UFC 181: Hendricks vs Lawler 2

[wandshogun09]

One of the most stacked PPVs of the year goes down on December 6th. Just look at this bastard...

 

 

PPV MAIN CARD

Johny Hendricks vs Robbie Lawler - UFC Welterweight Title

Anthony Pettis vs Gilbert Melendez - UFC Lightweight Title

Travis Browne vs Brendan Schaub

Todd Duffee vs Anthony Hamilton

Tony Ferguson vs Abel Trujillo

 

FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS

Urijah Faber vs Francisco Rivera

Eddie Gordon vs Josh Samman

Corey Anderson vs Justin Jones

Raquel Pennington vs Ashlee Evans-Smith

 

FIGHT PASS PRELIMS

Sergio Pettis vs Matt Hobar

Alex White vs Clay Collard

 

How can you go wrong with this? Especially that main card.

 

Hendricks vs Lawler 2 is going to be tremendous. They went to war in March, in one of the best fights of 2014. They went the full 25 minutes and threw bombs the whole time. I had them two rounds a piece going into the fifth and Hendricks just squeaked by due to his late success in the wrestling. He was carrying a shoulder injury according to various reports but regardless, Lawler gave him hell.

 

This gif from the first fight completely sums up Robbie Lawler for me...

 

 

In the very heat of battle, with Johny fucking Hendricks throwing haymakers at him - he's laughing maniacally in the face of it. He loves it. Imagine being Johny Hendricks and seeing that shit? It's got to be disheartening. That's genuinely the happiest I think I've ever seen Robbie Lawler look.

 

I'm probably going to stick with another Hendricks decision. His wrestling gives him the luxury of scoring takedowns at crucial points to steal rounds, and that's what ultimately won him the first fight. That could make all the difference. It could all come down to one well timed takedown and that's something Hendricks has the advantage in. Then again, Lawler's been more active. While Hendricks has been on the shelf since the first fight, Lawler has bagged impressive wins over Jake Ellenberger and Matt Brown.

 

I hope Lawler knocks him out. Lawler as UFC champion is something I never thought I'd see but I'd love it if it actually happens.

 

Hendricks vs Lawler 2 promo;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&persist_app=1&v=zz5QJcyy2-U

 

Pettis vs Melendez is the other title fight and co-headliner.

 

 

It's one of those fights where it's tough to call because one guy (Pettis) does everything in such a spectacular way that you're in awe, but the other guy (Melendez) just finds a way to come out on top time and time again.

 

They've both been out a similar amount of time. Pettis with injuries, Melendez with contract disputes, then both were shelved to coach TUF 20.

 

I'm favouring Pettis. I think he's more of a threat everywhere and there's really no easy route for Melendez to take. If he stays standing, Pettis is a terror in the striking. If he opts to wrestle, Pettis has a killer guard and rapidly improving takedown defence. It's a fight where I think Melendez is basically going to have to pick his poision. His best bet his probably to just come in balls out like he always does, mix up grappling and striking and don't give Pettis chance to establish his rhythm and timing. Easier said than done.

 

Melendez shouldn't be an easy night's work for Pettis by any stretch though. He's going to be hard to put away, his pace and cardio is excellent, his style is relentless and he's good at everything. It wouldn't be a massive shock if he comes out on top. It's going to be an incredible fight, I reckon.

 

Pettis vs Melendez promo;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&persist_app=1&v=Is-aRjF1BOc

 

Browne vs Schaub is a fight I like the sound of. Simply because I think Schaub's getting battered here. I'm not much of a fan of either guy but I will be 'down with the Browne' on December 6th.

 

Schaub's got some power but I don't see him doing well in the striking here. And his other option (which is what I think he'll do) is to try to grapple. That very probably leads to the elbows of doom which sent Josh Barnett and Gabriel Gonzaga night-night.

 

Yeah, I think Schaub's fucked.

 

 

Todd Duffee is back after an extended hiatus due to health issues. I never rated him that highly myself, I think the hype on him was largely tied into his look. But regardless, I'm intrigued to see how he looks here. In the cage and physique-wise. With the stricter testing, I wonder if we'll see a less jacked off his tits Duffee now.

