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There may be a violence hiatus for the next three weekends inside the Octagon, but thankfully the end of 2023 brewed up an epic storm that is set to electrify the start of 2024. I'll break that storm down; talk some newly scheduled bouts that are set to lite the wick; and a quick hit of headlines from UFC 296. Close the cage door; lets roll.
The final UFC paper-per-view event of '23 was a mix of loud noise & underachieving smoke. Some will argue we got more bad than good across the board, and vice versa, but I think everyone can agree that the main-event performance was a let down when comparing the result to the hype that led up to the fight. The bottom line? Noise is noise; we still saw some wild stuff for our buck. A box office brawl in the stands (that will wait until later on in the read); a spine chillin' KO on the main card; and an instant classic WAR in the prelims.
I agree with the masses, Colby Covington sh** the bed performance wise which made the main-event quite weak and a full on masterclass for the defending champion Leon Edwards. Kudos to Rocky Leon on his second successful title defense and his 12th consecutive dub inside the Octagon. The cat hasn't been beat since 2016; for the second fight in a row he has shown an all-around game: a best in the world type game. Colby Covington's lack luster game plan allowed the sails to rise as Edwards sailed to an emphatic win. Not sure what was going through Colby's mind when I evaluate his movement; game-plan; and lack of wrestling success (and attempts), but with him now saying he was robbed in interviews... I feel no need to discuss him further. Personally, I enjoyed seeing Leon stumping Covington's third and final crack at welterweight gold after he verbally slandered Edward's dead father. I also enjoy seeing this version of Edwards. Similar to Charles Oliveira, but to a higher degree- Rocky is now at his highest both in skill and confidence. The king reigns supreme over the welterweight division. What a run he is on, big time shoutout to him. Congrats to Edwards and keep an eye out on a relatively quick flip for the 170 champ- Leon may roll lucky 13's head at UFC 300.
The main-event and co-main event collectively were a bit lackluster & Shavkat versus Wonderboy was meh....
Seeing aged Tony Ferguson throw sand bags at a scouser Zion Williamson didn't bring much good either. We quite literally had the best moment of the main-card occur in the first bout on the slate. I have never... NEVA seen an atom bomb quite like the one Josh Emmett dropped on Bryce Mitchell's ridge. Earth shattering power and I don't sugarcoat my hyperboles, ya know that. The strike hit the nasal ridge with so much force you could see the cat's spine shake. The brain; spine; and face argh- that brotha's body and soul felt DESTRUCTION that gave him a one-way ticket to the shadow realm:
video via Streetfight3233//X
Pure destruction that caused JoRo to lose his wits. Body shake. Unworkable limbs. Unaware mind. Quick impactful symptoms from just one Josh Emmett atom bomb. As always, Bryce Mitchell fell on his sword and responded with words of respect and courage. We all know he will be back. Always mad respect to him. Josh Emmett proved to not be done yet & that once again he has different kind of power at 145. Josh took the moment of the main-card, but Irene Aldana and Karol Rosa took the ultimate moment from the whole event... well, scheduled fight wise.
Fight of the night winner between Aldana and Rosa will have a nominee for fight of the year right on the final day of qualifications. What a BANGER between those two gladiators. Pure violence in full definition. I was stunned that both of them shockingly made the 15 minute horn. Not only was it a top female fight of all-time- it's an all-timer male or female. 349 combined significant strikes between the two, with Aldana takin' a close unanimous decision 29-28. The war left both fighters with some big time damage and an awesome picture of respect:
Well, it's officially set in stone: El Cucuy has laid himself to rest. The Octagon's boogeyman is finished as age took away his horror. His loss against Paddy Pimblett was a tough pill; he had zero power and seeing him flake in the third round when Paddy was gassed was difficult to watch as a fight fan. David Goggins screaming like a sergeant in the corner didn't make things any better. Seeing Tony not stand and finish Paddy in the third round after connecting significant elbow damage on his back in the second round made his fall complete.
It's been a tale of two Tonys since the destructive beatdown by the hands of Justin Gaethje. The curse of Ferguson vs Nurmagomedov wanted a more superior form as it created a syndicate and venomed over to take El Cucuy away from MMA superiority. That plus Gaethje droppin' 100 nuclear bombs to Tony's brain. Ferguson went from a MMA powerhouse doing his patent prefight rituals before an interim light heavyweight title shot to a lost MMA legend:
Just an unreal career switch; one that hits home for me as a fan due to my love for watching him in his prime. He was never the same fighter after that lost to Gaethje. The boogeyman declined to face the shadow realm and paid the price. Once he did go there, he was told he would have no chance on redemption. Gaethje's landed power shots changed Ferguson; I truly believe it. A damn shame. I respect his will to keep competing; he just needs to put his pride away and accept lesser challenges.
