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By: Jason Bent, MMATorch Columnist
I am following in the tradition of great Judges today. Mathis, Brown, Ephraim, Judy and Wapner have all inspired me or at the very least killed some time in my life which I will never get back in thirty minute increments. Today, I am going to kill a little bit of time and render my verdicts on the fighters who fought on the main card of UFC 100 and do my best to decide what would be best for them if I could in fact determine the future.
Just keep in mind that if you should disagree with me that it would be best to watch how you approach the bench. For I have Richard Moll reprising his role as "Bull" from 'Night Court,' and he doesn't take too kindly to not having any work and being relegated to this as it is. So, turn your cell phones off (unless you are reading this by way of the Torch app) and remain silent during the proceedings.
Appeals can be filed at a later date. Our docket is full and up first from the main card of UFC 100 will be Yoshihiro Akiyama and Alan Belcher.
Yoshihiro Akiyama: I would like to see him rematch Alan Belcher but there is no way this will actually happen. There are plenty of good fights for him in the UFC and the ones which make sense would be him meeting the loser of Marquardt vs. Maia, or even perhaps a bout with Michael Bisping.
Akiyama won his debut and with it was able to avoid falling victim to the Octagon like so many others before him. While I awarded Belcher the decision, it is not as if Akiyama gave a poor showing in his debut and perhaps he will be at his best in his next bout.
Of course, before he gets to a next opponent he is going to have to tend to the next young lady in line who wants to take a ride on the Sexyama "Tilt-A-Whirl". Once he gets done pleasing the ladies, it will be back to pleasing the male fans who curiously find themselves attracted to him in a very non-sporting way.
Verdict: Maia or Marquardt
Alan Belcher: Belcher's stock has risen following this loss to Akiyama. Alan Belcher has been taken for granted by all of us and it is a shame because he is a young fighter who has the goods to live up to his moniker of "The Talent".
Up next for Belcher could be damned near anyone and at this point, following his win over Kang and the disputed loss to Akiyama; Belcher's next fight is one worth watching regardless of his opponent.
Verdict: How about Patrick Cote or either Thales Leites or Alessio Sakara depending on the outcome of their bout at UFC 101?
The main thing here is that there will be a next fight for Belcher in the UFC and for once we will all be more cognizant of it and curious to see just what he can do.
Dan Henderson: "Hendo" looked great against Bisping. He looked better than Georges St. Pierre in a suit while dispatching of the former 'TUF' winner. It is clear to all that he did not land one more shot and he should not be roasted over the coals any longer for this post-fight comment that he made.
Was it the best thing to say? No.
This matters not as the most important thing is that Henderson looked better than he has in years at UFC 100. Now, part of this should be attributed to the fact that perhaps he was more motivated to put forth a greater effort and this combined with the knowledge that maybe Bisping is not as good as I or others thought and it all added up to a truly dominant performance.
Verdict: Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight Championship
No other fight will do and no other fighter deserves this title shot any more than Henderson does at this time. Some have made an argument for Okami, and I can agree that he has been overlooked, but by no means is he more deserving than "Hendo". Dan gave Anderson one hell of a fight at UFC 82 and is the only man in the division outside of Maia that I can see as being capable of taking the title.
Michael Bisping: Bisping is still a superstar in the world of MMA and the single biggest star in the U.K. today. This was a brutal loss but he can take solace in that it was a loss to one of the very, very best in the world and a true legend of the sport in Henderson.
Bisping can and will bounce back. The tough decision to make is how do you get to that point? The UFC can ill afford to put him back out there and have him suffer another loss but at the same time you cannot give him a tomato can as this does no one any good. The choice of Bisping's next opponent will tell me more about the UFC's plans financially than anything else as odds are they will put Bisping in against a 'TUF' fighter in a rebound match which gives him the chance to make a nice statement.
A bout against Belcher would be a great choice but it might not be the best choice from a UFC standpoint as they could ill afford to have Belcher topple Bisping. No matter who he beats, Belcher will never be as important as Bisping in terms of generating revenue for the promotion. So, it is a fight which makes sense from our perspective but not from another.
Verdict: How about Nate Quarry regardless of the outcome of his bout against Credeur at 'Fight Night'? This one is an easy sell as fans know both men very well from 'TUF' and it could make for a decent fight as well as a slumpbuster for Bisping.
Outside of Quarry, I see a fight against Denis Kang as being one that is worthwhile and outside of both and highly unlikely is one against Patrick Cote. No need for Cote to take that risk right now, but for Bisping it would be well worth it. All said, I think Quarry is his best bet and the best bet for the UFC.
