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"WLAS VEGAS ? Randy ?The Natural? Couture, the only two-time heavyweight champion in UFC history, added a third belt to his stellar career as he dominated his way to a third round stoppage of Chuck ?The Iceman? Liddell Friday night inside the Thomas & Mack Center.
From the opening bell Couture (8-2 in UFC bouts) owned the contest. He consistently out-struck Liddell -- something most felt he had no shot of doing despite defeating strikers the likes of Maurice Smith and Pedro Rizzo (twice) in the past -- with jabs, lead rights and left hooks.
Liddell, the UFC?s perennial number one contender to Tito Ortiz?s light heavyweight crown, appeared sluggish, never finding the rhythm he displayed in recent victories. Riding a two-fight losing streak, Couture moved down from heavyweight for the first time -- and the impact was obvious. The almost 40-year-old champion looked at home carrying less weight on his chiseled frame. More importantly, fighting the lighter Liddell made for an easier time scoring takedowns and imposing his will throughout the contest.
Slamming Liddell to the mat in the first minute of the contest, Couture signaled that he was unlike anyone the ?Iceman? had previously faced. Which should not have been a surprise considering the pedigree he brought into the Octagon.
Liddell?s only saving grace was the ability to scramble to his feet after Couture takedowns. Twice in the first and once more in the second he stood after getting put on the mat -- an unfamiliar place for Liddell, widely considered, before tonight, to have the best takedown defense of any 205-pound striker.
In the third round a visibly tired Liddell (he placed his arms atop his head between rounds hoping to gain some saving gasps of oxygen) had no answer for Couture?s strikes. Lead rights. Left hooks. Takedowns. That was Couture?s overwhelming response to anything Liddell through his way. It was a truly amazing performance for a man that, by all rights, should be over the hill. Instead, he continues to defeat the best and brightest mixed martial arts has to offer.
Coming into the bout, all of the hype centered on Ortiz? refusal to step into the Octagon versus Liddell. But none of that conjecture mattered to Couture, a fighter who?s always let his actions speak louder than his words. The mild-mannered man from Gresham, Oregon did what so few thought he could do.
What?s next? Most expect now that Couture did the improbable and stop Liddell that Ortiz will step up to the plate. To that end, the new champion -- the real champion ? had something to say to the ?Huntington Beach Bad Boy?: ?Tito, I don?t know if you?re in the house,? he said, ?If you want [the belt], you have to come in here and take it.?
All hail Randy ?The Natural? Couture: The Greatest Champion in Mixed Martial Arts History.
While the night belonged to the new light heavyweight champ, several others claimed a small part for themselves as well.
For the first time in nearly a year, Vitor Belfort -- the man -- returned to the Octagon. For the first time since he faced Vanderlei Silva in 1998, Vitor Belfort -- the ?Phenom? -- returned to the delight of UFC fans everywhere. Facing tough light heavyweight Marvin Eastman, a champion for the WFA before it went belly up, Belfort reminded those everywhere why at the age 25 he?s more than a force to be reckoned with.
The Brazilian fighter launched himself towards Eastman and delivered a gruesome two-inch gash-inducing pair of knees while dropping the local Las Vegas fighter to the mat. Without hesitating, Belfort followed and propelled a volley of punches that bounced Eastman?s head off the mat. Realizing that Eastman was done, ?Big? John McCarthy separated the combatants 1:10 into the fight.
?We did it,? said Belfort, nearly in tears. ?We?re back! We?re back!? His words are clearly echoed by his legion of fans that yearned for that kind of performance. Not only did it propel him back into the mix of UFC light heavyweights (a group rivaling any in the world), it rekindled the excitement in Belfort that hasn?t been seen in years.
Tank came. The crowd roared. The street fighter was taken down. He was submitted. That?s not a misprint. For the second consecutive fight, that?s how the story played out for the fighting legend from Huntington Beach. Fellow old-school UFC fighter Kimo followed the game plan laid out by Frank Mir in scoring a submission victory.
Landing the early takedown, Kimo passed, for lack of a better term, Tank?s guard. From the mount he secured a side choke, and held on for nearly half a minute in hopes that the grizzled vet would tapout. He did 1:59 of the first.
One can only wonder what kind of marketability Tank has left.
Over the course of 15 minutes, UFC veteran Yves Edwards systematically took apart newcomer Eddie Ruiz in a display that affirmed his place amongst the top-10 lightweights in the world. While his barrage of knees, kicks, punches and elbows, as well as his numerous submission attempts weren?t enough to stop Ruiz, they clearly were enough for him to walk away with a unanimous decision victory. Meanwhile, Ruiz showed the kind of heart in defeat that?s rarely seen. He could have succumbed and would not have been looked down upon for the performance, but the warrior never gave in and should be commended.
Ian Freeman and Vernon ?Tiger? White, who replaced mentor Ken Shamrock when he injured an anterior cruciate ligament while training, slugged it over three wonderfully close rounds en route to a split draw (30-27, 28-29, 29-29).
