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UFC 72: VICTORY
©
Marc Wickert All
photos copyright 2004 Zuffa LLC Although
there were no championship belts up for grabs on this card, there were
two hot bouts featuring main contenders for titles: Rich Franklin and
Forrest Griffin. And their opponents, Yushin Okami and Hector Ramirez,
were both out to cause major upsets and to present their own cases for
shots at UFC titles. The
sold-out crowd at Northern Ireland’s first UFC event, held at the
Odessey Arena in Belfast, gave these modern-day gladiators a
rafter-rattling reception and the loyal fans were repaid for their
enthusiasm with a display by some of the world’s best MMA athletes.
This was truly a great night for all followers of global ultimate
fighting. The
Battles
Marcus Davis (5’6” 155 lb) vs. Jason Tan (5’7” 155 lb) – Welterweight Referee: Yves Lavigne
Jason
commenced this bout with kicks to southpaw Marcus’s lead right leg. 4.20:
Jason narrowly missed with a kick to Marcus’s head. 4.05:
Marcus retaliated with a
fist combo. 3.51:
He caught Jason with a big right hook. Jason didn’t know what hit him.
He was like the farmer who woke up in a field with a piece of rope in
his hand: He didn’t know if he’d found the rope or lost a cow. Result: Marcus Davis by KO – 1.15, Round One.
Tyson Griffin (5’6” 155 lb) vs. Clay Guida (5’7” 155 lb) – Lightweight Referee: Big John McCarthy
Round One Tyson
went for a leg kick. Clay grabbed the kick and they fought for position.
Clay latched on to Tyson’s left leg. They stood with Clay still
hanging onto Tyson’s leg. 3.57:
Clay picked Tyson up to slam him, but Tyson twisted and landed on his
feet. 3.50:
Guida maintained his hold of Griffin’s left leg and Griffin whacked on
a guillotine, which contained Guida’s left arm. 3.44:
With Guida remaining in the guillotine, Griffin pulled him to the floor
– Guida in Griffin’s guard. 3.08:
Guida lifted his left knee
over to get half guard. 2.53:
Guida prised his head free. 2.35:
They were on their feet
with Tyson taking Clay’s back. Clay took hold of Tyson’s left ankle,
stopping Tyson’s quest for a choke. 1.50:
They were standing in a clinch. A stalemate was reached against the
fence until 1.00, when Tyson broke free and tagged Clay with a right,
left, right package before Clay answered with a right fist and left
kick. 0.50:
Tyson was unloading gloves
and Clay went for a shoot. Tyson sprawled. His hooks were outgunning
Clay’s jabs, so Clay went for another shoot. Tyson sprawled and Clay
latched onto his left leg. Against the cage, Clay let go of the leg and
caught Tyson with a cracking right. Tyson came back with his own left
and missed with a right. Clay got him with another right and Tyson went
down. They scrambled and the hooter sounded. Round Two Griffin
fired off big fists that Guida stepped away from. 4.46:
Griffin landed a jab. 4.37:
They traded and Guida took
hold of Griffin’s right leg. He raised Griffin’s leg above his head
and tried to sweep his left leg, but amazingly Griffin remained
standing. 4.01:
Guida got a takedown. 3.51:
They were back up and trading. 3.47:
Tyson narrowly missed with
a monster right uppercut, then followed with jabs and an inner leg kick. 3.26:
Clay came back with a combo
and took Tyson’s left leg. Tyson resisted and took Clay’s left leg. 2.56:
Tyson grabbed Clay’s back
and went for a suplex that partially backfired with Clay dropping onto
Tyson’s head. They rolled and Tyson had Clay’s back again. The pair
scrambled for position some more. 2.17:
Clay got Tyson’s right leg and went for a knee bar. Tyson sat up and
pounded Clay’s body with left and right rib-busters. 1.45:
Tyson rolled and got a heel hook on Clay. 1.40:
Clay twisted out of the hold and latched onto Tyson’s back. 1.31:
Tyson rose up on all fours
and Clay got his hooks in. 1.12:
Tyson was standing with Clay wrapping on a rear naked choke. 0.52:
Griffin suddenly dropped
forward and smashed Guida’s head into the mat – a la Alan Belcher
vs. Yushin Okami at UFC 62. Guida had Griffin in a body triangle, but
couldn’t take it further. Round Three Tyson
was winning the toe-to-toe, so Clay shot in at 4.12 and took Tyson’s
left leg. 4.04:
Tyson had his leg back. He
caught Clay with jabs, an uppercut and a leg kick. Clay replied with a
right. Tyson dominated the stand-up. 3.47:
Clay shot for Tyson’s left leg. 3.18:
He had Tyson’s back and Tyson rolled and drove elbows into Clay’s
head. 3.04:
Tyson briefly went for a
heel hook, then opted to drop down hammer fists. 2.53:
Clay got to his knees and
landed right backfists while holding onto the cage with his left hand,
causing a caution from Big John. 2.35:
Clay dropped into Tyson’s guard. 2.25:
Tyson rolled onto his knees. They scrambled some more. 1.35:
Guida was in Griffin’s guard and pounding on him, and Griffin was
striking from his back. 1.12:
Guida stood and caught a kick in the face as he dropped back into
Griffin’s guard, then half guard. Guida came home stronger in the
dying moments of the bout. Result: Tyson Griffin by split decision.
