Bellator General Discussion and Info

[REDDzone]

I think I missed the fight that you're talking about.

And I'll take the mentally lazy jab as a compliment coming from the guy who will write a 45 page thesis on Anthony Pettis' haircut and its impact on the rest of the 155 lb division.

Don't worry Bernman, I still luh u boy.

There were a number of fights on Saturday with notable jiu-jitsu moments good or bad to dissect.

And in my long-winded hyper-analyses about Pettis I don't think I ever discussed his looks beyond acknowledging the fact he was aesthetically good looking but too much of a pretty boy. So you are projecting due to a superficial, albeit succinct analysis of the situation. I think the Mentally Lazy Susan moniker should be a keeper.

But still luh you more. And that doesn't make me gay either, because as Nem established before clearly someone with your name must be female.

[cowboyronnie]

Okay so is second tier really worth releasing though in the worst division in the sport?

Also, obviously a roided up Jones is better than Bader but seriously that fight was like 2010 lol.

I don't think it was a good move to release him, but I just don't agree that he's a fresh matchup for DC/Gus/Jones. He's in that Glover range where he's a good fighter and a good test for anybody coming up, but it's impossible to make any hype out of him fighting above him because those guys are so much better than him.

Meh, Gus fights once a year and his next bout is against a chinny middleweight. I don’t think it’s logical to argue that Bader couldn’t serve as a fresh matchup for him. Additionally, DC’s last match was vs Oezdemir lol, again not sure how Bader couldn’t be another body to fight DC and another name to add to his resume. Finally, I’d pump the brakes on talking about how much better Gus is than Bader. Gus lost to the top 3 guys in the division, he’s trying to crack into the same tier that Bader is trying to break into. Gus is probably like one place ahead of Bader in the LHW rankings.

hey hey hey. You're going Cammo, comparing match-ups and w/ls. Watch Gus fight. He is a **** destroyer, and he would run through Bader. When has Bader even hung with a top fighter like Gus has DC and Jones? Gus was right in there, giving and taking with the best for full fights. Likewise, when has Bader ever dismantled someone at the joints like Gus did Glover or Manuwa?

There is talk about Gus blowing through pro HW boxers in the gym. That seems pretty damn plausible given the Glover fight. And he now has his TDD on point. He is a serious threat to the top of the division. Can (and has) competed with the best.

Meanwhile, Bader catches dudes with overhands every once in a while. He's sure as **** not going to do that in a head-to-head against Gus, given styles. Gus is not going to let him close distance and Bader will get turned into chuck trying to do so.

This is all for naught anyways, as Mitrione will destroy him. Expect that he shoots for an ankle pick, like he did with AJ. There is no killer instinct here. He's fighting for a pay cheque.

Not to mention, I closed my heart to Bader the moment he gave Tito Ortiz a win. Tito Ortiz.

[cowboyronnie]

Do you realize Ortiz would have dropped nine in a row if it weren't for the Bader gimmie?

[cowboyronnie]

Got GOAT?

In all seriousness, he's an aggressive, explosive, dynamic offensive fighter. That should lead him to some really notable victories, but I think losses too unless he matures first, controls his temper, and sets up his attacks. He's leaving a lot of openings to get hit with unexpected blows. Those are the ones that hurt you.

Are you guys talking about Pico?

I don't see the temper. But his boxing is crazy good. The problem is, that it's a style good for boxing but terrible for MMA. He is incredible at throwing while his opponent throws, of mixing it up. There are many instances of it this weekend. It's the highest skill in boxing. But you have 8/10oz gloves on in boxing, so if you're rolling and throwing tight, you can throw when being attacked and there is little danger. In MMA, glancing blows, can put you out. I think he ought to take a way safer style, take his time, and use his hands from the outside.

[REDDzone]

Although I admit I don't see Gus in as positive a light as the majority of fans of this sport do, I really don't disagree with much that you guys are saying and I don't think we are that far off here. I'm simply stating that Bader could serve as another body in the UFC LHW division, is that really that ridiculous? Look at the top 5. Jones is ALWAYS suspended. Gus NEVER fights. They are giving guys like Volkan Oezdemir title shots. I'm guessing DC would value a name like Bader's name on his resume at least as much if not more than a guy like Oezdemir's. Bader had won 7 of 8 in the UFC at the time he left, is it really a stretch to think that it was a mistake to let him go? Especially considering LHW may be the worst division in the promotion.

And to be clear I'm not saying Bader is better than Gus. The argument I was addressing was that Bader couldn't even serve as a fresh matchup for the likes of Gus, who again is fighting a chinny MW next. Gus is better than Bader, but at the end of the day both are top 5 LHWs that are on the outside looking into the top 3 guys of the division (counting Rumble here), regardless of how competitive Gus was in his losses to DC/Jones.

