$100 Says Shields Wins at UFC 129

Disclaimer - We in no way endorse or encourage gambling.

OK, with that business out of the way - let's have some fun. With UFC 129: GSP Vs Shields almost upon us, it's time for Knee founder Jimbo Slice to put his money where his mouth is. Martin Ives explains...



Thinking back, one of the first UFC bouts I ever really paid attention to involved Georges St Pierre - what really struck me about him was his methodical, no-wasted-motion approach to fighting, and his eye watering budgie smugglers. I decided on that day that I'd never bet against this impressive physical specimen. My dear friend Jimbo has other ideas...

Let's take it back a little, before the Phantom Knee, we were just a bunch of mates getting together, drinking beer, eating meat and watching fighting. My ex-girlfriend used to call it 'Getting your man on' and I suppose it was. The purest celebration of masculinity known to, well, man. Once Jimbo had mastered the art of pulling an all-nighter coupled with all the trappings of 'getting his man on', we started having good natured bets amongst ourselves. Everyone loves a prediction right? - it's a metaphorical cock measuring contest - a battle to the death! I remember at UFC 101, I rather stupidly bet Jimbo £10 that Forrest would beat Silva. 5 minutes later, I ended up handing over £20, as I was so ashamed. The man was like a talisman - he'd get 10/12 predictions right. So once he'd cleaned me out for the last time, we started placing bets online. 50/50 and we'd back his picks. Well, what can I tell you? It all went very wrong very quickly - the luck dried up, and we'd seldom win anything of note. So we stopped. We lost the lucky rabbit's foot.

Fast forward to UFC 121, after Jake Shield's workmanlike victory over Martin Kampmann that saw him declared #1 contender, Jimbo immediately declared that Shields would beat GSP. On the strength of that performance alone, I thought he was mental. Here we are, one week before UFC 129, and he's getting me to look up the odds.

Now, as much as I think it's a bit weird that most pundits are already looking past Jake Shields, and waffling on about a GSP vs Anderson Silva superfight at the end of the year, I still have serious doubts Shields will pull off the upset. He has an amazing record, but he hasn't faced anyone like GSP, he's an underwear model with sick takedowns! However, under his instruction, Jimbo has given me £65 (around $100) to place on Jake Shields. So off to Paddypower.com I go!



His first instruction is £50 on the nose for a Shields win - at the current odds, this will return £225.



Also worth a go at 33-1 was a Shields win in Round 5 - a £5 flutter would return £170.



Unlikely as it sounds, a Shields KO/TKO is 20-1, so a fiver would net you £105. I've never seen anyone get knocked out in a pillow fight, but who knows?!



This is where it gets interesting, as Shields is a submission specialist, the odds on him winning by submission are surprisingly good, £5 at 9-1 odds brings in £50. GSP hasn't been submitted in 7 years.



So, with every avenue covered, the bet is being placed. Best case scenario, Shields wins by TKO in round 5 - Jimbo Slice is £500 richer, and he'd better get the boozes in. Has he got balls the size of watermelons, or is he a deluded fool? Would you click OK? Put it this way, if he wins, he'll be louder than the 55,000 people in attendance at the event!

MMA Conspiracies

Dear faithful followers of The Knee,

Last time I spoke to you I had an idea about the future of one of the most superior heavyweights in the MMA world. For those who haven't read it yet (shame on you!) you can find my first article here:

http://thephantomknee.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-obsession.html

Much has happened since I wrote that article 5 months ago (Wow, time flies) and the MMA world has been shaken up by the most aggressive purchase since Pride being bought.

So my guess that Overeem would make it to the UFC will eventually come true, just in a different way than I expected.

I intend on making this a bi-weekly article series which I will submit to The Phantom Knee entitled "MMA Conspiracies". The series will be based on my opinions and thoughts on the MMA world and hopefully I might actually be right about some of them. The most important aspect of this will of course be you, the reader, giving your insight on the topics I bring to the table, so I hope you will all enjoy it and chime in on the comments section.

This weeks theory:

Nate Marquardt moving to welterweight may be the first sign of Georges St Pierre moving to middleweight, and how this can evolve into a middleweight super fight between GSP and Anderson Silva on New Years Eve.

I first heard about Nate making the cut to welterweight in a tweet made by him advertising an article called "Making the cut: The science behind Nate Marquardt's cut to welterweight". This immediately sparked an interest with me. Why would Nate be cutting to welterweight? He's already a big middleweight who cuts to make 185, why go all the way down to 170? What could be in it for him?

