UFC 170 Review: Rousey and Cormier remain unbeaten

Kingdom MMA Review of UFC 170

by Sam Heard @SamHeard_

Another UFC event is in the books and – it must be said – compared to the lacklustre events fans have witnessed so far in 2014, this one was actually very enjoyable. With several notable attendees there to experience a night at the fights including Will Smith with family and Stone Cold Steve Austin, the event certainly delivered overall. While the main card was generally outstanding, this was primarily thanks to the fights outside the main and co-main events (which were on both counts painfully one sided).

RONDA ROUSEY (9-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) VS. SARA MCMANN (7-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC)

For a long time now Sara McMann has been slated as the woman to eventually dethrone Rousey, utilising her Olympic-level wrestling to neutralise the champion’s judo. Despite this lofty praise, when this fight was announced back in December, many believed that McMann had been given the title shot too soon and she would be far better off amassing more MMA experience.

These fears were confirmed yesterday when Rousey picked up the TKO win over McMann coming via a wicked knee to the liver. The stoppage resulted in a chorus of boos from the fans in attendance, who believed Herb Dean stepped in prematurely – Herb seems to be on bad form of late … It’s unfortunate as until that point McMann and Ronda had been throwing bombs at each other in a highly entertaining first minute.

It was believed that the chink in McMann’s armour would be her striking and – whether you dispute the stoppage or not – this was confirmed last night. McMann did show flashes of promise though; she managed to stuff the hip toss of Ronda which was so dominant in her last match.

Next in line to face Ronda will likely be Alexis Davis who picked up a huge win on the undercard, though Cyborg’s recent announcement that she will be dropping to 135-lbs could throw a spanner in the works.

Result: Ronda Rousey def. Sara McMann via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:06

DANIEL CORMIER (14-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) VS. PATRICK CUMMINS (4-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)

This one went exactly according to the script as DC made his Light Heavyweight debut with a bulldozing victory over UFC debutant Patrick Cummins. DC was as high as a 1/16 favourite with UK bookmakers and, as the odds suggest, he made short work of Rashad Evan’s late replacement.

The former Olympic wrestler barely utilised any of his wrestling skills as he quickly rocked the newcomer with a vicious uppercut from the clinch. This visibly stunned Cummins triggering DC’s killer instinct to swarm him with punches till the then-unbeaten Light Heavyweight collapsed under the relentless pressure, making it an easy call for Mario Yamasaki to step in.

I was never a fan of this fight. Props to Patrick Cummins for stepping up, but making your UFC debut in the co-main event of a PPV against a guy like Cormier does not make for good viewing. Though I expect the UFC to use this win to hype DC fighting at 205-lbs, realistically it proves absolutely nothing. Here’s hoping that we’ll see that DC vs Rashad fight in the not-too-distant future.

Result: Daniel Cormier def. Patrick Cummins via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:19

RORY MACDONALD (16-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) VS. DEMIAN MAIA (18-6 MMA, 12-6 UFC)

In what would receive ‘Fight of the Night’ honours, we saw the clash of two top Welterweight fighters coming off loses looking to put their names back in the title mix. It would pit the awesome BJJ skills of Demian Maia against the more well-rounded Rory Macdonald, or in other words the timeless grappler vs striker matchup.

In the first round Maia scored a quick takedown and – for what remained of the five minute – displayed his amazing BJJ to dominate Macdonald on the ground. Every time Rory attempted an escape of a sweep Demian would be two moves ahead in a highly compelling chess match taking place on the ground. To his credit, Macdonald managed to survive the round and took the fight to Maia in the second, using his rangy attacks to bloody-up and rock the former Middleweight title contender on the feet.

Going into the third round it was unquestionably one round apiece. Macdonald had inflicted the more damage but if Maia could somehow take Rory back down to his world he could steal the win. Though Maia was able to get the quick takedown, Macdonald displayed grappling skills of his own to stand-up and continue the fight on the feet. He then continued to win the final round on the feet, easily stuffing the remainder of the Brazilian’s takedown attempts.

Rory may now be in a position where he is next in line to challenge the winner of the Hendricks vs Lawler match-up as he showed the aggression many believed he’d been lacking in his more recent fights.

Result: Rory MacDonald def. Demain Maia via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

MIKE PYLE (26-9-1 MMA, 9-4 UFC) VS. T.J. WALDBURGER (16-9 MMA, 4-4 UFC)

Experience triumphed over youth in this Welterweight clash as veteran Mike Pyle was able to get the late TKO stoppage over Waldburger.

