MMA General Discussion and Fight Announcements 10.0

[Chaels Arms]

Strangely enough, I still think if Tony beats basically anyone right now he has the best chance at a title shot assuming Khabib beats Gaethje. Ali Abdelaziz has been telling people on Twitter Conor is never getting a rematch with Khabib. Dana said that Khabib was offered a chance to coach TUF against Conor and shot that down with extreme prejudice. And Khabib just did an interview with Okamoto where he said his business with Conor is done. The guy doesn't care about money. I don't see him wanting to go through the McGregor circus again (assuming Conor beats Dustin which is a big IF as Dustin has improved a lot since their original fight).

Tony needs to get set up with somebody. Hooker, Chandler, whoever. Chandler said yesterday he's still game to fight Tony at UFC 254. Tony vs. Khabib is still a fight people want to see.

 

[CDJ]

I legitimately think Khabib would sooner set himself on fire than allow Conor to make any more money with him

 

[CDJ]

Gathje-Tony came up on my YouTube page, so I of course watched it. Some takeaways after watching it knowing the outcome:

1. The main takeaway for me is still what the f*** is Tony's chin made out of? Dude ate shot after shot after shot that KO'ed guys like Cowboy, Vick, and Barboza. I know Poirier and Eddie took it, but it was not as one sided in those fights.

2. What a performance by Gaethje on short notice. Maybe it was closer to regular notice after the delay, but still, I was not expecting him to be able to go 5 and he not only went 5, but went 5 HARD. Striking is different than wrestling, but having a wrestling background and that cardio on short notice...I think the idea that Khabib is going to wear him out is overstated. I think Khabib is going to win, but he's going to need to bring it for 5 rounds.

3. I think a lot of the 'excuses' for Tony are still valid. He was in camp a loooooong time. He's a cardio freak, but still, I imagine he goes pretty hard in camp and it might have effected him here. He was training for Khabib and then switched to Gaethje which is about the exact opposite as you could imagine. He had the ill advised weight cut which is totally on him, but still could have effected him.

4. Having said that, Tony's resume doesn't look quite as good in hindsight. Don't get me wrong. 12 straight wins at LW is impressive and needs to be taken seriously. But what's the best win in that group? Maybe RDA? Maybe Lee who he was saved by the bell against? Cowboy and Pettis have not fared well since he beat them. Vannata, Barboza, Thompson, Tibau, etc. are all solid wins which makes that streak impressive, but he kind of lacks wins against the real high level guys.

5. Rogan-DC-Anik is....by far....the best commentary team. I especially gotta call out Anik. All the props in the world to Goldy for being there so early, but I not only didn't like Goldy, but I actively hated Goldy. It's hard to like the play-by-play guys, but Anik is up there with Doc Emrick as far as I am concerned.

Tonys chin was so ridiculous That I think it was after round 2 Whitman basically told Gaethje to stop fishing for the one punch KO because it wasn’t coming and to just keep touching him. I’ve never seen a guy be able to withstand so much punishment and stay on his feet

anik is the man

 

[pistolpete11]

Strangely enough, I still think if Tony beats basically anyone right now he has the best chance at a title shot assuming Khabib beats Gaethje. Ali Abdelaziz has been telling people on Twitter Conor is never getting a rematch with Khabib. Dana said that Khabib was offered a chance to coach TUF against Conor and shot that down with extreme prejudice. And Khabib just did an interview with Okamoto where he said his business with Conor is done. The guy doesn't care about money. I don't see him wanting to go through the McGregor circus again (assuming Conor beats Dustin which is a big IF as Dustin has improved a lot since their original fight).

Tony needs to get set up with somebody. Hooker, Chandler, whoever. Chandler said yesterday he's still game to fight Tony at UFC 254. Tony vs. Khabib is still a fight people want to see.

I don't know that I'd go as far to say that Khabib doesn't care about money, but yes, it is not his only driving motivation. I also imagine he makes a lot of money no matter who he is fighting. He's a star in the USA, but I imagine he's a much, much bigger star in the rest of the world and especially Muslim world.

I'm all for Khabib-Tony if they both pick up a win, but Dana recently said he has something 'pretty special' for Khabib if he beats Gaethje and that "it's not GSP'. Maybe it's a location (Dagestan?) and the opponent doesn't matter? Or maybe it's someone else? I don't know. I'd still like to see that fight, though, for sure. Both need a win first and Tony doesn't even have an opponent yet.

