Monday, June 15, 2009
Tim Sylvia's Dignity: Dead at Age 33
The fight community is in mourning today over the death of former UFC heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia's dignity, which was felled via ten-second knockout at the hands of 48-year-old ex-boxing champ Ray Mercer at Adrenaline III on Saturday night and expired on the canvas soon after. The bout, which was proposed for New Jersey but moved to commission-less Alabama when the NJSACB scoffed at the match-up, drew plenty of ire from fans who viewed it as nothing more than a farce. Nonetheless, Sylvia/Mercer garnered attention, and that attention - coupled with Sylvia showing up at an out-of-shape 310-pounds - conspired to create a situation both dangerous and deadly. "We did the best we could to revive it," said ringside physician Dr. Harlan Clarence. "But ultimately there was nothing we could do. The damage done to Mr. Sylvia's dignity was just too great." Funeral services will be held in Bettendorf, Iowa. In lieu of flowers, Sylvia's camp asks that people send cheeseburgers instead.
Observations From My Couch: Bellator FC Welterweight Finals
- If I were an athletic commissioner I never would've approved Uriah Hall's match-up against Edwin Aguilar, as Hall had one MMA bout to his record compared to Aguilar's 34. I'm glad I'm not an athletic commissioner. Hall kicked some serious butt.
- Nick Pace: great flying knee KO, awful victory dance. You're a killer, man, but seriously, what the hell was that?
- Did Justin Torrey and Matt Makowski have an agreement to look as much alike as possible? Because with their bald heads, frames and shorts, I damn sure couldn't keep track of who was who.
- Jake Ellenberger didn't just knock Marcelo Alfaya out, he took away some of Alfaya's IQ points. I think Alfaya now has to relearn how to drive a car and tie his shoelaces.
- Lyman Good is the reason why superheroes should not be fighting regular humans in MMA bouts. It's just unfair.
Observations From My Couch: UFC 99
- Dan Hardy is a big pile of I AM NOT IMPRESSED.
- Caol Uno came to grapple and Spencer Fisher came to flee. Why was Fisher awarded the decision?
- Is it me or do German fans act like retarded Southern rednecks? And what's with rubbing a fighter's head when he's walking to the cage?
- Mick Swick is a badass. Ben Saunders is the exact opposite of a badass.
- I don't know what happened to the Mirko CroCop who used to thrill us in Pride, but damn do I miss him.
- Cheick Kongo, why are you wrestling that guy? Stop it. You're a kickass striker, not a kickass grappler.
- Watching Wanderlei Silva fight nowadays is like watching your drunk uncle get into fist fights on his lawn. You love the guy, but damn does it get ugly.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Liveblog: ROC 25 Part 6
Bill Scott-trained Marc Berrocal enters to square off against TSMMA's Radji Bryson-Barrett. They starts boxing immediately, and Berrocal feeds Bryson-Barrett a devastating overhand right for the KO just 13 seconds in. It's a bad knockout, too, and the TSMMA rep is slow to get back up. Solid win for Berrocal. Very solid win. Next up is Joe Abouata of Alex Wilkie's Gang of Scary Individuals (and I say that with the utmost respect) against Bellmore Kickboxing rep Gian Villante. This one is pretty one-sided, with Villante steamrolling over Abouata with aggression and punches on the ground. Ref Mullhall intervenes at 1:48 of the first round. Two more bouts to go. For the USKBA light-heavyweight belt, Advanced Martial Arts superstar Ricardo Romero squares off against Gabriel Gonzaga-student Karen Grigoryan. Round 1 sees Romero chasing Grigoryan around and the two winging bolos, but apparently this bores Romero, so in Round 2 he takes his opponent down and beats the hell out of him until the ref steps in. The official time of the TKO is 2:50 of the second round. Why Romero isn't fighting on the national stage is beyond me. The dude is ready. Last bout: Team Renzo's Rafael Natal vs. Team Vision/Walker MMA's Victor O'Donnell for the ROC middleweight title (Natal is actually defending it as champ). Who the heck is O'Donnell? He seems to be someone who can take a punch and deliver it back tenfold, as he survives Natal's heavy hands to rock and stumble the Renzo rep repeatedly. The bell for the first round rings, but the doctors don't like how the Brazilian is doing the funky chicken, so they stop it. O'Donnell is the new ROC middleweight champ. And that's it.
Liveblog: ROC 25 Part 5
The next stop on the Jeff Lentz train is right here, right now, as the Rhino Fight Team killer enters the cage to take on the well-rounded and very dangerous Spa City BJJ rep Eddie Fyvie. Will Fyvie be the one to derail Lentz? The come out and start swinging, and Lentz begins wearing Fyvie down with punches and knees from the clinch. Fyvie shoots out of desperation and Lentz plasters him with a flying knee, and when the Spa City BJJ rep turtles, Lentz's punches are really just the icing on a cake he's already taken a huge bite out of. The official time of the KO is 2:02. Lentz is a monster, plain and simple. Team Serra/Longo star Al Iaquinta is set to face off against Maxercise/Daddis FC's Tim Sylvester. Iaquinta wastes no time in this one, as he starts blasting Sylvester repeatedly until his right hand meets Sylvester's chin and knocks him out. It's over in 13 seconds. Right now, the biggest lightweight match-up in the Northeast has to be Lentz vs. Iaquinta. Nothing else matters.
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