ProphetFighting

UFC 104: Winners and Losers

Well, we all saw it… more on the sham that was Shogun and Machida later. But first, after cards I like to take a look at the real winners and losers, beyond just the results, as a wrap up.

Winners:
Joe Stevenson demonstrated that his performance against Nate Diaz was not an aberration. Greg Jackson has done wonders for him.
Anthony Johnson though he might be destined for 185, he put 2 divisions on notice tonight.
Cain Velasquez in that he made me look like an idiot, but that’s not that hard to do
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua is not only “back” but he was clearly embraced by the fans. He was able to fight under total control and show that he, not Machida, could dictate the pace of the fight. He was able to abuse Machida’s legs and side and weaken him. He is a winner in the fans’ eyes and, in this sport, that can be as important as winning on the judges’ cards.

Losers:
Yushin Okami is now, well, screwed. Once, he was next in line, then he got injured, it became clear that he was not marketable, and now gets schooled by Chael Sonnen. The UFC now has little reason to promote him, and one has to wonder if he’ll ever see a main card in the organization again.
Lyoto Machida obviously. He was exposed, if only somewhat. He appeared frustrated at times and his power was sapped by the vicious body and leg attack from Shogun. The UFC light heavyweight division is even more chaos than anticipated, somehow.
But, the biggest losers tonight were all MMA fans, fighters, writers, promoters, referees, good judges and even sponsors. Demonstrably bad decisions are bad for the sport in every regard. Reform is needed, and it has been ignored for too long by the powers that be.

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