Nate's last few fights in my opinion have been lackluster and he's not getting any younger. The first thing that came to mind is that he's looking to make a title run in the division he feels he can dominate the most. Middleweight is a tough division, with the arguable best pound for pound fighter in the world at the top, who Nate has already fought and lost to. So making a cut to welterweight could be a "path of least resistance" type move for him.

But that did not satisfy my curiosity. Nate is a fighter, he wants to fight the best, isn't that what this is about? So I took to Twitter to do some investigating and get some words from the man himself. What was discussed may surprise you.

Based on what he was tweeting, unable to actually read the article since I was at work at the time I reached out to Nate:

@NathanMarquardt So did you talk to @GeorgeStPierre before doing this? Will you fight him if you get to the top?

@SeanPeconi Read the article:-)


At this point I was on lunch break and able to skim through the article on my phone, looking for the part specifically on GSP. In which Nate says they are not against the idea of fighting each other.

The conversation continued with me replying:

@NathanMarquardt you wont fight george.The way I see this playing out, gsp beats shields, ufc does gsp silva.Gsp goes to middle win-win

Some time passed and I realized if I wanted to get anything out of Nate I had to up the ante.

@NathanMarquardt ill make you a bet on gsp going to middle if he beats shields..if he does you owe me a set of fight gloves autographed by you. If he doesn't ill make a 100 dollar donation to any charity you choose. Deal?

@NathanMarquardt don't be scared homie ;)

A bit of time passes and the offer is accepted.

@SeanPeconi haha! Ok deal:-)

@SeanPeconi well gloves that is:-) I keep my fight gloves:-)

This was beyond anything that I had expected. Not only did I get a response from Nate but the offer was actually accepted!

Going back to the theory..

I just cannot fathom a fighter with as much potential as Nate going to welterweight for no specific reason, there has to be some sort of a game plan behind it. GSP and Nate train together and in the “Making the cut” article it reads that they only spar and train together once in awhile, but I can't help but believe this is about trying to go the way of Ceaser Gracie or Greg Jackson's camps and want to have a number of champions amongst their ranks. It makes sense, the more top fighters and champions you have in your camp the better it is for everyone.

Let's change gears to the second part of my theory that involves George St Pierre making the jump to middleweight:

We now have Anderson Silva's next title defense against Yushin Okami at UFC Rio on August 27th . George St Pierre fights on April 30th, lets do the math because there is yet another theory in it.

Assuming GSP beats Shields on April 30th this leaves 4 months before August 27th. Now let's also assume that Anderson continues in his fine form of dominating the middleweight division, this is where things get interesting as I believe that if the stars align properly with GSP and Anderson winning their title fights respectively, this can create a a middleweight super fight on New Years Eve.

September 1st to December 31st leaves more than enough time for Anderson to prepare for a fight within his own weight class or even a possible catchweight. May 1st to December 31st leaves George St Pierre 8 months to do what he calls "The proper weight gain" to move up to middleweight.

There is a lot going in the world of MMA, some of it business and some of it being what I call "Inter-politics". Is there a chance Nate is making a move to make a run at the welterweight title with all of it riding on George St Pierre's shoulders to beat Shields, then crossing fingers Anderson Silva defeats Yushin Okami? Only time will tell, and like my first theory it may or may not happen the way it is envisioned too.

Thanks again for reading!

Sean Peconi


Don't just take Sean's word for it, here's what 'The Great' himself said about the situation back in November. It's all starting to add up...

http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/10/nate-marquardt-stands-between-gsp-silva-dream-fight/

I guess another question could be: Did he jump or was he pushed? Hmmmmmmmm.

10 Reasons why GSP Vs. Silva WILL NOT HAPPEN

GSP isn't scared of Anderson Silva! Of course not. That's a ridiculous notion and certainly not the reason why this fight almost certainly will not happen.

Mr Jimbo Slice looks at the top ten reason why this 'superfight' is mere fanboy fiction:


1. Jake Shields

2. Jake Shields

3. Jake Shields

4. Jake Shields

5. Jake Shields

6. Jake Shields

7. Jake Shields

8. Jake Shields

9. Jake Shields

10. Jake Shields

I'm the kind of guy who likes to put his money where his stupid mouth is. To prove this I will be placing my hard earned cash on Mr Shields and posting up visual evidence of this prior to UFC 129.