– Middleweight Referee: Herb Dean
Round One Ed
threw a distracting left and right into the air before taking Scott down
at 4.53, with Scott forced against the cage and Ed in his guard. Ed
g’n’ped Scott with right body shots and left fists to the head. 4.07:
Scott turned and Ed took
his back. As they stood they clinched. 3.19:
Ed opted for a takedown and
Scott fitted him with a guillotine. 3.13:
Ed slammed Scott to the canvas. 3.06:
Herman was out of the guillotine and fighting from Smith’s guard. 2.02:
Herman started raining down elbows. 1.36:
Smith’s face was covered in blood from a right elbow shot to the
bridge of his nose. The blood was going into Smith’s eyes, so Herb
Dean called time-out for the ring physician to check the cut. Herb then
put them back in position, with Herman in Smith’s guard. 0.47:
Ed took Scott’s back momentarily, but Scott rolled and moved into
Ed’s guard. 0.35:
Scott went for a leg lock
and Ed went for one on Scott. 0.22:
They both gave up on their
holds and Ed was pounding from Scott’s back. Round Two 4.42:
Ed went for the takedown. Scott sprawled and wrapped on another
guillotine, which included Ed’s right arm in the choke. 4.16:
They collapsed to the floor
– Ed in Scott’s guard. Scott arched his back to dig the guillotine
in deeper. 3.56:
Ed’s head was free. He launched elbows, fists and forearms at
Scott’s cut nose. Scott’s face was a mess. 2.45:
He rolled and sacrificed his back. Ed got the rear naked choke on, and
Scott tapped. Result: Ed Herman by rear naked choke – 2.25, Round Two
Jason McDonald (6’3” 185 lb) vs. Rory Singer (6’2” 186 lb) – Middleweight Referee: Yves Lavigne
Round One 4.51:
Jason kicked Rory’s inner leg and vied for a takedown. Rory resisted
and clinched. Jason attacked with foot stomps. 3.21:
Rory pinned Jason against
the fence and was looking to take him down, then dispatched a series of
knees. 3.09:
Rory followed up his knee strikes with a fist package, before he drove
up two more knees, and dropped to the floor with Jason in his guard. 2.05:
After landing punches, Jason stood to rain down more fists on Rory, and
he lashed up with kicks. 1.59:
They were both standing. 1.48:
Jason fell to the floor after missing with a shoot, then seized Rory’s
left leg from underneath. They stood and Rory unloaded more knees and
fists. 1.20:
Singer pulled McDonald to the floor and mounted him. 1.19:
McDonald rolled and surrendered his back. Singer was going for a rear
naked choke and McDonald rolled into Singer’s guard. Singer went for a
triangle and McDonald fought through it and pounded away. Round Two 4.44:
Jason caught Rory with an
inner leg kick. 4.30:
He took Rory down and fell into his guard, forcing him against the cage.
