UFC 111: GSP vs Hardy/Mir vs Carwin

[Vendrell]

Miller vs Bocek was a great fight. I thought Miller was lucky to get the decision but it was very close.

Fitch is the bomb. Miragliotta is a *******. Fitch was being active and wasn't just holding Saunders against the cage.

Carwin WOW! Those hands were always the worry. You can see he puts his whole body into every punch by turning those hips and using all the power in his legs especially on those uppercuts. Miragliotta is a spaz again for not stopping it earlier. It's justice that he's fighting Lesnar seeing as he's had 2 previous fights with Brock cancelled. I hope he puts Brock to sleep. WAR CARWIN!!!

Georges St Pierre, I was not impressed with your performance. Full credit to Hardy for not tapping but GSP needed to finish this fight with ground and pound. He dominates everyone on the mat but where were the punches and elbows coming down on Hardy's face like he did against BJ?

Read that Matt Brown was defeated. It is a sad day.

Bring on Florian vs Gomi and the Big Country Truffle Shuffle!

 

[PLSC]

To say Fitch was boring though SBI is ridiculous, and he fought a GSP type fight. Got the takedowns easily and worked very hard whilst on top.
Lets not forget GSP has ground out 3 of of his last 4 wins in 5 rounds too, albeit a little more comfortably.....

Fitch IS boring and this is coming from me who loves watching takedowns and GNP.

He never passes guard or postures up to land shots and he's sub attempts (or lack of) are pretty standard.

No comparison with GSP.

I hope GSP goes to 185 now cause theres no one left at WW except maybe Daley but even he would get demolished like Hardy.

 

[Vendrell]

I found Fitch's fight more entertaining than GSP.

Paulo Thiago is the best welterweight left for GSP.

 

[RobbyRoy]

Fitch IS boring and this is coming from me who loves watching takedowns and GNP.

He never passes guard or postures up to land shots and he's sub attempts (or lack of) are pretty standard.

Exactly. He's from the Clay Guida school of exciting on the ground. Props to him for dominating Saunders but I was completely bored. And no I am not a new fan who doesn't understand all the "transitions and stuff". I'm a long time fan and a wrestling and BJJ enthusiast and have trained in both for a number of years. I am a Lesnar fan though

 

[RobbyRoy]

Paulo Thiago is the best welterweight left for GSP.

That's true, but he has about the same chance of a win as Hardy did. There's no one in the WW division who poses a legitimate threat to GSP, besides a flash KO win. All the other champions there is a type of fighter who I think would do well against them. With GSP there is no one.

 

[PLSC]

I found Fitch's fight more entertaining than GSP.

.

Must of been some good drugs

 

[MeeSo]

Hope Brock has a decent chin Really should've been stopped earlier by Miragliotta. Didn't like his seperations in the Fitch fight either.

Anyone else getting a little sick of watching GSP control guys for 5 rounds? I'm a big fan and the guys an incredible fighter but ever since getting hit by Serra he seems content to turn every fight into a wrestling match. I'm probably in the minority but I preferred the Fitch fight.

 

[red+black]

Some of the refereeing was definitely sub-standard. Re GSP, disappointing to extend his streak to 24 round victories. I thought his GNP in rounds 3 and 4 rather disappointing, not sure why that was the instruction for round 4. How Hardy didn't tap twice I don't know. But maybe someone can help me out here. Yes GSP's arm bar in Round 1 was severe, but as a casual observer, I thought he was waiting for the tap rather than extending further and breaking the arm.

 

[Vendrell]

Anyone else getting a little sick of watching GSP control guys for 5 rounds? I'm a big fan and the guys an incredible fighter but ever since getting hit by Serra he seems content to turn every fight into a wrestling match. I'm probably in the minority but I preferred the Fitch fight.

I'm with you and I'm a massive GSP fan (I've even got 2 GSP shirts!). He has the talent and power to finish fights. He did more damage to BJ, Alves and Fitch than he did to Hardy. I don't know if it's his confidence or the gameplan from his corner that's making him go for decision victories. But one day he'll come up against a fighter who won't be so easily thrown around. Whether that's at welterweight or middleweight, I don't know. A guy like Sonnen would be difficult to out wrestle.

