UFC 104 : Machida vs. Shogun Rua

[DixieDestroyer]

Here's the card from Saturday's UFC 104 in LA. This card features a few caste matchups & the some of the prelims will be on Spike TV.

Main card

* Light Heavyweight Championship bout: Brazil Lyoto Machida (c) vs. Brazil Mauricio Rua
* Heavyweight bout: United States Cain Velasquez vs. United States Ben Rothwell
* Lightweight bout: Brazil Gleison Tibau vs. United States Josh Neer
* Lightweight bout: United States Joe Stevenson vs. United States Spencer Fisher
* Welterweight bout: United States Anthony Johnson vs. Japan Yoshiyuki Yoshida

Spike TV card

* Light Heavyweight bout: United States Ryan Bader vs. United States Eric Schafer
* Heavyweight bout: Netherlands Antoni Hardonk vs. United States Patrick Barry

Preliminary card

* Middleweight bout: Japan Yushin Okami vs. United States Chael Sonnen
* Middleweight bout: United States Jorge Rivera vs. United States Rob Kimmons
* Light Heavyweight bout: United States Kyle Kingsbury vs. United States Razak Al-Hassan
* Heavyweight bout: Netherlands Stefan Struve vs. United States Chase Gormley

I'll be pulling for Machida, Rothwell (vs. "Brown Pride" Velasquez), Neer, Fisher, Yoshida (vs. caste pushed Johnson), Hardonk (vs. Barry in a caste matchup), Sonnen, Kimmons (vs. Rivera in a caste matchup), and Kingsbury (vs. Al Hassan in another caste matchup).


UFC 104 Card

 

[DixieDestroyer]

UFC 104 previews (via Sherdog)...

UFC 104 - The Main Card

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[Liverlips]

I wrote a long post but it somehow got deleted. SO, my main points are:

1. I think we'll do well in the caste (black v. white) match ups. Hardonk should beat Barry and since it is on Spike TV it will be seen by more people than the PPV card.

2. Would love to see Rothwell beat "Brown Pride" Velasquez but it is a longshot. Velasquez is a legit top 5 while Ben is borderline top 10.

3. Would love to see Yoshida beat the Great Black Hope, Johnson, but it won't happen. There is a huge size difference and Yoshida was KO'd in a few seconds by Koschek his last fight. Johnson has flaws and has already fallen to superior white fighters. But he should win this by KO early. Johnson is really being protected by Dana White and will lose (again) when he steps up to the top 10 at 170.

3. Machida will KO Rua.

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Good analysis LL. Re Rothwell vs. "Brown Pride", I've heard some allusion (from arrogant Velasquez & "Blow Rogaine") about Ben not having the punching power of (caste "god") Kongo. Well, I'm calling BS on that one. Rothwell trains with MMA guru Pat Pat Miletich and former MTKB World Champ (and brother of kickboxing legend Rick Roufus) Duke Roufus. Big Ben is 30-6 with 17 KOs (and 11 subs!). Ben's not just fought cans either...he has victories over (former UFC Champ) Ricco Rodriguez, heavy-handed Krzysztof Soszynski (via TKO), Roy "Big Country" Nelson, powerhouse Dan Bobbish (via KO), and MMA vet (with 200+ fights) Travis Fulton.

I'd give Cain the advantage on wrestling & speed, but Ben has heavier hands, better BJJ & is bigger. I'd not be shocked to see Ben get the KO or sub. BTW, I'd not say Cain was a top 5 HW (MMA wise)...he'd get slaughtered by Fedor, Brock, Carwin, Barnett and I think Nog & Mir would be too much for him as well.

 

[celticdb15]

good luck to Rothwell!! He's from my hometown!!

 

[guest301]

The rumor is Rothwell is more cut than ever and has shed alot of that belly fat he has had most of his career. I guess we will see that in the weigh-in tonight as to whether that's true or not.

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Big Ben was a stud in IFL. I know he's a chef & his Dad owned a restaurant, so he's fond of good vittles (as am I

) . He was 265 & looked to be about 14-16% BF, so he could stand to cut 15-20 lbs. I'm sure he's tighened up his takedown defense & BJJ at MFS.

CDB15, ya'll got alotta famous people from Kenosha...Orson Welles, Don Ameche & his cousin Alan Ameche (Colts FB), Ol' Al Molinaro (from Happy Days) and the rock band Weezer. The IT guru at my buddy's company is from there too...big UW & Packers fan. He still has Packers season tix & says he can scan entire sections of Lambeau Field (during games) and not see 1 "brutha".

Unfortunately that's not the same case at the GA Dome (for the Falcons).

Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[Liverlips]

Good analysis LL. Re Rothwell vs. "Brown Pride", I've heard some allusion (from arrogant Velasquez & "Blow Rogaine") about Ben not having the punching power of (caste "god") Kongo. Well, I'm calling BS on that one. Rothwell trains with MMA guru Pat Pat Miletich and former MTKB World Champ (and brother of kickboxing legend Rick Roufus) Duke Roufus. Big Ben is 30-6 with 17 KOs (and 11 subs!). Ben's not just fought cans either...he has victories over (former UFC Champ) Ricco Rodriguez, heavy-handed Krzysztof Soszynski (via TKO), Roy "Big Country" Nelson, powerhouse Dan Bobbish (via KO), and MMA vet (with 200+ fights) Travis Fulton.