Waldburger has built a name for himself for being an all-or-nothing style fighter – either he’ll pick up a flashy submission victory or he’ll be unconscious on the mat. Who needs judges, eh? True to form, this one didn’t hit the scorecards as a late flurry from Pyle which started with a spinning back fist rocked Waldburger, forcing him to shoot for a half-hearted takedown. Pyle reversed the attempt and found himself on top of Waldburger, raining down some of the heaviest elbows you’re ever likely to see in MMA. It was clear that Waldburger – who is known for his suspect chin – was out but still referee Herb dean didn’t jump in, making for some highly uncomfortable viewing. It was only after several more nasty looking shots landed that the fight was stopped. It’s really not been your year, has it Herb?

Result: Mike Pyle def. T.J. Waldburger via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 4:03

STEPHEN THOMPSON (9-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) VS. ROBERT WHITTAKER (11-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC)

This was always going to be one of those blink-and-it’ll-be-over type matchups as these two strikers met in the Octagon; Stephen Thompson’s unpredictable karate style would take on the more powerful boxing of Aussie Robert Whittaker.

Though the fight was over quickly, Thompson was able to display some beautiful karate techniques. Using a traditional karate stance and his reach advantage he was able to keep Whittaker on the outside while landing plentiful front kicks, body kicks and leg kicks. Though Thompson kept his hands low throughout, Whittaker’s well-documented power was nullified by this ranged assault. Frustration set in on the Australian TUF Smashes winner as he began to rush in, eventually resulting in him being clipped with a crisp straight right which rocked him and allowed Thompson to pounce for the finish.

With a big win over a tough opponent, Wonderboy is likely going to be in a position to push for a top ten 170-lb opponent.

Result: Stephen Thompson def. Robert Whittaker via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:43

ufc 170 Results: Alexis Davis potentially puts herself next in line for the 135lb title fight

UFC 170 Results: Davis defeats Eye by Split Decision

by Ben Heather @benheather

This battle between two of the best 135lb women in the UFC could decide who will be the next contender for the women's bantamweight title which will be contested later tonight. Only time will tell who will be the champion later but if Ronda Rousey wins I see the winner from this fight being the next in line.

Round 1
Davis starts the round with some leg kicks always targeting the left leg of Jessica Eye. It doesn't take long before Davis locks in a nice Thai clinch and lands a couple of knees to the body and thighs in the clinch.
Just over a minute in to the fight Davis is mixing up her kicks and lands a front kick to the head but then the fight gets clinched against the cage where it stays until the ref steps in to break the women up. Davis goes back to working the left leg before moving up to the body. The fight returns to being clinched against the cage and this time it is Eye who has her back against the cage. The fight returns to the middle and Davis gets the takedown with ease and has 30 seconds left to work on the floor in half guard but can't find any space to lock in a submission as the round ends. A very close round which I believe Davis may have stolen with the late takedown.

Round 2
Round 2 starts the same way as the first as Davis comes out with some leg kicks, still targeting the left leg of Jessica Eye. Just after the minute mark of the round Davis catches a kick and takes Eye down landing in half guard. Davis is controlling the fight on the ground doing enough to keep the fight down without doing any real damage. However, with 90 seconds left it looks like Eye was giving up her back to prevent the body attacks from Davis but Davis keeps her in half guard. With 20 seconds left Davis lands some big hammer fists to the head and Eye clearly had no answer for Davis on the ground. The first round may have been close but the second was very one sided with Davis controlling 4 minutes of the round on the floor.

Round 3
Again as every round has started Davis lands more leg kicks but now Eye begins to catch the kicks but cant find any counters. With 3 minutes of the fight left Eye catches Davis with a left hook when Davis was going for more leg strikes. At the half way point Davis lands a big body shot but nothing more comes from it. As both women exchange on the feet its Eye who is landing the harder strikes with 90 seconds left. Now Eye is trying to give Davis a taste of her own medicine by working her legs. The remainder of the fight sees both women picking there punches but no hard punches are landed. I think Eye won the last and certainly by keeping the fight standing had a much better round but it was too little to late in my opinion.

The judges agree and score the fight 29-28 Eye, 29-28 Davis and 29-28 Davis. It goes in to the books as a split decision victory for Alexis Davis and the crowd react with some boos which I don't understand as to me it was clearly 29-28 to Davis.

Davis could have just booked herself a date with the winner of the main event tonight, only time will tell but if not she is doing a good job at clearing out some of the other contenders to the belt.

