UFC 102 roundup

Results :

Evan Dunham defeats Marcus Aurelio by Decision (Split)

Mark Munoz defeats Nick Catone by Decision (Split)

Todd Duffee defeats Tim Hague by KO (Punches), round 1.

Michael Russow defeats Justin McCully by Decision (Unanimous)

Gabriel Gonzaga defeats Chris Tuchscherer by TKO (Punches), rd 1.

Aaron Simpson defeats Ed Herman by TKO (Knee Injury), round 2.

Brandon Vera defeats Krzysztof Soszynski by Decision (Unanimous)

Nate Marquardt defeats Demian Maia by KO (Punch), round 1.

Jake Rosholt defeats Chris Leben by Technical Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke), round 3.

Thiago Silva defeats Keith Jardine by TKO (Punches), round 1.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira defeats Randy Couture by Decision (Unanimous)

I got to say, I loved this card.

Round 1 of this fight should be round of the year. Nogueira looked very good. I found it weird to watch Randy get dominated like that. Usually, if Randy doesn't get knocked out, he's beating up his opponent. It was nice to see Nog back in top form.

As for my picks, I was 8 - 3 & I got the method of victory in 5 of those. More importantly, I was very impressed with most of the winners. I already mentioned how good Big Nog looked, so I'll give a rundown of the fighters that really impressed on Saturday night in Portland.

Todd Duffee - I picked Duffee to knock out Hague but I didn't think it would that quick. Duffee set a new record for fastest UFC knock out, 7 seconds in. I attribute that more to Hague not having his hands up, but still, watch out for another big heavyweight in Todd Duffee.

Aaron Simpson - Ed Herman hurt his knee, which is how he lost the fight, but Simpson was beating him up real good. I really believe Simpson is the next big thing in the middleweight division.

Jake Rosholt - As I posted before, I wasn't interested in this middleweight fight. I was wrong. Rosholt looked good. He was out striking the heavy handed Leben and dominated him for 3 rounds. Roshalts arm triangle-choke on Leben was smooth & great to watch. I will not overlook Rosholt again.

Thiago Silva - I always looked at Thiago Silva as a straight banger, but against Jardine he put together a solid striking game plan & did exactly what I thought he would do, knock Jardine out in the first round. I'm looking forward to the next Thiago Silva fight.

All in all, this card was great. 102 was the best UFC card since UFC 96 in Ohio. I think it all comes down to getting my hopes up when I see a stacked line up & it usually doesn't live up to the hype.

MMA's most feared striker

UFC 102 - Couture vs Nogueira

UFC 102 - Couture vs. Nogueira - August 29, 2009 - Rose Garden Arena, Portland, Ore.

Matchups:

Randy Couture (No. 6 HW) vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (No. 5 HW)


I like this fight a lot. I am a big fan of both Randy & Big Nog so it kinda stinks that one guy's gotta lose. I don't know how depreciated Nogueira actually is. I don't believe the rumors that he has repeatedly been knocked out in sparring, but I do know that Minotauro hasn't looked great in his 3 UFC appearances.


Jacare couldn't submit Randy in a grappling match, so I don't see a battle-scarred Nogueira submitting him. I think Randy has the better stand up, even if Nog doesn't show up looking like he did against Frank Mir. I see Randy putting Nog on his back, up against the cage and beating him up for 3 rounds. I hope I'm wrong & I hope there are some surprises. I hope it's a true 'fight'.
Couture by Decision.


Keith Jardine (No. 9 LHW) vs. Thiago Silva

I would like to take Jardine in this fight but I can't. Jardine has repeatedly shown he has trouble with brawlers that rush him & Silva is that kind of fighter. Jardine did impress me in his fight against Rampage, but I don't see this going well for him.
Silva KO, round 1. Chris Leben vs. Jake Rosholt

I don't like this fight, & I couldn't be more disinterested. This shouldn't be on the main card when Gonzaga & Tuchscherer is on the under card. This is a middleweight match up with no relevance, meanwhile 2 decent heavyweights & possible future title contenders may not be seen.
Leben has heavy hands and a solid chin & that should be enough to beat the wrestler Rosholt.
I hope I'm wrong. Leben is a joke.
Leben TKO round 3.

