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Really, really enjoyed that card - proper brawlfests are a guilty pleasure once in a while, and it goes a long way to making up for the cuddling competition they had in Calgary at 149.
Can't be bothered to write war and peace on it, but the Lauzon fight had me on the edge of my seat, seriously impressed by both him and Varner - Varner's punches are ace.
Bader looked like he might have had a good game plan, then he kept getting tagged every time he zipped in and out. No feints, no anticipation of the inevitable counter, writing on the wall. Hell of a potent KO punch though - watch his eyes on slow-mo!
Pleased Mike Swick won, good to see him back and doing well - always seems a nice guy. KO came from out of nowhere, but that's UFC.
Shogun remains one of my favourite 205lb fighters to watch, but I'm starting to think he might be getting slightly past it. Hope I'm wrong. Vera looked a shed load better than I expected - look forward to see him fighting again now - even with the legs of a new born giraffe he fought his ass off, before it got knocked out.
All in all, pleased I watched it - for a Fox card it was respectable. Still hate that we get the s
t chopped up part-card format though, but I can live without it. Post-fight presser is here if anyone's interested in seeing it live http://www.ufc.com/media/fox4-post-pc
Can't be bothered to write war and peace on it, but the Lauzon fight had me on the edge of my seat, seriously impressed by both him and Varner - Varner's punches are ace.
Bader looked like he might have had a good game plan, then he kept getting tagged every time he zipped in and out. No feints, no anticipation of the inevitable counter, writing on the wall. Hell of a potent KO punch though - watch his eyes on slow-mo!
Pleased Mike Swick won, good to see him back and doing well - always seems a nice guy. KO came from out of nowhere, but that's UFC.
Shogun remains one of my favourite 205lb fighters to watch, but I'm starting to think he might be getting slightly past it. Hope I'm wrong. Vera looked a shed load better than I expected - look forward to see him fighting again now - even with the legs of a new born giraffe he fought his ass off, before it got knocked out.
All in all, pleased I watched it - for a Fox card it was respectable. Still hate that we get the s
t chopped up part-card format though, but I can live without it. Post-fight presser is here if anyone's interested in seeing it live http://www.ufc.com/media/fox4-post-pcEdited by Stu R on Sunday 5th August 03:46
As above - often seems to be the unfavoured cards that produce the most exciting fights.
Delighted to see Machida win and get the shot - well judged and explained Dana White - and he looked so dominant in doing it. Perfect punch placement and timing and not the first time he's done this.
The Vera Shogun fight was very exciting but I think partly because Shogun is losing it - and suspect that was behind some of what White said and what he was implying; with his coach again translating that he hadn't done his best but had won, again. Not enough - he should be doing his best/at his best in every fight at this level. Got caught, and bothered, way too often and didn't make nearly enough of some of the dominant positions he had.
Actually disappointed for Vera who could have had that in the 2nd round but his main problem is he has zero defence in the stand up. he can land punches and elbows yes but simply does not defend them. years ago I loved watching him and thought he'd give anybody a hard time with his kicks, clinch and range but these past few years he's seemed behind the game as things have so noticeably and quickly progressed. Gutsy as, though.
Another exciting fight with Lauzon and a good performance but I wonder if Verner had had longer than 2 weeks what might have happened.
Pleased for Swick but especially delighted to see loud mouthed Johnson beaten again.
I noticed the ad for next week's show and the way it was worded, as if ESPN have been aware of the rumours, in stressing it's here to stay and UFC in the UK will only be on ESPN.
Delighted to see Machida win and get the shot - well judged and explained Dana White - and he looked so dominant in doing it. Perfect punch placement and timing and not the first time he's done this.
The Vera Shogun fight was very exciting but I think partly because Shogun is losing it - and suspect that was behind some of what White said and what he was implying; with his coach again translating that he hadn't done his best but had won, again. Not enough - he should be doing his best/at his best in every fight at this level. Got caught, and bothered, way too often and didn't make nearly enough of some of the dominant positions he had.
