Dissection: UFC Live on Versus 5 Analysis Articles

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 Just some longwinded reading material for anyone who's interested. These are excerpts from the Facebook prelims minus Dollaway x Hamman.





http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2011/8/11/2353485/ufc-on-versus-5-fight-card-facebook-prelims-dissection-lytle-hardy





UFC on Versus 5 Fight Card: Facebook Prelims Dissection


Gonzo_fist_tiny by Dallas Winston on in UFC Event








Joseph Benavidez (14-2) vs. Eddie Wineland (18-7-1)

The second (Benavidez) and twelfth best (Wineland) bantamweights in the world will engage here.


The two blemishes on the record of Benavidez came from current divisional champ Dominick Cruz, the first at WEC 42 in a Fight of the Night performance, the second at WEC 50 in Cruz's first title defense; both decisions.


Benavidez has tore through the rest of his opponents, the most noteworthy being violent first round stoppages over Rani Yahya via strikes and dual guillotines fitted to former champ Miguel Torres and Nova Uniao BJJ black belt Wagnney Fabiano.


Eddie Wineland became the WEC's first bantamweight champion by knocking out Antonio Banuelos back at WEC 20 in 2006. He had a thoroughly forgettable birth in the sport, winning just three of his first eight fights with four losses and one draw.


Some type of positive metamorphosis must have occurred, as Wineland went on to win fifteen of his next eighteen fights--  twelve of which were finishes-- and cement himself as a . He lost his WEC title to Chase Beebe and dropped fights to Rani Yahya by submission and Urijah Faber by decision in his last outing at UFC 128.


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Wineland is an experienced and aggressive wrestle-boxer with a highly resilient clinch game.


He definitely has the more polished boxing technique -- as his crisply delivered body shot KO of Will Campuzano shows -- and, while Benavidez is probably the better wrestler, Wineland is a stubborn bull to take down.


Urijah Faber came out with the intention of taking Wineland down early, but his strong base, cat-like balance and excellent use of the whizzer made the task quite a challenge.


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At 5'4", Benavidez is fairly short, which will have advantages and disadvantages. In the clinch, his squatty and powerful frame lends itself to takedowns, especially with underhooks or the body lock.


Standing, his primitive charge while winging helicopter hooks is only effective at close range, and Wineland's straighter and longer punches make it tough to get inside when fused with technical footwork.


Benavidez excels with snaring "gimme subs" from the top, usually flowered by his vicious strikes. His sweet spot against Wineland will be surrounding himself with heavy leather while maneuvering into clinch range to work takedowns, looking to inflict massive damage with ground-and-pound and pressure with choke attempts.


Keys to Victory for Wineland



  • Avoid the bullrush -- Benavidez's striking is merely a smokescreen to set up takedowns. It's basic, and maybe even a little sloppy, but it gets the job done if he connects. Wineland will have to employ circling to avoid contact and staunch takedown defense to break free if he's tied up.

  • Box the brawler -- Wineland has phenomenal hands and superior technique. It could be a long night for Benavidez if Wineland refuses to be cornered and clinched up. Benavidez unleashes an ungodly volley hoping to pounce when his opponent stands still and covers up, so Wineland will have to sting with long counter-shots while backpedaling, but never allowing himself to get pinned on the fence.


Keys to Victory for Benavidez



  • Get inside -- his physical stature makes him more dangerous the closer he is. His striking is deadly when he's in your face, and he alternates quickly to clinching and takedowns.

  • Get on top -- On top is where he's an offensive leviathan, and Wineland's guard is probably his weakest position.


The betting lines have stretched out for Benavidez in the last few days. I think Wineland will be a handful on the feet and in the clinch, but the style that Benavidez brings does offer the better chance of being invoked. I would not be surprised to see the crafty Wineland pull off the upset here with a fine-tuned sprawl and brawl, but Benavidez will likely get ahold of him and wear him down in later rounds.


My Prediction: Joseph Benavidez by decision


 

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Karlos Vemola (8-1) vs. Ronny Markes (11-1)


Leland Roling continues to peg the up and coming stars as another entry from the BloodyElbow Scouting Report makes his debut in the big show.


