jimufctna24 Posted December 28, 2019 Share Posted December 28, 2019 Most MMA journalists are picking Fedor to win this evening. And although his odds have come in, he remains favourite with the bookies. Jay Pettry from Sherdog sees things differently. His breakdown is the most convincing I have read. I will be quite surprised if Fedor wins this evening. Quote Once a prohibitive favorite opening at -290, Fedor Emelianenko has leveled out as a very slight favorite (-115) in what has turned into a pick-em between two MMA legends. With each man sporting 38 wins on their ledgers and finish rates above 60 percent, we likely know what we will be getting ourselves into in a heavyweight bout combining for over 84 years of age. Although Emelianenko once demonstrated prolific grappling skills, he had rarely showcased them since his ill-advised attempt to go to the ground with Fabricio Werdum in 2010. Meanwhile, Jackson has explicitly stated that he has no interest in facing those that wish to wrestle him to the ground. The Russian known as "The Last Emperor" will likely oblige him in that, and it will not play to his advantage. Since a three-year layoff from 2012 to 2015, Emelianenko returned to the sport with one goal: punch the face of his opponent. That has led to some exciting finishes over the likes of Chael Sonnen and Frank Mir, as well as some devastating losses against Ryan Bader and Matt Mitrione. When facing former light heavyweight boxer Fabio Maldonado, the Brazilian hurt Emelianenko so badly and frequently in the opening round that the fight could have easily been stopped. Although making it the full 15 minutes, an inexplicable set of scorecards still stand with the Stary Oskol, Russia, native stealing a majority verdict, despite an appeal that attempted to overturn the result to a draw. The motivation of a heavyweight "Rampage" has frequently been questioned since his transition to Bellator in 2013, and perhaps no more than when he faced a series of grappling-heavy fighters that he decried. His last performance, a second-round knockout of four-time opponent Wanderlei Silva, left many wondering how much more the two combatants had left in the tank. Instead of an almost unprecedented fifth match between the two, Jackson instead accepted a fight against a man he respects greatly in Emelianenko. While Jackson has publicly complained about the fight game for multiple reasons in recent years, his ability to take punishment has not been one such complaint. In fact, he even lauds his ability to take damage, as he would rather "stand and bang" than have to worry about stuffing a takedown. Despite that we have seen "Rampage" leveled three times in his MMA career, the last to do so was Mauricio Rua in 2005 with soccer kicks. Other than "Shogun," the only man to shut the lights out of the exuberant Jackson was Silva, who did so also under the Pride Fighting Championships banner. Since then, the Tennessee native has taken some of the best shots from names like Dan Henderson, Chuck Liddell, Lyoto Machida and Rashad Evans. Additionally, in terms of recent head-to-head encounters, the man that did so much damage to Emelianenko in Maldonado was unable to faze Jackson at UFC 186 the year before facing the Russian. These two men are going to throw with reckless abandon early and often, and one will likely get clipped and put down. Oddsmakers feel a similar situation will unfold, with Fight Goes to Decision sitting at a lofty +420. Grappling and the submission game will not likely play a factor in this upcoming heavyweight slugfest, and we give the edge to Jackson due to ability to take a shot on the chin better than his adversary. In several of Emelianenko's recent bouts, he has been hurt in the opening round, and only sometimes been able to recover. Jackson can stay composed enough, and although he will welcome a brawl, may be content to sit on the counter as Fedor goes for a "home run" swing. As a final note on this bout, Jackson Wins Inside Distance is currently +118, and if Jackson wins, this looks likely the most likely outcome. No fighter has ever won a decision over Emelianenko, and all six men to defeat him have finished him within two rounds. If a line for Jackson Wins by TKO/KO opens, that would also be a recommended option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamTH17 Posted December 28, 2019 Share Posted December 28, 2019 What time do the fights begin tonight? I'm at a loose end, so I'll probably tune in stream depending. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimufctna24 Posted December 28, 2019 Share Posted December 28, 2019 12 hours ago, AdamTH17 said: What time do the fights begin tonight? I'm at a loose end, so I'll probably tune in stream depending. 3am. The Bellator portion of the card goes on first. The Rizin portion follows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamTH17 Posted December 28, 2019 Share Posted December 28, 2019 Ooft. That’ll be one to catch up throughout a lazy Sunday in that case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted December 28, 2019 Author Paid Members Share Posted December 28, 2019 really up for this one now, ive got them NYE MMA feelings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimufctna24 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 Fedor after reading back through this thread: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacko Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 Looked like rampage took a dive to me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimufctna24 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 I think Rampage just showed up for the pay cheque. If they were going to fix it, then surely he would have just fallen into a submission. Instead, he took damage to his face. I seem to recall that there was a nasty cut on his face afterwards. Although, I may have imagined it in my sleep-deprived state. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members WeeAl Posted December 29, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted December 29, 2019 Physically Rampage certainly looked like he just showed up for the coin indeed. I wasn't too close to correct with my prediction anyway! Fedor was just teeing off on old Quinton. He was faster, more technical and accurate and threw a lot more strikes. Rampage never came close to landing a bomb to win it. Fair play to Fedor, he still has a hunger for this and it showed in that fight. Michael Chandler caught Outlaw with two perfect strikes to the ear and that was all she wrote. He looked good here. The bodyshots probably would have gotten him there in the end, but as it was he caught Outlaw in just the right spot and got his work done early. Was it Benson Henderson that was originally supposed to fight Chandler here? Yamauchi, once he got Cruickshank's back, looked like he had that one sewn up. He was on him like a leech. He didn't make weight, neither did Lorenz Larkin and both men won, which always seems a little unfair. Having said that, I expected Yamauchi to win here and he did it comfortably. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimufctna24 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 (edited) 13 hours ago, WeeAl said: Was it Benson Henderson that was originally supposed to fight Chandler here? Indeed I know Mauro isn't everyone's cup of tea, but good god I pine for his presence when Goldberg is in the booth. Goldy claimed last night that Larkin had never looked better. While Larkin did indeed dominate, he did so against a journeyman. It was hardly the best performance of his career or anything. Edited December 29, 2019 by jimufctna24 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members ColinBollocks Posted December 29, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted December 29, 2019 If Rampage wasn't old and well past it, then you can certainly make a solid case for this being an awful dive, but we've seen quite a lot in recent years that this is just what happens when old dudes fight well past their prime. Fedor still hits hard too. Rampage could have probably fought on, though, but him waving it off shows his heart isn't in it anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members wandshogun09 Posted December 29, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted December 29, 2019 And I guess that’s why Fedor was the favourite. Rampage hasn’t looked in the best of shape for a while now but I was still taken aback to see him show up looking like Kamala without the paint. By far the worst I’ve ever seen him look physically. And it showed in his performance as well. I kind of envisioned this fight to look like a slower version of Fedor vs Hendo. A one round shootout with both landing bombs before one of them dropped. And based on Rampage’s last fight against Wanderlei Silva, while he didn’t look great there either, I thought Rampage would probably come out on top. He looked awful though. Barely threw anything, when he did he missed badly, and he was so fat and out of shape he just didn’t have the mobility to get out of the way of Fedor’s attacks. Definitely just showed up for the cheque. I don’t think he took a dive in that I don’t think he went in there knowing he was going to lose. But when things got rough, I just don’t think he has the fight in him anymore or the desire to get through those moments. So when he got dropped, he just didn’t fancy it anymore. Honestly, he looked like he didn’t even train for this. Straight Bob Sapped it. 53 minutes ago, WeeAl said: Fair play to Fedor, he still has a hunger for this and it showed in that fight. Not as much hunger as Rampage, evidently. Fedor kind of retired after the fight but we’ll see how long that lasts. I hope he sticks to it. There are still a few legend fights out there for him if he carries on. You could see him facing Wanderlei Silva or Josh Barnett or even Tito in 2020. But this seems like as good a time as any to walk away. A knockout win over a big name from his era, and in his old stomping grounds at Saitama Super Arena. It was a fairly enjoyable show all around, I thought. Although pretty much all the fights turned out to be mismatches. Haven’t even looked at any social media yet but I bet everyone’s all over MVP’s dick after that. That’s 3 knockouts in a row since Lima nearly beheaded him. Jury’s still out though until he does that to someone of any note. He’s a good fit for the Japan cards though, the flashy stuff and all the theatrics. The Japanese love a showman. I’m a fan of ‘Big’ John McCarthy but did I hear him say that MVP has fought better opposition coming up than Anderson Silva did coming up? Aside from Lima and Daley, who’s MVP fought that’s particularly good? He’s 18 fights into his career. In Anderson’s first 18 fights he’d fought and beat Carlos Newton, Jeremy Horn, Lee Murray, Hayato Sakurai and Roan Carneiro. Those were all better wins at the time than anyone Page has beat bar Daley. And even then the Daley fight was shite. I know Bellator are just promoting their guy but fuck me. I’m done with the MVP squash match tour. I understand giving him an easy rebound fight after that loss to Lima. Fair enough. But 3 in a row? He needs to have some proper fights next year. He’s not a rookie, he’s not a 20 year old prospect who needs bringing along gradually. He’s a 32 year old 18 fight vet now. If he just wants to fight scrubs then fine. But call it what it is and give the bullshit a rest. Comparing his record to Anderson Fucking Silva’s is laughable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimufctna24 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 (edited) 12 hours ago, wandshogun09 said: Fedor kind of retired after the fight but we’ll see how long that lasts. I hope he sticks to it. There are still a few legend fights out there for him if he carries on. You could see him facing Wanderlei Silva or Josh Barnett or even Tito in 2020. But this seems like as good a time as any to walk away. A knockout win over a big name from his era, and in his old stomping grounds at Saitama Super Arena. Apparently, he was announcing that this was his final fight in Japan. Not the fight fight of his career. The translator messed up. Edited December 29, 2019 by jimufctna24 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members wandshogun09 Posted December 29, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted December 29, 2019 Fedor vs Barnett it is then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimufctna24 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 (edited) 14 hours ago, wandshogun09 said: I’m a fan of ‘Big’ John McCarthy but did I hear him say that MVP has fought better opposition coming up than Anderson Silva did coming up? I missed him saying this. But others are talking about it on Twitter. Aye, he was talking bollocks, for all the reasons you mentioned. Big John can be a good commentator when he's with Mauro, but Goldberg doesn't half drag him down. It's like Goldy's laziness rubs off on him. Edited December 29, 2019 by jimufctna24 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.