In regards to his next opponent, if Shields can beat Hendo (big if) then I think the ufc would have no problem giving Shields a title shot in his first ufc fight.

Also, rumours started yesterday that the winner of Kos vs Daley would be coaching the next season of TUF against GSP so they're a possibility (one that doesn't excite me).

 

[Strike Swiftly]

hey is this in melblourne by any chance?

yeh. Westend Hotel in sunny Sunshine. By no means a classy establishment, but shows all PPV UFC and boxing events on big screen.

 

[aussiedude]

Dana wants *ock Chestnat vs carwin for UFC 116. and if we get a Fitch Vs GSP 2 it will be better than Anderson Silva Vs Tallis Leties, which still gives me nightmares i scored it 50-40 that was the worst fight ever and dana said that

 

[cuzzy_bandwagon]

yeh. Westend Hotel in sunny Sunshine. By no means a classy establishment, but shows all PPV UFC and boxing events on big screen.

Darn it thats on the other side of town

 

[Guy Threepwood]

he must be a lesnar fan, or a new fan of the sport Fitch is briliant he just grinds out the win, i found it a good fight, if you understand all the transitions and stuff on the ground

Have you had a post yet where you haven't stuck the boots in to Lesnar? We get it, you don't like him.... maybe try moving on?

 

[red+black]

yeh. Westend Hotel in sunny Sunshine. By no means a classy establishment, but shows all PPV UFC and boxing events on big screen.

LOL, and by no means a classy suburb either!

 

[Red Black and Blue]

Really disappointed by Mir's efforts, Carwin is a beast, but Mir seemed to have no visible game plan what so ever. Too focused on Lesnar. Fight should have been stopped heaps sooner, those power punches are deadly.

Thought Bocek was hard done by but a great fight by Miller none the less.

Hardy, great heart, but like most of us thought, well out of his depth.

Liked the Fitch fight as well, don't really see the need to pass guard when he was already dominating.

Getting a little frustrated at the three titles absolutely locked for the foreseeable future and if Machida puts away Shogun probably four.

 

[Ross]

Count me in among those who liked Fitch's fight. He was active for the majority of the fight and busted Saunders's face up, his face was coloured like a beetroot when the fight ended.

Thought GSP/Hardy was decent for the first three rounds but by the end it all felt repititious. GSP said after that he'd have had no problems snapping Hardy's arm and didn't because he admitted he didn't really understand how to finish off the kimura because guys in sparring always tap much earlier.

Mir's defense is pretty bad but damn does Carwin pack a heavy punch. The fight should have been stopped several times before it finally was though. Can't wait for Lesnar/Carwin now, Lesnar almost made Carwin look tiny when they faced off.

A big overreaction I thought across the board to the Palhares sub with Palhares receiving a meaningless suspension (he's not going to fight in the next 90 days anyway) from the New Jersey commission being the end result. Can't believe Rogan was counting how long he had the heel hook on in real-time while watching a slow-motion replay. Hopefully this is the end of it and the UFC doesn't give him the Babalu treatment.

Awesome showing from Diaz, made even better with Markham coming in so heavy. There was a rumour going around that Markham figured he was being cut with a loss and decided to just cop a fine in exchange for coming in heavy to increase his chances. Hope it's not true because it's a dick move.

 

[Supermercado]

Shattered that GSP didn't come out to Dirty Haus. Best theme - non Sandstorm division.

 

[Strike Swiftly]

LOL, and by no means a classy suburb either!

Yeh for sure. Don't live there though thankfully. Live bout 25/30 mins away.

 

[Magnum]

Dana wants *ock Chestnat vs carwin for UFC 116. and if we get a Fitch Vs GSP 2 it will be better than Anderson Silva Vs Tallis Leties, which still gives me nightmares i scored it 50-40 that was the worst fight ever and dana said that

It wasn't 50-40 or even close to that, but it was 50-45 for sure. Terrible fight and bad performance by both fighters.