UFC 170 Results: Raphael Assuncao Beats Pedro Munhoz 30-27 to go 6-0 in The UFC Bantamweight Division

UFC 170 Results: Raphael Assuncao Beats Pedro Munhoz 30-27 to go 6-0 in The UFC Bantamweight Division
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

The stakes were high for number 3 ranked Raphael Assuncao going in the the bout with undefeated Pedro Munhoz with a title shot against Renan Barao likely next for the Brazilian with an impressive victory. While Assuncao came through to win the bout 30-27, the former RFA Bantamweight champion Munhoz proved to be a tougher opponent for Assuncao then some may have expect, and showed he why his has been tipped to be a future star in the UFCs Bantamweight Division

Assuncao started the bout landing a couple of hard leg kicks which Munhoz following up with some nice leg kicks of his own. Assuncao connected with a couple a jabs and an overhand right, but the majority of Assuncao's offense is being blocked by Munhoz. looking confident with his striking Assuncao continued to throw punches, with Munhoz only really offering a descent low kick. Assuncao attempted a spinning back kick the mid-section of Munhoz which lands on the fighters arms, and Munhoz attempts a trip but is unsuccessful. KingdomMMA.co.uk scores the round 10-9 Assuncao

The second starts with Munhoz looking to land the leg kick again, which is starting to cause noticeable damage to Assuncao and causes the fighter to switch stance. Assuncao catches a kick from Munhoz who he pushes to the ground. The highly decorated BJJ belt Munhoz immediately attacks the leg of Assuncao looking for a heel-hook but Assuncao is able to spin out to end up on top. Assuncao starts raining down some huge ground and pound on Munhoz but the defeated prospect is able to get back to his feet to the applause of the crowd, which is now starting to fill up nicely since the opening bout. Munhoz press the action but Assuncao is able to get another take down where he pounds away on Munhoz until the bell. KingdomMMA.co.uk scores the round 10-9 Assuncao putting the fighter 20-18 up.

After a lively 2nd round we go into the 3rd, with Assuncao looking to assert control over the fight. Munhoz continued to press forward in the 3rd and is by far the aggressor in this fight, but his striking just isn't on the level of Assuncao. Both men trade for the majority of the round with Assuncao getting the better of the exchanges. The round finishes with Assuncao securing a takedown which should was enough to take the bout 30-27 on all 3 judges score cards.

Raphael Accuncao improves to 6-0 in the bantamweight division which should be enough to set up an all Brazilian title fight with Renao Barao.

UFC 170 Results: Aljamain Sterling out points Cody Gibson

UFC 170: Aljamain Sterling vs Cody Gibson

by Ben Heather @benheather

Aljamain Sterling came in to the fight at UFC 170 with a lot of hype and why not after all he was coming in undefeated and from one of the best camps in MMA. The Serra Longo fighter certainly lived up to the hype during the fight. Cody Gibson did his best throughout the fight and made it a real dog fight.

Round 1
Sterling comes out wanting to make an impression in his UFC debut landing a couple of head kicks including a front kick within the first minute. Gibson then decides that he will not be shown up and both men attempt but miss some flashy kicks. Gibson attempts a takedown but can't complete it and lets go of the clinch but it doesn't take long for him to complete the takedown as he gets Sterling down a couple of seconds later. Again, Sterling isn't kept down for long and gets back up to his feet. This time Sterling drags Cody down and rolls in to full guard from the back of Gibson where he works the body and head while down. Gibson gets back up and they exchange on the feet before Sterling drags the fight to the cage wall where he is working his knees. Mixing up the placement between the body and the legs of Gibson.
Sterling 10-9

Round 2
The second round starts and Gibson catches a kick from Sterling and lands a punch. The fight goes back to clinching against the cage and its Sterling again trying to land the knees but Gibson is working the legs looking to take Sterling down. Two minutes in to the round he finally gets the trip. Again, like the first Sterling gets straight back up before being dumped back down on the floor. This time as Sterling attempts to get back up Gibson keeps hold of his back but nothing comes from it and they are back on the fence clinching. With 1:20 of the round left they finally come away from the cage and its not long before Gibson goes for another takedown. Both men then scramble to get position and Sterling goes for a double leg with 25 seconds left but gets caught in a guillotine by Gibson. The choke is not tight enough and Sterling gets out and makes it to the end of the round. Gibson evens the fight as it goes to the third round.

