ColinBollocks

Stipe trained and had a game plan for the Ngannou of 2018. The way Ngannou fought on the night meant that was always not going to work. Stipe is so well rounded and mentally tough that I have no doubt he'll make further adjustments.

I think the plan to drain Ngannou in the later rounds is solid but you've just got to try and get him there. Be interesting to see if a heavier Stipe does better with that takedown too. He was about two stone lighter than Ngannou, which is nuts.

The Snyder cut is ok. It's definitely an improvement on BvS and the Wheldon version. However, 4 hours for an ok film is hilarious and highlights how badly they buggered up the whole thing by rushing into the Justice League, as the first two hours are essentially backstory on the lesser known characters. The first two hours are badly needed but, in the end, the story just isn't particularly interesting.

The 30 minute epilogue is absolute shite. 

11 minutes ago, David said:

Hell of a fight, and I honestly thought it could have went either way just before the KO. In fact, right before the shot that caught Miocic and put him away he looked as though he'd rocked Ngannou with a shot of his own. A terrific fight between two absolute ambassadors of the sport.

I'd also like to see Stipe retire at this point, unless he fancies a rematch for the belt after Ngannou gets a defence or two under his belt. I absolutely think Miocic deserves another crack if he so chooses, but he'll need time to rest up and recover. And I'd like to see him go out in front of a live crowd and with his family there.

That Dana White is already starting his attack on Jones because the guy has the temerity to ask to be paid what he's worth is both predictable and obscene. 

Personally I want him to get the Ngannou rematch out the way first. Let's see if Stipe can make the sort of adjustments to better this version of Ngannou. Stipe wins the rubber match then that just solidifies his legacy.

Stipe could maybe do with sometime off though. While Ngannou has been battering folk in a few minutes, Stipe's been having gruelling scraps with a beast like DC.

Genuinely had no interest in this until their press conference the other day. Fair play to the pair of them. Not sure if it's 100% an act or not but. going by yesterday, Jake Paul is just an infuriatingly vapid individual with a wit that is definitely not for anyone over 16. Askren looking like a man who is not taking this very seriously and is enjoying just winding up Paul. The face off was brilliant for what it is.

Not a clue how the fight will end up as I've only seen Jake Paul crack that random on the Tyson card. As shit a striker as Askren is, he's at least been in there with a good level of fighters for years.

Anyway, I'm definitely tuning in to see if Jake Paul gets battered. What a tit.

New era and all that. Absolutely delighted for Ngannou.

Genuinely fewer things in MMA more terrifying or chilling than the moment Ngannou stopped the takedown. In that moment you realised Stipe was absolutely buggered and was going to get sparked out. As discussed, the only thing you fancied Stipe had an advantage on was cardio but the fight was never going into the 3rd.

Stipe will maybe look back on it and make the excuse that if he never rushed in he maybe could have won, in the end, but the fight wasn't even close up to that point. If Stipe was going to have a stand up fight it was always going to be a matter of time.

What do you do against an Ngannou that has takedown defence and more weapons than a left-right tornado? Watch Jon Jones make us all cry again. Knob.

I'm amazed AEW hasn't messed more things up since it started, but that is something a company trying to build it's reputation and audience does not need. People are trying to defend it too.

I like Christian but him debuting with all the hoopla doesn't half make them look like TNA. They should have just announced it on twitter that he was showing up. After everyone went wild with the names, I doubt many were arsed about the reveal.

I do absolutely love Big Dave but he was pretty rubbish during that return. Not only had he clearly lost a bit of weight but he seemed to have given up on the tanning, which was unforgivable. He seemed well rusty in the ring for a chunk of it too. It did work out though because 'Mania 30 is up there with the very best shows they've put on. Plus, we got a great Evolution return out of it.

Just a shame we got his heel run just as he was coming to the end. Although going by what Big Dave has said, the fact it was the end meant he felt he could do whatever he wanted and wasn't arsed with Vince moaning.

I don't watch AEW every week, but it's his matches I look forward to watching the most when I check out a PPV. They're not spectacular, in terms of moves, but they are usually always filled with drama and good story telling. Reeks of someone that is very much in agreement Bret Hart was better than the male stripper / failed drama student. Over the last decade or so, I've not seen any matches better than that Rhodes brother match.