Georges St. Pierre: How about a 'GSP' primetime special on Spike? St. Pierre could sing, dance and backflip his way through a lineup of welterweight challengers in a special one night tournament.
St. Pierre made Alves look like he didn't even belong in the UFC with that performance, and for the immediate moment there is not one single welterweight in the UFC worthy of making direct eye contact with Georges much less fighting him.
It's "Super Fight" time with Silva
Verdict: Anderson Silva or bust. Silva must first get through this unnecessary bout with Griffin at UFC 101 and then he can get back to serious business. Silva must defend his title against Henderson but the biggest fight for the UFC would be for him to defend it against St. Pierre.
I say take one cue from boxing and give Henderson some "step aside" money and make this bout happen. Then, Henderson gets the winner and doesn't have to risk a loss in the meantime while waiting for his shot. St. Pierre vs. Silva is the next big fight for UFC and it must happen after the first of the year.
Thiago Alves: Wow. Alves got taken down so many times it was like he was teaching wrestling to youngsters at the local parks and rec. Thiago Alves is a world class opponent and a wrecking ball but he just happened to face someone he could not touch at UFC 100. Before anyone dares to laugh at Alves, it would of course be pointed out that no one else on the planet can touch St. Pierre at the moment.
Well, save for those twins in the third row of section E.
Outside of those young ladies and every Canadian grandmother who wants to rub his shoulder and offer up her granddaughter, there isn't a single fighter save for maybe a peak Anderson Silva who could fare any better than Alves at UFC 100.
Thiago Alves is still one of the best and for those wanting to get past the velvet ropes in the welterweight division, it is going to take getting past this brawny Brazilian. No one can touch St. Pierre but Alves stands right beneath him and is surely to pick off everyone else who thinks they stand a chance.
Verdict: Jon Fitch.
Period. It is time for Fitch and Alves to have a rematch and it is a necessary bout as both men have much to prove and very little to fight for in the division. This is a compelling bout which pleases the fans, suits the UFC and puts one of the two men right in that slot at the top of the division while still being miles away from the champion.
Jon Fitch: Fitch is, without a doubt, one of the very best fighters in the world. He was perilously close to having to ply his trade elsewhere over some video game nonsense but cooler heads prevailed and here he remains.
Although, given the divide between he and St. Pierre, one would wonder if he wouldn’t have been better off heading over to Strikeforce and maybe getting the chance to face Jake Shields.
Fitch took care of business against Paulo Thiago at UFC 100 but he didn't quite do all that most were hoping he could. At any rate, this means Thiago is closer to being the real deal than we had imagined and that Fitch is still right up there beneath the very elite of the division if not the entire sport.
Verdict: Thiago Alves.
See Thiago Alves' verdict and it states the case for why this fight should take place. Fitch will not see another title shot very soon so why not fight for the title of "Best UFC Welterweight Not Named Georges St. Pierre" and take this bout in his next outing? It makes sense all the way around.
Paulo Thiago: This guy disarms Brazilian drug dealers when he isn't trying to subdue his opponents in a sporting manner. To do what he does in his spare time makes all of the UFC badass fighters look like Rascal Flatts by comparison. Yeah, the "Me and My Gang" singers. That's the sort of gang that the UFC fighters belong to when you picture Thiago taking a gun from the hands of a coked up dealer in Brazil.
Thiago just didn't show enough of this toughness at UFC 100. Or, at least his face never displayed the fact he was putting forth a supreme effort. I can break a sweat with ease at times when I feel I haven't even done anything strenuous, and sometimes my facials are like something from the Godley and Creme video for their song "Cry" when I take a bowel movement. Paulo Thiago could have played in the WSOP with his facials from UFC 100. He never broke a sweat and looked very calm a la Royce Gracie vs. Matt Hughes from UFC 60. He also nearly broke down Jon Fitch and is most definitely the real deal in this division.
Verdict: Brock Larson or Dustin Hazelett would both make for solid opponents and great fights for us to watch. I would have to lean more towards Hazelett though and for both men it would make for a solid match up.
Other possibles for me would be the loser of Swick vs. Kampmann or Trigg vs. Koscheck which could possibly give us a compelling rematch of sorts. Thiago faced a supreme test against Fitch, and while he didn't pass, it is clear that he belongs in the UFC and his next fight could better determine just where he should rank.
Brock Lesnar: There is no one currently in the UFC heavyweight division who is capable of defeating Lesnar. Velasquez has no chin, Kongo cannot avoid the takedowns, Gonzaga was blasted and Nogueira and Couture are pretty much just fighting for the same prize Fitch and Alves will be contesting for in the welterweight division.
