***spoilers*** UFC News and Discussion Thread

[Your Mom]

I was rooting for Thomson. I am a sucker for "He didn't have to fight, but he's doing it anyway!" Wish he could have pulled it out

[Rich]

I enjoyed it. Thought Stipe's boxing was solid, very enjoyable to watch.

I'm with you on this

That was a great fight. Loved every second of it. A fucking cradle in an MMA fight. Giddy as a schoolgirl.

I am not with you on this. Not saying it was a bad fight, but there were better fights on the card and we had Dillashaw/Easton the other day which was a better fight in my opinion. This fight was just the same as the majority of Bendo fights, alright, interesting, but nothing special

I think the reason I loved this fight so much was that there were so many different techniques used that aren't typically used in an MMA fight and there were also tiny little intricate stuff that made it fun for me. I mean, that cradle sweep was executed perfectly, Thomson kept on utilizing the underrated body lock in place of the hooks, Bendo was being a genius by always standing up and making Thomson take the weight on his legs instead of just turning to the ankle grip side, Bendo's leaping right uppercut to the body to close the gap, that sick knee he hit on Thomson by feinting that he was going to punch the body again, his kicking of Thomson's calves. That's just from memory. I loved it. Honestly believe that the decision really took a lot of the sweetness out of it, just like the Hendricks versus GSP fight.

The low-low kicks is one of Benson's trademarks, and is a great technique, but praising his turning and standing in the body triangle actually showed 2 things:

1. Benson had the right technique to counter, but Josh could have stayed and worked it if Benson had not put his back against the cage, but Thomson chose to give up the position quickly, I would have preferred to see if he could have worked a submission from that position

2. How ineffective the body triangle was, as if Thomson had just had hooks in he would have controlled Benson's posture against the ground more, esepcially his legs which allowed Benson to stand up, so his use of the body triangle, rather than the hooks, was actually a little bit thoughtless.

The cradle sweep was nice, but some of the other techniques on the ground, especially from Bendo, were a little off for me, the decision making by both guys was not great.Overall the striking was ok, but massively hindered from Thomson's broken hand. For me it was a fairly flat main event, there was a couple of nice transitions/sweeps and a couple of nice fakes, but not enough over 25 mins for me to think it was a great fight, I just can't see it.

It may be because it is basically the same fight we have seen from Benson numerous times before and he keeps winning because of how effective he is, not because it's exciting and he is hitting anything high impact, even as good a technique as his low kicks to the calf are he doesn't do damage with them unless he gets a lot of volume, I just get a little frustrated when most of the time after 25 mins he wins and his opponent is stood there with barely a scratch on them, he wins matches, but he does not beat his opponent.

[HC]

I do find Benson a bit boring, honestly, and I think Thomson would've beaten him if it weren't for the hand. I thought it was a good match but nothing special. Most of the fun for me came from rooting for Josh. I could watch the end of round 1 a million times...

Edit:

Glorious

[Benjamin]

I don't know, it's might be because I'm a fan, but I've never seen a boring Henderson fight. From his WEC days to now, he's always been a treat for me. Thomson is a great fighter to watch as well, so I was super-entertained by it.

Luke Thomas just tweeted that UFC on Fox 10 pulled 2.5 rating, 1.1 in overnight numbers. That's a massive jump from the Johnson vs Benavidez 2 fight, right?

EDIT: Oh, wait, it isn't. For some reason I thought FOX 9 had like less than a million viewers.

Edited January 26, 2014 by Benkid

[Walker]

For me, Hendo seems to go more when his opponent goes more. I think that had a lot to do with how the fight turned out. Thompson came for him and once he weathered the initial storm he was go too. Then Thompson broke his hand and slowed down, so Hendo slowed down. The first fight with Edgar saw both guys go at each other, the second both guys stood off more. And the fight with Clay Guida was crazy before both guys went for broke. Hendo doesn't seem to pick the tempo, he just settles at his opponents tempo and tries to pick them apart.

[Rich]

I don't know, it's might be because I'm a fan, but I've never seen a boring Henderson fight. From his WEC days to now, he's always been a treat for me. Thomson is a great fighter to watch as well, so I was super-entertained by it.

