After the Dust has Settled: UFC 100

[WestCoastExpress]

After the Dust has Settled: UFC 100

MikeDead and -C.B- answer a few questions prior to UFC 100.

Q: The UFC has been promoting UFC 100 for quite some time now. With the fight card set in stone do you think this PPV will live up to the hype of being the “big one” ?

-C.B-: I think this is one of the best fight cards in quite some time. There isn't just one or two good fights on this card, there is five or six matches that (on paper) have me excited for. But that's the great thing about the UFC even a match you aren't even giving a second thought too can turn out to be a fight of the night.

MikeDead: Great heavyweight fights like we'll witness tonight always seem to sell, and understandably so. But outside of the Lesnar/Mir fight, and even outside of what on paper looks like a great fight between GSP & Thiago Alves, this card is by far the best in recent memory. There are at least 5 fights on the card tonight that could get even the casual MMA fan excited.

Q: Which specific match on the card are you looking forward to seeing?

-C.B- : This is a tough one. But being a huge Georges St-Pierre fan, I'd have to say GSP vs Thiago Alves. Thiago Alves is comming in on a seven fight win streak; and GSP is on a five fight win streak, including a win in the controversial “grease gate” match with BJ Penn. Thiago is hungry for this win so much so that he refers to the Welterweight belt (currently held by GSP) as “my [Thiago] belt.” Thiago is going in there focused and Georges St-Pierre is going to need to be at the top of his game.

MikeDead: I'm going to have to say Jon Jones Vs. Jake O'Brien. Jones is coming in at 8-0, but fighters have great stand up game and are not afraid to push the fight in they're direction. It's one of those fights that could steal the show, or end in a knockout 20 seconds in.

Q: Brock Lesnar throwing Frank Mir around, but fell into the Leg Lock, the first time these two met resulting in Brock's only loss. Presumably Brock has been working on his submission defense so this doesn't happen again; what are Mir's chances this time around?

-C.B- : I think that Mir has to stick with what worked for him against Brock last time and that was the submission. Brock will probably be expecting Mir to make him tap, but Mir has to just go in there and do his thing. If Brock goes in to this match swinging and hasn't really prepared or didn't bother to improve on his submission defence then I think that Mir has a good chance at winning this one like he did the last one.

MikeDead: Lesnar in my opinion can not allow Mir to take this fight to the ground. Mir is a crafty and experienced fighter, and if he can manage to get Lesnar down into half guard, and work him on the ground, it's going to be a long night for Brock Lesnar.

Q: The Winner between Dan Henderson and Michael Bisping get a title shot. Realistically do either of these guys have a shot at beating Anderson Silva?

-C.B- : The great thing about the UFC is in any fight either guy can win. Henderson has already fought against Silva before and got choked out in the second round. But before the choke out Henderson won the first round, so I think Henderson – Silva 2 would be a good rematch and I think that Henderson would have the better shot of beating Silva out of the two.

MikeDead: Anything is possible, but if I'm Henderson I can't imagine I'd be too confident going back into the octagon to face off with Silva. And I don't have much faith in Michael Bisping to win tonight, let alone in a fight with Silva. Realistic chance, probably not.

MikeDead and -C.B- answer some questions they have after the conclusion of UFC 100...

Q: Yoshihiro Akiyama made his UFC debut tonight [and won]. But did he impress you?

-C.B-: I think that Yoshihiro Akiyama showed some talent tonight but for how highly he's been praised it looked like Alan Belcher really gave him a run for his money. With a questionable decision by the judges I don't think Akiyama has firmly made a name for himself just yet.

MikeDead: I was impressed, but I don't think Akiyama did what he needed to do in order to live up to all the hype surrounding him. At the end of the fight I had it 2-1 Akiyama, but really that fight could have gone either way. Certainly not the dominating debut that many felt we would see.

Q: Dan Henderson delivered a thundering right hand that knocked out Michael Bisping. Does his match tonight change your opinion on a Silva vs Henderson rematch?

-C.B- : I would love to see Silva vs Henderson again. I think that Henderson learnt something from that first fight, and knocking out Bisping was a real confidence booster. I never said I wouldn't like to see a rematch, so make it happen!

MikeDead: Does it change my opinion, no. I was never against a rematch in the first place. But it does raise my confidence in Henderson if a rematch were to happen. Henderson looked like a totally new fighter when he stepped into the octagon against Bisping. If he could take that approach against Silva, I think UFC would have a marquee fight on they're hands.


Q:Georges St-Pierre dominated his match for the entire 5 rounds. Doing that against perhaps his toughest challenger, where does he go from here?

