For the MMA diehards, this isn't too bad a card. The main event is Bellator's Featherweight tournament final pitting Sengoku veteran Marlon Sandro against the ever-improving Pat Curran. While Sandro is the more experienced fighter, Curran has looked very strong in the tournament. Curran won Bellator's Lightweight tournament last season, which earned him a fight against Bellator 155 pound champion, Eddie Alvarez. Curran was dominated in all areas by Alvarez but managed to go the 5 round distance before losing a lopsided unanimous decison. The loss prompted Curran, a former Florida High School wrestling champion, to drop down to 145 pounds. The move has worked well for Curran as he was able to easily win his tournament quarter and semi-final bouts. Also on the card is Bellator's long, lost Heavyweight Champion, Cole Konrad. He has been missing from the Bellator cage since winning the title back in October 2010. As a first defense, Konrad gets a seeming soft-touch in well-traveled MMA veteran Paul Buentello. All evidence points to the bout being a gross mismatch. Konrad, a heavily decorated college wrestler, should have little problems as Buentello has lost 3 of his last 5. But more importantly, Buentello has never possessed even average take down defense. The most intriguing bout on the card features the Bellator debuts of former UFC HW Champion Ricco Rodriguez and the "Kimbo Killer", Seth Petruzelli. The bout marks a return to a major organization for Rodriguez who has ripped off 12 wins in row in mostly smaller shows versus relatively unknown competition. Petruzelli, on the other hand, will be looking to reclaim some of his post-Kimbo glory after being bounced from the UFC in 2010 following two crushing loses to marginal opponents. With Bellator's limited depth at HW, a win over Rodriguez likely puts Seth in a position to challenge Konrad for the belt. Main Card Featherweight Tournament Final: Pat Curran vs. Marlon Sandro<sup id="cite_ref-bellator48_0-1" class="reference"></sup> Heavyweight bout: Cole Konrad vs. Paul Buentello<sup id="cite_ref-bellator48_0-2" class="reference"></sup> Heavyweight bout: Ricco Rodriguez vs. Seth Petruzelli<sup id="cite_ref-bellator48_0-3" class="reference"></sup> Lightweight bout: Juan Barrantes vs. Renê Nazare<sup id="cite_ref-bellator48_0-4" class="reference"></sup>
I only care about the ME. Should be a decent bout. Very unfortunate that Pitbull got hurt. I truly believe that guy is going to be an ATG Featherweight.
Holy shit. Curran may be the most over achieving fighter in history. He looked like a novice against Sandro yet manages to land a crunching kick that might qualify as a KO of the year candidate. Marlon Sandro proved that the Mike Tyson side-to-side bobbing doesn't work well when kicks can be thrown.
And by the way, Curran might be the highest paid MMA fighter outside the UFC. Two tournament wins each with a $100,000 grand prize.
I wouldn't call him overachieving. I favoured him in the fight. He does have some issues with being too passive at times, but..a lot like Robbie Lawler all he needs is one good one and he can take a guy out on a counter. That said he's a ton more solid and polished than Lawler, and his TDD, standup defense and chin are all amazing. I don't think Sandro proved anything. I think Curran proved how to set up a good roundhouse head kick with good timing and tripling up a jab. Going to assume you meant ZUFFA....because tons of dudes from SF make significantly more. Even then, it was 100k in two years. So even then not really. Pretty many guys contracted by FEG make more then that. The Grand Prix winners win something like 250k.....significantly more than the Bellator winners.
Ummm, I was using hyperbole for the sake of underscoring that a virtual MMA unknown in Pat Curran is making more money than many better know lightweights. Damn dude, are you really that insecure that you have to take every comment as a reason to argue? :: Is the experiment not going well?
That didn't seem like hyperbole at all. I'm also not sure which great LW's he's supposedly making more money than. And it had nothing to with insecurity or looking for reasons to argue, but more countering an incorrect assertion/stating my own opinion. The latter had more to do with myself feeling like you were clearly discrediting Curran where it wasn't warranted. Dude's one of the most solid 145lbers out there right now.
Well, you're nitpicking. I could do the same and ask you to name "a ton" of fighters outside the UFC that have made more money in the 14 months than Curran. Since a ton is 2000 lbs, technically that would be 13.8 featherweights. And I called Curran an over achiever, which is pretty accurate. He won a decision he didn't deserve to win the Bellator LW Tourney and then he lands a completely lucky kick in a fight he was losing easily to win the FW tourney. In other words, he's an over achiever. Now debate that pointdexter.
You didn't say featherweights. If it was just FWs then yeah, you'd have a point. Otherwise, there is a ton of fighters making more than 100k per year. As far as the LW tourney, I don't think Curran robbed anyone.....it was a close fight that could've went either way. As far as anything being luck, sure I guess if you place reasonless judgements on things based on nothing but personal bias. The guy has great kicks, he set it up perfectly by doubling and tripling his jab, and timed it perfectly. Nothing luck about it. The only thing funnier than that is dubiously calling someone an overachiever based on two fights...when he looked far more impressive in the fights leading up to both tournament finals.
Personal bias? Do you even know what that means? If you do then try re-reading my first post in this thread were I indicated Curran had looked very strong in the tournament. I like Curran, but that doesn't change the fact that he's an over achiever. And please, don't make it sound like he set Sandro up for the kick. Curran threw the kick and lucked out that Sandro happened to duck right into it. It was one of the first times all night where Curran actually did double/triple jab. Not to mention Curran was getting tooled the entire fight until that kick. And Curran has a decent push kick but to say he has great kicks is a bigger dose of hyperbole than me calling Curran the highest paid fighter outside the UFC. Again, your constant need to take a contrarian stance really sucks the fun out of an otherwise entertaining fight. I wasn't preparing a white paper on MMA salaries. I was making a sarcastic comment because Curran won $200K for two freaking fights in which he looked like an average fighter. But more importantly because few people, other than hardcore MMA fans, even know who PAT Curran is. Damn.
I think it's funny that you think he just "happened" to be throwing a kick at the exact moment. Yep, pure luck. No. It was late in the fight. He saw that Sandro was moving his head like that all fight. Tripled the jab and threw the kick. Perfect timing. It wasn't the first time he threw it either. He threw a kick like that earlier and hit the upper body. And no, it isn't hyperbole if you watch the guy fight. He throws a lot of them and very well.....good speed and powerful. Yeah...he rarely goes high with them but throwing to them to the body and legs is how he scores on a ton of fighters. And no...he won 25/30 for each finals fight. Not 100k.
