Loading ...UFC 110 Thoughts and Analysis
Posted: February 20, 2010 5:34 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: MMA
The UFC makes its debut in Australia tonight (tomorrow if you’re actually in Australia watching the event) with UFC 110, which takes place in Sydney. After UFC 100, I felt that the quality of UFC cards slid a little, not always the fault of the promotion but often due to unfortunate circumstances. However, UFC 109 marked what I believe was the beginning of a resurgence and UFC 110 continues that trend with a number of noteworthy storylines. So, it’s not surprising that this card sold out the same day tickets went on sale.
Possibly the most interesting storyline at UFC 110 is that of three of Pride’s most distinguished fighters – all champs in the now-defunct Japanese promotion – setting foot inside the Octagon tonight, each fighter’s bout significant for a different reason. Another storyline is that of two TUF light heavyweights, each entering their respective bouts with a two-fight losing streak. Will a third loss result in either being cut from the world’s top MMA promotion? If so, it would be unfathomable to associate either man with another promotion, though I’d have to imagine Strikeforce would try to swoop in to capture them for their mass appeal.
With these and other themes as the backdrop, let’s take a look at the more fascinating bouts at UFC 110 (and there are a number of them.) Read the rest of this entry »
UFC 109 Post-Fight Thoughts: Wrestling Sets the Standard
Posted: February 07, 2010 12:25 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: MMA
Mixed martial arts can be crudely separated into three phases: the stand-up, the ground game, and the transition between the two. While boxing and Muay Thai are two of the more popular stand-up disciplines and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has cornered the market on ground disciplines, the transition between these two phases may be the most underappreciated facet of the sport. And, wrestling serves as the foundation for the transition game.
While wrestling is certainly not flashy, it, more than the other disciplines, has emerged as a must-have skillset if a MMA fighter wishes to be champion. Simply look at the fact that current UFC champs Brock Lesnar and Georges St. Pierre have built their games around superior wrestling. Former MMA champs such as Randy Couture, Dan Henderson, Matt Hughes, and many, many others have done the same.
And, it’s no coincidence that collegiate wrestlers seem to make easier transitions to MMA than their BJJ or Muay Thai counterparts. Just look at the influx of wrestlers successfully working their way up the UFC ranks such as light heavyweight Jon Jones, lightweight Gray Maynard, and recent roster addition Phil Davis, who made his UFC debut at UFC 109.
At UFC 109, wrestling re-asserted itself as the preferred tool of victory with a number of fighters relying almost solely upon it to garner wins. Read the rest of this entry »
Why the Saints Will Defeat the Colts
Posted: February 06, 2010 12:07 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: NFL
Super Bowl XLIV (Did I get that alphabet-jumble right? It’s 2010 people! We live in America, not the Roman Empire! Let’s just use numbers, shall we?) is Sunday and I must say, this match-up pitting the Saints and the Colts has me more excited than I’ve been for the big game in a long time. Don’t get me wrong: the last two Super Bowls have been fantastic, down-to-the-final gun affairs but this one holds the promise of two number one seeds, both with prolific offenses and elite QB’s, going toe-to-toe in a back-and-forth game that might literally come down to the last possession. Both teams started the season 13-0 (the Colts actually extended that to 14-0) and both have now had two bye weeks in the last month. In other words, I’m anticipating absolutely the best effort from both in a game for the ages.
But, in the end, when all the hype has died down and the teams step onto the South Florida sod, only one team can emerge victorious. Ever since this match-up was set, I’ve been firm in my belief that the Saints will eke out a victory. I’ve tried to break down the game to explain why (but rest assured, I haven’t put any money down on the strength of this conviction.) Read the rest of this entry »
UFC 109 Weigh-In Results and Pre-Fight Thoughts
Posted: February 05, 2010 8:26 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: MMA
The UFC held its pre-fight weigh-ins for UFC 109 today at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. For those of you who weren’t there live to witness the fighters get set for tomorrow night’s card and for those of you weren’t able to catch the live online stream, here are the weigh-in results as well as my thoughts on the fights specifically and the card in general. Read the rest of this entry »
On Violence in Sports and Head Trauma
Posted: January 31, 2010 4:29 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: Boxing, College Football, MMA, NFL
This morning in the latest issue of Time magazine, I read a cover story about football that begged the question “Is Football Too Dangerous?” I also read a companion piece in the same issue that looked at a specific example in which a high school football player in Texas was paralyzed making a tackle.
