UFC on FOX 8: 'Johnson vs Moraga'

[lambyUK]

God that Macdonald/Ellenberger fight was truly depressing and as with Wand, my biggest disappointment so far of 2013. I was really hyped up for it, 2 extremely talented young fighters going at it, proved to one of the dullest fights I've seen in years. Ellenberger more than anyone should be kicking himself. It was obvious Rory's game plan was from the start, but Ellenberger didn't have one.

 

It's so frustrating watching someone getting jabbed and you think "just fucking do something!"

[wandshogun09]

Yeah, and for how much Ellenberger talked going in, to then go out and do that, it's really baffling. Even more frustrating because I genuinely think he has the skills to beat Rory, or at least test him, but he'll probably never know now (can't see anyone clamouring for a rematch anytime soon) because he chose not to engage.

 

I'm guessing Rory gets the winner of Condit vs Kampmann 2 next. Hopefully Condit. He won't comfortably jab his way past Condit that's for sure. No way Condit doesn't engage and it has the backstory of Condit being Rory's only loss. I'd love to see Condit go 2-0. Kampmann wouldn't half arse it either.

[lambyUK]

Forgot to also mention that Lawler looked incredible last night. Fantastic stuff.

[ColinBollocks]

Dana went mental about Macdonald/Ellenberger. While shite fights are always going to happen, the lack of anything happening was truly woeful. It seemed all Macdonald had to do was jab fresh air and that was enough for Ellenberger to retreat in bemusement. The one time the mystical powers of the fresh air jab wore off Ellenberger got a take down. JAB JAB. I guess listening to Dana trash both men while they sat there was worth this waste of our time.

 

Positives: Lawler looked like a beast, and some people are even going on about how he should get the title fight, not the other two. Johnson's performance was the opposite of the semi-main. Confident and effective, on this night he looked like he was a contender for the P4P title.

[lambyUK]

Oh, and how I loved Chiesa getting beat. Now, don't get me wrong I'm not a Masvidal fan, but there's something about Mike Chiesa that pisses me off. Whether it's his minging beard that the commission should force him to shave down, or more than likely that the tool has his own name on his back!?

[jimufctna24]

Forgot to also mention that Lawler looked incredible last night. Fantastic stuff.

He did indeed, they have polished him up nicely at ATT. I stand corrected as well, he showed to be more well rounded than I thought he was.

 

Ellenberger vs Rory was a complete flop. The only thing we learnt is that Rory can use his jab well, and control his opponent with it. Other than that not much else, Ellenberger just did not pull the trigger often enough to try and force a argument. Rory did not seem interested in going any further than jab scoring also. In many ways the wrestling of both cancelled each other out, with that aspect of the game taken away we were left with a limited match-up, where Rory controlled with a simple part of his game as Jake could not handle it. Rory did time his jabs well.

 

I think Ellenberger should have shooted in for more takedowns, because that opening he was "loading up for" as Rogan put it, was not going to come with how well Rory was controlling the distance and how incapable Ellenberger was to close the gap.

[lambyUK]

Forgot to also mention that Lawler looked incredible last night. Fantastic stuff.

He did indeed, they have polished him up nicely at ATT. I stand corrected as well, he showed to be more well rounded than I thought he was.

 

Ellenberger vs Rory was a complete flop. The only thing we learnt is that Rory can use his jab well, and control his opponent with it. Other than that not much else, Ellenberger just did not pull the trigger often enough to try and force a argument. Rory did not seem interested in going any further than jab scoring also. In many ways the wrestling of both cancelled each other out, with that aspect of the game taken away we were left with a limited match-up, where Rory controlled with a simple part of his game as Jake could not handle it. Rory did time his jabs well.

 

I think Ellenberger should have shooted in for more takedowns, because that opening he was "loading up for" as Rogan put it, was not going to come with how well Rory was controlling the distance and how incapable Ellenberger was to close the gap.

 

That's the annoying part, when Ellenberger truly committed to the takedown he did just that. Such a bloody frustrating fight.

[DannRead]

You know what I'm grateful for? I watched the prelims AFTER I watched the main show so the sour taste in my mouth from the MacDonald - Ellenberger fight (as much as I enjoyed Carmouche v Andrade, Lawler v Voelker and Mouse v Moraga that was still a real sour taste) I then got to watch the highly enjoyable Ed Herman v Trevor Smith fight which if you missed is well worth going out of your way to see!

[pryko]

Oh, and how I loved Chiesa getting beat. Now, don't get me wrong I'm not a Masvidal fan, but there's something about Mike Chiesa that pisses me off. Whether it's his minging beard that the commission should force him to shave down, or more than likely that the tool has his own name on his back!?

Not a fan of Gil Melendez either then? What about having your nickname tattooed on your back, ala Showtime? Not that I'm advocating it or anything, but he's not the only one. I also have a strange disliking for Chiesa, but certainly not because of his epic beard

[wandshogun09]

Yeah, Herman vs Smith was a treat. I also watched the prelims after and there was some good stuff there.

