Post by MetalBlade on Sept 3, 2007 22:05:15 GMT -1
Right, hands up who saw Randy's masterful dismantling of Brazilian Ju Jitsu specialist Gabriel "Him Who Floored Cro Cop" Gonzaga last weekend.
I caught it last Sunday night, and to be honest, judging by how brutally Gonzaga knocked out the seemingly unstoppable Terminator-like Mirko Cro Cop, in Manchester the other month, I thought Randy would have his hands full.
And to be fair, he did, but he handled it the best way he could by imposing his own fight strategy of Greco-Roman wrestling and dirty boxing to gradually grind down the much larger Brazilian.
Couture took him down numerous times to the floor and dominated on top, and on one occasion causing a very nasty gash on the bridge of Gonzaga's nose.
At that point I feel Gonzaga realised he was beat, and even motioned to referee Herb Dean that he could not see, indicating to me that he wanted nothing more to do with the fight.
To his credit though, he soldiered on, and I was painfully aware that his BJJ skills outmatched those of Randy massively, and it would only take a split second for Couture to be tied up in an inescapable triangle choke and be forced to tap.
But 44 year old Randy Couture, like a true champion Hall Of Famer, closed down Gonzaga and limited his options so much that in the end it was too much for him, and the ref had to step in and declare Couture the winner by KO.
I read later that Couture suffered a broken arm during the match. I dunno how true that is, but I certainly did not see any indication of it during or after the fight.
So where next for Couture? He's done it all, and I am pretty certain that as soon as somebody does defeat him, he will retire for good this time.
Maybe Cro Cop does deserve the dream match. Maybe Gonzaga was not the match President Dana White wanted originally.
But Gonzaga earned his spot, and endured massive punishment at the hands of the champion, and I am sure we will see him on the big stage again soon.
So now it's the mouthwatering prospect of Randy Couture vs Mirko Cro Cop, surely a match of the ages, and will certainly be the biggest draw ever on an MMA card.
Provided Cro Cop does not job again, I expect the match to be made sometime in early 2008.
On another note, from the same card, my favourite fighter Georges St. Pierre made a great comeback by defeating TUF contender and cocky little Flea lookalike Josh Koscheck, to hopefully gain another shot at his Welterweight title he lost to Matt "The Terror" Serra.
I personally believe this was just a blip on St. Pierre's career and one which he will look back on in a few years and say "Yeah, that was the turning point and reality check of my career".
I think his future in the sport will be one of dominance.
Roll on UFC75 at The Dome.
I caught it last Sunday night, and to be honest, judging by how brutally Gonzaga knocked out the seemingly unstoppable Terminator-like Mirko Cro Cop, in Manchester the other month, I thought Randy would have his hands full.
And to be fair, he did, but he handled it the best way he could by imposing his own fight strategy of Greco-Roman wrestling and dirty boxing to gradually grind down the much larger Brazilian.
Couture took him down numerous times to the floor and dominated on top, and on one occasion causing a very nasty gash on the bridge of Gonzaga's nose.
At that point I feel Gonzaga realised he was beat, and even motioned to referee Herb Dean that he could not see, indicating to me that he wanted nothing more to do with the fight.
To his credit though, he soldiered on, and I was painfully aware that his BJJ skills outmatched those of Randy massively, and it would only take a split second for Couture to be tied up in an inescapable triangle choke and be forced to tap.
But 44 year old Randy Couture, like a true champion Hall Of Famer, closed down Gonzaga and limited his options so much that in the end it was too much for him, and the ref had to step in and declare Couture the winner by KO.
I read later that Couture suffered a broken arm during the match. I dunno how true that is, but I certainly did not see any indication of it during or after the fight.
So where next for Couture? He's done it all, and I am pretty certain that as soon as somebody does defeat him, he will retire for good this time.
Maybe Cro Cop does deserve the dream match. Maybe Gonzaga was not the match President Dana White wanted originally.
But Gonzaga earned his spot, and endured massive punishment at the hands of the champion, and I am sure we will see him on the big stage again soon.
So now it's the mouthwatering prospect of Randy Couture vs Mirko Cro Cop, surely a match of the ages, and will certainly be the biggest draw ever on an MMA card.
Provided Cro Cop does not job again, I expect the match to be made sometime in early 2008.
On another note, from the same card, my favourite fighter Georges St. Pierre made a great comeback by defeating TUF contender and cocky little Flea lookalike Josh Koscheck, to hopefully gain another shot at his Welterweight title he lost to Matt "The Terror" Serra.
I personally believe this was just a blip on St. Pierre's career and one which he will look back on in a few years and say "Yeah, that was the turning point and reality check of my career".
I think his future in the sport will be one of dominance.
Roll on UFC75 at The Dome.
(sure hope that's a smilie)