-C.B-: Only place for him to go is up. Who's left in the division that hasn't been taken out by GSP? Ultimately the decision comes down to Georges, but Anderson Silva vs GSP. Can you say a major draw for the UFC?

MikeDead: There's nothing left to prove at the 170 class for GSP. I think it's time to move up in class, and the mention of a possible Silva fight last night should have MMA fans foaming at the mouth.

Q: Brock Lesnar defeated the only man he has ever lost too. Does this win snub the doubters of Brock Lesnar?

-C.B- : How can you doubt this guy? He came out, did what he said he was going to do, and beat Mir in the second round (although it was over in the first.) Brock let Mir get back to his feet too, but the power and size Brock is just so overwhelming. How can anyone still doubt Brock Lesnar?

MikeDead: I don't think anyone will be beating Brock Lesnar for a very long time. In all honesty Brock allowed Mir to hang around in that fight much longer then he needed to, and he still dominated from beginning to end. It's hard to doubt Lesnar after what he showed us last night.


Q: What do you think was the Fight of the Night?

-C.B- : I gotta give my fight of the night award to Georges St-Pierre Vs. Thiago Alves. Perhaps GSP's toughest opponent over his last five, or so, fights and he just completely dominated all five rounds. The only question that you can ask is “who's next?”. Going to give honorable mentions to Yoshihiro Akiyama and Alan Belcher for a very entertaining match.

MikeDead: Fight of the night for me had to be GSP vs. Thiago Alves. Another dominating performance by GSP, but yet it was probably the most challenging fight he's had in recent history. The fight went the distance, we saw GSP on his back for the first time in what?, 2 years? Dan Henderson certainly put on a show and is deserving of some mention here as well.


Q: Now that it's over, did it [UFC 100] live up to the hype?

-C.B- : Absolutely! UFC 100 was an amazing show. Everyone came out and preformed as if they were the headliners; making for an exciting show from start to finish. If you were a new fan or casual spectator to the UFC then this show was defiantly one to watch.

MikeDead: Absolutely, UFC 100 offered MMA fans a little bit of everything. You had the devastating knock out from Henderson, the debut of Akiyama. A long grueling fight from GSP. And the vicious ground and pound style of fight we expected to see from Lesnar. Last night offered everything you could possibly look for in a UFC event.


If you have any questions for -C.B- or MikeDead for the upcoming UFC 101 feel free to PM -C.B- and we will get your questions in and answered in our next "After the Dust has Settled".

[Reg]

Nice read, guys!

Yalls gonna mess around and motivate me to watch one of these events.

Brock Lesnar is the man.

[WestCoastExpress]

Originally Posted by Reg

Nice read, guys!

Yalls gonna mess around and motivate me to watch one of these events.

I hope you do Reg. Because I'm a cheapskate I watch it online so you always know I'll find it for you

Me and Mike usually get a thread going and make predictions, talk about who won the round, etc (I imagine you've seen the thread). Anyone is welcome to join us.

Originally Posted by Phenomenal TJ

Brock Lesnar is the man.

I agree I'm a Brock fan, as I was telling Mike last night during the PPV 'I hate to love the guy'. Some UFC fan's are a bit up in arms at his promo last night, which I thought was funny, because he comes from the WWE and they feel that what he did was a "character" thing.

I've been a fan of Lesnar since his college wrestling days. He's gotten so much smaller.

[WestCoastExpress]

Originally Posted by Phenomenal TJ

I've been a fan of Lesnar since his college wrestling days. He's gotten so much smaller.

That video doesn't do him justice, he's still a beast (wears custom 5XL Gloves). But I know what you mean, he looks leaner then how I remembered him when he was in the WWE.

Guy hits like a truck, Mir's face looked like someone too a shovel to it after the 1st.

[Mike]

Originally Posted by Reg

Nice read, guys!

Yalls gonna mess around and motivate me to watch one of these events.

Then mission accomplished

We need some more MMA fans here to talk with when the UFC events are on.

Originally Posted by Phenomenal TJ

I've been a fan of Lesnar since his college wrestling days. He's gotten so much smaller.

Smaller...damn, it's scary to think of Brock any bigger in UFC. Even in the heavyweight class he is so big that if he gets you into guard, fight over.

I honestly think it's going to be a very long time before anyone challenges Brock for the heavyweight title. Fedor might be his next opponent, and that fight would be the biggest draw UFC has ever had, and Fedor would certainly pose a threat to Brock. But with some improved ground game, Brock is going to an unstoppable force in that class.

Even in full guard, he's just so big, and his fists are so big that it's just impossible to guard against his strikes.