Round 3
The first real action of the third is when Sterling picks up and slams Gibson down 30 seconds in to the round. Sterling is doing just enough to keep the fight down and with 90 seconds gone Sterling attempts to lock in a D'arce choke. Sterling isn't able to complete the choke and lets go before he burns out his arms. Cody then tries to lock in a guillotine and tries to drag Sterling down but loses his grip and ends up on the bottom with Sterling in full guard. Sterling moves to half guard and works the body of Gibson from the bottom some of the shots seem to hurt Cody and he gives up his back to try and get out of the position with 90 secs left. With 45 seconds left Sterling locks the body triangle in and with 30 seconds left he is looking to finish the fight and locks in a Rear Naked Choke but again can't complete it. Sterling ends the fight on the back of Gibson throwing and landing bombs.

This was a great fight and Sterling takes the win 29-28 on all of the judges score cards. He also looks to be a real talent and the hype was well deserved for this fighter. I look forward to seeing him back in the Octagon in the near future.

UFC 170 Results: Zach Makovsky Downs Josh Sampo by Unanimous Decision

UFC 170 Results: Zach Makovsky Downs Josh Sampo by Unanimous Decision
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

Zak Makovsky staked his claim as a force to be reckoned with in the UFC flyweight division at UFC 170 downing fellow contender Josh Sampo in dominating fashion.

The former Bellator bantamweigh showed fantastic, well timed take downs to simply out classed his Mike Rogers' gym opponent on route to a clear cut unanimous decision victory. 

Sampo opened the bout with a switch leg kick which landed nicely on Makovsky before Makovsky shot in for a takedown which saw Makovsky pick Sampo up and slam his opponent down down to put Sampo on his back. Sampo showed some great offense from his back showing an active submission game before letting off some close call up-kicks, which narrowly missed and allowed Sampo to get to his feet. Sampo landed some pretty descent shots in the clinch once the bout returned to a standing position with Makovsky returing with a knee to the body to finish out the round. Makovsky takes this round 10-9.

Round 2 started with a big headkick from Makovsky which was partially blocked, before getting a takedown which Sampo was able to quickly bounced back up from. After trading a few jabs, Makovsky was able to land a couple more takedowns which although Sampo was able to get up from, they will have scored points on the judges score card. Sampo attempted a Kimura at the end of the 2nd but ran out of time. Makovsky takes round 2, to go 20-18 up.

Going into round 3 Sampo was easily 2 rounds down on the judges score, and needed a finish. Sampo came out aggressive throwing kicks and punches but could get much to land on the elusive Makovsky. 1 minute into the round the fighter meet throwing punches and Sampo was able to push Makovsky to the ground to land up on top near the cage.  Sampo tried to work Makovsky but couldn't manage to get anything going with Makovsky getting to his feet to land a take down of his own. The fight finshed how it started with Makovsky in top posistion with Sampo trying to get off offense from the bottom. An argument could be made for Sampo winning this round, but it wouldn't matter in the end.

After 15 minutes, the judges score the bout 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28 in favor of Makovsky who improves to 18-4 and won't be far off a top 5 place in the flyweight division following this dominating victory over Josh Sampo. Sampo's record moves to 11-3. 

UFC 170 Results: Ernest Chavez defeats Yosdenis Cedeno to Open Up UFC 170

UFC 170 Results Ernest Chavez defeats Yosdenis Cedeno to Open Up UFC 170
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

ufc.tv

A welterweight match up between Ernest Chavez (6-0) and Yosdenis Cedeno (9-2), both of who were making their UFC debuts kicked off UFC 170 to a largely empty Mandalay Bay Events Center, in Las Vegas. The fans who have yet to arrive at the event need not worry though, as they didn't really miss much.

Round 1 started with the bookies favourite, Cedeno throwing a couple of hard body shots and landing with a couple of decent leg kicks, while Chavez looked to close the distance. Chavez offered little offense during the first round until around the 1.30 mark where he was able to capitalise on a missed wheel kick from Cedeno and get the fight to ground where Chavez quickly showed he was far more advanced than the Cuban black belt. Cedeno was able to stand up before the bell, Chavez showed great positioning to have achieved full mount and take the back of Cedeno, and assert some domination.

Round 2 started exactly how round 1 did. Cedeno came out looking to land big shots but Chavez was able to get the take down - again off a kick from Cedeno, and proceeded to look for the submission which show the BJJ purple belt again take the back of Cedeno, however a posistioning mistake from Chavez allowed the noticable tired Cereno to get to his feet.

