Posted by Bill Thompson on 2nd March 2008
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By: Bill Thompson
The best is something that can be very fluid. Sometimes what is the best can be quantified, and other times it can’t. Within MMA the best in a certain division can be quantified by taking a look at results within that division. However, how does one quantify the best current fighter in all of MMA? Or the best fighter ever in MMA? I don’t really believe there is a way to quantify either in an exact non-contentious fashion, and that is why in the latter category you will get one person arguing for Frank Shamrock, another for Randy Couture, one person for Matt Hughes, and yet another for Fedor Emelianenko. As of this past Saturday a new name has entered that mix, Anderson Silva. A few years ago I never would have thought this was possible, and then Silva amped up his game and started his current run. But, does Silva really qualify as the best of all time in the short lived history of MMA, or am I a bit ahead of myself? Let’s take a look, shall we.
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Posted by Kendall Shields on 28th February 2008
by Kendall Shields
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Would it be fair to say that Dana White is sometimes given to hyperbole? Not that you can fault him for it: the man is a promoter; he’s likely to, you know, promote. Sometimes — like when he tries to convince you, the UFC 82 Countdown viewer (watch it online in three parts), that this weekend’s Heath Herring vs. Cheick Kongo bout is indicative of how “the heavyweight division’s never been more exciting than it is right now” — you know it’s bullshit, you’re sure he knows it’s bullshit, and you’ve got to think that he knows that you know it’s bullshit. It’s really not that hard to remember more exciting times in the UFC heavyweight division. Like, say, a year ago, when Randy Couture came out of retirement to challenge Tim Sylvia for the heavyweight championship? Or when, a few months later, Couture defended it against a young challenger who had just shockingly upset a Mirko Cro Cop we all thought was still among the most dangerous fighters in the world? Or when it looked like the UFC had a legitimate shot at making a Randy Couture/Fedor Emilianenko fight a reality? It’s not that the heavyweight division is completely dead now that Couture has walked away from it — Brock Lesnar is uncommonly promising, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s submission win over Tim Sylvia was sweet relief — but to suggest that the heavyweight division has never been more exciting is obviously nonsense. You know that, Dana White knows that, but still it gets said. And again, that’s fine: promoters promote.
But in that same Countdown show, White states unequivocally that Anderson Silva is not only the top 185lbs fighter in the world, but indeed the sport’s top pound-for-pound fighter as well. This weekend’s bout between Anderson Silva and (sort of) Pride champion Dan Henderson, then, is set to determine not just the best 185 pounder in the UFC, but the best pound-for-pound MMA fighter in the world, White tells us — he says this directly, not just by implication.
And maybe he’s right.
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Posted in Anderson Silva, Dan Henderson, Kazuo Misaki, Matt Lindland, Paulo Filho, Yoshihiro Akiyama | 1 Comment »
Posted by Lee Casebolt on 27th February 2008
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by Lee Casebolt
The Book is back, just in time for what promises to be the best title fight of 2008.
For our newer readers, The Book is Total-MMA’s scouting report on the best fighters in the world. Later this week, the ever-demanding Jonathan Snowden will be scrutinizing Pride 183-lb champ Dan Henderson. First, though, let’s take a look at Henderson’s opponent for this weekend, UFC and Cage Rage middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
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Posted by Marc Staehling on 8th January 2008
With the beginning of 2008, we have been granted a brief respit between all the New Year’s Eve action and before an avalanche of fight-cards that really gets rolling with UFC 80 on January 19th. This hiatus gives us a chance to reflect on the year that was, and ponder what the new year will bring.
From a personal standpoint, easily my most memorable MMA moment of the year was attending UFC 79 in Las Vegas, my first ever live UFC event.
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Posted in Anderson Silva, Marc Staehling, Total MMA, UFC | No Comments »
