Early End to First Round Cost Maiquel Falcao at UFC 123

by Michael David SmithMaiquel Falcao has been criticized for his handling of the third round in his UFC 123 win over Gerald Harris, with UFC President Dana White admonishing Falcao that he was wrong to play it safe after winning the first two rounds on the judges' scorecards. White said his message to Falcao after the third round was that "This isn't the Ultimate Staring Competition, it's the Ultimate Fighting Championship."

But while it's true that Falcao was unimpressive in the third round, it's been widely overlooked that the fight never should have gone to the third round -- or even the second round.

In fact, Falcao was about to submit Harris at the end of the first round, but the horn to end the round sounded seven seconds early, depriving Falcao of what almost certainly would have been a first-round submission victory.

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Jerry Rice Red Grange Arnold Palmer Larry Bird Bobby Orr

Seagal is back! Zaftig action star works on Machida's defense

Team Blackhouse must be sold on the teachings of Steve Seagal. Just like he did before Anderson Silva's last fight at UFC 117, the action movie star turned Louisiana deputy, is seen working with another one of the team's fighters.

Seagal, a seventh-degree black belt in Aikido, takes Lyoto Machida through a number of positions. Most of the drills cover counterstriking and defense.

At the 1:23 mark, Seagal talks about how Mauricio "Shogun" Rua overwhelmed Machida with flurries. He tells Machida to move to the side and use the opponent's offense to counter. Machida is already one of the best counterstrikers in MMA. If Seagal can add anything to his game, look out! 

Silva told Tatame that people need to stop cracking on Seagal. He learned a lot from the movie star.

Machida lost his UFC light heavyweight title to Shogun back in May. He steps back into the Octagon this weekend against Quinton Jackson. 

 

Red Grange Arnold Palmer Larry Bird Bobby Orr Johnny Unitas

Hold Tight Clear Out

Hold Tight Henry is cleaning out his hard drive and made a montage of these forgotten clips.

Arnold Palmer Larry Bird Bobby Orr Johnny Unitas Mark Spitz

The Tatshenshini-Alsek: Ice Age Jackpot

The Tatshenshini-Alsek ranks among the world’s top five wilderness river trips. It’s a scenic rival of Grand Canyon and it bisects North America’s most pristine wildlife region—A Jack London land of wolves and wolverines, moose and mountain goats and Dall sheep, and one of the world’s biggest population of grizzly bears. Giant peaks 15,000 feet [...]

Mario Lemieux Pete Rose Willie Shoemaker Elgin Baylor Billie Jean King

Exclusive pictures from UFC 123

Check out exclusive pictures by Tracy Lee from the UFC's return to Michigan at UFC 123. See a poignant post-fight shot of Matt Hughes and BJ Penn, George Sotiropoulos submitting Joe Lauzon, and Phil Davis' new submission. 

Richard Petty Bob Beamon Mario Andretti Don Hutson Bob Cousy

A Molokini Snorkel Tour Offers an Unforgettable Underwater Experience

Approximately three miles off the coast of Maui sits an extinct, but no less impressive, volcanic crater known as Molokini. This underwater volcano is now home to a plethora of sea life, as it has been converted to Hawaii’s only Island Marine Sanctuary. Molokini Crater snorkeling offers some of the best underwater viewing around Maui, [...]

OJ Simpson Chris Evert Rocky Marciano Jack Dempsey Rafer Johnson

UFC 122 sub of the night: Siver thrills German fans

Dennis Siver is built like a mini-Mike Tyson so it should surprise no one, that he likes to stand and bang. Andre Winner also likes a good scrap. So when the duo decided to square off in the middle of the cage and flail away, there was no way the match was going to decision. Siver ate some great punches from Winner. When he landed his own big counter left, Winner hit the floor. Siver jumped on top, unleashed a nasty set of punches and took the back of the stunned Brit. Siver pulled off a nifty choke submission at 3:37 of the first round.

Siver - a Russian, who moved to Mannheim, Germany when he was 17 - sent the 8,204 in Oberhausen into a frenzy.The spectacular stoppage from Siver (17-7, 6-4 UFC) got him the submission of the night bonus good for $60,000. He's also earned himself a step up in competition his next time. Don't be surprised if Siver is a regular on the televised portion of several cards in 2011. He's an action fighter, who can potentially produce highlight reel finishes each time out.  

It might surprise some to hear that this was Siver's 10th fight in the UFC. He's been a hidden gem mostly fighting on the non-televised portion of the UFC's European cards in 2008 and 2009. With this win and the upset of UFC veteran Spencer Fisher back in June, he's now posted a big close to 2010.

Winner, the runner-up in the lightweight class on Season 9 of "The Ultimate Fighter," is at a crossroads. His hand speed is awesome but he just hasn't been able to get on a roll and establish himself as a player at 155 pounds. After two straight losses, Winner is now just 2-3 with the promotion.

Ben Hogan Walter Payton Lawrence Taylor Wilma Rudolph Sandy Koufax