Then who knows: maybe we'll be talking about that Silva Vs. Shields super fight?

We won't. GSP will get a rematch and blah blah blah whatever.

UFC 126: An Epic Tale

UFC 126
by Shayne Grier


Anderson Silva vs Vitor Belfort (Middleweight Title Fight)

The build up was intense for this showdown. It started with the pre-fight interviews, to the speculation that an elite striker would have the best chance to fumigate “The Spider”, and the hype peaked during the weigh-ins when Silva molested Vitor's face with his face (Wearing a mask nonetheless) and started spitting out, heated, vulgar (Maybe) Brazilian Jabberwocky until Dana White was forced to intervene.

The wait was over and the fight began, then for the next two minutes the fans were treated to a staring competition for the ages. The entire MMA community let out a collective sigh, the crowd started to boo, and everyone watching thought, “Here we go again”.

Anderson throws a kick...
More staring...
A short glancing stare...
Vitor throws some lighting fast punches grazing Anderson...
Anderson throws a fake stare...
Then finally get up close and personal with a few punches and kicks...
Vitor secures a quick takedown...
(I'm sure there is a non-visual stare in this exchange somewhere)...
Vitor tries to land a few ground and pound shots but misses...
Anderson scrambles to his feet and ends the exchange with a knee to Vitor's dome...
More staring...
A three second knee staring competition ensues...
More eye staring...
(Elapsed time: WHO CARES!!! FIGHT ALREADY!!)...
More staring...

Then from a screaming angry drunks mouth somewhere deep in the bayou, we faintly here, “Do something you chocolate covered grass hopper eating pansies!” and then, Anderson Silva does. In the time it would take for a normal human to blink, Anderson's foot left the mat and punted Belfort straight in the jaw with a kick straight out of Tekken 3. Vitor's legs gave out as he crumpled to the canvas, Silva stayed calmed, kept his focus, and landed two more punches to the downed “Phenom” before Mario Yamasaki halted the bout. One of the most amazing and brutal kicks in the history of MMA ended the night for Vitor and left us all wondering who might be able to end the champs reign.


Problem: Anderson Silva Is Unbreakable

Anderson hasn't lost a fight since Rumble on the Rock in 2006 when he knocked out Okami with an “Illegal kick”. But come on, Silva was clearly kicking at Okami's chest when he leans into it with his face. A DQ in that situation is ridiculous for two reasons:

1-It should have been ruled a NO CONTEST since it doesn't appear it was intentional.
2-If you can knock someone out with a kick when you are on your back in guard, then not only should it be a legal strike, the fighter that threw the strike should get a “Golden Retriever” as a KO bonus.

Silva is riding a 14 fight win streak (9 KO's, 3 Subs) and always seems to be on the kill screen level while his opponents still have their hand in their pocket searching for a quarter to start the game with.


Solution: Time Travel

Anderson Silva needs to put an ad on Craigslist stating:

Dr. Emmett Brown needed for immediate space time continuum job opportunity.

He needs to then travel 6 months into the past and fight himself. The world would be treated to an epic battle the likes of which we have only seen in Superman 3, thus changing the face of our sport for years and years to come. Or, it might just end up being a 25 minute Eddy Gordo Dance Dance Revolution clinic. In the end, at least we would see Silva or Silva lose, but I guess in the end, he still keeps his belt and reign. Bullocks to you time travel, Seth Bullocks you to hell!


Forrest Griffin vs Rich Franklin (Light Heavyweight Superfight?)

Former Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin vs Former Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin was slated to be a UFC Superfight. And, well, sadly it was. Flashback to Dan Severn vs Ken Shamrock at UFC 9 or Royce Gracie vs Ken Shamrock at UFC 5. All of these contests seemed miraculous and exciting on paper, but when all was said and done we were left feeling like Roy Stalin at the end of the classic comedy starring John Cusack, Better of Dead.

If you really care to know, Griffin wins via fairly boring and uneventful encounter. At no point in the contest did either fighter gain more than a minor advantage. It was a see saw struggle fest between two kids who weighed exactly the same, and neither wanted to use his feet to push off the ground for fear the other might jump off and the one left on the saw might get KTFO'd.


Problem: Both men are destined to be gatekeepers

With Rua, Jones, Machida, Rampage, Lil Nog, and Anderson Silva (When he feels like a low to moderate challenge) nestled atop the Light Heavyweight ladder, there is just no way either touch the gold again. It is a little bit depressing too because both Griffin and Franklin are humble, talented, hardworking, smart and respectful fighters. It is just too bad this isn't a high school popularity contest, it's the UFC.

