UFC 177 Recap

I was one of the few to pay to watch UFC 177 live, because those were my plans that night and because a night spent watching live fights is rarely wasted.  For the most part, the event did not disappoint.  I’m going to run though this shortened card very quickly before talking about some of the pre-fight issues.

Chris Wade choked out Cain Carrizosa after a brief and exciting wrestling match.

Anthony Hamilton got a stoppage over Ruan Potts due to Potts’ complete inactivity on the ground.  Hamilton dropped about 20 arm punches onto literally the exact same spot on Potts’ ribs, with Potts offering no defense, no movement, absolutely no reaction whatsoever.  After several warning from referee Steven Davis, the fight was called.

Derek Brunson avoided the hands of a very dangerous striker in Lorenz Larkin, who could not stop Brunson from taking him down and smothering out a decision.

Yancy Medeiros put on a great fight against Damon Jackson, ending with what they’re calling a reverse bulldog choke.

Ramsey Nijem came out strong against Carlos Diego Ferreira, only to be let down once more by his glass chin.  Just like in Mike Tyson’s Punchout, the 3rd knockdown was the last.

After escaping a dangerous submission attempt in round 1, Bethe Correia put Shayna Baszler against the fence and hit her so hard that Baszler forgot how to circle out.  Then she kept hitting her until Big John McCarthy recognized that Baszler was out on her feet and would not fall down.  TKO 2 minutes into the second round.

In the only decision of the main card, Team Alpha Male product Danny Castillo tried to lay-and-pray a win in front of a hometown crowd, but the judges liked Tony Ferguson’s activity and offense better.

The main card featured not the instant rematch between TJ Dillashaw and Renan Barao, but rather TJ defending his belt against Bellator and Tachi Palace champ Joe Soto, who was scheduled to make his UFC debut on the undercard that day.  Barao reportedly fainted and hit his head on the bathtub in the course of his final weight cut, taking him out of the fight and moving Soto up on little more and 1 day’s notice. 

The bathtub was given $50k and a motorcycle. 

As I’ve said, I don’t like how it happened, but I do like that both men will be given time to evolve their game before meeting again.  I also don’t like UFC president Dana White sending Barao home without a paycheck.  Just a few short months ago the UFC was hyping this guy as the #1 pound-for-pound.  Today, he’s persona non grata.

It’s the economy, stupid.  Barao is one of the best fighters on the UFC roster, but also one of the least promotable, and that gave Dana bleeding ulcers.  Promotional lighting struck when TJ Dillashaw, the golden-haired kid from Cali, took the belt in spectacular fashion.  The UFC got greedy and tried to make lightning strike twice.  They were determined to get their money out of Barao, even if it meant subjecting him to another beating before he was ready.  Withholding his purse was their parting shot when their plans fell through.

Joe and TJ gave us a great fight.  Both men showed good head movement and defense, particularly Soto, who showed some of the best striking defense in the UFC, and largely neutralized TJ’s flurries.  That is, until he caught a head kick that dropped him like someone had cut his puppet strings.  TJ faked left, quickly adjusted his footing, and blasted a right kick though Soto’s defense as he circled away from the feign.  End of the night.

TJ’s striking pace is inhuman, and most of his shots are power shots, right up until the end.  His awareness of distance and timing combine with his use of angles and footwork to make him one of the most dangerous strikers in the UFC.  Just like in the Barao fight, TJ’s hands were down whenever Soto wasn’t throwing, and up whenever he was.  Nearly every aspect of his striking game has evolved under the tutelage of coach Dwayne “Bang” Ludwig.  This is the result of an uncommonly talented fighter meeting an uncommonly talented coach.

While these fights delivered, you wouldn’t know it to look at the numbers.  The chatter around the internet was already negative before Barao withdrew; afterwards it was downright nasty.  The UFC has no one to blame but themselves.  They have been watering down their content, and it shows.  The sheer number of fights that they need to put on in order to fulfill their deal with Fox Sports is a big part of the problem, but the UFC management also likes to spread out their money fights in order to get people to purchase more events throughout the year.  Dana may rant and rave when things like this happen, but that’s only because he knows that it was the UFC’s own decisions that made it possible.

After getting burned so many times, maybe White, Fertitta, and Silva will learn to stop sticking their nose where it hurts, and focus on rebuilding levels of respect for the brand in 2015.  Stacking PPV cards is a great way to start.

The next event I’ll be watching live is Invicta FC 8 later tonight.  Fight Pass was already a good deal, and getting free live Invicta cards is a nice bonus.  We here at Rabbit Punch have always been big supporters of WMMA, and have been following Invicta FC since the start.  Shannon Knapp has built a fantastic product, and a showcase for female talent at every weight class.

Tonight’s event will be the first with veteran fighter and commentator Julie Kedzie in her new role as matchmaker.  Kedzie has been getting down since MMA was called NHB, and commentated Invicta FC 1 with Mauro Ranallo and “King Mo” Lawal.  She brings us an exciting fight card tonight, which I will one day recap, probably once you’ve already forgotten about it.

Until then, keep those hands up and defend yourself at all times, and keep coming back for more Rabbit Punch!