 

Trujillo vs Ferguson rounds out the PPV. And what a fuck of a fight it is. I'd be quite surprised if this goes 15 minutes. Both mega aggressive, both tough, both powerful and accurate with their striking. I'd give Trujillo the edge in raw power but I'd say Ferguson has a more varied bag of tricks and is more of a threat in the grappling. Should be a cracker whatever the fight goes.

 

The prelims are decent but nothing overly special really.

 

Faber vs Rivera should be exciting for however long it goes. I'd expect Faber to win without too much hassle but Rivera's style should make it fun to watch in the meantime.

 

Gordon vs Samman could be alright but I'm not that into it. And a pair of pullouts by Holly Holm and Gian Villante have left both Raquel Pennington and Corey Anderson without opponents. I'm assuming they'll both remain on the card against replacements.

 

Sergio Pettis is back in there. Hasn't had a smooth UFC run so far, and has had some criticism (unfairly, I think). He's got tons of potential though and time's on his side at just 20 years old.

 

It's a great card. Decent enough prelims and all five main card fights appeal to me for one reason or another. The two title fights alone make it a can't miss event.

[jimufctna24]

I am also picking Hendricks on points.

 

I want Lawler to win, but Hendricks has more weapons to work with. As long as Hendricks does not fight in a phone booth like the first fight, he should win by a modest margin. GSP did out-jab Hendricks from the outside though. So, Lawler does have hope if he can get the jab going. There might be a few close rounds if Lawler can keep it standing.

 

I think the grappling will be the difference. As Wand said, a few well timed takedowns, and the rounds will build up. I just do not see Hendricks wanting to stand for 5 straight rounds, and give Lawler a sniff. 

 

With the recent happenings involving the Roufus camp, I am not going to play cheerleader for Pettis as much as I usual do. Not that Pettis is at fault for happenings, but that video in the MMA news thread, left a sour taste when I saw it earlier. I would love Pettis and Askren to leave Roufus. 

[wandshogun09]

TBA's be gone. The card is complete again.

 

Corey Anderson's new opponent is Jonathan Wilson. He's 6-0 with 5 stoppages and goes under the nickname 'Johnny Bravo'.

 

Raquel Pennington's new opponent is Ashlee Evans-Smith. She's 3-0 with 2 finishes. She's best known for a TKO win over transgender fighter Fallon Fox.

 

It'll be interesting to see if Joe Rogan can refrain from going on one of his Fallon Fox rants again during the fight. He'd probably be best to just stay off the subject given his pretty embarrassing comments about it on his podcast.

[Egg Shen]

Rogan probably plans on keeping his mouth shut, once he gets going though logic has been known to out the window.

[wandshogun09]

This show is only a week away now. Surprised there hasn't been more talk.

 

For anyone that hasn't seen it or wants to rewatch it before next week, the UFC have put the full Hendricks vs Lawler 1 fight up on YouTube for free;

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&persist_app=1&v=wxyDCSt-Zmo

 

Well worth your 25 minutes. Probably still my FOTY so far this year. Think I'll watch it again this week before the rematch.

[mickfan]

Pulling for Big Brown ahead of Travis Browne. As a result of former Sunderland boxer Tony Jeffries now coaching Brendan striking in LA I listen to Schaubs podcast with Bryan Callen (of Old School and Hangover fame) and its actually laugh out loud funny at times. I disliked him beforehand and on TUF for being cocky but listening to that podcast feels like a friend is fighting on the card and he's a nicer guy than what you see on UFC shows. Would love to see win as he's saying this is the biggest fight of his life and what years of hard work has lead to.

 

#TeamSchaub

#BrownOnBrowneCrime

#GobbleGobbleBitches

[Shane O' Mac Version 2]

I'll have to watch that Hendricks vs Lawler fight later, I remember it being one of my favourite fights this year- although fairly certain Brown vs. Lawler is the front runner right now.

 

I'd love Lawler to win the gold, of course, for much the same reasons as Mark Hunt. Gotta love a veteran having a career renaissance. I think Hendricks gets the decision again though, just by getting Lawler down and holding him there for the majority of the time. I see the wrestling game coming more into play this time around, considering Johny had a torn bicep last time, it had to affect his ability to use his wrestling to its best.