 

[pistolpete11]

Tonys chin was so ridiculous That I think it was after round 2 Whitman basically told Gaethje to stop fishing for the one punch KO because it wasn’t coming and to just keep touching him. I’ve never seen a guy be able to withstand so much punishment and stay on his feet

anik is the man

Gaethje said somewhere (maybe Rogan?) that he surprised himself that he was able to go that hard for 5 rounds. I think in the first 2 rounds, he really did think he had to KO Tony or Tony was going to take over in the later rounds. As the fight went on, I think he (and Whitman) realized that not only was Tony not going away, but neither was Gaethje. So they could afford to just fight smart and take it to a decision if needed. Obviously it didn't make it to a decision.

Tony's such a freak, thinking about it now, did he even get dropped in that fight? He got TKO'ed, but he definitely didn't get dropped at the end. He was still on his feet when Herb waived it off. Funny enough, Gaethje actually got dropped right at the end of R2.

I looked up the stats, they didn't credit Gaethje with any knockdowns. I don't know why, but they didn't credit Tony with the one at the end of the second for some reason.

Also funny enough, Tony out struck Gaethje in 3 of the 5 rounds (1, 3, and 4) and dropped him at the end of the second. It got stopped so it doesn't matter, but to anyone who wants to cite the stats and only the stats to me to justify who won a fight, cool story, bro. The only round you could argue Tony won was R2 and that was because of the knockdown. Power matters.

 

[I am not exposed]

Gathje-Tony came up on my YouTube page, so I of course watched it. Some takeaways after watching it knowing the outcome:

1. The main takeaway for me is still what the f*** is Tony's chin made out of? Dude ate shot after shot after shot that KO'ed guys like Cowboy, Vick, and Barboza. I know Poirier and Eddie took it, but it was not as one sided in those fights.

2. What a performance by Gaethje on short notice. Maybe it was closer to regular notice after the delay, but still, I was not expecting him to be able to go 5 and he not only went 5, but went 5 HARD. Striking is different than wrestling, but having a wrestling background and that cardio on short notice...I think the idea that Khabib is going to wear him out is overstated. I think Khabib is going to win, but he's going to need to bring it for 5 rounds.

3. I think a lot of the 'excuses' for Tony are still valid. He was in camp a loooooong time. He's a cardio freak, but still, I imagine he goes pretty hard in camp and it might have effected him here. He was training for Khabib and then switched to Gaethje which is about the exact opposite as you could imagine. He had the ill advised weight cut which is totally on him, but still could have effected him.

4. Having said that, Tony's resume doesn't look quite as good in hindsight. Don't get me wrong. 12 straight wins at LW is impressive and needs to be taken seriously. But what's the best win in that group? Maybe RDA? Maybe Lee who he was saved by the bell against? Cowboy and Pettis have not fared well since he beat them. Vannata, Barboza, Thompson, Tibau, etc. are all solid wins which makes that streak impressive, but he kind of lacks wins against the real high level guys.

5. Rogan-DC-Anik is....by far....the best commentary team. I especially gotta call out Anik. All the props in the world to Goldy for being there so early, but I not only didn't like Goldy, but I actively hated Goldy. It's hard to like the play-by-play guys, but Anik is up there with Doc Emrick as far as I am concerned.

I like DC and Anik. Both DCs actually. Even though Dom gets a little obsessed with underhooks. I also really like Dan Hardy. The only issue with him is he doesn't know his left from his right! Not a fan of Rogan. He comes across as so hyperbolic imo.

 

[pistolpete11]

I like DC and Anik. Both DCs actually. Even though Dom gets a little obsessed with underhooks. I also really like Dan Hardy. The only issue with him is he doesn't know his left from his right! Not a fan of Rogan. He comes across as so hyperbolic imo.

I like Dom, too. He's the most insightful and best at explaining the intricacies of what is happening live. But he's a little dry sometimes.

Rogan is definitely hyperbolic. I don't know if it is that, just the way he is, or if it's because he only does the PPV's so I'm already excited, but they are just more fun when Rogan is on the broadcast. I mean, he doesn't make it, but he enhances it.

 

[I am not exposed]

I like Dom, too. He's the most insightful and best at explaining the intricacies of what is happening live. But he's a little dry sometimes.

Rogan is definitely hyperbolic. I don't know if it is that, just the way he is, or if it's because he only does the PPV's so I'm already excited, but they are just more fun when Rogan is on the broadcast. I mean, he doesn't make it, but he enhances it.

Talking about dry, I think Felder takes the cake for that! Although I still like him. Truth be told, I don't dislike any of the commentators. Which is unusual, as for every other sport I normally despise most of them! Rogan can be too hyperbolic but it does seem like a bigger occasion when he's on the broadcast. Of course he does the PPVs, but just having his presence makes it seem like an ever bigger deal. I just think he gets a little too carried sometimes.