Solution: Reinstate the Superfight belt

That's right, I said it. Make a new/old belt class, add Griffin and Franklin to the pool of former Superfight Championship participants. I mean come on, look at the depth in this class: Oleg Taktarov, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Kimo Leopoldo, Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, Royce Gracie, Don Frye, Mark Coleman, Randy Couture, Vitor Belfort, Joe Charles, Hugo Duarte, and Tank Abbott. And you thought Light Heavyweight was a stacked division. Boo-YEAH!


Jon Jones vs Ryan Bader (Post-fight #1 Contender Bout)

The battle of two undefeated fighters, although the UFC couldn't bill it as such because of Jones's DQ lose to Hamill.

Let me digress for a minute:

What a farce of a rule; A fighter can elbow you with side of joint, but not the point? A 9 to 6 strike isn't legal, but a 3 to 12 is? I'm confused. Then shouldn't a hook be illegal too? It technically comes from the 9 to 6 position; If the clock is horizontal and turned around then that is a 9 to 6 strike too!

Oh, it is because I don't have elbow pads on to protect the other fighters precious “Fabio-esque” good looks”? Give me a break. They signed up for the same fight as I did. Learn to elbow strike, or at least defend it you moron.

What about knee strikes? It's the point of joint and they usually go from 6 to 12 if the clock (We are assuming is there) is upright. That sounds way more dangerous than a “9 to 6 elbow strike”. It must be because the fighters are laying down on the ground and not standing up. Because we all know when fighters are on the ground is when the most brutal and nasty strikes occur.

Listen, I'm not fighter, but Randy Couture endorses this statement 100 percent. So if you don't like it. Talk to him.

End of digress. I thank you for waiting:

We all knew it was however a fight of two undefeated LH studs, and that is what made this a fight a true fans dreamy delight.

Jones took it to Ryan early and looked close to submitting him barely a minute and a half into the first round with a variation of the “Mr. Wonderful” choke. In the second round Jones mixed it up with his reach, using punches and kicks to make the undefeated Ultimate Fighter winner look like a fish out of water. Then with just forty seconds left in the second round he took that fish threw him on the banks of the river and sucked the air right out of his gills with a modified guillotine choke. Sadly, Bader never even looked remotely in this fight.


Problem: Jon “Bones” Jones as yet to be tested.

Sure he has fought some good fighters, but he has made EVERY one of them look as if they belong on the Strikeforce roster. He fights smart, hard, unorthodox, and is in a league of his own when it comes to unpredictability (Except for those elbows. We know those lethal bows are coming every fight, it's just no one can stop them).


Solution: Mauricio “Shogun” Rua

After the fight Joe Rogan dropped the bomb on Jones offering him Rashad's title fight spot against Shogun Rua in six weeks. Finally after 13 fights we get to see Jones fight someone who will actually make it a fight, for at least for one round.



UFC 126 Awards:

The UFC Inaguration Curse:

Winner: Kid Yamamoto – The “Kid” is added to the list of UFC debutantes that just don't live up to what they can do; Like Mark Hunt, Takanori Gomi, Shogun Rua, Carlos Condit, and Heath Herring. If no one has ever seen the 4 second knee KO Yamamoto pulled off, well, I'd say Google it, but that is over played, and um, just Yahoo it. We all know Yahoo would do good with some search love right about now.


The Rosetta Stone Award:

Winner: Anderson Silva – For fighting in the UFC since June of 2006 and still only being able to say, “Thank you” and “I'm Sorry” as part of his English arsenal. Dude, this is why people think you are cocky and arrogant. If Cain Velasquez can learn English, so can you.


The First Knee Is Always The Sweetest Award:

Winner: Kyle Kingsbury – For it only taking one knee to the body of Ricardo Romero's to make his insides want be on the outsides, of the Octagon. Sure, it took a few more knees and punches to have the referee step in to stop the fight, but Romero was done as soon as he felt the wrath of that first knee.


The Above The Law Award:

Winner: Steven Seagal – For telling the world in several post fight interviews that he invented the kick that Silva used to KO Vitor. It was a front snap kick to the face. My nine year old son Jackson learned and perfected that kick last year when he was a green belt in Tae Kwon Do.