 

I see Pettis TKOing Melendez. El Nino is too durable to get outright KOed, but I think Pettis will score a knockdown with some crazy technique (from my EA Sports UFC sims, I'll pick Showtime Superman Punch), and he'll put together a relentless flurry from there. Pettis is just far too creative when striking, he's bound to come up with something. Plus I'd like to see Pettis stay injury free and tear through LW ala BJ Penn back in the day.

[wandshogun09]

Can't stomach Schaub. I've stuck a few of those Joe Rogan Fight Companion podcasts on before when I've been bored at work, and Schaub and Bryan Callen are often on there. To listen to Schaub talk you'd think he was some killer. I get that to make it in a sport like MMA you almost have to be a bit psychotic in your self belief, but the twat is delusional. Just off the top of my head I've heard him claim Mark Hunt was ducking him, he claimed he would out cardio Cain Velasquez and on JDS he said something like "best boxer at heavyweight my ass, I'd wreck that fool". Something like that. He talks about his grappling like he's some mix of Marcelo Garcia and Rickson Gracie as well. There's self belief, then there's being completely delusional and arrogant beyond belief. On top of that, for all his bigging himself up, when you actually watch him compete he's the opposite of what he's trying to sell you. He's selling himself as a prime Tyson with the BJJ of a thousand Gracies, but he's one of the most boring bastards in the division. He's stunk the joint out in both the UFC and Metamoris.

 

I find him so fucking annoying. Typical American high school jock type. Madly in love with himself, think's he's the best looking, biggest cocked, toughest and funniest bloke that ever lived. I pissed myself when he was literally crying on his podcast after the dodgy Arkovski loss.

 

I'll have to watch that Hendricks vs Lawler fight later, I remember it being one of my favourite fights this year- although fairly certain Brown vs. Lawler is the front runner right now.

Lawler vs Brown was a lot fun but it was a bit too one sided to be FOTY for me. Brown was always trying and he had his moments, but I don't know, it cooled off a bit in the middle rounds as well. Where Hendricks vs Lawler was pretty much non-stop and mega close.

 

My top five FOTY so far would be something like;

 

1) Johny Hendricks vs Robbie Lawler - UFC 171

2) Jose Aldo vs Chad Mendes - UFC 179

3) Chris Weidman vs Lyoto Machida - UFC 175

4) Abel Trujillo vs Jamie Varner - UFC 169

5) Robbie Lawler vs Matt Brown - UFC on FOX

 

Truthfully, this year's been relatively short on FOTY contenders compared to 2013, which was full of them.

 

Plus I'd like to see Pettis stay injury free and tear through LW ala BJ Penn back in the day.

I really think Pettis could become the Anderson Silva of 155 if he could just stay healthy. He's got that Matrix thing like Anderson where you don't know what he's going to do next. But it's like he's made out of glass. He should be a lightweight Anderson Silva, but I fear he'll end up being remembered as the lightweight Shogun. Not that being compared to Shogun would be bad or an insult, but I mean I could see him being a guy we look back on and say 'Pettis was a killer when he was healthy, injuries really fucked him up', like we do with Shogun. Pettis gets hit way less than Shogun, so hopefully that will give him a longer shelf life but still, it seems like the injury bug will be Pettis' toughest opponent.

 

The injury bug or Khabib Nurmagomedov anyway. I still think Khabib might ruin the Pettis party. And it won't be pretty or very exciting. I'm hoping Pettis' training with Ben Askren will give him the tools to deal with that but we won't know until the time comes. If Pettis can clear the Khabib hurdle, and if he can stay healthy from here on out, I think he could be champion a long time. Melendez and Khabib are his two toughest challenges for me. I don't see Cerrone doing much better in a rematch. Can't see Diaz, Alvarez, Dos Anjos beating Pettis either, although they'd all be exciting fights.

[lambyUK]

Sorry but Lawler vs Brown shouldn't be in the top 5. Lawler dominated that fight too much to be considered top 5.

 

In fact Brown vs Eric Silva if anything should be considered.

