Best Matches Seen February 2021 |
AJW 12/16/80 Fuji TV Cup WWWA World Single Title Decision Match Semifinal: Jackie Sato vs. Rimi Yokota. This match didn't try nearly as hard to be a "shoot" as their February title rematch, but was possibly more believable at times because Yokota was allowed to show some of her quickness and explosion. You can get away with not using the ideal moves or technique a lot more when you do things fast. This had some pretty fun sliding trip attempts and rolling takedowns by Yokota early on, but didn't really capitalize on the possibilities overall. Sato doesn't have much going on offensively, and, unfortunately, after the early stages this was largely her match, stretching Yokota out. The match had a lot of potential, but while it started and finished strong, the body was mostly rather pedestrian. The match was a double ring out, but since it was a tournament semifinal, they had a five minute extension, which Sato won with the vaunted Boston crab. ***
AJW 1/4/83 All Japan Title Match: Lioness Asuka vs. Chigusa Nagayo. Chigusa decided to quit wrestling after losing the All Japan Junior Title to Noriyo Tateno on 8/10/82. She surprisingly got this challenge because Asuka had beaten everyone else, and Chigusa was also no threat to beat her under the fall rule. The night before, she told Asuka "I'm going to quit AJW. Tomorrow will be my last match. At least for my last match, I want to forget the rules, and do it. For example, you must not kick there, or use this move after that move. I want to do away with those rules. I want to have a match where we put everything we've got into each other." Asuka agreed. The ensuing match was far less predictable, and also had a lot more energy than usual. It definitely overachieved, also because they upped the stiffness and intensity, and wrestled with more passion, in Chigusa's case because this was going to be her swan song. While it may be nowhere near the level of their later classics matches because their offense wasn't nearly as developed and the match was much shorter, as it was for a quasi young girl's title rather than being one of the most anticipated big matches of the year, at the same time it had tremendous raw energy and lacked polished precision in the best kind of way. They certainly gave all they had at this point in time, and that was way beyond the level of most of the people anywhere else on the card. They pulled the audience in right away with nasty elbows back and forth, and even though a lot of the offense in the early to mid stages was rather basic, as you'd expect, it was done with ill intent, and you really felt like winning mattered to them. Nagayo worked over Lioness' knee, and there was a hilarious spot where the outside official was pulling her knee out to try to pop it back in place. Though Chigusa lost, the truth or mythology, is that people finally began to connect with her based on the emotion she showed during the contest, and especially the fiery look in her eyes after being defeated. When Chigusa went to Kunimatsu Matsumoto's office the next day to tell him she was quitting, he started praising the match before she got around to it, knowing it was her doing, and more her style & preferences on display. He basically said she had to be herself, and if she could keep doing that everyone would be fascinated! Going forward, Chigusa showed her emotions more, and continued to gain the support of the audience.***3/4
UFC Fight Night 186 2/27/21: Pedro Munhoz vs. Jimmie Rivera 3R. I've been saying leg kicks were better than punches since the dawn of MMA, safer to throw because you can be out of punching range, and more punishing. While they are far less apt to cause a straight up knockout, once the opponent is thinking about them, there are a multitude of ways to finish the fight. Unfortunately, the judges were always so terrible, that engaging in those sort of kick for punch exchanges was one of the surest ways to lose a decision beyond being on your back no matter what you were doing there. Now, with calf kicks taking over from traditional low kicks, the judges are finally starting to figure things out, a little, but it still makes me laugh to suddenly hear talk of banning a variation of a tactic that barely even registered during the first 25 plus years of the sport. Munhoz vs. Rivera is a great example of the beauty of the calf kick, as the first round was fairly even, but Rivera got decidedly worse with each round because he couldn't put weight on the left leg, hence even when he did get in quickly enough to land his punches, they were much less powerful than at the outset of the fight. Munhoz did a great job of controlling distance. First of all, he was fighting slightly out of Rivera's punching range to begin with, but he also did a great job of backing right out of the pocket as soon as he did what he wanted to. Rivera is a good body puncher, but that requires a closer range to be consistent with than Munhoz was allowing. Munhoz showed more footwork in his worst 30 seconds then Rozenstuckincement has displayed in his whole soporific career, which gives him options beyond hoping the stupid opponent gets as bored as the audience and is dumb enough to walk right into a knockout. Rivera had a good first round because he has a consistent left hand that, when he has two healthy legs, he comes forward fast behind, following with a big right hook or his own calf kick. Rivera had a takedown the early in the second, tripping Munhoz up when he tried to throw the kick in the exchange, but Munhoz rolled right into a heel hook. Rivera was soon coming forward less often and less effectively due to the leg, and now Munhoz had a much easier time of just waiting on Rivera, defending Rivera's two punches then firing back with the calf kick when he was done. Rivera had heart and determination, but not answers. It was the speed, really, as he tried to throw big power to finish, but just couldn't get to the spot quick enough. This is where Rivera needed to realize that Munhoz's calf wasn't in great shape either, and force his own kicks rather than continue to come forward with two punches only to just stop and accept more punishment that made him even slower. Still, he kept trying, even if he was fighting a losing battle by mostly continuing to do what hadn't been working since the leg was compromised. Rivera did hurt Munhoz with a left hook in the final minute. Munhoz won a unanimous decision 30–27, 30–27, 29–28. Good match.
