The MMA Weekend Roundup

Luke Rockhold bounced back from his UFC debut loss by knocking out Costas Philippou with a brutal kick to the body. Rockhold has all the talent in the world to quickly work his way into title contention. The only Top 10 matchup at this point in time looks to be Mark Munoz. Rockhold could wait for the dust to settle from Machida/Mousasi and “Jacare”/Carmont, but a bout with Munoz makes a whole lot of sense.

Meanwhile, Philippou’s contender status is all but lost. He still holds a win over Tim Boestch, which keeps him in the Top 15, but it’s fairly obvious that he doesn’t have the package of skills necessary to compete amongst the elite. One has to wonder if Philippou made a critical mistake in leaving the Longo-Serra Fight Team.

Brad Tavares won his 5th straight fight, though it was another snoozer. His 5-fight win streak consists of victories over Lorenz Larkin, Bubba McDaniel, Riki Fukuda, Tom Watson, and Dongi Yang. All are considered tough guys, but everyone outside of Larkin is ranked outside of the the Top 25. Nonetheless, Tavares continues to win. He has better grappling than most people expect. Most of all, he fights smart, and knows what it takes to win rounds in the UFC. He claimed after his first and only loss to Aaron Simpson back in 2011 that he would have to make adjustments in his game to avoid losing boring decisions. He criticized Simpson at the time for his fighting style, but it seems as if Tavares has now embraced that mentality. Is Tavares deserving of a Top 10 opponent? The short answer is no. I would be just fine with him facing Yoel Romero, Thales Leites, or Tim Boetsch.

Lorenz Larkin is now 1-2 in the UFC. Both of his losses have came to bigger, stronger grinders. Larkin used to fight at Heavyweight, so it’s doubtful that he would attempt to move down to 170 lbs., though he may be capable of it. It wasn’t that long ago that Larkin won a decision over current title contender Robbie Lawler. Larkin’s aggression as of late has been stifled due to his worries about being taken down. His grappling has come a long way since his one-sided defeat to Muhammed Lawal, but he is still going to have an uphill battle against bigger, stronger competition.

Everyone seems to be jumping on board Team T.J. Dillashaw. He looked dominant in his win over veteran Mike Easton. He didn’t get the finish, which is a bit of a disappointment, but he was able to show the world once again why he’s one of the most promising fighters in the Bantamweight division. Dillashaw would love a rematch with Raphael Assuncao, but he will likely end up settling for a fight with Eddie Wineland or Takeya Mizugaki. A fight with Michael McDonald would be dynamite as well, but my hope is that the UFC will build McDonald back up with some easier competition following losses to Barao and Faber.

Yoel Romero and Derek Brunson put on a show. Not only were these two high level athletes throwing leather, but each fighter was hunting for the finish from start to finish. Romero’s striking defense is still concerning, but the KO power he possesses is downright scary. At his age, now is the time to make a run at the title. I don’t see him beating anyone in the Top 5, but I certainly wouldn’t count him out against guys like Bisping, Munoz, or Carmont.

John Moraga won a close decision that drew a bit of controversy. Moraga inflicted the most damage and likely stole the fight in the final 2 round as Ortiz seemed to be way too conservative in his gameplan coming into the final round. Moraga won’t be fighting for the title anytime soon, but he’s likely in line to face some of the division’s best.

Cole Miller thinks he’s a Top 10 Featherweight, though his record states otherwise. Miller is a talent, but he still has his limitations as a fighter. Miller is now 3-3 at Featherweight, though none of his wins were over Top 25 opposition. He will likely get a step up in competition due to his hefty salary and name value, but I’m not sold on whether he can actually defeat a Top 25 opponent.

Tuf alums Ramsey Nijem and Justin Edwards put on a fairly entertaining fight. Nijem’s striking is worlds better from his time on TUF 13, but he continues to keep his chin straight up. Edwards looked to be in great shape following his cut down from Welterweight. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t be surprise to see Edwards cut following his second straight loss, and 2-4 UFC record.

Elias Silverio is certainly a fighter to keep an eye on. I’ve been watching him since his day in Brazil, and thought he had the skills and athleticism to hang in the UFC.

Trevor Smith and Brian Houston will likely be fighting for their jobs next time out. Smith struggled with his conditioning for the third straight fight. Meanwhile, Houston seemed to show some promise early, but then may have gotten over-confident thinking he would win the decision. He literally gave the fight away in the 3rd round.

Louis Smolka pulled off the upset of the night. Smolka wasn’t that highly regarded coming in to the UFC, but now he is firmly on the UFC Flyweight radar. Smolka showed off a great chin, good striking, and excellent conditioning. His size will make him dangerous in this division. Alp Ozkilic is no joke, and Smolka made him a punching bag in the final round.

Vinc Pichel returned from injury, but still lacks a bit of polish needed to have a long-tenured career in the UFC. Whitelely will likely be facing his release.

Beneil Dariush was runner up to Louis Smolka for upset of the night. Dariush spoiled Charlie Brenneman’s return to the UFC by hurting him with strikes before scoring the submission finish. It was an impressive debut for Dariush and he will be a fighter to watch in the future.

Anthony Johnson was the star of the show despite being the co-main event. Johnson looks to be on his way back to the UFC, though he has made it very clear he will follow the money. WSOF has deep pockets, so it will be interesting whether there will be any sort of battle for Johnson’s services.

Another fighter that should be in high demand is newly crowned WSOF Lightweight champion Justin Gaethje. There’s still a few naysayers that doubt Gaethje due to his fight with Brian Cobb, but the guy has looked outstanding in nearly every other fight. Wins over Dan Lauzon and J.Z. Cavalcante highlight his resume, but I’m sure he will add to the list in the years to come.

Cody Bollinger and Tyson Nam hardly looked like top contenders for Marlon Moraes’ WSOF Bantamweight title. It looks as if Bollinger will get the title shot though unless WSOF signs someone outside the promotion.

Luis Palomino seems to have ended the recent surge of legendary veteran Jorge Patino. Palomino has had his run in top promotions, trying out for TUF, and having participated in a Bellator tournament. He seems to be most effective at Lightweight. Palomino holds a recent KO victory over Cavalcante, and a rematch could be on the horizon.

There wasn’t a whole lot of action this weekend outside of the UFC and WSOF. Brazil’s Jungle Fight promotion put on their 64th event. Flyweight prospect Rayner Silva once again shined and is likely on his way to signing with the UFC. Another promising prospect, Team Nogueira product, Matheus Mattos won via 1st round TKO.

In South Korea, Riki Fukuda fought for the first time since being released by the UFC. He scored a 2nd round TKO.

Lastly, Ryan Couture got back in the winning column following his departure from the UFC. One has to wonder why Bellator has not signed Couture considering they paid big bucks to for his dad to join their ranks.