[wandshogun09]

Lawler vs Brown wouldn't normally make my top five. That speaks more to the lack of FOTY contenders this year than anything else really. I got my top four then struggled to think of another fight worthy. Thinking about it again, I might stick Curran vs Straus 2 from Bellator in at #5.

 

Matt Brown vs Erick Silva was fun, but that was more of a one sided beating than Lawler vs Brown to me. Aside from Silva dropping Brown with an early body kick and having his back for a bit, Brown fucking murdered him. Beat him up badly, overwhelmed him, seemed to break him mentally and physically, stopped him and Silva had to be stretchered out.

 

Lawler won the Brown fight handily on the cards, but I thought Brown was more competitive over the course of five rounds than Silva was against Brown.

[lambyUK]

That was the point though Wand. Brown was as close to being beaten and the whole thing was wild.

 

Lawler brown was a prolonged beating that for me didn't get out of 2nd gear.

[Shane O' Mac Version 2]

I think it was because of the Silva fight that I rate Brown vs Lawler so highly. In the former fight, Brown demonstrated crazy durability after taking that huge body kick from Silva. Coming into the Lawler fight knowing that Brown had that ability to bounce back, it made the beatdown more dramatic because I felt like he could bounce back at any moment. With how high the stakes were- winner getting a title shot- and Brown playing the role of the grizzled vet/underdog, the whole thing was a nail biter.

[lambyUK]

I see what you're saying Shane O, but I think the fact that Brown didn't bounce back really is the important part here. It really depends how you view it really. Is it a case of remembering a fight at that moment, or looking back and re-watching a fight because it was that good you would watch it again?

For me, whilst the first part is vitally important and should be considered making the decision for FOTY, it's the re-watchability that's also important. I'm not sure if I have any urge to re-watch Brown/Lawler.

 

Anyway, Countdown for 181 has been posted on youtube.

 

Part 1

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcbyJVj7wUk

 

Part 2

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFcLCrSPT7A

 

God I hope Hendricks gets his clock cleaned.

 

The bizarre thing with the co-main, I want Pettis to win, but I'm not bothered either way. I'm extremely excited from a fight perspective but doing TUF has been the worst thing possible for these two. It's made them both come across as fighters with absolutely no personality.

 

Edit:- One bit I loved about part one, was Hendricks' head coach analysing computer footage of Robbie Lawler. It was great seeing a breakdown of Lawler's improved takedown defence/ability to get back up followed by his vicious striking.

[Chunk]

Would love to see Lawler win, but it's Hendricks all day long for me. Considering he came out on top the first time with one arm, I can't see how Lawler could've improved enough since then to beat him this time. The only thing in Robbie's favour is the lay off, but even that considered, I'm going Hendricks by decision.

[wandshogun09]

Would love to see Lawler win, but it's Hendricks all day long for me. Considering he came out on top the first time with one arm, I can't see how Lawler could've improved enough since then to beat him this time. The only thing in Robbie's favour is the lay off, but even that considered, I'm going Hendricks by decision.

Sadly, I think you're pretty much spot on. A torn bicep would severely limit your effectiveness in regards to takedowns and clinch work. And striking as well, especially if it was the left arm because that's his main weapon.

 

Still, it's not like Lawler's a Dan Hardy type with no defensive wrestling. Hendricks will have the advantage there obviously. But Lawler's shown really good defensive wrestling in this UFC run against the likes of Koscheck, Ellenberger and MacDonald. Even when he was taken down it was brief, he was able to avoid significant damage and get back to his feet quickly. He's got good defensive instincts in wrestling and striking.

 

He had Hendricks rocked pretty bad a couple of times from what I remember as well. While I expect Hendricks to have more success with his wrestling this time, which will also open up chances for his strikes, I wouldn't rule out Lawler giving him a hiding on the feet either. Hendricks isn't a typical wrestler, he seems to enjoy exchanging punches with guys more than most wrestlers because he's confident in his KO power.

 

But yeah, if I have to pick I'd say Hendricks wins this. Simply by having that one extra thing to fall back on in his wrestling. He has a couple of ways to win whereas I think Lawler only really has one way to win.