Brazilian Ronny Markes from the Nova Uniao Kimura squad has been called upon to replace the injured Stephan Bonnar to face light-heavyweight Karlos Vemola.


Markes enters the bout fresh off a decision over Paulo Filho and holds a nicely balanced finishing ratio with five wins by TKO and four by submission.


Vemola has split results in his two Octagon performances, suffering his only loss to stifling wrestler Jon Madsen at heavyweight, but dropping to 205 and returning with a vengeful throttling of Seth Petruzelli. Vemola trains with the London Shootfighters team and the decision with Madsen was the only time he's ever been past the first round in his career.


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Vemola is basically a battering ram with a brush cut. The sequence to the left versus Petruzelli captures his style perfectly.


He buries his chin and blitzes forward behind a cascade of power punches until he can tie up and devour with takedowns.


Vemola has an equal amount of stoppages by submissions and strikes at four apiece, but every catch was a rear-naked choke propagated by his thunderous striking.


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Vemola goes ballistic with his ground-and-pound like a shrieking housewife mashing a spider on the counter top.


It's not the most elegant approach, but if MMA has taught us anything, it's that the end result is the only thing that matters.


There are quite a few unknowns surrounding this match up: just like Vemola has yet to face a sub-specialist like Markes, the level of competition that Vemola represents will be a vast increase from what Markes has tackled on the Brazilian fight circuit.


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To the left is Ronny Markes drubbing Paulo Filho with his equally malicious assault.


The marked difference is that Vemola unsheathes a series of left and right hands, where Markes pumps out a wide range of devastating techniques.


The other significant disparity is that Markes is slapping around a 5'8" former middleweight in Filho and Vemola is a 6'0" former heavyweight and muscle-bound baboon.


I'm going to stay safe and play the odds on this one, veering toward Vemola based on past level of competition.


This will turn out like two alpha lions being locked in a in a closet, so expect a fan-friendly mutual massacre.


My Prediction: Vemola by TKO


 




 

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suess -  i'll be back to check this out and undoubtedly vote you the fk up


 

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Wow, VTFU for sure.

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 Thanks all.



I did seven fights for this, most with a lot of detail, but I breezed through the Miller x O'Brien and Caceres x Hettes fights.



By the way, watch out for Jim Hettes. That kid is an evil menace at 8-0 with 8 subs.

 

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slugshot331 - 
suess -  i'll be back to check this out and undoubtedly vote you the fk up


 


 Fack, that must be one high horsepower slab of ham to come complete with a 5-speed gear shifter.

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Uncle Justice - 
slugshot331 - 
suess -  i'll be back to check this out and undoubtedly vote you the fk up


 


 Fack, that must be one high horsepower slab of ham to come complete with a 5-speed gear shifter.



 lol

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ttt

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 No problem suess, thanks.

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 Good stuff as usual, boo.  Voted.

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ReX13 -  Good stuff as usual, boo.  Voted.



 A legitimate metaphor for this ambivalent opinion is the way one of your nipples points down; the other, upward, like a plant reaching out to the sun.

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Uncle Justice - 
ReX13 -  Good stuff as usual, boo.  Voted.



 A legitimate metaphor for this ambivalent opinion is the way one of your nipples points down; the other, upward, like a plant reaching out to the sun.



 Sorry, that's not ambivalence.  The weather in Kansas is just fucking weird.

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 http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2011/8/12/2357818/ufc-on-versus-5-fight-card-c-b-dollaway-vs-jared-hamman-dissection



UFC on Versus 5 Fight Card: C.B. Dollaway vs. Jared Hamman Dissection 


Gonzo_fist_tiny by Dallas Winston on in UFC Event




Jared Hamman doesn't have what I'd call fundamentally sound kickboxing skills.


K06o87_mediumWhat he does have is the power, aggression, and high output to make his striking a legit threat, as well as the durability and determination to swarm with it for all three rounds.


He clips Rodney Wallace with a high kick to the right, which looks awkward because he unleashes it at close range, making the kick "taller" instead of "longer".


Most of Hamman's rapid-fire arsenal is like a roll of the dice, as he's completely committed to offense with scant attention dedicated to defending himself.


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The style is somewhat akin to the old school Wanderlei Silva syndrome: sure, it might look sloppy and you can easily spot some holes to bore counter strikes through, but doing so means you have to march directly into his wheelhouse, and Hamman is quite capable and prepared to take a few in order to land a few of his own.


