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by Shawn Ennis, MMATorch Senior Columnist RECOMMENDATION: There was a fight of the year candidate on the show, but other than that it wasn’t great. So it depends on what you want. It’s hard to say much more than that, to be quite honest.
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It’s 10:00 Eastern Time on July 5, and you know what that means. That’s right: cue the horrendous gladiator footage! Check out the black and white interview segments! Observe the sepia highlight reel! It’s time for UFC 86: Jackson vs. Griffin!
Hello again, everyone. I’m Shawn Ennis, and I’ll be your host this evening. We’ve got a card that could go either way as far as entertainment value tonight, but the main event should be worth the price of admission. So let’s get it started.
Goldberg and Rogan sign on for the night, and Rogan is looking festive in the first non-black shirt I’ve ever seen him wear on-air.
Our first fight comes a refreshing six minutes into the broadcast. (Are you watching, Dream?) Goldberg proclaims that Griffin-Aurelio could be another fight of the night for Griffin’s resume. Color me skeptical on that one, but I suppose it could happen.
FIRST FIGHT: TYSON GRIFFIN vs. MARCUS “MAXIMUS” AURELIO (Lightweight)
I like this fight on paper, but I see Griffin kind of rolling over Aurelio. I just don’t think Aurelio can keep the pace that Griffin will keep, and I see him getting overwhelmed. Aurelio comes out to some generic rap song that makes me think of the “Fight Night” video games, and Griffin shadowboxes his way to the Octagon to the strains of “Eye of the Tiger”, as he always does. Wow, they just showed the tale of the tape, and Aurelio has a 6" reach advantage. That doesn't change my pick, but it certainly makes things interesting.
ROUND ONE:
Griffin ducks in for a body punch but misses. They feint for a bit, and Griffin goes low again. No dice. A minute has passed, and the Vegas crowd is annoyed. Body punch connects for Griffin. Aurelio whiffs a combination, and Griffin misses a punch as well. Griffin looks to be feeling out the range. He blocks a right hand by Aurelio. Aurelio attacks and gets caught in a bodylock and thrown to the canvas. Griffin looks to capitalize with diving strikes, and he’s wary not to get into Aurelio’s guard. Aurelio attempts to bring Griffin down and perhaps secure a triangle, but Griffin defends. Aurelio pulls Griffin into his guard, but Griffin tries to keep his feet. He eventually goes to the ground, but stays in a postured up position. Aurelio alternately looks for triangles and armbars as he takes punishment from Griffin. They work their way back to the feet. Leg kick lands for Griffin, and a left-right combination. Left land for Aurelio, and Griffin thunders a leg kick to counter. Body punch lands for Griffin, and an uppercut. He’s got Aurelio confused, and he lands another nice leg kick as Aurelio covers his face. Another leg kick by Griffin as Aurelio shoots. Griffin has none of it, and they clinch as the round ends. Griffin takes the round and jobs back to his corner.
ROUND TWO:
They exchange immediately and Griffin gets the better of the punching. He lands two leg kicks for good measure. He is punishing the left leg of Aurelio. Body punch, body kick, and another leg kick for Griffin. Aurelio has no answer for Griffin’s striking. He takes another leg kick, then lands a nice jab and looks to take Griffin down. Griffin stuffs it and they clinch. Not sure why Aurelio isn’t pulling guard in these situations, and Rogan echoes my thought. Griffin is bullying Aurelio against the fence and he’s throwing body shots. Aurelio lands some decent knees to the midsection. Griffin lifts and slams Aurelio and lands in half guard. Aurelio gets a hold of Griffin’s leg and sweeps. He takes Griffin’s back, and this is dangerous territory. Griffin works the position well and ends up in Aurelio’s guard. Aurelio grabs a triangle, and Griffin pulls out. Aurelio looks for an omoplata, but Griffin has none of it. Griffin gets into the full guard and lands a nice backward elbow to the face, followed by some punches to Aurelio’s legs. The round ends in that position, and Griffin takes another one.
