Hyden's Take
HYDEN BLOG: Mark Munoz, and Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos
Nov 9, 2011 - 7:45:26 AM HYDEN BLOG: Mark Munoz, and Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos

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By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch contributor

Mark Munoz pummeled Chris Leben at UFC 138, earning the corner stoppage after the second round. That's a really good win for him; however, he then preceded to say he deserves a title shot against Anderson Silva for the UFC MIddleweight Championship. Easy, Romeo. Munoz calling out Silva for a title shot is so premature it makes Jim Levenstein from American Pie look like a marathon man. There's no way in the world Mark Munoz is more deserving of a title shot than anyone else. That's not to say that Munoz is a bad fighter, or that he can't get to a title shot, but he does have to win at least one more big fight before getting a title shot.

The biggest problem I have with Munoz saying he deserves a title shot is that he hasn't earned it yet. It's true he's won four fights in a row, but it's not like he's beaten elite fighters in the division. It's great that he stopped Chris Leben, but nobody in their right mind sees Leben as anything more than an entertaining brawler. Munoz also beat Demian Maia, but he barely edged that fight and got out-struck at times by a fighter known only for his ground game. To start chirping about deserving a title shot now is void of all credibility.

For Munoz to truly deserve a title shot he will have to face a top contender next, and defeat him in such a way as to remove all doubt that he's the real deal. Title shots are not given because you've had X number of fights in the UFC, you have to earn them by beating guys who also think they deserve a title shot. An alternative is to make the fight more appealing for the UFC by making it more marketable. By no means am I saying that Munoz should pattern himself after Chael Sonnen, but making yourself stand out from the crowd is always a good thing.

You don't call out the champion for a title shot when you don't deserve it, that gets you laughed at. However, if Munoz were to call out Chael Sonnen or Michael Bisping or someone else on that level, he might get that title eliminator fight that he covets. If Munoz were to call out one of the top guys in the division, then go on to defeat him in a convincing manner, a title shot would be all but guaranteed.

UFC brass generally doesn't have a horse in the race, they just want business to be as successful as possible. Munoz has the skill to make himself very desirable to the UFC, and he matches up well against a lot of fighters. The mistake Munoz made was he aimed too high. Most everyone is in agreement that Munoz is at least one big win away from a title shot. If Munoz had called out Sonnen for a fight, I would think most people would say that the winner of Munoz vs. Sonnen would deserve a title shot, especially if Munoz were to manhandle Sonnen in a convincing fashion.

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Cain Velasquez will defend his UFC Heavyweight Title against Junior Dos Santos on Fox this Saturday. I think there will be fireworks, but I don't consider either guy to be the elite striker a lot of others do. Cain took out Brock Lesnar and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, but Brock has bad striking defense and Big Nog has taken so much abuse over the years that it's hard to think of him as elite anymore. Dos Santos had to go to decision with both Roy Nelson and Shane Carwin, both of whom have bad cardio. I know Nelson has good cardio for a man his size, but come on.

I don't think there's any way that you could put Cain or Junior in the same striking category as Anderon Silva or Jon Jones. I don't mean that as an insult to either guy, I just keep hearing people talk about how great these guys are at striking. They're good for heavyweights, but they pale in comparison to good strikers in other divisions.

Having said all this, I do expect there to be a knockout stoppage of some sort, likely the ref jumping in to end the fight. I think Dos Santos is the better fighter, and that he'll get the victory. It's an interesting fight because Cain is a good wrestler and boxer while Dos Santos is a good Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighter and boxer. The commonality there is boxing, and I think Dos Santos is a better boxer. Cain could take Dos Santos down, but then he might get submitted. I think this fight stays on the feet, and Dos Santos gets the win.

It won't surprise me if Cain gets the win, I think he's a very good fighter. The only way this fight would surprise me is if it goes to decision, then I would be stunned speechless. If this fight goes past two rounds, I will be very surprised.

The UFC chose this fight for a number of reasons. One, it's a title fight. Two, there are some fools out there who still dismiss the lighter divisions as being inferior to the heavyweight division, thus, a heavyweight title fight is seen as ideal in those peoples eyes. Three, this is an excellent way to introduce the UFC to new fans in as good a way as possible. This fight is essentially guaranteed to be exciting. This also ups the profile of both Cain and Junior.

All those reasons add up to the UFC making a good choice with this fight being the one to headline their first FOX show. I'll be watching, and I suspect millions more will be watching as well.


Comments and suggestions can be e-mailed to me at hydenfrank@gmail.com