Going into round 3 both fighters will have felt like the bout was even after 2 rounds, with the winner of round 3 winning the bout. The first couple of minutes of round 3 saw both men trade shots, with not much action. Cerano picked up the action in the last couple of minutes throwing a a couple of headkicks and some pretty hard punches which were mainly blocked. The round ended as it started with neither man looking like they wanted to push the other in an attempt to win the fight.

The judges scored the bout 29-28 Chavez, 29-28 Cedeno, & 30-27 Chavez who remains undefeated in his mixed martial arts career, extending his win streak to 7, while Cedeno moves to 9-3.

Stars of UFC London predict who will win at UFC 170

Phil Harris, Danny Mitchell and Brad Scott predict UFC 170

by Ben Heather @benheather

Normally before all the UFC events we put out our own predictions picking who we think will win and our reasoning for why. This week we thought we would try and mix it up and instead of giving you our picks we have instead asked some of the best UK fighters, who will all be showcasing their skills in the Octagon in a little over 2 weeks at UFC Fight Night 38 in London.

The fighters who will be predicting the fights for this event are:

Phil Harris (1-2 UFC 22-11-1 MMA)

The english flyweight who meets Louis Gaudinot in London. That fight will kick off the show in London and is sure to be a great battle between two tough flyweights. Phil will be looking to return to London in the UFC and get his hand raised again as he did in February '13 when he defeated Ulysses Gomez.

Danny Mitchell (14-4-1 MMA)

The Cheescake Assassin will make his UFC debut next month against Igor Araujo. Mitchell has a very good record and is a welcome addition to the UFC roster. Mitchell has faced a lot of top opppnents including Dean Amasinger, Gunnar Nelson and also fought to a draw against former Cage Warriors Welterweight champion Cathal Pendred.

Brad Scott (1-1 UFC 9-2 MMA)

First became a familiar name to UFC fans when he was part of Team UK on TUF: The Smashes where he made it all the way to the final of the welterweight bracket. He would lose that fight against Robert Whittaker but then moved up to middleweight. He made his UFC middleweight debut against Michael Kuiper in Manchester finishing him in the first round and will return to action again in London.

So lets get down to business, below you will find the predictions for the fighters.

Ronda Rousey vs Sara McMann

Harris: Rousey by Decision

Mitchell: Rousey by Submission Round 1

Scott: McMann by Decision

Daniel Cormier vs Pat Cummins

Harris: Cormier by TKO Round 1

Mitchell: Cormier by Decision

Scott: Cormier by KO

Rory MacDonald vs Demian Maia 

Harris: MacDonald by Decision

Mitchell: Macdonald by TKO Round 2

Scott: MacDonald by Decision

Mike Pyle vs TJ Waldburger

Harris: Waldburger by Decision

Mitchell: Pyle by TKO Round 1

Scott: Pyle by Decision

Robert Whittaker vs Stephen Thompson

Harris: Whittaker by TKO Round 2/3

Mitchell: Whittaker by Decision

Scott: Whittaker by TKO Round 2/3

There you have it, we would like to thank all the fighters for picking who they think will win and we will see on Saturday night who comes out with the most correct results.

Josh Sampo before UFC 170 "Zach Can Expect Fifteen Minutes of Hell"

Kingdom MMA talk to Josh Sampo before his fight at UFC 170

by Chris Marzella @ChrisMarzella

The UFC flyweight division has seen a drastic improvement over the last six months or so, with fresh blood adding depth to the division and giving Sean Shelby more options with who he matches up with champ Demetrious Johnson.

At UFC 170 on Saturday night two more flyweights will battle it out to climb into the championship discussion as Zach "Fun Size" Makovsky meets Josh "The Gremlin" Sampo in Las Vegas.

Makovsky was impressive in his UFC debut, defeating veteran Scott Jorgensen in a unanimous decision back at UFC on Fox 9 in December.

Sampo was equally as impressive in his own UFC debut as he took a hard fought submission win over Ryan Benoit back at TUF 18 Finale in November.

Speaking to KingdomMMA.co.uk Sampo played down the significance of fighting on the major platform that is Fox Sports 1, saying:

"This fight is just the next fight in my fight career."

"If I was the first fight or the main event, I'm still going to fight exactly the same and leave it all in the cage so personally it's not that big of a deal other than friends and family getting to watch from home."

Sampo's UFC debut was as a late replacement despite turning in a FOTN performance and he expects no less heading into battle with Makovsky on Saturday night. He said:

"I feel my style has all that and more to be fight of the night, but your opponent has to bring an equally good fight to you to make the fight eligible to receive such honors."

