By Trevor Fik (The Cascade)
Print Edition: June 10, 2011
While many UFC fans are still basking in the afterglow of the largest mixed-martial arts competition in North American history, few paid credence to the Memorial Day bouts taking place in Las Vegas at UFC 130. For those who tuned in, however, the fights proved to be some of the most entertaining of 2011, with the fighters involved keeping the packed house at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in near hysterics for the better part of the night. In the wake of the UFC’s annual Memorial Day event, the race for contention in the light-heavyweight, heavyweight, and middleweight divisions has become much clearer.
After dominating performances in his last two fights at middleweight, former light-heavyweight contender Brian Stann sought to continue his run for Anderson Silva’s middleweight belt against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace Jorge Santiago. With the added pressure of Stann’s military history as a United States marine dominating talk of the Memorial Day battle, Stann landed enough big shots early to secure a second round knockout.
This puts Stann in line for a number one contender match. Given his popularity with the crowd and Dana White’s ringing endorsement of Stann’s “superstar quality.” it should only be a matter of time before he gets a shot at the middleweight strap.
In Frank Mir’s domination of heavyweight Big Country Roy Nelson in the co-main event, Mir put his grappling and improved striking skills on display, landing several big knees and elbows on the way to a decision victory. While the win wasn’t pretty, with Mir seeming content to grind out a decision, this makes it two in a row for the former heavyweight champion.
For Frank Mir the sweetness of victory was short lived, however, as injuries and criticism reared their ugly heads in the wake of his 20th career win. Mir left his lopsided unanimous decision over Nelson with a broken rib, accompanied by a severe tongue lashing from the notorious ball breaker Dana White. While White later recanted his statements, the fact is that Mir stuck to a game plan that assured Nelson little chance to unleash the overhand right that has been his finisher in past matches. Two victories in a row for Mir will allow him the opportunity to, at the very least, face off for a number one contender’s bout later in the year.
For Roy Nelson, the lat two match-ups have proved two things. Firstly, he is not amongst the elite of the heavyweight division. Secondly, Roy Nelson needs to seriously re-evaluate his game plan. While the hillbilly bar room brawler act may make people smile, it is not getting him any closer to a title shot. Losses to Junior Dos Santos and Frank Mir have proven that while Nelson can take a punch, he cannot do much else when faced off against well-rounded opponents.
In the main event of the night, former UFC light-heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson took Matt Hamill to a decision victory in decisive fashion, sending his deaf competitor tumbling down the ranks in a powerful statement to the rest of the division. By the second round of the three round battle, Hamill looked as if he had regretted his decision to call out Rampage, getting punched and stuffed every time he went for a takedown. While Hamill has the potential to be great in the division, he has a lot to learn in terms of striking and grappling before facing another top ten opponent.
For Rampage, the future looks undoubtedly much brighter. While he was unable to knock Matt Hamill out, he did show a slight glimmer of his old self as he punched and kneed his way to a unanimous decision victory. Rampage is now in line for either a title shot against Jon “Bones ” Jones, or a number one contender’s match. Much may now depend on the state of Rampage’s hand, which he injured in his fight against Hamill, and the outcome of the Phil Davis and Rashad Evans match at UFC 133.
While the fights at UFC 130 may not have been pretty, they cleared up the very ambiguous rankings of each division.