There's two things I love about Jared Hamman: his technical takedown defense, and the fact that he's kind of a lunatic.


Let's start with the latter. To the left, Hamman clocks Kingsbury with a wild looper, and then shows a little defensive porosity by digesting two nicely thrown punches. The strange aspect comes in when he executes a Scott Morris-like ninja guard pull.


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I spent more time pondering his thought process behind that move than I'd care to admit. The good news is that throughout the rest of the fight Hamman's takedown defense was unshakably effective.


Replicating this sequence to the right consistently will be crucial against Dollaway.


Watch Hamman immediately slide his right hand inside Kingsbury's left arm to break the body lock, then he swims under with his left hand to control with the body lock and tries an inside trip of his own, kneeing Kingsbury in the face after he whizzers to defend.


Hamman tried to take Kingsbury down twice, and even though I'd wager he knew it wasn't happening, I love that he goes for it anyway. It just gives his opponent one more thing to watch out for.


Hamman100_medium


Here we see another beautiful display of technique to keep the larger wrestler at bay.


Hamman immediately gets wrist control on Kingsbury's left arm when he's backed against the fence, peels the arm away and plants a sharp knee in his midsection.


This creates enough space to get his base underneath him, and he stands upright and transitions the wrist control to a twisting forearm that pegs Kingsbury in the head and causes him to disengage.


This is a perfect example of how clever Hamman is when defending clinch takedowns.


Hamman200_medium


To put this in perspective, Kingsbury can't match Dollaway's wrestling credentials, but he's an athletic 6'4" light-heavyweight who has shown impressive takedown prowess. He struggled to get Hamman to the mat and experienced no success in the few instances he could.


Here Hamman once again uses his feisty offense to enable an escape.


The wrist control is a key factor in this example too, as it allows him to pass Kingsbury's right arm and threaten with the triangle attempt.


Kingsbury reacts by posturing up to break the triangle, and Hamman fluidly switches it up by taking the left leg off Kingsbury's shoulder and planting his foot square in his chest, heaving him backward and allowing him to stand back up and attack.


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With nothing doing from the clinch, Kingsbury tries to shoot a double from outside (which is more Dollaway's style).


This is a ballsy move, but Hamman decides to go on all fours and scramble to the fence where Kingsbury can't drive any further, and spins to face him with a low base.


Again, he snakes an arm inside Kingsbury's grasp, uses the underhook to stand up, clears room with another knee to the body, and spins out of trouble.


The Dollaway vs. Hamman scrap bears a resemblance to Volkmann vs. Castillo in that the decorated wrestler will be looking to shoot from outside or clinch up and threaten with level drops while hunting for chokes, and their opponents will be slinging heavy leather backed by top-notch takedown defense.


 

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UFC on Versus 5 Fight Card: Amir Sadollah vs. Duane Ludwig Dissection 


Gonzo_fist_tiny by Dallas Winston on in UFC Event





 


Every hardcore fan has an assortment of exhilarating memories burned into their mind; a comforting melange of brutality and violence that we recall with heart-warming fondness. One of the first examples of a downright ass-whipping that sucked me into the sport and never fails to brighten my day was an early Duane Ludwig fight.


It was a time in MMA when the trappings of white tube socks and a pair of Vans were considered perfectly acceptable cage attire. Ludwig, who looked like a scrawny, prepubescent chieftain of the Earth Science club, enforced a short sequence on the ground, got to his feet and erupted into a harmonious whirlwind of Muay Thai devastation.


He pelted his opponent with a torrent of textbook combinations -- some still rare for today's standards -- as fluently as a bus-boy putting away silverware, only in fast forward: right low kick to left high kick, blinding punching combinations concluded effortlessly with cleaving low kicks and crushing knees to the body.


The swagger ran thick when, after his foe stumbled around clumsily in a daze -- clearly out on his feet and possibly aided by a deep surge of adrenaline or some sinister spell of necromancy -- "Bang" struck the fabled Karate Kid "Crane Stance" in the center of the cage before cascading more highlight reel destruction upon him.



