UFC 126 - Griffin vs. Franklin

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On February 5th, 2011 the UFC will be holding its biggest card during Super bowl weekend as Vitor Belfort gets his long awaited shot at Anderson Silva. If that isn’t a big enough fight the co main event will feature two former champions Forrest Griffin (former UFC light heavyweight champion) will face Rich Ace Franklin (former UFC middleweight champion) and two top light heavyweight contenders in Jon Jones facing Ryan Bader. In this article we look at the careers of Rich Franklin and Forrest Griffin and why they are well like by fans and media.

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Rich ''Ace'' Franklin( 28-5-1)

Back in the embryonic stages of the ever growing sport of mix martial arts Rich Franklin was someone for even in those days a fascinating story. He rose to the ranks of the middleweight division not with an elite training camp or big time sponsors or learned to fight not with elite trainers but by watching instructional videotapes of submissions. Franklin was a high school math teacher who had a thirst for the knowledge of mix martial arts with a fighting spirit. Franklin is not charismatic, not flashy or much of a trash talker but what endears him to fans is his willingness to fight anyone anytime anywhere with no complaints.  In 2005 Rich Franklin than a top contender to Evan Tanners middleweight title faced  one of the biggest draws in UFC history in Ken Shamrock. The fight was must see TV and the fight ended suddenly with a Shamrock slip and Franklin capitalizing with devastating strikes for the finish. In what would be a ratings juggernaut of a card that featured Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar in an absolute slugfest .The world took notice and the young sport was beginning to  get explode due to the success of the ultimate fighter and Franklin destroying a legend in Ken Shamrock. What would follow is a career defining victory over Evan Tanner followed by two defences. At that point Franklin looked to be unstoppable until he faced unheralded fighter Anderson Silva and amazingly to this day Silva remains supreme in the middleweight division. What has happened since is a roller coaster of a career two catch weight fights benefitting Wanderlei Silva and Vitor Belfort two fighters trying to slim down to middleweight were facing a fighter trying to move up in weight. A victory over Silva and a devastating KO to Belfort had many thinking ace was done as a contender. But his last fight a knockout victory over Chuck Liddell proved his mettle as a contender as he was hurt badly only to come from behind and stop Chuck Liddell.  Like Rich Franklin or not what makes him popular is being the proverbial underdog who is a game fighter with a lot of heart and whatever happens next for Franklin that is how I will choose to remember him by.

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Forrest Griffin (17-6)

Forrest Griffin had taken some fights early on his career that were quickly getting him attention. He had a fight with Edson Paradeo in which he blocked a kick with his arm and broke it only to knock out Paradeo with a right hand. After that he had to move out of Rory Singers couch and into a reality show featuring 16 fighters fighting for one contract as the ultimate fighter. Griffin would make the final facing friend Stephan Bonnar in what Dana White calls the most important fight in UFC history. This was an absolute barnburner with both fighters slugging it out going toe to toe until the bell sounded. As the fans rose to their feet and cheered little would be known at their time that the UFC would explode from that point on as would Forrest Griffins career. Fans adore him for his self deprecating humour or saying unusual things like how scared he is of an opponent or how he would quit. Nothing could be further from the truth. After the ultimate fighter Griffin was trying to prove his worth as a real contender shortly after racking up a couple of victories he would face at the time one of the best fighters in the world in Tito Ortiz. Griffin would lose that fight but gain a ton of respect even hurting Ortiz a couple of times. From then on he would defeat Bonnar in a rematch. Following that was a match with Jardine in which they both went toe to toe with Griffin getting surprisingly knocked out. Afterward he was seen sobbing out of the ring. What followed was an unheralded victory over Hector Ramirez. What happened next was shocking as the UFC purchased pride and Mauricio Shogun Rua was considered the best light heavyweight would be facing Forrest Griffin. Fans and media were both outraged that the UFC would be featuring a complete mismatch as Griffin was a big underdog as he pulled off a monumental upset victory over Rua. He would than beat Quinton Rampage Jackson by decision as fans and media alike were surprised at the outcome of the fight. After that Griffin would lose to Rashad Evans and Anderson Silva by knockout but rebound to defeat Tito Ortiz.

Why this is an important match that will define their careers:

Both fighter share similarities in being underdogs but both are great competitors with a lot of heart. One fighter has a penchant for getting into trouble in a match (see Franklin vs. Lutter or Franklin vs. Liddell) another for the dramatic upsets. Both of them have had some ups and downs and the result of this match will determine where they go from here. The winner moves up to contender status again while another will have to go back to the drawing board. Two desperate fighters looking to move up in the division either one not willing to take a step back. Who will win? I look forward to this potential fight of the year?

By Kevin Nelson
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer