Stefan Struve vs Paul Buentello - Don't bother with this one. One guy thought he was a "fighter" because he's really tall; the other guy wasn't sure what he was supposed to be doing (in the Octagon). So for 15 agonizing minutes, the two kind of stared at each othe, threw a few punches, and gasped for air. What a an absolute waste of time.
Clay Guida vs Kenny Florian - This was actually a far better fight than I ever expected, with a conclusion that you might not expect. Definitely one of the better fights on this card!
Jon Fitch vs Mike Pierce - Not the most boring fight on the card (that honor goes to the opening non-fight between Struve vs Buentello) but certainly not all that riveting. It ended with a flurry, but the last 30 seconds were the only thing worth watching.
Frank Mir vs Cheick Kongo - Wow! Wow! and WOW!!!! The fight was well deserving of all the verbal sniping beforehand. Cheick had an obvious disliking for Frank Mir (why, I'm not sure; obviously Frank got under Cheick's thin skin but he [Frank] didn't say much that I could construe as a personal dislike or disrespect for Cheick. But Cheick obviously took it personally and really got riled about it.) and if you really want to enjoy this fight, watch the short lead-in before the fight; the comments from both fighters, the way Cheick Kongo blatantly turned his back to Frank at their weigh-in, the staredown before the match...watch it all and then watch the fight. And tell me you're not impressed. This was definitely "one for the ages".
Diego Sanchez vs B.J. Penn - I would love to voice my opinion here but I can't without spoiling this one and it's far too good a fight to be spoiled with an early reveal. So let it just suffice to say, this was an incredible match between two top fighters and the better fighter was clear from start to finish. It was (IMO) a very lopsided fight, with the skill of one man clearly surpassing that of the other but there was no denying at the end of it all that two top fighters had put their all into this one.
Apart from that opening snoozefest between Paul Buentello vs Stefan Struve, this was a superb card with great, great fights on it. I went into it hoping it wouldn't be super-lengthy because the names on the card were none of my favorites, but I was NOT disappointed: this card was prime "fighting" at its best. Definitely worth watching!
Review by ShubesBlockedParent2023-08-22T22:43:58Z
Stefan Struve vs Paul Buentello - Don't bother with this one. One guy thought he was a "fighter" because he's really tall; the other guy wasn't sure what he was supposed to be doing (in the Octagon). So for 15 agonizing minutes, the two kind of stared at each othe, threw a few punches, and gasped for air. What a an absolute waste of time.
Clay Guida vs Kenny Florian - This was actually a far better fight than I ever expected, with a conclusion that you might not expect. Definitely one of the better fights on this card!
Jon Fitch vs Mike Pierce - Not the most boring fight on the card (that honor goes to the opening non-fight between Struve vs Buentello) but certainly not all that riveting. It ended with a flurry, but the last 30 seconds were the only thing worth watching.
Frank Mir vs Cheick Kongo - Wow! Wow! and WOW!!!! The fight was well deserving of all the verbal sniping beforehand. Cheick had an obvious disliking for Frank Mir (why, I'm not sure; obviously Frank got under Cheick's thin skin but he [Frank] didn't say much that I could construe as a personal dislike or disrespect for Cheick. But Cheick obviously took it personally and really got riled about it.) and if you really want to enjoy this fight, watch the short lead-in before the fight; the comments from both fighters, the way Cheick Kongo blatantly turned his back to Frank at their weigh-in, the staredown before the match...watch it all and then watch the fight. And tell me you're not impressed. This was definitely "one for the ages".
Diego Sanchez vs B.J. Penn - I would love to voice my opinion here but I can't without spoiling this one and it's far too good a fight to be spoiled with an early reveal. So let it just suffice to say, this was an incredible match between two top fighters and the better fighter was clear from start to finish. It was (IMO) a very lopsided fight, with the skill of one man clearly surpassing that of the other but there was no denying at the end of it all that two top fighters had put their all into this one.
Apart from that opening snoozefest between Paul Buentello vs Stefan Struve, this was a superb card with great, great fights on it. I went into it hoping it wouldn't be super-lengthy because the names on the card were none of my favorites, but I was NOT disappointed: this card was prime "fighting" at its best. Definitely worth watching!