UFC 145 Rashad Evans v Jon 'Bones' Jones

So what do people think about the upcoming UFC 145 main event, Rashad Evans v Jon 'Bones' Jones?

Personally, I beleive Evans is one of the best fight 'hypers' around and makes the most of being an underrated fighter at every opportunity.  He is a master at making Jon Jones, previouslt the UFC's darling prodigy look arrogant, brash and cocky.  Rashad did exactly the same to Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson throughout the whole of their series as Ultimate Fighter coaches. 

I love the way that Evans never over eggs a statement, he will often pick up on deficiencies in a persons character make comments that only imply that the other fighter has this deficiency.  Overall, he can get into another fighters head.  Unfortunately, these somehwat sly tactics haven't always made him the most popular fighter (again look at the ultimate fighter match against Rampage!) but against Jon Jones they seem to be working. 

There are two main issues though regarding this bout.  One, how much will this psycological teasing of Jon Jones actually matter in the ring?  I'm afraid on this count only the two people in that octagon on 21 April will be able to answer that question.  Secondly, without Greg Jackson does Evans have the wherewithal and tatctitions around him to mastermind a plan to defeat Jon Jones simply abnormal reach advantage.  the 'Blackzillians that Evans is now training with, look like an incredibly fun group and are extremely talented but are they they tactitians of Greg Jackson's standard?  If there was a time when Evans needed a Greg Jackson master plan, it would seem to be now.  Unfortunately, it looks like we will just have to wait until 21 April to find out the answer to this question as well.

For me, I hope Evans is practising his takedowns!

Remember fight hard, fight smart.

Yak

The Crazy World of Ground Fighting

This is a bit of a random post as I have had a significant amount of very interesting experiences in the world of groundfighting over this past month. Firstly I will start with the 'boss' and owner of my BJJ gym being promoted to black belt. Now this was an exceptional emotional experience and really highlighted to me the strong family ties that run through the sport of BJJ. The pride and simple hard work and determination that had been exhibited by the 'boss' is outstanding.
Secondly, I had found out that our attending black belt who teh club is affiliated with has actually trained none other than GSP! To have had this man present me with my own stripes was humbling indeed. These two facts are proof indeed that just by being involved in the sport and taking an active role goo things will happen around you and your contacts will grow in a good way without you having to go and 'seek them out'.
Lastly, this is simply a look forward to the 2012 Olympics as I have managed to secure my own Judo tickets we can look forward the best Judo players in the world doing battle, with the true and honourable warrior's traditions in our fine capital and we must all hope that we can do the skill of the athletes being exhibited proud by putting on an exceptional games.
And of course come on Team GB in all events!
Fight hard and fight smart.
Yak

Bisping: Hero or Villain?

Now this subject may be close to all of our hearts and it is difficult to persuade people to change their opinions of "The Count". Michael Bisping splits opinions with almost every fan of the sport.
I will set my stall out from the start, I love Bisping and I will tell you why. I beleive that for the most part the large gulf in opinion is related to the differences of UK fans and US fans. Here in the UK we have a totally different attitude to fighting and our fighters than over the pond. As Dan Hardy said in the lead up to his fight with Mike Swick in the UK you do not have to be part of a disadvantaged area of society or a bored toff to go out on a saturday night, have ten pints, have a fight, wake up in the morning and play football. This highlights the fact that we are more acceppting of a fighting culture and have developed our own set of unspoken rules. Any person aged between 18 and 26 will have at the very least seen a fight in their local town in the UK. There is simply not this same acceptance in the US.
US fans do not understand these rules. they do not see what Bisping is saying as funny, or the logic behond it. They see it through American eyes, where there is not a culture of if you talk trash you better be able to back it up because it will be tested (and very soon).
Rivera broke these rules. While Bisping is well know as a trash talker he always follows these honest unspoken rules. Bisping only trash talks i it is funny or has a purpose and there are lines he (and this is exactly the same for Dan Hardy) will not say. For example if it is simply too personal, things like attacking a fighters family. And (mostly) Bisping backs up his trash talking.
Bisping beleived Rivera crossed this line with his pathetic attempt at being funny and poorly hidden contemptous video slating "The Count".
US fans also have a different sense of humour and tend not to be fans of fighters with a self depracating personality. They want their fighters to be glamourous and all conquering. Bisping is not glamorous (despite his Hollyoaks performance, which was anything but glamorous)!
Lastly I am not a fan of all the MMA reporting American blogs that simply cannot detest Bisping and make this evidently clear in their 'unbiased' reporting of UFC 127. Either let your opinion be known fully and accept responsibility for your opinions or report it in an unbiased way.
Now I would like to highlight that I am not a fan of the way Michael Bisping reacted after the fight and nor do I condone any illegal strikes in any UFC match, which unfortunately after Paul Daley's shenagins with the awful Koshcheck, the Brits have shown we do not have the best record in the Octagon. This is something our fighters need to remedy.
I am however in general a massive fan of "The Count" and hope he continues to entertain in every aspect of the UFC. I also wish the best of look to Dan Hardy in his upcoming fight.
Remember Fight hard, fight smart.
Yak

Gi Shrinkage

Hey All,

This is going to be a preliminary blog to set the scene. I have recently purchased a new gi. Previously my gi's have been second hand and never needed to be shrunk.

