Fedor vs. Dawson, who ya watchin’?
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
This weekend begins three straight weekends of major MMA events going head-to-head with major boxing fights.
Very interesting to see who will win these mini-wars. Boxing picked up a big W with Floyd Mayweather vs. Juan Manuel Marquez going up against UFC 103.
This week, I’ll give the edge to MMA. I’m pumped to see a Fedor fight live when he takes on Brett Rogers on CBS. I’ve watched so many on the ‘Net that it’ll be great to see what all the rage is about.
Rogers is talking a big game, which I like. I’m glad he’s got the confidence and as a fellow Chicago boy, I can appreciate that. Still don’t think he has a chance of beating Fedor, but things change quickly in MMA and boxing. One punch can turn a career around.
The buzz has been great and CBS has done a good job in trying to promote it as much as possible. I think they can hook a lot of viewers Saturday afternoon with the Alabama-LSU football game.
Over on HBO, we have the light heavyweight rematch between Chad Dawson and Glen Johnson. Dawson won a close unanimous decision the last time these two hooked up.
Most thought it was a draw and maybe Johnson pulled it out. Kinda the same old story for Johnson.
You know I’ve been a Dawson supporter, but my support expires Saturday night if he doesn’t do more than what he’s been doing.
Maybe I want him to be better than what he really is. I just feel like he should be able to put all the pieces together and become not only a huge star but a great fighter, too.
Either way, prob watch Fedor live and catch Dawson on a replay. Or actually depending on when the fights happen, should be able to see both live.
Also getting closer and closer to Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto. I’m salivating at this one. This is going to be fun. Still on the fence. I got a week to make up my mind.
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Put in the Noah Zuhdi video to NewsOK late Thursday night. Hopefully that will be posted later today or this weekend. Saving the Eric Fields video for when his story comes out Thursday.
Zuhdi and Fields will be a part of the Remington Park boxing card Thursday night. Tickets are still available. For more info, head on over to www.catboxentertainment.com.
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And of course if you haven’t heard by now, UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar has mono and has been forced out of UFC 108 in January against Shane Carwin. Hey, hope Brock gets better. Still one of my favorites to watch.
Catching up with Fields and Zuhdi…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Here in a few short hours, I plan on going to a sparring session with Ardmore cruiserweight Eric Fields and Oklahoma lightweight champion Noah Zuhdi.
No, they’re not sparring each other.
Fields has breathed fresh life into the Oklahoma City boxing scene. Names like Zuhdi, George Tahdooahnippah and Carson Jones have been around for a while. Each has had a fair share of success, but Fields might have a chance to eclipse them all.
Fields is an interesting story in that I know he didn’t have much amateur experience, yet he is a two-time National Golden Gloves champion.
I’m interested in learning why Fields decided catBOX Entertainment was the best option to go to. It was a real shot in the arm for the promotional group to get such a world-class boxer.
Bringing along my trusty video camera to get a little one-on-one time with the two of them and that should be posted late this week or early next week.
Fields and Zuhdi are among the fighters with bouts at Remington Park next Thursday (Nov. 12). Tickets are still on sale. For more info, head on over to www.catboxentertainment.com.
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With Kelly Pavlik out, looks like it’s been confirmed that Paul Williams will take on Sergio Martinez.
If styles make fights, this should actually be tougher for Williams. Pavlik was a straight ahead, no nonsense-type of fighter. Martinez is a crafty lefty who isn’t afraid to box, box, box, to get the job done.
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Received a couple of e-mails as to why Brett Rogers will beat Fedor on Saturday. But this one says it all: “Because he’s American.” Nationalistic pride runs deep with me in boxing and MMA, so though not the most articulate, I like it. But I still don’t give him a chance vs. Fedor on Saturday night on CBS.
Did we just see the Fight of the Year?
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
I didn’t watch the live telecast of Joseph Agbeko and Yonnhy Perez, too busy watching Oregon destroy USC. As a Notre Dame and Oklahoma fan, always nice to see the Trojans get touched up.
But I caught the West coast replay. Boy, am I glad I did. I have to watch it again to fully dissect it, but it was one heck of a scrap.
For the record, I gave it to Perez because of the questionable 10th-round knockdown. I didn’t give him a 10-8 round because of it, but it did switch a 10-9 to Perez instead of Agbeko for a finaly tally of 115-113.
Those 117-110 and 116-111 cards for Perez were crazy, but you just shrug your shoulders at this point.