Star-divide


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Ludwig is batting .500 in his last fourteen fights, which sounds worse than it is. His losses in that stretch include: Tyson Griffin, Josh Thomson, Paul Daley, Takanori Gomi, Lyle Beerbohm, Jim Miller, and Darren Elkins.


As you can see to the left versus Team Rough House's Nick Osipczak, his offensive prowess is still intact.


Sadollah is also quite capable and creative with his Thai onslaught, so the question is whether the former TUF alum will capitalize on the advantage of his submission grappling arsenal or treat the fans to trading hands with Ludwig. 5_medium


"Bang" prefers to get in tight and light off combinations with his hands, often grabbing the collar tie to spear knees and transition to the full Thai plum clinch.


There, short forearms and more knees are hammered home with strong control of the head.


You can see to the right that his intent is to close the distance, overwhelm with his rhythm and spark a slugfest where his startling hand speed tends to carry him through.


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It took me a while to get familiar with Amir Sadollah on The Ultimate Fighter until I realized that the so-called "Thai fighter" was the one submitting everyone from his guard.


In retrospect, Sadollah's pathway through the show is thoroughly impressive: he submitted his way into the house, finished Gerald Harris with strikes, submitted Matt Brown, then armbarred C.B. Dollaway twice.


Since the show, his kickboxing has not only improved, but he's retained a very distinct Thai style. To the left he employs the long front kick as a distance weapon.


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Again using his length well in these animations against Peter Sobotta, check out the extension Sadollah gets on the lead right hand.


His sweet spot is initiating on the fringe of striking range, where Ludwig likes to settle in the pocket and duel at intimate quarters.


I imagine Sadollah will pick his spots and sting with crisp and stretched out volleys before drifting back out of reach.






http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2011/8/13/2359769/ufc-on-versus-5-fight-card-amir-sadollah-vs-duane-ludwig-dissection

 


 

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UFC on Versus 5 Fight Card: Charles Oliveira vs. Donald Cerrone Dissection


Gonzo_fist_tiny by Dallas Winston on in UFC Event




Oliveira burst onto the scene with two spectacular submission wins over Darren Elkins and Efrain Escudero. Then, in a performance that will take him a while to live down, he carelessly allowed top contender Jim Miller to camp out on his leg and tweak it in various angles of discomfort before tapping to the kneebar. This was Oliveira's first and only career defeat, but it stamped a question mark on his fight I.Q. for his inexplicably lax attention to defense.


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However, eyebrows furrowed in suspicion quickly gave way to jaws dropping in astonishment when Oliveira returned against Nik Lentz.


Lentz has a reputation for suppressing his adversaries with efficient -- albeit nondescript -- fight strategies, but Oliveira chalked up a breakthrough performance with a torrent of unstoppable hostility.


He seamlessly transitioned from flashy combinations to flying knees to keeping the wrestler at bay with an array of submission attempts.


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A tell-tale sign of someone with uncanny fundamentals and punching power is when their opponent is floored by a blow that seems to barely connect, such as the exchange to the left.


Oliveira's lackadaisical defense is worth noting in this sequence, though it's hard to pick apart something that resulted in success, especially since this is another trait shared by Cerrone.


Of course, the outcome of Oliveira vs. Lentz was marred by an illegal knee and rendered a No Contest, but the Brazilian still made a strong statement.


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Despite their inclement striking and grappling standing as their trademark, both fighters are fairly adept wrestlers.


Oliveira was active with takedown attempts against Escudero and Miller, and to the right Cerrone times a nice double leg on Chris Horodecki.


The only advantages I see with takedowns in this match up is for scoring purposes; being locked inside the jaws of their active guards can hardly be construed as an advisable position. 


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As soon as the action hits the floor, each is contorting their bodies into a liquid-like submission or sweep attempt, with a library of options to choose from.


This will likely be a contest where the most miniscule factor could make a monumental difference, such as being a millisecond too slow to dodge an incoming swipe or adding an extra inch of depth on a kick.


If the fight goes the distance, it's possible their comparable submission skills will equalize and the judges' affinity for takedowns and top control will come into play.





http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2011/8/13/2361463/ufc-on-versus-5-fight-card-charles-oliveira-vs-donald-cerrone

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VTFU man, fo realz

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 ^Thank you.

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ttt