UFC Light Heavyweights: Sugar, Shogun and All Things Nice - June 2010
A look at the UFC's stacked 205 pound division
The UFC Light Heavyweight division (205 lbs/93 kgs) has actually been pretty quiet of late. There have been a few pivotal battles for the lower rungs, but all were in the shadow of two mega-battles between four of the UFC's most recognizable warriors: the recent rematch between Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida at UFC 113, and the anticlimactic triumph of "Sugar" Rashad Evans over Quinton "Rampage" Jackson at UFC 114. Indisputably king of the hill at 205, it only remains to be seen how long “Shogun” can retain the belt. Dana White promised the winner of Evans versus Jackson a title shot. Evans will face Rua; the only question is when. The only certainty is that the UFC's light heavyweight belt changes hands more often than a doobie at a Phish concert. Follow along as we discuss what has happened, is happening and will happen in arguably the UFC’s hottest division.
Recent Fights
But that’s only four out of dozens of fighters. From March to May, the only light heavyweight bouts were Phil Davis' defeat of Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 112 (which should see Davis' stock rise - albeit not far enough to make it into the top ten), and Jared Hamman's victory over a struggling Rodney Wallace at UFC 111. At UFC 113, the much-ballyhooed title fight between “Shogun” and “The Dragon” lived up to the hype – but it was the only light-heavyweight fight on the card.
Nevertheless, a veritable horde of 205 pound fighters are slated to brawl this summer, and UFC 114 kicked things off into high gear: shaking up the division with a controversial split decision on the main card and an impressive KO from a newcomer on the undercard. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira eked out a debatable victory over wrestler Jason Brilz (who was bestowed his second split decision loss in the Octagon, by the way – the first was to Eliot Marshall at UFC 103). Before that, in a preliminary bout – which made it onto the preliminary fights on SPIKE – Luiz Cane suffered his second consecutive TKO loss in the Octagon debut of French striker Cyrille Diabate.
Upcoming Fights
On June 12, the UFC 115 fight card will be headlined by a light-heavyweight match-up that is long on entertainment but short on ramifications for either fighter or the division: Rich Franklin versus Chuck Liddell. Franklin is making his debut at 205 pounds (his last two fights were at a 195-pound catch weight), while Liddell is coming back from a one-year hiatus after back-to-back lights-out losses to Rashad Evans and Mauricio Rua. This fight is arguably more important for Franklin. Liddell is 40. After 12 years of professional MMA, his chin is suspect and his game is old – Franklin, on the other hand, is five years younger and is swimming with the sharks of a new division. He still has the well-rounded wherewithal for a run at a new belt.
Matt Hamill and Keith Jardine will square off at The Ultimate Fighter Finale exactly one week later. If Hamill wins, everyone will forget the unfortunate disqualification victory which saw Hamill dominated by an electrifying Jon “Bones” Jones until the latter unleashed a flurry of illegal downward elbows to the hapless Hamill. If Hamill wins, it’s a probable departure for “The Dean of Mean,” who is on a roll with three straight losses, including two consecutive – and devastating – knockouts.
It’s not until the second incarnation of UFC Live on Versus that we’ll see more than one light heavyweight on a card. That’s following the UFC 116 rematch of Stephan Bonnar and Krzysztof Soszyniski, after Bonnar lost the first fight by TKO, due to a large gash on the latter’s forehead. The rematch was granted after replays clearly showed the cut was the result of an accidental headbutt. The loss, however, has not been overturned. Soszyniski is a youngish, developing fighter with a stack of wins and a decision loss to Brandon Vera, which is nothing to be ashamed of. If Stephan Bonnar was anyone else, he’d probably be long gone by now with three straight defeats. This is a must-win for the nickname-less Bonnar, if for nothing else than to save face. The muttering has already started, and it goes something like this: if Dana White refuses to release the guy under any circumstances out of sheer allegiance, maybe he should voluntarily leave the UFC if he can’t cut the mustard.
At UFC Live on Versus two stellar brawlers will clash in what could be a contender for fight of the year: Jon “Bones” Jones and Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko will elbow for placement upon the upper rungs of the light-heavyweight ladder. If “Bones” comes out on top, he will surely be within a fight for a shot at the title.
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Downward Spirals
James Irvin and Igor Pojrajac are at a crossroads, with a pair of consecutive losses each to fighters in no danger of belt-contention in the near future. Their struggle is an all too common one lately: a desperation match, no doubt, to see who gets to stay in the UFC.
Forrest Griffin and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson are two other fighters at light-heavyweight who, due to recent inactivity, have a questionable future in the UFC. “Rampage” looked terrible against “Sugar” Rashad Evans – and he was the first to admit it, while giving Evans his due props. Jackson has recently publicly criticized the movie industry. Yet, he plainly defined “ring rust” in his recent defeat. His future will be defined by his conditioning, whoever he fights next. Griffin recently bowed out of the slot Jason Brilz filled at UFC 114 due to a shoulder injury. With a lackluster split decision over Tito Ortiz anchoring two successive losses (including an embarrassing KO to middleweight champ Anderson Silva), Griffin is in no-man’s land.
Will we see a Griffin/Jackson rematch later this year? One can only hope. We could see either one fight Lyoto “Dragon” Machida, or perhaps they will be gifted a gatekeeper in Brandon “The Truth” Vera, who also seems to be struggling to keep his head above water (he’s lost back to back, with a TKO following a close fight against Randy Couture).
The Dark Horses
There’s one dark horse in the stable that everyone is clamoring to be let out: Ryan Bader. He hasn’t fought since February – granted, not that long ago – but more importantly, his name isn’t on any future cards. At his level, at his age, with his healthy history and his very healthy record he should be fighting three times a year. He could face Forrest Griffin, but Griffin is in injury-limbo. If Bader is clamoring for a fight, UFC brass should give him a test. If Nogueira is healthy, maybe get him back in the ring against another wrestler to prove his mettle.
Lyoto “Dragon” Machida is no dark horse, but Randy Couture is. Pundits half-expected to see these two put up their dukes, but alas, it was not to be. Couture is fighting James Toney in a fan-friendly catchweight brawl this fall. As Couture never fails to surprise his fans (not to mention Father Time), he falls firmly within the “dark horse” category, despite the relative irrelevance of his next fight.
Thiago Silva and Tim Boetsch are the final fellows facing scrutiny. Boetsch first appeared in the Octagon at UFC 81, where he impressively manhandled David Heath. Racking up a win and a pair of losses, Joe Silva sent him packing to the minor leagues, where “The Barbarian” has shaped up with a trio of three finishes (two submissions and a KO). Thiago Silva is an extremely dangerous opponent. With his “kill or be killed” strategy he strung together an array of highlight-reel KOs and TKOs, before he was stopped in his tracks by Lyoto Machida, who gave him a taste of his own medicine. Since then, he’s lost to former champion Rashad Evans and knocked out the beleaguered Keith Jardine. This fight between two hungry finishers is one not to be missed.
By Roy Kok
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer