MMA Ratings

You're right that not mentioning the UFC is a disc...

2009-11-08T17:27:22.303-05:00

You're right that not mentioning the UFC is a discredit to the fans watching.

That being said, mentioning that your MW title contender got smashed all over the cage by GSP (who fans know is a WW) is kinda crappy to me...

While you certainly have to acknowledge their presence and the fights some of these guys have had, you temper everything and keep it to a minimum is my opinion.

Sokoudjou lost to Lyoto Machida explains the defeat just as much as Sokoudjou lost to the rising UFC superstar Lyoto Machida...

9. Here's the thing about production: WEC cards NE...

2009-11-08T16:25:01.741-05:00

9. Here's the thing about production: WEC cards NEVER end on time, but they have a network that allows them a huge overrun. In CBS, they are deathly afraid of running long and raising the ire of local affiliates. Plus, a five-round decision in your semi-main creates a 30-minute glut that the rest of the show has to be booked around. They already skimped on entrances and post-fight interviews.

As for the swing bout getting canceled, that's not a production thing; that's the fault of the arena and the promoter.

10. EA Sports MMA needs to be pushed HARD. They should put together a demo for every show's main event, and use those graphics for their "Keys to Victory" instead of the Meat Puppets. In fact, using Virtual Fedor might help them get around their lack of fight footage.

5. You mean 180. But anyway, I think that Sokoudju...

2009-11-08T16:24:25.404-05:00

5. You mean 180. But anyway, I think that Sokoudju is the new Overeem. Remember when the knock on Overeem was that he was a frontrunner who looked great for the first 2-3 minutes, but then he gassed and died? Yup, now that guy is Sokoudju. However, just like Overeem, Judo Thierry is a young guy, and he still has room to develop...especially in Japan, where he should be the recipient of favorable matchmaking. I'd like to see him get some of that from Strikeforce, perhaps as part of the Strikeforce Challenger series.

6. Yes. And he too is represented by M-1, so he may not get into the UFC either. However, this could work out for Strikeforce, especially if they manage to sign Dan Handerson, arguably a Top 5 light heavyweight, and Ricardo Arona, who is a solid LHW in his own right.

7. This isn't pro wrestling -- ignoring the UFC makes you look disingenuous, and makes you lose credibility in the eyes of fans. MMA fans *should* know who the Top stars in the sport are. Mentioning that Sokoudju had a sub-.500 record in the UFC, including losses to Top 10 LHW fighters Machida and Cane, doesn't hurt anyone except people allergic to the truth.

Georges St. Pierre and Anderson Silva are guys considered top pound-for-pounders, and Fedor is in that class. To pretend that their fanbase will avoid the UFC because Strikeforce doesn't mention it or their stars is misguided, and won't lead to any growth on their part.

8. I'm not a fan of Frank Shamrock, but where have you been? He always goes into business for himself, and his grudge against Jake Shields was the reason he refused to say Shields was winning the fight. Pat Militech is a better color guy, but Frank's better known, and for CBS's purposes, that helps them. Plus, when it came to calling the ground game, he offered solid insight without coming off as an apologist.

That said, the Sujoku thing was unforgivable.

Ten Things, second take: 1. Fedor showed in his la...

2009-11-08T16:23:29.663-05:00

Ten Things, second take:
1. Fedor showed in his last three fights that if you make a mistake, HE WILL FINISH YOU DECISIVELY. That's what mainstream MMA fans want to see, and that's why he will reign as the Top Heavyweight in the sport, and an emerging superstar, to boot. The fact that he takes damage, but remains unperturbed, just enhances his aura.

2. Ask yourself this question: Would anyone NOT named Fedor have survived Rogers' first round offense? (OK, maybe Big Nog.) Regardless, I think he stops Lesnar, Carwin, Velasquez, Mir, and possibly Kongo. The challenge now for Strikeforce is convincing fans of this fact. I'd say that he should face Tim Sylvia (nothing like a former UFC champ on the resume) next, and then perhaps an Antonio Silva, before building him up for another shot at the big boys, Overeem, Arlovski, and Fedor.

