Hess in good spirits…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
You never know how a fighter will react to his first professional loss. For that reason, I waited until Monday to call UCO product Jared Hess.
Turns out I didn’t have to wait that long as Hess was fine with talking about his defeat Friday night to Hector Lombard in the Bellator middleweight championship bout.
My first question was if Lombard was stronger than Hess thought. Here’s what Hess said:
Yes and no. I knew coming in that he was extremely strong. I wasn’t surprised by that. It was his takedown defense that surprised me. He was so good on the defense.
Going in, that was our game plan. He basically stopped the game plan. I wasn’t able to get him on the ground.
Hess said the turning point was in round 3 when he caught an elbow that busted up the right side of his face. The referee stopped the bout twice to have the doctor look at it. Hess knew a third time would most likely end the fight.
Sure enough, it did in the fourth round.
Hess said he wasn’t happy with his performance, but he wasn’t too upset. He learned a lot from the experience and said the atmosphere was amazing. A second season of Bellator is supposed to kick off in September/October, and Hess said he would be ready.
Other thoughts from Hess:
- That was the first time in his pro career he had been cut. He said it didn’t weigh on him mentally, just physically. It left his vision impaired for most of the night.
- He got back to Oklahoma on Sunday night and watched his fight. He couldn’t believe how bloody it was. When you’re in the cage, you don’t think about that, he said. But watching it on tape, he was surprised.
- I wondered if Lombard said anything to him after the fight, and Hess said Lombard’s corner told him good fight but nothing much more than that.
I got the sense that Hess was OK with talking about everything because I don’t know if he was every truly hurt Friday. He was battered and bruised but still feeling OK.
I appreciate Hess taking the time to talk to me about the fight. Like the blog title says, I think he’s in good spirits. He’s going to take a couple of weeks off, and then he’s right back into training.
***
Wladimir Klitschko did what he was supposed to do in stopping Ruslan Chagaev on Saturday night.
We know the Boneman is bored with the heavyweight boxing scene, but the Klitschkos are without question the two best.
Word on the street is Chris Arreola might get a crack at Vitali while David Haye (once healthy) will fight Wlad.
Don’t know how these fights will be, but excited about the prospect of two guys forcing the brothers into a more up-tempo bout.
***
I didn’t see the Ultimate Fighter Finale but sure sounds like I missed a good one between Clay Guida and Diego Sanchez.
Sanchez won a three-round split decision in what some are calling the Fight of the Year. I meant to program the VCR on Saturday, but I just plum forgot when I left home.
***
A lot of downtime in the fight game as the next big UFC event in July 11 with the biggest of them all, UFC 100.
No major boxing bouts coming down the pike, so the next couple of weeks might be a little sparse. Though I’m sure most posts will include “this fight has been announced for” because both boxing and MMA will be looking to fill up their fall dance cards.
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Good job on the coverage, Boneman! Got hooked on your blogs during the Blazers season, and now you’re covering MMA! Awesome! You definitely missed some great fights Saturday. Spike is replaying it at 3pm on the 27th. Set that VCR!