11 hours ago, LCJ said:

A lot of that Man United side that Moyes inherited were over the age of thirty and Scholes had just retired. Reminded me of Souness taking over at Liverpool in ‘91. I don’t think Moyes was given much of a chance at Man United either. 

Man City looking like favourites for the title now that Liverpool’s injury crisis has caught up with them. City have some tricky games coming up though.

Moyes is a mid-table or "best of the rest" manager and he turned a title winning team into a mid-table team. That United team were getting past it and it's to SAF credit that he squeezed a title out of the fumes of his last great side, but that's the difference isn't it? Moyes came in, brought in his Everton staff, alienated the squad and got Everton results. It was also Woodward's first season so he made an absolute arse out of recruitment, but Moyes is also the manager that turned down the chance to sign Thiago.

Moyes did get a chance but you can't take a title winning team and, at the time, a team that usually won the title most years, and play the part in having them finish 7th.

Big Miro. Fucker probably shags in Versace too.

52 minutes ago, tiger_rick said:

I see this argument all the time, and it's true to an extent, but I don't care. That accounts for about 0.00001% of his output over the years. In his main role, to be the voice of at least one WWE TV show, for the past 22(?) years, he's never been good. He's the most inauthentic aspect of a fake business. People used to say he and Tazz were good on Smackers but watch any of that stuff from what the teenyboppers call the "Ruthless Aggression Era" back and he's fucking dreadful. His fake laugh and the need for one or both of them to fill every second of dead air is intolerable. I'm giving every episode of TV back then an extra snowflake for carrying them two.

As I said, he's historically not been very good, but if he sounds worse now then I can't say I blame him. It's mostly drivel.

I thought it was very well done. Although they failed to mention a big reason fighters are so keen to go to MTK is because their previous promoters have absolutely shafted them out of their earnings for years - instead just saying "most gave 25% and MTK wants 15%". McGuigan is no saint and if it wasn't for MTK he'd still be shafting Frampton. Boxing is a shark pool, so I can understand why some of the boxers today have been so keen to defend MTK today.

However, that doesn't excuse Kinahan getting a run at this. Boxing needs a massive look at itself but it won't happen. They'll wait for it to blow over and Kinahan will continue as he has been.

I know it's his job and he's historically not been that great at it, but can you imagine being forced to get excited by the shit Cole has to every bloody week. Seth Rollins' return got the exact reaction it deserved. Poor guy sounds like he's fully aware this is utter toss. As BomberPat points out, when Cole is allowed off the leash and in the right environment he's shown he can be very good. No fans, Vince shouting at you, announcing the worst show on telly - Cole is in hell.

It was interesting to see who's come along since Mania, but predictably not very much has changed. For example, the commentary equivalent of an eggy fart, Byron Saxton, is still somehow employed and announcing on the proper shows. The production is still an expensive-looking assault.

Drew v Big Bill was as decent a match as you'll get out of Goldberg, these days. Granted, the Jackhammer was nasty, but the rest felt like heavyweights throwing haymakers. Drew absolutely looks like a million bucks and a "proper wrestler". You can definitely see his confidence has massively bumped up since Wrestlemania. The Goldberg star power is absolutely squeezed now and I have no clue what they do next - every time I see him in a match he seems to lose. 

Booker T looked like he was trying his hardest not to pish himself laughing during that performance. Never forget "Rap is Crap".

Women's Royal Rumble highlighted how much better the women's roster are at presentation to the men. Bianca Blair, Naomi, Shotzi Blackheart etc all with their great colourful outfits and entrances stood out massively. The dudes need to take more risks with their presentation. The ring was so populated with colour that it made Bailey's all black attire stand out much more.
Anyway, the match itself was really forgettable, sadly. I can imagine Supremo's reaction to Charlotte Flair being in the final three and then laughing when she got knocked out, which made her look like an idiot. Delighted for Bianca - no idea if she's actually any good but I liked her attire and daft Kardashian ponytail. Naomi is the GOAT.

The final stretch of the men's Rumble was pretty good and Edge v Drew or Roman will be a good feud leading into Mania.

Absolutely nothing on this show has made me want to tune into their shows this week, so can't say it was all that great. 

10 minutes ago, Egg Shen said:

What actual purpose does it serve to keep the belt on Khabib? its a weird one.