Lesnar has done what no fighter has ever done in just five bouts. Obviously, no one else has had the opportunities come this early but it cannot be denied that Lesnar made the most of them. Sure, you can argue he shouldn't have had a title shot so early but can you argue that successfully after having seen him stop Couture and destroy Mir?
Many of the fans hate Lesnar. The media is split down the middle. Lesnar is good for the sport in so many ways that while you may not agree with everything he does, it must be agreed upon that he could be the biggest thing our sport needs right now. Sure, he doesn't bow in the center of the Octagon or give a damn what the message boards think, but he also puts butts in the seats which is something few of the message board favorites have proven capable of doing.
Which is something those fans should view as a decidedly good thing. The bulk of fans still have no clue why Akiyama's signing was significant but his having gotten to fight on a Lesnar card gave him the best platform ever in terms of selling his wares to these new fans. So, hate Lesnar all you want but you have to love his presence, as it makes MMA mean more to the world and generates more money which inevitably should trickle down to your beloved fighters.
Shane Carwin is no challenge to Lesnar. Right now, the cool opinion to have is that Carwin is the one guy in the UFC who could beat Brock but I feel this reeks of fans not wanting to be viewed as if they have hopped on the Lesnar bandwagon. Bandwagon or not, WWE or not, Lesnar is everything Carwin is but turned up to a Spinal Tap level of eleven.
The only thing Carwin is that cannot be denied is the next logical contender for the title if he can get past Velasquez. Because until the UFC opens up their wallet, Fedor is not facing Lesnar.
Elvis wouldn't play for free and Fedor will not be fighting for peanuts.
Verdict: Winner of Shane Carwin vs. Cain Velasquez bout will get to step inside of a cage and have the doors locked as they face a hulking monster who could possibly be made angrier by the time this fight happens. Mir poked the bear and the bear bent him over a barrel and had his way with him while showing his teeth to the crowd. Carwin and Velasquez had better offer up a fish or something, less they get remembered as but a greasy spot next to the Bud Light ad on the canvas.
Frank Mir: Mir will never again ride a motorcycle, or at least not while he is under the employment of the UFC. Mir will also never again poke at a bear like Brock Lesnar if he knows just what is good for him. Which in many ways takes away so much of what truly makes Mir one of the best heavyweights in the world. While I am not exactly championing his performance against Lesnar, it is of my opinion that Mir is in fact one of the world's best, and this is why Brock's win means so much.
Brock Lesnar proved the Gracies wrong. Well, at least this is how many fans will take what happened at UFC 100. See, we were always told that BJJ could take a much larger man and bring him down to size and allow you to subdue him or submit him. Mir's black belt turned into a white flag as Lesnar beat him like a rented mule.
Now, I don't know for absolute certain what a beaten rented mule looks like, but I have seen a woman walk away after starring in a Tijuana Donkey Show, and she bore a striking resemblance to Mir post-UFC 100.
BJJ will topple big, meathead grapplers most days of the week and those who understand the nuances of the sport know this to be true. So, it is a slight problem in some respects that some new fans may view Lesnar's win as if BJJ were somehow ineffective. It isn't. It's just that Brock Lesnar is special, and this is why he was able to run over a peak Frank Mir as if he were Emmanuel Yarbrough.
Frank Mir looked great before the fight. In shape, strong, hungry and with his mind focused on the fight. Hopefully he loses none of this and gets back inside the Octagon sooner rather than later. He needs to prove that the best Frank Mir beats everyone save for this anomaly named Lesnar and position himself as the Jon Fitch of the division. Mir is better than he once was, but that just isn't enough once against the rapidly improving Lesnar. It will be enough against most others and there are plenty of fights for him.
Verdict: Cheick Kongo or perhaps the loser of Velasquez vs. Carwin.
I'd favor Mir against any of the above and would really, really love to see him in against Carwin, but that one is not likely to happen any time soon. Kongo isn't doing anything right now and once Mir is healthy enough to fight again it would make for a solid fight and one which could put Mir right back in the mix. Frank is a very, very good fighter and a superb athlete. Lesnar beat a peak Mir, and this is what, in my opinion, made his victory at UFC 100 mean so very much.
Frank Mir will be tested now as he has once again lost everything and in some way, it is as if Lesnar is another motorcycle wreck as he will have to pick himself back up, heal his wounds and prove to the world that he can do it all over again. He will prove this and should look to do so against Kongo but there is no way he sees a third fight with Lesnar any time soon.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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