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UFC 251: Usman vs. Masvidal (7/11/2020) - Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UFC Fight Island)


Elsalvajeloco

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9 hours ago, The Natural said:

If Jorge Masvidal wins the UFC Welterweight Championship on less than a week notice, has anybody else done that in the UFC? I can't think of anybody. I know Michael Bisping used Left Hook Larry to take Luke Rockhold's UFC Middleweight Championship on 17 days only in March 2016.

Is it really one week, though? I mean it's really one week for Usman, because he was training for Burns. But Masvidal has been training for Usman for months. 

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1 hour ago, jaedmc said:

Is it really one week, though? I mean it's really one week for Usman, because he was training for Burns. But Masvidal has been training for Usman for months. 

That’s definitely true. Bisping should still hold the record as it’s been proven he hadn’t been training until 17 days out, and he’d already been KO’d by Luke once so it’s not like he had any real advantages.

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2 minutes ago, The Natural said:

Usman, Volkanovski, Holloway, Yan, Aldo, Thug Rose and Andrade make weight. Just waiting on Masvidal.

As I type this, Masvidal is about to step on the scales with a towel. Oof.

Masvidal made weight!

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6 minutes ago, TheVileOne said:

Dana seems very evasive about the Masvidal pay issue. 

Says he saw this coming with Mike Perry...Alright then...so why'd you book him in a fight just days ago?

Like I was telling JT, he was booked because of the availability of other fighters. With that said, he's (Mike Perry) emblematic of sort of the old lawlessness of MMA that needs to be eliminated. At least with Jon Jones, he's too famous to be ignored now and UFC is in a place where if he does something, they have to reel him in even if the punishment isn't that severe. I don't know if Roger Huerta was still with the UFC when the video was released by like TMZ of him whooping people's asses in the streets, but I definitely know it feels like the UFC hasn't taken a strong stance on that. IMO it may be because they feel the fighters look more badass after stuff like that. After BJ got laid out not too long ago, I thought the UFC at the very least should issue a zero tolerance policy on stuff like that unless getting into an altercation was virtually impossible to avoid (IIRC what happened with Leslie Smith some years back). Do people know other people are nuts out here and will kill you dead with no ounce of remorse? You cannot be doing shit like this. After what happened with Will Smith (the ex Saints player) and Joe McKnight fairly recently, people should know that professional athletes aren't exempt from real world craziness and lunatics. 

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Since I got told earlier that I only hate on things I’ll post two things I’d love to see happen tomorrow night:

1) Jorge Masvidal knock Kamaru Usman’s head into whatever the furthest row of empty seats at Fight Island ends up being. ? 

2) Jose Aldo somehow shocking the world, and becoming just the fifth male UFC fighter to win a belt in two different weight classes. 

However I do have more faith in #1 happening than the other. 

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Usman is -260 favourite. I'd say that's about right. He can dictate where a fight goes but if he tries the Kickboxer Usman routine he pulled on Covington, I could see that going poorly for him. I don't see Masvidal stopping his takedowns and control game at all.

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Just now, Oyaji said:

Usman is -260 favourite. I'd say that's about right. He can dictate where a fight goes but if he tries the Kickboxer Usman routine he pulled on Covington, I could see that going poorly for him. I don't see Masvidal stopping his takedowns and control game at all.

That’s the only reason I said I think Jorge might KO him. After the Covington fight you think he’d be smart enough to stick to his wrestling, but I think Jorge is in his head enough that he’ll try to be Kickboxer Usman for a round or two, and that would be all it takes for Jorge to hit a punch or knee, and stop him.

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Anyone else concerned by exclusively trained through Zoom Max Holloway?

Man we thought Evan Tanner was crazy for training himself but based on this COVID-19 shit with guys training themselves basically with their gyms closed/travel restrictions and nutso Mike Perry having his girlfriend corner him, turns out Tanner was a goddamn MMA pioneer in more ways than one.

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My memory is not so good, but has Masvidal exhibited one strike knock out power other than Askren jumping headfirst into a beautifully timed counter knee? He's known for drawn out wars of attrition and being a tough as nails, scrappy fighter that doesn't go away. 

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17 minutes ago, Oyaji said:

My memory is not so good, but has Masvidal exhibited one strike knock out power other than Askren jumping headfirst into a beautifully timed counter knee? He's known for drawn out wars of attrition and being a tough as nails, scrappy fighter that doesn't go away. 

Maybe the Till stoppage but the second shot came in such quick succession that you cannot even tell if Darren was done after the first one. The Cerrone one is definitely one strike, but then again, Cerrone got hit so much. It was like a boxing beatdown where you know the accumulation attributed to the KO stoppage.

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1 minute ago, Elsalvajeloco said:

Anyone else concerned by exclusively trained through Zoom Max Holloway?

Man we thought Evan Tanner was crazy for training himself but based on this COVID-19 shit with guys training themselves basically with their gyms closed/travel restrictions and nutso Mike Perry having his girlfriend corner him, turns out Tanner was a goddamn MMA pioneer in more ways than one.

That sounds insane. I was hoping for Volkanovski to repeat but was nervous. I'm a little more confident now after reading that. 

The Vivisection guys were pretty down on Prochazka's chances against Oezdemir and that is an incredibly tough fight for a UFC debut. While they highlight Jiri's top level athleticism and size, his technique is just bad everywhere else. That didn't really present itself too much in Rizin (please don't die on me, you sonofabitch!), Volkan is a polished fighter and should be able to expose those weaknesses, especially Jiri's footwork. I'd love for Prochazka to come in with a big win on his debut but I'm not like his chances after listening to that. He does have that athleticism and power though, so there's a chance. The sooner he gets to a real gym the better. Oezdemir won a split decision over OSP and lost to Smith and Reyes, so he's had some issues with big bois.