UFC 258 2/13/21
Alexa Grasso vs. Maycee Barber 3R. This was a great matchup for Grasso. She is an excellent counterpuncher who has very direct strikes and wastes no movement, while Barber is a very wild loopy striker with tons of frivolous movement from 1000 miles away. The match was mostly coming down to the fact that Barber works from so far out of range that there's simply no reason for Grasso to react to any of her multitude of fakes. Grasso can just stand there, and Barber will just come up short. What makes Grasso an exceptional counter striker to begin with is that she isn't simply coming after the opponent's strike, so much as timing their first movement forward. Ultimately, Barber had to come at Grasso to actually reach her, so when Grasso saw her start to dash in, she let her hands go. The test for Grasso was going to be not getting outmuscled in the clinch or taken down by the natural 125 pounder, but Grasso was technically better in the clinch work and the grappling as well, which had not been strengths of hers earlier in her career. Barber had to make a chaotic in order to have a chance in standup, but because Grasso is so much tighter and more direct with their strikes, Grasso would win all the exchanges that went beyond a few punches each. Grasso hurt Barber 90 seconds into the second round with a right body hook followed by a left overhand right, but this is where Grasso finally showed some weakness, as she tried to go on the offensive to take advantage, but initiating is not her strength. Barber just tied her up, and this time was finally winning the underhook battle. Barber got a takedown off Grasso 's body kick, but Grasso showed some outstanding grappling, sweeping with an armbar and having arm triangle and rear naked choke attempts in the final seconds. As we saw in her last fight when she injured her knee against Roxanne Modafferi, Barber has no quit in her, and is going to to do everything it takes to give herself an opportunity to somehow win the fight. Barber had a couple big ground punches off an inside trip and had Grasso on the defensive after landing a good knee when Grasso was getting up. Grasso was looking for any way to slow the fight down, but now Barber was actually in range to land some of her haymakers. Barber didn't get the finish she needed, but she made it fight. Grasso won a unanimous decision 29 – 28. Good match.
UFC Welterweight Title: Kamaru Usman vs. Gilbert Burns R3 0:34. I was pleasantly surprised by Usman here. I figured now that he wasn't fighting another world class wrestler, he would be back to five rounds of smothering, probably get a 50-40 decision as not trying for the finish seems the surest way to get 10 – 8 rounds from the bonehead judges these days. Shockingly, Burns was the only one who went for takedowns here. Burns started great, just being too fast and hard hitting for Usman, really hammering him. He was bombing away with the overhand right, which wobbled Usman with the early, and high kick, which was blocked but still hurts. It was important that Burns keep the pressure on Usman because Usman is so good fighting behind his jab you can't expect to have much success waiting on him. On the other hand, Usman is still rather rigid in his striking, and doesn't look very good when he just has to react or create when he isn't perfectly set and balanced. Burns was just walking Usman down in the 1st, but Usman began to intercept him with the powerful jab in the 2nd. The fight turned halfway through the round when Usman came over the jab with a big right hand. The more Burns had his back on the cage and was letting Usman lead because he was hurting, the more Usman just sniped him with the jab, even dropping Burns with it late in the round. Usman again dropped Burns with the jab to start the 3rd, and because he stayed on his feet & dropped punches, Burns couldn't tie him up or slow him down, so Usman was able to drop bombs until the stoppage. Good match.
Shoot Boxing INFINITY-S Vol. 2 4/18/04: Sone Banasy vs. Akifumi Utagawa R4 0:52. There's fighting at a distance, then there's Sone style. His goal is to be out of punching range, where he can work high kicks and step in with hooks. This worked pretty well for the first round and a half, before he broke his right big toe landing a high kick. Though I wasn't sure he was even going to be able to continue, he managed to recover pretty quickly, but his movement was never quite the same. Utagawa was patient, looking to either back Sone into the ropes or throw a misdirection lead and quickly close distance. Utagawa would flurry when he was on the inside, but wasn't as active as he would have liked trying to get there, given his opponent was out of reach. Sone had to rely more on power after the injury, but did a nice job of circling away while throwing a big hook. Sone was never really getting back to the center of the ring though, and Utagawa was much better at working on the inside, as he could put combinations together, whereas Sone's style was based on throwing one big shot then moving again. Utagawa must have softened up the liver with his middle kicks, because the left body hook he won with seemed pretty soft. Good match.
