THE TORCH: THE #1 WORLDWIDE BRAND IN COMBAT ENTERTAINMENT COVERAGE - OVER 250 MILLION VIEWS & LISTENS PER YEAR REREACHING MORE FANS EVERY WEEK THAN ANY OTHER INDEPENDENT SOURCE • VIA THE WEB, MOBILE, PRINT NEWSLETTER, AND ITUNES
Hello again and welcome back to DVD World. My name is Brian Sweet and it is my pleasure to present this week's review of "Pride.33: The Second Coming." As always, please feel free to drop me a line at bs2647@gmail.com if you have a request for a specific event to be reviewed or questions regarding anything having to do with MMA or DVDs. I may be able to point you in the right direction if you are having problems completing your collection. Without further ado, let's get down to business and have a look at this week's selection.
Pride.33 - The Second Coming
February 24, 2007
Thomas and mack Center
Las Vegas, Nev.
SETTING THE STAGE
This event took place near the end of Pride's existence; Pride was embroiled in a controversy supposedly involving the yakuza in Japan, which left the organization without a television deal. Imagine the UFC being thrown off Spike TV. This would prove devastating to the UFC as the Ultimate Fighter would cease to exist as well as opportunities for Zuffa to plug their pay per view events every commercial break. In any case, Pride felt they had to take their show on the road and attempt to capitalize on some of the UFC's mainstream success.
This event was Pride's second foray into the American market and it needed to deliver in order to remain afloat. Although Pride.33 turned out to be, in my opinion, one of the greatest MMA cards of all time, sales were not enough to help Pride remain in business much longer. Shortly after this event took place, Zuffa bought Pride out and would go on to sign several of its biggest stars to UFC contracts.
Many of the hardcore fans knew about Pride's money problems already. Yet nobody really expected Zuffa to buy them out and to change the course of MMA history in such dramatic fashion. I remember watching this event live on pay per view and it became obvious early in the evening that something special was taking place before my eyes. I can't quite put into words how different this event felt compared to Pride shows that took place in Japan. However, I can say that I walked away from that night feeling quite optimistic that Pride would continue promoting some great events for years to come. But things don't always happen the way we would like them to. I admit that I am a Pride fan boy from years back, and I am proud to say that this event is one of my top five favorite shows. Hopefully readers that do not own this event will be compelled to do so after this review, because Pride.33 is simply on another level.
The main event for this offering was Dan "Hollywood" Henderson taking on Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva in a bout for the Pride Middleweight Championship. These two participated in an all out brawl, which ended in a vicious knockout that made history. Further stacking the card, "The Fireball Kid' Takanori Gomi participated in what I consider the 2007 fight of the year, when he scrapped with Nick Diaz in a fight that became in instant classic. The Gomi/Diaz fight produced an unbelievable submission victory along with a fantastic display of boxing technique and pure determination.
Brazilian muay thai fighter, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua also made an appearance at Pride.33 as he took on everyone's favorite Strikeforce champion, Alistair "Ubereem" Overeem in a rematch from Final Conflict 2005. This scrap produced a highlight reel knockout that was quite surprising, considering the way the fight was going before said outcome. Sergei Kharitonov also competed here in Vegas as he fought tough submission specialist, Mike Russow in a fight that turned into a technical ground war. Further deepening Pride.33, TUF winner Mac Danzig took on Hayato "Mach" Sakurai in a striking battle that featured some technical boxing and ended in a nice knockout.
One of the top upsets of the year was on this card as well; Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou established himself as a future star in the making as he managed to knock out Antonio Rogerio Nogueira in no less than 23 seconds. One of the aspects of this fight that is so interesting is the fact that Nogueira enjoyed one of the biggest favorite odds ever in an MMA fight. We will get into that later on in the review. The last two fights of the night featured returning UFC and Pride veteran, Frank "Twinkle Toes" Trigg taking on Pride Welterweight Grand Prix champ, Kazuo Misaki. This fight produced the only decision victory of the night, but did have its share of fireworks and some solid ground work. The last fight that occurred at Pride.33 was between future Dream Lightweight Grand Prix champ, Joachim "Hellboy" Hansen and Jason Ireland. This scrap proved highly competitive and quite entertaining as several near submissions were attempted and a good striking display provided for a good brawl to begin the evening's festivities.
FIGHT ONE:
Jason Ireland vs. Joachim "Hellboy" Hansen
There is not much background on this fight. This was Ireland's Pride debut and he came in riding a two fight win steak. Not much was known about Ireland, but Pride fans certainly knew who Hellboy was. Hansen had just lost a fight to Shinya Aoki at "Shockwave 2006" via gogoplata, which was the first time anyone had lost by that particular maneuver in a Pride ring. Hansen wasn't only remembered for that loss; he earned several wins at various Bushido shows and was known for having excellent knee strikes as well as a great ground game. This fight turned out to be the last in Pride for both men, but it was exciting and worthy of being on a great fight card like this one.