Nate Marquardt (No. 3 MW) vs. Demian Maia (No. 5 MW)


I'm looking forward to this fight the most. The winner will most likely get a shot at Anderson Silva's middleweight belt, after Dan Henderson.


Maia has the best Jiu-Jitsu in the UFC, but Marquardt is no slouch in the grappling department. Nate has definitely got the better stand up. I see Maia getting Nate to the ground & submitting him, or at least working enough submission attempts to get the decision.


I have a gut feeling that this is a fight that would benefit from being 5 rounds & I will not be shocked to see a close split decision with Marquardt the victor.
Maia by Submission, rd 3.
Brandon Vera vs. Krzysztof Soszynski


This is a very tough fight to call. Krzysztof has shown a ton of improvement since his loss to Vinny Magalhaes on the Ultimate Fighter 8, & Vera sometimes shows up not ready to fight. I won't be surprised if I'm wrong & Soszynski beats up on Brandon, but I see Vera showing up in shape, & keeping the distance standing.

Vera by Decision. Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Chris Tuchscherer


Tuchscherer is Brock Lesnar's training partner & is basically just that. From what I've seen, he's a poor man's Brock. I am very interested in seeing the 17-1-0 Tuchscherer debut in the UFC against a top heavyweight.

I'm picturing a less exciting version of Brock Lesnar's debut against Frank Mir. I think Tuchscherer will put Gabe on his back and get carelessly submitted. Chris has faced some decent opposition but I don't think he's fought anyone with the Jiu-Jitsu pedigree of Gonzaga.

I can see Tuchscherer getting a TKO victory because, while Gonzaga has all the skills in the world to be an top 5 heavyweight, he seems to forget how to fight when he gets punched in the face.
Gonzaga by Submission, round 2.



Ed Herman vs. Aaron Simpson
Simpson by Decision

Michael Russow vs. Justin McCully
Russow by Submission.

Todd Duffee vs. Tim Hague
Duffee TKO.

Mark Munoz vs. Nick Catone
Munoz TKO.

Marcus Aurelio vs. Evan Dunham
Dunham by Decision.

Fan Expo - Aug 28 - 30, 2009

The Fan Expo is coming up this weekend at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

I will be there Saturday & Sunday. Not table for Team Awesome Marcus Ninja, because I wanna get around the show & do lots.

My pal Phil will be in Artist's Alley reppin' his Furious comics. I did this pin-up of Ares vs zombies for Phil. He puts together really nice horror comics. Definitely check him out if you're at the show. Here's the floor plan, Furious comics is at A74.

Home work assignment #7- Aging

I was giving Deeba pointers on how to make a character appear younger/older. Deeba gave me my new asssignment of drawing a character's facial aging from birth to old age. this is the result.

BigHead vs Rambo

My pal Milo picked this up for me when he & Kathryn went down to San Diego ComiCon. Jeffrey Brown was doing these pre-drawn BigHead vs ______ , & he would draw in a character of your choice. Knowing my love for both Jeff Brown & Rambo, Milo made a a very wise decision.
Check out Milo's San Diego ComiCon report. part1, part 2, & part 3.

& for more Jeffrey Brown check out his blog here.

Thanks Milo & thanks Jeff Brown!!!!

character concept sketch

25 Questions with Digital Kontent's IBY

1) Who are you & what do you do?

I am Ibrahim and I do just fine. I also like to occasionally draw (Shane will tell you that I'm a slacker). I host Digital Kontent with Milo and Johnboy. I write/illustrate a web comic called 'the Gan 5'.

2) Seen any good movies lately?

The Best Movie that I've seen recently has to be Waltz With Bashir. It's rotoscoped (live action with animation over top of it) better than anything else I've ever seen and the sound track just blew me away. However be prepared for sadness if you watch this movie.


