Chicks Heart Fights

So. Much. To. See.

Watching two separate events tonight was fantastic, as there was rarely a moment when there wasn’t a fight going on. On the flip side of that is the fact that there were few fights that I could watch closely, so I know I missed some things.  You can catch the full results here.  Some observations from the evening:

• Good gosh almighty, Fedor was amazing. He was frighteningly calm going into the ring, but the second that bell rang, Tim Sylvia’s night was over. He had textbook striking, a perfect takedown, and a perfect rear naked choke.
• My favorite  body part of the evening was Andrei Arlovski’s knee. That flying knee to Ben Rothwell’s head was the beginning of the end for Rothwell.
• For Affliction being a clothing company, there were many wardrobe malfunctions. First, Mike Whitehead’s shorts were ripped in a very odd way. DH and I were very concerned that we were going to see a little bit too much of Mr. Whitehead. One friend said he looked like he got fired from Chippendales. Also, Josh Barnett’s shorts looked one size too small, causing Barnett to have a muffin top. Mixed martial artists should not have a muffin top.
• When Anthony Johnson suffered that bizarre eye poke that caused him to lose, one of the guys at my table yelled “He poked him in the brain!” That’s pretty accurate.
• I was so happy to see C.B. Dollaway win, and with the Peruvian necktie, nonetheless.
• Matt Lindland vs. Fabio Nascimento was the all-ugly fight of the night. Nascimento looked like an elephant. Or a bat. Or a rhinoceros.
• I was very happy to see Brandon Vera get comfortable in a new weight class. With Anderson Silva’s win, I wonder if he is going to stick around at light heavyweight.
• Joe Rogan needs a new shirt. I think I’ve seen this one about four times.
• Because I was in a bar, it was tough to judge the overall Affliction production. I like the cage better than the ring, and Michael Buffer just doesn’t seem to fit. However, I enjoyed the overall show. It will be interesting to see where they go from here.

I think that’s it for me. Good night, friends.

First impressions, sort of influenced by the High Life. The Champagne of Beers. Anyway. I have a new bar to watch the fights. It’s the Tap Room and it rocks. Good beer, good prices, good crowd, no cover, I’m sold. Onto the fights…

Mendes vs. Thiago Silva: I’m naming my first child Thiago. Though Mendes had some pretty, baseball bat like kicks, Silva got on top and threw down some lovely punches and got the TKO in the first round. Thiago started out the good night for Brazilians.

Tito Ortiz vs. Lyoto Machida: Tito’s first bad sign was that his entrance music was “Mama Said Knock You Out.” For the record, that was the first CD that I ever bought, when I was ten. Enough said. Machida’s kicks were beautiful, as is to be expected. The end of the first round was a flurry, and Tito was quite literally saved by the bell. (Much like Zach Morris.) This fight had lots of stand up, and Yves Lavigne tripping over air. Machida escaped a triangle choke near the end of the third, and won 30-27. Good job, Mr. Brazilian! Tito was very classy in his post fight interview, and thanked the Fertittas. Where will we see Tito fight next? I was expecting to find out tonight.

Gouveia vs. Relijic: Do all Croatians go to the Cro Cop school of kicking? Because Relijic put up some pretty kicks. Relijic wins by TKO in the 2nd.

Jardine vs. Silva: I thought Silva was done. I thought he was ready to retire. I underestimated the night of Brazilians. Silva by KTFO over Jardine.

Salaverry vs. Palhones: How great was that sub? Salaverry was so focused on avoiding the rear naked choke that he didn’t notice the arm bar coming from ten miles away.

Sean Sherk vs. BJ Penn: BJ comes out to Bali Hai. (Not really, but it sounded like that.) Sherk did not come out to Happy Talk . The stand up in this fight was excellent, and Sherk clearly planned on standing up. It’s not a good idea to go to the ground with a BJJ expert like BJ. My notes say about the first round: WOWZA. Lots of jabbing, lots of punch exchanges. In the third round, BJ threw a beautiful knee, and finished with some great punches. BJ wins and keeps his title.

A fantastic night of fights-huzzah! I will write more when I have had a night of sleep.

I’m just getting home from the bar, and well, I was pretty disappointed in the overall card. There was not a single “damn, I’m glad I missed my friend’s party to watch that!” fight. (For example, Roger Huerta/Clay Guida fell into that category.) Onto the my thoughts, sponsored by Mickey’s Malt Liquor. (Not really, but was tonight the last fight sponsored by Mickey’s?)

- Fitch vs. Wilson - Wilson didn’t look ready for the UFC and Fitch shouldn’t have let it be that close of a fight. Fitch was not aggressive enough. Everyone is always touting his wrestling experience, yet in the rather important third period, he wasn’t shooting.

- Yushin Okami’s knee might have been my favorite body part of the night. It was quick and decisive in knocking out Evan Tanner.

- Before Leben’s fight begins, Ezra, BBall Coach and I are very confused as to why we are watching this fight. Leben vs. Sakara screams undercard to me! Chris Leben’s sponsor was condomdepot.com, written right across his buttocks. I’ll leave the jokes up to you. He knocked Alessio Sakara back to Rome.

- A few sartorial notes on our announcers: Joe Rogan’s shirt looked like he opened a packaged shirt from JCPenny’s and put it on. Joe, irons are your friend! For Goldberg, his suit coat looked like it was about four sizes too big.

- Earlier today, I was looking forward to the Kongo/Herring fight. I was really thinking that this fight was what would put Kongo on the map. I was wrong. Herring didn’t so much win as Kongo lost. He had no idea what to do when on bottom, and that is not only his fault, but his coach’s fault. A fighter should go through every possible scenario before a fight, so that nothing is a surprise. I mean, Kongo lost a split decision to a guy with stars shaved into his head!  By the way, Bball Coach decided that Herring looked like Andre the Giant in the Princess Bride - aaaaaaaaaaaas youuuuuuuuuuuu wiiiiiiiiiiiish!

- After the fight, Herring said that he wants Bud Light to send him on a crazy horse tour of Iraq. I have no idea what that means.

- Ahhhhhh, Dan Henderson vs. Anderson Silva. Hendo came in to a song that is beloved by all wrestlers, Lunatic Fringe.  He was escorted by some of the members of the USA world greco team, including this guy, who is serving out a suspension during an Olympic year due to positive drug tests. Hendo, I love ya, but really?

- Hendo looked great in the first round. He looked like a different fighter in the second round. Silva’s rear naked choke was a well-deserved submission of the night, as it was locked in so tight that Hendo couldn’t hang on for 10 more seconds, because that’s all that was left in the round.

- I was happy to get to see Koscheck’s knockout of Dustin Hazelett after the Silva fight.

Ok, I think that’s all I have for you five readers tonight.

-

I have caught the last two pay-per-view fights at a bar not too far from my home. It’s your regular, neighborhood sports bar. Because of various circumstances, I usually go to watch the fights by myself. I sit with the bouncers or at the bar, watch the fights, have a few beers, and come home and post here. Generally, the women at this bar are with boyfriends/husbands. A few of these women are fight fans, but most of them are just tagging along for the drinks. For those women, I write this post. Next time you ladies go with your boyfriends/husbands to watch a fight at the bar, keep these simple rules in mind:

Continue Reading »