3. Jason Miller came *this close* to becoming a HUGE star for Strikeforce. The fact that Mayhem almost won could be a jumping off point for an eventual second title shot for him; he just needs to put together a winning streak. It'll be tough, because he'd be an underdog against Lawler and Jacare, and possibly Lindland and Kennedy. Where's Mr. Cyborg when you need him?

4. The ground game *is* boring if there's no chance of a finish. Sure, positional dominance is "effective grapping," in the same way that Ball Control that controls the clock, but ends drives with field goals is Effective Football. Once it became obvious that Shields couldn't finish Miller, the audible groans from the home and live crowds were unmistakable. However, when Miller almost finishes Shields, they all perk up. Fans don't want to see defensive grappling and control, they want to see offensive grappling that results in submission attempts.

But look at it this way: If Shields is going to be maligned for being an "American Ju Jitsu" conservative grappler, then fights against bangers like Cung Le, Joey Villasenor, and Robbie Lawler will represent style clashes that will have all the fans rooting for the challengers. And if he really wants that Frank Shamrock fight, then doing it in San Jose would galvanize the local base...especially if announcer Frank Shamrock has a platform to criticize Shields for being boring.

Madiq, I would go so far as to say that Rogers is ...

2009-11-08T08:46:09.410-05:00

Madiq, I would go so far as to say that Rogers is as credible an opponent for Fedor as Brock is for Fedor. But the crowd of which you speak is a "loyal" (read: myopic) one. Madiq, hit me up at eric @ mmaratings.net. I want to ask you a question.

i did not notice any funny business with the towel...

2009-11-08T06:02:58.205-05:00

i did not notice any funny business with the towel.

Mousasi helped sokoudjou look good by continually ...

2009-11-08T03:39:32.787-05:00

Mousasi helped sokoudjou look good by continually going into the clinch or trying to play judo, so sokoudjou could show off the skills he does have. It was the equivalent of if sokoudjou had laid down so Mousasi could show off his vicious ground and pound.

Oh wait.

On the telecast could you see that the ref spent a...

2009-11-08T03:35:37.208-05:00

On the telecast could you see that the ref spent a very long time with a towel wiping down Bigfoot? Seems like he came into the cage with something on him. I never like to see that kind of thing.

Impressive showing from both guys, but really not a lot more than we can expect: Silva is a physical powerhouse, well rounded, with good, fast hands. Werdum is an ace grappler with good power in his standup and a lot of toughness, but it awkward and goofy when not just doing jiu-jitsu.

Of note, Ray Mercer was in the audience and trying...

2009-11-08T03:23:10.726-05:00

Of note, Ray Mercer was in the audience and trying to get into the cage to call fedor out. He seemed quite agitated.

it's weird when a fight gets boring because you kn...

2009-11-08T03:22:03.444-05:00

it's weird when a fight gets boring because you know the attacks can have no effect.

Shields taking mount or the back drew big reactions in round 1. In round 5, when we knew he couldn't finish, the audience yawned.

Moore was clearly a class above Taylor in this fig...

2009-11-08T03:06:20.541-05:00

Moore was clearly a class above Taylor in this fight. Taylor had no answer to anything Moore did and wore himself out trying to find them. the finish was more of a euthanization than anything violent. Taylor just had nothing left to try, and Moore just flattened him out and boxed his ears a little. Taylor's girlfriend was in the crowd, screaming increasingly desperate advice.

not a thrilling fight. Kolosci just couldn't do a...

2009-11-08T03:04:27.548-05:00

not a thrilling fight. Kolosci just couldn't do anything about Bailey's takedowns and control.

Curran just ran over this kid, who was fairly big ...

2009-11-08T03:03:56.807-05:00

Curran just ran over this kid, who was fairly big and strong. Kneed him in the guts and the guy just quit. I thought he had busted his gut. I asked Curran what he did to the guy and he said he broke his rib.

Roxy looked TINY here. She should thank her stars...

2009-11-08T03:03:03.590-05:00

Roxy looked TINY here. She should thank her stars she didn't get a chance to get godzilla stomped by Cyborg. Girl should be fighting at like 120

I just hope that he gets his respect from the Zuff...

