Low and behold he wins ultimate fighter series of ‘has beens”. Proved to be a great team mate and a coach. Good on him. Well done Serra. He wins the series and a chance at GSP. I missed the fight aginst GSP as I was in Thailand but was surprised when I heard he won by TKO. Congrats to the millionaires who bet on him cause the odds were nuts!
Enter Politics. GSP deserved an immediate title fight / rematch. But Dana White wrapped up Matt and Matt to coach the Ultimate fighter series and fight for the title as a wrap up for the TV show on Dec 29. Lots of animosity on the show between the two. Built up a good fight that had Hughes being the favorite. However Serra is now hurt.
Dana picks up the phone and GSP says “Yes” on short notice and we have a blockbuster on our hands. Great rubber match!
Reality check, limited time for GSP to train for a real fight. And Hughes has done his homework for sure as he hates to lose.
There is question as to George’s mental stability when it comes to big fights. He blew it against Hughes the first time and Serra 2 fights ago (he dominated Josh Koschek whom I refuse to chat about cause I think he’s over rated). Both were pressure fights for different reasons. Question is, can he over come the mental barrier?
Now if you think cage fighting is just a “fight”, go to a gym with a cage. Walk in and close the door. That alone will freak you out. Now pretend there are 20k people watching, a few million on TV and a guy who wants to smash you 20′ away. Not easy and GSP has a few things to control in his head when the added pressure of a title is involved.
Hughes will be ready for Dec 29. Guaranteed. He’s mentally tough and a warrior. Will George?
Mack’s bet? I am a betting man and I like George St Pierre!