'Shogun' Rua talks Lyoto Machida rematch:
"I'm happy to fight again with (Machida), not because I think I won the first match but to have a new opportunity to fight for the belt. My big dream is to win the belt, so I want that fight again because it is a fight for the belt ... I can’t change a lot of my game because I’ve fought this way for 10 years, so I cannot totally change my game just because of Machida. Thank God I could annul his game, but unfortunately I could not win the belt. Now I have a new battle ahead, and I will make a new strategy. I'm in very basic training, but in February I’ll already be training harder. I believe that [light heavyweight] is the most competitive in the world. It always was. I know you will never have a breeze, and as I fight in the UFC, which is the biggest event in the world, I know I'll always face tough guys and can’t expect to have easy bouts. I know that and I will always expect to face the top fighters of the division."
over 2 years ago
Nick Thomas
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Looking forward to this rematch
I feel that the big question is how Machida is going to adjust for this fight. I am rooting for Machida, and can see him fight Rogerio Nogueira or Rampage next. If Shogun wins, he can fight pretty much the whole roster of UFC light heavyweights with the exception of Liddell and Coleman. Even a rematch against Forrest Griffin would interest me, but Shogun vs Rampage, Evans, or Rogerio Nogueira would be really fun to watch.
CHAMPION
cagar é uma filosofia profunda...
a merda bate na água e a água bate na bunda.
by Orcus on Jan 6, 2010 12:35 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
this is a blog, so it’s a post!
:p
cagar é uma filosofia profunda...
a merda bate na água e a água bate na bunda.
actually isnt it a comment on a post? and then a string of comments (such as this one) would be… a thread?
I think Machida has it the second time. I think Machida’s big problem is that he tends to wait for the perfect opportunity to finish opponents, which is why he tends to back off if he feels like the opportunity isn’t just so. He did it to Rashad; just kept knocking him down until he finally felt like Rashad was ready to go. Problem with Rua is that he was good enough to not offer the perfect opportunity, and damage Machida enough that he ended up slowing down in the later rounds. Hopefully Machida has learned that he can’t wait for the perfect opportunity if he wants to win.
I doubt he will make the same mistake twice. At the very least he will take advantage of the scoring tendencies of American judges and make the scoring of rounds unambiguous with a takedown or two, even if he has no desire to go the ground.
"an excellent example of why most MMA "journalism" is a joke. Pseudonyms like "toxic" and shitty writing like that dopey article"--- Joe Rogan.
Good observation.
Usually Machida gets the best of the distance exchanges, forcing his opponents to commit and then he counters. Against Rashad and Silva, he did so decisively. Against Shogun, Machida was trading leg kicks for jabs and while we can debate who won some of the early rounds, the kicks took a HEAVY toll late in the fight and Machida was out of options.
I think Machida’s game plan needs to be to counter those Shogun leg kick more effectively…He can’t throw one jab and look to back away. He needs to commit to the jab, combinations, or look for the take down.
Those weren’t straight lefts that he was throwing? I don’t remember a lot of jabbing from Machida. Could be wrong though.
They were straights. Lyoto doesn’t throw a traditional jab much. The thing is he needs to keep pushing forward after throwing it, or just circle out to his right if he doesn’t like his position. He kept throwing it, then hesitating as Shogun loaded up a kick.
by Kwisatz Haderach on Jan 6, 2010 2:43 PM EST up reply actions
I do think Lyoto will be more willing to close the distance this time. It’s that middle range where I felt Lyoto was just fractionally more hesistant to throw, and Shogun banged him with a kick everytime Lyoto paused at that range. He’s just gotta move in and out more decisively, and should be confident that he can handle Shogun in the clinch. Shogun did a great job of maintaining his poise and posture in the first one. He didn’t bounce around, instead he kept himself balanced and ready to throw kicks at all times. Lyoto needs to really decisively close the distance to unbalance Shogun, and cut off to his right when disengaging. Even if he doesn’t want to follow Shogun down, he should definitely attempt more takedowns early, via trips or whatever, and give Shogun more to think about. Still should be a close fight, and a great one, and either way will lead to a bunch of great matchups afterward. Machida vs. Rampage, Shogun vs. Rampage, Minotoro, and maybe Anderson are all possible depending on how things go, though the matchups are probably better if Shogun takes the belt. And if Jones beats Vera, is he ready for a top five opponent? I say do it!
by Kwisatz Haderach on Jan 6, 2010 2:39 PM EST up reply actions
Jon Jones
I don’t know what else you’d have to do with him…What about Jones Forrest? I feel like Jones could take him and that’s a good launching pad.
I think Jones/Forrest would be a great test if Jones can handle Vera, which I expect he will…
by Kwisatz Haderach on Jan 6, 2010 5:09 PM EST up reply actions
via trips or whatever
I was really surprised to not see a lot more of this kind of thing in the first match. I thought that Machida’s superior footwork combined with Rua’s tendency to cover up and move straight back out of trouble would lead to a lot of opportunities for legsweeps or footwork takedowns or whatever you want to call them. In fact, I think if he had gotten off a couple of these a round there would be no debate about the decision.
by some schmuck in texas on Jan 6, 2010 4:36 PM EST up reply actions
This fight will tell us alot about Machida
I feel like the Shogun Machida I was the first time I saw someone “solve” Machida…I really wonder whether he can adapt or change his game. Even if Shogun wins against Machida (With the same game plan), there is still a ton we don’t know about his fitness/explosivness etc… So it should be interesting
At the very least it was the first time someone seriously challenged Machida.
Sometimes a dent in that dominance can look like a defeat.
Machida will show everyone exactly what he is made of depending on how he adapts to this challenge.
good point…. I think Fedor might have gone through the same thing if arlovski had stuck to his gameplan of outboxing him…..
I don’t think there should be any comparisons between Fedor vs Arlovski and Shogun vs Machida…two completely different situations . Shogun showed he was equal to , or in the eyes of many – better than Shogun for 5 rounds . Arlovski showed he can throw really fast jabs , no disrespect to Arlovski but Fedor beats him 10/10 …he’s just not in the same league
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