Bellator doesn't seem to get enough love to post about individual cards so maybe this thread should just keep getting bumped... Anyway, Strauss vs Curran 3 was on last night and it was an enjoyable, tactical matchup. Strauss cut off his hair and it seemed to take away his volume punching. The fight was mostly fought on the feet at a slower pace that should have favored Curran. The announcer gave Curran round 1 and Strauss rounds 2-4. However, rounds 3 and 4 were very close. In round 5, Curran was winning, but not dominating, he got a hook in with maybe 40 seconds to go and then slowly and methodically worked in the rear naked choke. Strauss ended up tapping with maybe 10 seconds left. Bellator has championship bouts coming up on the next few weekends and they are trying to do a ppv for the Chandler/Alvarez fight in 3 weeks.
newton is unwatchable. i can't believe he's their light heavyweight champ. the sad thing is that he twice beat king mo and if rampage gets by king mo, newton will probably outstink jackson as well.
Bellator 117 tonight Cheick Kongo gets a shot at the Bellator's HW belt tonight. Unfortunately he's facing Russian badass Vitaly Minakov and is about to get thrashed.
I missed the last round of the fight thanks to it running over the time. I am surprised that Spike doesn't replay these cards anymore.
watched a few bellator matches I hate that jimmy dude. Maybe im just a ufc snob. I used to be the same with Pride though, i hated ufc
The PPV card is horrible and should have been moved to Spike. That being said, I think Alexander Schlememko is probably the best MW in the world NOT in the UFC and it will be interesting to see how he does at 205. Tito is a big LightHeavy, so as shot as he is, it could still be a fun fight because of the size difference. And don't sleep on Will Brooks against Chandler. Brooks is a rangy Lightweight and might present some issues. It's also always good to see Rampage in a choreographed feud. He might have the perfect cannon fodder in King Mo.
Rampage hated Mo for years genuinely but they allegedly reconciled like a year ago then suddenly hated each other again.
Was on Sherdog and said Chandler reminds me of a LW Chad Mendes(probably a bit worse honestly) And that he's a borderline bad fighter when you take away his immense physical tools. Got some flack...of course I'm absolutely right
I know the history and I know it's just an amazing coincidence that the feud heated back up when they started fighting for the same organization. I will say this, Mo is definitely butt hurt that Rampage is Bjorn's golden boy.
Good call on Brooks, I agree he's good, but I really like Chandler. Surprising results all over this card, but could more than 50 people have paid for it? I didn't. Held is always a great watch and that kimura by Guerrero was brutal.
It was a good call but I think it was more that Trplsec aptly realizes Chandler just isn't very good more than an indictment on Brooks. I had it a pick em fight slightly favoring Chandler
You got me. Chandler's status was primarily built on one win over an Eddie Alvarez that just simply hasn't been fighting top competition over the last 5 years. The bottom line is that any young, talented fighter COULD give Chandler problems on any given night.
Alvarez himself is extremely flawed. Dude was hurt badly by a washed up Roger Huerta(and just about everyone else in between) Eddie has speed, heart decent offensive abilities but a dreadful chin and average grappling ability don't make it a shock that an extremely aggressive, more athletic fighter with power would be able to shock him. The problem is Brooks is also very athletic(albeit slightly less) and while hes similarly green, he fights with poise and control. Chandler can blow the doors of a Caveman Rickels, a slow, middling talent that is overwhelmed by his speed and power but there is a good reason he hadn't been in any hurry to go to the UFC. Guys like Brooks fight on undercards in the UFC
Everybody talks about what a terrible chin Alvarez has, yet he has only been KO'd once (via GNP) in 28 fights against a guy who outweighed him by a good 30 pounds when they fought. Does he get stunned? Sure, but he's got great recovery and composure when he does get hit. Other than Pettis, I just can't see anyone in the UFC at 155 beating him. Eddie's biggest problem is he's currently at the tail end of his prime. By the time he does hit the UFC, if that ever happens, he won't be fighter he was. And that's a shame. But Alvarez is one of the few fighters who has made really good money fighting outside of the UFC. From all reports he has saved his money and is pretty well off financially. That's always good to hear from someone in any sport. TFK
Any idea how Alvarez made money outside of the UFC? How much are you thinking? Other than Fedor and some other Pride guys, it's hard to imagine anyone making real money. Are there any rumors/facts on pay from Bellator, Strikeforce, etc?
Bjorn Rebney has just been fired by Bellator. Word is Viacom is gonna bring in Scott Coker to run the promotion. TFK