I'd give Cain the advantage on wrestling & speed, but Ben has heavier hands, better BJJ & is bigger. I'd not be shocked to see Ben get the KO or sub. BTW, I'd not say Cain was a top 5 HW (MMA wise)...he'd get slaughtered by Fedor, Brock, Carwin, Barnett and I think Nog & Mir would be too much for him as well.

Thanks Dixie. I should have stated that Velasquez is top 5 in the UFC (and top 10 in all of MMA for heavies). Don't get me wrong - am cheering big time for Big Ben and give him a 40-45% chance of winning. He does outweigh Cain by 30 lbs.

 

[Liverlips]

Great Black Nope Johnson weighed in at 176 - 6 lbs over the 170 lb. limit! Apparently, he cuts from 220 lbs! And he still lost twice at 170 -- probably from being drained.

 

[celticdb15]

Big Ben was a stud in IFL. I know he's a chef & his Dad owned a restaurant, so he's fond of good vittles (as am I

) . He was 265 & looked to be about 14-16% BF, so he could stand to cut 15-20 lbs. I'm sure he's tighened up his takedown defense & BJJ at MFS.

CDB15, ya'll got alotta famous people from Kenosha...Orson Welles, Don Ameche & his cousin Alan Ameche (Colts FB), Ol' Al Molinaro (from Happy Days) and the rock band Weezer. The IT guru at my buddy's company is from there too...big UW & Packers fan. He still has Packers season tix & says he can scan entire sections of Lambeau Field (during games) and not see 1 "brutha".

Unfortunately that's not the same case at the GA Dome (for the Falcons).

When you put it that way, Kenosha does have a lot of famous people for a town of 100,000 or so

. Good luck to Ben and Lyoto I'll try to catch the fight at a buddy of mine's house.

BTW* Dave Strasser who also fought in the UFC (Welterweight) is from Kenosha.

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Ben weighed in at 265 (vs. Cain's 238), but looks leaner...

Rothwell at UFC 104 Weigh-In

Rothwell at Weigh-In (Facing Off Against "Brown Pride"

LL, I thought you may have been referring to the UFC. I'd agree he's a top 5 HW in the UFC, and probably 8-9th (overall MMA).Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Just a reminder, the UFC 104 prelims are on Spike at 9PM ET (until 10PM).Heavy-handed wrestler Ryan "Darth" Bader will square off against BJJ wiz Eric "Ravishing Red" Schafer...plus a caste match-up of Antoni Hardonk vs. mongrel Patrick Barry (who's a solid striker...but has little ground game).

 

[DixieDestroyer]

Updates/results from UFC 104...

- Stefan Struve vs. Chase Gormley...Struve by sub (triangle) Rnd 1.
- Kyle Kingsbury vs. (afflete) Razak Al-Hassan...Kingsbury by SD.

- Jorge Rivera vs. Rob Kimmons...Rivera by TKO (punches) Rnd 3.

- Yushin Okami vs. Chael Sonnen...Sonnen by UD.

- Antoni Hardonk vs. Patrick Barry...Barry by TKO (strikes) Rnd 2.

***Hardonk needs to improve his ground game.
- Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer....Bader by UD.
- Anthony Johnson vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida...Johnson by TKO (punches) Rnd 1.

- Joe Stevenson vs. Spencer Fisher...Stevenson by TKO (strikes) Rnd 2.
- Catchweight bout: Gleison Tibau vs. Josh Neer...Tibau by UD.

- Heavyweight bout: Cain Velasquez vs. Ben Rothwell...Velasquez by TKO (strikes) Rnd. ***Once again, "Sleeze Maggotgoti" screws up the call/officiating.

Per Sherdog...(Rnd 2) "Velasquez snags a quick single and the beating commences. Velasquez's right hand finds a home on the face of Rothwell. Velasquez pins Rothwell's left arm against the cage and unloads with lefts to the head. While Rothwell frees his arm and stands to his feet, referee Steve Mazzagatti executes extremely poor judgment in calling the fight. An awful move to a fight that was growing more exciting by the minute."

- Light Heavyweight Championship bout: Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio Rua
...Machida by UD, but the Sherdog crew (on Live chat) said Rua was totally ripped off as Machina had no answer for his kicks.

***All in all, a disappointing night. However, I don't see Velasquez beating the winner of the Lesnar/Carwin fight. He doesn't have the size, power or chin to deal with those monsters.Also, Anthony "Stumble" Johnson can't hang with Fitch or GSP...not enough BJJ (& those 2 are better wrestlers). Bottom line...Whites still hold the majority of UFC & WEC titles...and half-White Machida & Penn still hold theirs.





Edited by: DixieDestroyer

 

[Bear Backer]

Updates/results from UFC 104...

- Stefan Struve vs. Chase Gormley...Struve by sub (triangle) Rnd 1.
- Kyle Kingsbury vs. (afflete) Razak Al-Hassan...Kingsbury by SD.