 

I was disappointed Julie Kedzie lost but that was a big win for Randamie, who hadn't got off to the best of starts in her MMA career. Masvidal vs Chiesa was a good fight and I really enjoyed Salas vs Riley as well. Edwards vs Cruickshank was another surprisingly dull affair.

 

Aaron Riley has retired following the loss by the way. Not a huge name but a real granite hard journeyman who I always looked forward to seeing when his name would pop up on a card. He turned pro ridiculously young, fought pretty much everywhere and had some blinding fights over the years with Robbie Lawler, Yves Edwards and Jorge Gurgel.

 

Oh and track down Riley's headkick KO of Michihiro Omigawa from one of the Pride Bushido shows if you haven't seen it. Brutal and often forgotten when the subject of headkick KOs comes up.

[lambyUK]

Oh, and how I loved Chiesa getting beat. Now, don't get me wrong I'm not a Masvidal fan, but there's something about Mike Chiesa that pisses me off. Whether it's his minging beard that the commission should force him to shave down, or more than likely that the tool has his own name on his back!?

Not a fan of Gil Melendez either then? What about having your nickname tattooed on your back, ala Showtime? Not that I'm advocating it or anything, but he's not the only one. I also have a strange disliking for Chiesa, but certainly not because of his epic beard

 

This is going to sound like double standards I know that, but Showtime and Melendez are simply awesome. What the hell has Michael Chiesa achieved to warrant his own name on his back? I dunno, it's a pet hate I guess. Delusions of grandeur and all that.

 

Then it's his beard, again, it's double standards for me as I don't mind Roy Nelson. I just think that Chiesa's beard in particular is an unfair advantage, especially against a striker. Chiesa seemed pissed off with Masvidal for rightly requesting him to shave his beard off. God forbid a fighter requesting that bush to be trimmed down!? Masvidal is a striker in the end and that beard is surely a giant fucking cushion around Chiesa's chin.

 

It's probably why no one can knock out Roy Nelson!

[jimufctna24]

It's probably why no one can knock out Roy Nelson!

You may have a point, his beard is not present below, maybe he grew it with durability in mind!

 

[Egg Shen]

it was a mixed bag of fights...

 

* The big talking point obviously was Rory/Ellengberger. Probably the most disappointing fight of the year. When it was announced it was clearly a big fight at 170, but in recent weeks everyone involved has done a great job of making it feel like it was gonna be something a little bit special, it was horrible.

 

Rory was clearly following a gameplan and it was highly effective but it was depressing to see him content to win a fight simply by flicking out a jab (good jab though) and throwing the occasional front kick, which i think he landed once). There was no intent to finish or push the pace. The finger can probably pointed more at Ellenberger though, a simple jab just completely shut down his game, i think Ellenberger shot once before round 3 and it was his most effective piece of offence as he landed a decent strike after Rory snuffed the takedown. Ellenberger has no plan B.

 

It was just a bad fight for everyone involved, massive platform on Fox, the UFC bigging up that it was going to be high level MMA between two of the best and they stunk the joint out.

 

* Johnson/Moraga was a decent title fight, it was a Championship performance from Johnson, he looked great and proved he's a level above Moraga (who was game), and utilised superior grappling. The finish was the cherry on the top too, Johnson needed that, the division needed that.

 

* Fuck me, Robbie Lawler looked tremndous. Voelker's the kind of guy that likes to get in a dog fight and slug it out but Lawler was just too sharp and hit to hard, he didn't let Voelker get off at all and punished him any time he tried. Two straight KO's will put Lawler up there and despite what anyone thought about his Strikeforce career at 185 (it was up and down), it's pretty irrelevant now as Dana White is clearly a massive fan of Lawler...i think he could be 1 win away from a crack at the belt, it depends on who they give him next.

 

I hope Voelker get another crack at the UFC too, he's 0-2 but with Saturday being short notice i think he'll get it.

 

* Couple of prelims stood out, obviously Herman/Smith which was bit of a crazy slugfest. I don't think anyone even mentioned the fight going in, but i love how a buried fight on the prelims can just come out and surprise everyone, fun fight.

 

Masvidal/Chiesa was the other one, this was probably my FOTN, was very surprised at Chiesa's success on the feet in round 1. I don't think Masvidal had much respect for Chiesa and paid but getting lit up a few times against a far inferior striker. Masvidal found his range in round 2 though and done his thing. Im a big fan of Masvidal so i was happy with the win. Chiesa must be kicking himself at getting subbed with 1 second to go...nice Forrest Griffin impression too.

 

* Quick mention for Guillard's KO of Danzig too, that was harsh. The closeup's of Danzig afterwards were unpleasant, he sounded like a little kid crying for his mother. The KO does some weird things to your body. Is Guillard gonna go on another run?