Diesel vs. The Country Boy

[Alexander]

Anyone think Joe Riggs will defeat Matt Hughes this weekend? Not me. Hughes by GNP. Franklin by KO. GSP by TKO. Lemme know what you think.

 

[fbxdan]

I'm going to have to agree with you on this. Riggs is strong, but Hughes is a better all around fighter. I watched the BJ Penn/Hughes fight again a couple of days ago, and that was crazy! It amazes me every time. BJ looked so soft and out of shape, jumped a weight class, and then completely dominated Hughes.

 

[Alexander]

Yeah I hear you on the BJ Penn/Hughes fight. It's definitely an excuse, but Hughes did'nt seem to be himself in that fight. If they fought ten times I think Hughes would go 8-2. Riggs is strong, but I think hughes is still stronger. Riggs just has heavy heavy hands that he loves to drop on people. If Hughes can avoid the stand-up he'll be money.

 

[natedogg]

I watched the Hughes fight against Frank Trigg last night (rented UFC 52 w/Liddell V. Couture) and boy was that a performance. Trigg knees him in the groin and Hughes contests (big mistake). Trigg proceeds to pound Hughes to the ground, but Hughes hangs on, covers, pulls a complete 180 and ends the match like he did the first against Trigg. I was amazed. On the other hand Riggs was beaten very quick and easy by Ivan Salaverry. Hughes wins without a doubt. Unless Quarry catches Franklin with a lucky shot, Franklin will win because he's a better all around fighter.

 

[MarcusG]

Hughes will school Riggs. UFC56 is a poor card, not terrible but below average.
Half of the card is mismatches and the other half is a bunch of unknowns.

The only bright spot is GSP-Sherk. GSP is phenomenal and Sherk is one stacked mofo.

 

[natedogg]

Hughes will school Riggs. UFC56 is a poor card, not terrible but below average.
Half of the card is mismatches and the other half is a bunch of unknowns.

The only bright spot is GSP-Sherk. GSP is phenomenal and Sherk is one stacked mofo.

Sherk will take a beating in my opinion. He has absolutely no standup from what I have seen. Besides, GSP is a machine.

 

[Alexander]

I agree with you Marcus, UFC 56 blows for the most part. Like you said GSP/Sherk should be interesting. If Sherk can keep GSP down he may be able to wear him out. GSP is phenominal and will probably find a way to win, but Sherk is one tuff SOB. The only other decent fight besides the co-mains is Horn/Prangley which could easily be the fight of the night. The other 4 fights seriously belong in KOTC.

 

[size]

My picks:
Hughes
GSP

Then a rematch.

 

[MarcusG]

I agree with you Marcus, UFC 56 blows for the most part. Like you said GSP/Sherk should be interesting. If Sherk can keep GSP down he may be able to wear him out. GSP is phenominal and will probably find a way to win, but Sherk is one tuff SOB. The only other decent fight besides the co-mains is Horn/Prangley which could easily be the fight of the night. The other 4 fights seriously belong in KOTC.

The problem is that UFC has had a string of crappy events recently. I didn't buy and didn't even download UFC55. The lack of talent in the LHW/HW divisions are very glaring.

Prangley is competant but not too exciting, maybe he'll step it up in the big show.

 

[fbxdan]

Yeah, the last ufc's have been been garbage. Same with the last pride... I can't wait for couture/liddell 3 though. Is that happening in February?

 

[MarcusG]

The last Pride is not garbage. It had Mirko, Barnett, Shamrock, Saku, Kharitonov, Werdum, Ninja, Rampage on the card. It was a B- card at least, and this is after a run of the very good HW GP, LW GP, 2 great Bushidos.

Couture/Liddell 3 is a little boring. If Liddell gets to stay up and keeps throwing, he'll get a TKO.

 

[fbxdan]

The last Pride is not garbage. It had Mirko, Barnett, Shamrock, Saku, Kharitonov, Werdum, Ninja, Rampage on the card. It was a B- card at least, and this is after a run of the very good HW GP, LW GP, 2 great Bushidos.

Couture/Liddell 3 is a little boring. If Liddell gets to stay up and keeps throwing, he'll get a TKO.

Maybe saying "garbage" was going overboard, but it was a little disappointing to say the least. Kharitnov vs. Werdum wasnt that good. Kharitonov didnt look good in that fight. The Saku vs. Shamrock fight was a complete joke. That stoppage was complete and utter b.s. And i won't even begin to talk about that freakshow fight that started off the card.

How can you say Couture/Liddell 3 is boring? If Couture wins he further cements his legacy as one of the greats. This is a pick em' fight.

 

[Alexander]

The last Pride was not very good by Pride standards. I mean the match-ups were pretty good for the most part, but the fights just did'nt pan out. Kharitonov was injured, and he did look like crap compared to usual. Couture/Liddell 3 should be good. It seems like there's not that much to look forward to nowadays. Hopefully Pride's NYE show will be cool.

 

[MarcusG]

Maybe saying "garbage" was going overboard, but it was a little disappointing to say the least. Kharitnov vs. Werdum wasnt that good. Kharitonov didnt look good in that fight. The Saku vs. Shamrock fight was a complete joke. That stoppage was complete and utter b.s. And i won't even begin to talk about that freakshow fight that started off the card.

