Main event for the LHW title is Chuck Liddell vs. Renato "Babalu" Sobral. These two met in the octagon almost 4 years ago, where Liddell earned a first round KO. Sobral has since been on a 10-win streak, including defeats over Trevor Prangley, Jeremy Horn and Mauricio Rua all in one night! Should be exciting.
TUF 1 finalists Forrest Griffin and Stephen Bonnar will meet in a rematch of what many claim was the most exciting UFC fight ever.
Also on the main card, welterweights Josh Neer and Nick Diaz will be battling back from losses (Diaz had 3 consecutive), and UFC up-and-comer Hermes Franca squares off against James Varner.
They cancelled the Silva/Liddell fight for 63. Fuck that.
It was supposed to be in November, not at 63.
Speaking of UFC 63: from ufc.com
Quote:
St. Pierre Sidelined by Injury; 'The Prodigy" to the Rescue by Thomas Gerbasi, 8/23/06
After a groin pull forced top 170 pound contender Georges St. Pierre to withdraw from his September 23rd rematch with UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California today, the UFC was faced with a dilemma. Who could possibly challenge the champ on short notice and still be compelling enough to get fight fans excited?
The answer was a no-brainer – the last man to beat Hughes, BJ Penn.
And as one of the top fighters in the world, pound for pound, Penn eagerly accepted the opportunity to make it 2-0 against the premier welterweight of this era.
“I thrive on these big fights, I thrive on pressure, and that’s when I perform my best,†said Penn, who was already in training for an October UFC bout when he got the call to replace St. Pierre.
For his part, Hughes -who has defended his crown eight times over two reigns - would like nothing better than to settle an old score with Hawaii’s ‘Prodigy’.
“Now I’ve got something to really look forward to. I’ve already beat Georges and here I get to fight BJ Penn, a guy who’s beaten me. I’m a month out and I can really concentrate on BJ Penn now, and I’m looking forward to it.â€
In 2004, Penn, a highly regarded lightweight contender at the time, scored one of the biggest upsets in mixed martial arts history when he rose 15 pounds in weight to tackle and beat Hughes in his first-ever welterweight bout. The end came at 4:39 of the first round when Penn forced Hughes to tap out due to a rear-naked choke.
On September 23rd, the rivalry is renewed.
I'm actually happy to hear this. I want Hughes to prove that he is the undisputed greatest welterweight in this sport. He needs to beat Penn, not St. Pierre, to prove this.
Joined: Wed Oct 05, 2005 2:40 am Posts: 12509 Location: Pittsburgh Gender: Male
I would watch it if it were free.
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Full card:
Chuck Liddell (18-3-0)vs. Renato Sobral (27-5-0) at 205lbs
Forrest Griffin (12-3-0)vs. Stephen Bonnar (12-2-0) at 205lbs
Cheick Kongo (17-2-1)vs. Christian Wellisch (7-1-0) Heavyweight
Hermes Franca (15-5-0)vs. Jamie Varner (9-0-0) at 155lbs
Nick Diaz (15-4-0)vs. Josh Neer (17-4-1) at 170lbs
Wes Combs (12-1-0)vs. Wilson Gouveia (6-4-0) at 205lbs
Cory Walmsley (10-0-0)vs. David Heath (7-0-0) at 205lbs
Rob MacDonald (4-2-0)vs. Eric Schafer (8-1-2) at 205lbs
Yushin Okami (17-3-0)vs. Alan Belcher (8-1-0) at 185lbs
I have money on Chuck and Forrest. I don't think Bonnar's developed enough to have a chance.
I have money on Chuck and Forrest. I don't think Bonnar's developed enough to have a chance.
Agreed on Bonnar.
I'm really curious to see how the Liddell/Sobral fight will play out. Can Babalu really make him tap out?...I don't know. I think the difficult thing with fighting Chuck is getting him to the mat. If the fight stays standing forget about it...that's The Iceman all day.
Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 6:30 am Posts: 6116 Location: NC
inadvertent imitation wrote:
I have money on Chuck and Forrest. I don't think Bonnar's developed enough to have a chance.
