Carwin vs Dos Santos at UFC 131: Breakdown & news

This is, by far, one of the most interesting and exciting UFC heavyweight match-ups in recent years. It's one of those fights where basically everyone is torn when picking a winner. We have two very powerful strikers who each have only very small holes in their fight games, and both can end a fight in the blink of an eye. Let's take a look at the competitors for current #1 contender status:




SHANE CARWIN:

MMA Record 12-1

UFC Record 4-1



Shane Carwin is one of the most physically imposing fighters in the heavyweight division. Massive in stature, Carwin is surprisingly quick and agile. This, unlike the power he possesses in his hands, plays into the "wild card" aspect of this fight with JDS. We all know that he can KO Dos Santos if he catches him cleanly, but how will Carwin counter a fighter with such great boxing skills?



Carwin has had a string of impressive wins in UFC competition. This led to his fight against (then champion) Brock Lesnar. Carwin dominated this fight in the first round and then appeared to experience a full gas-out at the end of the round. This is definitely forgivable, and I am sure that losing the way that he did to a fighter he clearly should have defeated, must be driving him forward in his current run back to the title. Shane Carwin is one of the most exciting fighters in the UFC's heavyweight division, hands down.



Let's look at another of the most exciting fighters in this same division...



JUNIOR DOS SANTOS:

MMA Record 12-1

UFC Record 6-0



JDS may not have as much pound-for-pound power in a single strike as Carwin does, but it would be difficult to argue that he doesn't possess the better boxing skills? He appears to be faster than Carwin while standing. The "wild card" aspect for JDS remains the same in this fight. How good is his takedown defense and how does he look on the ground? IF Carwin tries to muscle JDS around, clinch with him and do what he did to Frank Mir a while back, how will JDS respond and will he have an answer to the physical strength of Shane Carwin? Can he use his outstanding footwork to keep Carwin in range, where he can capitalize on speed and technical striking advantages?



JDS has had a very impressive UFC run thus far. Introducing himself to UFC fans with a one-punch KO of Fabricio Werdum, followed by impressive wins over Struve, Cro Cop, Yvel, Gonzaga & Nelson. He has solidly positioned himself at the top of the heap for a title shot. This fight with Carwin is obviously what will now make or break this title run.

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WARRIOR SHANE CARWIN OFFICIAL FIGHTER MMA T-SHIRT SIZE X-LARGE
We haven't yet seen what has been dubbed "Carwin 2.0" in fight action. Since the surgery, recovery process, training camp and new diet, Carwin claims to feel the best he's felt in years. The results of this should be very interesting to see - and I assume that Carwin's cardio will not be an issue this time around. These factors weigh heavily in the fight being so difficult to call.



Who are you going with in this one? How do you see it going down? Can the winner defeat Velasquez?

Let us know what you think!

video from UFC 101 pay per view - BJ Penn Defeats Kenny Florian in the 4th round with a submission UFC 101

Watch UFC 101 BJ Penn vs Kenny Florian Fight here! bj penn vs kenny florian, ufc 101, bj penn vs kenny florian fight video, bj penn vs kenny florian ufc 101, anderson silva vs forrest griffin !watch ufc 101 Kenny Florian vs BJ Penn lightweight fight live streaming.

watch Forrest Griffin get knocked out - Anderson Silva Jabs and KOs Forrest Griffin UFC 101 Declaration

Hours after the most electrifying domination in a career filled with them, deep in a back hallway of the Wachovia Center, Anderson Silva was waiting for Dana White. Silva is the UFC’s middleweight (185-pound) champion but Saturday he boldly moved up 20 pounds and in a jaw-dropping exhibition, brutalized Forrest Griffin, who just nine months ago was the light heavyweight (205) title holder.
Silva knocked Griffin down twice, offered a hand to help him up once and then promptly floored him again for good at 3:23 of the first round of UFC 101. Most remarkably, he did it with a punch he threw while backpedaling.

