AIN'T THAT A FITCH

UFC 100 takes place in Vegas this July and one of many interesting match-ups is the WW fight between Jon Fitch and Paulo Thiago. Thiago is the Brazilian fighter who shocked the MMA world by knocking out Josh Koscheck at UFC 95. Koscheck was furious about what he considered a quick stoppage and he may have a valid point but I've seen fights stopped for less, and fights that the ref let go too long, so all I can say is "thems the breaks kid". A loss is a loss and you got knocked the f out Koscheck, deal with it. As for Thiago, Fitch is by far his toughest opponent to date and this would be a huge stepping stone should he be able to defeat the highly ranked WW. Most rankings have Thiago Alves as the number 1 contender for GSP's belt but in my eyes it is still Jon Fitch. Just cuz Alves has fought his way into a deserved title shot does not mean he is automatically the number 1 contender, remember he has yet to avenge a previous loss to Fitch.
Either way, Paulo Thiago has bitten off more than he can chew by agreeing to fight Fitch and I think it is a poor decision on his part. He is currently undefeated and a loss to Fitch won't end his career but it will set him back on his march to a title shot.

UFC 102 TIME FOR MAIA TO EARN HIS TITLE SHOT

Ya, the guy is 10-0, he has submitted 8 of 10 opponents, and has fought some tough competition but I am tired of the talk of a title shot for Demian Maia. Chael Sonnen is the only Top 10 ranked opponent he has beaten and before that fight nobody was talking title shot for Sonnen. Maia has a deadly ground game, possibly the best submissions in MMA right now but has yet to earn a title shot in my eyes. That could all change in August at UFC 102 when he is set to square off against Nate Marquardt. To me, Marquardt is one of the few middleweights that has a realistic shot at beating Silva, though he has already lost to the Spider once. Marquardt has everything, power, good stand up, good take downs and an under-rated ground game. My money is on Nate for this fight but if Maia can beat him then he will finally be deserving of that title shot that everybody thinks he has already earned.

UFC 101

The main events for UFC 101 to be held in Philly in August have been announced and they will not disappoint. One belt will be on the line and a current champ will move up a weight class as the UFC holds an event in Philadelphia for the first time. B.J.Penn looks to rebound from his loss to GSP with a win against number 1 contender Kenny Florian, and Anderson Silva looks to silence his critics after 2 mediocre fights by taking on the hugely popular Forrest Griffin.

I think KenFlo has a real chance at beating Penn and this has the makings of a great fight. Both fighters are highly skilled in all areas of MMA and if the hunger and desire are gone from B.J. after his destruction at the hands of GSP than look for Florian to shock the world and become the new LW Champion. If KenFlo is able to pull off the upset this will set up a rematch from TUF 1 Finale Florian vs Diego Sanchez. Sanchez has a fight with Clay Guida in June at the TEAM US vs TEAM UK Finale and once he wins that, Nightmare should be in line for a LW title shot. When all is said and done look for Diego Sanchez to be the new Lightweight Champion by 2010. So, when it happens just remember you heard it here first.

As for the Silva-Griffin fight, I would love nothing more than to see Forrest defeat Silva, especially by KO. I just don't see it happening unfortunately, as I feel this match up is better for Silva. If Griffin can stay out of the Muay Thai clinch and stand and land with Spider than he has a shot, but that is a big if.

Should be one hell of a card, cant wait.
jorro

ITS TIME.........FOR A WOMAN DIVISION

The UFC is the major leagues of MMA but it is behind the times when it comes to female fighting. For years now talented and tough woman have been competing in exciting fights and now it's time for them to do it in the UFC. Not everyone wants to see two women beat and bloody each other, who cares, it's the 21st century and whatever men can do so can women.
So Dana White, bring on the women.

Jorro

4 OUT OF 5 AINT BAD

UFC 97 is in the books and 4 out of the 5 fighters I predicted to win their fight did just that, won their fight. Silva, Rua, Quarry and Kongo all came out victorious just as I predicted in a pre-event blog. My only losing pick was that of David Loiseau, who I thought would be able to handle Ed Herman. The results say I'm wrong, but I still don't know how far off I was cuz UFC producers chose not to air that fight. I was really looking forward to this fight and am very dis-
appointed that they (UFC) continually leave certain fights out, especially when these pay-per-views are so pricey.
Anyways, the kid is 4-1 at predicting winners and as UFC 98 approaches I will let y'all know who's walking away victorious.

Peace peace chicken grease
jorro

BOO SPIDER BOO

Anderson Spider Silva may have won his match against Thales Leites at UFC 97 but he sure didn't win any more fans. Both fighters were boo'ed throughout the fight due to a lack of action and when Silva's arm was raised after a 5 round unanimous decision the fans were chanting "GSP" even thought St.Pierre wasn't even on the fight card. Another sucessful title defense for Silva but a slip in the POUND FOR POUND rankings if you ask me. Personally, I've had GSP ranked ahead of Silva for some time now, but I felt I was being somewhat bias, as I am a Canadian like GSP. However, after another lackluster performance by Silva, preceded by a very aggresive and one-side title defense by St.Pierre over another UFC Champion, I think a legitimate case can be made for GSP being the P4P best.
It will be interesting to see who Joe Silva and Dana White choose to be Anderson Silva's next opponent as another poor showing by the Spider could drastically reduce his drawing power and his future pay-outs. If its a fight at 185, I can see a rematch with Nate Marquardt or Dan Henderson (assuming he beats Micheal Bisping following TUF TEAM US VS TEAM UK) or else another venture into the 205 division.
Dana White mentioned at a press conference that GSP should not overlook the ever dangerous Thiago Alves with thoughts of a fight against Anderson Silva. I doubt Georges is the kind of fighter that overlooks anything or anyone but just hearing White mention the possibility of a GSP-Spider super-fight gives me goosebumps. I cant wait for St.Pierre to prove that he is the best pound for pound fighter in the UFC right now.

UFC 97 - THE END OF THE ICEMAN

Well UFC 97 in Montreal has come and gone and just like I predicted so has Chuck Liddell's career. The Iceman walked to the ring looking confident and in the best shape of his life, but 4 and a half minutes into a fairly even first round the fight was over and so was Chuck's carrer. Rua tagged him with a left that came from a mile away knocking Liddell to the ground and after being unable to defend himself from a fury from Shogun the fight was stopped. Having loss 4 of his last 5 fights, 3 by KO, it is time for this legendary fighter and future hall of famer to ride off into the sunset. After all that Chuck Liddell has done for the UFC and the sport of MMA its too bad it has to end like this but its not unusual, most sports icons stick around a little too long, incur a few unnecessary losses and tarnish their reputation just slightly before hanging it up.

After the fight Liddell spoke of talking with friends, family and his fight team to decide on his fututre but at a press conference Dana White point-blank said that Chuck was done and that we will never see him fight in the UFC again. We may see the Iceman again someday, but I doubt it will be in the UFC. He may still be able to sell seats again, but in the UFC you also have to be able to win. Thats why you dont, and wont, see Kimbo Slice in the UFC.