Big Country Goes Big

I have gotten a couple questions emailed to me lately inquiring about my thoughts on Roy "Big Country" Nelson's fighting skills, coaching job on TUF 16, his rankings among UFC heavyweights and a potential drop down in weight. Here are my thoughts:

Roy Nelson is an elite martial artist and gifted athlete. That has been evidenced several times, including KO's over Brendan Schaub, Stefan Struve, Cro Cop, Dave Herman and now Matt Mitrione. He has a legit BJJ black belt and has defeated Frank Mir in a grappling match. He can impose his will in fights, possesses an iron chin, and has excellent punching power combined with hand eye coordination.

I don't think Roy will ever drop to 205 pounds and have the prototypical UFC body. At 250 plus, I just don't see Roy wanting to lose that weight. Most fighters at 205 are faster than Nelson. There are some grapplers at 205 that could take Nelson down every round and stay away from his power.


Roy is at his best striking when he is able to counter and avoid power punches from big guys with reach on him. Long strikers should be peppering Roy with the jab and hitting him with kicks at distance. As far as his ranking, I'd guess Roy has a few more years left around number 10 with wins still left in the tank.

As evidenced by his championship TUF 10 run, Roy doesn't really like people telling him what to do. He knows what works for him and wants to do that. As a coach on TUF 16, it seemed like the fighters on Team Nelson wanted more instruction and harder practices. Roy deflected that sentiment by saying he couldn't teach heart, but really Roy probably just thought that's how his fighters should be trained to win the tournament.

Roy wasn't the best TUF coach, but look at the results. His fighters won 8 out of the 15 fights in the TUF tournament. His fighter Colton Smith emerged the champion of the show fighting the same way throughout the tourney. Smith imposed his will, got takedowns, threw elbows and attempted submissions. It wasn't the most pretty tournament run, but it was effective.

In the very first episode of TUF 16, Roy did say that the show is a marathon, not a sprint, and fighters should do anything they could to win. The goal is to win 3 fights in 6 weeks in the house to make the finale. The two worst things a TUF coach can do is burn his fighters out and pushing them too hard right before a fight or having a fighter get hurt during a practice. Neither happened under Roy's watch.

(Nelson was the first and only IFL HW Champ)

TUF 10 - Big Country

The TUF 10 Finale produced some dramatic KO's and submission victories, a weird ending and an unlikely decision victory. The biggest winner was TUF 10 heavyweight champion Roy Nelson. The 263 pound former IFL Champion was matched up against former football star Brendan Schaub, who played at Colorado in college, Utah Blaze of the arena league and briefly for the Buffalo Bills.

Big Country came out to Weird Al's "I'm Fat" which is a parody of "I'm Bad" by Michael Jackson and let his belly do the talking in the ring. Brendan was the early aggressor, tagging Roy and forcing him to cover up and defend numerous punches. From there, Roy was able to get a takedown and nearly got the fight into his infamous crucifix position.

Brendan was able to scramble and get back to his feet. During the next exchange, Roy threw a massive overhand right that found its mark to Brendan's temple. Brendan crumpled to the canvas and Roy threw a couple follow-ups to seal the first round victory and TUF 10 crown.


In other action, Jon Jones looked athletic, fast and dominating in his performance against Matt Hamill. The extremely long limbed Jones threw front kicks, spinning kicks, and spinning back elbows from southpaw and traditional stances. Midway through the first, Jones nailed Hamill with a massive slam, possibly dislocating Hamill's shoulder.

With full mount, Jones threw wicked ground and pound with amazing quickness. Hamill managed to block many of the strikes with some sneaking threw before Jones threw a 12-6 straight up and down elbow that is illegal. The strike KO'd Hamill, and ref Steve Mazzagatti gave Hamill a DQ win.

Two former college wresting stand-outs Frank Edgar and Matt Veach put on an excellent show. Veach was able to land crowd pleasing slams and use his power. Unfortunately for Veach, eventually Edgar found his mark with right hand sending Veach to the canvas. From there, Edgar working a rear naked choke.

Kimbo Slice made a successful debut in one of the upsets on the card. Most hardcore fans such as myself thought that Houston Alexander and his nasty muay thai put him at a clear advantage. Alexander was circling and shuffling throughout the fight. There were moments of big action and exchanges, with Kimbo mostly finding his mark.

In the second round, Kimbo managed to get a decent slam takedown with good ground and pound. Kimbo continued his dominance in the round working his counter punches. Houston Alexander's best round was the third, where he was able to land some big kicks to Kimbo's legs, at one point knocking the former street brawler down. In the end, it was a unanimous decision for Kimbo.