Despite his seventh loss in a row, all the people beggin' for his retirement or for the UFC to cut him can pipe down and stay hush. That's some silly crap. Ferguson isn't to have any ranked or top name opponents anymore, he just can't hang; I saw it with his striking power... or lack thereof. T-Ferg can still be a fun name to throw on a card to get the early fans pumped as he says he wants to continue to compete. You act like the UFC hasn't had a slew of fan favorites that would answer every phone call to entertain win or lose. Jim Miller. Clay Guida. Aleksei Oleinik. So many legends that were great prelim goers. I don't want to see Fergy again on a main-card, but he is welcomed to keep entering that Octagon until he decides to hang it up. All-timer who has earned that nod. Show some respect. I am sad that El Cucuy is gone though... he had a 12-fight win streak just to never become a UFC champion; ohhh what could have been.
The moment that stole the show at UFC 296 was the quick little brawl ignited by Sean Strickland on Dricus du Plessis in the stands. Rarely do we ever see two fighters scheduled to fight each other go at it as civilians in the stands of a major event. We see a quick jab or a shove, but not a WWE brawl and not during an active PPV. It was a nice little TKO crossover courtesy of Mr. Strickland; who lives by the any time, any where lifestyle. Check out the beautifully entertaining scuffle between Sean and Dricus:
video via UFC//X
The fact that Strickland, who is known around the internet for his road rage videos; wild spars; and frankly straight sociopathic motives paused his rageful attack to make sure Gilbert Burns' child and wife were out of harms way before launchin' at DDP just makes the whole thing better. What a guy! That is great stuff, pure entertainment and no one got hurt. A perfect blend. Strickland is a straight character and the realest cat out there. He lives by his words, that's forsho. DDP kept yappin' so Sean got to clampin'. It's the business they are in... anyone crying can turn to a different sport. That scuffle just LIT the wick to their fight hype; presser; and fight. It also might have launched Sean Strickland to another stratosphere in terms of star attraction.
Dana White and the UFC have this blueprint of a Sean being the face of the future... they just might have the wrong last name. Strickland is becoming a fan favorite for his outspoken personality and far out character. Strickland has no filter and has strong opinions on banters that get most people riled up. His realness and bold persona gets people drawn in; and his wild actions get them to stay. I love the fact he will spar internet trolls and I love that he isn't someone who bullsh**s around. Strickland is becoming a superstar; a sentence that is wild to type. The middleweight champ is ridin' a fiery heatwave going into his first title defense. The first PPV main-event of 2024 now has some major hype and when it comes to upcoming noise: the rich only gets richer.
We may be on this hiatus from the Octagon until mid-January, but at least we can comfortably sit and wait knowing the loud noise ahead is close for our enjoyment. Dana White has announced a slew of big time fights scheduled in the new year. The promotion also struck noise with the signing of the top MMA free-agent in Michael Venom Page who has a fight booked with the new ink.
Uncle Dana made some juicy matchups for our tasting in 2024. You already know about Strickland and DDP lined up to electrify Canada on the 20th; Volk versus Ilia Topuria in Anaheim; and the well anticipated sequel between Suga Sean O'Malley and Chito Vera II. Those bangers have hype, but we have plenty more behind that three-headed monster:
The appeal is soooo real; just look at some of those matchups. Venom Page's first matchup in the UFC being against Kevin Holland is AWESOME- what a way to introduce yourself to the big dance. Reminds me of Michael Chandler takin' on Hangman Hooker in Chandler's UFC debut. Yan versus Song? Yes, please! The Suarez/Lemos matchup is also great as we see the strawweight division create a new number one contender for Zhang Weili's crown. A Darkhorse banger of Gilbert Burns versus Jack Della Maddalena in Miami at 299 is a bliss. Oh fight gods, bring us the NOISE, baby.
A storm is brewin' in the UFC for '24 and I for one cannot wait for the noise to make it's presence known. What a year it was inside the Octagon in '23, just for us to flip the page to another electric year to follow. I have some business to take care of before I can enjoy the coverage of the new year in the world's new favorite pastime- I will be back on the blog in the coming days to reflect on the year in MMA as I do my second installment of the MMA awards exclusive. We saw a lot of special moments; fights; and accomplishments... I gotta hit that drawin' board and make some justice. Stay tuned.
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