UFC 129 - St-Pierre Vs. Shields

[RobbyRoy]

I'm with SBI and jimmy. As a huge GSP fan it was disappointing to see him ruin a very good event. It was evident very early that Shields couldn't take him down and offered absolutely nothing on the feet but all GSP did was throw jabs, spinning back kicks and big overhand rights. He threw a couple of leg kicks and 1 or 2 high kicks but I don't remember seeing any hooks or uppercuts at all. I can't even remember him throwing a straight right. I know he says at the end of these fights that he's disappointed he couldn't get the finish but I really don't think he gives a shit. In the final 10 seconds of a fight he clearly already had in the bag, he went for a takedown. That to me, smells of someone who is thinking only of his record and legacy. The irony is, with the way he is fighting, despite all his ability we're not going to remember him in the same light as the Andersons and Jon Jones of the world.

Ok rant over. It was really a great event, despite it meaning I only got about 2 hours sleep. Vlad's quick knockout prevented what was likely going to be snooze and most of the undercard fights were great. Machida was too much for Randy right from the start and I cracked up when he landed that kick. Not just because of the awesomeness but also in anticipation of Seagal. Aldo was quite disappointing but it's quite scary to think what he is capable of when fit. But gassing 4 minutes into a fight is just not on and he needs to get that sorted out.

 

[bkozican]

but it doesn't exactly inspire people to shell out $40 to watch him fight.

are you one of the fans that pays 40 for the whole event and quickly turns it over to watch the main event. There is a whole card mate.

To the ppl questioning his ability, why dont u get in the octagon and see how hard it is to knock world class fighters out consistenly. On the other hand i do understand what you are saying

 

[SBI]

are you one of the fans that pays 40 for the whole event and quickly turns it over to watch the main event. There is a whole card mate.

You mean I've been doing this wrong the whole time?!

 

[alfy!]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/g...ields-in-toronto/story-e6frfglf-1226047834719

Good to see the UFC getting some main stream coverage. Exciting times.

 

[Ross]

I thought this was a bad showing from GSP but I haven't been that down on any of his other fights. He beat the absolute crap out of Kos and Fitch (Kos is still messed up five months later and can't train) and he very nearly tapped Hardy twice. Here, it's almost like GSP fooled himself into believing the hype that Shields is something that he really isn't, he was petrified to go to the ground with him even though I think Shields would have been helpless trying to work off his back. No idea how Shields was given rounds four and five from two of the judges.

Aldo/Hominick was epic, the last round was some of the most tense action I've seen in an MMA fight. I'd have to rewatch but I could have easily scored it 47-47 with a 10-8 round to Hominick in the fifth. It looked like the fight was going to be over early too when Aldo was scoring heavily with those leg kicks.

Randy got handled with ease as I suspected, thankfully the knock out wasn't disturbing like Chuck's losses to Franklin and Evans. It is time for Randy to hang it up, not because he's in danger of sounding brain damaged like Chuck but because there's no more fights that make sense for a 48-year-old man. Like RR, I loved the front kick just because I knew people would again get angry at Seagal getting credited for the kick.

Benson remains unchokeable, Bocek never had him in any trouble. Maybe Henderson vs Miller if Pettis is getting the next shot? Cool to see Vlad get a quick KO win, particularly as the fight easily had the potential to be awful.

I only started watching the prelims from the kind of dull Patrick/Roberts fight, it worked out in my favour though as the earlier four fights all aired during the telecasts. Pierson would have had his hands full with Foster, being moved up to Ellenberger was always going to be too much to handle. Ellenberger getting a shot at Shields next up would be an interesting fight. A good rebound showing from MacDonald after the Condit loss, Nate got handled comfortably and those three suplexes in the third were huge.

 

[Vendrell]

http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/05/...ingly-proud-of-lyoto-machida-for-landing-his/

Segal talking about the front kick that knocked out Randy.

"Machida's like a son to me, so is Anderson". I LOVE IT! GSP should go and train with Steven Seagal and learn how to finish a fight.

