|
Navigation
|
 |
Article Navigation:
Want to write?
We're always looking for new writers and people willing to help out with the magazine and site. If you're interested, [Click here for more info]. |
|
Stay Updated!
If you'd like to stay updated and recieve a notice when the next issue of is released, just sign up at our forums by [Clicking here]. We will send out a mass e-mail to all our members when the next issue is released. |
|
Your Comments
Let us know how you feel about this issue. We will read e-mail sent and would appreciate any comments and/or suggestions that you may have. [Click here]. |
|
|
|
 |
UFC 45 Revolution Review
by Torn Victor
*Pictures by Susumu ... special thanks
It all went down at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut. The prelim fights were due to go on at 8:30PM, I arrived at 1:00PM. Being my first live MMA event, I was surprised at the amount of fighters walking around freely. Matt Hughes was doing a radio show. Tim Sylvia was hanging around talking to Pat Miletich. Dan Henderson was sitting with Matt Hughes. Royce Gracie was walking around. Marco Ruas. Chuck Liddell. Cabbage Correira. All giving autographs and pictures upon request to hordes of fans. Let it never be said that the athletes of MMA don’t respect and appreciate their fans.
 Yves Edwards def. Nick Agallar
Nick Agallar was a last minute replacement for Din “Dinyero” Thomas. Most people didn’t think Agallar had much of a chance and they were right. Although Yves looked frustrated for the entire fight, a powerful left hand knocked Agallar to his back and Yves pounced on him, raining down punches until Larry Landless stopped the bout at 2:14 of the second round. Goodnight, Agallar!
Keith Rockel def. Chris Ligouri
Rockel, the hometown favorite hailing from Massachusetts dominated Jersey boy Chris Ligouri on the ground for the win. Ligouri isn’t quite ready for UFC competition yet, and I’m sure Rockel will be back in the UFC at a later date. Rockel defeated him via guillotine choke at 3:29 of the first round.
Pedro Rizzo def. Ricco Rodriguez
Easily the most boring fight on the card, it was clear that Dana White and co. knew what they were doing when they put this fight in the prelims. I almost fell asleep in my rigid plastic stadium seat, but lucky all of the booing fans kept me awake. Rodriguez tried many takedown attempts and Rizzo stopped all of them cold, leaving Ricco on his back trying to get Rizzo to play his game. Rizzo kicked his legs until the referee stood Ricco up. It’s basically that for fifteen minutes, Rizzo being his usual non-engaging and counter-punching self and Ricco not pressing the action. It seems as though it was the last fight in the UFC for both contenders. Pedro earned the unanimous decision.
Robbie Lawler def. Chris Lytle
Lytle made a huge impression on the fans  and the Zuffa posse with his performance in this fight, I’m sure. Both guys were trading like madmen, neither seemed to be getting the better of one another in the exchanges. For a short while, Lytle became the aggressor with Lawler constantly backtracking and avoiding his strikes for about a minute before they traded again. The fight had some nice groundwork too, where Lawler looked more comfortable there than he did with Spratt (perhaps due to his hip injury), but Lytle was constantly going for submissions while Robbie attempted to flatten his head into the mat. Back on the feet, Lawler got the best of Lytle standing up and sent him crashing to the mat with a right hand, drawing a round of applause from both Lytle and the crowd in attendance. Lawler barely etched out a win with the 28-29(all) unanimous decision.
Evan Tanner def. Phil Baroni
This was a very controversial fight. Baroni landed a lot of solid punches early in the fight and had Tanner almost out on his feet. During a period of inactivity (Baroni wasn’t in the middle of a flurry or anything), referee Larry Landless (making his fight debut on 12/6 at King of the Cage) stopped the fight to have Tanner’s cut, which was just under his eye, checked. It was deemed that Tanner could continue and the match was restarted. An invigorated Tanner came out and clinched with Baroni and was landing some solid knees to the face. The fight was taken to the  ground by Tanner, and following the takedown Baroni was mounted with ease by Tanner. Tanner rained down some solid elbows and it looked as if the stoppage would come at any second.
Here’s where the controversy lies: Landless asked Baroni two questions while Tanner was elbowing him in the face: “Are you OK?” to which Baroni answered “yes”, and “do you want me to stop the fight?” to which Baroni also answered yes. Landless stopped the fight, and Baroni was enraged. He grabbed Landless’s shirt and punched him a few times - not hard, but striking a referee is definitely not the right thing to do in any sporting event. Baroni and Landless have since apologized to each other, to Zuffa and to the fans. Baroni landed a one year suspension and a $5,000 fine. Dana White is currently lobbying for Baroni to have his suspension reduced to six months and a two year probation.
Cabbage Correira def. Tank Abbott
Tank finally gets to throw down! This fight started and ended as everyone was hoping it would: on the feet. Tank landed some hard shots but none of them seemed to even phase Cabbage, who is known for having a granite chin. Having Cabbage pressed up against the fence and in the clinch, Tank was the recipient of many clean, hard knees to the face. The fight was halted to check a cut above his eye and Tank said he was fine, he was just having trouble seeing. The fight was stopped, but not the drama - Tank’s corner threw a water bottle at a victory dancing Cabbage and all hell broke loose. Order was restored, and Tank left the octagon to the biggest applause of the night.
Matt Lindland def. Falaniko Vitale
In their first fight, Lindland KO’d himself while taking down Vitale. This fight was much different. Lindland pretty much dominated every aspect of the fight, showing that he can throw down as well as wrestle as he landed a few solid shots to Niko while standing during the fight. The only takedown Lindland managed to score was when he capitalized on a slip by Niko in the first round. The second round was mainly fought from the clinch with Lindland landing some nice knees and forearms/elbows. The third round saw Lindland slip and fall after a failed kick (just as Vitale did earlier) and Niko rushed into his guard but had a lot of trouble passing it. Lindland eventually reversed and pounded his way to a stoppage.
Matt Hughes def. Frank Trigg to retain Welterweight Championship
The beginning of this fight saw Trigg rush in and take Hughes down with apparent ease. Hughes, not to be outdone, managed to lift Trigg on his shoulders and walk around the ring like Trigg was nothing before the big slam. After this, there was some major scrambling for position which made it look more like a wrestling match than an MMA fight. Hughes found an opening and quickly got Trigg’s back and choked him. Trigg stood up, only to fall back due to lack of oxygen and blood to the brain as he furiously tapped out. Hughes beat Trigg without throwing a single punch and won by submission, something nobody save his stablemates thought he could do. This begs the question: who’s next? According to the UFC, BJ Penn. Penn will square off against Hughes for the welterweight title at UFC 46 in Las Vegas.
* Article by Torn Victor.
* Back to Issue #5 Frontpage
|
|
|
