UFC 142 (Official Discussion)

OU wrote:

freakzilla wrote:

AJ cuts down from 225.

What does Vitor cut down from?

Not sure to be honest.

freakzilla wrote:

killerofchicken wrote:

Maynard is in Brazil training with Aldo. Im sure that will help Aldo a great deal with his wrestling

Why the hell would Maynard help him? Aldo will move up soon and they might have to fight.

Because training down there is obviously going to help Maynard get better

Fuel gets facebook type prelims and FX gets the Spike ones right?

Eventually maybe but I know for this card every prelim is FX and there is another card coming up where they are all on Fuel. Who knows

Wolfgangsta wrote:

Fuel gets facebook type prelims and FX gets the Spike ones right?

I think that's right.

Ariel Helwani
@arielhelwani
Aldo says it's been "a great pleasure" training with @graymaynard. He adds that Maynard has really helped everyone out at Nova Uniao.

Ariel Helwani
@arielhelwani
Interesting tone from Vitor when asked about Sonnen's potential safety issues if he fights in Brazil. " ... Not my problem," he said.

freakzilla wrote:

AJ cuts down from 225.

but is it a fat 225? Cause if so, then it's not that relevant.


Weight on fight night is the important #.

OU wrote:

Ariel Helwani
@arielhelwani
Interesting tone from Vitor when asked about Sonnen's potential safety issues if he fights in Brazil. " ... Not my problem," he said.

love it.

captain organic wrote:

freakzilla wrote:

AJ cuts down from 225.

but is it a fat 225? Cause if so, then it's not that relevant.


Weight on fight night is the important #.

I know the fat AJ shown here

was more around the 240 range. But I'm sure even at 225 regularly he carries around a little extra padding.

http://mmajunkie.com/news/26811/ufc-142s-anthony-johnson-done-for-now-with-welterweight-division.mma
After years of cutting in excess of 30 pounds – and sometimes as much as
50 – to fight in the welterweight division, Anthony Johnson likes the
idea of fighting at middleweight.

So much so, in fact, that he's "so far" done with his former weight class.

"This is easy," he said. "This is going to be a lot of fun for me."

Johnson (10-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) is now 215 pounds in advance of his debut at
middleweight, which comes Jan. 14 at UFC 142 against former champ Vitor
Belfort (20-9 MMA, 9-4 UFC). Johnson vs. Belfort is part of the main
card of the pay-per-view event. Preliminary-card bouts air live on FX.

"Everything has come to where it needs to be right now," Johnson said. "I'm peaking at the right time."

Previously, Johnson struggled just to make weight in the 170-pound
divisions. On two occasions the 27-year-old failed to get down to 171
pounds, which is the minimum weight required for non-title welterweight
bouts. At UFC 104, he was so weak he was carried to and from the
weigh-ins, and he was fined 20 percent of his purse for the miss.

Still, Johnson repeatedly brushed off questions about moving up in weight to 185 pounds.

But fewer than two weeks out from the Jan. 14 fight, he's of a different mind.

"Right now, middleweight is where I am, and that's all I'm thinking
about," he said. "I really don't mind fighting (at) middleweight because
I get to eat more now. So I feel a thousand times better than when I
fought at 170. That's why I'm so happy and want to fight really bad."

Johnson stands to leapfrog others at middleweight with a win over
Belfort, who this past February was knocked out by reigning champ
Anderson Silva.

When he talks like that, it makes the idea of fighting at 170 sound pretty silly.

Aj is a new breed hw looking to fight at bantam by the end of this.

captain organic wrote:

When he talks like that, it makes the idea of fighting at 170 sound pretty silly.

Most things said pre-fight from fighters is just a bunch of BS. If he talks about how he is really a WW and just taking this 1 fight, it kind of takes away from the current matchup.

Wolfgangsta wrote:

Aj is a new breed hw looking to fight at bantam by the end of this.

Are you calling him the black Skinny Florian?

OU wrote:

captain organic wrote:

When he talks like that, it makes the idea of fighting at 170 sound pretty silly.

Most things said pre-fight from fighters is just a bunch of BS. If he talks about how he is really a WW and just taking this 1 fight, it kind of takes away from the current matchup.

but given certain facts, like his walk around weight, his inability to make 171 on multiple occasions, and the general notion of a famished fighter being a weakened fighter, the talk must be given credence.

I'll believe it post fight. He gets knocked out cold and he will be back to cutting massive amounts of weight.

http://www.mmamania.com/2012/1/4/2683328/chad-mendes-i-dont-care-who-jose-aldo-trains-with-their-wrestling-is

UFC 142: Chad Mendes doesn't care who Jose Aldo trains with, his wrestling is better than theirs

Undefeated Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight Chad Mendes will have the unenviable task of stepping into the Octagon against one of the most dangerous strikers in mixed martial arts (MMA) -- 145-pound champion Jose Aldo.

Mendes will collide with "Scarface" in the UFC 142 main event on Jan. 14, 2012, in hostile territory at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The former NCAA Division-1 wrestler has undoubtedly earned his shot at the featherweight title, remaining unbeaten (11-0) in his young mixed martial arts (MMA) career, while relying heavily on his exceptional mat experience to control the pace of fights.

As a member of Team Alpha Male, Mendes has trained alongside UFC featherweight Urijah Faber, who can provide invaluable inside information to "Money," seeing as how "The California Kid" spent 25 minutes locked inside a cage with Aldo at World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) 48, losing via unanimous decision.

In an attempt to brush up on his wrestling skills to contend with those of Mendes, Aldo enlisted the services of former number one contender, UFC lightweight Gray Maynard, another accomplished wrestling powerhouse.

Speaking at today's UFC 142 conference call, Mendes feels that his skills are more than enough to dethrone the featherweight champion, regardless of who Aldo has in his camp.

Check it out:

"I don't care who Jose trains with. I train with some of the best guys in the world. It's what I've done my entire life and I don't take a year off ever. You can work with the best wrestler in the world but his wrestling is not going to be anywhere near mine. Maynard doesn't know how good I am. He's just saying that because he's training with Aldo. I feel I'm prepared. My stand-up is gonna be good and my wrestling will be better. I'm in the best spot possible. I think Jose has all the pressure on his shoulders. He's the one fighting in his home crowd, he's the one with the belt. I feel my skills are enough to beat him and all the pressure is on him. I don't think any of the guys that fought him have the wrestling credentials or ability to get him to the ground and hold him there. We figured out his strengths and weaknesses. We've gone over situations and we've come up with something that's gonna be great for the 14th."

Unbeaten in his last 13 fights, Aldo has proven to be one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world, breezing through his opponents with relative ease, relying heavily on his laser-like striking.

However, Mark Hominick -- who is not known for great wrestling -- was able to take the Brazilian down at will in their co-main event bout at UFC 129 this past April, taking the 145-pound champion the distance. It's an eye-opening performance that Mendes surely picked up on and hopes to capitalize when they step into the Octagon next weekend.

Can Mendes go into the Brazilian's home turf and end the reign of Aldo atop the featherweight division using his impressive wrestling techniques? Or will "Scarface" continue his dominance with his striking in this classic striker vs. grappler match up?

OU wrote:

Ariel Helwani
@arielhelwani
Aldo says it's been "a great pleasure" training with @graymaynard. He adds that Maynard has really helped everyone out at Nova Uniao.

Just now seeing this. Great move by Aldo. Problem is Mendes is a better MMA wrestler and is so much quicker. It will help with the clinch and defending the takedown against the cage.

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Scars have been Money in recent UFC title matches.

If Rumble stands he's getting put down. Dude was pretty much outstruck by Koscheck

love at first sight