"I feel this fight has all the ingredients to be that. We'll all have to see what happens, but I think that it has a strong chance."

Sampo had trouble making the flyweight limit for his fight with Benoit and found himself ineligible for the FOTN bonus. However, he has played down the significance of loosing such a large amount of money in his mind. He said:

"The Lord works in mysterious ways, and from what I've seen my opponent (Benoit) needed that money much more than I did. He's a very deserving guy and I'm glad the money went to a good place in taking care of his family and child."

"When it comes down to it, I would have paid that amount for that experience again and again."

Sampo fights out of St.Charles MMA and has worked meticulously with his team to formulate a plan to negotiate his way past Makovsky. He said:

"My coaches do an amazing job of breaking down his game and coming up with a good game plan to negate anything he might throw at us. I feel we match up well in all areas of skill. It's going to be a battle of nutrition and will."

 "I never give predictions. All I can guarantee is on February 22nd I'm going to bring everything I've got and leave it all in the cage. A hundred miles an hour from bell to bell. Zach can expect fifteen minutes of hell from me."

Despite being an ever expanding division, a couple of wins strung together and anyone can be in contention for a crack at Demetrious Johnson. A win here could propel either man into the upper echelons of the rankings. Sampo said:

"Ultimately that's not up to me, all I can do is show up and fight my butt off. When the dust settles I'll let you know where I stand."

"I feel Zach is an awesome competitor and this is going to be a great test telling me where I am in the flyweight division."

Sampo has already ruffled some feathers in his short UFC stint, weirdly calling out "Uncle Creepy" Ian McCall with a bizarre "moustache battle" challenge. Sampo said of the call out:

"I have no ill feelings toward Ian."

"He's been one of the top flyweights since I began my career. I wanted to fight him then and want to even more now. I want to fight the best. I figured bringing his stache into the mix would get some attention on the fight and could push it into actually happening.  Hopefully this is a fight that will come to fruition in the near future."

  UFC 170 takes place Saturday February 22 from the Mandalay Bay Events Centre, Las Vegas, NV.

Can Rory MacDonald emerge from GSP's shadow?

With GSP gone for now, can Rory MacDonald take the limelight?

by Chris Marzella @ChrisMarzella

There is but one man who could stand to benefit from the recent semi-retirement of the longtime UFC welterweight king Georges St.Pierre.
Rory "Ares" MacDonald was the long time protégé of GSP. Always living in his shadow, taking a back seat to, quite frankly, the greatest welterweight of all time.
As GSP sails off into the sunset, at least for now, MacDonald now finds himself in a position where he can legitimately make a run at the UFC title.
For as long as St.Pierre ruled at 170-pounds, MacDonald would always be an after thought when you think of Canadian fighters, hell even Tristar fighters, and was certainly firmly behind the eight ball when it came to the UFC's consideration of top contenders due to his and GSP's unwillingness to get in the octagon and fight.
Now with the path clear MacDonald can re-focus himself and finally attempt to get his hands on the title so familiar to all at Tristar.
The first step in his attempt to bounce back from his split decision loss to title contender Robbie Lawler begins this Saturday night as he gets set to take on Demian Maia at UFC 170.
Perhaps the one criticism levelled at MacDonald on too many occasions is what seems to be his willingness to "play it safe" and play a point scoring game. Dana White recently publicly slated Alistair Overeem for doing the very same thing in his victory over Frank Mir at UFC 169 and it is that type of performance which could very well hold back the 24-year-old Canadian.
It would seem then that MacDonald has some way to go before he can convince the powers that be that he is the man to get a crack at either Johny Hendricks or Robbie Lawler. A Lawler win at UFC 171 against Hendricks for the vacant title would push MacDonald further away from that precious number one contender spot given the manner of his win over MacDonald.
A win however, is far from a foregone conclusion on Saturday night. Maia himself was edging close to title contention since his move from middleweight until he was dominated by Jake Shields at UFC Fight Night 29 last October.
What Saturday night does present for MacDonald is his first opportunity to realistically stake his claim for consideration to be a future UFC welterweight title contender.
A door that has always seemed firmly shut has suddenly opened and with GSP offering no definite retirement, it could be the case that MacDonald must impress now and get his opportunity before St.Pierre returns to claim back his crown.
A move away from the recent technical performances and a shift towards a win with riskier, more offensive strategy could see him catapulted back towards the top spot, a win of any kind will still be a huge feather in the cap, a loss pushes a title shot to one side at least for now.
If MacDonald ever had aspirations for the title then UFC 170 is the time to begin planning a route to his chance.
UFC 170 takes place Saturday 22nd February from the Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas.