ROUND THREE:
Griffin is still fresh, and he lands a punching combination. Leg kick and right cross by Griffin. Nasty combinations here by Griffin. Griffin shoots for a takedown and eats a knee for his troubles. He doesn’t react other than to dole out further punishment. Leg kick by Griffin, and a left hook. Straight right hand, and another leg kick. Aurelio has no desire to keep this on the feet and yet knows he can’t get it to the ground, and he looks utterly helpless at this point. He shoots and Griffin hands him another denial. More punches land for Griffin, and Aurelio begins to answer back. He’s throwing punches but they have no zip. Griffin continues to pick him apart on the feet. He’s throwing so many strikes from so many angles, and Aurelio is simply exhausted. Griffin shoots and takes Aurelio down easily. Griffin lands elbows, and Aurelio looks for a triangle. I’m guessing Griffin practiced avoiding triangles a little bit in preparation for this fight. Griffin remains in the guard, and Aurelio continues to look for submissions. He never comes close despite Griffin leaving his arm in when he postures up. The third round ends, and Griffin is barely breathing hard. He runs a 5k and then comes back to the Octagon to hear what will surely be a 30-27 result on all three cards.
RESULT: Griffin by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (**+) Nothing spectacular here. We’ve seen this fight before. Grappling specialist with a good chin gets overwhelmed and outworked. Grappler has a chance off his back, but that’s about it.
RAMIFICATIONS: I wouldn’t be surprised either way with what happens to Aurelio. He could stay and fight as a gatekeeper, or he could get cut. He’s a bit one-dimensional, so he’s not going to be making waves any time soon. Griffin continues his steady climb in the lightweight division. He’s sufficiently recovered from his only career loss last year, and he looked good tonight. I don’t know if he has knockout power on the feet, but he could certainly pound someone out if given the opportunity. I wouldn’t mind seeing him fight Gray Maynard, who beat Frankie Edgar. It might be a little early for Maynard to fight Griffin though…how about a showdown with Matt Wiman? There’s a good one for you.
SECOND FIGHT: JOSH KOSCHECK vs. CHRIS “LIGHTS OUT” LYTLE (Welterweight)
Lytle looks good coming to the ring with Limp Bizkit-lite or something playing in the background. Almost a Saliva-type song or something. I don’t know. Koscheck is cool and calm on his way down with another generic song playing in the background. It sounds like a tribute from Diddy to Biggie or something. Again, I don’t know.
ROUND ONE:
Lytle goes after Koscheck with strikes, but doesn’t connect with any. He throws some overhand rights that miss. Inside leg kick by Lylte. Koscheck lands a head kick. Right hand by Lytle, and a body shot. Koscheck continues to hang out and feel things out. Koscheck checks a leg kick. Punching combination by Koscheck, and he slips throwing a head kick. He gets right back up, and they circle. Head kick by Lytle, and Koscheck takes him down. Lytle almost catches him in a guillotine, but lets it go. Koscheck is in half guard, and he’s working on passing it. Lytle brings Koscheck into full guard, and Koscheck lands a big elbow and a punch. Lytle gets into butterfly guard, and Koscheck picks him up and moves him against the fence, almost taking mount. Lytle escapes and gets back into butterfly. Koscheck finishes round one with some big hammer fists, and he probably takes the round by a little.