[REDDzone]

Haha you guys are cray for bringing up Bader's losses to Bones and Tito. Those were both literally 7 years ago. Mitrione's wrestling is about as good as James Toney's.

Bader destroys Mitrione BTW and then goes on to destroy whoever else comes out of the other side of the bracket.

[REDDzone]

Quick sidenote. Talking about how a guys chin sucks because he got KOed by the likes of Yoel Romero (who missed weight on top of it all) or TRT Brazil Vitor is a huge pet peeve of mine. I'm using "chinny" here as a way to say that Rockhold has technical issues that lead to him eating a lot of shots. I don't actually see him getting KOed by shots that he should be able to eat.

[cowboyronnie]

My point re: Tito is that you have a responsibility to cosmic justice. Bader should have committed harakiri in the ring. You cannot bring satisfaction to Tito Ortiz into the world without retributing your own life.

Tito would have ended his career on an unbelievable low, if not for catching Bader. A crazy snap of no wins. Instead, he went on to finishing his career with dignity. Because of one man: Ryan Bader.

[REDDzone]

How are you going to feel after Tito decimates Chuck?

[cowboyronnie]

You think it's that clearly a W for Tito? Tito's punching is stunted and he doesn't have the power to test Chuck's chin.

[REDDzone]

I do. IDK if he was juicing or what but physically I think Tito looked as good as he ever had vs Chael. Chuck, on the flipside, hasn't won a fight since pre-Obama.

I mean, who really knows? The oddsmakers seem to agree with me though...

[cowboyronnie]

Michael Page is such a POS. He had another boxing match last night, this time against a 1-5 fighter, on a five fight losing streak. Page's first fight was against a guy who was 2-10. Apparently, he clowned around and then KOd the guy. a) Why are athletic commissions allowing this? b) How could you be a fan of this guy?? He is a coward, a sadist, and a bully.

[REDDzone]

Michael Page is such a POS. He had another boxing match last night, this time against a 1-5 fighter, on a five fight losing streak. Page's first fight was against a guy who was 2-10. Apparently, he clowned around and then KOd the guy. a) Why are athletic commissions allowing this? b) How could you be a fan of this guy?? He is a coward, a sadist, and a bully.

He's still sticking to his "I won't fight Paul Daley unless the fight is winner take all of the losers purse" which pretty much guarantees the fight never happens because not even bellator would play along with that.

Isn't Daniel Straus coming off a broken neck or something? Maybe he'd fight him next.

[Jasen777]

Rory / Mousasi is scheduled.

[Bernman]

It's a good fight I guess, so I'm going to be excited for it. But they could have created two title fights in the interim instead of one w/ Rory/Koreshkov and Moose/Lovato (if he got another quick win), which had the potential to build some original talent. This is just for the one night draw.

Shlemenko losing may have hurt plans for a rematch w/ Mousasi. But maybe they could have Shlemenko drop to ww finally and fight Lima. Create more contenders for the division in the meantime, refresh Storm, and give Lima an exciting match-up for a card w/ a chance to build back up too.

Machida apparently signed. Maybe they could give Lovato a crack at him to make a name quickly. Otherwise Machida is a viable option for Mousasi obviously. Coming off a couple solid wins so obviously has something left. But there's not a future in Bellator. The value is going to expire quickly. Bellator is leaning hard into being the senior tour.

[Bernman]

Bellator doing a ww tourney starting in late September. I would have preferred mw because that's where they more need to build-up contenders for a viable challenger, but I'll enjoy this edition.

Haven't announced names, but I'd like to see something like: Koreshkov, Lima, MVP, Shlemenko, Larkin, Ruth, Gracie, Storley. Amosov, Fialho, Fitch, and Daley are other viable ones.

I bet they'll put Fitch and Daley in it. Daley played himself out of ever contending imo and Fitch they should just match up with who they think will burn the blanket.

Hopefully MVP finally is forced to face some real comp. Tourney would be a big success for that alone. Build-up finally or wash out.

[cowboyronnie]

Yeah, it does force MVP to nut up. He will need a pretty shameless excuse if he wants to get out of this.

[cowboyronnie]

In other news, one of the Pitbull brothers calling out Chandler for steroids.

[REDDzone]

Hate Rampage/Wand at HW. Just let Wanderlei be. He was a slurring mess last time I heard him.

[REDDzone]

I'm not as down on Machida as some others. He's won a few in a row. I think giving him a guy like Lovato would be a mistake tbh, Machida just too experienced at this juncture.

People were kind of hating on Coker for not jumping on Rory/Mousasi immediately but you just never know what they have working behind the scenes. I think a Machida/Mousasi rematch is a pretty big fight for Bellator, especially after Mousasi alleged PEDs for Machida, etc. after their first fight (which was an absolute chess match btw).