MMA Trending Topics – Q & A – Volume 1

At first thought, no, but then you quickly recall Stephan Bonnar’s recent induction and it makes you wonder. Though Leben was a pioneer of sorts in the TUF era, he never truly made it as a title contender. Though he headlined a PPV against Michael Bisping back in the day, Leben never really made it mainstream. He definitely had his fair share of hardcore fans including myself.

Leben hit the nail on the head when he described some of his reasoning for retirement on Ariel Helwani’s show the other day. It’s just a different era of fighting and Leben’s style is no longer applicable. Bottom line is Leben is a warrior that showed he can win battles in and outside of the cage. I hope he continues to stay on the right path.

I was thinking Dan Henderson would be the top candidate, but it looks as if Henderson will be facing Shogun. Bisping was also a logical opponent, but he just got booked to face Kennedy. Cung Le is starting to look like one of the most viable options, considering both fighters’ age and ranking. I doubt the UFC wants to book Franklin against a top contender like Luke Rockhold. There are some options at 205 such as Sonnen or Nogueira, but I doubt either of those options happen. I say book Franklin vs. Le again. I’m sure Franklin wants to avenge that loss.

I don’t even think this is a debate right now. Bellator has put on over 100 shows and is owned by Viacom. They have had their fair share of problems in recent months, but if they continue to focus on promoting fights and keeping their fighters busy and well paid, they should be able to stay in business.

As for WSOF, they are certainly on the rise, but there just seems to be no long-term planning when it comes to their company. They are finally crowning some champions, but the whole organization seems a bit thrown together at times. I give them props for stepping up and employing some high-priced talent and emerging prospects, but they have an uphill battle gaining the ratings needed to stay afloat.

In my opinion, Grant now needs one more win to cement his #1 contender status. Grant earned the title shot based on his victory over Gray Maynard, but since then Maynard was finished again by Nate Diaz, and now there is a bit of doubt just how good Grant is, considering Maynard’s free-fall from title contention.

The Lightweight division is stacked with hungry title contenders, including Ben Henderson, Gilbert Melendez, and Josh Thomson. Grant will likely need to beat one of those aforementioned guys to challenge Pettis for the strap.

I’m going with Machida in this one. I think he has the speed and experience advantage. Throw in the fact that they are fighting in Brazil, and Mousasi is coming off a long injury layoff, and I think the odds are stacking up against Gegard. All that being said, Mousasi is still a very dangerous, young fighter that has yet to truly reach his potential. His calm demeanor and lack of urgency have many questioning his skills, but it would be foolish to discount Mousasi’s potential to one day be a title contender. I just don’t think that day will be on February 15th when he steps into the cage with Machida.