Shoot Boxing INFINITY-S Vol. 3 6/4/04
Eihei Yabu vs. NIIZUMAX! 3R. NIIZUMAX! doesn't have a ton of technique, footwork, or head movement, but he's a super aggressive brawler who is going to attack. He'll lead with a middle, high, or axe kick, he'll charge in and grab trying for any kind of throw, he'll make it an unconventional scrap. Yabu was the better technical fighter by a wide margin, but he had a hard time finding any rhythm or consistency against this unorthodox opponent. NIIZUMAX! became a much easier target in the third round as he had hired himself out somewhat with all his aggression and pressure, and Yabu also made a good adjustment pushing forward with a sort of STO trip when NIIZUMAX! would try to grab him. Yabu landed a lot of clean punches in the third, bloodying NIIZUMAX!'s face. At one point, he backed NIIZUMAX! from one corner to the other with a series of big right straights. I would have liked to see this go another round, though obviously I can't see it changing the result. Yabu won round 3 big, but you could make the argument that NIIZUMAX! won the first two rounds. Yabu won a unanimous decision. Good match.
Koichi Kikuchi vs. Yuki 5R. A hard nosed, toe to toe battle of Kikuchi's punches vs. Yuki kicks. This was really a war, but Kikuchi just had too much volume. A lot of that comes down to Yuki not utilizing enough footwork, as if your strategy is to throw 70% low kicks, you don't want to just be standing in front of the opponent. That being said, Yuki actually did way better when he was willing to punch, and in these instances he could sometimes get away with being right in front of Kikuchi because he just kept attacking. Though Yuki's low kick was the most consistent and effective strike in the fight, he didn't really make any progress with it, and Kikuchi quickly figured out that the more he threw, the harder it was for Yuki to get his shots in, especially if he backed him with a front kick after throwing his punch combo. As the fight progressed, Yuki had to switch to boxing, but that was where he came close to getting a knockdown. In the 3rd, Yuki landed a solid short left hook, and began to finally push forward and let his hands go, only to be promptly dropped by Kikuchi's left straight. Yuki hurt Kikuchi with a right straight early in the 4th, but kind of punched himself out trying to capitalize, and was standing in front of Kikuchi even more later in the round. He had a good series late starting with a left hook though, and this was clearly his round, even knocking Kikuchi's mouthpiece out late. Both fighters were fading fast in the 5th, but Kikuchi reestablished his front kick, and was just keeping Yuki away. Yuki got another wind in the second half of the final round though, and the last minute was very dramatic, as Yuki was battering Kikuchi with punch after punch. Kikuchi seemed one or two good punches away from being finished during the final 45 seconds, but managed to will it out. Kikuchi won a unanimous decision. Very good match.
UFC Fight Night 184 2/6/21
Beneil Dariush vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira 3R. Dariush really does a great job of pressuring the opponent so heavily that his striking enables his grappling. Sure, you know he's going to keep coming forward, but if you try to stop him by countering without moving your feet, he might eat a strike, but he's going to get a hold of you, and probably deposit you on the canvas. In theory, their striking and grappling are fairly equal, but Dariush has a huge advantage in the takedown department, and could just keep coming forward and adjusting to keep the opponent on the defensive all flight. I thought Dariush's liver knee to counter Ferreira's left hook was probably the most damaging strike in the first round, but both fighters hurt each other with a couple big shots. Ferreira finished the first round strong & had more success early in the second, as he was doing a much better job of circling off to the left while landing the right hand instead of staying in front of Dariush while he was trying to land. Dariush had a ton of control in this round though. Ferreira's corner wanted him to throw light and move rather than landing the occasional heavy shot but invariably get taken down. Both corners seemed confident that Dariush was up two rounds. Dariush, who took the fight on short notice, was clearly the more fatigued of the two in the third. Ferreira was landing and moving now, often even coming forward. Without the pressure, Dariush wasn't getting anywhere with his takedown attempts. Dariush still landed a few big left hands, but now he was the less consistent fighter. I gave Ferreira the third round, but he needed to do more than that. Surprisingly, this was actually a split decision, was Dariush winning 29-28. Good match.
Clay Guida vs. Michael Johnson 3R. Clay Guida vs. Michael Johnson 3R. An important fight for both fighters, as you can never count on UFC to keep fighters because they are actually entertaining. Guida is 6-9 since handing Anthony Pettis his second loss at WEC 53, while Johnson is 3-8 since defeating Edson Barboza on 2/22/15, though he was winning most of those fights he lost in the early stages before finding a way to give them away. For me, this fight was about whether Johnson was going to be able to keep Guida on the outside where he could use his speed and reach. Once Guida got into midrange, he could use his level changing, which is so effective for him because strikers are more worried about being taken down by a great wrestler such as Guida, but he also has a massive right hand that he lands when they bite on his takedown fake. Obviously, on the fence & on the ground was going to be an advantage to Guida. Johnson was cutting Guida up early, but having a hard time controlling distance, so Guida was taking him down or landing big rights. Johnson's takedown defense was quite good overall, but Guida was wearing him out just making him struggle to stay off his back. Johnson looked the best early in the 3rd when he was angling off to the right while throwing the right straight so Guida couldn't just come forward and take him down or back him off the center of the octagon. Guida eventually got Johnson down again though, and had a rear naked choke attempt. Guida won a unanimous decision 30-27. Good match.
