Wednesday, May 28, 2008

James Thompson Interview



It's no secret that I don't understand the Kimbo Slice hype train. Honestly, I hope that Kimbo does get his ass handed to him on CBS this weekend because it would be really cool to see him go down on the big stage like that.

Thompson released this interview through FightHype.

When asked about what sets him apart from Tank and Cantrell, he says:

Unlike Cantrell, I'm gonna turn up to fight. Unlike Tank, I'm gonna train and not drink.


He forgot to add "I'm a legit fighter in my prime... and I watch DVDs."

Saturday, May 24, 2008

My Picks for UFC 84

After watching the weigh-ins, I want to throw my picks out there, just as sort of a last minute lead in to the event. (we'll see how I do)

Christian Wellisch vs. Shane Carwin

NOTE: I think that this fight is going to be a great introduction to Carwin for UFC fans and while I'm worried that he may fail on the big stage, I think that he'll overpower Wellisch with his physical ability and his technical skill. He's also considerably more experienced that Lesnar and it's not like he's fighting a former UFC Heavyweight champion. Wellisch is good, but I think that he'll do exactly what the UFC expects him to: fold like a cheap plastic chair under Carwin's weight.

My Pick: Shane Carwin via Round 1 TKO

Jason Tan vs. Dong Hyun Kim

NOTE: This is one of two fights on the card I don't really care about. That doesn't mean it won't be exciting. I think Tan is gonna look for a submission, but I think that the grappling matchup is pretty much even. This is really a toss-up between new more or less unknown fighters (I've only seen about two minutes of Tan, and he spent most of that time getting punched in the face).

My Pick: Jason Tan by Unanimous Decision

Jon Koppenhaver vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida

NOTE: This is the other fight I don't really care about. I find Koppenhaver's style of fighting not particularly endearing and there's nothing about him that I think makes him extraordinary. He's a middle of the pack fighter who happens to have been on a reality show. Yoshida has alot of cage experience, he's got some submission skills and some striking. I'm going with Yoshida from the little that I've seen, but mostly because I don't think that Koppenhaver is a great fighter, and I think that Yoshida may be the better man in this fight.

My Pick: Yoshida by TKO, Round 2

Rich Clementi vs. Terry Etim

NOTE: Rich Clementi has been on fire and has choked out two very tough strikers in Melvin Guillard and Anthony Johnson. Still, I find that I can't bring myself to bet on No Love, because he's only beaten strikers in the grappling game, and I don't think that he can do that to Terry Etim, who's a fantastic submission fighter. Etim is coming off a tough decision loss to Gleison Tibau, but I think he's got a great shot at winning this fight.

My Pick: Terry Etim by submission, Round 2

Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura

NOTE: When you put two great jiu-jitsu guys or two great wrestlers in the cage, it becomes a matter of which guy has better skills in other areas of the game. In this fight, I hardly think there's any doubt that that is Sokoudjou. He hits much harder and can end this fight quick and hard if he lands a solid punch. Honestly, I think that's what he's going to do.

My Pick: Sokoudjou by KO, Round 1

Ivan Salaverry vs. Rousimar Palhares

NOTE: Ivan Salaverry is an underground legend in MMA, and so it's hard for me not to just pick him and be done with it. There are some who believe that he's on the last leg of his career, but I think he's got a few more left in him. He's fighting an opponent with great submissions skills, and so I'm not convinced that he's going to be able to finish, but I think that his UFC experience is going to give him the win on the judges scorecards.

My Pick: Salaverry by Unanimous Decision

Thiago Silva vs. Antonio Mendes

NOTE: This is a no brainer. Mendes is a stepping stone opponent for Silva, who's going to be a title contender soon, and Silva is going to decimate him.

My Pick: Thiago Silva by TKO, Round 1

Tito Ortiz vs. Lyoto Machida

NOTE: I don't think that Machida's striking is as good as everyone says it is. He's illusive standing up, but he's hardly decimating all of his opponents with his hands. I think that Ortiz is going to put him on his back and once the former UFC champ gets on top, he's going to find himself in over his head with Machida's jiu-jitsu, which he's proved is very good.

My Pick: Lyoto Machida by submission, Round 2

Wilson Gouveia vs. Goran Reljic

NOTE: It's hard to be a jiu-jitsu fighter stepping into the cage against someone with better jiu-jitsu that you. Personally, I think that there's a reason why Goran Reljic is debuting this high on the card against such a high class opponent. Goran is a student of Roger Gracie, arguably the best grappler in the world, and he's a European champion at the purple belt level. The problem is that Gouveia's not a purple belt, he's a black belt, and there's a serious difference. I'll be cheering for Goran, because I think that a victory for him might play a roll in opening up talks between the UFC and Roger Gracie (a personal fantasy of mine), but I'll be betting on Gouveia.

My Pick: Gouveia by Unanimous Decision

Wanderlei Silva vs. Keith Jardine

NOTE: Alot of people are under the impression that I'm leaning towards Jardine in this fight because of Wanderlei's problems adjusting to the cage. Honestly, I still think that Wanderlei outclasses Jardine everywhere. He's a BJJ blackbelt and a world class muay thai fighter. I just think that Jardine is going to be in the cage and find that his opponent is a much better fighter.