You are a Big Shot Seagal. Can I call you BS? Good times; Thank you! Listen BS, we all know you are a Major in the Army of Douche, but please, tell the world the truth. Please recant your lies and tell them the real creator of this move. You know the man, the myth, the legend, the creator of all that is MMA; And dare I say it, the world. No, not God. Someone more creative, more stylish, more You look up to him, you call him daddy when you sleep, and he made YOU, who you are. So, for the love of Jebus, give him his due...

Master Le KaullingUoutA told us in an exclusive interview, that your teacher, your master, your guide, Al Gore invented that kick the day he invented the internet. I'm super serial, he totally deserves the recognition, and us here at the Phantom Knee will not stand with you and your cowardice. I mean really, be man and tell the truth about Gore. What else has he got? The earth saving thing? No. We all know that isn't going anywhere.

AWARD POST SCRIPT: I had to bring this to the worlds attention...Four of Steven Seagal's movies have the word “Justice” in the title. Can someone please give this guy a thesaurus and teach him and his producers some new words? How about...

Out for Reasonableness

Or

Mercenary for Compensation

Or

Urban Amends

Or

True Evenness

Who cares really, but I thought is was just another reason to prove to the world that SS is a BS MF'img CF AH! Sorry, but this dude is a B-Licken-Liar!


The Bizarro Award:

Winner: Miguel Torres – For abandoning his aggressive ways en route to his decision win over Antonio Banuelos. Sure your aggression got you two loses in a row, sure your pride and ego were bruised, sure you got the win in this but this “play it safe” style is not how you gained your fan base. This fight was setup to be an all out fantastical war of two aggressive fighters, instead it was almost as big of a let down as Houston Alexander vs Kimbo Slice.


The Homie I Know You Will Not Remember All This But Give It A Shot Because I Don't Really Even Understand What In The World You Are Actually Saying Once You Translate What I Have Said Anyway/Coat Tail Rider Award:

Winner: Ed Soares – For listening to Anderson answer Joe's first post-fight question for a whopping minute and fifteen seconds, then acting as if he really could recall translate all of that properly. I just feel dirty every time Ed translates for Anderson because we all know Soares is just saying what he wants us to hear, and not actually what Silva has said. He is the Don King of Brazilian fight managers.


The A-Hole Award Goes To Joe Rogan:

Winner: Joe Rogan – For Making Vitor watch the KO!


The Tainty Dunce Award:

Winner: Paul Kelly – For barely touching gloves with Donald Cerrone before throwing a hard punch that barely missed. Turnabout is fair play, Paul Kelly gets submitted in the second round by rear naked choke. Oh, and Kelly, good thing “The Cowboy” showed you more respect than you should him by letting go of the choke as soon as he felt you tap.


The Rick Roll Award:

Winner: Dan Severn - For being awesome. You might ask, why you talking about Mr. Severn? He didn't fight at UFC 126. Correct, he did not. However, the reason is four-fold:

One: I already mentioned him and I can do what I want.

Two: He is the current Elite Heavyweight Title holder, former UFC Superfight title holder, and former two time UFC tournament winner, this guy is a BEAST (Pun intended) and his 52 years old. Um, older than Randy and Herschel.

Three: The UFC need not worry about Fedor or Overeem. I say, bring back the only true elite Heavyweight juggernaut and let him show the chumps of UFC Heavyweight division how a real man throws down, old school style.

An Open Letter to Haters & Anderson Silva

Sometimes I search "Chael Sonnen" on Twitter and see what people are saying. Not once were my feelings hurt. It's all the same crap over and over. Doper, cheater, loser. Criticism and judgment from people who live in the room they grew up in and have never accomplished anything in their lives other than being loudmouths on the internet is perhaps the pinnacle of pathetic. Congrats on that. I hope you're proud of yourself while your mommy still does your laundry. As for me, I think I'll survive your barbs.

As for Anderson Silva, the fact that he capitalized on the one moment in 25 minutes that he did earns him some measure of acknowledgment but it really changes nothing. He's still a fraud that pretends that he doesn't speak English because he has no respect or gratitude towards the people that have given him a career. I still don't quite understand why anyone would support someone who has nothing but disdain for his employers, his fans and the media that pay attention to his childish antics. Anderson may be the champion and he has an impressive skill set but he's far from the best fighter in the world and not even the best middleweight. The fact remains that he's been exposed. There is a hole in his game and that hole is shaped like Chael Sonnen. Your fall is coming, Anderson. I hope you beat GSP if he winds up being your next fight because there's some unfinished business coming your way and I know it keeps you awake at night. Your fake "respect" and "honor" have an expiration date. Enjoy it while it lasts because there's a lion in the tall grass waiting to make you into lunch. Don't ask for mercy next time. You won't get it and you won't get so lucky either. Maybe Steven Seagal will give you a cameo in his next film that no one will see unless they happen to be watching Cinemax at 4am. Tick Tock, Anderson. Tick Tock.

