MMA Tidbits For July 3rd, 2009
By Bryan Levick on Jul 03, 2009
Kevin Iole was asked the question of whether or not Diego Sanchez should be the rightful number 1 contender at 155lbs after defeating Clay Guida. Iole was very adamant when he stated that Sanchez is the number 1 contender and will get the first shot at the winner of the BJ Penn-Kenny Florian fight at UFC 101 in August. I couldn’t agree more, I am not going to try and hide the fact that I am a huge Sanchez fan but the man is 10-2 inside the octagon and has beaten two of the very best lightweights the UFC has to offer, plus he is exciting and very marketable and those qualities mean just as much as wins and losses do these days.
Antoni Hardonk thwarted not one but two robberies the other day in Los Angeles. Why the hell is this not on ESPN or CNN? If it was LeBron James or Peyton Manning it certainly would be front page material. I realize that Hardonk isn’t the most recognizable mixed martial artist around today but what does that have to do with the fact that he risked his life to help another human being. It is stories like these that need to be told and would help moron politicians who continue to rail against the sport understand how truly special these athletes are.
As I spoke about UFC 100 yesterday I touched on the three main fights that has captured the hearts and minds of all mixed martial arts fans around the world. Another fight that I am really looking forward to is Jon Jones vs. Jake O’Brien and believe me it has nothing to do with the Irish wrestler from Purdue. Jones is as exciting a prospect as there is at any weight in any promotion right now. He is versatile, strong and down right dynamic. He threw Stephan Bonnar around like a rag doll at UFC 94 and I am expecting more of the same from him next week.
GSP is making headlines by not only talking about his fight with Thiago Alves but by sticking the knife just a little deeper into the side of BJ Penn. GSP has gone on record saying he believes that Florian will not only win his fight against Penn but that he will be a better champion and is a much better human being. Whatever the case may be I think GSP has his hands full with Alves and should be concentrating on the task at hand and not about BJ Penn who is so far in his rear view mirror it’s not even funny.
See you guys tomorrow, if not have a great 4th of July weekend.
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WAR PENN! Anyway, I am not a believer that two fights in a division make you a title contender, unless you held a belt at another weight class or were a title contender there. Sanchez never earned his title shot at WW and could not get into contention. So he drops a weight class because he then believes he is the “best” there. Sure he beat Stevenson and Guida, but he should have to either fight the loser of Penn vs. Florian or another fighter like Edgar to gain a shot. He was not able to gain a title shot before, he should have to earn one now! I mean no matter what Florian’s first title shot was like in order to earn this one he had six fights since his loss to Sherk. Diego should at least have half as many before he gets one.