Dana probably thinks stripping Khabib of the belt makes it all official and probably presumes Khabib will come round to the idea of fighting again. No need to rush into it just now, I guess.

The trilogy is definitely happening, if Conor wants it. Wouldn't be surprised if Dana puts the belt on the line too.

No idea how the champ PPV points work these days, but if Poirier doesn't get any despite winning the belt in his next fight, he's probably best holding off to fight McGregor when he's champion. McGregor only fights once a year anyway, so he can get that in by the summer.

I think 2014 seemed to wake up a generation to politics in Scotland and the support for independence has gradually increased as England has shot themselves in the cock time and again. In my lifetime, it's never seemed more apparent the different politics between Scotland and England. SNP have played this wonderfully over the past 5 years but they could not have had a more fortuities set of circumstances than England voting Scotland out of the EU and a Tory majority led by this group of chancers. Brexit seems to be the final straw for a lot of people that were on the fence in 2014, as they felt independence was a punt and would rather not test the waters in case they were worse off, but of course Brexit happening means Scotland is now getting chucked in the water regardless and we're pretty sure someone shat in it.

Not that it causes people to get knocked out, but I thought it insightful when Poirier discussed that he saw McGregor as just another opponent this time, rather than letting the hype and talk hinder him like last time. He felt looser and less in awe of fighting McGregor. That in itself is an indication of how far Poirier has come and how McGregor has slipped.

Anyway, David summed it up nicely with regards to McGregor's power. He's fighting bigger dudes that are used to getting hit harder, without question, but I'd also say he's fighting much better fighters now. I think even McGregor has played down his power when he talked about it being more about precision and timing. 

The rusty excuse done my head in. Maybe he was rusty, maybe, but that's Conor's fault, surely? Dana would have loved to have Conor fighting 3 fights a year for the past 3/4 years but Conor has been picking and choosing his opportunities since he got that Mayweather pay day. I have very little sympathy for him. As far as I'm aware he's only had one proper injury during that time too, so he's been available.

Conor needs to realise he can't have his cake and eat it. If he wants this one fight a year deal for a pay day, then ignore this title contender shite and just give us the silly fights.

I don't see how this Conor ever beats the very best in what is maybe the best division in the history of the sport.

This was inevitable for Conor. While he's busy doing ching, the sharks in the division are training and actually fighting. Conor's fight output (4 in 4 years or something) just reeks of a man after a pay day, rather than a serious contender; using that as an excuse was hilarious. To think they were on about chucking him in there with Khabib again.

The build up reminded me a wee bit of Rousey's last fight, with everyone going on about how good Conor physically looked, as if that meant much more than cosmetics.

You wonder if Conor starts fighting on until it gets sad. You know his ego will want to walk away on his terms and he's probably got too many folk telling him what he wants to hear.

Anyway, if I'm Dana I'm getting that third Diaz v McGregor fight ASAP.

Any excuse to reshare this wonderful art:

Realistically, and going by what's been happening, Vince is probably not doing much until this shit starts to hurt his income. He'll maybe make the odd concession, like somebody getting to do some swearing to pretend they're edgy (or setting a fat clown on fire), but nothing like the widespread changes that need to be done to overhaul a show that's had the smell of death about it for at least five years. It reminds me a little of what happened to The Ultimate Fighter; Dana and co just stuck with the same format for so long that it made the show completely irrelevant, even to MMA nuts like myself and some of the others that post in that section. To think this place used to have a weekly Raw thread only a few years ago, but now people aren't even arsed setting up a PPV thread until the day after. Running off sad pricks like us is an amazing achievement.

Hancock from the Terry Bollea school of acting.

Considering this PPV did north of 1.2M buys, you know the scum in boxing will be working overtime to get Tyson a proper bout. Whether or not Tyson will go for it, who knows, but he'll be getting mad money thrown at him for another one.

Business-wise it makes sense, but competitively it's dangerous for Tyson stepping in there with any proper heavyweight contenders.

The Sting reveal was note perfect. For a start, Sting still looks like a superhero and someone you'd want a figure of. The entrance looked proper big time too - I hope they stick with the snow effect for it, as that was a nice new wrinkle to the aesthetic of his act.

No idea what his body can handle these days, but I'd be more than happy with him just popping in every once and a while before an eventual match here he's proper protected.