Denis Kang vs. Vernon 'Tiger' White

by Brent Brookhouse on Jan 27, 2010 9:53 AM EST in MMA News

It was announced Tuesday that Denis Kang will make his W-1 debut against Vernon 'Tiger' White. The event will also feature a bout between former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton and Chris Clements.

A bout with Vernon White is a long way from the top 5 world ranking that Kang once held. After going undefeated over a 22 fight period, Kang has picked up five stoppage losses in his last nine fights. Most recently Denis was stopped by Michael Bisping at UFC 105.

Vernon White will probably never be remembered for the tough fighter he has been throughout his career. Mostly because of his less than stellar 26-33-2 record. The last few years have been especially unkind to the man known as 'Tiger' as he has picked up a 3-6 record since 2006. While I would love to see Vernon get some respect for his willingness to fight anyone, anywhere and give them a tough fight, it is very clear that he is in the absolute twilight of his career.

The fight highlights one of the problems of a fighter like Kang signing a contract with a promotion like W-1. It is very similar to a talented baseball player who couldn't cut it in the majors and instead of going down to AAA ball now going and playing slow-pitch softball to prove his worth. He may hit a few homers, but they don't mean anything to anyone.

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really thought he would have done better in the ufc, but those are the ropes

by b kenny on Jan 27, 2010 10:04 AM EST reply actions

I had high hopes for Kang as a fellow Vancouverite.

Too bad he couldn’t cut it. Granted, his last few losses were to guys named Mousasi and Akiyama, who are obviously no slouches. But then losing to the dangerous but inconsistent Belcher and Bisping, whom I just don’t think is truly top notch, just proves he’s not a top fighter. Not anymore anyway.

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by pud333 on Jan 27, 2010 10:05 AM EST reply actions

Factoid: Vernon White has never had a winning MMA record in his entire career. (Unless you don’t count Pancrase fights, in which case his record is something like 18-16.)

Brent, do you know if the Newton fight is at 170?

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by JRN on Jan 27, 2010 10:06 AM EST reply actions

Not sure. I thought he was going to be at 185 though.

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by Brent Brookhouse on Jan 27, 2010 10:08 AM EST up reply actions

Yeah, I wasn’t sure how he’d deal with missing weight by so much against Shonie. At this point, a Newton/Kang fight would seem to be an obvious choice for W-1, and that would probably have to be at middleweight.

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by JRN on Jan 27, 2010 10:50 AM EST up reply actions

All the skill, none of the confidence. Such a shame. This is a good fight but he needs to look spectacular against Vernon. I mean like domination within 3 minutes. MFC had the stronger MW division but Thales, McDonald, and Lutter would all be favored in my mind.

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by Matthew Roth on Jan 27, 2010 10:45 AM EST reply actions

He may hit a few homers, but they don’t mean anything to anyone.

This is kind of unfair. Considering how much of this sport is mental, and how often Kang has been criticized for mental errors and “knowing how to lose”, a few wins might do a lot to help get him right mentally. So, at the least, they matter to Kang.

"I'm AJB and I endorse this nut-puncher."

by AJB on Jan 27, 2010 2:18 PM EST reply actions