I'm still a GSP fan but it's disappointing when he gets another decision. I thought he should've thrown more combos, especially following up after that big right hand that kept missing. Maybe the way to beat GSP is to go after him which is what Shields did in the later rounds so I think Condit could be GSP's biggest test because he likes to push the action.

Aldo vs Hominick was a classic fight. Both guys looked at the peak of their abilities but Aldo just did enough in the earlier rounds. Maybe Hominick could've gone for an arm or leg with 30 seconds left in the fight but it was a great performance.

Rory MacDonald's a star. Can't believe he's only 21. He dominated Diaz everywhere and those suplexes were sick.

 

[yeah_nah]

Jason MacDonalds triangle choke

I hate seeing a BJJ specialist like Bocek lose
Bendo was just too big, too strong and too good. Would still love a Gsot v Bocek matchup

Really awesome card except for the GSP snooze fest.

 

[alfy!]

Aldo vs Hominick was a classic fight. Both guys looked at the peak of their abilities .

Aldo looked strange, something was wrong with his cardio. As the commentators said, maybe he had a bad cut, but he totally changed in the second half of the fight, after looking like he would dominate and produce a early KO.

 

[Magnum]

Agree with most here,

Really good event let down by a lacklustre Main Event. I think both Shields and GSP were tentative to engage the others in their strengths. Disagree a little with Ross in understating Shields’ ground game, I think certainly the most sensible thing to do would be to avoid being on the mat with Shields. I think in a grappling fight we’d see Jake sweep or at least put GSP in danger in the course of a round, much more so than on the feet. I wouldn’t say Shields’ BJJ is overrated. I probably wouldn’t have given the last 2 to Jake either (maybe the last), but I could see them being given 10-10, as Jake was doing relatively well considering. Overall much better than Kos or Fitch did anyway.

I’d REALLY like to se GSP fight Nick Diaz. That is someone who can push him standing and on the mat. In fact I’d give Nick an advantage on the feet. Sure GSP can dictate where he wants the fight, but it would be pick your poison for GSP. I think he’d opt for a purely defensive oriented gameplan to neutralise rather than to attack but it would be interesting to see, especially if he was being beaten standing.

Aldo/Homonick was a classic. Very glad the doctor didn’t stop the fight. Some judge scored the fight 50-43 but I heard a rumour that it was a mistake. Great fight, but I comfortably scored it for Aldo, even though he was a little gassed in the last round, he really didn’t take all that much fight-ending damage. A super brave performance from Homonick though. One of the fights of the year for sure.

Machida/Randy was a sad and predictable (aside from the finish which was spectacular). Always pulling for Randy, but after scraping over Vera, then beating Coleman and then freakshowing Toney, Machida was much too big of a step up. Would have liked a “legend” fight vs CroCop instead as Machida is still too much in his prime.

Henderson/Bocek was great. Really like Benson, the guy is seriously good and really athletic. Agree would love to see Bocek/George, that would be a sick ground battle on paper.

The prelims were also fantastic on this card. Lots of finishes, and great fights. Started watching the free facebook coverage right from the start, basically got to watch the ENTIRE event, all the fights just like back in the day of Pride. Awesome stuff Zuffa!

My personal favourite was Jason McDonald winning, who I’ve always liked, and to win with that beautiful display of jiu jitsu was fantastic. The whole setup and finish of the triangle was brilliant.

Oh and Rory McDonald. Knew he was going to be a hard fight for Diaz, but that dude has improved SO much. Amazing fight, those suplexes were crazy! WW Jon Jones anyone? That guy is going to be fighting for the title one day.

The UFC really seemed to hit the “big time” with this card. Massive crowd, fan expo, value adding “newsdesk” like reporting with Todd Harris, etc. And with the purchase of Strikeforce, the MMA world seems to have entered a stage of equality and it was really awesome to have Rogan and Goldie be able to talk outside the “UFC/WEC bubble”. Giving props or referring to many Strikeforce or ex-UFC fighters, promoting their shows, mentioning their fights and names just added credibility and for me added balance to the MMA world. Was great. I really hope Strikeforce continues as an org, and not a “2nd tier” org either, a quality org offering something different and separate with their own way of doing things (tournaments, women, etc) and their own “brand”, but keeping a solid stable of top ranked fighters (and keeping their belts). Develop a rivalry even, but still have the ability to cross-promote and even have yearly epic champ vs champ cross over cards. I think that would be great for MMA and us fans.

