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UFC London: Till vs Masvidal - Mar 16 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿


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Darren Till vs Jorge Masvidal

Well, I think it's safe to say that the Darren Till hype train is well and truly derailed now. All credit to Masvidal where it's due, but this wasn't a loss to Tyron Woodley, it was a loss to a guy who has always been a mid-level fighter and who was coming off a 16 month layoff and was on a two-fight losing skid.

Where does Till go from here? I'd still chuck him in there with Askren if they both wanted it. That would be a fight where either Till keeps it standing and wins on the feet, or he gets taken down and smashed up. Either way it would be a fun fight with a tasty build.

I don't think Askren would want the Masvidal fight, simply because he's not a step up on Lawler. If he goes in and beats Masvidal handily it doesn't really raise his profile, and I think Askren is approaching this UFC run from the perspective of a guy who was ready to call it a day and who's been given one last run. There's no time to fuck about, it's about big fights, big money and title shots.

Masvidal vs Leon Edwards is obviously the fight to make for Jorge, isn't it? It's already a fight with "beef" now after their altercation, so why not run with that? 

Gunnar Nelson vs Leon Edwards

I think at this stage the wheels are coming off for Gunnar Nelson at welterweight. 3-2 in his last five, I think he seriously needs to look at moving down to lightweight. It's long been known that he cuts virtually nothing to make the welter limit, walking around at 175lbs or so when he's not fighting.

He can either hang around at welter and trade wins and losses, or he can put in the effort and make the cut to lightweight where he could be a legit force. The choice is his.

Gunnar vs Kevin Lee anyone? That would be a decent little scrap I reckon.

Edwards vs Masvidal is the fight to make for Leon. If he can get past Masvidal then he's in the mix, as the kids say. 

Dominick Reyes vs Volkan Oezdemir

I actually had Volkan winning the fight in all honesty, but whatever. I don't really fancy either guy to make a dent in the division moving forwards. I've seen suggestions of Reyes vs Johnny Walker, but at this stage I'd rather see Walker fight a "name" which will add some credibility to his record. I think he'd smash through Reyes in quick fashion, and if he didn't it would just kill off another potential challenger for Jones.

Reyes vs Jan Blackowicz could be a fun fight I guess, and would be the only real option for Reyes unless he's fighting someone further down the rankings.

As for Volkan, that's three losses on the bounce now, although he was unlucky last night in my opinion. He's no longer in the frame top ten-wise for me, and needs to drop back and regroup. 

At this stage I'd throw him in there with Johnny Walker. It would be a legit test for Walker, a name opponent to a degree, and someone who's been in there with the best. If Walker beats Volkan in good fashion then he's ready for the top five I think.

Odds & ends

Elsewhere on the card I thought Mike Grundy looked decent enough, thought Molly McCann won a fight that was incredibly sloppy and featured two female fighters who won't come close to making a dent anywhere near the top of the division, Dan Ige looked okay, and Mark Diakiese looked decent as well.

Man, what about Joe Duffy? He came in with a lot of fanfare, and I'm not sure if the jump up has been too much for him, or his consistent injuries have impeded his progress, but I don't think he's doing much more in the division. 

Seven UFC fights, with a record of 4-3 now. I think another loss and he's gone. Who do you match him up with at this point? I figured Diakiese would be a perfect fight for his return, as it was a guy who, although flashy on the feet, isn't really all that great anywhere. I figured Duffy would outbox him, get the fight to the ground and stop him there in the first or second.

Usually a guy in this position you give a fight where they can look good and win, but Diakiese was that fight for him. I have no idea where they match Duffy up next. 

Arnold Allen is a fucking stud. 5-0 in the UFC now, it's time he takes a bit of a step up I think, as he's not getting any benefit from beating these dudes who aren't ranked. 

The fight I'd look for here? Darren Elkins. Ranked 14th, on a two-fight skid, 34 years old. This would be a real test for Allen, but it's a fight I think he could win. If he wins against someone like Elkins he's immediately top 15 and looking at building some serious momentum in 2020.

All in all, it was a decent event I thought. 

 

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2 hours ago, David said:

I don't think Askren would want the Masvidal fight,

Aye. It was a wasted trip for Askren, and I think he'll go all in for Marty from Nebraska. It's the smart move. UFC should just dump Colby and give him a match with Woodley or even Lawler.

