Dec 5, 2008 - 3:34:45 PM By: Zak Lalonde, MMATorch Contributor
Welcome to my first column on MMATorch, and thanks for taking the time to read this (are you killing about 10 minutes at work reading this in the bathroom?). I hope to always keep you entertained, whether that means you agree with me or think I’m a complete idiot (probably more of the idiot thing). As a long time fan of the UFC, I’ve always found it hard to relate to most of the other writers because they write from a journalist’s standpoint. I promise you, I’ll always see the fights from a fans’ perspective, and that will probably always be obvious (the page will probably glow when I’m writing about my guys, GSP, Vera, KenFlo, to name a few).
Since we’re talking about favorites, allow me to list my top ten fights from 2008. Keep in mind, these are just MY opinions.
1 – Wanderlai Silva vs Chuck Liddell (Dec/29/2007 - UFC)
I know, I know, this technically didn’t happen in 2008, but it’s close enough. This was the fight that fans had long waited to see. These were two of the most popular, most successful fighters of all time (Wandy in Pride and Chuck in the UFC). This would be like Shaq facing off against Wilt (not in the ladies department, cause let’s face it, Wilt was the B-E-S-T lady-slayer of all time!), Billy the Kid going toe to toe with Zorro or Rocky squaring off against Karate Kid.
Never mind that both guys were on the back 9, this was THE fight of fights. This would finally put to rest the Pride vs UFC argument. In what turned out to be a slugfest, this fight most definitely lived up to the hype. Although no one was knocked out like both fighters predicted, not a single fan was disappointed in the action. Chuck pulled off the decision and made millions of the old-school UFC fans proud (at least until he met the fist of Mr. Evans).
2 – GSP vs. Matt Serra 2 (Apr/19/2008 – UFC)
As someone living in Toronto, Canada, I’ll admit I’ve got crazy love for GSP. I don’t watch hockey, I hate the CFL and I’ve never jumped on a sled pulled by a group of huskies, but GSP has a way of uniting Canadian fight fans and I’m proud to be one them. When GSP fights, I’m LITERALLY on the edge of my seat, breathing sporadically, every muscle in my body tightly clenched and I’m a nervous wreck. When he lost to Serra in their first fight, I was depressed for a week and contemplated going on short term disability – I’m not even joking about this.
On top of this being GSPs chance to reclaim the belt, this was the first UFC fight in Canada. It’s a dream come true, GSP fighting in his own backyard in front of thousands of rabid Canucks looking for blood (to set the record straight, my boy Kerny had a ticket for me, but I couldn’t get off work early on Friday and was forced to sit at home watching this fight thinking how great it would’ve been to be there live). With Serra’s camp talking smack, especially Pete-I’ll-Always-Be-Remembered-For-Getting-Knocked-Out-By-An-Injured-Scott-Smith-Sell, there was some serious hatred coming out of GSP fans everywhere. GSP didn’t disappoint, thoroughly dominating Serra, forcing the ref to call it after Serra ate several unanswered devastating knees to the body.
3 – Forrest Griffin vs Quinton Jackson (July/5/2008 – UFC)
Dana White’s dream had come true; guys from his reality show were fighting for belts, legitimizing The Ultimate Fighter and it’s casts. Both guys had just finished a stint on TUF as coaches, and during the show, two things have always stuck out for me: (1) After Forrest destroyed Rampage at H-O-R-S-E during the coaches challenge, even throwing down a nasty one handed statue of liberty dunk, Rampage pulled a temper tantrum and declared, "I can promise you won’t beat me when we fight, I’ll bet my entire fight purse on it" and (2) Juanito Ibarra, Rampage’s coach said "if Forrest beats Rampage I’ll retire."
Forrest won a 5 round decision, becoming the first “TUF” alumni to hold a belt. What bothered me was that Forrest was too nice of a guy to ask for (1) Rampage’s payday and (b) Juanito’s retirement papers.
4 – Tim Sylvia vs Fedor Emelianeko (July 19/2008 – Affliction)
UFC “die-hards” had long asked the question, "why is Fedor so highly regarded?" Finally, Fedor was facing some legit competition in the former UFC heavyweight champ (yes, I’m directing this at you Hong-Man, Choi). Sylvia may have been coming off two losses, but he was still as dangerous as ever and posed some very tough physical challenges for Fedor.
In less then one minute, Fedor displayed why he IS the undisputed best fighter in the world. Remember, Sylvia had always been known as a guy who can take a punch, but Fedor’s power, speed and skills were simply too great.
This was the fight that proved just how talented Fedor really is (remember, it took Randy five rounds and a judge’s decision to beat The Mainiac).
5 - Ronaldo Souza vs. Jason Miller (June/15/2008 – Dream)
Is there a more entertaining fighter to watch than Jason Miller? Even his entrance is money, and I mean that figuratively AND literally - he throws money into the crowd. I really do think the North American fight fans are getting robbed here. This guy is a talented fighter who is so marketable and fun. I mean, anyone who put down WWE as his fighting style is cool in my mind! On top of that, you had Bas Rutten commentating (laaag lock, heel huuuuuk...great stuff Bas!)
If ever the example "chess match" was to be used, this was it. This was one of those fights where one move could've swung the outcome either way with Souza slapping on about ten submission attempts and Miller narrowly escaping them all. "Jason Miller is part Houdini" was what the commentator said, and that's so true...unfortunately for Miller, it wasn't enough. Souza won a gruelling decision, advancing to the next round of the tournament.