What I loved most about this fight was both men from the opening bell decided it was going to be a war.
Nobody was going to give an inch, and we were going to be in that proverbial phone booth for 12 rounds. Agbeko looked so dominant against Vic Darchinyan this summer, but Perez was ready to go toe-to-toe.
My only complaint is that nobody was ever really hurt, so it can’t be an all-time classic. It can’t be something like Diego Corrales-Jose Luis Castillo or Irsrael Vazquez-Rafael Marquez. Instead, it’s more going to remind me of Paulie Ayala-Johnny Tapia.
A great fight, maybe Fight of the Year. Great shots landed by both fighters but none of them actually making an impact. In a fight like that, you can always make an argument one way or the other. Hope it leads to a rematch. They’ve earned the payday.
Regardless, a pleasant surprise on a night where I wasn’t looking for an entertaining tilt.
Unlike this weekend where I am expecting Chad Dawson to bring the goods against “the ageless wonder” Glen Johnson. If Dawson wants to remain “one of my boys,” I need to see a complete performance from him. He’s got so much potential, just want to see him put it all together.
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Get that clicker hand busy as to go along with that bout will be Fedor against Brett Rogers on CBS. CBS has hyped this up pretty good in the last week.
As of today, I think Fedor wipes the floor with Rogers. But I’m willing to listen to a Rogers fan as to why I should give their boy a chance.
Changes made to UFC 106…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
The UFC didn’t take long to figure out what to do for a main event at UFC 106 on Nov. 21 in Las Vegas.
After heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar pulled out of his bout with Shane Carwin because of illness, the UFC announced that Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin II will be the new top attraction.
Not bad, huh?
The UFC also announced it hopes Carwin and Lesnar can be rescheduled for early 2010.
Griffin and Ortiz fought 3 1/2 years ago with Ortiz earning a tough decision. Ortiz was originally supposed to fight Mark Coleman, but he withdrew because of injury.
This fight is good, I’m liking it. Ortiz wants to make a splash in his return to the UFC while Griffin wants to become relevant again. Yeah, Griffin’s last two losses (Rashad Evans, Anderson Silva) are against some of the best in the world, but he needs a win. Not deperately, but a loss won’t do him any good.
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Also at UFC 106 will be the return of former Oklahoma State wrestling star Jake Rosholt.
Rosholt, coming off a career-defining victory (at this point) at UFC 102 against Chris Leben, is going to take on Kendall Grove. Grove lost a three-round decision to Ricardo Almeida at UFC 101.
Machida escapes Rua…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Well, it’s not too often I’m wrong. Wait, it’s not too often I’m RIGHT. But UFC 104 once again proved that even the most predictable outcome sure is fun getting there.
Really thought Lyoto Machida was going to walk on, through and everything else against Shogun Rua.
With the way Machida handled ‘my boy’ Rashad Evans and that Rua was getting the rub off of beating Chuck Liddell (though a legend, he’s past his prime), thought Machida would cruise to the easy win.
Wasn’t so. All three judges scored it 48-47 for Machida, who lost his first rounds ever in his eight UFC bouts.
What is clear after watching it Sunday and judging from the crowd reaction is that Rua won the last two rounds, and that’s what people remember.
It’s all about the finish. Very close fight. Initially, I called it a draw. I might watch it again for a better assessment.
Either way, all it really did was build up the anticipation to an immediate rematch that has earned the right to headline a PPV. UFC president Dana White said he thought Rua won and also said there would be a rematch.
In the other notable bout, heavyweight Cain Velasquez continues his rise with a second-round TKO victory. Stoppage was a bit premature, but Cain was handling his business.
Don’t know if he’s ready for a title shot, but he dang close at this point. I would like to see him win one more fight against a well-seasoned fighter that could give him fits.
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Caught the first episode of 24/7: Pacquiao and Cotto as must say both Manny and Miguel are coming off as likable dudes.
Still torn on who I’m picking in this one. Something in me keeps saying this is Cotto’s moment and Pacquiao has never faced someone with such power.
But Cotto has never faced anyone with such blinding speed. Hmm, see, could go back and forth every day.
Sets up a good November as I forgot about Chad Dawson vs. Glen Johnson II on Nov. 7, then PacMan and Cotto on the 14th and Andre Ward vs. Mikkel Kessler to close off the first stage of the Super Six on Nov. 21.
Bellator added to the big boys?
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Bellator Fighting Championships announced a partnership with NBC, Fox Sports and Telemundo on Tuesday to broadcast Seasons 2 and 3 of Bellator in 2010.