White, the quicker and lighter of the two heavyweights, opened smoothly. After a double-leg takedown, ?Tiger? grounded-and-pounded Freeman for the first time in the fight. While his shots didn?t have much power behind them, the pace and accuracy with which they were delivered was impressive.
Freeman turned the tables and scored a takedown of his own mid-way through the period. Though he grounded-and-pounded in kind, Freeman?s punches and elbows never hurt White. Toward the end of the first period both men stood to their feet and White, using his speed advantage, landed several shots.
Round two appeared to be White?s as well. Capitalizing on his quickness, White out-struck and controlled Freeman throughout the period. In the third and final round, White?s speed waned and Freeman was finally able to utilize is considerable strength through numerous power punches. As the round came to a close, Freeman and White let go a flurry consistent with the tenor of entire bout. Though neither man stepped out of the ring a winner, they definitely earned the crowd?s respect and perhaps another bout in the UFC.
Never before has a disqualification rendered such a good reaction from ticket holders as UFC rookie Wes Sims fought disgracefully in the opening contest on live pay-per-view. Fighting in front of a hometown crowd, submissions wiz kid Frank Mir opened the contest by slamming his six-foot 10-inch opponent to his back after the giant lumbered across the length of the Octagon.
Moving from side control to mount to back control, Mir dominated Sims in ever facet of the ground game. Following a multitude of punches and elbow strikes mixed in with the occasional submission attempt, Mir finally moved for an armbar from the mount. Sims countered and rolled to the top. Using every inch of his frame he lifted Mir six inches above the mat and attempted to crash him down. While the move didn?t hurt Mir, it freed Sims arm.
Standing above his downed opponent, Sims raised his lanky right leg and slammed his foot into Mir?s face. He repeated the illegal maneuver several more times before referee ?Doc? Hamilton jumped in to call time. Sims moved to a neutral corner as Mir, obviously affected by the stomps to his head, remained on the mat.
Mir?s supporters voiced their displeasure and Sims responded stupidly by egging them on. His childish tactics proved just how immature a fighter he is, and was rightfully disqualified when it was deemed Mir could not continue.
Hamilton called a halt to the contest at the 2:56 mark. Sims stormed off like he?d deserved something better while Mir walked away with a black eye.
UFC veteran Matt Lindland was surprised when he was told that his bout versus Faliniko Vitale would take place absent the live cameras of pay-per-view. The contender for the 185-pound title had hoped to continue his string over victories, the most recent being a decision over rival Phil Baroni in February. In Vitale he faced an athletic addition to the UFC?s middleweight division, though most pundits had him pegged as a solid bet to win.
So much for sure things. Vitale, a native Hawaiian, smartly avoided Lindland?s flailing punches in the opening moments before moving into a clinch. Countering Lindland?s repeated attempts to gain leverage for a takedown, Vitale looked to put Lindland on his back. A surprising strategy given that it allowed Lindland to maneuver into a position where he could score a throw of his own.
As he lifted and twisted Vitale into the air, Lindland appeared to be in control. However, Vitale contorted his body in mid-air and forced Lindland to alter the takedown. When the fighters landed, Vitale found himself in the mount and his opponent unconscious.
Shockingly, Lindland had knocked himself out 1:56 of the first round. Vitale jumped for joy while the Olympic silver medallist struggled to regain his senses. After several tense moments on the mat, Lindland was able to get to his feet and walk out of the Octagon under his own power.
From the opening moments the crowd could sense that the fight between Pedro Rizzo and Tra Telligman would live up the expectations formed after their initial fight several years ago. The first contest saw Rizzo -- then young and untarnished before bouts versus Randy Couture and Gan McGee rendered him a non-factor in the heavyweight division -- reign victorious by TKO in one of the most action-packed contests in UFC history.
Tonight, in the opening contest of the eight-fight card, Rizzo once again came out on top as a beautifully placed
Muay Thai knee opened a nasty gash on Telligman?s face that forced referee Larry Landless to look towards ringside physician Margaret Goodman for advice. After diagnosing the cut, she put and end to the fight 4:25 of the second round.
For most of the contest both men battled it out on the feet. Telligman, showing boxing skills he cultivated over the past two years, impressed in the first round, countering Rizzo?s strikes with combinations of his own. One such flurry weakened Rizzo?s knees and forced his back to the cage. Telligman followed with strikes, but Rizzo smartly clinched and used the time to regain his composure.
In the second frame, Rizzo was much more active with kicks, spinning Telligman a full 360 degrees with his most powerful shot of the fight. Hurt, Telligman moved into the clinch, but unlike Rizzo in round one he could not use the position to recover. Instead, Rizzo scored an outside trip to force the veteran to his back. Uncharacteristically, it was Rizzo on the giving end of ground-and-pound, the result of which saw Telligman absorb numerous punches and elbows. With both fighters back on the feet and Telligman not all there because of ground attacks, Rizzo clinched and landed the cut-inducing knee."
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Krzysztof Piekarz
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