UFC 96 Analysis

Follow the jump to see a little analysis I worked up for dreamfighters.com:

Winners:

Production values. The UFC unleashed some new graphics for their 96th numbered card, including slick fighter names presented while Rogan and Goldberg talked us through the match up. A new ring clock made its debut as well. The UFC is quickly approaching the larger cable networks in terms of its presentation.

Matt Hamill. His striking has improved steadily ever since his ugly loss to Rich Franklin. Tonight was no exception as Hamill continued his win streak in front of his home state with an unbelievable head kick KO of Mark Munoz. At the end of his post-fight interview, Matt exclaimed, “Hamill is back!” With a performance like tonight, it’s hard to argue.

Matt Brown. Where the hell did this come from? Just 3-4 in his last 7 fights, Matt Brown went off tonight, destroying Pete Sell in one round. He worked with the precision of Anderson Silva and the passion of Rashad Evans in this display of mixed martial arts expertise.

Shane Carwin. In his first main card bout, Carwin put an exclamation point on all of the praise he’s been receiving over the past few months. With a huge KO of Gabriel Gonzaga, Carwin proved that he can hang with the big guys. He’s probably a top 5 UFC heavyweight after this impressive performance.

Columbus, Ohio. They enjoyed 3 of 5 main card fights ending in a knockout in addition to one of the best main events so far this year. They were also knowledgeable and respectful of the sport and its fighters.

Jackson-Jardine post fight speech. Following the fight, Joe Rogan held the mic to Evans and Jackson, who engaged in the longest post fight trash talk session I’ve ever seen. It ended with Jackson proclaiming “you’re gonna see some black on black crime!”

Losers:

Mike Goldberg. Is anyone surprised to find Goldy here? During Maynard’s introduction, Goldberg initiated a bizarre tangent regarding his high school football days. Rogan quipped, “Live through those memories!” to which Goldberg excitedly answered “Got to!”

Logos in the octagon. I saw fighters slip on the logos, especially the center Bud Light one, on numerous occasions. These logos detract from the fighting by becoming an actual element in the bout. Some fighters (see: Patrick Cote, ACL) have said that they can cause injury as well. The UFC needs to think about how their advertising affects the quality of their product.

Yves Lavigne. During the Brown-Sell fight, Lavigne touched the fighters but didn’t stop the fight. That’s a no-no.

Gabriel Gonzaga. “Napao” has lost three of five and appears to only be capable of beating lesser-known fighters. When it comes to legitimate guys (Couture, Werdum, Carwin), Gonzaga crumbles.

Rashad Evans. The new light heavyweight champion would have enjoyed a stylistic advantage against Lyoto Machida. Instead, he’s drawn Quinton Jackson, who is a larger, stronger version of Evans. “Sugar” will need to heavily rely on his wrestling if he wants to hang with Jackson in May.