How can you say Couture/Liddell 3 is boring? If Couture wins he further cements his legacy as one of the greats. This is a pick em' fight.

I was irritated at the quick stoppage as well but upon review of the fight, Shamrock did look out of it and Saku gave 2 quick punches before the ref stopped it. A video clip somewhere shows it quite clearly.

Couture/Liddell's basic game aren't going to change. Both good wrestlers with boxing/kboxing. It will be a repeat of the 2nd fight. Don't get me wrong, its still going to be entertaining.

 

[Blutarski]

Just watched the whole card, pretty dissapointing show really. Franklin just killed Quarry and Hughes did his thing. Riggs couldn't make weight so the fight was a non title. Only real fight was GSP vs Sherk and GSP dominated, Sherk had no answers. Franklin is the real deal, as long as he can cut weight to 185 and come into the ring much bigger than most of his foes, and with his hands, he will be tough to handle. I wonder if the siren of money will bring Franklin and Lidell together? I'd like to see it. They also announced a few new signings like BJ Penn coming back and also that Shamrock and Ortiz were gonna be the new coaches for the reality show. Shamrock is either a helluva actor or it looked like he really doesn't like Ortiz and wanted a piece of him. Might be his WWF days reappearing. Overall a pretty bad card but sometimes bad things motivate changes for the better in the long run. I hope so.

 

[SJA]

Just watched the whole card, pretty dissapointing show really. Franklin just killed Quarry and Hughes did his thing. Riggs couldn't make weight so the fight was a non title. Only real fight was GSP vs Sherk and GSP dominated, Sherk had no answers. Franklin is the real deal, as long as he can cut weight to 185 and come into the ring much bigger than most of his foes, and with his hands, he will be tough to handle. I wonder if the siren of money will bring Franklin and Lidell together? I'd like to see it. They also announced a few new signings like BJ Penn coming back and also that Shamrock and Ortiz were gonna be the new coaches for the reality show. Shamrock is either a helluva actor or it looked like he really doesn't like Ortiz and wanted a piece of him. Might be his WWF days reappearing. Overall a pretty bad card but sometimes bad things motivate changes for the better in the long run. I hope so.

Pretty much agree with this. One thing that you forgot was Liddell vs Couture III.....coming Feb 4th. I'm betting that RAndy is going to ground and pound instead of trying to stand with Chuck. I can't wait. Also Frank Mir is back from his motorcycle accident. He will be fighting Andre.....I don't see much of a match here as Arlovski will kill him IMO.

GSP is such a great fighter. I can't wait to see him fight Hughes again. He is pretty driven at this point and I think that he'll be a little more careful next time....I'm sure it will come next Spring/Summer.

I was shocked at the way that Franklin just beat the living **** out of Quarry. That knockout was AWESOME (although I felt bad for Nate as he is such a nice guy). I was glad that he was able to get up and speak after that. I guess I haven't given Franklin as much credit as he deserves.....I used to feel the same way about Liddell. I always thought that he was a sloppy fighter and got in lucky punches....not any more though :jaw:

Watching Shamrock and Tito in UF3 is going to be very entertaining. Does this mean that they will both be fighting in the octagon soon? Usually the coaches will fight after the show. Who would they be fighting (especially Shamrock)?

 

[Blutarski]

Franklin has some great hands. What did you think about Quarry's nose SJA? Looked like a damn Banana, ugh. GSP put a good pounding on Sherks grill as well. You think there is a chance Franklin and Lidell will ever go at it?

 

[SJA]

His nose was SICK!!! When he started quivering like a clubbed fish I got a little scared for him.

Liddell/Franklin may happen....if Couture doesn't school him again. Randy is getting to the retirement age though. If he is smart, he'd go into the commercial and coaching biz and just make a ton of money without getting his ass pounded for a living.

GSP is one of my new fav's now. I love watching him fight. I can't wait until he fights Hughes again. It should be a doozy. That 170 weight class is freakin STACKED with good fighters. Diego is in that one as well. I know that not many people like him, but he certainly brings a good fight....and he is so new. That crowd last night sure hated him LOL.

OK....I recorded the fight on DVR so I'm going to go watch it again

 

[MarcusG]

Quarry did not not belong in the title fight.

Look at this, he freakin had a Matua-like seizure with one leg and arm stiff.

 

[SJA]

good luck partner.....let us know how it goes.

 

[MarcusG]

Amen, how did Quarry get that fight? Does Shamrock really hate Tito, or is that for show to sell the next TUF season? Sherk, the Midget Muscle Shark, got owned.

I'm going to start betting MMA, if I can find a net outlet to take my action. My weighted scale ratings of combatants on Ground, Striking, Team and Athleticism has been right the last 11 of 14 matches I've watched in UFC and Pride. Time to make some money.

How? The lack of big name talent obviously had something to do with it. Lindland should've been the one fighting instead.

Who knows whats going on with Shamrock. He knows how to create hype and work a crowd. Tito and Shamrock had some words going way back to the Bohlander fight.