Actually disappointed for Vera who could have had that in the 2nd round but his main problem is he has zero defence in the stand up. he can land punches and elbows yes but simply does not defend them. years ago I loved watching him and thought he'd give anybody a hard time with his kicks, clinch and range but these past few years he's seemed behind the game as things have so noticeably and quickly progressed. Gutsy as, though.
Another exciting fight with Lauzon and a good performance but I wonder if Verner had had longer than 2 weeks what might have happened.
Pleased for Swick but especially delighted to see loud mouthed Johnson beaten again.
I noticed the ad for next week's show and the way it was worded, as if ESPN have been aware of the rumours, in stressing it's here to stay and UFC in the UK will only be on ESPN.
Yep all four fights were fun. I thought alot of the guys showed real grit and will to win. Wasnt a big fan of Vera but he showed heart and impressed me. Same with Varner, fully conditioned I think he could of won that fight. His striking was very good early on. So pleased Machida won, I just hope he has a game plan to beat jones (or perhaps hendo??). I did read on another mma forum that the ESPN deal had been extended but only for 12 months. After that who knows but at least we have another year of fights to look forward to!
I can see it being ESPN's last stand with UFC. Fox have it firmly in their sights now and they're not letting go anytime soon - UFC on FOX, FX and FuelTV are all fox brands, they've got a 7 year deal, and rumour has it Fox are in the process of mapping out a new national sports network.
If we're not watching UFC on Sky Sports or one of the other Sky owned channels within 18 months I'll be amazed. Either way, I'll be the hole in my bum we start to see more and more of the bigger names being syphoned off to Fox branded events.
If we're not watching UFC on Sky Sports or one of the other Sky owned channels within 18 months I'll be amazed. Either way, I'll be the hole in my bum we start to see more and more of the bigger names being syphoned off to Fox branded events.
davey68 said:
Well a year contract with ESPN seems to be a holding position until other contracts can be agreed. May well be it will end up on Fox, what would that mean to the uk viewers? FX channel or sky sports? as long as I get to watch it I'm not too bothered who the provider is.
It would save me £10 a month, unless FX did ppv for big shows?
. You can make an argument that he should have won, but I'm glad he lost, he bores me senseless with his fighting style.Cowboy is great to watch, love his style. Thought he was done after that early punch but great comeback. Shields was dull does he always fight like that? Not a fan of smothering wrestling style fights. I thought Edgar won too he must be gutted not getting the decision. Overall not a bad card but not amazing. One thing I noticed is the different kickboxing styles, muay thai seems to be the most effective. That lawrence kid used alot of karate/american kickboxing and henderson seemed to use a mix of styles including tkd. Do people think muay thai is the best stand up style?
Great recovery from Cerrone.
Great Lay & Prey Shields is now at MW
Glad Ben Henderson won. To win the championship you need to beat the champion. He didn't. He wasn't robbed it was a close split decision. He shouldn't have left it in the hands of the judges. Which is all he ever does. At least there are no more sodding rematches for the title.
Great Lay & Prey Shields is now at MW
Glad Ben Henderson won. To win the championship you need to beat the champion. He didn't. He wasn't robbed it was a close split decision. He shouldn't have left it in the hands of the judges. Which is all he ever does. At least there are no more sodding rematches for the title.
Generally enjoyed the main event. Would need to watch it again to decide whether I agree with the decision or not. Was very close anyway. Always found Edgar easy to root for and Ben (until jesus told him to change it to Benson) Henderson gets on my tits a bit. I don't think he's great to watch and I don't find him a particularly endeering personality.
COME ON CERONE! I love watching the Cowboy and my heart was in my mouth with the near KO, but what a come back.
Shields was utter pish and exactly the kind of fighter that totally turns people off MMA.
Not a bad card overall but a shame for Franky. I too am glad there's no more rematches though as it was getting a bit rediculous. Looking forward to the Diaz fight. Will be a real clash of styles I think.
COME ON CERONE! I love watching the Cowboy and my heart was in my mouth with the near KO, but what a come back.
Shields was utter pish and exactly the kind of fighter that totally turns people off MMA.
Not a bad card overall but a shame for Franky. I too am glad there's no more rematches though as it was getting a bit rediculous. Looking forward to the Diaz fight. Will be a real clash of styles I think.
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