As for 111, Complete domination from GSP in terms of strategic, technical and control aspect, but a fight is a fight, and I'd like to see him do more damage. Snap the arm if the dudes not tapping. That or work some better GnP. The fact remains that Hardy was severely outmatched but GSP couldn’t/wouldn't finish him. A little disappointing TBH. Its probably the only thing holding him back from being outright number 1 p4p. I think if knees to the head on the ground were allowed GSP would have finished it.

I’ll say it again, the rules and scoring sanctioned in the UFC need major tweaking, they limit attacking from the bottom and encourage Fitch/GSP style control and grind for decision over finishing the fight , damage & aggression mandated in the Japanese MMA methodology. Until there is a paradigm shift in scoring MMA fights in the US, we’ll continue to see this as the “way” to be a ‘great’ fighter. GSP and Fitchs last 9 combined fights have all been decisions. Its no coincidence.

In any case, GSP is a great fighter, but will only be challenged by an equally awesome wrestlers, like Fitch or Kos or ground wizard like Almeida who could possibly get the sub. Obviously both need solid standup and possess KO power. Massive challenges would await at 185 though, with guys like Sonnen, Palhares, etc being nightmares for GSP.

Would have liked Palhares to have let go of that a little earlier, especially with a heel hook, but I can put it down to being too amped up. Also, remembering Bustamante and Lindland, Busta had to tap Lindland twice to get the win, so I can understand why he made sure the ref stopped him. But you gotta let go when you feel the tap though, so I thought the suspension was fair. Hope the damage isn’t too bad for his Thomas D.

Definitely a late stoppage with Carwin and Mir. I do think Carwin can beat Lesnar though, as besides wrestling he seems to be better everywhere else.

Valasquez is the man though, he’s going to beast everyone at HW and be the truest test for Fedor. JDS is also awesome, but I see him getting taken down too easily.

And Mir is somewhat overated.

Pellegrino looked awesome, and I’d like to see him fight Sots, would be a great fight.

 

[likka]

Great PPV, really good display of the grappling arts and engrossing to watch.

GSP's athletic superiority at 170 is his main point of difference. When you are able to take down all opponents in your division at will and utterly dominate them on the ground it is really only a matter of finishing them. Too often he has not been able to finish though, which hurts him in the best P4P discussion.

Would love to see GSP move to 185, purely to see how he goes against bigger blokes who can match him strength wise. Nobody at 170 is close to matching him, so be interesting to see if he is man enough to take the challenge of stepping up a weight class, or stay content being the big fish in a smaller pond.

From Dana's point of view this would be great too... a potential GSP vs Silva match would be the biggest MMA PPV of all time. Its not like 185 is stacked either.

What the hell was Mir thinking during that fight? There is a reason nobody has survived the first round against Carwin and Frank seemed arrogantly oblivious to this. Seemed like he had no real game plan and when Carwin exploded like an h-bomb it almost took Frank by surprise. Carwin was awesome, but Frank played right into his hands (literally).

Miragliotta should be suspended after that fight also. When you have a bloke capable of of knocking a building off its foundations with a single punch, you do not allow 5-10 extra punches when a bloke is obviously out. FFS there were 4-5 undefended punches to the temple with Mir lying prostrate on his belly and Dan inches away watching it.

Carwin vs Lesnar is going to be insane though. It'll be as close we'll get to seeing two albino gorillas going toe to toe.

Amazing how much bigger Brock was than Shane after the match. Carwin is going to have to use those very heavy hands early against Lesnar though, if he doesn't I think Brock will take him down and GnP him to sleep like the Mir fight.

Love all the meatheads booing Lesnar too... probably the same meatheads that booed during the Fitch fight.

Totally pumped about the next 6-12 months in the HW division. Lesnar vs Carwin for the belt in June/July, then a title defense against the winner of Velasquez vs JDS, hopefully around December/January.

Pellegrino looked awesome, and I’d like to see him fight Sots, would be a great fight.