My Pick: Wanderlei Silva by TKO, Round 2

BJ Penn vs. Sean Sherk

NOTE: I'll be honest, I'm taking Penn in this fight in part because I like him. I think he's more fun to watch and a champion that wins all of his fights by UD is not something that I think should be happening in the versatile, explosive 155 pound division. Still, after seeing a slimmed down Sherk and a relatively ripped Penn at the weigh in, I'm very confident. There's no where BJ can't win this fight. He can submit Sherk off of his back or knock him out standing up, but we're all well aware that Sherk has one way to win. I think that the Muscle Shark is going to do exactly what he always does, and I think that Penn is going to hit him hard, shake him up and finish with a submission.

My Pick: BJ Penn by submission in Round 2

Top to bottom, this is a fun card.

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Eddie Bravo Talks about the Marcelo Garcia fight

I was just watching for the tutorial and I found this gem. Very interesting insight into the Marcelo fight and very funny.

The Best Thing Sherdog's Ever Done

Usually I'm pretty hard on Sherdog, because of the amount of bullshit that flows freely from their site.

Still, this CroCop highlight is really good:

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

I'm on FightOpinion

I'll be honest, I was really excited when I saw a trackback to my article on Wanderlei Silva on FightOpinion.

Unfortunately, I have to admit that I was incredibly bored http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifby most of the other articles. Apart from the mainstream outlets like the British Sun, which acknowledged that "Jardine has a point to prove" (as if a fighter steps into the ring and says "you know, I don't think I'm going to make this an entertaining fight, because I want to piss off the fans"), all except .

Generally, I think Kevin's great at bringing MMA to people who don't watch it. The work he's done with Yahoo is really good. Still, the fact that the comments in his piece look exactly like a piece I wrote about two months ago bugs me a little. I'm aware that Kevin has some consistency in his views, and it's not like he hasn't been saying this, but I think it's better if the writers just leave this stuff well enough alone.

We have said we're not going to promote gimmick fighters, and, sorry Kevin, even talking about how we're not talking about them (especially at great length) is pretty paradoxical. I'm aware that your piece was on why other people are talking about the bearded brawler, but come on, it's been said.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Fighters as Capital

This is a fantastic piece. I definitely suggest that people check it out.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

My Latest Work at MMAOpinion

For those of you who want to check out my pieces at MMA Opinion, I definitely suggest you do. I just published a piece on Sean Sherk, which was part two of my pre-fight bit. Part one, on BJ Penn, is also on there.

There's also a piece up there on the evolution of the mount, where I personally think it's going.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

My Pick to Win Dream

My pick to win the Dream Grand Prix, and the man I think is one of the greatest middleweights in the world, has goten alot of people curious, because alot of hardcore MMA fans don't know who he is.

So, I present:

Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza

Saturday, May 3, 2008

LZ Granderson Should Be Fired

Apart from the inherent racism, his lack of knowledge about the sport is disgusting.

I'll start reading ESPN magazine for real when they get a good columnist who doesn't think that Kimbo is the personification of black American violence.

O'Reilly on MMA

For those who have the seen the video recently posted on mmaopinion, where I work and where the best news and analysis in the sport is.

Now lets forget Bill's economic stupidity. Let's forget that the 16-34 year old males are the second most potent viewer groups in the entire country (in, the minds of many producers of big advertisement buyers, like beer companies, the most important). Let's forget that the sport has been approved by state athletic commissions, that it has fewer fatalities than boxing, hockey or football.

Let's forget that when John McCain commented on the sport and called in "human cockfighting", Ken Shamrock destroyed him in civil debate on Larry King's live interview, one of the crowning moments for the sport, and one I would like to see Shamrock repeat. Personally, I'd be happy to debate O'Reilly myself, since he clearly knows nothing about the sport and about the way that it's marketed.

As far as the "redeeming moral value" of MMA that the twit Jane Hall, there's as much redeeming value in mixed martial arts as there is in football.

The sport teaches discipline and the value of pushing yourself. It teaches that the only person that can be held accountable in failure is ourself. It teaches that the fighter who develops his mind, his body and his craft wins, and that sometimes that guy comes from the school of hard knocks, and sometimes he comes from priviledge.

The sport offers us at least as much in terms of fantastic stories and tragic failings as any other sport. Some people love football, and just because, as my grandfather once described it to me, "it's just a bunch of fat guys running into each other," that doesn't mean they aren't entitled to watch it and that the networks aren't entitled to carry it. (for the record, I'm a football fan, go Raiders)

If Bill O'Reilly would attack the rights of a network to carry the fastest growing sport in the country, it just makes him come off like an angry pissant who's upset that it's not on his network. The money that the UFC has made Spike has turned the heads of every network executive who isn't an idiot. Obviously, this is why FOX is late to the table on this issue.

Big Bad Bill has tried to attack the sport for years, saying that he honestly believes that this sport is deteriorating the moral fabric of our nation. Really, Bill O'Reilly?

Is it deteriorating the moral fiber our country as quickly as you would like to deteriorate a network's right to broadcast anything you don't like?

Bill O'Reilly has bastardized and trivialized the rights of Americans, and makes every show he does an attack on somebodies right to do something for no other reason than because it doesn't straighten out his lap pinky. He's a shock jocky, but most importantly he's a hypocritical psycho who thinks that, for some reason, his opinions matter more than the facts.

If Big Bad Bill wants to get in touch with me, or anyone wants me to post their thoughts on this, feel free to send me an email at jstein.ironsport@gmail.com

Comments are welcome.

I realize that this is an old video, but it really is something that makes me want to puke when I see an idiot like O'Reilly try and justify his bigoted bullshit with no data and no knowledge of the topic he's flapping his lips about.