Rory kicked himself away from the fence, and Jason used his left hand to
seize Rory’s right arm and pinned it under Rory’s body, then started
pounding his face. Rory did get his arm free, but only after Jason had
delivered left fists into his face. Jason stayed busy pounding Rory’s
face and body. 2.22:
Jason got half guard. 2.15:
He had the mount and kept up the g’n’p-ing until Yves Lavigne pulled
the battle up.
Result: Jason McDonald by TKO – 3.18, Round Two
Forrest Griffin (6’3” 205 lb) vs. Hector Ramirez (6’0” 204 lb) – Light Heavyweight Referee: Herb Dean
Round One 4.44:
Forrest slaps out a leg kick. 4.37:
Forrest scores with an inner and outer leg-kick combo. 4.31:
He moves in with a leg kick
and backs Hector up with a barrage of fists, then Hector takes him down.
He goes from half guard to side control and back to half guard, before
standing and delivering right fists at Forrest, then backing away and
letting Forrest stand. 3.36:
Forrest delivers a high
kick. 3.28:
He continues to attack
Hector’s lead left leg with kicks. 3.15:
Hector lands a good jab. He follows with a right, and shows Forrest that
his fists do pack sting. 2.55:
Forrest attacks the legs
some more. 2.30:
Hector catches Forrest with two left hooks and a right, but misses with
a follow-up uppercut. Forrest fights back with knees, and continues to
focus on Hector’s left leg while distracting him with jabs. 1.48:
Griffin goes for a leg kick and Ramirez counters with a stiff right.
Griffin is firing a lot of leg and high kicks, mixing them up and
punctuating them with jabs and rights. Ramirez is staying tough, but
Griffin is like a well-oiled machine and varies his wide assortment of
strikes. Round Two Hector
blasts with lefts and rights, and Forrest clinches, then drives a knee
into Hector’s body. 4.42:
From the clinch, Forrest tries to sweep Hector’s leg, but Hector
resists, so Forrest continues to unload more knees. 4.37:
They separate. Hector attempts to trade blows with Forrest, however
Forrest chooses to dispatch smart bombs, then disengages. Rather than
shooting out single kicks or fists, Forrest is unloading a series of
strikes – varying his combos in each attack. 3.23:
Ramirez delivers a jab and Griffin counters with another nasty leg kick. 3.07:
They exchange and Griffin
discharges a left high kick followed by a right leg kick. Ramirez
won’t be going out dancing after this bout. 1.48:
Ramirez starts checking Griffin’s leg kicks, so Griffin backs him up
with an assortment of lefts, rights and uppercuts. He is rolling now and
doesn’t give Ramirez a chance to get his own rhythm going. 1.29:
In front of this Belfast
crowd, Hector cops a knee in the two-leaf clovers, and Herb gives him
time to recover. The round closes after more punishment to Hector’s
legs. Not only is Forrest firing with his combos, he’s also very
effective with his hit’n’run tactics. Round Three The
theme from the last two rounds continues. Hector comes out more
aggressively and takes Forrest down at 4.12. However Forrest scrambles
back to his feet in the clinch. 3.59:
They part. The fight proceeds with Hector putting up a brave battle, but
Forrest outclasses him. Result: Forrest Griffin by unanimous decision.
