Fifty Greatest Fights in UFC History Part 3/5

30- Marco Ruas knockout (13:17) Paul Varelans (UFC 7)
Marco Ruas introduced the world of UFC to leg kicks in this epic final of UFC 7. Outweighed by over 150lbs, Ruas was up against it in the final of this tournament. Having fought over 15 minutes already in the tournament, his opponent ‘The Polar Bear’ had fought just over two. Ruas immediately went to work chopping the big man down with leg strikes and showing his superior technique in the clinch by stifling Varelan’s attempts to use his strength in any way. Ruas also implored a never before seen tactic of foot stomps during a clinch up against the cage, but it was his leg kicks that eventually wore the bigger man down after over 13 minutes of fighting. Ruas was arguably the first fighter in the UFC to show excellent stand-up as well as great submission skills.

29- Marcus Davis submission (1st) Paul Taylor (UFC 75)
This fight was short, but sweet. Marcus Davis made the mistake of standing with Paul Taylor who was a reknowned kickboxer and it didn’t take long for him to pay for it. Taylor put Davis down with a vicious head kick that looked to have ended the fight. Taylor pounced on Davis and landed several shots before Davis recovered and took top position. On the ground there was no question who was the superior fighter as Davis moved quickly to mount, landed some hard shots and secured an armbar that forced Taylor to submit.

28- Matt Lindland unanimous decision Phil Baroni (UFC 41)
This was one of those grudge matches that lived up to expectations. This was a rematch of a controversial decision at UFC 34 in what was another war and they picked up right where they left off. Lindland controlled the fight with his superior wrestling, but Baroni’s punching power kept him very much in the fight. The fast pace continued until Baroni slowed down in the 2nd round allowing Lindland to establish top position and dominate with his wrestling. Baroni caught his 2nd wind and finished strong in the 3rd landing several hard combinations but it was too little too late as Lindland took a unanimous decision.

27- Dave Menne unanimous decision Gil Castillo (UFC 33)
The epic first UFC 185lb title fight lasted the full five rounds and was probably the best five round display of MMA at that time in UFC history. Both men showed a well rounded game as they traded strikes, had some excellent scrambles as well as attempted submissions from the top and bottom. Menne’s ability to stuff the takedown and get back to his feet the times he was taken down proved to be the difference in what was a close fight as he was able to establish the better positions and earn a close, but unanimous decision.

26- Kimo Leopoldo knockout (9:08) Paul Varelans (Ultimate Ultimate 1996)
The first victory for Kimo in the Octagon after coming up short in battles with UFC legends Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie came in the Ultimate Ultimate 1996 champions tournament over Paul Varelans. Kimo would show in this fight he wasn’t the wild brawler that gave Royce Gracie his toughest fight to date, but a tactician who was very capable off his back. After shooting in early, Kimo ended up on his back taking punishment on punishment while trying to work his newly improved ground skills. Kimo worked his guard and wore the bigger man out, but it took nealy nine minutes for this to happen. Kimo finally swept the 400lb giant and rained down with strikes until Varelans’ corner stopped the fight. Kimo was unable to continue in the tournament due to the damage he received in this fight.

25- Scott Smith knockout (2nd) Pete Sell (TUF4 Finale)
This fight was just strange. Both men, Team Mojo teammates on TUF4, were good friends who cheered each other on during the fight while they beat the shit out of each other. They traded heavy punches for the entire first five minutes, then hugged and complimented each other at the bell. The ending was just as wild as the fight. Midway through the 2nd round, which was shaping up to be exactly the same as the first, Sell hurt Smith with a left hook to the body that looked like it could end the fight. As he moved in for the finish, Smith landed a flush right hand on the chin that put Sell out and then Smith collapsed in agony from the body shot. It was an ending reminiscent of the Jack Johnson-Stanley Ketchel Heavyweight title fight of the early 20th century.

