MMA Roundup: A Few Quick Hits

The article title is supposed to be a bad pun. One which references MMA fighters getting hit in the face, not the Joe Rogan and Eddie Bravo in this month’s High Times sort of pun.

While I would link over to Cagepotato.com and share the photos from that spread, they are just too weird. I don’t want to creep you guys out as much as I’ve been creeped out.

So tonight is the live TV season finale of The Ultimate Fighter. Whoopee. Now I am all for live, free MMA on television, but T.U.F. isn’t something I get excited for. It seems like it’s to much to soon.

T.U.F. has done 7 seasons, and been around almost 4 years. That’s almost 2 seasons a year. Part of the reason the Superbowl is so huge is because it happens once a year, I think T.U.F. would have done better to have spread it’s seasons out a bit more.

All that being said, tonight should make for some great TV. If you have never watched MMA and are thinking about getting into it, this will be a great chance to see new fighters go out there and give it their all.

These guys are fighting for their livelihood. This isn’t two comfortable people out there fighting because it’s their job. This will be people out there fighting because they want to be able to buy dinner tomorrow. It’ll also be a chance to find someone whose career you may end up following.

The unknown who won TUF 1 is now Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin, and at UFC 92 he will be fighting T.U.F. season two winner Rashad Evans.

In other MMA news this weekend, former WWE wrestler Bobby Lashley is looking to become “The Next Big Thing” (That’s a shot at Brock Lesnar for the wrestling fans… I know you are out there).

There are a lot of similarities between the Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley. Both are freakishly big, both decorated collegiate wrestling champions, both held titles in the WWE, and both have last names brought to you by the letter “L”.

Lashley’s debut will be tonight (Sat. Dec. 13) on the Mixed Fighting Alliance “There Will Be Blood” card at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. While I always thought Brock Lesnar would do well in MMA (yet hoped he wouldn’t), I have my doubts about Bobby Lashley. That being said, he has the testicular fortitude to step into the cage so I wish him luck.

While I am talking about the smaller MMA feds, let’s take a look at my favorite heavyweight of all time: former Pride F/C star and UFC failure Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic. It appears that Japan’s love for both Cro Cop and freak shows is going to combine at this years K-1 Fields Dynamite New Year’s Eve show.

Here Cro Cop will be fighting Hong Man Choi (pictured dwarfing Brock Lesnar), a man known for being freakishly big and getting destroyed by Fedor.

Now lets take a step back and think about what we all saw this last Wednesday at “Fight for the Troops”. We saw Josh Koscheck knock the will to live out of Yoshiyuki Yoshida, but that wasn’t all now was it? Before we even got to that amazing knockout we had injuries that make even the most hardened fan cringe.

Not only did we see the result of a blocked kick, but we got to see what happens in a street fight when an attacker gets caught in an armbar. The broken leg belongs to Corey Hill who underwent surgery and is going to be out 12-18 months rehabbing that SId Vicious style break.

The dumbass who didn’t tap is Razak Al-Hassan, and while it appears his arm is broke, it was only a dislocation. The jerk who is excited because he thought he broke a guys arm is Steve Cantwell. While I am no fan of gloating in someone else’s injury… it is pretty impressive.

Now don’t forget the upcoming UFC 92, I wrote an early preview of the top of the card a week or so ago. I’ll come back once the event gets closer and see if I change anything, and also give my take on the betting lines… not that I endorse any gambling.