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October 27, 2009

Shogun-Machida: Immediate rematch

This doesn't happen too often. While both parties agreed to it, rematches like this, especially with a title on the line, usually don't happen so quickly. Yet, it appears Dana White and both Lyoto Machida and Mauricio "Shogun" Rua have signed off on it so the rematch is a reality.

 The first one was an enjoyable fight to watch (from my perspective) and I think the rematch will be even better. I definitely feel like it won't make it to the judges this time around. I also feel like the Machida backlash will force him to do more in the next fight. I wouldn't be surprised if Shogun felt the same way, since he won the fight and still wasn't awarded the victory.

This seems like the right call. Especially since there's no one knocking on the door for a title shot at light heavyweight. With Rampage out of the picture, the Rashad Evans-Thiago Silva winner seems poised for the next shot, and neither of those guys can make as interesting a fight as Shogun part two. 

I think the lack of quality challengers has a lot to do with it, because other fights have had controversial decisions but weren't given immediate rematches. The Rampage-Forrest Griffin fight comes to mind.

Posted by Andy Knobel at 1:07 AM | | Comments (4)
        

Comments

While Rua deserves a rematch and I will be glad to watch it, I think this shows how the sport is hitting a wall due to shortage of competent athtletes. It is a new sport and unlike boxing and wrestling, there are no talent pools of thousands who started the sport during childhood, competed in dozens of amateur bouts, and became elite athletes with winning records prior to and as a prerequisite to turning pro. Aside from the elite college wrestlers and a few with extensive martial arts backgrounds who train like real athletes, most of these mma guys are hacks that first laced up a glove or grappled less than 3-4 years ago.

How come there's no coverage of the Shogun fight from last weekend at 1st Mariner? If you write about MMA for the Baltimore Sun, wouldn't it stand to reason that there would be at least some coverage of the local fight scene?

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About the blogger
Kevin Richardson has been a fan of mixed martial arts competition ever since UFC 3, when 600-pound sumo wrestler Emmanuel Yarborough was beaten by Keith Hackney. Kevin will cover the world of MMA — in Baltimore, nationally and internationally. He plans to take readers into the locker rooms and MMA schools, where they'll hear from local fighters and trainers. If you have a news tip or suggestions for the blog, please e-mail him.

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