3) What are you listening to?

My newest musical find has been Shiny Toy Guns, they're pretty good. The most recent concert I went to was the Dead Weather (featuring Jack White).
the Gan 5
4) What do you do to relax?

I like to relax by writing "Yo Mama" jokes into dirty napkins and leaving them at bus stops.

5) What's your favourite book?

My favorite book is actually a series, I'm into fantasy novels and each story seems to have 50 books. Anyway, my favorite series is "A Song of Ice and Fire" by George RR Martin.

6) You order a pizza all to yourself, what toppings do you get?

I would order a triple mushroom pizza with onions instead of pizza sauce.


Iby & myself tearin' it up with sketches at a con
7) What's your favourite fruit?

Mangoes are my favorite fruit. Mangoes or Graham Norton, he's delightful.

8) Favourite junk food?

I love ice cream. Either a Haagen Daz cone from the 7-11 or a World Class Chocolate from Baskin Robbins.



9) What's the best concert you've ever been to?

The best concert I've ever been to was probably Girl Talk 2007 in Toronto. Despite the fact that I got smashed in the face by a crowd surfer and lost my glasses.

10) Biggie or Tupac?

The weird thing is that I was always a Coolio fan and he's still kickin' it. Sorry Biggs and Tupe, but nothing beats the Cools.

11) Who's your childhood crush?

Langdon Alger.

Paulie, Johnboy & Iby holdin' it down

12) If you could travel anywhere right now, where would you go?

I would travel to New Zealand. It Rocks!!!!

13) TV shows you're watching right now ?

I'm watching 30 Rock on my iphone. I'm on season 2 now... I know I'm pretty behind on this one.

14) What's your guilty pleasure?

I have a medical condition due to which I am unable to feel guilt. So putting pieces of raw fish into my roommates shoes is just all pleasure baby.

15) Favourite superhero(es)?

The Goon, Mr. Hyde (from league of extraordinary gentlemen) and my mom (she made me put this in).

16) What pisses you off?

Being ignored (don't use this against me Shane)

17) Rank these hairstyles from best to worst, fauxhawk, comb over, mushroom cut, mullet, bald head with beard.

1. Bald Head with Beard 2. Mullet 3. Mushroom Cut 4. Comb Over 5. Fauxhawk

18) Favourite Saturday Night Live cast member (past or present) & why?

Phil Hartman was great, his voice was just unmatched. Currently Bill Hader is getting up there, that man knows his funny.

Dancing. Iby showing me a thing or two 19) Saturday morning cartoon you had to watch?

X-men

20) Craziest place you've ever done the 'no pants dance' ?

The roof of your mom's house.

21) Beverly Hills 90210 or Saved by the Bell?

Saved by the Bell... will anyone choose 90210?

22) Favourite artist(s)?

Zdzislaw Beksinski

23) If you were on death row what would your last meal be?

Maple Nut Oatmeal Crisp cereal.

24) 20 years from now, you will be _____________?

On a roller coaster ride of drugs and fancy restaurants (it's the dream baby, one step at a time)

25) How awesome are you? Feel free to use a scale of 1 - 10.

I would say I'm probably a 2 or 3 out of ten at the moment, but I'll keep climbing... and some day I'll be a 4!

Strikeforce : Carano vs Cyborg roundup

Christine 'Cyborg' Santos defeats Gina Carano by TKO in the first round.

Carano looked scared.

She should've looked scared.

Watching all the press & youtube promo videos leading up to Saturdays main event, I noticed that Gina never said anything confident. Ask any fighter, they will (and they should) tell you that they are gonna win, no matter how big an underdog they are.

Randy Couture believed he could beat Brock Lesnar,
Arlovski believed he could beat Fedor,
& Forrest believed he could beat Anderson Silva.

I was very surprised how many people picked Gina to win simply because she is too pretty to get smashed up. At no point during all the promotion leading up to Cyborg vs Carano did Gina say, ' I'm gonna beat Cyborg'.