24- Jon Koppenhaver knockout (3rd) Jared Rollins (TUF6 Finale)
The UFC careers of both men were short lived, but their fight was one to remember. Both fighters let it all hang out in the opening round and did a lot of damage while exerting a lot of energy. They swapped takedowns and took turns wailing away from each others guard for the entire first round. The 2nd round was fought on heart and again they hammered each other from on top. Towards the end of the 2nd, Rollins appeared close to stopping a tiring Koppenhaver, but he was saved by the bell. Rollins, also visibly tired, got on top in the 3rd and looked for the finish when out of no where Koppenhaver swept him to mount and finished the fight from on top.

23- Don Frye submission (1:22) Tank Abbott (Ultimate Ultimate 1996)
Short but sweet. Tank Abbott beat Don Frye in the final of the Ultimate Ultimate 1996 from one side of the Octagon to the other. Tank dropped Frye immediately with a short left and was proving too strong for the UFC 8 champion as he continued to land with hard shots which bloodied ‘The Predator.’ About one minute in, Tank slipped and that was the only opening Frye needed. Frye took his back and sunk in a rear naked choke that forced Abbott to tap out. After the fight it appeared that Frye was the beaten man as Tank stormed out of the Octagon while Frye was attended to by ringside physicians.

22- Royce Gracie submission (4:40) Kimo Leopoldo (UFC 3)
After dominating everyone on a 7-0 run during UFC 1 and UFC 2, no one was expecting Royce Gracie to have much trouble with the unheralded Kimo. After walking to the Octagon with a crucifix on his back in a black cloak, Kimo surprised everyone with a gutsy performance that left Gracie unable to further compete in the tournament. Royce immediately shot in only for Kimo to use his gi against him and keep the fight standing where he was able to land several short punches. After struggling for a bit over a minute, Gracie finally got Kimo on his back and moved to mount. Kimo surprisingly knew how to escape and rolled Gracie to guard. Gracie used Kimo’s hair to control his posture and tried to set up a submission. Kimo’s strength made Gracie work like he’d never worked before and it took nearly five minutes for him to sink in a fight ending armbar.

21- Rich Franklin unanimous decision Wanderlei Silva (UFC 99)
Fought at a catchweight of 195lbs, the battle between former UFC Middleweight (185lbs) champion Rich Franklin and former PRIDE Middleweight (205lbs) champion Wanderlei Silva did not disappoint. After Franklin controlled the early goings with his movement, Wanderlei caught a kick and took him down and landed a few hard punches from on top. Franklin scrambled to his feet and ended up on top when Wanderlei went for a guillotine choke. Round two was more of Franklin sticking and moving and controlling the action until Wanderlei rocked him with a series of right hands. Franklin gutted it out, but was clearly hurt and after two rounds the fight seemed to be anyones. Franklin again controlled the early part of round three, but was eating punches in return. Wanderlei waved the crowd on during the last minute before rocking Franklin briefly then conceding a takedown. He stood up and during the final seconds exchanged elbows and punches with Franklin with his back to him as the crowd cheered. Franklin took the unanimous decision 29-28 on all three cards.

See Also:

Part 2 (31-40)

Part 1 (41-50)

Franklin edges Silva at UFC 99

Former UFC 185lb champion Rich Franklin scored arguably the biggest win of his career over former PRIDE 205lb champion Wanderlei Silva in Germany at UFC 99 on the weekend. Franklin scored a three round unanimous decision over ‘The Axe Murderer’ after three rounds of hard fighting. Using good footwork and a patient stand-up game, Franklin got off first in the opening round scoring with lead right hands and the odd left kick. Silva was also patient as he tried to find an opening for his right hand. Midway through the round, Silva caught a body kick and took the fight to the mat where he landed with a handful of solid punches from in Franklins guard. Franklin worked his way back up where Silva attempted and missed a guillotine choke attempt, ending up on his back. Franklin landed several hard punches as he attempted to move to mount, which allowed Silva to escape back to his feet to end the round.

