UFC 54 PREVIEW for 8/20
*Chuck Liddell (16-3) vs. Jeremy Horn (75-13-5): The indomitable knockout puncher versus the one of only three people to defeat him. Horn defeated Liddell with a triangle choke at UFC 19. But six years is so much time that Liddell is a completely different fighter. He’s lost only twice since that point, to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Randy Couture, both in 2003. He avenged the Couture loss in April. His KO wins, the majority of his victories, have been impressive. Horn is extensively experienced and excellent at submissions. He has an impressive record of 75-13-5, most by submission, some by decision. Two thirds of his losses were by decision, against the likes of Ricardo Arona, Couture, Anderson Silva, Renato Sobral, Kiyoshi Tamura, and Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera. This fight will tell us a lot about Liddell.
*Randy Couture (13-7) vs. Mike Van Arsdale (8-1): Two very similar fighters. Arsdale is 40 and Couture is 42. Both are skilled wrestlers. Couture is something of a superman and his excellent condition has propelled him farther than most human beings, seldom showing his age. At the same time, he was handed a knockout victory by Chuck Liddell in April. I wouldn’t characterize it as a fluke, Liddell was more than prepared in their last fight and Couture, well, older, but the punch that got him caught him off guard after the match had been paused. Another important statistic to consider is that four of Couture’s victories have come by submission, while six of Van Arsdale’s victories have come by way of submission. This may be a fight of attrition; will age be kryptonite for Couture on this night?
*Frank Trigg (12-3) vs. Georges St. Pierre (9-1)
*Diego Sanchez (12-0) vs. Brian Gassaway (19-12-2)
*Tim Sylvia (17-2) vs. Tra Telligman (7-4-1)
Dark matches:
*Matt Lindland vs. Joe Doerksen
*James Irvin vs. Terry Martin
*Trevor Prangley vs. Travis Lutter
NEWS
*Tra Telligman has been medically cleared to fight Tim Sylvia Saturday night. He was not cleared until earlier today, causing UFC to try to look for replacements at the last minute. All but one person denied the fight. He wasn’t injured, but didn’t complete on time the tests necessary for him to be cleared by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
*Sioux Falls, SD will now regulate mixed martial arts. Their city council voted Monday night to pass legislation that would ban “cage fighting” from city property and bar parking lots. Additionally, promoters have to obtain a police permit as proof of liability insurance and have a paramedic on hand for all shows, according to Minnesota Public Radio. It also prohibits venues that draw a fourth or more of their revenue from alcohol sales to host the events. The council was tied and the mayor, Dave Munson, cast the deciding vote according to the Associated Press. Sioux Falls is one of the places where the latest controversy around so-called “Ultimate Fighting” has taken place. Council members noted that pushing for the regulation was a way to curb the negative effects of a violent sport on their community.
“It was guys in this cage that’s about the size of an over-sized trampoline, just wailing on each other,” said Sioux Falls City Councilman Vernon Brown, as quoted by Minnesota Public Radio. “No style, no form. The thing that bothered me the most was watching the crowd.” He noted that alcoholic drinks were served at the events and feared they would get out of hand. A promoter of one of the events, Chris Christianson, is worried that liability insurance would be both expensive and a hindrance. He argued that if the city was going to regulate MMA, they should regulate all contact sports. Councilman Brown said that it wasn’t a real sport, because it has no rules, and involves no technique. Nearby counties are looking at similar restrictions.
*Coming off of disappointing ratings news with the Ultimate Fight Night special on SpikeTV, UFC received positive news with the August 15 edition of UFC Unleashed. The show drew a 1.8 cable rating, up from the 1.6 debut of the Ultimate Fighter show last season. The show also drew a 2.1 in 18-to-49-year-old males and 2.3 in 18-to-34-year-old males. The show featured Matt Hughes vs. Frank Trigg from UFC 45, Rich Franklin vs. Evan Tanner from UFC 42, and the Hughes/Trigg match from UFC 52. Additionally, the show did UFC’s most credibile job yet at promoting the main event of UFC 54, Liddell/Horn.
*Forrest Griffin had an MRI done Monday on his injured calf. There was no word on how severe his injury is and his fight for October 7 against Ian Freeman is still on.
*There will be a variety of UFC on SpikeTV this weekend, so if you missed anything, this would be your chance to get it. Saturday will have the Horn-Liddell special that was excellent and no one saw on at 8pm, followed by a UFC special of some kind. On Sunday from 2 to 8pm, they will air season one of the Ultimate Fighter again. From 9pm to 12 midnight, they will air the Unleashed series from the past several weeks. Sunday, on FSN, Pride will also be airing their special which features Liddell/Jackson, Jackson/Silva, Emelianenko/Goodridge and Cro Cop/Vovchanchyn.