The first round went exactly the way I thought it would. In fact, I bought into the Gina hype a little and picked her to make it to the 3rd round. It's in our nature as men (maybe not Chris Brown, but real men) to want to preserve the beautiful woman. Unfortunately that contradicts our need to be entertained by women's combat sports. Even the best fighters get hit in the face. You could argue that George St. Pierre is the male equivalent to Gina, being handsome & charming, & St. Pierre looked like a burn victim after his first encounter with BJ Penn. A fight in which he won.

I believe Gina is tough enough to put a few wins together and, hopefully, with Randy Coutures help, train both physically AND mentally to be able to beat Christine Cyborg. I don't think she will, but I won't be interested in a rematch until Gina can look into a camera and tell us she is going to win.

Gegard Mousasi defeats Renato 'Babalu' Sobral by KO in the first round. I said that Gegard Mousasi is destined for greatness and he definitely gave everyone a glimpse of it Saturday night with a first round stoppage of seasoned veteran Renato 'Babalu' Sobral. I picked Mousasi to win by ground and pound but I thought (or hoped rather) that this fight would be more competitive.

If you think about what this man has done at middleweight and light heavyweight at the young age of 24, and consider that he plans to move up to heavyweight as he his body fills out and his skills improve, you have to sit back and say 'wow'.

Mousasi is part of the Red Devil team and trains with #1 Heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, & Gegard brought the same stoic look & attitude to the cage & dominated in the same fashion Fedor is known for.

I look forward to Mousasi's upcoming bouts in the Dream Super-Hulk tournament finals and stateside as the new Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champ.


Gilbert Melendez defeats Mitsuhiro Ishida by TKO in the third round.

Gilbert looked good. He continues to get better. Even though 'El Nino' looked as well rounded as we've ever seen, using his jab to keep distance & a much improved sprawl, he still gave up his back at one point, which is something he really shouldn't do if he ever gets a rematch with Champ Josh Thomson
Fabricio Werdum defeats Mike Kyle by guillotine submission in the first round.

This is what should've happened.

Jay Hieron defeats Jesse Taylor by decision.

I didn't get to see this match but I thought Hieron would be able to deal with Taylor's wrestling enough to grind out a decision & he did. Hieron should be up for the Welterweight title against Nick Diaz.

On my picks I went 5 for 5. Next is UFC 102 on Saturday Aug. 29, in Portland, Oregon.

I can't wait.

Saturday - Strikeforce

Strikeforce - Carano vs. Cyborg, Saturday August 15, 2009 - HP Pavilion,San Jose, Calif.

Strikeforce Female 145-Pound Championship Gina Carano vs. Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos

I was very surprised to see that both ladies made the 145lb weight limit, a problem that both have struggled with in past fights (Cyborg came in 7 lbs over last time & Gina has missed weight in at least 5 of her 7 fights). Gina is the poster girl for women's MMA but unfortunately she's gonna get ripped up by Cyborg. The majority of people want to see Gina win simply because she's pretty to look at & she's super cute in interviews. Cyborg is ridiculously strong & she is a better fighter. Gina doesn't have what it takes to put away Cyborg.

I'm taking Cyborg by TKO in the 3rd round to become the first Strikeforce Women's 145lb Champion.

Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship

Renato "Babalu" Sobral vs. Gegard Mousasi

Without this fight I honestly would not be as interested in this fight card. Great job by Scott Coker & gang to pick up this Affliction fight to replace the Overeem/Werdum Heavyweight Championship match. This is a very tough fight to call. I believe Mousasi is destined for greatness. I like Babalu as well, but I can see Mousasi having the better stand up & if it goes to the ground Gegard has enough of a Jiu Jitsu game to defend against submissions.

I like Mousasi to use a variety of strikes & maybe some top position ground & pound for a TKO in the 3rd, & become the new Strikeforce Light-Heavyweight Champ. I really hope this is a good fight.