Luke Thomas just tweeted that UFC on Fox 10 pulled 2.5 rating, 1.1 in overnight numbers. That's a massive jump from the Johnson vs Benavidez 2 fight, right?

EDIT: Oh, wait, it isn't. For some reason I thought FOX 9 had like less than a million viewers.

Really?! No boring fights? His one against Bocek and also the Miller fight were pretty devoid of excitement, he was just too good for them and just rode them to a decision, I just think as said above he really only goes when he is pushed and fights too conservatively to really get a huge part of the fan base behind him, he has had all but one fight go to decision in the UFC and that was his loss to Pettis, to me he is just doesn't do enough.

[Chris2K]

Rogan may not like the robot, but I'm sure he likes the pay check he gets from the UFC using the huge amount of money FOX are paying. He really pisses me off sometimes, usually with his bias commentary but this time I'm siding with a robot against him.

Someone mentioned about Punk cutting it fine, he was at his home in Chicago on Friday, flew out to Oregon for a public appearance Saturday morning, flew back to Chicago Saturday afternoon, went to the UFC show, then flew to Pittsburgh early this morning. Madness.

[Gabriel]

Rogan may not like the robot, but I'm sure he likes the pay check he gets from the UFC using the huge amount of money FOX are paying. He really pisses me off sometimes, usually with his bias commentary but this time I'm siding with a robot against him.

Rogan doesn't NEED the money. The dude does fine with his standup comedy, and I'm sure that if he ever left the UFC, he could collect a paycheck from any other MMA organization in North America.

The fact that he's not in a position where he needs this job means that he can voice his opinion without worrying, instead of just playing the corporate game and playing it safe so as not to piss off the wrong people. He just legitimately does not care. If he thinks something is stupid, he's going to say so.

While you may not agree with it, this is one of the reasons why I love Joe Rogan. I don't always agree with him, but I respect that he's not allowing anyone to tell him what he is and isn't allowed to do or say.

[HC]

UFC 172: Rogan vs Fox Robot

[Your Mom]

UFC 172: Rogan vs Fox Robot

He has a name you know! His name is Cleatus

[Rich]

That's the blue one, the red one is call Ledus or something.

[Gazz]

Joe would destroy them

[Benjamin]

So Chael and Wanderlei had their first reported fight while filming TUF Brazil 3: TUF Even Harder.

Speaking of TUF, anyone watching TUF Nations? Are the fights good? I'd be interested in like the Tristar guys.

[Benjamin]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3fWyo6G0ZU

The last five minutes are about the main event, and a perfect shot of the leg kick getting checked. Brutal stuff.

[Rich]

Absolutely refuse to watch that.

In other news Pat Barry and UFC/MMA are done, for now:

After long discussions with our client Pat Barry over the recent weeks, he has come to the decision that he will be taking an indefinite leave from competing in MMA. The UFC and Zuffa have been very gracious in releasing him from his contract and Pat is very grateful for everything they have done for him and his career.

“Over the past few fights I’ve just had this sinking feeling in my stomach whenever I have stepped into the Octagon and I realize, I DONT WANT TO WRESTLE. Not saying I will never do MMA again, but right now I just want to hit people. MMA and the UFC have been great to me and I will always support the company and the sport. I want to thank all my fans, sponsors and haters for being with me on this journey and I look forward to what future holds.” – HD!

[Benjamin]

That sucks. Would love to see HD in GLORY, though.

[Gazz]

Juliana Pena managed to tear her ACL, MCL, PCL, meniscus and hamstring all in one go.

That is quite an achievement.

Early prognosis reckons she will be out for probably two years.

[HC]

Well, that sucks. The division could've used her name value, being the TUF winner and all in a thin division.

[Chris2K]

Dana said she was "attacked by a male fighter at her gym" which sounds very scary, or a very bad choice of words.

I honestly can't see how she'll be able to come back from that much damage.

[JasonM]

Dana said she was "attacked by a male fighter at her gym" which sounds very scary, or a very bad choice of words.

I honestly can't see how she'll be able to come back from that much damage.

Modern medical science can do a lot of wonderful things. See Adrian Peterson returning from ACL/MCL surgery and being better than before.