ROUND TWO:
Lytle feels out a jab to start. Koscheck throws a nice body kick. Overhand right misses for Lytle. He’s really looking for that. Koscheck shoots, and Lytle defends really well, getting back to the feet. Koscheck doles out some knees and elbows on the way back up. They’re on the feet, and Koscheck shoots. Lytle looks for a guillotine again, but Koscheck is in half guard and it won’t stay. Koscheck lands some elbows and looks to pass into mount. Nasty shots by Koscheck against the cage, and Lytle begins to bleed. Elbow lands for Koscheck. He continues to land big elbows to the head from the half guard. Koscheck lands some nasty punches as we switch to a camera with blood spatter on it. Can we not clean that up before we switch to it? We switch cameras and we see the cameraman clean it up, so thank you. Koscheck spins into side control, but Lytle gets half guard again. He is taking some big blows to the dome here and he’s bleeding heavily. Koscheck gets a half-crucifix and pounds Lytle with punches. That’s how the round will end, and it’s a dominant last couple of minutes for Koscheck. Lytle has got a nasty gash above the eyebrow and Goldberg once again tries to compare it to the Marvin Eastman cut from years ago. Rogan calls that one a “goat’s vagina”, so thanks for that, Joe.
ROUND THREE:
Lytle looks to wander in with punches, but he looks fried at this point. Koscheck shoots and pushes Lytle against the fence. He gets Lytle down, and Lytle looks for a kimura and then a guillotine. Koscheck escapes both very impressively. Lytle grabs another guillotine, but lets it go. Goldberg crazily compares the happenings to the Koscheck-Fickett fight from eons ago. Koscheck is throwing nasty elbows, and I’m not sure how much longer this can go on. There’s a puddle of blood under Lytle’s head. More elbows from Koscheck, and this has got to stop. Seriously. Yves Levigne needs to stop this. He does, but only to stand them up. The Octagon looks like a murder scene right now. Lytle walks around the Octagon and looks to throw strikes, but Koscheck avoids. It’s almost as if Koscheck is trying to avoid having to punish Lytle anymore. They clinch against the fence, and the ref breaks them up. Lytle lands some nice shots to end the fight, and I really think that Koscheck didn’t take him down out of sheer mercy. Koscheck takes the round as he’s lustily booed by the crowd.
RESULT: Koscheck by unanimous decision (30-26, 29-27, 30-28)
STAR RATING: (**+) Not a bad scrap. Lytle showed a ton of heart, but I have no idea how a judge could give him any of those three rounds.
RAMIFICATIONS: Lytle looks to be on his way to gatekeeper status. He’s a game fighter and a likeable guy, but he can’t seem to pull out the wins against elite competition. Koscheck moves up the ladder in the crowded welterweight division, and really I’d like to see him fight a Karo Parisyan type guy.
We get a promo for upcoming events, and you’ll have to excuse me for just a moment as my stomach is causing me some grief.
THIRD FIGHT: JOE “DADDY” STEVENSON vs. GLEISON TIBAU (Lightweight)
Tibau excellently comes to the ring to “Iron Man” by Black Sabbath. They talk up Tibau’s size, and he is certainly a huge lightweight. Stevenson enters to some kind of ska-type thing. Am I old, or is no one using any kind of decent music tonight?
ROUND ONE:
Stevenson comes out swinging, and they circle briefly. Stevenson gets the better of a flurry, and Tibau throws a head kick. Stevenson lands a nice right hand and almost sinks a guillotine, but Tibau gets out. Tibau spins almost into an anaconda choke, but Stevenson escapes. They clinch, and Tibau takes Stevenson down. Stevenson uses the cage to stand back up, and he lands an elbow as they exit the clinch. Stevenson shoots and takes Tibau down. He’s in the guard, and he looks to land some ground and pound. Tibau rolls into an omoplata, and that looks close to being tight. Stevenson gets into a good position to defend and remains calm. Tibau looks to land some punches, and Stevenson lowers his head to allow Tibau to land punches to the top of the head. They smile at each other. It’s a stalling position, but you can’t stand them up because it’s a submission attempt. The action stalls as the round ends, and Tibau will take that round for having Stevenson in that position.