2009-11-08T01:09:35.971-05:00

I just hope that he gets his respect from the Zuffites, as they realize that Rogers is just as credible an opponent for Fedor as Carwin is for Brock. And a part of me thinks that Rogers can beat both men...just not Fedor.

I've been saying since before they made this fight that Rogers could lose the fight, and fight his way BACK to a rematch against Fedor for the title. This was the perfect first act, and hopefully Rogers continues to progress.

Overall, I rate the fight 4.5 stars.

I thought that Shields was the favorite, but Mille...

2009-11-08T00:27:01.350-05:00

I thought that Shields was the favorite, but Miller was *capable* of winning the later rounds if Jake got tired. In fact, I thought that the end of the third, with Mayhem managing to catch Shields in an RNC, was how I figured the fight would finish if he won. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be, and Miller made his loss pretty entertaining in Rounds 1 to 3. The final two rounds kinda blew, though.

I give it 3.5 Stars.

Which preview section madiq? Do you really thin...

2009-11-08T00:19:44.102-05:00

Which preview section madiq?

Do you really think he gassed? thought he just got beat up after going to the ground with Werdum, and totally unnecessarily.

I hope you're rating with the stars.

People forget that Sokoudju is still a prospect, a...

2009-11-08T00:14:13.127-05:00

People forget that Sokoudju is still a prospect, and should be treated like one. Hopefully his management takes the next year or so to rebuild him, while matching him up with guys that will aid his development, rather than hinder it. I could see him being a title contender in 18 months, but not anytime before.

The fight, though, was pretty entertaining. 3.75 stars in my book.

In the preview section, I pretty much called this ...

2009-11-08T00:08:23.054-05:00

In the preview section, I pretty much called this one. Silva early, but he gasses late, allowing Werdum to ride out the last two rounds with superior grappling. I still think Silva can be a top 10 fighter, but Werdum was a matchup problem for him. Too bad most of the division's Top 10 are in the UFC.

I rated it a 3.5

Strikeforce put on an amazing free televised card....

2009-11-07T23:36:49.759-05:00

Strikeforce put on an amazing free televised card. The four fights we got to see were all excellent, relevant, entertaining, quality fights. The only bad thing I can say is that there were only four fights. Will we ever get to see the Roxanne Modafferi vs. Marloes Coenen or Jeff Curran vs. Dustin Neace fights?

The commentating had some room for improvement but was better than any of there previous events. No meat puppets, no heavy metal or rap intermissions and no dancing girls (Mayhem's entourage doesn't count).

Even though Fedor pulled it out, Rogers did a lot ...

2009-11-07T23:16:43.654-05:00

Even though Fedor pulled it out, Rogers did a lot of things very well. He kept distance well, swept Fedor, escaped multiple submission attempts, landed some good ground and pound, and knees. Excellent fight. I don't think Rogers deserves any immediate rematches, but I have way more respect for Rogers than ever before.

R:3+ A:5 S:5 T:5

I picked Miller and thought he be able to tire Shi...

2009-11-07T22:46:53.144-05:00

I picked Miller and thought he be able to tire Shields out. His grappling and submission defense were excellent, but that doesn't score points and Shields maintained dominant positions and kept striking the entire time. Do you give Miller the 3rd for having that RNC at the end of the round? Shields would have been out in a few more seconds. But otherwise I would score it 50-45 Shields.

R:4 A:4 S:5 T:4

Disappointed in Sokoudjou. He's been doing that gi...

2009-11-07T22:01:30.817-05:00

Disappointed in Sokoudjou. He's been doing that giving up thing in a lot of his fights lately.

I picked Mousasi, but this was the best Sokoudjou ...

2009-11-07T21:56:10.989-05:00

I picked Mousasi, but this was the best Sokoudjou I've ever seen. Both showed awesome skills.

R:3 A:4 S:5 T:4

This was a fight where I bucked the trend and pick...

2009-11-07T21:35:03.096-05:00

This was a fight where I bucked the trend and picked Silva. He was doing great until he got over confident in the second round and didn't force the standup. I think I have to give the last 2 rounds to Werdum.

R:3 A:4 S:5 T:4