Shrinking is a significant issue and raises many questions like how much should a gi shrink, why do we shrink them, do you need to shrink your gi? Now I will attempt to shrink mine and give you the full update on here and then in a few months time a product review will be availbale of the gi and it's comparison to other simliarly priced products.

Remember fight hard, fight smart.

Yak

The Technique Geek and The Brawler

In order for the sport of MMA to grow, especially here in the UK, we need to establish a common spirit in this fighting sport. To do this we must at least come to terms with the term cagefighter.

In my opinion calling Mixed Martial Artists Cagefighters is almost derogatory. These no brain idiots who simply want to fight in a cage to be able to brag about it on sturday night in town are not what the sport is about.

I have an almost similar objection to Alex Reid and his highly publisized BAMMA 4 fight with Tom Watson. Both of these men showed how poor and limited their technique was and that they were both simply bar room brawlers. Now this had a reasonably large audience in the UK due to Alex Reid's marraige to a certain celebrity. The damage done to the image of MMA amongst the average MMA hater was significant, adding more fuel to the argument that it is merely going back to the old fashioned illegal prizefighting.

On the other hand however, the technique geeks must not get too critical of the guys who come into the sport only wanting to fight. All the technique in the world will not win you an MMA match unless you have that fighting spirit and sole.

We must watch ourselves for swaying too far to either end of this spectrum and as is always the case the middle ground is the best place to be. This will enable you to be the best Mixed Martial Artist possible and the most well rounded fighter.

Remember fight hard, fight smart.

Yak

The Wrestler's Dominance

In current MMA many people wouldn't argue with the fact that the sport can be split into two main areas these being ground fighting and stand up.  I believe this is wrong.  There is a third area that links these two together which is often referred to as the world of take downs.

Wrestling is massive within MMA this dominance is due to two quite obvious reasons.  Firstly, the UFC is an American company and wrestling is simply huge in the states.  Almost all high schools and the equivalent to our secondary schools teach and compete in wrestling.  The UFC has therefore become simply the best way other than the almost theatrical WWE for wrestlers to make a living.  Secondly and most importantly to ourselves as British MMA practitioners is that there is a gaping hole in martial arts that involve "simply taking an opponent down".  The Muay Thai clinch work is probably the next closest thing but is far from a complete art.

Now how do we, here in the UK with virtually no wrestlers of any note deal with this counteract good wrestlers.  The Americans were incredibly quick to unfairly mock Dan Hardy's lack of wrestling after his courageous battle with GSP.  The answer lies in one of Britain's best kept martial arts secrets. Judo.

Judo is simply the perfect way of combating a wrestler and "lay and pray" fighters. Judo teaches an aggressive no- nonsense ground game linked with probably the most advanced system of take downs and defence of any martial art.  If you need evidence of this just watch some of Karo Parysian's earlier fights in the UFC and the outstanding ease of which he takes down all-american wrestlers. 

So why, why do we in the UK, not learn Judo?  To be honest I do not know. It may be the fact that Judo clubs are rightly proud of their sport and feel no need to jump on the MMA bandwagon and in my own experience can be intolerant of "cage fighters". 

However this should not put us off.  In the UK we have a booming and quality Judo association.  It is often cheap to participate and very effectively run.  The training is fantastic for fitness with the focus on using Judo to fight.  It is one of the few martial arts where you actually have to fight for your belts.  For any aspiring MMA fighters or even just for people looking to improve their game Judo should be a must.  It also complements perfectly Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and the two together are probably the perfect partners.

So remember fight hard, fight smart.

www.britishjudo.org.uk

Yak 

Jaco Resurgence UK Fight Shorts Review

Hey All

You might be interested in the product review of the new Jaco MMA Fight Shorts, available through the links on this site.

Jaco may not be yet as popular as some of the more established short brands such as Warrior Wear or Tapout but these shorts and the Jaco make in particular are making a big stir.  The intuition and level of design on these shorts is simply revolutionary.  Resurgence fight shorts have the patented Jaco "no scrunch" waste tightening system which is effective and simple to use. The look is also simple yet striking offering a less pretentious look than a lot of other shorts on the market.  The look of a fighter who is here to do business and nothing else.

The shorts only downfall is that they can be difficult to pull up and take off due to the locking system only allowing so much play in the waist.  This is not a major issue as the lack of play ensures that the fit when on is once gain superior to other fight shorts on the market.

The material is one of the best mixes that I have seen yet and although looks flimsy in working tests has proved anything but.  The material also is one of the lightest and most breathable available to date.

Rating

Style 8/10
Durability 8/10
Cost 7/10
Ease of use 6/10

Search Amazon.com for jaco fight shorts uk
Fight hard, fight smart.

Yak