Round two saw Franklin controlling the tempo of the round early before Silva started finding his range standing up. After scoring with a few kicks, Silva rocked Franklin briefly with a right hand, only to eat a jab that briefly dropped him in return. Later in the round Silva again scored with a right hand that shook Franklin up. Silva smelled blood and landed several hard shots that had Franklin in trouble. Franklin survived as Silva looked exhausted at the end of the second round. With Franklin having a clear edge in the first and Silva the edge in the second, both men looked to gain the early advantage in the third.

Franklin scored with a heavy body kick early in the round, but Silva retaliated with two hard right hands. Despite his physical exhaustion, Silva continued to look for the knockout with every strike as he attempted a few wild head kicks. Franklin however was racking up the points with his jab and making Wanderlei miss his counters. In the final minute of the fight, Silva raises his arms to the crowd and then attacks Franklin with a flurry of hard punches. Franklin survived and scored a takedown before Silva escaped but gave up his back in the process. With both men standing agfainst the fence, Silva threw some nasty elbows at Franklin (who was behind him) while Franklin threw hard punches for the final seconds of the fight.

With the decision appearing to possibly go either way, it was a shock when no scores were read out and a unanimous decision announced for Franklin. On first viewing I thought Rich deserved the fight and it was possible to score all three rounds to him. On second viewing I thought Wanderlei won 29-28 and thought he was winning the first round until he ended up on the bottom from the attempted guillotine. I trust my second viewing better as the first viewing was at 7am after an hour of interrupted sleep. The biggest thing I noticed in the fight was the weight cut really affected Wanderlei. I think if these two fought at 205lbs that Wanderlei would have taken him apart and I really can’t see Wanderlei being a huge force at 185lbs unless he gets a specialist trainer in to help him cut weight. Sure it was a first time thing so the effects might be different next time, but next time if he plans on fighting at 185lbs he’ll have to lose an extra 10lbs which could be hard for someone who has never cut weight during his career and has been in as many wars as Wanderlei has had. At 205 certain guys are too big for him (I still think Wanderlei was beating Rampage until he got caught, just for the record), but I think he has a lot more chance of being a force at 205 without cutting weight then he does of even making 185lbs.

On the undercard, Cain Velasquez showed the lack of basic jiu jitsu positions as he survived three knockdowns en route to a dominating decision win over Cheick Kongo. Velasquez was dropped twice in the opening moments of the fight before he scored a takedown and mounted Kongo easily where he delivered punishment for the full five minutes. The second round was more of the same except that Velasquez was only dropped once at the start of the round. The third round was more of the same again, except that Kongo didn’t drop Velasquez. If Velasquez knew how to put the hooks in from back mount and went for a choke, I think he could have ended this in the first round. It seems to be a trend from the bigger wrestlers to not use the hooks from back but instead just ride them like side mount which is effective but not so much in terms of ending the fight.

In other action, Mirko Cro Cop scored a controversial first round stoppage over Mustapha Al-Turk in his return to the UFC. After battering Turk for most of the round, Cro Cop accidently poked Mustapha in the eye before bludgening him while he was in pain forcing the referee to stop the fight and award Cro Cop the victory as he didn’t see the eye poke. Mike Swick moved further towards the Welterweight elite scoring a 2nd round knockout over undefeated Ben Saunders. Caol Uno’s return to the UFC was a bitter one as he was (in my opinion anyway) robbed of a decision over Spencer Fisher. The fight was very tactical, but Uno appeared to do enough to win the 2nd round and easily won the third round. In the other fight of the evening (morning), Dan Hardy won a split decision over Marcus Davis in a highly anticipated grudge fight. The fight was close with Davis having the better control and Hardy doing more damage which included dropping Davis with a knee in the 2nd round. I scored the fight for Hardy 29-28.

