UFC 73 Stacked

[ED-209]

July 7th

Anderson “The Spider” Silva vs Nate “The Great” Marquardt

Sean “The Muscle Shark” Sherk vs Hermes Franca

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs Herring

Tito Ortiz vs Rashad Evans

Sounds pretty damn good to me, better than that lame card being served up in belfast next month

[Sever]

It's nice to see the UFC finally starting to put the talent and money they've got now to good use
If Nog/ Herring happens, the MMA newbies are in for a treat, their first two fights were both great (especially the first one - one of my all-time favourite fights) though it really makes little sense from a matchmaking perspective
Other rumoured fights (from UFC Mania (http://ufcmania.com/2007/03/09/ufc-73-fight-card/)) are
Chris Lytle vs. Jeff Joslin
Jorge Gurgel vs. Diego Saraiva

As much as I love Silva, I'll have to pick Marquardt by decision on this one, I don't care hugely about Evans/ Ortiz (I suspect it will be boring) but probably Ortiz by decision, Serk by decision or TKO (though you can guarantee Franca will make an exciting fight out of it) and assuming Nog/ Herring goes down, Noguiera by decision. It'll certainly be interesting to see how the rule and venue changes affect the fight those two have

[neryo_tkd]

i haven't seen Nog fight for a while. what's up with him?

[BigRed389]

i haven't seen Nog fight for a while. what's up with him?

Err...he was on the NYE card, he beat Barnett in a rematch by UD.

This isn't a terrible layoff by any means...he should be good to go if he's ready to adjust to the UFC.

Which btw makes me wonder how Herring is doing with that. It was clear that having no ground knees was really frustrating him in the last fight of his that actually made the broadcast. I wonder if he'll use elbows effectively to compensate.

[neryo_tkd]

elbows? maybe mirko can tell him all about the elbows :D

[Apotheosis]

July 7th

Anderson “The Spider” Silva vs Nate “The Great” Marquardt

Sean “The Muscle Shark” Sherk vs Hermes Franca

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs Herring

Tito Ortiz vs Rashad Evans

Sounds pretty damn good to me, better than that lame card being served up in belfast next month


Marquardt by 5th round TKO

Sherk 4th round TKO

Big Nog 3rd round KO---Stupid match-up, Herring's stock has fallen dramatically so if he somehow wins then Big Nog will be seen as a can by people who do not know his history

Ortiz vs Evans- Interesting fight, Evans is the better wrestler but Tito is bigger and stronger..Going to go with Rashad by decision

[Pacificshore]

Can Mirko walk after his last KO?? :eek:

[Apotheosis]

Can Mirko walk after his last KO?? :eek:

Yes...no idea how but he walked away from the cage and was seen walking from in the airport when he got back to Croatia

[neryo_tkd]

yeah, he is alive, don't worry, he is taking a break from everything now. how he feels.... that's another story :rolleyes:

[Pacificshore]

He can be the next trainer in the Ultimate Fighter show....if he takes a break ;)

[wazzabi]

if tito takes rashad to the ground he's in huge trouble. rashad's never fought someone with a GNP like tito's. but this is gonna be a good fight. let's hope rashad can do what forest couldn't do(forest won that fight in my mind)

[gornex]

wow, the rashad tito fight seems really interesting to me. This is so far the most exciting fight on the card for me. Rashad has been fighting some tough guys and he seems to always step up his game, and tito well hes tito ortiz so this should be very good.

[Doublejab]

Big Nog 3rd round KO---Stupid match-up, Herring's stock has fallen dramatically so if he somehow wins then Big Nog will be seen as a can by people who do not know his history



I agree, silly match up. Herring I think still has potential, when he's good hes great and some of his fights have been very impressive but he has 'Belfot Syndrome' quite badly. Nog will probably beat him and I don't think their styles will make for a great fight.