 

[size]

I'm going to start betting MMA, if I can find a net outlet to take my action.

There are quite a few. Usually easy to pick some but payouts are around -600 for the easy picking.

 

[fbxdan]

I hope I never see a -600 money line, that would suggest a horrible mismatch, like Fedor versus Fred "Fetal Fighter" Ettish :rofl: -600 would probably be about right, it would take 6 Freds to beatdown 1 Emelianeko, however that commie spells it.

The worst lines I've seen are -450, the majority of are in the 125 to 350 range.

I've looked at the money lines and results for the last 6 UFC's, about 40 fights that were being bet on. It appears, I still have much study to do, that one could make ~6 -10% on each event just playing the favorites across the board. 4 UFCs a year, ~24-40% straight ROI, nice. I would compound that anyway according to my rules of money management. It's unlikely to be that consistent, but the return would smooth out over time.

I need to look at Older UFCs, probably without being able to look at the odds, but the favorite win % will suffice, and then at Pride.I could add my own filters, but that kind of unconstrained simplicity is usually the most reliable system for gambling.

The thing about gambling is that one does not have to be an expert in a sport, a mathmatical aptitude is the best prerequisite. Having been a pro athlete , though, I have a good sense for ability and heart, I believe.

True, but i think it helps alot being knowledgable about the sport your betting on. I bet on boxing frequently, because i've been following it since i was very little and have seen every type of matchup. I can usually pick fights pretty decently, but I usually only bet on underdogs. For example, in the Wladimir Klitschko vs. Sam Peter fight when the betting lines were first opened they had Wladimir a huge underdog. I knew that Wladimir is an excellent fighter, who has gotten bad stigma for a couple recent performances, and that he would outbox the relatively limited Sam Peter. Yet, most people thought Sam Peter would win, because he was so hyped up by all the TV Networks. So i put some money down on it and made over $500. Now, if i were to bet on baseball it would be a different story... I'd probaly lose tons of money, because I have little to no knowledge about the sport.

 

[ghpink6]

Yeah I hear you on the BJ Penn/Hughes fight. It's definitely an excuse, but Hughes did'nt seem to be himself in that fight. If they fought ten times I think Hughes would go 8-2. Riggs is strong, but I think hughes is still stronger. Riggs just has heavy heavy hands that he loves to drop on people. If Hughes can avoid the stand-up he'll be money.

yeah no doubt.

hughes is at the top of his game.

What do you think will happen when BJ goes against Hughes coming soon

its probable they will fight now that BJ is back in the UFC

 

[ghpink6]

Amen, how did Quarry get that fight? Does Shamrock really hate Tito, or is that for show to sell the next TUF season? Sherk, the Midget Muscle Shark, got owned.

I'm going to start betting MMA, if I can find a net outlet to take my action. My weighted scale ratings of combatants on Ground, Striking, Team and Athleticism has been right the last 11 of 14 matches I've watched in UFC and Pride. Time to make some money.

This is the story as I know it...

Tito beat on Bohlander (who later joined the lions den) in wrestling at high school.

After Bohlander went to the UFC, tito thought, if I could beat him, I could do UFC to so he helped tank abbott train.

Then tito go a lucky break as an alternate. Metzger beat him by a young mistake but tito dominated him.

Then tito beat bohlander for the first time in UFC. Tito didnt give him any respect. Metzger got pissed about that and started to trash talk tito which lead to the next match

Tito beat metzger in the next match and mocked him 100 times worse then he ever mocked tito... with a shirt AND... then at the end of the match tito.. gave the double middle fingers to the lions den, directed at metzger.

Shamrock took exception... yelled at tito about giving repsect and tito said it was just a game.

Tito with his shirts and grave digging pissed off shamrock even more. Tito then beat up shamrock in a fight (punched his head into a pulp) and shamrock thinks tito was ducking him for a rematch like they say he ducked chuck.

Tito really respects frank shamrock. From what I see, he doesnt like or hate ken shamrock

Ken wants to punch titos face in to the ground to teach him a lesson about respect. Im sure that fuels tito to torture ken

Should be an interesting TUF

PS: tito pissed off dana white, trying to say that he was a pioneer of MMA. Also askng for way too much money, so dana kicked him out of the UFC for a short time.

Tito was going to start his own organization in competition with UFC, but he just got back in... so I dont think dana and tito like each much either

 

[ghpink6]

Maybe saying "garbage" was going overboard, but it was a little disappointing to say the least. Kharitnov vs. Werdum wasnt that good. Kharitonov didnt look good in that fight. The Saku vs. Shamrock fight was a complete joke. That stoppage was complete and utter b.s. And i won't even begin to talk about that freakshow fight that started off the card.

How can you say Couture/Liddell 3 is boring? If Couture wins he further cements his legacy as one of the greats. This is a pick em' fight.

yeah i thought so as well..

It was funny how quick they stopped the shamrock fight.

I agree with you about the whole thing. The zulu fight was stopped early too if i remember correctly.

I also agree with you about couture / liddell

classic striker / ground and pound match up

I want to see couture CEMENT that legacy, I think couture will take it by decision.