The Fight
Round 1 - Hansen begins with a leg kick and Ireland follows suit before clinching and executing a trip takedown. Ireland stands up and lands another leg kick. Jason nails another leg kick that sends Hansen reeling to the canvas. He gets back up and resets. Steve Mazagatti stops the action to have the tape on Hansen's glove fixed. The action resumes and both men trade punches with Hellboy getting the better of the exchange. Hansen lands a nice straight left hand and backs Ireland up towards the ropes. Jason rushes in and clinches against the ropes. Ireland lands a nice knee in the clinch before the ref separates them. Hansen initiates another clinch and executes a nice takedown of his own. Hellboy lands a few punches from Ireland's guard before standing and diving into half guard. Irelend spins and gives up his back. Hansen looks to work a rear naked choke but can't quite lock it in. Ireland slips out and lands a jab and knee to the midsection. Hansen leads with a leg kick and lands a nice straight left hand. Hellboy throws Ireland to the ground and grabs his back as he looks for another rear naked choke. Ireland evades and stands over Hansen. Jason lands a few leg kicks before diving into guard and works a few punches before the round ends.
Round 2 - Ireland lands a leg kick and follows up with a right high kick that is blocked. Hellboy throws a high kick of his own but Jason ducks under and gets a takedown. Ireland stands and both men get to their feet. Hansen nails a nice uppercut that dazes Ireland and rushes in with a thai clinch and a few massive knees to the dome. Ireland is game and doesn't drop, but Hansen continues with punches and more knees. Ireland manages a guillotine choke attempt, but Hansen gets a takedown and lands in side mount. Ireland gives up his back and both men rise. Hansen lands a few more punches in the corner and executes another thai clinch that spells trouble for Jason. Hansen swings around and gets another takedown, landing in half guard. Ireland works for a kimura but is exhausted and can't lock it in. Hansen executes a few heel strikes on Hansen's ankle in an interesting attack maneuver. Hansen gets to mount and delivers a few punches from the top. Hansen gives up his back as Hansen reigns down punches to the side of his head. The action slows before Hansen tries to finish with an armbar attempt, but Ireland holds on as the round ends.
Round 3 - Both men touch gloves and Ireland raises both hands in an attempt to incite the crowd. Hansen follows suit and the crowd roars in appreciation. Ireland throws out a jab but is nearly countered with a left hook. Ireland backs into a corner and Hansen works a thai clinch and proceeds to nail two knees but Jason shoots in for a single leg takedown. Hansen defends well and they reset on their feet. They trade a few leg kicks with Hansen getting the better of the exchanges. Irelands shoots in and gets a nice double leg takedown. Hansen works the butterfly guard and locks in a beautiful looking triangle choke. Hansen transitions to an armbar and Ireland is forced to tap.
THE AFTERMATH:
Jason Ireland:
Ireland spent most of his career fighting for smaller organizations and the King of the Cage promotion. He had been in fights with several big names, but this was his first time in a pay per view scrap. He performed well, even though Hellboy pulled out the win. Ireland has losses on his record to several stars of today: Mac Danzig, Dustin Hazelett, and Jorge Gurgel. He would only fight two more time after this scrap and I'm not quite sure why. His stand up could use some work, but his wrestling seems fairly good. In any case, this was probably the biggest fight of his career and I hope he enjoyed his fifteen minutes in the spotlight.
Joachim "Hellboy" Hansen:
Hansen would go on to become a top ten lightweight fighter about a year and a half later. After Pride was sold, Hansen lost his next fight in Shooto before rebounding at "K-1 Premium Dynamite 2007" with a win over Kazuyuki Miyata. Dream came calling for Hansen next and he would go on to win the Dream Lightweight Grand Prix and lightweight championship. Hansen and Eddie Alvarez participated in one of the best fights of 2008 at Dream.3 in a wonderful back and forth battle. Like a lot of fighters, Hansen has trouble remaining consistent with wins over top ranked fighters, but he is definitely a tough customer and too much to handle for most. I would love to see him fight in the UFC, but it probably won't happen anytime soon. There has been no work yet on who his next opponent may be. He is not only a former Dream lightweight champ, but in 2003 he became a Shooto welterweight champ with a win over Takanori Gomi in a fight that was incredibly competitive. Hellboy holds wins over Gomi, Caol Uno, Yves Edwards, and Shinya Aoki. Most of his losses came against top ranked competition. Hansen is always fun to watch and adds serious depth to any fight card he is on.
Up Tomorrow: Frank "Twinkle Toes" Trigg vs. Kazuo Misaki
ALERT: Every Tuesday night, listen to the MMATorch Livecast from 9-10:30 p.m. ET or listen now to the most recent shows by clicking here. Listen live this coming Tuesday as Jamie Penick, Rich Hansen, and Matt Pelkey discuss the latest MMA happenings. Online listen at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/mmatorch or call into the show at 646-716-8090 to either just listen or participate.
"There's still a large contingent of people, that they just want to see these guys almost die, or the other guy almost die and come back, and sometimes fights are like that. Certainly they are. But sometimes you get technical masterpieces too, and to hate a beautiful, technical fight - you're not really a fight fan...
Diaz has a granite chin, possesses perhaps the best recovery in the sport, his pace and conditioning are second to none and he sets records with the volume of his punches almost every time he steps into the cage. Nick Diaz is simply designed to fight the way he fights, and not many other fighters are...
"There was a lot of poison going on around there and I'm really disappointed because we had a good thing going. It was a good thing and I think people's egos got in the way. Well, not people just Javier, his ego got in the way, and too many cameras in the gym and him trying to build himself up and his brand, his AKA brand...
PART OF THE USA TODAY UFC GROUP