Strikeforce Lightweight Championship Gilbert Melendez vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida

Josh Thompson remains injured so this is for the interim Lightweight belt. A lot of people are saying Ishida is going to out wrestle Melendez like he did when they first met on New Years 2007, in Japan. Gilbert has improved a lot since their first bout & I got a feeling he's gonna come out the victor this time around.

Melendez by Decision

Jay Hieron vs. Jesse Taylor

This was supposed to be Nick Diaz & Joe Riggs for the Strikeforce Welterweight belt. Riggs got injured so they brought in Jay Hieron. Diaz didn't get his fighter license renewed because he can't stop smoking pot. Strikeforce brought in Ultimate Fighter 7 alumni Jesse Taylor.

It is no longer for the title but is still a solid welter weight match up. Taylor has improved a lot in the short time since his highlight reel submission loss to CB Dollaway, in July 2008, & has put together a string of 7 wins in a row. I think this will be a competitive match but I think Hieron has the tools to diffuse what Taylor does best. It wouldn't surprise me too much if Taylor came out on with a 'W' but I'm thinking it's going to be Hieron by Decision.




Fabricio Werdum vs. Mike Kyle

This fight isn't on the main card but I hope we get to see it. Werdum should win this. He is more skilled in every department, has one of the best Jiu Jitsu games in the Heavyweight division, & from the looks of the weigh-in pictures he is in shape.
Kyle wasn't suppose to win his last fight against Rafael 'Feijao' Calvacante & Werdum wasn't suppose to lose his last fight against Junior 'Cigano' dos Antos. Werdum should win easy & set up a possible fight with Fedor.
Werdum by Submission, round 1.

I'm not going to pick any more of the undercard fights. I don't know most of the fighters & most likely we won't get to see the fights.

kick it

new sketches & character designs

My Studio

I've decided to show everyone a glimpse into my little studio. It's a pretty simple drafting table, lamps, book shelf with comics & reference books, & ipod/cd player. If you're wondering, my computer/scanner is in the other room. That's right, I still buy CD's. I like 'em. I thought I'd also show a pick of my view of the ravine in the daytime. My studio is nothing spectacular but it gets the job done.

Here's some real nice studios of 3 of my favorite artists, Joe Quesada, Frank Cho, Skottie Young .

Crazy Weekend of MMA action!!!!

My thoughts on Saturdays UFC 101 in Philly, & Sunday nights WEC 42 in Vegas & my terrible picks.

BJ Penn defeats Kenny Florian by rear naked choke in 4th round.

I thought Penn showed maturity on Saturday in his dominate stoppage of Kenny Florian. Penn paced himself and nullified all of Florians offence throughout the fight and when the opportunity was there he went in for the kill. If Penn always shows up to defend his lightweight title looking as good as he did Saturday night in Philadelphia I don't see anyone beating him, & considering lightweight is the UFC's most talent rich division, that's saying something.

My pick was for Florian to win, it was a bad pick. Deep down I really wanted to see Kenny win but in my heart I knew he would come out on the losing end.
Anderson Silva defeats Forrest Griffin by TKO in the first round.

Along with everyone else, I pictured this fight being a little competitive and boy was I wrong. I'm not sure what Griffins game plan was (or if he had one) and why he didn't clinch up and try to take the fight to the ground. Silva absolutely dummied the Ultimate Fighter winner with quick hands and Roy Jones-esque head movement. Check out the numbers at Fight Metrics & you can see how ridiculous Silva made a top 5 Light Heavyweight look. Silva's head movement was almost art, letting Forrest connect on 1 of 35 head strikes thrown.
Ricardo Almeida defeats Kendall Grove by decision.

This fight was not exciting. I won't be in a hurry to watch this fight again.

Johny Hendricks defeats Amir Sadollah by TKO in the first round.

I've no doubt that Hendricks was going to win this fight but Dan Miragliotta's terrible early stoppage never gave us a chance to find out if Amir could've defended himself. Another, in a series of recent bad stoppages.

