UFC 139 "Who's the Boss"

Who takes it at UFC 139, Preview


On the horn:
MattZilla & Johnny Waugh
SR WRITERS

      Tonight the UFC is bringing its brand of high caliber MMA entertainment back to San Jose and HP Pavilion with one of the most stacked cards ZUFFA has offered all year.

       The fight card includes at least seven different former champions of organizations including Pride, Strikeforce, WEC, Elite XC, and the UFC.

       The main card offers the potential next challenger for the bantamweight title, Urijah Faber vs Brian Bowles, and the light heavyweight title, Henderson vs Rua.

       Both match ups have been rumoured be number one contender type eliminator bouts to clear up the discussion of who is next in both divisions in the near future.

       Nick Pace weighed in over weight at 141lbs for his 135lbs bout against Miguel angel Torres and agreed to give up 20% of his purse for his failure to make weight.

Main card

• Light Heavyweight:

  Stephan Bonnar vs.  Kyle Kingsbury

• Welterweight:

 Martin Kampmann vs.  Rick Story

• Bantamweight:

  Urijah Faber vs.  Brian Bowles

• Middleweight:

 Wanderlei Silva vs.  Cung Le

• Light Heavyweight:

 Maurício Rua vs.  Dan Henderson

       Now we present to you our UFC 139 "Who's the Boss" picks for tonight at HP Pavilion.

(CONTINUED)...

Other Notable Knowledge gained from UFC on FOX

Four bits of knowledge we learned from UFC on FOX.


On the horn:
Johnny Waugh
LEAD SR WRITER

       The build up to the main event was a long and nail biting process that had me buzzing with an "oh boy look at that big box for me," on Christmas day smile plastered to my face.

       Trailers played endlessly on the big screens throughout the Honda Center showing the vicious finishes of Lesnar, Werduum, Gonzaga, Yvel, Rothwell, and Noguira that Velasquez and Dos Santos have dished out on the heavyweight division most recently.

       They served as constant reminders of the epic size of the event I was about to witness.

       The lights dimmed and Dos Santos walked out with the rocky theme song, dun dun dunnnnnnnnn, dun dun dahhhhhhhhhh, accompanying him to the octagon.

       Velasquez entered to the cheers of his faithful and entered the octagon to a roar that brought the seats to vibrate from the thousands on their feet.

       The bell rang and the heavyweights collided. Both threw punches that would seemingly end the life of a feeble average man.

       I could hear these giants footsteps on the canvas as Velasquez shot to one knee for a quick take down attempt that Dos Santos maneuvered away from.

       Dos Santos landed a Chuck Liddell like counter punch to drop the champion who gave it his all and fought as far as his body would take him with a man like Dos Santos raining down his thunderous hands from above, 1:04 of the first round.

      Finally Bruce Buffer announces Dos Santos "The New U.F.C Heavyweight Champion of the World," in a way only he could and that was the evening.

       I know I said faithful earlier but it was in the faintest sense of the word considering the Anaheim fans showered Velasquez with "booooooooo" after the fight so I guess they weren't the most loyal but atleast they were vested in the fight which made the live event a very powerful night.

       But besides the heavyweight championship spectacle that the UFC on FOX showcased to 5.7 million viewers in there homes on Nov. 12, what else did the event offer fight fans to discuss after the first UFC on FOX?

(Four things and Gifs Below)
(CONTINUED)...

"Was that it?", Dos Santos wins, Cable losses

In retrospect, UFC on FOX could have been longer


On the horn:

MattZilla
SR WRITER

Junior Dos Santos after winning the UFC heavyweight title.

       Overall, UFC on FOX at the Honda Center was everything I hoped.
       The fights were fun to watch, the seats were good, Bruce Buffer is way more animated in the cage than I thought, and we got to see the belt change hands live.

       However, shortly after Cain hit the ground, I got texts from some of my friends watching at home.

       "Was that it?"

       For those tuning in on FOX, not seeing any of the prelims, that was indeed it.

       UFC on FOX was an event that introduced many new viewers to Mixed Martial Arts.

       People who were curious about it, but didn't want to throw down the money for a pay-per-view, could enjoy a championship fight over a broadcast channel.

       Unfortunately, all they got was one minute and four seconds of action over an hour of programming.

       To any fan of MMA, understand that these new viewers don't have any of the back story of the fighters.

       They didn't see a pro-wrestler take the belt from last-generation's champion, to have Cain punch him out in the first round.

