Monday, May 28, 2012

Observations from My Couch: Bellator/UFC 146 Mash-Up

-I've given Cole Konrad a ton of crap for being boring, but he got the job done fast and easy.  Props to him.  Now if only Bellator had a worthy challenger...

-Rick Hawn was clearly the best fighter in the Season Six lightweight tournament.  How will he do against champ Mike Chandler?  Hard to say, but it should be fun to watch.

-Finally we got to see Glover Teixeira strut his stuff in the Octagon.  Finally.  Was it worth the wait?  I'll let you know after he repeats that feat against someone a level higher than Kyle Kingsbury on the food chain.

-I'm still not convinced Dan Hardy is capable of stopping takedowns and getting man-blanketed, but at least we got to see him score another knockout.

-I was shocked that Mayhem Miller went out like that against CB Dollaway.  Seems like Father Time has claimed another.

-I don't hate TUF, but the vehicle is played out like crazy, so seeing a TUF winner get handled in the Octagon always gives me a modicum of pleasure I normally don't get when a particular fighter loses.  That said, boy did Diego Brandao whiff on that softball!

-Stefan Struve did what he needed to do to get the "W".  However, slugging it out with Lavar Johnson would've been all kinds of awesome.

-Sad to see Shane del Rosario completely forget all that grappling he used when he defeated Johnson back in Strikeforce.  Sad to see.

-I'm asking this in all seriousness: is Roy Nelson homeless?

-Yeah, Cain Velasquez is a killer.  I thought I was watching a Friday the 13th movie in there.

-Frank Mir may have lost, but he still got an impressive collection of dismembered limbs hanging in his den.

-One of the best, most satisfying things about MMA is when you're proven wrong.  Jamie Varner proved me (and most of the world) wrong.  By coming back from obscurity, seizing his big chance in the Octagon and taking out Edson Barboza in impressive fashion, the dude is a stone-cold hero.  And with that win, Varner has fueled the hopes and dreams of countless minor league players dying for their own shot.