Kurt Pellegrino defeats Josh Neer by decision.

Another boring fight that I scored a draw. Pellegrino did practically nothing in 3 rounds of sitting in Neer's guard. Neer, while active, couldn't put together anything in the way of submission from the bottom.

Aaron Riley defeats Shane Nelson by decision.

This is what should've happened in March. Nelson is not a UFC caliber fighter & was given chances because he is a BJ Penn guy & Ultimate Fighter 8 cast member.


George Sotiropoulos defeats George Roop by submission (Kimura) in the second round.

Roop is another Ultimate Fighter 8 cast member that doesn't belong in the UFC.




I haven't watched any of the untelevised fights so I will just give a rundown of the results.

Jesse Lennox defeats Danillo Villefort by TKO (cut) in the third round.

Matt Riddle defeats Dan Cramer by decision.

Alessio Sakara defeats Thales Leites by decision.

John Howard defeats Tamdan McCrory by decision.





Sunday, WEC 42 : Torres vs Bowles


Brian Bowles defeats Miguel Torres by KO in the first.

This was easily the biggest upset of the year. Bowles has a solid chin and hits hard. I'd really like to see a rematch, which will most likely happen sooner than later in the same fashion as the Mike Brown/Urijah Faber series. I'm still a little shocked seeing Torres on the losing end of such a brutal knockout. I am very excited about the bantamweight division, getting to see Bowles defend his new belt, & Torres work his way back to title contention.

Dominick Cruz defeats Joseph Benavidez by decision (Unanimous).

This was a great fight! You can't ever say that Benavidez doesn't come out swinging & go full throttle. Cruz out wrestled him and used his reach very well. I can't remember the last time I got to see a 30-27 fight be so competitive. Cruz is the first guy to make Benavidez look too small for the bantamweight division. I think everyone was expecting a Torres/Benavidez title fight after this card but I am just as excited for a Bowles/Cruz match up for the bantamweight strap.

Danny Castillo defeats Ricardo Lamas by TKO in the second round.

I picked Lamas to win & he was winning.....until he got knocked out.

Takeya Mizugaki defeats Jeff Curran by decision (Split).

This is the second fight on this card that I picked right but only because of poor judging. It was a split decision in favour of Takeya. I scored it 29-28 Curran. I don't think anyone will argue that Muzugaki took round 1 and Curran round 3. I thought it was pretty clear that round 2 belonged to Curran as well. Curran landed as many, if not more clean, effective strikes from his back, as well as a decent guillotine attempt. I'll take the win because I did so poorly with my picks this weekend, but I don't feel like the right guy won. That being said, I think a Muzugaki/Benavidez match up would be incredible.

Leonard Garcia defeats Jameel Massouh by decision (Split).

I took Garcia to win & he did, but I think it was another of many poor decisions this weekend. I was surprised that Massouh made it out of round 1 with his head still on his shoulders. Massouh recovered well and almost knocked out Garcia with a D'Arce choke in the 2nd. In the 3rd Garcia threw a ton of big power shots trying to end it. The only problem was he landed almost none of them. Massouh hit many more clean punches and body kicks and should've won 29-28.

a rundown of the untelevised fights,

Cole Province defeats Fredson Paixao by decision (Unanimous).

Shane Roller defeats Marcus Hicks by decision (Unanimous)

Ed Ratcliff defeats Phil Cardella by decision (Unanimous)

Rani Yahya defeats John Hosman by submission (North-South Choke)

Diego Nunes defeats Rafael Dias by decision (Unanimous)

L.C. Davis defeats Javier Vazquez by decision (Split).

Overall, I did terribly in my picks, going 11 for 22 (UFC 101, 6 out of 11 & WEC 42, 5 out of 11).

Bad judging aside, WEC was a great exciting card.

UFC 101 had 3 really interesting fights, but other than Penn reaffirming his Lightweight dominance & Silva's dismantling of Griffin, was not the most memorable card.