A little conflicted on this one. On one hand, it’s great to have a TV deal locked in place, and it lets fighters know it won’t be going away anytime soon.
But on the other, after doing gangbuster ratings on ESPNDeportes, you have to think Bellator was hoping for a spot on ESPN2 or somewhere like that.
I think it’s a matter of perception. When I see something on Fox Sports, I don’t get too excited. I’ll still watch because I have the sickness. But in terms of production values and things that add to a broadcast, hmm, it hasn’t always been Fox’s best asset.
Fox has had the International Fight League and PRIDE events before on its affiliates, so it’s not like it’s new to the MMA world.
From the press release:
“Since our launch earlier this year, there has been an overwhelming demand from MMA fans nationwide for us to broadcast our events live and through a widely available platform,” Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney said. “We are thrilled to have signed this groundbreaking agreement with FOX Sports Net, NBC and Telemundo, which will bring our unique and exciting brand of tournament-based MMA events to a dramatically expanded audience of both English- and Spanish-speaking fans.”
Under this new multi-tiered alliance, Bellator events will be distributed live in primetime on Thursday nights beginning April 8, 2010 on FSN and its regional sports network affiliates. The top moments from each week’s live events will then be condensed into an action-packed 30-minute highlight show, broadcast every successive Saturday night in the all night daypart on NBC, and a one-hour highlight show will air in Spanish on Telemundo every Saturday night from midnight to 1 a.m. Each of the three broadcasts will be aired in high definition.
In talking with Rebney before, he’s got a good head on his shoulders. And maybe the best thing he’s done with this is to have the live fights on Fox, and then shine it up all nice for NBC.
The goal (you would think) is for the NBC viewings to be the the ones that add the new viewers. The diehards are going to watch on FSN anyway, so it’s an interesting approach.
Bellator made a pretty big splash for a first-year MMA group in April with some fantastic fights and some even better finishes. The second season will start in April with another 12-week tournament. The third season is set to commence in August with another 12 weeks.
It took MMA back to its roots with a tournament setting and a fighter getting more and more money with each win.
Former Central Oklahoma wrestler Jared Hess made it to the finals of the middleweight tournament. He lost to Hector Lombard but was praised for his grit and toughness.
Bellator came to the Lloyd Noble Center at OU, and I was impressed with the setting and production. Hope to get in touch with Hess and get his thoughts about this agreement.
What do you think? Has Bellator officially arrived with this deal, or is it too early to make such a proclamation?
Super Six giving boxing buzz…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
While MMA and UFC are seemingly doing everything right in trying to create new fans and exploring new marketing ideas, boxing has been well behind the curve.
For years, us ‘experts’ thought there needed to be the Next Great Star to try to bring fans to the game. But after watching the Super Six World Boxing Classic, that is not needed.
Imagine that all it took was fighters willing to risk everything for the chance at getting everything. The buzz was there this last weekend for Arthur Abraham and Jermain Taylor and Carl Froch vs. Andre Dirrell.
Taylor has left the hospital and is now vacationing in Europe. That’s the best news you could hope for at this point.
Some thoughts, observations
- European crowds are absolutely fantastic. Great atmosphere at both venues. Wish it would be like that again in the US.
- Antonio Tarver is going to be one heckuva announcer. What he’s doing a real good job of right now is not turning the focus back to himself. He’s talking about the fighters. Really hope he sticks with it. I love the “Magic Man” but the last couple of years have stained what I remember of him.
- Glad we finally know the format of the Super Six. Three stages with two points for a decision win and three points for a KO win. After that, a semifinals and a final. Thank you.
- How cool is the Super Six? Because of the format, not one person (well, almost) has mentioned how Andre Dirrell is now done because he just had his first loss.
- Taylor needs to get out. And I’m not just saying that because I’m an advocate of Tulsa’s Allan Green taking his place. Taylor gave us everything he had. He took on one tough fight after another. He’s good to great, but it seems he’ll always end up just a little short. The money isn’t worth the memory loss.
- But that leads to an interesting conundrum. Say Green (or whoever) replaces someone. Does the replacement inherit the other guy’s point total, and how would that be fair? We’ll see.
- I love Gus Johnson’s excitement, but he was off the mark on Dirrell and Froch. I thought Dirrell won, too, but Johnson seemed to only notice what Dirrell did the whole night. And great to see Steve Albert back for the Abraham fight, a true class act.
