Hyden's Take
HYDEN BLOG: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly from UFC 183 "Silva vs. Diaz"
Feb 4, 2015 - 1:35:24 PM HYDEN BLOG: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly from UFC 183 "Silva vs. Diaz"

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By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch contributor

A newsworthy UFC 183 hit pay-per-view last weekend. Let's get right to it.

UFC 183

GOOD: Thiago Alves stops Jordan Mein

Mein had a huge first round as he pummeled Alves. However, Alves came roaring back with a brutal body kick that basically ended things. Mein fell and Alves pounced to force the ref stoppage.

GOOD: Thales Leites submits Tim Boetsch

Boetsch seemed to be in full control on the feet, but Leites took the fight to the ground in the second round and got the submission win. He was taking a chance standing with Boetsch, but then he took him down and it was over.

GOOD: Al Iaquinta stops Joe Lauzon

Iaquinta got the stoppage late in the second round, but it should have been stopped much sooner. Lauzon was getting it handed to him for a while before the ref finally stepped in. Times like this are when your cornermen need to just throw in the towel. Lauzon wasn't coming back, everyone could see that. This was a nice win for Iaquinta.

UGLY: Tyron Woodley vs. Kelvin Gastelum

This fight sucked, no way around it. This was so incredibly dull that it took the life out of the crowd, who responded as they should and booed the hell out of these guys. If you took all three rounds you might have been able to fill one minute of fighting action. Normally I might just go BAD for this, but Gastelum was just out of the hospital from a bad weight cut, and Woodley still fought like he was afraid to do anything. It's so ironic that Woodley just went off on a Twitter rant against fans who clamor for finishes and then he does this. It's like he's trying to punish us for wanting action. And after the fight (Woodley "won", by the way) Woodley said he was happy with his performance. Really? All I know is the next time Woodley loses in the UFC will be his last time. The UFC will ship him out like they did Jon Fitch, Jake Shields, Yushin Okami, etc.

I understand not wanting to get reckless and crazy, but Woodley wasn't even trying to fight here. That's the problem. Not every fight can have a finish, but it at least needs to have some fight to it.

GOOD/BAD: Anderson Silva vs. Nick Diaz

This fight wasn't anywhere near what I was hoping for. It's clear now that Silva's age has caught up to him. It happens to everyone, and it always sucks when it happens to guys you like. I'm going GOOD because there were some nice moments in the fight, but I'm also going BAD because there was way too much inaction going on as well.

<>UGLY: Anderson Silva test positive for PEDs

Word has also come out that Silva tested positive for PED use in the lead-up to the fight. This seals the deal for me that he needs to retire. It's obvious that he felt like he needed a boost in order to recover from his injury. He might have cycled off before the fight, those results will come later, but he looked off here. Silva's age already makes him think about retiring, and resorting to PED use only reconfirms the thought. To quote Shaquille O'Neal, "39 ain't 29." Silva should just retire and ride off into the sunset. Enjoy life after fighting or go into coaching if he wants. He's got a lot of options. If he chooses to keep fighting, there's an increased likelihood of him getting hurt. Using PEDs to recover from an injury is probably more common than we know, but Silva is about to turn 40. You don't heal quicker as you get older. It's probably time for Silva to get out. It's not the end anyone expected, but it rarely is.

Opinions vary as to whether or not Silva is the greatest fighter in MMA history, but he's certainly in the top three. He made a mistake in using PEDs to recover from an injury. I think it would be another mistake to keep fighting at this point. He's not going to beat UFC Middleweight Champion Chris Weidman, and as he ages he'll struggle to beat more and more guys until no one is left. Enjoy retirement.

<>UGLY: Nick Diaz still smokes too much

It's not exactly a big surprise that Diaz tested positive marijuana above the allowable levels, but that's why this is UGLY. I don't want to get into marijuana use and whether it's bad or not, I personally think it should be legal everywhere and at any level in your system, but the rules are the rules. We can work towards legalizing it everywhere, but for now the rules are very clear. Nick has done this a few other times in the past, so he knows those rules. If he wants to play the game, he has to play within the rules. It's really just that simple.

Comments and suggestions can be emailed to me at hydenfrank@gmail.com and you can follow me on Twitter at @hydenfrank