ROUND TWO:
Stevenson comes out with jabs. Tibau answers with a nice combination. Stevenson comes in for a takedown attempt and eats some punches in order to do so. Tibau remains vertical and they clinch against the fence. Tibau eventually imposes his will and gets the fight down, but Stevenson stands back up. He smiles as Tibau lands punches, then whiffs one of his own, and Tibau takes him down. He passes very nicely into side control, and then gets the mount with 3:00 left. Stevenson pushes him off and makes his way back to the feet. Very impressive by Stevenson even as Tibau made a mistake on the ground, going for a top-side triangle. Nice straight body punch by Stevenson. The sequence repeats itself with Stevenson missing and Tibau shooting for the takedown. The difference here is that Stevenson grabs another trademark guillotine and unbelievably taps Tibau. They always talk up Stevenson’s guillotine, but that’s with good reason. He has tapped a lot of people with that hold.
RESULT: Stevenson by submission at 2:57 of round two.
STAR RATING: (***) Stevenson was losing that fight until he grabbed that choke.
RAMIFICATIONS: Stevenson rebounds nicely from a crushing loss to BJ Penn for the title. He’ll be around for a long time. I’d like to see him fight Sean Sherk down the road. It’s probably too soon right now, but that’d be a good fight. Really though, I’d like to see him fight Eddie Alvarez. That’s an intriguing fight to me. Perhaps some day.
FOURTH FIGHT: RICARDO “BIG DOG” ALMEIDA vs. PATRICK “THE PREDATOR” COTE (Middleweight)
It’s co-main event time, and Almeida chooses “Fortunate Son” by CCR as entrance music. Cote, meanwhile, breaks out the French rap. That always sounds weird to me.
ROUND ONE:
Miguel Torres gets some camera time, which is nice. They circle to start, and Almeida goes low immediately. Cote says “no,”, and they clinch. Almeida jumps guard and looks for a standing guillotine. This brings the fight to the ground and Almeida looks for rubber guard. Cote escapes and they get back to the feet. Jumping kick to the chest by Almeida. Right hand misses for Cote, and Almeida shoots. They clinch, and Almeida delivers a knee. They jockey for position against the fence with Cote avoiding the takedown. Almeida continues to work for position and he gets Cote down. Cote looks to move up against the fence, but Almeida disagrees with that decision, pulling him away. Almeida postures up and throws some punches, then moves into half guard. Punches to the body by Almeida. He lands some nice punches from the half guard. Cote scrambles, but Almeida keeps top position. Cote continues to try and use upkicks to get some space, but Almeida rains down punches, smartly mixing in punches to the body. The round ends, and it was almost all Almeida. Really impressive showing by Big Dog so far.
Almeida has a torn glove, which causes a delay between rounds. Herb Dean is not going to let the fight continue until it’s taken care of, and good for him.
ROUND TWO:
Almeida lands a hook and shoots, but Cote lands an uppercut to answer. Almeida ducks under a punch and tries to take it down again, but Cote shrugs him off. Cote looks to strike again, and Almeida drags him down. He uses rubber guard, but Cote escapes and stands again. Almeida is getting a bit predictable here, but he’s making Cote hesitant. Cote moves in to clinch, and Almeida tries to take him down. Knee to the body by Cote. Cote winds up and throws an elbow to exit the clinch. Right hand by Almeida. Cote looks for the right hand, but Almeida avoids nicely. Body punch by Cote. Coteengages and avoids being taken down. Leg kick by Cote. Cote misses with a punch and Almeida grabs a bodylock, backing Cote up against the fence. Knee from the clinch by Almeida, and he jumps guard into a guillotine attempt. Cote escapes and it’s back on the feet. Superman punch attempt misses for Cote, and he tags Almeida as the round ends. I’d give that one to Cote. Almeida looks tired.
ROUND THREE:
Cote looks to swing, and Almeida grabs another bodylock. They separate and circle again. Cote continues to look for the Superman punch, and he lands a big leg kick. Right hand by Cote, and Almeida is tired. Cote continues to try to set up strikes, and Almeida isn’t even trying to shoot. He’s exhausted. Cote lands more leg kicks. Almeida lands a right hand, and Cote answers with another leg kick. He lands a left hand to the head. Almeida finally grabs a takedown with 30 seconds left, and Cote pushes him off. Almeida moves into side control. He looks for a Peruvian Necktie (according to Joe Rogan; I’ll take his word for it), and Cote moves into full guard as the round ends. Close round; I’d probably give it to Cote.