While I really enjoy both fighters, I am hoping Rose pulls out a W and gets a title shot next. I don't feel confident though after the mental issues she's had, losing loved ones during the pandemic, and talk of retirement. Here's hoping she's in a good place mentally and ready for a helluva fight.

Yan is one of the better fighters on the roster in terms of technique and footwork. However, his aggression does usually give his opponents a couple of openings to land something. I don't think it's a no brainer, but he is the favourite for a reason, though I'd thought he'd be an even bigger favourite than he is. There will be aggression, though I'm interested to see how Aldo approaches it. Does he counter? How often does he attack the legs?

Ribas is a -800 favourite, holy shit, and she should be. She's a star. Is Ribas sticking to flyweight or is that a COVID thing? Hasn't she been fighting at strawweight? If she does stay at 125, she's immediately the second best fighter in the division AINEC. I don't think she's ready for Shevchenko yet but she'd be the only threat to Valentina's title in that division.

This card is pretty darn great. It has a nice combination of importance and excitement, when we've largely been relying on the latter and less of the former with the odd meaningful fight thrown in there.

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Even if the Zoom Training is a work(bruddah) I'm concerned Max hasn't adjusted.

Max pulled away in the championship rounds, but those first three rounds felt clearly Volkanovski. If Max's adjustment is just "be more aggresive" in the early rounds I don't think it'll go well for him. Volk will probably counter that with take downs and then yikes.

Holloway is probably the only fighter I actively root for, and I'm pretty concerned for how this will go. I'd love for him to come out and just dominate, but I think his puzzle has been solved. It happens to every fighter, so I don't think it's a huge mark against him - but yeah unless he makes some real adjustments he might just get knocked the fuck out tomorrow night.

 

 

 

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3 hours ago, Elsalvajeloco said:

Like I was telling JT, he was booked because of the availability of other fighters. With that said, he's (Mike Perry) emblematic of sort of the old lawlessness of MMA that needs to be eliminated. At least with Jon Jones, he's too famous to be ignored now and UFC is in a place where if he does something, they have to reel him in even if the punishment isn't that severe. I don't know if Roger Huerta was still with the UFC when the video was released by like TMZ of him whooping people's asses in the streets, but I definitely know it feels like the UFC hasn't taken a strong stance on that. IMO it may be because they feel the fighters look more badass after stuff like that. After BJ got laid out not too long ago, I thought the UFC at the very least should issue a zero tolerance policy on stuff like that unless getting into an altercation was virtually impossible to avoid (IIRC what happened with Leslie Smith some years back). Do people know other people are nuts out here and will kill you dead with no ounce of remorse? You cannot be doing shit like this. After what happened with Will Smith (the ex Saints player) and Joe McKnight fairly recently, people should know that professional athletes aren't exempt from real world craziness and lunatics. 

From what I recall, Roger Huerta knocked out a guy who was physically assaulting a woman and it was not like Mike Perry being a completely unhinged lunatic.

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6 minutes ago, TheVileOne said:

From what I recall, Roger Huerta knocked out a guy who was physically assaulting a woman and it was not like Mike Perry being a completely unhinged lunatic.

That's basically my point. Because Huerta was doing something good, they think it's cool and badass that these fighters know how to handle themselves when all situations aren't the same and all the outcomes DEFINITELY won't be the same.

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3 hours ago, jaedmc said:

Even if the Zoom Training is a work(bruddah) I'm concerned Max hasn't adjusted.

Max pulled away in the championship rounds, but those first three rounds felt clearly Volkanovski. If Max's adjustment is just "be more aggresive" in the early rounds I don't think it'll go well for him. Volk will probably counter that with take downs and then yikes.

Holloway is probably the only fighter I actively root for, and I'm pretty concerned for how this will go. I'd love for him to come out and just dominate, but I think his puzzle has been solved. It happens to every fighter, so I don't think it's a huge mark against him - but yeah unless he makes some real adjustments he might just get knocked the fuck out tomorrow night.

 

 

 

Watching last Night's replay of UFC 245 Hopefully Max's gameplan involves avoiding those leg kicks or countering them cause his legs turned a nasty color. 

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Re: Jiri vs. Volkan

The one division I can't get a proper grasp on prospects in is 205. This is the one that eludes me the most. Reyes is probably the only one I guessed right on. I admit I wasn't that impressed with Volkan when he first arrived but that was clearly him acclimating to the level of competition. So many prospects have failed to do that. The one guy I totally swung and missed was Jonathan Wilson, who by now most people have forgot about if they ever knew his name. I thought he had all the physical tools and gifts. He won his UFC debut is impressive fashion and then he was complete doo doo. Jiri to his credit at least beat credible opposition prior to coming to the UFC unlike 99% of guys who come into the UFC at Light Heavyweight. I remember when you had to beat a legit 205 gatekeeper like a Roger Hollett or Toni Valtonen or Rodney Faverus or Victor Valimaki or David Heath or Vernon White or at the very least blown up perennial middleweights like Joe Doerksen and Jeremy Horn to get into the UFC. Now you can beat a blown up welterweight or two and have a somewhat successful campaign at Light Heavyweight. It's been shaky at best. Hopefully, this matchup can mark a sea change.

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