10 Shots & Thoughts from UFC 95
Right, I'll open up with the good stuff; my "10 of the best" shots from UFC 95.
(Edit) and keep my editors happy by checking out the official gallery on ESPN.com :)
Paul Kelly giving Troy Mandaloniz something to chew on
(click through for more...)
Send To PhoneEvan Dunham's favourite food is mashed swede; it's also what he likes to do to Per Eklund
"Say my name, bitch!" is the sort of taunt Mike Ciesnolevicz gets a lot of fun out of, especially since Neil Grove didn't have a hope in hell of spelling it let alone speaking it with a nasty heel-hook locked on...
When you're 6'4" tall, you can't really be called "Junior" - except, perhaps, when facing 6"11" Stefan "Skyscraper" Struve. I think Dos Santos earned the nickname "Demolition Man" in the process...
There are times when you don't want to put your foot in it. This is not one of those moments, as Terry Etim's metatarsals helped Brian Cobb to the canvas. At least Cobb can now check "I wonder what foot ointment tastes like?" off his list of things to do in life...
You can debate the stoppage till the cows come home, but there's no question that Paulo Thiago brought the pain to Josh Koscheck right on the button - and, with his eyes all scrunched up like that, Koscheck would obviously protest a hit that he never saw....
One has to wonder whether it's the triangle choke that made Chael Sonnen tap, or if it was perfectly timed "out-gassing" on the part of Demian Maia; we'll never know, but let's hope that there's no stink-gate controversy brewing...
It's probably not the sort of in-flight entertainment that Wilson Gouveia is used to, but Nate Marquardt's good old knees-up went down a treat... a testament to all that time he'd put in playing Street Fighter IV in the lead-up to the fight.
This one's best left to Hardy himself: "No punching power? What do you think about that?!?!"
"Here, use this - I got some great moves off it" - said Nate Marquardt as he handed over the StreetFighter IV case to Diego Sanchez. Unfortunately for Sanchez, Marquardt's nine-year-old daughter had put Dance Dance Revolution in the box...
So now my photo favorites are out of the way, here are some of my thoughts on my time covering UFC 95.
- Diego Sanchez and Joe Stevenson are ninjas. It's the only rational explanation I can come up with for how they simply vanished into thin air after posing off on the dais at the pre-fight presser. Even Neil Davidson of the Canadian Press didn't get to speak to them.
- There were fighers everyhwere - GSP, BJ Penn, Urijah Faber, Wanderlei Silva, Tiki Ghosn, pretty much all of Wolfslair (Rampage, Kongo, Bisping) and many more. I guess the "star power" was there - it just wasn't in the cage.
- Greg Jackson is a humble dude. When I asked him what his post-fight plans were in the wake of Marquardt's win, he hefted a plastic bag my way and said "I'm reading a book and going to bed!". He also stated that he plays just "a small part" in his fighter's success.
- Either Diego Sanchez likes to be late to the party, or he prefers to hold his own press conferences. Almost all the reporters had disappeared by the time he showed up to the post-fight presser, leaving just three of us to field questions for about five minutes.
- Every fighter got a "locker room bonus" of some description. I personally saw UFC UK staff tucking envelopes into the pockets of fighters as they left the post-fight presser. It's nice to see Zuffa handing out Economic Stimulus Checks...
- UK fight fans have matured immeasurably since UFC 70 hit Manchester nearly two years ago. They're appreciative of the ground game and rarely "boo" unless there's prolonged inactivity on the part of fighters.
And so begins my long hiatus waiting for UFC '99 in Germany to roll around. I've heard from very reliable sources that BJ Penn vs. Kenny Florian is practically assured for this one, Rich Franklin should be squaring off against Wanderlei Silva, and Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic is going to have an extremely interesting opponent - sorry, but I really am sworn to secrecy on that one - suffice to say it's not anyone whom is currently in the UFC ;)
Send To Phone Send To Phone Send To Phone Send To Phone Send To Phone Send To Phone Send To Phone Send To Phone Send To PhoneThe FanPosts are solely the subjective opinions of Bloody Elbow readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Bloody Elbow editors or staff.
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Beautiful stuff.
I will play my game beneath the spin light.
by Eugene Schelfaut on Feb 24, 2009 4:47 AM EST reply actions
CroCop's opponent
It has to be Overeem.
by Nick Travaglini on Feb 24, 2009 8:10 AM EST reply actions
Great pics man!
“Here, use this – I got some great moves off it” – said Nate Marquardt as he handed over the StreetFighter IV case to Diego Sanchez. Unfortunately for Sanchez, Marquardt’s nine-year-old daughter had put Dance Dance Revolution in the box…
Did Nate really do that? I LOVE me some Street Fighter IV!!!!! :)
Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."
Wow, you are awesome.
“I wonder what foot ointment tastes like?” HA!
Lovely pictures, I’m jealous of your job.
Be water, my friend.
http://martialfarts.fightlinker.com
Anyone else catch that last line?
Crocop’s opponent….not currently in the UFC. Overeem, Kharitnov, Fedor, Sapp, Hunt?!!
Overeem seems most likely since he was at UFC 93 and has supposedly been in negotiations. Both are very familiar to European fans and the storyline for the fight is already written. Mirko’s already fought Fedor, Sapp (in K-1) and Hunt, and I don’t see any of them coming to the UFC anyway.