Video: UFC 170's Pat Cummins vs Ricky Pulu at Xplode Fight Series

Video: UFC 170's Pat Cummins vs Ricky Pulu at Xplode Fight Series
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

By now you will probably know that undefeated 4-0 Light-Heavyweight Patrick Cummins will step in to face Daniel Cormier as a last minute replacement for Rashad Evans at UFC 170. What you might not know is how good he is.

Check out what you can expect from Cummins when he faces Cormier next week in his bout against Ricky Pulu at Xplode Fight Series in March 2013 below.

Is Ronda Rousey Unstoppable?

Who's up next for Ronda Rousey and who's '0' will go?!

by Tommy Strong @strong_tea

Ronda Rousey proved again at UFC 168, that it will take something or someone very special to pull off a victory against her. With another stunning performance defeating Miesha Tate 58 seconds into the 3rd round via her trade mark 'arm bar' to retain the women's bantamweight title.

Though Ronda didn't have all the things her own way, Miesha put up a valiant performance in the first and second round even escaping from a deep arm bar and then rocking Ronda a few times whilst the fight was standing.

Tate made a few errors in the fight, and I was slightly bemused by her fight plan. Trying to take Ronda down and beat her at her own game? Sorry, but this was a massive mistake. You could see when the fight was standing, Tate got the better of the striking, landing some crisp powerful shots that were hurting Ronda. But critically, then wasted heaps of energy trying to take down a former Olympic Judo bronze medallist to the ground.

With Tate having little success other than when the fight was standing, Ronda showed her true skills. Sweeping Tate and landing some powerful takedowns. Once down Ronda looked in her comfort zone and was only a matter of time being the inevitable happened.

Going into the third round with Tate running out of ideas and energy the end was nigh. It wasn't long before Ronda secured the take down and locked in the arm bar forcing Tate to tap right away. There wasn't any danger this time of Tate seeing her arm hyper extended once again.

With the fight over and Tate offering her hand to Ronda in congratulations it was Ronda that snubbed the opportunity to settle the beef and instead turned her back and refused.

I don't want to get into a debate about whether it was good or bad for the sport as that's another topic. Though I do think we as fans get suckered in by a hatred between fighters, only to be put behind them once the fight is over. You know with Ronda, if you piss her off its a grudge match you're going to loss!!

Who's Up First For Ronda?

Shortly after the fight, the UFC were quick to announce that UFC 170 will be headlined by Ronda Rousey and unbeaten fighter Sara McMann (7-0) which will take place on the 22nd February 2014 in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay.

With the exception of Cat Zingano, who was originally scheduled to be TUF 18 coach and go head to head with Ronda but was forced to pull out due to a knee injury that needed surgery, forcing Miesha Tate to step in as a late replacement.

This is the next best fight the fans would like to see!

With the champion being an Olympic Judoka bronze medallist and McMann being a Olympic Wrestler silver medallist, both not blessed with the same striking skills. This will be a fight of who can dominate on the ground. Can McMann stop the arm bar? can Ronda take McMann down? who will be the stronger? Or will the fight negate itself and we see a stand up fight for 5 rounds?

All these questions will be answered come 22nd February, though I for one am a lot more excited to see this fight than I was the Tate rematch.

Cat Zinagno:

Cat Zinagno (8-0) has been promised by Dana White, that she will get the chance to fight the winner of the Ronda vs McMann, and rightfully so in my eyes.

She's been very unfortunate with the knee injury that caused her to miss out being a TUF coach. Not only for that, but also for people to see more in the spotlight and get to know her a little better over the weeks of the TUF series to gather more fans.

Being out for this time she is being a forgotten fighter, though I'm sure if she ends up fighting Ronda or McMann we will be in for a real treat.


Finally with Ronda only fighting twice last year, the news she will be back so soon and be more active in 2014 is not only great news for the UFC but also for the fans.

With GSP taking an indefinite leave of absence and Anderson Silva suffering a horrific leg break against Chris Weidman on Saturday night, I can see the UFC trying to push her as hard, and as fast as they can, to be the new face of the promotion.

Josh Sampo vs Zack Mackovsky Slated for UFC 170

Josh Sampo vs Zack Mackovsky Slated for UFC 170
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

Rising flyweight prospects Josh Sampo and Zack Mackovsky have verbally agreed to face each other at UFC 170 according to Foxsports.com

UFC 170 takes place Feb. 22 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. It is not known yet if the as yet unconfirmed bout will feature on the main card or the preliminary card.