6 – Tyson Griffin vs. Sean Sherk (Oct/25/2008 – UFC)
Answer – "they don’t wrestle but instead keep the fight standing up." What is, "what happens when two outstanding wrestlers square off inside the Octagon, Alex." That’s right contestant, you’ve just won the $200 tile in today’s MMA Jeopardy!
This was a high energy fight. Two fantastic wrestlers with never ending gas tanks going toe to toe. Would Sherk’s size cause problems for Tyson? Would Tyson’s speed be too much for Sherk? Would either of them wear down as the fight got into later rounds?
In a fight that rarely touched the mat, both guys seemed content to stand in the middle of the cage and do their best Forrest/Bonnar impression. Neither guy hit hard enough to knock each other out, but it sure was an exciting match. Sherk won by decision. (On another note, after the final bell was rung, Tyson decided to jog around the ring to show everyone he still had gas left in the tank. My reaction was "why?" Did he think that would earn points with the judges (it didn’t). I kept asking, "why didn’t you use all your gas during the fight instead of saving it for a post fight jog?"
7 – Dan Henderson vs Anderson Silva (Mar/1/2008 – UFC)
Silva, the reigning middleweight UFC champ and as close to unbeatable as this sport has ever seen, was set to square off against Dan Henderson, the Pride middleweight champ.
Anderson started the fight cautiously, like he always does, feeling out his opponent and getting a read on his reach. Only this time, his opponent wasn’t afraid to fight back, and even won the first round. With mere seconds left in round one, anticipation started to rise as it looked like the wrestler from Cali was going to be the first to beat "the Spider" in the UFC.
During the intermission, you could see the determination start to grow in Anderson, and he came out in a flurry and never looked back. He easily picked apart Hendo, forcing him to tap before the round could come close to ending and thus unifying the belt. In typical Anderson style, he was extremely respectful to Henderson, the crowd and the UFC. Is there a more respectful champ then Anderson?
8 – Brock Lesnar vs Randy Couture (Nov/16/2008 – UFC)
This was hyped as "the biggest fight in UFC history" and had fight fans everywhere debating; can Randy shake the ring-rust? Can "that freakishly big dude from the WWE" actually fight? Is this going to be a case of Brock being way too big for Randy and simply hold him down for five rounds and do just enough to keep it there, while winning a very boring and action-deprived fight (ok, maybe not everyone thought that, but I did)?
The stage was set, Captain America vs a former WWE guy. Size, strength and speed vs experience and determination. Sable vs Kim Couture – was anyone else hoping for that to break out during the fight?
Brock starts the fight and looks nervous, almost scared. Randy does what he always does, looks the opponent up and down and waits for an opening. Randy’s actually winning this round – oh my goodness, can he do it again? Can he pull off the upset of mammoth proportions? Randy has Brock up against the cage and actually lifts him off the ground – holy crap, Randy is a god!
It was a very entertaining first round that was won by Randy in my opinion – he was the aggressor, he controlled the pace of the fight, he avoided Brock’s take down and landed some classic Randy dirty boxing blows.
And that’s where the euphoria ends, and the reign of Brock begins. Brock showed everyone that he doesn’t have to hit you cleanly to knock you out. He landed a solid elbow that wobbled Randy’s legs and then moments later landed a glancing blow to the temple that put the Natural to the mat. With the speed of a fat kid chasing a rolling Smartie, Brock was on Randy and dropped WAY too many hammer fists to the legends head before the ref stopped the fight.
9 – Seth Petruzelli vs Kimbo Slice (Oct/4/2008 – EliteXC)
Is it just me, or did all the EliteXC shows remind you of the intro to “The Running Man”? All those cheesy commentators, the choreographed dancers with the shiny outfits and the massive hype machine. I kept waiting for Captain Freedom (Jesse Ventura – in a TERRIBLE hair piece) to run out and challenge the fighters!
The funny thing about this fight is that it shouldn’t have happened. Thankfully, LeatherFace himself, Ken Shamrock had cut his eye while sparring earlier in the day and wasn’t allowed to fight. In steps "that dude with the bad hair from The Ultimate Fighter" who was (*allegedly*) bribed not to take the fight to the ground.
Within 14 seconds, the hopes and dreams of EliteXC’s brass fell as fast as Kimbo did from a glancing blow. My favorite part of this fight was seeing Gary Shaw pleading with the ref to stand the fight up arguing that Seth punched him in the back of the head. The fall out; the Kimbo mystic was gone, EliteXC folded and Seth Petruzelli still had bad hair. Great fight, not because of the fight itself, but because of the aftermath.
10 – Spencer Lalonde vs Jess Perez
I’m nothing if I’m not a family man! This was my baby brother’s first fight. After several years of training at Bloor Street Boxing in Toronto, and a couple more years with Toronto BJJ, Spencer moved to Winnipeg and began training with Rodrigo Mundaruca.
Going into the fight, Jess Perez was 0-1 with several professional boxing matches under his belt, while Spencer had previously only competed in B.J.J. tournaments. Spencer made quick work of the specialist, winning via Ground and Pound in less than one minute. Good job bro’.
Honourable mentions: Any Gina Carano fight (just cause she’s hot!), Gilbert Melendez vs Josh Thomson, Patrick Cote vs Drew McFedries, Mike Brown vs Urijah Faber, Anthony Johnson vs Tommy Speer, Denis Kang vs Gegard Mousasi, Nogs vs Tim Syliva, Gesias Cavalcante vs. Shinya Aoki, BJ Penn vs Joe Stevenson, KenFlo vs Joe Stevenson and ANY Miguel Torres or Clay Guida fight.
So, how did I do? Feel free to drop me a line to let me know. Thanks for taking the time to read this and PEACE OUT!
zaklalonde@hotmail.com
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