[Oversoul]

Stupid match-up, Herring's stock has fallen dramatically so if he somehow wins then Big Nog will be seen as a can by people who do not know his history

Well, that's too bad for THOSE people. Besides, he'll probably demolish Herring anyway. He pretty much manhandled Barnett in his last fight and has basically looked better than ever. He's already beaten Herring twice. I don't even think this will go to a decision. He'll probably outbox Herring until Herring goes for the takedown, then submit him with a choke (again).

[BigRed389]

yeah, he is alive, don't worry, he is taking a break from everything now. how he feels.... that's another story :rolleyes:

How he feels? Probably really, really pissed. I think we may be on the verge of seeing him go off on another monster tear.

Word is that he's recently bought a cage to train in, and although that wasn't the real show stopper in his last fight, it shows he's planning to take the UFC very seriously. Which presumably means he'll be training the elbows.

Just not exactly sure how...he's had Werdum to help his BJJ game, but I don't know if he even plans to bring in a UFC GNP guy to help him out.

[Apotheosis]

Well, that's too bad for THOSE people. Besides, he'll probably demolish Herring anyway. He pretty much manhandled Barnett in his last fight and has basically looked better than ever. He's already beaten Herring twice. I don't even think this will go to a decision. He'll probably outbox Herring until Herring goes for the takedown, then submit him with a choke (again).

Which will make everyone think Herring is a can...

I'd prefer he get a few fights to prove whether he is a top fighter rather than have him lose two out of three fights.

[BigRed389]

Which will make everyone think Herring is a can...

I'd prefer he get a few fights to prove whether he is a top fighter rather than have him lose two out of three fights.

If he goes to war again with Nog, nobody will consider him a can.

And let's face it, this is part of why we love MMA, but it's also a pretty brutal environment. Anybody who wants to be a top fighter pretty much gets tossed right into the water, sink or swim. No easy days or sure victories.

[neryo_tkd]

i agree. people always see it's brutal, but people are not pleased without a good fight.

[Pacificshore]

Nothing worse than paying bucks for PPV, and then watching any fight where the two dudes just lay on the ground hugging each other ;)

[Oversoul]

Which will make everyone think Herring is a can...

I'd prefer he get a few fights to prove whether he is a top fighter rather than have him lose two out of three fights.

Just because he used to be a dominant fighter? Someone has to be the man to lose for Nogueira's debut. I'd prefer someone else, since Heath has already lost to him twice, but the fact that he hasn't been all that impressive lately means the UFC doesn't really have any reason not to use him as Minotauro's stepping stone.

[spirez]

Is Nate Marquardt really deserving of the title shot? He hasn't been that active and hasn't really fought any of the bigger names in that division in my opinion. Lister i see as potential but not a top level fighter just yet.

[tekkengod]

i dont get all this unwarranted critisizim thrown at mirko, he was god then, and hes a god now, everyone has crappy nights, he took gg lightly, he won't do it again. he'll b back, guarantee it.

[neryo_tkd]

i agree with tekken, mirko will definitely be back.

[Apotheosis]

I'm not so sure he will be back in top form, he has the potential but he may just be declining

[Oversoul]

I'm not so sure he will be back in top form, he has the potential but he may just be declining

Well, it might be impossible to tell for certain. But he did look pretty bad (I'd say even worse) against Randleman and came back better than ever.

[neryo_tkd]

yeah, and i truly hope that he'll be able to do that again. mirko himself said that sometimes he has these bad moments but he always gets up and continues fighting with good results. maybe he needs these wake up calls :cool:

[Oversoul]

maybe he needs these wake up calls :cool:

Not the most pleasant sort of "wake up call" now, is it?

[neryo_tkd]

nope, not at all, but when the man says it so himself....what can we do....whenever his wife has an interview she always says that she wants him to retire. it definitely wasn't a pretty sight for her to see him on the floor like that.

[Apotheosis]

yeah, and i truly hope that he'll be able to do that again. mirko himself said that sometimes he has these bad moments but he always gets up and continues fighting with good results. maybe he needs these wake up calls :cool:

Possibly, but Mirko has been struggling with ankle/foot injuries and it does seem like he may be losing "it"...whether it is mental or physical.

I hope I am wrong though

[neryo_tkd]

you ARE wrong :Alien:

joke aside, i want to see him fight again. and for his sake, i hope he bounces back.

[Apotheosis]

Since this is coming up rapidly I thought I would update it as it is looked great.

Marquardt vs Silva - I am picking Marquardt to get the upset win here, I expect him to be cautious and stay on the outside before shooting for the takedown and controlling the ground game as he did with Lister. It may be boring though.

3 round TKO for Marquardt


Sherk vs Franca- I think Sherk is going to dominate, he has better striking and the better wrestling as well as being nearly impossibly to submit. His only 2 losses have come to wrestlers who were much bigger than him and Franca is neither bigger nor a better wrestler. I expect Sherk to land some nice blows and then slam Franca.

3 Round TKO for Sherk


Evans vs Ortiz- Not sure who to pick, Rashad is the better athlete and the better wrestler but Ortiz is more experienced and has nice striking. If Ortiz goes for the takedown as soon as he hears the bell similar to Salmon he may be able to take this as it seems Rashad has poor takedown defense. It may come down to who can get the takedown first.

I'm going to pick Tito via UD but I am far from confident


Nog vs Herring- I expect Big Nog to dominate and pick Herring apart on his feet before taking him down and tooling him there.

Big Nog 2nd Round Submission or TKO


Gurgel vs Saraiva- Gurgel is more experienced but he is far from impressive and could not even finish Danny Abbadi so I am going to pick The Octopus via UD in an upset.


Florian vs Robinson- I expect Florian to dominate as he has the better striking and the better grappling. He has a bigger advantage on his feet so I expect him to pick Alves apart and get a TKO.

Florian via TKO in round 2


Bonnar vs Nickels- Bonnar is much better in all aspects, Nickels is horrible on his feet as Hamill showed so I expect Bonnar to dominate him. How long it takes depends on whether Bonnar is going for an exciting fight or decides to play it safe.

Bonnar gets a 2nd round KO


Lytle vs Gilliam- Lytle should take this as his first 2 opponents had to withdraw leaving Gilliam about a week to prepare. I expect him to dominate.

Lytle via 2nd round submission


Edgar vs Bocek- Edgar is a pretty impressive fighter, he and Tyson Griffen put on a show and I think he is a top 5 fighter at 155 in the UFC.

Having said that, Bocek is a BJJ whiz with a submission over Mike Fowler(who has a win over Renzo Gracie and a submission win over Saulo Ribeiro). I do not know how good his takedowns are but I fully expect him to dominate on the ground if he can get the takedown or if Edgar makes a mistake and shoots.

Edgar via TKO in round 2 but if this goes to the ground, all bets are off.

[Sever]

And the results are:

Kenny Florian vs. Alvin Robinson: Florian, GnP stoppage in rd1

Frankie Edgar vs Mark Bocek: Edgar, TKO rd1

Chris Lytle vs Jason Gilliam: Lytle by triangle choke in rd1

Jorge Gurgel vs Diego Saraiva: Gurgel by unanimous decision

Stephan Bonnar vs Mike Nickels: Bonnar by rear naked choke in rd1

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Heath Herring: Nogueira by decision. Not a bad match but not a patch on their first legendary clash. Herring almost had Nog at the end of the first when he dropped him with a high kick but didn't finish in time and failed to capitalise when he was still groggy at the start of the second. After that, Noguiera was outstriking Herring and going for sub after sub on the ground. Herring defended well but it should've been obvious after their first two fights that Herring's out of his depth against Nog

Sean Sherk vs. Hermes Franca: Sherk by decision. Impressive display of wrestling and cardio by Sherk. Franca had his moments (usually with wild, unorthodox striking), but I didn't have Sherk losing a round. The crowd were unimpressed

Tito Ortiz vs. Rashad Evans: Draw. Yes, really. Ortiz looked to be getting the better of the striking and takedowns in the first, though Evans defended a couple of shots well. In the second, Ortiz again pressed the action, Evans appeared fatigued as Ortiz landed shots from the Thai clinch and took him down with clinch-trips. McCarthy warned Ortiz about grabbing the fence. Ortiz grabbed it again and McCarthy took a point off. Not a bad call, but it's the first time anyone's done it. If the UFC refs are going to be consistent with that, I'll be glad, if they're not, Ortiz got the shaft. Ortiz locked in a guillotine at the end of the round. After the point being deducted, it was 9-9. Ortiz appeared gassed in the third, but managed to take Evans down and get mount. Evans escaped and slammed Ortiz at the end of the round making it 10-9 Evans for this round, making it a draw. Not the most satisfying end considering the hype going into it

Anderson Silva vs. Nathan Marquardt: Silva by TKO in the first. This was the only pick I was wrong on, I had Marquardt taking a decision
Silva threw a flying knee, Marquardt took him down after avoiding it, couldn't do much inside Silva's guard and the fight was stood back up. Silva scored on the feet, defended a takedown before putting Marquard on his back and landing a huge punch from above. After a few more strikes, the fight was stopped and Silva takes his first title defence and does so by beating a very tough fighter in Marquardt

All-in-all, I don't think "Stacked" lived up to the hype. It was a pretty good event, but I think the biggest piece of fallout from this won't be the inevitable Silva/ Franklin rematch or them putting Sherk up against someone with a sprawl; it'll be the inevitable "Ortiz was screwed/ Finally someone does something about fence-grabbing/ McCarthy's corrupt" drivel we'll be seeing for the next few weeks

[Apotheosis]

This event sucked for me, I couldn't order the PPV for some reason and then my pc wouldn't run any streams.

Anyways, I would really like to see in the future if people begin to get penalized for grabbing the fence or if this was a one time deal. I cannot count the number of fights I have seen in which a fighter grabbed the fence multiple times without being called on it, this may be a case of everyone hating Tito and the referee being unfair.

I was surprised about the ease with which Silva dismantled Marquardt, does anyone think that Franklin or any other fighter in the UFC has a chance of taking his title?

[wazzabi]

i respect sherk's skill, but it's extremely boring to watch. the guy simply does not try to finish fights. who lays and prays from the mount position? it's ridiculous. he had the mount probably 4-6 times in the fight, and not once did he try to ground and pound for a stoppage. instead he would lean forward and just press his chest against franka. seriously, who does that? i'm starting to hate watching sherk.

now kenny florian on the other hand, was very very impressive. he went 110mph for the whole fight. i've never seen this guy fight with so much energy and aggression. if he keeps this up, i can see him getting his title shot back very soon. his fitness has improved by so much. i remember seeing kenny as a scrawny guy, but last night, the dude was ripped. his improvement in fitness really showed in his fight performance, and i really hope he keeps improving.

when herring landed the kick on big nog i was thinking in my mind "God, not another upset....". good thing nog pulled through :D

[Thomas]

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Heath Herring: Nogueira by decision.
This was a pretty good match and I was happy that Herring looked beter than the last time he was on... and I was happy that he almost got the upset win (but must have been to told to back off and let the "new guy win" :D Just joking!)



Sean Sherk vs. Hermes Franca: Sherk by decision.

I enjoyed this match a lot and was impressed with Sherk... although I would have liked to see a KO or submission, I thought he looked like a monster in there beating up Franca.


Tito Ortiz vs. Rashad Evans: Draw.
Ortiz was screwed/ Finally someone does something about fence-grabbing/ McCarthy's corrupt :D


I was really into this match. I have always liked Ortiz, I think it's his confidence/arrogance, and the excitement he always creates. I also like Rashad Evans (I think I was one of the few who picked him to win UF and backed him from the beginning of the show). So, I was happy to see a good hard fight but really disappointed with the ending. In my opinion, Ortiz won the match. I can understand the loss of a point but do feel that it needs to be enforced that way from now on... Tito really was holding on very little compared to the way others do (and look how many people use their toes too!)