Great event.

 

[the_interloper]

Aldo looked strange, something was wrong with his cardio. As the commentators said, maybe he had a bad cut, but he totally changed in the second half of the fight, after looking like he would dominate and produce a early KO.

I read on one of the websites that apparently Aldo said he held off him towards the end of the fight because of the second head that Hominick was growing. Though you could notice even in the second he looked a bit tired. My first time seeing Aldo, **** me he can leg kick, not surprised he idolises Pedro Rizzo!

Good summary there Magnum, and i believe Diaz will be fighting GSP next. I love Diaz's attitude to fighting, lets it all hang out and really has a crack and has great skills on the ground and on the feet, interesting how GSP deals with it. I think Diaz has got a boxing match coming up, last i heard it was against Jeff Lacy, anyone confirm?

 

[Guy Threepwood]

Oh and Rory McDonald. Knew he was going to be a hard fight for Diaz, but that dude has improved SO much. Amazing fight, those suplexes were crazy! WW Jon Jones anyone? That guy is going to be fighting for the title one day.

Agree with most of what you said, but rory didn't look all that different from the guy who well on the way to doing the same thing to Condit at 115 before gassing. Now that he appears to have sorted that, I think the sky is the limit for him and agree that he'll fight for the title one day.

The rest of the card (bar the main event) was amazing. Spinning backfist KO, flying triangle, Machida turning in to Daniel-san.... just wow! Most enjoyable UFC card top to bottom that I've ever seen.

 

[RobbyRoy]

I’d REALLY like to se GSP fight Nick Diaz. That is someone who can push him standing and on the mat. In fact I’d give Nick an advantage on the feet. Sure GSP can dictate where he wants the fight, but it would be pick your poison for GSP. I think he’d opt for a purely defensive oriented gameplan to neutralise rather than to attack but it would be interesting to see, especially if he was being beaten standing.

If GSP fights like he has been I can see him losing. He won't lose a decision as he'll just keep putting Diaz on his back, but I can definitely see him slipping up. He'd really have to take it to Diaz because as you said, he can trouble GSP in every position. The result of the fight could really tell us a lot about GSP.

I read on one of the websites that apparently Aldo said he held off him towards the end of the fight because of the second head that Hominick was growing. Though you could notice even in the second he looked a bit tired. My first time seeing Aldo, **** me he can leg kick, not surprised he idolises Pedro Rizzo!

The tiredness was definitely the key factor but I did notice he was very hesitant to hit the haematoma. It's a very strange thing to say about a Brazilian fighter, especially one known for finishing, but he really didn't want to go near it. That's just the way the sport is heading and I don't think it's a bad thing at all.

 

[alfy!]

Apparently Aldo was sick in the lead up to the fight. Said to his trainers after the fight he should have had antibiotics. Explains a lot.

 

[yeah_nah]

Most enjoyable UFC card top to bottom that I've ever seen.

My sentiments exactly.

And I believe all but one fight got shown. Awesome.

 

[Crimson Azure]

The rest of the card (bar the main event) was amazing. Spinning backfist KO, flying triangle, Machida turning in to Daniel-san.... just wow! Most enjoyable UFC card top to bottom that I've ever seen.

100% agree, the main card was a bit of a let down but I think they both gave each other way too much respect & if thats the case GSP was always going to dictate where the fight took place.

Equal KO of the year, one the best subs I've seen this year, close to fight of the year.

This event really had it all.

 

[Magnum]

Yeah, a fantastic event. If the Main Event had have been an epic fight (which it COULD have been, but unfortunately never got out of first gear), then we might have seen an event up there with some of the most epic MMA events of all time, Pride Bushido 9, Pride 33, Shockwave 2004, Total Elimination 2005, etc ... even then I still think it was certainly the best in the last couple of years.