A pro since 2009, Sampo (11-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) made his UFC debut at Novembers TUF 18 finale defeating Ryan Benoit by Rear Naked Choke while putting on a fight of the night winning performance. However as Sampo missing weight before the bout, he forfeited his £50,000 bonus cheque to Benoit.

A Legacy FC and CFA veteran, Sampo is 8-1 in his last 9 fights, with 6 submission victories in his pro career.

Former Bellator and RFA champion Mackovsky (17-4 MMA, 1-0 UFC) made his UFC debut last month against Scott Jorgensen at UFC on FOX 9 as a last minute replacement for injured John Dodson. The NCAA division 1 wrestler made the most of his debut defeating long standing top
10 Jorgensen by impressive unanimous decision to take his win streak to 3 since being released from Bellator following a title loss to Eduardo Dantas and a narrow split-decision defeat to Anthony Leone.

With the addition of Makovsky vs. Sampo, UFC 170 now includes:

Champ Ronda Rousey vs. Sara McMann – for Women’s Bantamweight Title
Daniel Cormier vs. Rashad Evans
Rory MacDonald vs. Demian Maia
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rustam Khabilov
Alexis Davis vs. Jessica Eye
Mike Pyle vs. T.J. Waldburger
Zach Makovsky vs. Josh Sampo
Erik Koch vs. Rafaello Oliveira
Bryan Caraway vs. Lucas Martins
Raphael Assuncao vs. Francisco Rivera
Stephen Thompson vs. Robert Whittaker

Assuncao vs Rivera set for UFC 170

Raphael Assuncao vs. Francisco Rivera added to UFC 170

by John Haigh @JohnBJayHaigh

On Wednesday UFC officials announced a bantamweight bout between Raphael Assuncao and Francisco Rivera at UFC 170 in Las Vegas on 22nd February.

Assuncao (21-4) appeared on his last legs in the UFC at featherweight, having lost three of his last four fights at 145 pounds before moving down to bantamweight. He is currently undefeated since dropping to 135 pounds, winning five consecutive fights and making an impact on the division’s Top 5.

Rivera (10-2, 1 NC) is unbeaten in his last six trips to the Octagon, although one of those fights ended in a no contest. Rivera had initially scored a knockout victory over Roland Delorme, but tested positive for a banned substance in the post-fight drug tests, thus the fight’s result was changed to a no contest. He has since won back-to-back fights over Edwin Figueroa and George Roop.

A win could see Raphael Assuncao continue to climb further into the top five whole a victory for Francisco Rivera could see him break into the top ten.

UFC 170 is headlined by a five-round, non-title fight main event with former light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans welcoming Daniel Cormier to the light heavyweight division.

Stephen Thompson vs Robert Whittaker Set for UFC 170

Stephen Thompson vs Robert Whittaker Set for UFC 170
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

Stephen Thompson will take on TUF Smashes winner Robert Whittaker at UFC 170.

UFC 170 takes place Feb. 22 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, and is headlined by Rashad Evans and Daniel Cormier, who will be making his Light-heavyweight debut.

A renowned karate expert and kickboxing champion, Thompson (8-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) began his UFC career with a knockout of the year candidate victory over Dan Stittgen. Thompson was then beaten by top 10 contender Matt Brown in his second UFC outing to mark the first professional loss of his career. Thompson was able to bounce back well from his loss to Brown however, beating Nah-Shon Burrell by unanimous decision at UFC 160 and most recently Chris Clements by TKO at UFC 165.

Winner of the Ultimate Fighter: Australia vs The UK, Robert Whittaker (11-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) enters the bout with Thompson looking to rebound from his split decision loss to fellow TUF winner Court McGee.

Whittaker, who won The Smashes by defeating Brit Brad Scott in the final, is a natural finisher, taking all but one of his victories by TKO or submission. At just 22, Whittaker is one of the brightest prospects to come out of Australia. A black belt in karate, Whittaker now trains out of the famed Tri Star Gym with fellow welterweight contender Rory MacDonald.

With the addition, the UFC 170 card now includes:
Daniel Cormier vs. Rashad Evans
Rory MacDonald vs. Demian Maia
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rustam Khabilov
Mike Pyle vs. T.J. Waldburger
Raphael Assuncao vs. Francisco Rivera
Stephen Thompson vs. Robert Whittaker