Anyway, I'd love to see a rematch on an Ultimate Fight Night... that'd be good!

Anderson Silva vs. Nathan Marquardt: Silva by TKO in the first.

For some reason, I couldn't remember seeing Marquardt too much before, whether he hasn't been on cards or whether his matches weren't memorable for me. I really like Silva and was happy to see him win decisively!


All-in-all, I don't think "Stacked" lived up to the hype. It was a pretty good event, but I think the biggest piece of fallout from this won't be the inevitable Silva/ Franklin rematch or them putting Sherk up against someone with a sprawl; it'll be the inevitable "Ortiz was screwed/ Finally someone does something about fence-grabbing/ McCarthy's corrupt" drivel we'll be seeing for the next few weeks
I enjoyed it overall... much better than the last PPV (which I thought was hard pressed to equal a free Ultimate Fight Night card)


Oh, and ... Ortiz was screwed/ Finally someone does something about fence-grabbing/ McCarthy's corrupt


[/QUOTE]

[BGile]

This was a pretty good match and I was happy that Herring looked beter than the last time he was on... and I was happy that he almost got the upset win (but must have been to told to back off and let the "new guy win" :D Just joking!)





I enjoyed this match a lot and was impressed with Sherk... although I would have liked to see a KO or submission, I thought he looked like a monster in there beating up Franca.



Ortiz was screwed/ Finally someone does something about fence-grabbing/ McCarthy's corrupt :D


I was really into this match. I have always liked Ortiz, I think it's his confidence/arrogance, and the excitement he always creates. I also like Rashad Evans (I think I was one of the few who picked him to win UF and backed him from the beginning of the show). So, I was happy to see a good hard fight but really disappointed with the ending. In my opinion, Ortiz won the match. I can understand the loss of a point but do feel that it needs to be enforced that way from now on... Tito really was holding on very little compared to the way others do (and look how many people use their toes too!)

Anyway, I'd love to see a rematch on an Ultimate Fight Night... that'd be good!



For some reason, I couldn't remember seeing Marquardt too much before, whether he hasn't been on cards or whether his matches weren't memorable for me. I really like Silva and was happy to see him win decisively!



I enjoyed it overall... much better than the last PPV (which I thought was hard pressed to equal a free Ultimate Fight Night card)


Oh, and ... Ortiz was screwed/ Finally someone does something about fence-grabbing/ McCarthy's corrupt


[/QUOTE]

Ditto

[tekkengod]

i am honestly starting to think titos fights are being "monitored" can anyone even recall the last time we had a "draw"

[Stan O'Kella]

I really enjoyed the event, the highlight was the Shrek v Franca fight. The way that Shrek was passing the guard like Franca was an amateur. Looked like Franca gave up bothering trying to stop him towards the end of the fight!!!

The Ortiz fight was a little disappointing, looked like Evans got a little shy after the first take down and the fight got pretty boring to be honest for me. The old Tito seemed to be missing when he had Evans down, maybe he is past his prim by a little too far. Would love to be wrong though, always liked the way he just dominate someone.

Rest of the fights went pretty much as expected, nothing spectacular except the kick in the Nog fight. Herring blew his chance by letting it get stood up, Nog was in a bad way and he should have stayed on him like stink on pooh.

All in all, I enjoyed the event and the fights.

[Gufbal1981]

Sherk is an incredible wrestler. I honestly didn't like all the fights...but that is my opinion.

[pauli]

i respect sherk's skill, but it's extremely boring to watch. the guy simply does not try to finish fights. who lays and prays from the mount position? it's ridiculous. he had the mount probably 4-6 times in the fight, and not once did he try to ground and pound for a stoppage. instead he would lean forward and just press his chest against franka. seriously, who does that? i'm starting to hate watching sherk.every time franca had an inch of space, he'd try (and often succeed) to escape. sherk would hit him to remain busy while trying to catch a submission - he was trying for chokes and armlocks throughout - but there's the minor detail that he was trying to submit a bjj blackbelt. sherk wasn't just laying on top of him, he was actively and continuously controlling his opponent, who was actively and continuously neutralizing his attempts to finish. the monstrous strength difference was obvious; the real story is that franca survived at all.

[RandomTriangle]

I think BJJ'ers and MMA fans who fall in the more intellectual end of the spectrum appreciated the technical prowess sherk displayed. But those two groups probably make up less than 25% of the current viewing audience of the UFC.

Dana brought back the 155lbs class with the promise of fast-paced and exciting fights. Last nights fight, for the majority of fans, does not qualify.

Sherk works as hard as anyone I have ever seen. He is HUGE for the 155 division. Pound for pound, he's probably the strongest guy in MMA. But as everyone else states (including KenFlo), he doesnt finish his opponents off. I think he fights scared. He is so unwilling to put any space in between him and his opponent for strikes. His jiu-jitsu passes and control were top notch. But this is MMA...Watching Sherk on the ground is kinda like watching a NAGA or Grapplers Quest superfight invloving a wrestler vs. jiu-jitsu guy, which would be alot more acceptable if I wasn't shelling out 40 bucks for it. Watching that fight frustrated me alot, making me long for the beat down he got from GSP. Don't get me wrong, Sherk is an awesome fighter, but the only thing he did to Hermes in that fight was tire him out and frustrate him. Among the current UFC champions, Sherk is by far the most boring and one-dimensional to watch. If he doesnt work on this, he's going to end up being booed everytime he fights, like Tim Sylvia used to be.

[fire cobra]

Sherk takes knees to the head well!,I enjoyed his performance,great wrestling skills and as has already been said kept tight most of the bout,almost fell to the guillotine a couple of times though,a very strong man! :)

[nicolethai1]

Watching that fight frustrated me alot, making me long for the beat down he got from GSP. Don't get me wrong, Sherk is an awesome fighter, but the only thing he did to Hermes in that fight was tire him out and frustrate him. Among the current UFC champions, Sherk is by far the most boring and one-dimensional to watch. If he doesnt work on this, he's going to end up being booed everytime he fights, like Tim Sylvia used to be.

I can understand your point of view (very balanced and nicely expressed!) but personally I really enjoyed watching Sherk; it was a great technical fight. Sherk is simply utilising his best skills to the utmost and it's up to his opponents to find a way of dealing with it. If they can't, don't blame Sherk, the ball's in their court!

What really irritates me is how the UFC audience so easily boo good fighters like that. It is meant to be a serious sport and not just "entertainment" in the sense of the most blood and pounding. They should show more respect to someone like Sherk who is obviously 110% dedicated.

On the other hand I was really disappointed by the Tito fight and that's speaking as a Tito fan. I was really looking forward to this fight and Tito just seemed a bit flat, and where was the evidence of his legendary cardio? Wonder what's going on - I hope we'll see him back on form soon.

I was pleased to see Nogueira get the decision, I thought overall he deserved it. Herring showed great kickboxing though!

[wazzabi]

every time franca had an inch of space, he'd try (and often succeed) to escape. sherk would hit him to remain busy while trying to catch a submission - he was trying for chokes and armlocks throughout - but there's the minor detail that he was trying to submit a bjj blackbelt. sherk wasn't just laying on top of him, he was actively and continuously controlling his opponent, who was actively and continuously neutralizing his attempts to finish. the monstrous strength difference was obvious; the real story is that franca survived at all.

if it was matt hughes, the fight would have stopped in round 1 or 2. especially when given the mount position. sherk's in the UFC, he gets paid to take risks. he didn't take any risks in this fight while on the ground. when you have the mount, you drop elbows or go for a submission. end of story.

