Comments on: UFC 85: A Serious Contender Born?

By: Ian

Ian — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:02:40 +0000

I agree he isn’t rady for the push just yet but hes at a point where beating cans isn’t going to improve him. Leben would be an interesting fight as would Leites but i think Dean Lister is over rated, his ground game is excellent no question about that but he hasn’t been finishing people. I still think Bisping v Tanner would be the most interesting prospect before he tackles one of the top 5

By: Curtis

Curtis — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 23:45:02 +0000

I am with ya on this one Josh.

In a way it seems like they are trying to pump up the Silva fight, but I would rather see a Rich Franklin vs Bisping fight before Silva vs. Bisping.

By: Josh "The IronMan" Stein

Josh "The IronMan" Stein — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 23:10:38 +0000

Um… I’m going with Vee on this one. I don’t think that Bisping’s a contender.

I’m figuring that Okami’s ahead of him, Henderson would get a rematch before him. Then you have Kampmann and Cote.

That said, I think that there are a few other guys in this division who would beat Bisping. (my short list includes all of the names above plus Franklin, Palhares, Lister, Leites and Marquardt)

I hardly think we should be calling him a top contender right now.

By: Vee

Vee — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 18:57:02 +0000

Serious contender, ok sure, but let’s not hail Bisping top 5 of the division.
Hey, I don’t by the line where A-Silva cleaned out the division.
There are many other fighters in the division. There’s no question that Bisping is sharp. He proved to be a great TUF standout and would give any MW fighter a good run for their money, that includes the top 3 of the division. However, I believe that the names like Almeida, Kampmann, Cote, MacDonald, and Leben are equally forces to reckon with, until proven other wise.

OK, I don’t want to see Silva-Leben II, but Leben deserves a shot against Hendo and Franklin.

“. . . and therefore its questionable whether he will even beat Kendall Grove.” Whoa, you’re talking about Grove.
Tanner is coming off a 2-year layoff and dealing with alcoholism.
Grove is coming off 2 defeats, both by TKO. His last defeat was to a very inconsistent (albeit tough) fighter in Jorge Rivera.