In other action former NFL players and TUF 10 castmates Matt Mitrione and Marcus Jones did battle in their official UFC debut. Marcus Jones was able to land a big takedown early and batter Mitrione with ground and pound strikes. However, in the second round Mitrione landed a big right hand to floor Jones, whose striking game still needs work.


FULL RESULTS:

Roy Nelson def Brendan Schaub via KO (punch) R1, 3:45
Matt Hamill def Jon Jones via DQ (illegal elbow) R1, 4:14
Kimbo Slice def Houston Alexander via unanimous dec
Frankie Edgar def Matt Veach via sub (RNC) R2, 2:22
Matt Mitrione def Marcus Jones via KO (punches) R2, 0:10
James McSweeney def Darrill Schoonover via TKO (strikes) R3, 3:20
Jon Madsen def Justin Wren via split dec
Brian Stann def Rodney Wallace via unanimous dec
John Howard def Dennis Hallman via KO (punches) R3, 4:55
Mark Bocek def Joe Brammer via sub (RNC) R1, 3:36

*Dana White announced the coaches for TUF 11, Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz.

TUF 9 Finale Set

After the last TUF episode, the finale for TUF 9 which takes place this Saturday in Vegas has been set. Team USA's Damaques Johnson taking on UK's James Wilks, with an all-UK lightweight finale, pitting Ross Pearson against Andre Winner. TUF 9 had some great fights play out, especially in the early episodes.

The fight between James Wilks and Frank Lester played out much like the first fight. Lester was throwing bombs, with Wilks countering with his longer reach. Lester successfully defended numerous takedowns throughout the bout.

In the second round, Wilks' reach became more a factor, as he bloodied Lester's nose and started to work him over. In the third, knees to the face ended Lester's run. Lester should hold his head up, as he fought 4 times in 34 days and earned a spot on the undercard of the Finale.

The TUF 9 Finale will take place this Saturday. Here is the rumored Line-up:

Clay Guida vs. Diego Sanchez
Ross Pearson vs. Andre Winner- TUF LW Final
DaMarques Johnson vs. James Wilks- TUF WW Final
Nate Diaz vs. Joe Stevenson
Kevin Burns vs. Chris Lytle

UNDER CARD

Jason Dent vs. Cameron Dollar- TUF 9 Fighters
Frank Lester vs. Nick Osipczak- TUF 9 Fighters
Mike Ciesnolevicz vs. Tomasz Drwal
Brad Blackburn vs. Edgar Garcia
Melvin Guillard vs. Gleison Tibau


(Andre Winner pictured)

TUF 8 Finale Results

The TUF 8 finale lived up to the hype as it featured some excellent fights. Gameplans proved to be key in the tournament finals, as Bader kept the fight standing and Efrain used his superior wrestling.

Efrain Escudero def Phillipe Nover via unanimous decision for the TUF lightweight tournament championship- Efrain dominated in the takedown and ground and pound department to win a unanimous decision. It was a great strategy as Phillipe didn't have an answer from Efrain's relentless attack. Phillipe's best offense came in the third round when he was able to lock in a shoulder lock/omaplata attempt. Phillipe just couldn't finish the move. Efrain, at 22 years old, has some definite potential in the 155 pound division.

(Efrain Escudero pictured)

Ryan Bader def Vinny Magalhaes via TKO (strikes) R1, 2:18 for the TUF light heavyweight tournament championship- Bader's strategy for the fight was to keep it standing to avoid Vinny's submission game. Bader threws some punches and kicks before a launching a big overhand right. The punch was partially blocked but clipped Vinny in the temple. Vinny crumpled to the canvas, and tried to roll on his back. Unfortunately, Vinny had to eat a few more punches before the ref stepped in. Bader showcased superior power throughout his stint on the show. He will give 205 pounders problems for some time.

(Ryan Bader pictured)

Anthony Johnson def Kevin Burns via KO(kick) R3, 0:28- Johnson got revenge after sitting out 5 months after getting poked in the eye in their last fight. Burns was close with a triangle choke attempt in the first but was unsuccessful. In the second, we saw mostly Johnson ground and pound. In the third, Johnson let loose a nasty high kick that saw Johnson's shin strike Burns directly in the jaw. Burns went straight back, knocked unconscious. That kick will be on the UFC's highlight reel for years to come.
*Johnson won KO of the night.

Wilson Gouveia def Jason MacDonald via sub (strikes) R1, 2:18- Gouveia made short work of Jason MacDonald, despite missing weight by 3 pounds the day before. Gouveia landed a straight right to MacDonald's jaw then a barrage of hammerfists and punches to win the fight.

Junie Browning def Dave Kaplan via sub (armbar) R2, 1:32- Junie looked crisp in his striking and cardio. He landed strike after strike on Kaplan in the first. To his credit, Kaplan wasn't knocked out. He was armbarred in the second round however, as Junie looked much improved from his time on the show.
*Browning and Kaplan won fight of the night.