-Senor Chael

2010 MMA Retrospect

We've let the other media outlets have their say and now we're laying down the truths of 2010.

2010 MMA Retrospect
by Shayne Grier

It's hard to recap such an amazing year of the fastest growing sport in the world. But I'll try to give you a few of my favorite fights, KO's, and downright entertaining moments the year of 2010 Mixed Martial Arts has had to offer (Shayne style). I'm sure I missed some of the moments that made this year so amazing, so please feel free to comment and let me know some of your favorite moments and happenings of the last 12 months.


My Top Five Moments of 2010

Five:

As Goldberg called it, “The fight of the century”, of course this comes from the mouth of a dude who also said, “If Jardine's last name were Johnson, the nickname Dean of Mean would make no sense”. So, I say we meet somewhere in the middle and call it one of the most entertaining fights in the history of Mixed Martial Arts. Leonard Garcia vs Chan Sung Jung was not a clinic on how to fight nearly as much as it was a clinic on how to take a punch. If you are a fight fan who enjoys wild haymakers, looping bombs, a complete disregard for technique, and every punch thrown is going for the fences, then this is a fight you'll have saved on your DVR for a century.

Four:

Watching Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos punish Jan Finney until she not only broke her will, but her sternum as well. There is nothing better than watching two hot chicks go at it, just too bad we will never get to see that as long as Santos is champion. The “Cyborg” will be champion as long as she wants to be, because there is no woman on the planet that has even the slightest chance against her. Unless of course Joanie Laurer decides to train some MMA and drop about 35 pounds of plastic surgery. I say lets really prove that our culture is about equality and have Santos fight Gilbert Melendez in a unification bout. At least it would almost be a fair fight, for Melendez.

Three:

Mayhem inducing, well, mayhem. What started as a fun little way for Jason Miller to build some hype around a rematch with Shields turned into a one on fifteen “Bully Beatdown”. You will not see Mayhem throw one punch, however the boys from the Cesar Gracie camp throw 43 punches and kicks (Yes I counted) to Miller's back, kidneys, face, and stomach. But who gets the harshest punishment? Of course the man who obviously was smirking when approaches Shields in the ring. Then to top it all off, Gus Johnson spews even more embarrassment over the issue when he says, “Sometimes these things happen in MMA, a lot of testosterone in the cage.”

Really, I mean, really? I've only seen something similar one other time; In “Pride” when Mark Coleman broke Shogun's arm. Get your facts straight Gus or better yet, stick to commentating basketball and football, where those things do happen sometimes.

Two:

The day the Last Emperor killed his own legacy. No, I wasn't happy in the moment I saw a decades worth of hype die within the clutches of Werdum's Triangle Armbar, but Dana White was. I'm still trying to figure out which is worse, losing to a UFC reject or turning down a UFC contract, then losing to said reject.

One:

Anderson Silva submitting Chael Sonnen after letting him win until there was just the right amount of time left on the clock to do the unthinkable. Yes, I believe that Anderson allowed Sonnen to be the Ike to his Tina for twenty three minutes, then slowly and deliberately the spider lured the politician into his web and suffocated him. What makes this victory even more sweet is that Chael tested positive for steroids after the fight. Losing to Anderson with only 8% of the fight left while hyped up on steroids has to leave him feeling uber flaccid.


Top KO's of 2010

(1) Mike “Mini-Nelson” Russow gets beat down for the entire fight by Todd “Former Prospect” Duffee then, to prove once again anything can happen in MMA, Russow lays Duffee out cold and sends him packing right out of the UFC. Classic comeback, I'd say, if I dare it was, “The Comeback of the Cen-churro”.

(2) Carlos Condit knocking out Dan Hardy was a moment in which I stood up and said, “Whaaaaaaaaaat?”. I was very surprised when Hardy got laid out with that hook and then when I watched the replay and saw Hardy coming at Condit with almost the exact same punch, I could do nothing but be impressed. Talk about beating someone to the punch.