- Well, we got almost a month now. 24/7 for Manny Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto starts Saturday. That fight is Nov. 14, with Mikkel Kessler and Andre Ward concluding the first stage of the Super Six on Nov. 21.
- Back later in the week as I try to muster up some enthusiasm for UFC 104. I don’t know, just think Lyoto Machida is going to wipe the floor with Shogun Rua. We’ll see.
Hendricks added to UFC 107…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Kinda slow time here in the MMA world as we gear up for the next big UFC PPV, but there are a couple of local names making news.
First is former Oklahoma State star Johny Hendricks. Hendricks is coming off a first-round TKO against Ultimate Fighter winner Amir Sadollah and will be a part of UFC 107 on Dec. 12 from Memphis.
It hasn’t been officially confirmed by the UFC, but all reports say Hendricks will fight UFC newcomer Ricardo Funch. Funch is undefeated and from Brazil, but I admit that’s about as much knowledge as I have about the guy at this time.
Hendricks is one of my favorites to talk with when it comes to his honesty about everything going on. Definitely try to catch up with him before the bout.
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Another former Cowboy is making some noise as “King” Mo Lawal has signed with Strikeforce.
Sources say Lawal might even be ready to go as early as December. Lawal has some of the most entertaining videos out there right now.
He’s been gaining steam in the last couple of years in the Japanese organization Sengoku. Has quite the buzz around him right now.
Lawal would definitely add a lot to the Strikeforce light heavyweight division, which isn’t the strongest right now. So win-win for both parties involved.
Green wins, but was it enough?
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
I know there was a late opponent change, but it’s stuff like Friday night why nobody starts tooting the horn of Tulsa super middleweight boxer Allan Green.
Because sometimes, he just looks like he doesn’t want to be there. Green was originally supposed to fight Victor Oganov, but it was switched to Travis Simms.
The result was an underwhelming decision for “Sweetness” (or is it Ghost Dog). He was coming in with huge momentum following the second-round destruction of Carlos De Leon Jr., but this, ugh, not what people wanted to see.
Green is arguably the best fighter not involved in Showtime’s Super Six Super Middleweight Round Robin tournament. But he didn’t make a case for inclusion with his outing Friday in Newkirk.
Lawton’s George Tahdooahnippah picked up another win, this time by decision. Good experience for Tahdooahnippah, interesting to see where he goes from here.
Biggest winner of the night was Antwone Smith in an undercard bout against Harry Crawford. Walked him down and put ‘em out. Fine performance.
This weekend sees the return of Israel Vazquez, who rose up the Boneman’s rankings faster than anyone I can remember with his three bouts with Rafael Marquez.
Hope he’s the same Izzy as before, but who knows what those fights have done to him?
Also be keeping an eye on The Ultimate Fighter this week to see if Kimbo Slice comes back. His bout with Roy Nelson did record ratings for Spike (kinda figured that). The teaser sure was setting it up for Kimbo to be an injury replacement. We’ll see.
Nelson TKO 2 Slice…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
We’ve all seen boxing and MMA fights like the one just witnessed on Spike between Kimbo Slice and Roy Nelson on The Ultimate Fighter.
It’s not pretty, not really entertaining, but it’s what the guy (Nelson) needs to do to get the job done.
Kimbo simply had no answer for when he got close to Nelson. Once the distance closed, Nelson knew he could take him down and then use his advanced ground game (compared to Kimbo’s) and hold him down.
Kimbo stopped one takedown, and coach Rampage Jackson was quite happy about that. I thought it might have been over in the first when Kimbo used all his energy to try to flip over. That’s a risky move.
Nelson started to pepper him with shots. Not hard, fight-ending shots, but Kimbo was in a defenseless position when the bell sounded.
In round 2, Kimbo landed a couple of good shots before Nelson was able to get him down again and do the exact same thing he did in the first. Kimbo just couldn’t the 264-pounder off of him, so referee Herb Dean stopped the fight.
The old cliche ‘it is what it is.’ Kimbo showed heart and some improvement, but he still has a long way to go if he still wants to make a go at this. I give Nelson credit for not getting caught up in the hype and just sticking to a plan.
He didn’t earn me as one of his fans with tonight, but that doesn’t matter. He did what he had to do.
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Ol’ boxing scribe Thomas Hauser is at it again. This is an amazing piece about the HBO boxing situation. Amazing.
Get a drink of your choice and get ready for a startling 10-15-minute read about the inner workings of HBO sports, circa 2009.