Krzysztof Soszynski def Shane Primm via sub (kimura) R2, 3:27- Krzysztof's awkward stand-up style looked to confuse Shane Primm from the start, as he was able to land punches on Primm. Near the end of the first, Krzysztof almost had a kimura. In the second, Krzystof went for the submission again and tweaked Primm's arm for the tapout.
*Soszynski won submission of the night.

Eliot Marshall def Jules Bruchez via sub (rear-naked choke) R1, 1:27- Marshall walked through Bruchez to get the rear naked choke.

Tom Lawlor def Kyle Kingsbury via unanimous decision
Shane Nelson def George Roop via split decision
Roli Delgado def John Polakowski via sub (guillotine choke) R2, 2:18

Exciting TUF Finale

Season Six Finale Recap by the MMA Blaster

Anyone who was upset at the uneventful UFC 78 should have been rejoicing after seeing the latest Ultimate Fighter Finale. Season Six wrapped up with a bang with exciting fight after exciting fight. Even though I was a little disappointed at the showing of Tom Speer, the card was great. As you can see by the results there was only one fight that went to a decision and that usually guarantees there were some fireworks. In terms of grades I would give this card an A.

Huerta v. Guida will definately get fight of the year consideration. The fight was an absolute war with Guida beating Huerta pretty bad in the first two rounds. Huerta was able to come back somehow in the third round, a round which he knew he had to do something to finish the fight. He came out with everything he had, hitting Guida with punches and knees that found their mark. Huerta was able to get Guida's back and won with a rear naked choke with just 31 seconds to spare. Because of this victory, Huerta better get a shot at the winner of Stevenson v. Penn.

Full results:

1 Jonathan Goulet defeats Paul Georgieff Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 1 4:42
2 Roman Mitichyan defeats Dorian Price Submission (Ankle lock) 1 0:23
3 Matt Arroyo defeats John Kolosci Submission (Armbar) 1 4:42
4 Troy Mandaloniz defeats Richie Hightower KO 1 4:20
5 Ben Saunders defeats Daniel Barrera Decision (Unanimous) 3 5:00
6 George Sotiropoulos defeats Billy Miles Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 1 1:36
7 Jon Koppenhaver defeats Jared Rollins TKO (Strikes) 3 2:01
8 Mac Danzig defeats Tom Speer Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 1 2:01
9 Roger Huerta defeats Clay Guida Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 3 0:31

Thoughts on the TUF fights

Ben Saunders needs to develop takedown defense because Barrera was able to get takedowns whenever he wanted. Saunders does have potential to be a UFC star with solid kicks, punches, and submission defense and offense.

Sotiropoulos should have taken on a tougher opponent because Billy has little submission defense or striking ability. George outclassed Billy.

Koppenhaver showed heart and determination in a great fight with Jared Rollins. This was a three round battle that went back and forth with J-Roc and War doing damage. After being wobbled, War Machine was able to sweep J-Roc and knock him out cold with elbows and punches with little time left in the third. This was my second favorite fight of the night.

Mandaloniz v. Hightower was a pretty exciting fight. There were times when Hightower was getting the most of the action, but then he was stunned by some huge shots and pounded out by Rude Boy.

Danzig beat Speer just two minutes into the action. Seemed like Tommy may have been a little gun shy being on the big stage for the first time in his fight career. He didn't look like himself and Danzig capitalized.



Photo from Sherdog

TUF Finale Preview

Preview Picks by MMA Blaster

On December 8th, this Saturday night, I will be recording the TUF Finale to watch the following morning. Unfortunately, I have two Christmas parties that I am supposed to attend that night. The past episode of the Ultimate Fighter saw Matt Arroyo suffering a rib injury and not being able to continue. John Kolosci was the only fighter enthusiatic about taking a fight with Mac Danzig. However, Mac stood stong against Kolosci's kicks and eventually got him in a rear naked choke.

The second match-up saw George Sotiropoulous v. Tom Speer. Speer threw a punch which caught George's eye. After taking a brief time-out, George re-entered and was caught by combinations and eventually got knocked out. The final is set with Speer v. Danzig.

Here are the match-ups for the finale, my picks are in bold:

MAIN CARD

Clay Guida vs. Roger Huerta
Mac Danzig vs. Tommy Speer - TUF 6 Title
Jon Koppenhaver vs. Jared Rollins
Billy Miles vs. George Sotiropoulous
Dan Barrera vs. Ben Saunders

PRELIMINARY CARD

Matt Arroyo vs. John Kolosci
Richie Hightower vs. Troy Mandaloniz
Roman Mitichyan vs. Dorian Price
Paul Georgieff vs. Jonathan Goulet

**Looks like my only loss was taking Speer over Danzig.