(3) Rich Franklin's “bait and punch” knockout of Chuck Liddell was another one of those moments in 2010 when I screamed at the Television in disbelief. Rich does his Trademark wobble leg dance, Chuck smells blood, then Rich makes him taste his own red blood cells with a short right hook and a quick follow up left.

(4) Joe Warren's unrelenting onslaught to dethrone the once debated P4P great Joe Soto. Warren accomplished three things with that KO. He handed Soto his first loss, he won the Bellator Featherweight Championship, and he proved that Bellator is one of the best fight organizations out there. Look out Strikeforce because Bellator is bringing the heat and they aren't making us pay for Showtime to enjoy great fights.

(5) Maximo Blanco swarming Rodrigo Damm with just about every kick and punch in the Combat Almanac until Damm is left looking like Daniel Day-Lewis in “My Left Foot”. All I can say about this one is, if you haven't seen it, Google it. You will not be disappointed.

(6) Cain Velasquez crushing Big Nog's “Homer Simpson-esque” brain abnormality with several punches that would have knocked out a Buffalo.

(7) Cole Escovedo goes low with a toe kick and then slaps Yoshiro Maeda in the face with a high kick. A double kick of beauty that leaves Maeda to hit the ring with such force that it caused a Tsunami in New York.

(8) Nick Diaz knocking out Marius Zaromskis. Sure it took just shy of forty-five punches to finally finish off “Mini-CroCop”, but just as the famous inventor George Washington Carver has taught us, quantity always wins over quality.

(9) Paul Daley treating Scott Smith to a romantic dinner at “Starbucks”. Can somebody please tell Hands of Steel when he wakes up from that KO that he needs to stop trying to recreate his famous fight with Pete Sell. It's just so, 2006.

(10) Gerald Harris slamming David Branch into the SportCenter top ten. Branch pulls guard on Harris and learns a very valuable lesson; He is not Royce Gracie, and this is not UFC 1.



Final 2010 Awards:

The Sticky Award:

Winner: Paul Daley - For landing one last “Semtex” upside the head of Josh Koscheck's big noggin before packing his bags and heading to the C-List organizations.


The Copyright Infringement Award:

Winner: Chuck Liddell - For stealing “Ace's” catch phrase. “If I'm not back in five minutes...Just wait longer”.


The Russian Mafia Award:

Winner: Fedor Emelianenko - For letting Vadim Finkelstein make it so difficult for organizations to procure his services that we barely get to see you fight once a year. Is he the greatest fighter in the history of the sport? Debatable. Is he the most mysterious? Absolutely.


The Botched Feud Award:

Winner: Brock Lesnar - For being so dazed and confused after getting handed a whoppin' for the ages by Cain Velasquez that he forgets to hype his match with The Undertaker at Wrestlemania 27. Mark Callaway tries to get “The NBT” back on track as he passes by saying “You wanna do it?”, but Brock doesn't even remember his own name at this point, let alone who the mean looking Hell's Angel is that's asking him out on a date.


The Pentennial Award:

Winner: Alistair Overeem - For defending the Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship for the first time in five years, against a man coming off a loss none-the-less. Hey Demolition Man, we all know you are a destroyer, but, can we at least see you defend that farce of a title at least once a year. Pretty please?


The Not-So-Bees-Knees Award:

Winner: Frank Mir - For bringing back the old lethargic post motorcycle accident Mir and still managing to knock out Mirko Filipovic with the weakest knee in the history of MMA.


The Cowardly Lion Award:

Winner: Tito Ortiz - For pulling out of his third fight with Chuck Liddell because of “Back problems”. Listen, Tito we all know you just didn't want to get laid out cold for a third time by the Iceman. It's cool, it's cool, we get it.


The Talk Is Cheap Award:

Winner: James Toney - For wasting his entire training camp leading up to his fight with Couture practicing verbal jabs instead of defending against single legs. Toney did talk the talk, but it is really hard to walk the walk when you're laying on your back with “The Natural” on top of you.


The Street Fighter Award:

Winner: Anthony Pettis - For blowing the minds of every MMA fan by jumping off the cage wall and nearly knocking Ben Henderson out with a move right out of Vega's playbook. In the last minute of the last round of the last fight of the last WEC Anthony Pettis proved that we have just scratched the surface of unbelievable moments in the history of Mixed Martial Arts.


2010? We're already compiling the highlights of 2011. That's how far ahead of the game we are...