Bonnar has had bad opponents for his style. A fighter can be the best in the world, but if he goes against someone who is bad for his style of fighting, he just may lose. Which is why Bonnar lost to Rashad Evans. I can see Forrest winning only because he's obviously improved greatly, and really showed alot with his "loss" against tito. But I'm honestly hoping for another incredible fight with Bonnar getting the decision, if only for the fact that it would set up Forrest-Bonnar 3 somewhere down the line, and that's a win-win for everyone.
Plus It can definitely be argued that Bonnar won the first fight.
Babalu vs. Liddell? If Babalu can get Liddell off his feet, I wouldn't be surprised if we saw an upset. And now that the Silva fight is off, I'd be fine with that happening.
I'm also hoping Nick Diaz has a good showing.
Last edited by washmykev on Fri Aug 25, 2006 5:17 am, edited 1 time in total.
Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 6:30 am Posts: 6116 Location: NC
mowbs wrote:
inadvertent imitation wrote:
mowbs wrote:
inadvertent imitation wrote:
They cancelled the Silva/Liddell fight for 63. Fuck that.
It was supposed to be in November, not at 63.
Whatever. Pride Fighting's better.
In heavyweights, yeah.
It could be argued that Pride owns UFC in every division, except obviously Welterweight.
Heavyweight - They have big Nog, Cro Cop, and of course... Fedor.
Light Heavy - The Silva - Liddell match would've really decided this, but between Silva, Shogun, and Ricardo Arona... Pride's divison is probably better.
Middleweight - This is the only division it'd be impossible for me to form an opinion on at the moment. It's Dan Henderson vs. Rich Franklin, and that fights too close to call.
Lightweight - With the UFC starting this division up again, they're basically just giving Pride another division to be dominant in. Even though he lost his last match, I don't think any LW in either organization can touch Takanori Gomi.
Pretty good event. First time I went to a bar to watch it. A lot of my friends showed up so it was cool.
Franca/Varner was a pretty entertaining way to start the night. I hope Kongo can start making some noise in UFC's weakest wieght division. Nick Diaz looked better than ever, but I still don't like him at all. Griffin/Bonnar was a slug-fest that obviously wasn't as fun to watch as their first fight. I enjoyed Bonnar's entrance music...good stuff.
The funny thing about Liddell ending it so quick is that right as the event started, I said to my buddy "I have a feeling Chuck will get a first round knockout." They need to bring some pride fighters over to fight him because, whether you'd like to admit it or not, Tito is the next best LHW in the UFC. He'll get his shot this winter after he once agasin manhandles SHamrock in October. I would absolutely love to see Tito pull off the upset.
Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2005 6:30 am Posts: 6116 Location: NC
mowbs wrote:
Pretty good event. First time I went to a bar to watch it. A lot of my friends showed up so it was cool.
Franca/Varner was a pretty entertaining way to start the night. I hope Kongo can start making some noise in UFC's weakest wieght division. Nick Diaz looked better than ever, but I still don't like him at all. Griffin/Bonnar was a slug-fest that obviously wasn't as fun to watch as their first fight. I enjoyed Bonnar's entrance music...good stuff.
The funny thing about Liddell ending it so quick is that right as the event started, I said to my buddy "I have a feeling Chuck will get a first round knockout." They need to bring some pride fighters over to fight him because, whether you'd like to admit it or not, Tito is the next best LHW in the UFC. He'll get his shot this winter after he once agasin manhandles SHamrock in October. I would absolutely love to see Tito pull off the upset.
I didn't get to watch the event. I'm downloading a torrent of it now, but I've briely watched through most of the matches on youtube. Bonnar/Griffin was about what I expected it to be. There is no way it could have matched up to the first match. I wasn't dissapointed, though I wish bonnar would've eeked out the decision, so we could have the rubber match.
Cheick Kongo was very impressive, as was the guy who dominated Rob Macdonald, his name escapes me at the moment. I really like Nick Diaz, and I'm glad to see him pick up a win after that losing streak he had.
I'm sure Tito will manhandle Ken, but i'd like to see Ken upset him, and retire in style. Tito's going to get beat by Chuck regardless, and since I don't see Pride sending over any fighters after the Wanderlei debacle... Chuck seems to be in good shape.
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Frank