Contributor Emeritus - BloodyElbow.com
by Chris Nelson on Feb 24, 2009 10:45 AM EST up reply actions
Here's something to bake your noodle
Consider that anyone not currently in the UFC might have been on their roster in the past… :D
by VikingPhotography on Feb 24, 2009 11:42 AM EST up reply actions
O_o
Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."
by xFenixKnightx on Feb 24, 2009 11:46 AM EST up reply actions
hmmm…appreciate the hints. Kimo?! nah kidding, but makes me think of Timmy or AA.or maybe even Vitor since I heard he was considering Fedor.
vitor, final answer..
One more thing to add to the noodle-baking...
Mirko is a heavyweight, so everyone is thinking that his opponent will be a current heavyweight as well.
What if his prospective opponent was someone who was/is a LHW and is transitioning up to HW??? ;)
by VikingPhotography on Feb 26, 2009 11:29 AM EST up reply actions
You can’t be serious. Fucking Tito? I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised, but I really thought that the UFC outgrew him.
"I see him beating Anderson Silva. I see him picking him apart. Him at a 131 years old...(trails off)." - Tito on Belfort at Affliction:DOR
by Rundownloser on Feb 26, 2009 11:50 AM EST up reply actions
it’s vitor or tito….cant think of another possibility
if it was tito he’d already have called a press conference….
i dont think theyd be cruel enough to give crocop a ground and pounder, would they? is there another ex-UFC light heavy weight striker anyone can think of?
Randleman ftw.
"I see him beating Anderson Silva. I see him picking him apart. Him at a 131 years old...(trails off)." - Tito on Belfort at Affliction:DOR
by Rundownloser on Feb 24, 2009 12:05 PM EST up reply actions
Every fighter got a “locker room bonus” of some description. I personally saw UFC UK staff tucking envelopes into the pockets of fighters as they left the post-fight presser.
They were probably just subscriptions to the jelly of the month club.
Paul Kelly’s elbow looks epic in that shot! Kudos!
Is there any way to use a less-invasive watermark, or is that the easiest way to prevent people from taking them? Still, with or without, keep posting them! We are not worthy! We are not worthy!
Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better. -Samuel Beckett
by Scott C. Broussard on Feb 24, 2009 4:21 PM EST reply actions
People still take 'em.
It’s a bitch, but I find my uncredited work popping up all over the place… photography is my sole source of income so it’s critically important that folk who want to license a picture for use in magazines etc. know who took it and thus whom to contact.
Lucky for me my shots which are on flickr.com, being a Yahoo partner enterprise, are very visible in both Yahoo and Google image searches. I’ve had more than one professional image buyer license my MMA work by contacting me through flickr :)
by VikingPhotography on Feb 25, 2009 10:24 AM EST up reply actions
Damn, that sucks. That’s the problem with net neutrality – as great an idea as it is, it becomes too easy to hurt people who make their living via internet sales. The big companies won’t lose much, but it’s the little guys who get crapped upon.
Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better. -Samuel Beckett
by Scott C. Broussard on Feb 25, 2009 3:03 PM EST up reply actions
Considering AA's Affliction contract
snowballs and hell start aligning…
by VikingPhotography on Feb 26, 2009 11:27 AM EST up reply actions
okay so its not AA, then who..
Werdum?? dont tell me they are seriously considering matching up his former jiujitsu coach against him.. and again.. Blink twice if im right. hahah.
http://weoweoweo.deviantart.com/
by Anton Tabuena on Feb 26, 2009 11:54 AM EST up reply actions
There were serious rumors about Tito Ortiz awhile back, and given the comment above:
What if his prospective opponent was someone who was/is a LHW and is transitioning up to HW??? ;)
I would put money on Tito being who VikingPhotography is talking about.
"I see him beating Anderson Silva. I see him picking him apart. Him at a 131 years old...(trails off)." - Tito on Belfort at Affliction:DOR
by Rundownloser on Feb 26, 2009 12:01 PM EST up reply actions
pretty crazy if it did turn out it was Tito … sherdog reported a while ago that he might fight Cro Cop on the card, http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/2/European-Throwdown-UFC-93-Aftermath-15830
well viking isnt replying to the speculation so we must be right. haha.
http://weoweoweo.deviantart.com/
I can neither confirm nor deny any opponent...
Seriously, from what I hear / know there are at least two opponents in the mix for Mirko – one being a bit more probable than the other.
This far out from the event I’m fairly certain that Joe Silva et al are looking to keep their options open; do bear in mind that the UFC 99 event and card hasn’t been officially announced – Marshall Zelaznik made this point at the post-fight presser for ’95.
Also let’s not forget that even the best laid plans of Joe Silva can be royal fecked up by pre-fight injuries and so on… UFC 85, anyone???
Still – I’ll just be happy to see Mirko on his “retirement” fight and – given all of the above – I’m simply hoping that his match-up (with either guy) transpires. I learned my lesson about wishing for “star power” cards with UFC 95; pedestrian on paper but a royal barn-burner when it came to the fights.
by VikingPhotography on Feb 27, 2009 2:30 AM EST reply actions
was that you blinking twice? :D
http://weoweoweo.deviantart.com/
by Anton Tabuena on Feb 27, 2009 3:10 AM EST up reply actions

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