RESULT: Cote by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).
STAR RATING: (**-) Just barely makes it into the two-star range, as the action completely stalled in the third. If Almeida had better stamina, he probably could have taken the fight.
RAMIFICATIONS: Well, apparently Cote will get a title shot, but neither of these guys has anything at all for Anderson Silva. I’d like to see Almeida fight Rousimar Palhares, or maybe a rematch with Nate Marquardt.
FIFTH FIGHT: QUINTON “RAMPAGE” JACKSON (CHAMP) vs. FORREST GRIFFIN (CHALLENGER) (LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT)
First we get a movie trailer, which never ceases to piss me off during a Pay-Per-View.
Griffin enters to some faux-Irish stuff. They’re playing up Griffin’s amount of heart, which is deserved, but heart never won a championship by itself. Rampage obviously has his own theme music, and I believe he’s coming to the ring with both the UFC and Pride belts. That’s kind of cool. I think the only disadvantage Rampage has coming into the fight is the reach differential. We shall see.
ROUND ONE:
They come out swinging, and Griffin lands a leg kick. Another leg kick for Forrest. Uppercut misses for Jackson. Head kick blocked by Rampage. Griffin lands a combination. Jackson seems to b feeling out the range. Griffin lands a hook. Body kick by Griffin. Body punch by Rampage. Leg kick by Griffin, and Jackson lands a big shot. Leg kick by Griffin lands. Griffin continues to land kicks. Left hook by Jackson, and I don’t know about his footwork so far. Griffin lands two more leg kicks. Jackson lands a big left hook and wobbles Griffin. Griffin moves back in and lands some kicks. Leg kick by Griffin. Those are going to add up quickly. Left hook by Griffin. Big uppercut by Rampage puts Griffin on the ground, and Rampage moves him to the fence. He’s in Griffin’s guard. Griffin uses good wrist control to avoid too much damage, and Griffin scrambles back to the feet. Leg kick by Forrest, and Rampage misses an uppercut. Left hand lands for Griffin, and the round ends. I give the round to Rampage by a hair, but he’s got a look on his face that says, “I may have underestimated this guy.”
ROUND TWO:
Leg kick by Griffin hurts Rampage badly. Rampage shoots, and Forrest looks for knees in the clinch and almost grabs a guillotine. Forrest takes the fight down and gets on top. Griffin in the half guard. Rampage is in deep trouble. Forrest looks for ground and pound from the half guard. Goldberg opts to talk about TUF rather than call the freaking fight. Griffin passes to side control. He lands elbows from the side and looks for an Americana. Elbows from the side. Punches to the head by Griffin. He moves to the mount with 2:00 left in the round. Forrest works the ground and pound, but there’s nothing too damaging going on here. Rampage, however, isn’t offering any resistance at all. This is not the Rampage we’ve seen in the UFC. I’m not sure how, but Jackson is still surviving. Griffin takes round two in dominating fashion.
ROUND THREE:
Rampage isn’t responding to Juanito here; I think he may be done. Griffin fakes a leg kick. Kick to the head by Griffin. Rampage lands a punch. Head kick blocked by Jackson. Rampage is finally moving out of the way of those leg kicks. Body kick by Griffin. Inside leg kick lands, and he smacks a kick into the side of Rampage’s head. Rampage answers with a nice punching combo. Griffin moves in, and Jackson catches him with a big left hand. Another left hand by Jackson. Body kick-leg kicks by Griffin. Left-right by Rampage. Right hand lands for Griffin, and another leg kick, which Jackson checks. Left hook lands for Griffin. Big jab lands for Jackson, and he takes an inside leg kick. Big body punch by Jackson. Superman punch is blocked by Jackson. Inside leg kick by Griffin. Left hand lands for Jackson, and he’s still got some power. Griffin lands a nice left hand, and Rampage comes after him to engage. Griffin escapes as the round ends, and I’d say Jackson takes that round. He may only be even at this point, as it’s feasible that round 2 was 10-8 for Griffin.