The match at WW is Askren v Marty.

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3 hours ago, ColinBollocks said:

Aye. It was a wasted trip for Askren, and I think he'll go all in for Marty from Nebraska. It's the smart move. UFC should just dump Colby and give him a match with Woodley or even Lawler.

The match at WW is Askren v Marty.

Colby has to get that shot now, despite how many feel about him personally he's more than earned it. 

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This is great. Ben Askren media scrum in London; 

This was filmed before Till got ironed out by Masvidal so he’s still angling for the Till fight here which obviously isn’t as likely now. But this is still more than worth a watch. Covers a whole range of topics. Everything 170 and a bit about 165 and the potential dream match against Khabib. Plus Colby, Marty, GSP, McGregor, London sight seeing, relationship with Dana, the possible Lawler rematch, his personality and debunking the narrative of grapplers being boring/not drawing. It’s a really good watch. He really is Chael plus a perm but minus all the bullshit. 

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18 hours ago, David said:

Colby has to get that shot now, despite how many feel about him personally he's more than earned it. 

Fairness is all well and good but the Curly Headed Fuck v Marty from Nebraska is the fight at WW now. Plus, it would be funny if Dana's payback to Colby ruining his hot run at the table is having Colby as a continually frustrated no. 1 contender.

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Yeh id run with Marty/Askren now, not purely because Askren is a top fighter but because hes owning the UFC at the moment, get him in there, strike whilst the irons hot.

Id also go with Masvidal/Edwards. Set up for the wrong reasons maybe and reward for that backstage scuffle but its obvious fight to make. Masvidal in that second round looked brilliant, sharp as a tack and more aggressive that he sometimes is, Masvidal is one of the best strikers in the sport. On that kind of form id have him beating Edwards. Its a hard fall for Till and he looked decent but once you get into that top 5 theres no easy fights. Id still like to see him goto 185.

The rest of the main card didnt really deliver on its hype for me, Silva/Roberts was excellent though. 

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if Masvidal hadnt gone full miami backyard bare knuckle, do you think they may have shoehorned him in there? 

Back to the Masvidal thing. That's probably the best thing that could have happened to Leon Edwards at this point. Edwards is a guy who should be getting credit for his performances but he still kind of exists without the buzz. The Gunni win was no statement win either, he won but Gunni was in charge when the fight ended. A genuine heated feud and a rival is what he needed and now he has one out of left-field with Masvidal. That fight headlines a Fight Night or co-headlines a PPV at this point.

Edited by Egg Shen
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3 minutes ago, Egg Shen said:

if Masvidal hadnt gone full miami backyard bare knuckle, do you think they may have shoehorned him in there?

Nah, I doubt it. I think he was brought in with the idea that he'd be a warm body for Till to beat en route to making his way back to title contention.

3 minutes ago, Egg Shen said:

Back to the Masvidal thing. That's probably the best thing that could have happened to Leon Edwards at this point. Edwards who is a guy who should be getting credit for his performances but he still kind of exists without the buzz. The Gunni win was no statement win either, he won but Gunni was in charge when the fight ended. A genuine heated feud and a rival is what he needed and now he has one out of left-field with Masvidal. That fight headlines a Fight Night or co-headlines a PPV at this point.

Masvidal is making noises about a title shot, which won't happen. He's also talking about wanting big money to fight again, so it'll be interesting to see if he Diaz's his way out of a fight anytime soon with ridiculous demands. Hopefully not.

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speaking of which, a Masvidal/Diaz fight (either one) would be tremendous.

I agree 100% that Masvidal was brought in to lose. The o2 apparently requested Till headline the London show so the UFC can see the value in him. Wonder how he rebounds, that was a bad loss.

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36 minutes ago, Egg Shen said:

speaking of which, a Masvidal/Diaz fight (either one) would be tremendous.

It seems Nick Diaz would be interested in a fight with Askren, if "the money was right."

Seeing as the money that Nick believes a guy who's 35 years old, hasn't fought in over four years and who's 2-2-1 in his last five should get paid is wildly different to that of the UFC I wouldn't hold your breath.

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