Given that I’ve written on this blog and in the past about two sports — MMA and football — that are undoubtedly violent, I thought it was the responsible thing to do to acknowledge the growing discourse regarding head trauma (particularly in the form of concussions) in sports, especially in football. Not only are publications like Time shining light on the topic, but Congress has even become involved. So, I hope readers of this blog click on the links above to read the Time articles and also search the internet for more information. Read the rest of this entry »
Strikeforce: Miami Post-Fight Thoughts and Analysis
Posted: January 31, 2010 2:55 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: MMA
Strikeforce produced yet another quality MMA card Saturday night with Strikeforce: Miami, which drew over 8,000 fans, according to a Strikeforce press release. Those in attendance and those watching on Showtime were treated to a card that I would say was between UFC Fight Night and UFC PPV caliber. Not bad for the premium channel price tag.
While I enjoyed the card and was certainly entertained by it (and also feel that Strikeforce has proven that women’s MMA is here to stay), I’d also like to see Strikeforce begin to aim for more consistency with its shows and a more discernible order to its weight classes. By this I mean that I hope that even as the San Jose-based company’s roster grows and even as we are treated to the debuts of the likes of Melvin Manhoef and Herschel Walker that we also see the other fighters on the roster in a regular rotation. One thing I’ve come to realize with the UFC is that part of its success has included making fans familiar with its top fighters. Read the rest of this entry »
The Most Important Fights We Won’t See in 2010
Posted: January 24, 2010 12:16 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: MMA
Over the last couple of weeks, SI.com’s Josh Gross has revived a long-running discussion over cross-promotional fights. One of the main points of his columns is that with the emergence of Strikeforce as a solid #2 MMA promotion, the UFC no longer has the ability to put on the absolute best fights possible in most — if not all — the heaviest five weight classes. As a solution, Gross suggests a periodic World MMA Classic (patterned after baseball’s similar global event) in which the top fighters in the world in every weight class square off in a single-elimination tournament format. (Read both of Gross’ columns here and here.)
While I don’t necessarily agree with Gross’ solution (and quite frankly, that point is secondary), I do agree with him that MMA is at a crossroads and that Strikeforce has the legitimate potential to not only be a solid #2 but even become the new Pride to UFC’s juggernaut — in other words a possible equal to the UFC. After all, Strikeforce has continuously improved its roster in recent months and has big-time exposure in the form of Showtime and CBS.
If Strikeforce does realize its potential, then the reality is neither a UFC title nor a Strikeforce title will be meaningful because the MMA talent pool will be divided between the two promotions. If, as Gross believes, the goal of MMA is to determine who the best fighters are, the only way to resolve the dilemma posed by two strong promotions is with co-promoted fights. Read the rest of this entry »
Ravens Bias: End of Season Awards
Posted: January 24, 2010 9:40 am By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: NFL
The Baltimore Ravens 2009-2010 season came to an end last Saturday in a 20-3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, a game befitting the up-and-down campaign the team trudged through all year long. Much like many maddening moments during the season, the loss was marred by missed opportunities, penalties, and turnovers. Still, the Ravens can crow about the fact that they made it to the playoffs for a second straight year and won a road playoff game for the second straight year. And, neither accomplishment should be diminished given the nature of today’s parity-driven NFL.
While team goals may not have necessarily been met during the 9-7 regular season, there were certainly individual Ravens who broke out or asserted themselves as worthy of recognition. With that said, let’s take a look back on the season as a whole, as I hand out FanBias.com’s end of season awards. Read the rest of this entry »
Ravens Bias: Perfect Storm for Ravens Upset over Colts
Posted: January 16, 2010 4:43 pm By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: NFL
As with last year’s playoff run, the Baltimore Ravens now find themselves again playing with house money, already having exceeded expectations. Whatever you think of Coach John Harbaugh’s decision making during the past two regular seasons, one thing is becoming quite clear: the man knows how to get his team peaking at the right time. His Ravens squads are now 3-1 in the playoffs, with all four games coming on the road. Whatever ills the team faces during the regular season, by late December and January, Baltimore gets healthy (metaphorically speaking) and makes other teams miserable.
So, here’s why I’m predicting yet another deep Ravens playoff run continuing tonight with a victory over the Colts at Indianapolis. (Am I biased? You bet. But, show me one head coach in the NFL that wants to play these Ravens right now.) Read the rest of this entry »
Ranking the Remaining NFL Playoff Quarterbacks
Posted: January 16, 2010 10:49 am By: Pramit Mohapatra
Filed under: NFL
Conventional wisdom has it that the NFL is now most definitely a passer’s league. Although wild card weekend demonstrated that teams such as the Jets and the Ravens can still use the age-old formula of defense and punishing run games to grind out victories, the league is experiencing a renaissance in the quality of its QB play. Just think about the names no longer even in the hunt for the title this year – guys like Ben Roethlisberger, Tom Brady, Donovan McNabb, Aaron Rodgers, and Carson Palmer — and you realize just how deep the league is in starting QB play (backup QBs are a whole different story.)
So, I thought I would rank the QBs still left in the playoffs and place them in general tiers. Here’s what I came up with. Read the rest of this entry »