+1.

 

[Magnum]

I'll say it again, I hope Cain and JDS don't fight each other until they've both had title shots or be actually for the title.

Also think Brock looked a lot bigger because of the suit and dress shoes. You'll notice at UFC 96 Rashad and Rampage face off and Rashad looked as big or bigger than Page, and in reality Rashad is much smaller than Rampage.

The only other question mark that could potentially be a challenger to GSP is Nick Diaz. Awesome striking, likely better than GSP and would be as good on the ground as GSP, at least threatening him with subs if he goes to the back. Would be a solid fight if ever possible.

 

[_GJ_]

GSP's athletic superiority at 170 is his main point of difference. When you are able to take down all opponents in your division at will and utterly dominate them on the ground it is really only a matter of finishing them. Too often he has not been able to finish though, which hurts him in the best P4P discussion.

.

GSP has never fully recovered from his loss to Serra. Up until UFC 69, GSP was generally willing to stand and trade with his opponents - using his kyokoshin background.

Since the first Serra fight he has changed as a fighter (for the worse). Sure, he won the rematch against Serra in Montreal, but his fear of "the Serra situation repeating itself" means that he now takes zero risks in the Octogon.

It makes for a incredibly boring fight.

I dont think Anderson Silva v GSP at Middlewight would be that entertaining. Two of the most coservative, boring fighters in the UFC trying to eek out a majority decision because (a) neither fighter can finish, and (b) neither fighter is willing to take any risks.

I felt robbed of my money after paying for the GSP v Hardy ppv - at least Hardy came to fight. Watching GSP hug some dude for 20 mins in the Octogon is not that entertaining.

 

[likka]

Personally I would like to see Valesquez and JDS fight off for the right to challenge winner of Lesnar and Carwin.

Dana has said publicly though that Valesquez is now the no 1 contender and will fight for the title after Carwin. This is a business decision to protect the records of both, and create additional hype. Pure and simple.

Means that Cain won't fight again until end of the year (at the absolute earliest) and JDS will have to win another fight (Mir / Carwin / Lesnar) to gain a title shot middle of next year.

On the Carwin vs Lesnar fight, if Shane can stop the take down he will win the fight, if he cannot he will get "cage squished" and pummeled into the next time zone.

I dont think Anderson Silva v GSP at Middlewight would be that entertaining.

Didn't say it would be the most entertaining fight, but would definitely be the biggest PPV in MMA history in terms of hype and $$$.

Given GSP's aversion to risk and presenting himself with a real challenge, the odds of this fight happening are long.

 

[Magnum]

Personally I would like to see Valesquez and JDS fight off for the right to challenge winner of Lesnar and Carwin.

Dana has said publicly though that Valesquez is now the no 1 contender and will fight for the title after Carwin. This is a business decision to protect the records of both, and create additional hype. Pure and simple.

Means that Cain won't fight again until end of the year (at the absolute earliest) and JDS will have to win another fight (Mir / Carwin / Lesnar) to gain a title shot middle of next year.

Sounds good to me. I HATE two top contenders having to fight each other as it wipes one out, he has to go back to the bottom of the pile again, and the champion gets a break, instead of having to fight both when they are firing. Hell, one of them may NEVER get back up to the top and never get a shot. Cain first, JDS can fight Mir and beat him, and then a shot after that. Its the best way to keep the champ consistently fighting and honest. Else we get one fight against one 'top contender' per year as the rest struggle to be top contender as they are knocking each other back down all the time.

 

[red+black]

Would have liked Palhares to have let go of that a little earlier, especially with a heel hook, but I can put it down to being too amped up. Also, remembering Bustamante and Lindland, Busta had to tap Lindland twice to get the win, so I can understand why he made sure the ref stopped him. But you gotta let go when you feel the tap though, so I thought the suspension was fair.

He confirmed in his ringside post-match interview that he was just waiting for the ref to stop the fight. Thus, he blatantly ignored the tap, and not only did he not stop, he didn't ease up but cranked it even further.

90 days is a ridiculously lenient ban.