Rich
Franklin (6’1” 185 lb) vs. Yushin Okami (6’2” 185 lb) Referee: Big John McCarthy
Round
One Rich
comes out with both ankles strapped as the men face off in southpaw
stance. 4.41:
They trade blows and Rich indicates to Yushin that his kick was south of
the border. 4.05:
They exchange jabs, then Rich comes in with arms swinging like saloon
doors. Yushin retreats out of their path. 3.59:
He sends up a right
air-kick to keep Rich on his toes. 3.26:
They swap jabs. Rich is
pursuing Yushin, but Yushin’s not keen to get in an exchange with him,
and backs off whenever Rich closes in. 3.02:
Yushin delivers a leg kick. 2.56:
Yushin now tries standing
with Rich and cops a very powerful right to the body. 2.48:
There was a lot of talk
prior to this fight as to whether Okami would be too strong for
Franklin, but after a brief clinch, Franklin overpowers Okami and shoves
him into the fence. The look on Okami’s face says he’s not used to
being manhandled like this. 2.07:
They clinch again with Okami’s back to the cage. He has the
under-hooks in while Franklin stays busy delivering left and right
knees, and keeps Okami pinned against the fence with over-hooks in
place. 1.25:
The fight reaches a
standstill, so Big John separates them. 1.14:
Rich lashes out with a leg kick and Yushin comes back with a left fist. 0.41:
Richs lands a leg kick. 0.10:
He follows with another
one. Between
rounds, the cameras and microphones close in on both corners. They
switch their attention from Franklin’s to Okami’s corner, where
they’re conversing in Japanese. Joe Rogan says he would like to have
heard what Yushin’s team was saying. And Mike Goldberg replies, “You
did.” These two guys really work well together, and having Randy
Couture as guest commentator is just icing on the cake. Round Two 4.26:
Rich catches Yushin with a leg kick and Yushin answers with a right
fist. 3.56:
Rich bangs the leg one more time and Yushin attempts an inner-thigh kick
that has much less bite. 3.46:
Rich barges forward with punches, and Yushin backs away. Mike Goldberg,
Joe Rogan and Randy Couture are all calling for Yushin to engage. 3.10:
Yushin wears a further kick
to his right leg. 3.07:
He returns the kick. 3.02:
They close in and there’s an accidental clash of heads. Rich rubs his
forehead above the left eye, but fortunately there’s no blood. 2.53:
Franklin closes in to
strike and Okami clinches. Again, Franklin backs him up to the cage.
This is more a psychological victory than a physical gain: Strength is
definitely not an issue for Franklin. They swap knees to the body. 2.05:
Big John restarts things. Thus far, Franklin has been the ringmaster. 1.08:
He goes for another leg kick, but Okami intercepts it and backs Franklin
up with a right glove. 1.00:
They trade and Rich pounds a right fist into Yushin’s midsection. 0.51:
Yushin fires off a leg kick. 0.05:
Rich closes the round with a big left that shakes Yushin, but it appears
to cause problems with Rich’s hand. Round Three Yushin
comes out with a flying kick. Rich steps aside and shakes a finger at
Yushin. 4.44:
Rich catches an incoming
kick, then Yushin pulls it back. 4.24:
Rich scores with a leg kick. 4.15:
He lands his third big
punch to Yushin’s body – this time it’s via the left hand. 4.09:
He follows with a kick to
the same target. 4.05:
They clinch and Rich fails
with a takedown attempt. 3.52:
Yushin now takes Rich down
from the clinch and assumes side control. 3.44:
Franklin tries to
benchpress Okami off his chest and over his head, but Okami hangs in
there and delivers left taps to Franklin’s head. 3.17:
Okami gets the mount, however Franklin manages to sneak his left knee
between them. After Okami’s soft g’n’p-ing against Mike Swick,
it’s doubtful Okami will be able to stop Franklin this way. 2.36:
Franklin gets both knees
between them in a butterfly guard. 2.20:
Rich spins under Yushin and attempts a Houdini, but Yushin bungs on a
guillotine with Rich’s left arm enclosed in the hold. Yushin maintains
the choke and drops to the floor. Rich slips his head out and moves to
pin Yushin. 1.41:
Yushin tries to stand as
Rich tugs him back down. 1.36:
Yushin stands with Rich hugging his back. Yushin goes for a kimura and
drops to the canvas, with Rich’s left arm trapped. He also has
Rich’s left leg secured and is cranking the arm right back. Rich
manages to roll and has Yushin sitting on his chest, still yanking on
Rich’s arm. An arm wrestle with Franklin’s limb continues: Despite
Okami using two arms against Franklin’s one, Rich manages to pull his
left arm into his body and alleviates the pressure. This is an amazing
feat by Franklin. 0.34:
Yushin has a second go at
levering Rich’s arm and Rich pulls it free. He tries some g’n’p,
but both men are gassed. The hooter sounds and Franklin can clearly be
seen to mouth the words, “Gee whiz”, as he stands. This
has been an amazing performance by Franklin, and will be an enormous
benefit to preparation for his next bout against the winner of the
upcoming title fight between Anderson Silva and Nate Marquardt at UFC
73. Result: Rich Franklin by unanimous decision.
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