UFC 99 Predictions

While this card lacks the huge main event of some of the more recent cards or the ones in the coming months, UFC 99 looks to be one of the more explosive cards in recent memory. The main event itself is a fight that should promise fireworks as both guys like to stand up and go for the knockout and should they hit the ground neither man is the type to gain a dominant position and hold it for a decision win. Former PRIDE 205lb champion Wanderlei Silva headlines his first UFC card since his return to the Octagon (Silva has previously headlined the UFC 25 card when he fought and lost to Tito Ortiz for the championship nine years ago) and he takes on former UFC 185lb champion Rich Franklin at a catchweight of 195lb. In addition to that fight, there is five others instead of the usual four and all five have the potential for fireworks. Cain Velasquez has his first true test as he takes on dangerous stand-up fighter Cheick Kongo. Mirko Cro Cop and Caol Uno make their returns to the UFC taking on Mustapha Al-Turk and Spencer Fisher respectively. An interesting welterweight fight between in form fighters Mike Swick and Ben Saunders could give us the next top contender at 170lbs and a grudge fight between veteran Marcus Davis and hot prospect Dan Hardy. If there’s a fight on this main card that you’re not interested in then there’s something wrong with you in my honest opinion. Sunday is one of those rare days that has an exciting UFC card on in the morning (by morning I mean 5am) and then a quality boxing match on at lunch time. I’m drooling at the thought of it……

Rich Franklin vs Wanderlei Silva
Prediction- Franklin on points
I’m barracking for Silva as he is one of my favourite all-time fighters to watch but taking that out of the equation, I think Franklin has the edge in this fight. While Silva is the one dropping down to the weight, I feel Franklin will be the bigger man in this fight as well as the more experienced at the weight which is a strange combination. Silva has never had to make a weight below 205 and you don’t know how much that is going to hurt him. Combine that with the brutal knockout loss Silva suffered in his last fight and you don’t know how much he has left. Franklin doesn’t have the punching power of the guys who have knocked him out like Rampage, Cro Cop or in my opinion even Henderson but the effects of being knocked out in the fashion Silva has been KO’d it may have softened his jaw up. I fully expect this to be a war and you definately can’t count out Silva especially with his effectiveness from the clinch which is the way Anderson Silva knocked Franklin out twice for the Middleweight title, but I feel Wanderlei has seen better days and I think Franklin will get the better of the three round battle but it won’t be all one way traffic.

Cheick Kongo vs Cain Velasquez
Prediction- Velasquez by 2nd round TKO
Kongo has the obvious advantage on the feet, but I don’t think his improved wrestling ability will help him in this fight and I think he’ll be fighting off his back for 80-90% of the fight. Velasquez’s wrestling is too strong for Kongo and I don’t think he’ll have much trouble getting the takedown and then doing damage from on top. Velasquez has awesome punching power from on top and even though Kongo has a solid chin, I think the constant punishment will take it’s toll and the referee will save Kongo in the 2nd round.

Ben Saunders vs Mike Swick
Prediction- Swick by 1st round KO
A bit of a bold prediction here, but I don’t think Saunders will handle the type of fight Swick brings early on. Swick is too explosive for a guy like Saunders who is wide open at times and easy to hit. I think the longer this fight goes, the more chance Saunders has but I think Swick will blitz him. His hand speed is incredible and takes many guys by surprise and I expect Saunders will go in the fashion we got used to seeing Swick destroy people. Too much too soon for Saunders, I don’t think this fight will last two minutes.

Marcus Davis vs Dan Hardy
Prediction- Davis by 2nd round submission
There’s a bit of hatred between the two in this fight and I think it’s going to work against Hardy in this fight. Davis’ ground game is really solid now where it used to be his achilles heel where Hardy’s ground game still has a question mark over it as he’s been submitted a few times in the past. Hardy’s strength is his boxing, which is also Davis’ strength. Davis has never been knocked out from standing up and he’s faced stronger boxers then Hardy before. I think this fight has the potential to be as one sided as Davis vs Kelly back in October where Kelly wasn’t ready for the type of fight Davis brings. That’s how I feel about this fight although I think Hardy will put up a much better fight. I think once it hits the ground though Davis will show the difference between the two fighters.

