The Good, Bad and Strange UFC On Fox 20
The Good, Bad and Strange UFC On Fox 20
By Jim EdwardsHalfway through the evening, 'The Good, Bad And Strange' for UFC On Fox 20 was looking all a little too one-sided. Thankfully, a strong end to
By Jim Edwards
Halfway through the evening, 'The Good, Bad And Strange' for UFC On Fox 20 was looking all a little too one-sided. Thankfully, a strong end to the card with the four fights on FOX has made for a more balanced evaluation of last night's events.
We couldn't possibly start off with anything but the performance of Valentina Shevchenko last night.
Not many experts discounted the chances of the Russian before the fight but to see her put on such a flawless display after the first five minutes wasn't what most predicted. After being dropped by a nasty right hand in round one, she found the wherewithal to come back harder and execute a counter-punching master class that Holm had zero answers for.
If this is a sign of things to come with Shevchenko we may be looking at a future women's bantamweight champion. Next up we could see her face Julianna Pena in a number one contender fight.
Francis Ngannou is a scary man and last night he smashed his way through another UFC heavyweight in double quick fashion.
It's perhaps now time that the Frenchman takes a step up in competition and what better match up is there to put together than the French beast versus the 'Black Beast' Derrick Lewis? If it happens they will need to double reinforce the Octagon. These guys are big and if it goes down in a main event it would laughable if it's booked for five and five.
The former Ultimate Fighter series participant may never be one to challenge for the UFC's strawweight division title but she should be celebrated for her outstanding resilience and fantastic attitude. Herrig has neither the most amazing technique or skillset but she makes up for it tenfold with her guts, will and determination.
At the post-fight press conference last evening, Herrig said she'd overcome not only her own self-doubt but also complicated medical problems that came to light after her last defeat to Paige Van Zant. Now free from those demons, it will be great to see just how far she can push herself.
If there is anything that UFC Fight Night Alvarez vs Dos Anjos proved during International Fight Week, it was that you don't need big names to make for an entertaining undercard.
Last night was just one of those evenings. Five decisions in a row are not always a bad thing if the fights are close but UFC On Fox 20 had way too many guys coasting to decisions and not looking for the finish. It's neither worth naming names or pointing fingers but last evening it's likely that even some of the guys who won on the undercard did very little to further their careers in the company.
Thank god the main card was entertaining because this one wasn't even worth uploading to Fight Pass if the trend from the prelims had continued.
A special shout out and exemption to the point above is required for Jim Alers and Jason Knight for a barn burning fight in the second bout of the night.
This could have easily been placed in the 'Bad' section but given her previous it was more 'Strange' than anything else.
Simply put, last night was hard to watch if you are a Holly Holm fan. From the second round onwards there looked to be only one winner and to see Holm not attempt to fix her gameplan during the fight when it obviously wasn't working was a worrying sign.
Holm is better than the display she put on last night but something wasn't right. Perhaps some time out the spotlight would serve her well to collect her thoughts and come back rejuvenated. It's amazing to see how things have played out since that epic knockout of Ronda Rousey back in November last year.
While it may not be overly strange to hear that the UFC will be heading to the 20,000 seater Moda Arena, it still felt odd that UFC Fight Night Portland was chosen as 'the big announcement' to put out there while they were on 'big' FOX last evening.
The UFC have traditionally taken the opportunity of the larger platform on 'big' FOX to make some major announcements but not last evening. I guess we will just have to sit patiently and wait until they announce that UFC 204 Bisping vs Henderson II is going down in Manchester, England in October.
Halfway through the evening, 'The Good, Bad And Strange' for UFC On Fox 20 was looking all a little too one-sided. Thankfully, a strong end to the card with the four fights on FOX has made for a more balanced evaluation of last night's events.
The Good
Shevchenko's masterclass
We couldn't possibly start off with anything but the performance of Valentina Shevchenko last night.
Not many experts discounted the chances of the Russian before the fight but to see her put on such a flawless display after the first five minutes wasn't what most predicted. After being dropped by a nasty right hand in round one, she found the wherewithal to come back harder and execute a counter-punching master class that Holm had zero answers for.
If this is a sign of things to come with Shevchenko we may be looking at a future women's bantamweight champion. Next up we could see her face Julianna Pena in a number one contender fight.
Francis Ngannou needs to 'beat the beast to be the beast'
Francis Ngannou is a scary man and last night he smashed his way through another UFC heavyweight in double quick fashion.
It's perhaps now time that the Frenchman takes a step up in competition and what better match up is there to put together than the French beast versus the 'Black Beast' Derrick Lewis? If it happens they will need to double reinforce the Octagon. These guys are big and if it goes down in a main event it would laughable if it's booked for five and five.
Felice Herrig is made of resilient stuff
The former Ultimate Fighter series participant may never be one to challenge for the UFC's strawweight division title but she should be celebrated for her outstanding resilience and fantastic attitude. Herrig has neither the most amazing technique or skillset but she makes up for it tenfold with her guts, will and determination.
At the post-fight press conference last evening, Herrig said she'd overcome not only her own self-doubt but also complicated medical problems that came to light after her last defeat to Paige Van Zant. Now free from those demons, it will be great to see just how far she can push herself.
The Bad
Weakest undercard in recent memory
If there is anything that UFC Fight Night Alvarez vs Dos Anjos proved during International Fight Week, it was that you don't need big names to make for an entertaining undercard.
Last night was just one of those evenings. Five decisions in a row are not always a bad thing if the fights are close but UFC On Fox 20 had way too many guys coasting to decisions and not looking for the finish. It's neither worth naming names or pointing fingers but last evening it's likely that even some of the guys who won on the undercard did very little to further their careers in the company.
Thank god the main card was entertaining because this one wasn't even worth uploading to Fight Pass if the trend from the prelims had continued.
A special shout out and exemption to the point above is required for Jim Alers and Jason Knight for a barn burning fight in the second bout of the night.
The Strange
Holly Holm didn't come to the party
This could have easily been placed in the 'Bad' section but given her previous it was more 'Strange' than anything else.
Simply put, last night was hard to watch if you are a Holly Holm fan. From the second round onwards there looked to be only one winner and to see Holm not attempt to fix her gameplan during the fight when it obviously wasn't working was a worrying sign.
Holm is better than the display she put on last night but something wasn't right. Perhaps some time out the spotlight would serve her well to collect her thoughts and come back rejuvenated. It's amazing to see how things have played out since that epic knockout of Ronda Rousey back in November last year.
Where was the big announcement?
While it may not be overly strange to hear that the UFC will be heading to the 20,000 seater Moda Arena, it still felt odd that UFC Fight Night Portland was chosen as 'the big announcement' to put out there while they were on 'big' FOX last evening.
The UFC have traditionally taken the opportunity of the larger platform on 'big' FOX to make some major announcements but not last evening. I guess we will just have to sit patiently and wait until they announce that UFC 204 Bisping vs Henderson II is going down in Manchester, England in October.