The Top-250 Fights of 2011: A Primer

You know what I miss, kiddos? Your Weekend in Combat Sports. Holy smokes, do I miss writing that. Two days, a few drinks, throw on the Bose headphones, I had a solid piece that you guys loved.

Those were the days, eh? I miss YWICS sooooo damned much. That was my spot, my angle, and it was a labor of love. Anymore, I'm so far out of the loop, I have no idea who's fighting until that day. It's god-awful.

However, my reason for being a casual n00b is that I've been working on this project. I'm sure it's boring to keep hearing about, and I appreciate you guys asking me about it, but we're FINALLY in the homestretch. This went from a Top-25 project to what it is now, because I wanted to be THE FIRST to have my name on a project like this. Hopefully, this leads to something, but if it doesn't, at least someone will say "Hey, isn't he that dude that did the top hundreds or whatever?"...and in this game, that's really all you can ask for, gentlemen.

So I am here to give you an idea on what you can expect.

Like I said, there will be 250 fights from the year 2011 that I will profile. Those will start within a week or so, but will move very quickly. Probably 25 a day. I've spent months on this project and I want to have it out as soon as possible so it will be relevant.

What You Should Expect:

1. First off, every fight that I watched was graded. I won't get in to the grading system again, but it was a combination of six factors: Striking, Grappling, Activity, Excitement, Oh Shit Moments, and Fighting Spirit. You're free to debate my rankings however you like, but just know that absolutely every fight was graded and ranked. I didn't coast whatsoever.

2. I literally graded every fight from 2011 I could get my hands on. From all over the world, cards filmed on camcorders, stuff that wasn't shown in North America, etc.., if it was available, and it took place in 2011, I watched and graded it.

3. This is one man's opinion. Please don't treat this as gospel. Just read and enjoy. If you want to criticize, I can't stop that, but it's as neutral as I can be.

4. What you will read is the following:

Rank:
Event:
Date:
Venue:
Fighters:

Bloody Elbow Play-by-Play: (I can't provide PBP for 250 fights, I hope you guys can forgive me for that. If BE doesn't have PBP, I'll try to find it from somewhere else. If I can't, oh well.)

BE/Other Scorecard:
BV Scorecard:
Actual Scorecard:

BV Describes the Fight in 5 Words: (For the fun of it, kiddos.)

5. Like I said, this is just the primer. I will put the fights out 25 at a time. Not pandering to any fighter or any promotion. I'm getting paid exactly 0 dollars and have no writing position, so this is as unbiased as an unemployed former NFL Draft Senior Writer can be.

6. Within the next week, the first installment will begin. I hope you forgive the time that it's finally coming to fruition, going from a Top-25 to a Top-250 requires a bit more work and effort.

7. I know some of you might be a tad gunshy because of my feelings on certain fighters, good or bad, but I can assure you, I'm entirely a fan of fights. That's my only criteria, how you perform inside a eight/six/four-sided enclosement.

At any rate, within the next week, The Top 250 Fights of 2011 will appear on your screens. I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I have.