Spencer Fisher vs Caol Uno
Prediction- Fisher on points
This is an interesting fight. Fisher is one of those guys who gets dominated or scores dramatic stoppage wins and he does it with strikes or submissions, he’s not one dimensional at all. Uno hasn’t been stopped in a long time and the fact that he survived 15 minutes on the ground with Shinya Aoki leads me to believe that Fisher won’t submit him. I’m finding it hard to see Uno winning the fight though unless Fisher is off his game (which could happen after a long layoff like Fisher has had). Fisher’s wrestling is one of his weaker areas, but I think he has the edge in wrestling in this fight. Uno is well rounded, but against a good strong Lightweight like Fisher I don’t think his game is up to standard anymore. Fisher to score a close but unanimous decision.

Mirko Cro Cop vs Mustapha Al-Turk
Prediction- Cro  Cop by 1st round knockout
Please please please don’t let Mirko have slipped this much.I’m hoping at least one of the three past generation fighters can win on this card and it’ll be sad if Cro Cop’s game has declined this much that he can’t beat someone like Al-Turk. That’s not taking anything away from Mustapha, but four years ago this is the type of fighter Cro Cop feasted on and brutalised. I’ve got to back one of the three (the other two being Wanderlei and Uno) so hopefully Cro Cop lets me reminisce a little bit about the glory days of PRIDE FC. I’ll stop before I start talking about how Wanderlei makes soccer kicks look poetic.

Preliminaries
Justin Bucholz vs Terry Etim (Etim on points)
Dale Hartt vs Denis Siver (Siver on points)
Peter Sobotta vs Paul Taylor (Taylor by 2nd round TKO)
Rolando Delgado vs Paul Kelly (Kelly on points)
Denis Stronje vs Stefan Struve (Struve on points)
John Hathaway vs Rick Story (Story by 1st round TKO)

Cro Cop vs Al-Turk official for UFC 99

PRIDE 2006 Open Weight Grand Prix Champion Mirko Cro Cop will return to the UFC in two weeks to meet fringe contender Mustapha Al Turk on the televised portion of the card. Cro Cop had three previous fights in the organisation, going 1-2 with his only win coming over the very limited and inexperienced Eddie Sanchez at UFC 67. At the time Cro Cop was on the back of his Grand Prix win, and the organisation was looking to fast track him to a Heavyweight title shot against then champion Tim Sylvia (who then lost his title to Randy Couture) and with the likes of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira about to be signed there seemed to be endless huge matchups that involved the Croatian. Cro Cop then met Gabriel Gonzaga at the main event of UFC 70 for the right to fight the champion and after being beaten up on the ground for much of the first round, Cro Cop was knocked out with a violent head kick. Cro Cop then returned at UFC 75 where he dropped a close decision to Cheick Kongo which left many fans jumping ship as it appeared Cro Cop’s days as a contender were done.

Since the disappointing losses, Mirko has won two bouts and had a no contest with Alistair Overeem in a fight that he was getting battered in. His most recent outing saw him stop Hong Man Choi at Dynamite with a leg kick in a lacklustre fight. Cro Cop’s return does add some excitement to what in my opinion is a pretty boring Heavyweight division in the UFC. The two guys at the top I don’t think could handle the likes of Fedor, Barnett, Arlovski or even Tim Sylvia (thats more a style thing then a skill thing and I’d love to see Mir submit Sylvia in a rematch). Cro Cop, with the likes of Couture and Nogueira in the division, would make a good opponent for some of these guys and a win over him for the likes of Velasquez or Carwin would boost up their resume’ big time. Cro Cop has to get past Al Turk first, and in his recent form that’s no gimme’. I think Cro Cop knocks him out but you just don’t know what he has left if the fight gets tough.

UFC 99 will show six fights on the main card which is great news. All of the fights are three rounders including the main event which sees Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva do battle. This is a card I’m really looking forward to now as there is four fights I’m genuinely excited about and another two which will be good battles. The Davis-Hardy fight is shaping up to be a grudge match with someone finally bringing Davis’ Irish roots into question and Davis not loking it one bit. Velasquez gets a real test against Cheick Kongo in the co-main event and Caol Uno makes his return to the UFC against Spencer Fisher in what could be an all-out war. Plus for Australian’s like me who like both MMA and boxing, the UFC is on at 5am and Cotto-Clottey is on at midday so it’s going to be a good day!