       Nor did they see Junior climb the ladder with a series of knockouts. They saw two huge guys they knew little about, and the Mexican one was the champion.

(CONTINUED)...

Dos Santos takes the title with hands of STEEL

Dos Santos really is a Rocky after fighting with an Injury


On the horn:
Johnny Waugh
LEAD SR WRITER



Dos Santos being pulled from Velasquez by Jon McCarthy



      The crowd was roaring and screaming for Velasquez to continue his heavyweight dominance by pushing his undefeated record to ten wins.

       The crowd was anxious to see Velasquez finishing what many believe to be the best stand up fighter in the division, Junior Dos Santos.

       But as Dos Santos entered the octagon to the infamous Rocky theme song you just felt that Dos Santos didn't come to play he came to finish and finish he did.

       1:04 seconds into the bout is all it took for Dos Santos to catch Velasquez with a left as Cain missed with a right and fell to the mat.

       Dos Santos followed the champ to the ground and unleashed his punishing hands that stopped any attempt for Velasquez to get up and forced referee John McCarthy to stop the bout.

       "I have no words to say what I'm feeling," Dos Santos said. "Cain Velasquez for sure was my toughest opponent. I was afraid to fight with him because he's very tough. I wasn't 100 percent for this fight, so I was scared."

       Dos Santos had more than just Velasquez to worry about, he admitted after the bout to fighting with a torn meniscus.

       The meniscus is located in the knee provides structural integrity to the knee when it undergoes stress or tension.

       "I was feeling my knee a little bit, and I was worried about it," Dos Santos said.

(CONTINUED)...

No Pacquiao, Don't!

After Pacquiao/Marquez, Pacquio vs Mayweather isnt so good


On the horn:
Scottie 2Piece
LEAD BOXING WRITER

 

Official Judges Scorecards after Pacquiao vs Marquez 3

       Nov 12th saw Marquez vs Pacquiao 3 and it was somewhat titillating. The fight went the full twelve with neither fighter really dominating any stanza of the bout. Marquez used his counter punching ability and footwork to hover just inside out of range and land some telling blows while Pacquiao used his aggression, power, and speed to barely outpoint the elusive Mexican. Judges ring side scored a majority decision victory for Pacquiao who retained his title over a sea of "Boo" from the crowd but was not given the "Closure" or a knockout he and his team expected.

       In fact the BURNING questions came soon after the excuses. "Leg cramps" were to blame for Pacmans inability to move in and out like he normally does and "Swayed Judges" were on Marquez' lips when the dust settled. There are talks of a fourth bout between the two rather than the potential mega fight between Mayweather, who I'm sure was watching, and Pacquiao. Marquez says Pacquiao had "trouble" with his counter punching plan of attack and given that fact Pacman would not fair well against Mayweather.

(CONTINUED)...

Farewell to Smokin' Joe

There will never be another quite like Joe. . .

On the horn:
Scottie 2Piece

Lead Boxing Writer

       "SMOKIN" JOE FRAZIER (1944-2011) was arguably one of the greatest heavyweight fighters of all time sporting a 32-4 record with 27 wins by way of KO, 72.97 KO %.

       The 5'11" knock out specialist was born in Beaufort, South Carolina on January 12, 1944 but was the adopted son of Philadelphia, PA

       Smokin Joe was laid to rest in the Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church on Monday Nov. 14th in Philadelphia.

(CONTINUED)...

TENSION: The Cotto/Maragrito FACE OFF

THE REMATCH OF BAD INTENTIONS


On the horn:

Scottie 2Piece
Lead Boxing Writer

Miguel Cotto (left) and Antonio Margarito

       HBO's FaceOff with Max Kellerman has been a rather intriguing show so far. It places two fighters who are soon to meet in the ring in a seemingly small, dark room at a steel table across from each other and he poses questions to each in the hopes of sparking some tension before the big fight.

       Honestly, I have never seen Tension like what was visible between Junior Middleweight Champ Miguel Cotto (36-2, 29 KO) and Antonio Margarito (38-7, 27 KO).

       The two are set for a rematch on Dec. 3rd that is sure not to disappoint given their storied first meeting which was full of blood, heart, more blood, and then controversy.

       Cotto was winning the early rounds with his affective aggression and movement while Margarito pressured, pressured, PRESSURED.

       Then all of a sudden during the middle rounds Cotto seemed to react differently to the punches Margarito was landing, as if Margarito was throwing harder shots or something.

(CONTINUED)...