I agree REED, I would love to see him smash out Rashad for one, then a matchup with Machida would be nice. After that, I would love to see him make the move.
Rampage quit. He got sick of getting beat up and said 'here's my back, choke me' Rampage's peak was back when he was beating Liddell and slamming the piss out of fighters. It just so happens that his peak never reached Wanderlei's; that's not really an insult since Wanderlei was so good, it's just an observation. I still think Jones seems a bit vulnerable to a guy like Shogun because he keeps his hands a bit too low and hasn't proven that he has a great chin, yet. But I still think he is one of the best I've ever seen and perhaps (probably?) the best. Phenomenal talent, phenomenal results so far.
i'd like to see him whup rashad for sure. a fight vs. machida could be interesting based on their styles, but machida's tentativeness might make it a boring affair w/ jones winning on points. either way, those are the only two fights i'd be interesting seeing. i highly doubt that silva would move up to face jones. plus, i think people are still interested in silva vs. gsp happening down the road (assuming that gsp gets by condit and maybe diaz too if he beats penn).
Rashad AND Machida Can Make for BORING Fights, but they're Both Intriguing, Stylistically...Both PREFER to Counter & Possess Fight Ending Power... REED:Lok:
I agree with everything ( save for the Shogun thing, wich seems like madness considering how easy he handled him ). Rampage quit, not shamefull since he was getting beat up but still a little disapointing. He basically gave his neck for jones to sink a rnc. And nowaday, people make it seems like it's a shame to have been obliterated by Wanderlai. :nono::nono: Silva just was a monster, with kick and stomps allowed, he would have decimated everyone fighting in the UFC at 205 now ( and some top hw too ) except maybe Jones. Could you imagine Machida with his gay karate move giving Silva any problems ?? I can't
Prime Shogun vs Jones is a much more interesting fight than any match they can make at this point. That said, I think Hashad has the best shot out of any LHW right now.
Except Tito and Vitor Belfort for that matter. Hashad could definitely replicate what Tito did as well.
When Rampage was with Juanito he could actually stand and box and just do the same shoulder duck 3, 4 combo all fight. He's so predictable he could barely tag Jardine, who has the laziest defense ever. But MUCH more important than that is the fact that Rampage hadn't looked to offensively wrestle since the Hendo fight.
i wonder how successful jones would've been as a wrestler had he gone to iowa state and pursued a career in freestyle.
I just watched some old Pride fights last night, obviously Rampage doesn't look as good when he's not smashing fat japanese pro wrestlers. Some of the "fighters" in Pride were seriously shit. Watching this last night, I realize that Pride was pretty much a joke, other than a few of their stars, most of these guys were cans.
jackson's now calling out forrest griffin for a rematch in japan. if wanderlei doesnt get seriously hurt vs. cung le or somehow beats him, then i'm sure he'd be on that card as well.
When EXACTLY Did this Fighter Exist???... Just as Roberto Duran is Given the Benefit of EVERY SINGLE Doubt on the Boxing Forum, Shogun Seems to do Likewise in MMA...It's as if he's REALLY Undefeated, Because EVERY SINGLE Loss of his is Rationalized... REED:mj:
Knees.. It's all about the knees. "Wes Welker is a shell of his former self." By the way, help me out. Can a fighter go in and out his prime frequently? Because here's a glimpse of Rua's trips in and out of his prime: Overeem: Rua is in his prime Griffin I: Rua is out of his prime Coleman: Rua still out of his prime Liddell: Oops. Rua is back in his prime Machida: Still back in his prime Jones: Rua is out of his prime again Griffin II: Rua is back!!!!
I truly hope you're joking. Wandarlei now back then pride or ufc or any other version is and always has been an average fighter.
you just don't know what you are talking about. Wanderlai decimated a far better Rampage ( who's a worst number 4 in the division in the UFC right now, the old washed up version that is) than Jones subbed last weekend. ADD Sakuraba, Arona, Henderson, Crocop (draw that he probably deserved ), Mezger, Fujita,... that's a hell of a resume for an average fighter
might have been attributed by roids, but there's no way he was an average fighter in pride. there was nothing not impressive about his wins over henderson and jackson, although it's funny that both guys clocked him unconsious when they fought in the states.
please, most UFC cards are filled too with guy's who can barely fight. Hell, most of the guy's who come's out of TUF and who takes main card slot, I wouldn't even be sure of them winning a random bar fight
Overeem: roids? Griffin I: suffering from roid withdrawl? Coleman: adjusting to being off roids? Liddell: getting back to form Machida: back in his prime Jones: still in his prime Griffin II: still in his prime
What Jones accomplished as a wrestler is so far down the totem pole that we'll never know how good he could have been in college wrestling and even many of the best college wrestlers don't succeed at freestyle or international style. From what I can tell, he only won one state championship in high school. That is something he shares with about 2000 others each year. He looks like he would have been a great wrestler, but who knows? There will always be a correlation between good wrestlers making good mma fighters, but the sports are distinct and great success in one doesn't mean you would have great success in the other. I think there's far less correlation that great mma fighters would make great wrestlers.
He won a JUCO National Championship. That is a very high level. Not saying he is up ther with Dan Gable, but that is much higher than a state champion high school wrestler. But I do agree that success in one doesn't necessarily mean success in another.
yup. also went to iowa central community college, which has the best junior college wresling program in the country.
2005 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix: he smoked Rampage, Little Noguiera, Overeem, and Arona to win the tournament that year.
And then in early 2006, at Pride 31 "Unbreakable", he fell and broke his elbow in a freak accident, derailing his career for a few years. Edit: I shouldn't say "fell", he got tackled by Coleman, tried to post up, and his elbow wound up bending in the wrong direction. He couldn't continue.
It really went downhill for Shogun after PRIDE and he kept destroying his knees. From his first appearance at PRIDE Bushido 1 to his last fight against Overeem, he was on another planet from the rest of the pack.
Still one of the greatest years in the history of MMA. Although not far behind would be Takanori Gomi's own run in 2005.
