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14,736 attended UFC 88, the first UFC event in Georgia in over 11 years, to witness Rashad Evans brutal and stunning knock out of Chuck Liddell. The gate of over 2.6 million at Philips Arena in Atlanta was the second highest grossing total in the arena's history. We know the show was a financial success, but what about the rest? The Yes and No for UFC 88.
Yes to Rashad Evans (12-0-1, 7-0-1, UFC, 4(T)KOs, 2 Subs). A big underdog, Evans scored one of the biggest knock outs in UFC history. With Liddell's past success fighting wrestlers it was assumed he would be able to walk thru Evans, but Rashad had his own strategy. Instead of attempting takedowns, which could lead to a knock out, he took the fight to Liddell, fighting fire with fire. With this win, Evans is now the number one contender. It will be TUF 1 champion Forrest Griffin vs. TUF 2 champion Rashad Evans, answering the question Who is the Ultimate Ulimate fighter?
No to Chuck Liddell (21-6, 16-5 UFC, 13(T)KOs, 1 Sub). Liddell, frustrated trying to chase Evans, got sloppy and began dropping his hands. Normally a counter puncher, Liddell was beaten to the punch on numerous occasions and finally was knocked out cold with an awesome overhand right by Evans. Having lost three of his last four fights, Liddell is showing he is not keeping up with the changes to this ever changing sport. If he does not retire, Liddell has to evolve to stay relevant. He did that in the Wanderlei Silva fight, but with Evans he was back to his tired old self.
Yes to Rich Franklin (24-3, 11-2 UFC, 13(T)KOs, 9 Subs). Not wanting to be a gate keeper in the middleweight division, Franklin moved up to 205. An over-matched Franklin picked apart and dominated a still learning Matt Hamill. With Liddell losing, Franklin can move himself into the title picture with another couple of wins.
Yes to Dan Henderson (23-7, 3-2 UFC, 10(T)KOs, 1 Sub). His first win in the UFC in a decade, Henderson's game plan was perfect. Stop the take downs and punish Rousimar Palhares with his superior striking. Henderson wants a rematch with Anderson Silva, but I would rather see him fight a few more top ten contenders before he gets his next shot.
Yes to the UFC. After months of complaining about it in this column, I am happy to say there were no commercials or lame b-star sightings. The focus was on the show. Amen.
Yes to Jason MacDonald (21-10, 5-3 UFC, 3(T)KOs, 17 Subs). After losing just one month ago, MacDonald was back in action and looking good. He had a scare at the end of the first round, but was saved by the bell. MacDonald is not quite championship material, but he is a talented fighter and is fun to watch considering he has a high percentage of finishing his opponents, 20 of his 21 wins have come via TKO or submission. He seems to lose every other fight, so he better be very prepared for his next opponent.
No to Jason Lambert (23-9, 4-4 UFC, 12(T)KOs, 7 Subs). Goodbye Jason. I mentioned in the past Lambert should cut weight to 185 and for this fight he did, but after seeing him as a middleweight I was not impressed. Even with the lack of quality fighters in the middleweight division, I don't feel there is room for Jason Lambert in the UFC. After three losses in a row, perhaps it's time for Lambert to fight in a smaller organization. EliteXC and Affliction could both use him for their middleweight division.
Yes to Nate Marquardt (27-8-2, 6-2 UFC, 5(T)KOs, 15 Subs). Big win for Marquardt. Martin Kampmann is a strong, talented middleweight and Marquardt just made it look easy. Marquardt rebounds from his split decision loss to Thales Leites in June. I would like to see a rematch between the two next.
No to the Atlanta crowd for booing Don Hyun Kim (11-0-1, 2-0 UFC, 6(T)KOs, 1 Sub). It was like a WWE crowd as they chanted "USA" during the Kim vs. Matt Brown fight. I can live with that, but booing Kim after the fight was unnecessary. It was a close fight and even if their "American fighter" didn't win they should of had the respect to congratulate Kim.
No to the match ups. Joe Silva normally does a great job in his match ups, but last night was not one of them. This show felt like a WWF 80s Saturday morning show, where they put their named talent against "enhancement talent". Considering how many fights are scheduled for the next few months and that HBO had a good lightweight fight on, I don't know if many people were willing to pay the $44.95 to see last night's show.
Yes to the overall show. Although the match ups left a lot to be desired, the show itself ended up being pretty good. A highlight reel knock out, a good submission and some strong technical fights made the show a thumbs up for me. It wasn't great, but I got my money's worth.
