UFC 140. What can you say? “Wow”, “Holy Shit”, “Didn’t see that coming” All the above. Let’s just break this crazy card down, shall we?
Dennis Hallman vs. John Makdessi: Hallman via Submission (Rear Naked Choke), Round 1
Hallman, who didn’t make weight and who famously horrified Dana White with his blue micro-speedos at UFC 133, took Makdessi down, controlled him, beat him up and eventually choked him out – and saved himself from a certain firing if he had lost. He then told Joe Rogan that he hopes Jesus comes soon because “we’re barely hanging on”…okay. That was creepy. Made even more creepy by Hallman’s lisp. Just sayin’.
Jared Hamman vs. Constantinos Philippou: Philippou via KO (Punch), Round 1, 3:11
Philippou batted Jared Hamman around like a cat playing with a ball of yarn…A very muscular, tatted-up cat.
(Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC., with alterations by Spilled Bag of Ice)
Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Igor Pokrajac: Pokrajac via KO (Punch), Round 1, 0:35
Damn, that was quick.
Mark Hominick vs. Chan Sung Jung: Jung via KO (Punch), Round 1, 0:07
Damn, that was even quicker! How much can you say about a fight that lasts seven seconds? You can say Hominick was careless but let’s give some credit where it’s due. “The Korean Zombie” timed that punch perfectly and followed it up quickly. I like Hominick a lot but it’s nice to see Jung get two wins in a row and secure his place for the time being in the UFC. ‘Cause, seriously, who doesn’t love watching that guy fight? I’ll tell ya who – snobs and sticks in the mud.
Claude Patrick vs. Brian Ebersole: Ebersole via Split Decision, Round 3, 5:00
Ebersole fought an uncharacteristically safe and calculated fight against Patrick. It was a lot of clinching and wrestling that was very evenly matched and made for an unfortunately tedious fight. I don’t fault the fighters. Styles make fights and sometimes they make them boring. A close fight and a Split Decision victory for Ebersole. In his post-fight interview, Ebersole claimed the “Guillotine is a myth”. Wasn’t it Dave Herman who said Jiu-Jitsu doesn’t work? Kooks.
Tito Ortiz vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: Nogueria via TKO (Strikes), Round 1, 3:15
It’s nice to watch Tito fight in top shape again. Say what you will, his last three fights have not been boring. Unfortunately, even Tito at his best is no longer championship caliber. The sport has evolved past him. I’d still like to see him fight again.
(Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC., with alterations by Spilled Bag of Ice)
Frank Mir vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: Mir via Submission (Kimura), Round 1, 3:38
In yet another “Oh my God! Holy shit!” fight on the card, Big Nog had Frank Mir in trouble with some big punches when suddenly it turned into a Jiu-Jitsu match. Mir locked up a Kimura, Big Nog rolled out of it and Mir rolled him back and then… the wince-inducing SNAP of Big Nog’s arm. It’s seeing things like that that make me glad I’m not a fighter. When I was a teenager I once fell and hit the back of a chair right next to my eye and the skin split open. It was bloody and I could actually see my skull. It was pretty scary but it’s just skin, you sew it up, you have a black eye and you’re sore for a few days but no big deal. But I’ve never broken a bone despite skating a lot as a teenager and something about seeing a bone snap like that just gives me the heebie-jeebies. Anyway, this is obviously gonna lay Big Nog up for a while and you’ve gotta wonder how many more fights the legend has got left.
(Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC., with alterations by Spilled Bag of Ice)
Jon Jones vs. Lyoto Machida: Jones via Technical Submission (Guillotine Choke), Round 2, 4:26
Machida did a great job of moving in and out of Jon Jones’ range and landing punches and kicks. Of course this is Lyoto’s specialty but it’s pretty impressive when he did it against a range like Jones has – roughly the length of a football field or so. Machida won the first round although two judges gave the round to Jones. Okay, seriously, there needs to be drug testing and eye exams for MMA judges. After that first round, you had to wonder “is Machida the guy to dismantle the seemingly untouchable Jones?” Then in Round 2, Jones did a good job adjusting. When Machida would rush in for a blitz, Jones would immediately throw a kick or punches rather than just backing up and getting tagged. Then Jones took Machida down and landed an elbow that opened up a big gash on Machida’s forehead. Then Jones caught Machida with a stiff jab as he was rushing in and dropped him. Jones grabbed Lyoto’s neck and pushed him against the cage and secured a standing Guillotine that put Machida to sleep. Big John McCarthy stops the fight and Jones drops the unconscious Machida to the ground. Ryan Bader, Shogun Rua, Rampage, and Machida. To say it’s been a hell of a year for Jones is an understatement.
That’s all I got. Thanks for reading.
Great recap. Have to say I think Big nog still has quite a bit left as long as injury is not career ending
Jared Hamman somewhat resembles Bill Paxton in that pic.