It was a complete annihilation. Griffin failed to land a single punch and when he came to his senses, he sprung up and ran from the octagon, trying to push through a doctor’s examination.
“He might be in Georgia by now, he ran out and I haven’t seen him since,” White, the UFC president, joked.
That Silva could move up a weight class and not just win, but destroy with power, was a game-changing and perhaps UFC-altering moment. That’s what Silva and his manager, Ed Soares, wanted to discuss with White.
With his arm rapped around White’s shoulder, Soares leaned in and delivered a proposition. “Spider” Silva would move permanently to light heavyweight, even if it meant the unorthodox move of giving up his middleweight belt.
“I can do that,” White smiled, a bit stunned at the offer. “I like that. We can do that.”
Soares smiled and shook White’s hand. Silva had been accosted by a fan by then and couldn’t hear White, but it was presumably the news he was seeking. The man has such outrageous confidence in his abilities he’s willing to potentially toss away a championship he’s owned for almost three years to take a challenge outside his comfort zone.
“I’d let him,” White said later, sitting in his quiet dressing room. “We’d put [the middleweight title] up for grabs.”
The hour was late and everyone’s excitement was still high. Perhaps plans and goals change by morning, so White didn’t know what to say officially. This was still just hurried talk. He knew this much though, as a promoter there are more blockbuster fights for Silva at 205 than 185, where he’s beaten everyone of note.
Silva’s next title defense was supposed to be against Dan Henderson, who Silva savagely choked out in March 2008.
“Who knows,” White said, wheels already spinning. “We’ll see what happens. In the talks I’ve had with Anderson, he wants to take on the best in the world. He’s the most talented fighter in the world, the best pound for pound fighter and it’s a joke to say anyone else is. And he wants to continue to prove [it].”
White thought for a moment.
“He would jump in that mix [at the top of the light heavyweight division],” White said. “You’ve got Rashad [Evans], you’ve got Rampage [Jackson], [Lyoto] Machida is the champion. And Tito [Ortiz] is in the mix now.”
If Silva did vacate the middleweight title to move up full time, the ironic thing is that he claims it wouldn’t be to pursue the light heavyweight belt. At least as long as it was held by Machida, a fellow Brazilian and training partner.
“Lyoto is my friend, he is my brother and there is no way that fight will ever happen,” Silva said.
White, coveting a clash between two men who are both unbeaten in UFC competition, brushes that talk aside.
“I’ll make it happen,” White said winking his eye. “It’s not even about money. It’s about proving you’re the best, it’s about securing your place in history. It’s about putting on a super fight that fans want to see.
“I’m all about making big fights that fans want to see.”
Saturday was one of those fights. Silva was motivated by criticism that his last two fights – both victories mind you ¬– were dull, so he gladly moved up to take on a dangerous Griffin, who was known for his attack dog style.
It was intriguing, at least until Silva started toying with Griffin. He knocked Griffin down at will, dared him to connect with a punch, challenged him to be as tough as his reputation and then finally just finished him.
Coming in there was a “Rocky” element to the fight, Griffin the heavy underdog with the Philly crowd firmly behind him and booing Silva. By the end, Griffin was gone and Silva was being cheered. It was the recognition of brilliance overcoming any easy Hollywood storylines.
“He wants to be involved in the biggest fights we can put together,” Soares said.
The fact Silva took this fight is a testament to that. The Brazilian is 25-4 overall and has won all 10 of his fights in the UFC. At age 34, he could’ve sat at middleweight and potentially won 10 more, making nice money with relatively little risk in a division he’s been untouchable in.
That isn’t him though. Not even close.
So not long after stunning the sport with a legendary performance, there he and his manager were, trying to force a back-hall huddle with the UFC kingmaker. Move Silva to light heavyweight for good, they suggested to White.
With nothing left to prove at middleweight, Anderson Silva now wants to lay waste to a whole new division of the UFC. He doesn’t need a belt to prove a thing.

Watch Tuf Fight Diego Sanchez VS Clay Guida ( Fight Of The Night )

It didn’t take long for Diego Sanchez to establish himself as a legitimate threat for the Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight title after beating Clay Guida in one of the most dramatic fights in company history at the Palms on Saturday night.

Sanchez noted that Kenny Florian, who faces B.J. Penn for the title on Aug. 8 in Philadelphia was the same fighter he defeated easily in 2005, in the finals of the first season of The Ultimate Fighter, at a time when both competed as middleweights.

