UFC 79 Nemesis

[Sea]

UFC 79 is tonight in a few hours. This is the best card that they have had in a long time. Liddell vs. Silva and Hughes vs. St-Pierre are the two headlining fights. What are your thoughts for tonight?

I think that Liddell/Silva is going to be huge. The have both dropped two in a row and UFC and Pride have been trying to put this fight together for a long time now. Hughes/St-Pierre is just don't know. They've split the last two times they have faced each other I think.

[40ozprophet]

It depends on how long st. pierre can go without being taken down really. and the longer the fight goes the more I give it to hughes. as far as silva/liddell, i really dont know. I have no preference for either fighter, and it really depends on how explosive liddell is early on.

[Liberation1945]

it seems like all the fights for both headliners have lost some of their fire(especially silva who has lost all his edge, he's all bark with no bite), but whoever wins either fight will gain a lot from winning.

i'm equally excited to see the machida/sokoudjou fight also...sokoudjou is a BEAST.

[hardlyworking]

It depends on how long st. pierre can go without being taken down really. and the longer the fight goes the more I give it to hughes. as far as silva/liddell, i really dont know. I have no preference for either fighter, and it really depends on how explosive liddell is early on.

Seeing as how Hughes was unable to take St. Pierre down at all their last fight, I really don't see that happening. I believe St. Pierre dominated their first fight as well, except for the last couple of seconds of round one. Not to mention Pierre was able to take down Koscheck down at will. Anything can happen, but I see this fight going similar to their last one, if not a little longer. I think Pierre has all the tools to be the the greatest Welterweight champion ever, and he will be important in UFC's trek into Canada.

As for Silva vs. Liddell, it would have felt so much more special if it had happened last year while they were still champions, but it's still an MMA fan's dream come true! A lot of the PRIDE guys have fared poorly in the UFC except for Quinton Jackson and Anderson Silva, but I'm hoping Silva goes in there looking like his old self and beats Liddell decisively so that it can possibly setup another match with Quinton Jackson. Both of them have been through wars in their careers and Liddell just turned 38, so I'm not sure how many great fights he has left in him. Either way, it's going to be awesome.

The Sokoudjou vs. Machida fight is going to be really interesting as well, they are widely considered to be top 10 light heavyweights and if Sokoudjou wins, it'll show that his past two victories weren't flukes. I'm hoping he pulls through and hands Machida his first loss. Maybe the winner of this fight will face the winner of Liddell vs. Silva to see who will be the next contender for the title after the Forrest/Quinton fight.

[Sea]

Seeing as how Hughes was unable to take St. Pierre down at all their last fight, I really don't see that happening. I believe St. Pierre dominated their first fight as well, except for the last couple of seconds of round one. Not to mention Pierre was able to take down Koscheck down at will. Anything can happen, but I see this fight going similar to their last one, if not a little longer. I think Pierre has all the tools to be the the greatest Welterweight champion ever, and he will be important in UFC's trek into Canada.

I think that the Hughes/GSP fight will be very interesting to watch. In the first fight GSP couldn't even look at Hughes in the stare down at the beginning and he was nervous as fuck and just didn't fight well. In the second fight Rush was more than prepared and it showed. Hughes underestimated, was not prepped, and ended up losing. I think this time around in this rivalry will be the best fight yet. Both fighters will be very prepared to go five rounds I think. Will be a battle of epic proportions.

[hardlyworking]

I think that the Hughes/GSP fight will be very interesting to watch. In the first fight GSP couldn't even look at Hughes in the stare down at the beginning and he was nervous as fuck and just didn't fight well. In the second fight Rush was more than prepared and it showed. Hughes underestimated, was not prepped, and ended up losing. I think this time around in this rivalry will be the best fight yet. Both fighters will be very prepared to go five rounds I think. Will be a battle of epic proportions.

Definitely. I couldn't believe how phenomenal Pierre's wrestling was, Hughes and Koscheck couldn't even take him down. If Hughes isn't able to get him to the ground like his last fight, then GSP should be able to pick him apart standing. Hughes wanted to stand toe-to-toe with Pierre last time and that wasn't a bright idea. However, Hughes is supposedly going back to his roots and will use his wrestling and attempt more takedowns. Because of that, it should be much more competetive this time around. I don't want to rag on Hughes or anything, but I really feel that GSP has what it takes to be champion for an extremely long time, that guy has some serious talent. Well, I've got some people coming over with the appropriate snacks and drinks so I'm going to go prepare everything. Enjoy the event!

[40ozprophet]

no way that sokodjou is losing. NO WAY. african assassin all the way.

[lithiumsys]

no way that sokodjou is losing. NO WAY. african assassin all the way.

WAY TO JINX IT.

[BeerRun]

That was frustrating as hell. I hate the shit out of Chuck Liddell but props to him, he beat Wandy fair and square. Loved Sokoudjou in the Predator mask but the guy just isn't ready for top competition yet.

GSP fucking killed it though and he pulled off a gorgeous judo throw too

[hardlyworking]

The curse of PRIDE continues!

Machida is the real deal. It's his first stoppage win in a looong time, and he did it against top 10 opposition. I was really impressed by his performance, it's damn near impossible to hurt the guy. He was perceived as boring, but after this fight I think he'll really climb up the ranking. The 205 division is looking pretty damn good at the moment. Keith Jardine, Liddell, Thiago Silva, and Machida are all contenders for the title so it'll be intriguing to see how it plays out. There are some awesome potential match-ups!

My heart was seriously pounding during the WHOLE Silva and Liddell fight. I was really rooting for Silva, but Chuck looked real intense and focused throughout the fight. Silva did say that he didn't care whether he won or lost, as long as he put on a good show. I hope he wins his next bout decisively. Props to Chuck for taking care of business, I haven't been that excited about a bout for a really long time.

St. Pierre is a monster! I can't believe how he took Hughes down at will and beat him at his own game. It's seriously insane how talented and athletic GSP is. I wonder what Hughes will do next, he's definitely the most illustrious welterweight of all time, so I highly respect him. I still wouldn't mind seeing him fight guys like Parisyan or Fitch, but I'd understand and respect him if he thought it was time to call it quits.

Overall it was a very memorable event, mostly because of the Liddell and Silva fight. What'd you guys think?

[benz5521]

I didn't get to see it unfortunately because I was at a Velvet Revolver concert but I'm glad GSP won. The guy is a real class act.

[polishmike]

Fuck, I was at home all night and completely missed it. Sounds like it was a good one too

[Guest mwills]

I heard Hughes was going to retire after the GSP fight if he lost, if he won he was gonna go on to fight for the title and retire after that fight win or loss. He had a kid so supposidly he's retiring.

[MataLeao]

I sadistically enjoyed watching Hughes (in slow motion) yelling TAP, TAP, TAP, while GSP was cranking that armbar.

Isn't funny how in the beginning, the belligerent crowed started yelling out USA! Then after 2nd round they changed and started yelling out GSP!