MMA Trending Topics – Q & A – Volume 4
There’s a couple guys that could end up making it in the UFC beyond a couple of fights. Kajan Johnson looks exciting, though injury prone. Nordine Taleb lost his last fight, but could be a very capable Welterweight. I’m not sure why he chose to move up to 185 lbs. for TUF. Chad Laprise is a solid striker, but he has his limitations and would certainly need to move down to 155 lbs.
The two standouts from the show in my eyes are Middleweights Elias Theodorou (Team Canada) and Tyler Manawaroa (Team Australia). Both guys are still young in the sport, and have shown a great deal of promise on the independent circuit. Theodorou is much more polished and well-rounded than any other Middleweight on the show. Manawaroa is likely not going to receive a UFC contract after the whole Instagram fallout, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him make his way back in the future. The kid is only 19 years old and just beat an established veteran in Nordine Taleb. Manawaroa is sort of a one-trick pony right now, but with a few more years of experience and training under his belt, he could be one of Australia’s top fighters.
In all honesty, UFC 170 looks like a Fight Night card to me. Ronda Rousey and Rory MacDonald are the only two stars on the card. The UFC will attempt to pin its hopes on Rousey carrying this card, and they probably will be able to squeeze out a decent amount of PPV buys. The problem is that fans don’t feel compelled to buy every UFC PPV. They stop following the sport as closely, and the sport as a whole suffers. The UFC has lost a vast majority of its regular PPV audience because they haven’t been able to deliver the value needed to justify $55.
Even if Silva has all charges dropped, his days in the UFC are likely done forever. He was already considered on thin ice for his recent suspensions. Silva was still a marquee name and a fringe Top 10 talent, but he isn’t worth the trouble at this stage in his career. There are rumors that he could be deported to Brazil, which would rule out any hopes of even competing in another major North American promotion. I could see Bellator or WSOF giving him another chance if he’s allowed to remain stateside. WSOF has a very close relationship with Blackzilians’ kingpin Glenn Robinson, so I’m sure they would be willing to sign him if he’s able and willing.
The short answer is no. There is young up and coming talent like Michael McDonald, T.J. Dillashaw, Pedro Munhoz, and Aljamain Sterling, but the latter two haven’t even debuted in the UFC yet, and they’re a long way off from ever competing for a title. Dominick Cruz is still on the mend, but even if he returns, I don’t see him having a chance against Barao after such a long layoff. A possible darkhorse is Iuri Alcantara. He’s the exact type of matchup that could challenge Barao on the feet. All that being said, Urijah Faber still has the best shot in my eyes, though we all saw what happened in their last fight.
I would hope not. It took a long time to eventually get Melendez in the UFC, and he is is still arguably a Top 3 Lightweight in the world. These are just contract negotiations that unfortunately have been publicized to the media. Melendez’s Strikeforce contract was very lucrative. He was being paid as a champion, and currently in the UFC he is not. Melendez is a great fighter, but people aren’t lining up to buy PPVs because of him. Melendez deserves respect in this sport, but he’s likely going to have to take a slight pay cut to re-sign with the UFC. People have to remember Strikeforce went out of business for a reason, and one of the main reasons was the amount they were paying to their fighters.
Photo Credit: www.sherdog.com, Dave Mandel