ROUND FOUR:
That seemed like a recovery round for Jackson, and he’s looking intense. Leg kick by Griffin, and a head kick. Left-right combo land for both fighters. Left-right lands for Jackson, and he hurts Griffin. More uppercuts for Jackson, and Forrest has had enough of that. He trips Jackson and gets him into the full guard. Forrest looks for a triangle and gets it. Jackson stands up and looks to go all Arona on Forrest, but Griffin wisely lets it go. He’s watched the highlight reel. Jackson’s not doing much from inside the guard, but he lands an elbow. They stand, and Jackson smashes Griffin with an uppercut on the way up. Left-right by Jackson. Griffin looks for jabs. Big left hand lands for Jackson. He follows up with a right, and then another left. Jackson lands a couple of nice shots as the round closes, and that is a very tough one to call. I’m giving it to Jackson. Forrest had the triangle, but Rampage escaped it and doled out more punishment.
ROUND FIVE:
Griffin comes out with kicks and jabs. Leg kick lands for Griffin. Right hand by Jackson. Another leg kick for Griffin, and another. Straight right hand by Griffin. Big leg kick by Griffin, and he almost grabs a Thai clinch. Big right hand by Jackson, and a leg kick. Head kick almost lands for Griffin. Right hand lands for Griffin. Left hand lands for Jackson, and Griffin sticks a nice jab in his face. Two leg kicks by Griffin, and Jackson lands some shots to the body. Knees to the body by Griffin. Leg kick lands for Forrest. Right hand lands to the jaw of Jackson. Combination by Jackson, and he is shaky. Leg kick by Forrest. Body shot by Rampage, and an uppercut. They’re slugging it out in the last ten seconds, and they clinch to end. Wow. I’d give that round to Griffin by a hair, and if the second was 10-8 Griffin, which I believe it was, then Lord help me, I’m calling it a freaking draw.
RESULT: Griffin by unanimous decision (49-46, 48-46, 48-46).
STAR RATING: (****+) That was an unbelievable fight. I don’t agree with the decision at all, at least by a point standpoint. I’ll have to watch it again.
RAMIFICATIONS: I don’t ever expect to see Rampage underestimate anyone again, because I have no doubt that’s what happened here. All the credit in the world to Griffin, though, because he came in with the perfect gameplan. I don’t know how Jackson wasn’t ready for the leg kicks. I think Griffin’s first defense should be against either Wanderlei Silva or Chuck Liddell, depending on what happens in both men’s next fights. As for Jackson, how about a rematch with Mauricio Rua? This is definitely a fight worth talking about, and there will be no shortage of words over the next few days, so I’ll leave it at that for now. And there’s still more fights!
SIXTH FIGHT (Prelim): MELVIN “THE YOUNG ASSASSIN” GUILLARD vs. DENNIS SIVER (Lightweight)
ROUND ONE: Guillard comes out immediately and cracks Siver with two big right hands. He follows Siver down early, but Siver is able to weather. They get back to the feet, and Guillard does it again. This time, though, he finishes the job and puts Siver out.
RESULT: Guillard by KO at 0:36 of round 1.
STAR RATING: (*+) Not much to it. Guillard did what I figured he’d do.
RAMIFICATIONS: Siver is likely done in the UFC, and if Guillard can get a decent ground game going, he will be the king of all lightweights in a few years. Dude has got some ridiculous power.
That’s about it for tonight. We’ll be around later for a roundtable, and there will certainly be an abundance of coverage over the next few days. So stay tuned for all that. Until next time, enjoy the fights.
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