“He’s had two title shots and I owned him,” said Sanchez (23-2), who won his second fight in a row after dropping down from welterweight. “If he wins, it’s a natural rematch. The only other top contender for the winner would be Gray Maynard. And Nate Diaz beat Gray in the Ultimate Fighter, and Clay Guida beat Diaz and I just beat Guida.”

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Sanchez was at the time primarily a grappler, known for using his conditioning and relentless style to compensate for so-so striking.

But he’s a completely different fighter today, mixing punches, kicks and knees with his already strong submission game. He bloodied Guida badly from the first exchange, rocked him several times, and put him down with a kick, all in a frenetic first round.

The onslaught would have finished most fighters. But Guida (25-10) is not most fighters.

Guida, the human Energizer Bunny, barely got out of the first round, yet came back to win the second round, and came close to taking the third, leaving Sanchez with a split-decision win on scores of 29-27, 28-29, and 29-28.

About an hour after the fight concluded, when Guida came to the press conference after being stitched up, Sanchez went up to him and told him how much he respected him.

“We’re blood brothers now,” Sanchez said.

“I just got tremendous respect after tonight for Clay Guida,” said Sanchez. “I hit him with punches, kicks and knees right on the button and he kept coming. He’s known for his conditioning and he came prepared. I was prepared, but I wasn’t prepared for him to survive the onslaught I gave him.”

“If you can’t go 15 to 25 minutes, you’re in the wrong line of work,” said Guida. “I never felt tired. I was ready to go two more rounds.”

Guida, smiling, despite having a fat lip, a bloody nose and stitches above the right eye, didn’t seem down in the slightest over losing a split decision in what would have been the biggest victory of his career had he pulled out the fight.

The match drew natural comparisons to his Dec. 2007 showdown with Roger Huerta, a fight-of-the-year caliber affair that Guida lost in the third round. That match was also the main event of an Ultimate Fight Night card at the same venue. “This will be a learning experience just like the fight with Huerta,” said Guida.

“It was similar,” said Guida. “It was in Las Vegas. It was a night with some great fights. And he got a bloody nose on the third punch. This time I got a bloody nose on the third punch. The Roger Huerta fight taught me about the fine line between relentless and reckless. And I’ll learn from this. I still feel I’m the top fighter in the division and I want to win the strap.”

Guida, one of the most popular fighters in the company despite having only a 5-4 record, saw the crowd explode as he opened the second round with a takedown and kept Sanchez on his back, winning the round on all three judges’ cards.

Sanchez said he learned from watching last year’s Kenny Florian-Joe Lauzon match where Florian was able to open up Lauzon with elbows from the bottom en route to victory. While on his back, Sanchez threw elbow after elbow at Guida’s face, trying to open him up, to the point his right elbow was hurting after the fight. Guida responded with punches and elbows from the top.

The third round saw Guida connect with some good punches, although Sanchez still had the advantage. Sanchez’s best offense was working for a choke, as well as a Kimura, although the latter never came close. The fight ended with Guida on top throwing down blows, but Sanchez had done enough earlier in the round to win it on two of the three judges cards.

Even though Guida was the favorite to the majority of the crowd, the crowd seemed to accept Sanchez winning as the right decision.

“I don’t know how many stitches I got,” said Guida. “I don’t think it was that many, but when I asked the doctor, he said he lost count. I don’t like the blood. It’s the first time I’ve been cut since I was 18 and I graduated high school.”

For the first time in UFC history, company officials decided to give three best match of the night bonuses. Along with Sanchez and Guida, also getting $25,000 bonuses were Joe Stevenson, Nate Diaz, Kevin Burns and Chris Lytle.

Lytle (37-17-4) survived being knocked down in the first round and being in trouble to win rounds two and three over Burns (8-3). In the third round, Lytle threw a punch that left a huge gash over Burns’ right eye. He targeted the cut and won the decision on straight 29-28 scores.

Stevenson vs. Diaz was more a grappling match. Stevenson used his superior wrestling to take the first two rounds, but was unable to finish the elusive Diaz with his pet move, the guillotine, sunk in tight in the first round. Stevenson kept control for most of the second round to clinch the decision provided Diaz couldn’t finish him in the third. Stevenson (35-10) survived both a choke attempt and a guillotine by Diaz (10-4) and took the decision on straight 29-28 scores.