 

[I am not exposed]

I guess the downside with commentators is certain fights you can hear bias coming through. And if you're just listening to them, you might think one guy is winning, when in fact the other guy is! Of course, I think it would be difficult to be neutral when they have connections with a lot of these fighters. They are only human after all.

 

[CDJ]

Lol thats hilarious because I just heard Dan Hardy say he doesn’t know his left from his right. He’s become my favorite analyst

 

[m9]

Cruz is my favorite.

I've always been a big fan of Anik. He's professional, prepared, and was clearly an upgrade from Goldberg from Day 1.

 

[Chaels Arms]

Some interesting talk on Ariel and DC's podcast about the McGregor v. Poirier fight. Seems like Conor demanding the fight be in 2020 could actually be a serious stepping stone. Apparently (according to Helwani) the UFC isn't enamored with the idea of putting Conor on a card that already has a main event/title fight scheduled because it means they're splitting a "Conor" PPV pot with more fighters that aren't Conor or Conor's opponent.

 

[pistolpete11]

Some interesting talk on Ariel and DC's podcast about the McGregor v. Poirier fight. Seems like Conor demanding the fight be in 2020 could actually be a serious stepping stone. Apparently (according to Helwani) the UFC isn't enamored with the idea of putting Conor on a card that already has a main event/title fight scheduled because it means they're splitting a "Conor" PPV pot with more fighters that aren't Conor or Conor's opponent.

Sure, I don't doubt it, but like...c'mon. No one is tuning in around the holidays for Nunes-Anderson or for a couple flyweight title fights.

Seems like a power grab from both the UFC and Conor to be honest.

 

[m9]

Wake me up when the fight is signed.

Why can't we get Conor v Ferguson instead anyway?

 

[Avs_19]

Just more of the same from these two sides. Despite what they might be saying publicly, I actually don't believe the UFC or Conor want the Poirier fight next. This is just a good way for both sides to say they tried to do it but the other side wouldn't agree to it.

 

[m9]

I see the UFC has a card planned for November 14th, a month away. But.. no main event. Seems strange. Is that the Chimaev fight?

As for the Nunes/Anderson PPV, as much as I like seeing Conor fight I would love to see Ferguson/Poirier in that co-main slot and build a PPV from there.

 

[CDJ]

Gane fight is off this weekend, it would seem his opponent couldn’t secure a release from his last promotion

 

[m9]

Gane fight is off this weekend, it would seem his opponent couldn’t secure a release from his last promotion

Brutal. Feels like this is a few times his fight has been cancelled last minute.

 

[m9]

So Yan/Sterling booked as the co-main for Nunes/Anderson. Works for me.

Sounds like they've told Conor/Poirier that if they want the the January PPV it's theirs, but Conor wants December. I assume either it gets done soon or they move on and book another fight there as there will be a few championship fights that are probably ready to go in early 2021.

 

[CDJ]

That 135 lb division is so damn awesome. May not be the strongest division right now but it will be the strongest in a matter of a couple years imo

 

[CDJ]

Sean Woodson vs. Jonathan Pearce targeted for UFC event on Nov. 28

Saw both of them fight in Boston a year ago, Woodson is the much better fighter. JSP got ragdolled by Lauzon


UFC adds Justin Tafa vs. Carlos Felipe to Jan. 16 Fight Night card

Fatty fight

 

[BGDDYKWL]

Vettori-Jacare in the works for UFC 256. Finally a name for Vettori. A win here, particularly a finish, and given a close fight with Adesanya in the past he puts himself right in the mix.

 

[Avs_19]

This was just Conor trying to flex his muscles to see what happens. Even if the UFC said okay to December, I still don't think that fight would've happened. Poirier probably knows it too since he's now trying to get Nate to fight him but it looks like Nate vs. Hooker might happen.

Poirier vs. Ferguson was always the fight to make and they should figure it out and just do that. However, I wouldn't blame Ferguson if he moved on and tried to fight someone like Chandler instead with how Poirier has handled this whole thing.

 

[CDJ]

Vettori-Jacare in the works for UFC 256. Finally a name for Vettori. A win here, particularly a finish, and given a close fight with Adesanya in the past he puts himself right in the mix.

that’s a very interesting fight, I’m interested in seeing what the line would be for it. If Jacare is an underdog I’d be all over it

I like Vettori a lot as a fighter I just don’t think this is a good matchup for him. Vettori is more of a submissions guy and he’s not going to submit Jacare. He’s not going to want to take it to the floor. Could be very wrong though...that’s the fight game

 

[Chaels Arms]

Conor just accepted January 23rd but wants it at AT&T stadium in Dallas LOL.