He beat Thiago Silva and Rashad Evans. Silva is not an elite fighter, and Evans only became one after he knocked out Griffin...who isn't really elite either, just got lucky to catch Shogun at the right time. Evans is the guy who couldn't beat Ortiz or evan dominate Bisping. I'm just really thinking that Machida may be getting overrated a bit here. I'm very interested in seeeing how this fight really plays out.
No chance. The guys hes beaten have been very good. And hes not just beaten them, hes absolutely schooled them Machida is rightfully in the group of top 5 ultra elite fighters
Why couldn't he finish Tito, he was actually very close to being finished by a triangle from Tito at the end of the fight.
Tito possesses two things - a hard head and a strong ground game. Why should Machida get close enough to bang on Tito's hard ass head and simultaneously make it easier on Ortiz to body lock him and take him down? He fought a smart gameplan and stuck to it.
Look at him like Kessler was looked at. It's not just who he beat BUT HOW HE BEAT THEM. Never lost a round, never hit, devastating in winning the title etc He has built up a lovely aura of invincibility that is fun to buy in to.
What are you talking about? When Greco full kneed him in the nads in the second round? Machida took down Greco numerous times, limited Greco's offense when he got top position on Machida and aside from some leg kick action, Machida controlled the fight. Greco fought well, but to say he "whipped" him is erroneous.
this should be a great fight. machida isn't overrated. However this should be his toughest fight because it is against a very skilled and experienced fighter. A win here will put him into the elite top 5 fighters. Machida may be the best fighter out there as far as skill and brains
Well he is trashing whoever they put in front of him. When Machida fought Sokoujou the the guy was coming off brutal KO wins over 2 top 10 fighters Rogerio and Arona and Machida totally dominated him, Ortiz is the longest reigning Champion in that divisons history and yes Machida did dominate him he got caught in a triangle but did escape and dont forget him nearly TKOing Tito, Thiago Silva was unbeaten going in and has since swallowed Keith Jardine and what did Machida do ? He battered that man and knocked him out cold. Rashad Evans was the Champion coming off stoppage wins of Liddell and Forrest who didnt just catch Shogun he dominated Shogun and also outpointed Rampage, Machida made easy work of Rashad and also put him to sleep and violently. Id say hes left no doubt on who the best guy at 205 is right now.
he gets hit twice every 2 1/2 rounds. With that fact alone I think hes underrated. You cant watch Boxing or MMA and see Machida, his timing, distancing, the best in- game tactics in the history of MMA and not think hes the future of this sport. (If it can approach the level of the sweet science). Add to that technique, defensive prowess, power/strength, a solid base and speed. You have MMA evolution at its peak.
Good post Jimmie. I just have to add the way he grab a hold of Tito and put his ass down in the mat. This is just not done, with the exception of a HW Couture. I thought that could have been a fluke, then He threw Thiago like a piece of rag and he swats Rashad like he was a MW. I mean I see a pattern here, this man is a ****in Ox. He just moves people with ease. OK now we know He's powerful, but now think, power is probably the least important facet of his game. ****in scary.
Everything he does is amazing I feel like when im watching him is like watching a great Quarterback go to work like a Peyton Manning where he almost already knows whats going to happen before the ball is snapped.