[Apotheosis]

if it was matt hughes, the fight would have stopped in round 1 or 2. especially when given the mount position. sherk's in the UFC, he gets paid to take risks. he didn't take any risks in this fight while on the ground. when you have the mount, you drop elbows or go for a submission. end of story.

Not true, you get paid to win..

If you are exciting but lose, the UFC will can you and ruin your MMA career.

Sherk got paid 14,000 to fight and 14,000 to win...

I don't blame him for being cautious and making sure he wins as opposed to taking risks...

He had 2 fights in 2006 and his next fight will be in November...meaning he will have 2 fights in 2007 as well.

56,000 is not all that much money for a year, especially considering trainers, supplements etc...

Imagine if you took a risk and lost your two fights that year...You would ONLY have 28,000 to feed your kids and pay your bills!!!

Not to mention the UFC would likely cut you from their roster and then you would be making even less money

[RandomTriangle]

ACTUALLY... you get paid to entertain fans.

Just look at the pay scale.

UFC 73 "Stacked" Reported Purses

Frank Edgar - $5,000 + $5,000 win bonus
Mark Bocek - $3,000

Jorge Gurgel - $7,000 + $7,000 win bonus
Diego Saraiva - $3,000

Stephan Bonnar - $16,000 + $16,000 win bonus
Mike Nickels - $5,000

Chris Lytle - $10,000 + $10,000 win bonus
Jason Gilliam - $3,000

Kenny Florian - $8,000 + $8,000 win bonus
Alvin Robinson - $3,000

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira - $100,000 + $100,000 win bonus
Heath Herring - $70,000

UFC Lightweight Championship
Sean Sherk - $14,000 + $14,000 win bonus
Hermes Franca - $14,000

UFC Middleweight Championship
Anderson Silva - $45,000 + $45,000 win bonus
Nathan Marquardt - $24,000

Tito Ortiz - $210,000
Rashad Evans - $16,000

POSTED -- 07/09/07

source: Thefightnetwork.com

Tito makes 210k because he USED to be entertaining so people will WATCH to see him fight...

NOG made 200k because any educated fight fan knows he wins with style...

Sherk... in a CHAMPIONSHIP defense... made 28k.

And with the fans booing... i don't see that going up.

[Apotheosis]

You get paid to win first and foremost...

Frank Edgar's fight was more exciting than Tito's....Anderson Silva's was more exciting than Tito's...

But Tito was a winner who never really finished anyone but talked a lot of garbage...

I just don't see how you can complain about Sherk being boring when he is doing what he can to win and secure the maximum of 28 grand...If he loses, you and I both know he will be pushed to the back of the line because he is not the most charismatic or appealing fighter to watch...

Is this about being the best fighter or being the most exciting?

[wazzabi]

but if sherk fought more like matt hughes in the first place, which he surely can, he probably would have been offered more money in his fight contract. matt hughes finishes fights, which makes him exciting to watch. that's why he gets paid over $100,000 for each fight.

i laughed when kenny florian made that comment about sherk not finishing fights. i really liked the kenny i saw that night. hope he keeps it up.

anyways, since bj penn is in the lightweight division now, i see him taking sherk's belt away. it seems like he's the only UFC lightweight capable of beating sherk. i don't think anyone else comes close.

[doc97]

I would imagine, like a lot of atheletes, Sherk gets a good chunk of change from his endorsments. MMA gear, nutrional supplement, etc..

Of course he is not on the same level as a Michael Jordon, or a Tiger Woods who make millions upon millions for their endorsement, but I wouldn't imagine that he is hurting either.

I would have liked it more if it wasn't a draw between rashad and tito. UFC and MMA fighting, in my opinion should always have a winner and a loser. Have an extra round like they do for a title shot. I think the fans would appreciate it more, I know I would. Just my two cents....

[Agutrot-]

As an avid groundfighter I think Sherk's fight are really fun to watch. Always really technical takedowns and guardpassing. To me that was the fight of the night.