- Jorge Rivera vs. Rob Kimmons...Rivera by TKO (punches) Rnd 3.

- Yushin Okami vs. Chael Sonnen...Sonnen by UD.

- Antoni Hardonk vs. Patrick Barry...Barry by TKO (strikes) Rnd 2.

***Hardonk needs to improve his ground game.
- Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer....Bader by UD.
- Anthony Johnson vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida...Johnson by TKO (punches) Rnd 1.

- Joe Stevenson vs. Spencer Fisher...Stevenson by TKO (strikes) Rnd 2.
- Catchweight bout: Gleison Tibau vs. Josh Neer...Tibau by UD.

- Heavyweight bout: Cain Velasquez vs. Ben Rothwell...Velasquez by TKO (strikes) Rnd. ***Once again, "Sleeze Maggotgoti" screws up the call/officiating.

Per Sherdog...(Rnd 2) "Velasquez snags a quick single and the beating commences. Velasquez's right hand finds a home on the face of Rothwell. Velasquez pins Rothwell's left arm against the cage and unloads with lefts to the head. While Rothwell frees his arm and stands to his feet, referee Steve Mazzagatti executes extremely poor judgment in calling the fight. An awful move to a fight that was growing more exciting by the minute."

- Light Heavyweight Championship bout: Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio Rua
...Machida by UD, but the Sherdog crew (on Live chat) said Rua was totally ripped off as Machina had no answer for his kicks.

***All in all, a disappointing night. However, I don't see Velasquez beating the winner of the Lesnar/Carwin fight. He doesn't have the size, power or chin to deal with those monsters.Also, Anthony "Stumble" Johnson can't hang with Fitch or GSP...not enough BJJ (& those 2 are better wrestlers). Bottom line...Whites still hold the majority of UFC & WEC titles...and half-White Machida & Penn still hold theirs.

I agree, Shogun got robbed. I wonder if this will bring Machida back to reality and make him forget any silly fantasies he has about a fight with Brock Lesnar. If not, he is going to embarrass himself between now and any such future fight.

 

[Bear Backer]

Updates/results from UFC 104...

- Stefan Struve vs. Chase Gormley...Struve by sub (triangle) Rnd 1.
- Kyle Kingsbury vs. (afflete) Razak Al-Hassan...Kingsbury by SD.

- Jorge Rivera vs. Rob Kimmons...Rivera by TKO (punches) Rnd 3.

- Yushin Okami vs. Chael Sonnen...Sonnen by UD.

- Antoni Hardonk vs. Patrick Barry...Barry by TKO (strikes) Rnd 2.

***Hardonk needs to improve his ground game.
- Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer....Bader by UD.
- Anthony Johnson vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida...Johnson by TKO (punches) Rnd 1.

- Joe Stevenson vs. Spencer Fisher...Stevenson by TKO (strikes) Rnd 2.
- Catchweight bout: Gleison Tibau vs. Josh Neer...Tibau by UD.

- Heavyweight bout: Cain Velasquez vs. Ben Rothwell...Velasquez by TKO (strikes) Rnd. ***Once again, "Sleeze Maggotgoti" screws up the call/officiating.

Per Sherdog...(Rnd 2) "Velasquez snags a quick single and the beating commences. Velasquez's right hand finds a home on the face of Rothwell. Velasquez pins Rothwell's left arm against the cage and unloads with lefts to the head. While Rothwell frees his arm and stands to his feet, referee Steve Mazzagatti executes extremely poor judgment in calling the fight. An awful move to a fight that was growing more exciting by the minute."

- Light Heavyweight Championship bout: Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio Rua
...Machida by UD, but the Sherdog crew (on Live chat) said Rua was totally ripped off as Machina had no answer for his kicks.

***All in all, a disappointing night. However, I don't see Velasquez beating the winner of the Lesnar/Carwin fight. He doesn't have the size, power or chin to deal with those monsters.Also, Anthony "Stumble" Johnson can't hang with Fitch or GSP...not enough BJJ (& those 2 are better wrestlers). Bottom line...Whites still hold the majority of UFC & WEC titles...and half-White Machida & Penn still hold theirs.

I agree, Shogun got robbed. I wonder if this will bring Machida back to reality and make him forget any silly fantasies he has about a fight with Brock Lesnar. If not, he is going to embarrass himself between now and any such future fight, and would just get mauled by Lesnar anyway.

 

[White Shogun]

I don't see the fight as a robbery. Close decision, could have gone either way. I have no problem with Machida getting the UD at 48-47.

 

[Liverlips]

Kinda went how I figured but thought Machida would win easier. Still thought he did enough to pull it out. But he does not belong with the big 3 (Fedor, GSP and A. Silva).

A. Johnson couldn't come close to making weight (176) and will fight at 185 now (against guys his own size).

Ryan Bader and Chael Sonnen got some good wins, so not a complete mess for our guys. Hardonk very disappointing though.

 

[Liverlips]

Don't forget guys - In two weeks we will have two caste matches live on national TV (CBS). Millions will see Fedor and Mousasi KO their great black hope opponents.