 

[Ross]

Really good event let down by a lacklustre Main Event. I think both Shields and GSP were tentative to engage the others in their strengths. Disagree a little with Ross in understating Shields’ ground game, I think certainly the most sensible thing to do would be to avoid being on the mat with Shields. I think in a grappling fight we’d see Jake sweep or at least put GSP in danger in the course of a round, much more so than on the feet. I wouldn’t say Shields’ BJJ is overrated. I probably wouldn’t have given the last 2 to Jake either (maybe the last), but I could see them being given 10-10, as Jake was doing relatively well considering. Overall much better than Kos or Fitch did anyway.

Helpless was too harsh but I think GSP's strength and top game control would have comfortably negated Shields on the bottom. His strategy to stand was the safer option though as Shields was never going to stop him with strikes.

Diaz has to be the next fight for GSP. He'll get taken down with ease but if he can threaten from there the fight becomes very interesting as GSP will have his hands full standing.

 

[evo]

Homminicks hematoma was ferking incredible. I can't believe the doc let him fight on. turns out he got it right though as it was a great comeback.

LOL @ winning with a Karate Kid kick. Great moment in sport.

 

[Guy Threepwood]

Equal KO of the year, one the best subs I've seen this year, close to fight of the year.

Machida's finish was great, but I thought the spinning backfist was just as good and equally deserving of KO of the night. I know Dana's split the bonuses before in the past so hopefully Makdessi gets some sort of bonus for that finish. He'd be shattered if he didn't.... if it was just about any other event he'd have already been counting his $129K bonus by the time the main card rolled around.

 

[evo]

Aldo/Hominick was epic, the last round was some of the most tense action I've seen in an MMA fight. I'd have to rewatch but I could have easily scored it 47-47 with a 10-8 round to Hominick in the fifth. It looked like the fight was going to be over early too when Aldo was scoring heavily with those leg kicks.

Yeah. It was epic an battle. In fact the whole undercard was great.

See Hominciks eye at the end as well? Fights like that are what separates this from almost every other combat sport.

True warrior that dude.

 

[Crimson Azure]

LOL @ winning with a Karate Kid kick. Great moment in sport.

Who would have thought the crane could be used for anything related martial arts.

 

[evo]

Who would have thought the crane could be used for anything related martial arts.

Funniest part was he used it to knock out one of the sports living legends.

 

[Spadge]

hahahah loved the crane kick in the movie
i reckon i practiced that kick 1000 times after the movie when i was a kid

great to see Machida somewhat crane kick Randy (sad for Randy though) but it was an awesome kick... i rated it better than Andersons not just because of the kick but the numerous fakes with the left before the kick....

 

[gytre]

Georges St-Pierre (c) vs. Jake Shields - Pretty much as I predicted, with GSP winning a comfortable decision over 5 rounds. The fight was disappointing, but I think GSP's eye injury may have had a bit to do with that, as he seemed to fight very cautiously, as it was obviously bothering him. Shields showed a bit, but he was never going to beat GSP if he couldn't get the fight down.
José Aldo (c) vs. Mark Hominick - Good fight. Extremely brave effort by Hominick. Aldo appeared to be very effected by the weight cut, but was still good enough to win over the five rounds, despite being monstered in the last.
Randy Couture vs. Lyoto Machida - Again, pretty much as I predicted. Machida just too elusive and then delivering a brilliant KO and earning himself a nice bonus pay packet.
Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Jason Brilz - It was over before it began.
Mark Bocek vs. Ben Henderson - Fantastic performance by Henderson, who just seemed to execute the perfect gameplan for Bocek. I really, really want to see Bocek fight Sots next.

Nate Diaz vs. Rory MacDonald - Workmanlike performance by Rory against a mediocre Diaz, who was well below his best.

Featherweight bout: Yves Jabouin vs. Pablo Garza - Nice sub.
Welterweight bout: Claude Patrick vs. Daniel Roberts - Mediocre fight between two mediocre fighters.
Middleweight bout: Jason MacDonald vs. Ryan Jensen - Thrilled for Jason MacDonald. He was probably on his last chance, and won very impressively with masterful BJJ. Was probably unlucky not to get submission of the night.

All in all, a pretty good card.