...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!
Today we have another edition of Ask MMATorch, where MMATorch Editor Jamie Penick and MMATorch Columnist Rich Hansen answer your questions about the world of MMA. If you have a question you'd like answered by either of them, send it in to askmmatorch@gmail.com.
Dillon writes:Is JDS vs. Cain Velasquez 3 not one of the most intriguing bouts of the year? They both had dominant victories and no one I talk to can seem to make a prediction now that we know JDS can throw spinning back heel kicks.
MMATorch Columnist Rich Hansen Answers: You know, in most years Cain vs. JDS 3 would be the biggest fight of the second half of the year, or at least the most intriguing. But, man, the second half of 2013 is so loaded, with so many big fights just recently being booked, that this fight is actually the most ignored fight of the remainder of the year. That no one is talking about the trilogy fight has less to do with the fight itself, and is much more due to the fact that Jose Aldo is fighting Chan Sung Jung; Ben Henderson is fighting Anthony Pettis; Jon Jones is fighting an actual Light Heavyweight; Georges St-Pierre is fighting Johny Hendricks; Ronda Rousey is fighting... anybody; and oh yeah, Chris Weidman is fighting Anderson Silva. Again.
The first two fights between Cain and JDS were both memorable fights. JDS beat the unbeatable Alpha-male in a minute, and then Velasquez rebounded by laying a 25 minute beating on JDS. If JDS does defeat Velasquez, which would be the third title switch between these two heavyweights in three bouts, don't be surprised if there's a fourth and maybe even a fifth fight in the next year or two.
Chris writes:I'm a big Pat Barry fan, I love his style and attitude in the sport!
Do you feel he is very undersized at heavyweight and that he could fit in nicely at light heavyweight?
MMATorch Editor Jamie Penick Responds: Pat Barry's definitely undersized in relation to the rest of the heavyweight field, but that cut to 205 lbs. isn't an easy one, and could potentially lessen the effectiveness of his game. Of course, if he made the cut slowly the way Daniel Cormier's trying to do, he could cut down the pounds while holding on to his power. But I don't think that's really something he's interested in, and even though he's undersized, he's got the power to contend with a lot of the competitors in the division.
Unfortunately, while he's incredibly exciting to watch and impossible to dislike, he's just not been a consistent performer inside the Octagon. I don't think that's a symptom of his size as much as it is just his level as a fighter. He's going to leave everything in the cage, and that means he's going to score exciting wins as often as he goes down.
Brandon writes:How hard will it be for Hector Lombard and Alister Overeem to get to a title shot after the setbacks both have had following the hype behind them?
MMATorch Columnist Rich Hansen Answers: Two fighters, two answers:
1.) Hector Lombard and Title Shot shouldn't be uttered in the same sentence. Or it the same book for that matter. In Lombard's case, hype got him into the UFC, but dull underachievement dropped him from contender status to not even in the mix status. He needs to win 3 or fights in a row to even be considered for a title shot, and it would help if for the first time in his career in the UFC he were exciting. Lombard's old enough where he's not going to improve much, and he sure isn't going to change his style. He is what he is: decent.
2.) Alistair Overeem, as of my latest census, is a heavyweight. That means he's always in the mix. Overeem's obviously been a mixed bag in the UFC so far; spectacular in victory over Brock Lesnar, lackluster in defeat to Antonio Silva. Overeem is scheduled to fight a top 10 fighter in Travis Browne next month. The champ Cain Velasquez is defending the championship Junior dos Santos in October. Fabricio Werdum is probably next in line ahead of Overeem, despite losing to Overeem the last time fought fought one another. And despite losing to Antonio Silva earlier this year, Silva will never get another title shot, so Overeem is ahead of Silva.
Put all that together, and Overeem is going to have to win over Travis Browne in order to be considered. After that, he might be gifted a #1 contender fight with Fabricio Werdum. More likely, Werdum gets the next shot and Overeem has to win one more fight, maybe against Josh Barnett or Frank Mir in early 2014.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
STAFF COLUMNISTS: Shawn Ennis - Jason Amadi
Frank Hyden - Rich Hansen
Chris Park - Matt Pelkey
Interested in joining MMATorch's writing team? Send idea for a theme to your column (for Specialist section) or area of interest (i.e. TV Reporter) along with a sample of writing to mmatorch@gmail.com.
