Belal will never sniff another title shot again, Topuria's gamble and other takeaways from the weekend

[hbombbisping]

1. Belal is already old, with the UFC's reluctance to give him a TS in the first place I think it's pretty much over for him as a title contender.

2. I actually thought Topuria stood a chance against Islam at LW but at WW with his tiny frame he has next to no chance. I can see him realizing his dream and becoming a double champ even though him and Arman is a pick em, but a big part of his allure as the Islam killer is now dead. If Islam loses his bid at a WW title he will most likely also lose his p4p status and that would take the shine off beating him should he have to move back down, but I say he wins.

3. The door is now wide open for Usman Numagomedov to move to LW and he's a bad matchup for anyone there, but don't take your eyes off of Paul Hughes who may also one day be in the UFC and gunning for Usman. The man is made of stone.

 

[Koro_11]

4. White belts shouldn't be allowed to make threads

 

[hbombbisping]

4. White belts shouldn't be allowed to make threads

5. Thinking your belt color on a forum dicates your knowledge of the sport, ability to rationalize a thought or write coherently lol

 

[Get To Da Choppa]

1. Belal is already old, with the UFC's reluctance to give him a TS in the first place I think it's pretty much over for him as a title contender.

2. I actually thought Topuria stood a chance against Islam at LW but at WW with his tiny frame he has next to no chance. I can see him realizing his dream and becoming a double champ even though him and Arman is a pick em, but a big part of his allure as the Islam killer is now dead. If Islam loses his bid at a WW title he will most likely also lose his p4p status and that would take the shine off beating him should he have to move back down, but I say he wins.

3. The door is now wide open for Usman Numagomedov to move to LW and he's a bad matchup for anyone there, but don't take your eyes off of Paul Hughes who may also one day be in the UFC and gunning for Usman. The man is made of stone.

Unless Belal goes on a 7 fight finishing streak against top contenders, which of course will not happen

 

[Darkavius]

1. Belal is already old, with the UFC's reluctance to give him a TS in the first place I think it's pretty much over for him as a title contender.

It's not all doom and gloom for Belal. He has a win over Brady and Edwards. So he should be no less than #2 in the rankings at this point. However, I think he would be best served if he went to Middleweight right now. See if he can get an older MW like Costa or Cannonier and start from there. I think Costa is a very winnable fight for Belal so he can get ranked.

 

[WoozyFailGuy]

Usman is as overrated as the last guy called Usman and would be a middle of the pack ranked fighter in the UFC.

It's not all doom and gloom for Belal. He has a win over Brady and Edwards. So he should be no less than #2 in the rankings at this point. However, I think he would be best served if he went to Middleweight right now. See if he can get an older MW like Costa or Cannonier and start from there. I think Costa is a very winnable fight for Belal so he can get ranked.

Belal is now behind Islam, Shavkat, and Garry for a shot, arguably.

He's got at least two years before he sniffs it again and I jsut don't see it happening again. I'm actually glad workhorses like Belal and Merab got belts. I'm also glad that Belal held onto it only a short time.
Merab I like now though.

 

[hbombbisping]

Usman is as overrated as the last guy called Usman and would be a middle of the pack ranked fighter in the UFC.

That's only if you believe the UFC's marketing machine that their LW division is vastly superior and fighters like Shabily and Paul Hughes wouldn't be top contenders in the UFC (they would).

 

[ultra321]

4. White belts shouldn't be allowed to make threads

LoL Been Saying That For Years!!!!

 

[WoozyFailGuy]

That's only if you believe the UFC's marketing machine that their LW division is vastly superior and fighters like Shabily and Paul Hughes wouldn't be top contenders in the UFC (they would).

No, the propaganda that LW is the most stacked division because the largest amount of average sized men can cut to that weight is just that, propaganda but that's a whole different story.

However, it's also propaganda to pretend that Hughes and Usman haven't been fighting cans, washed vets, and journeymen in PFL/Smellator while being each others only serious competition outside of shab and i guess primus.

Usman in his last 4 wins has Bendo and Patricky, who are both beyond washed. In his NC he had to roid to get past Primus. Oh, imagine, another Eagles fighter testing positive, it's almost as if there seems to be an inherent issue at that gym, strange...

Hughes I'm actually more impressed with, but like with Usman, I predict he would be a middle of the road ranked fighter.

That's the issue with Smellator/PFL, the 4 guys in each division they have who might be talented are stuck facing the same subpar competition outside of eachother, plateauing them. Guys that get cut from the UFC go over there and win tournaments, Kasanganay who is a highlight reel meme for Buckley gave Eblen the fight of his life, who was also supposed to be able to come over and smash the UFC's MW division, but would end up getting fucking flatlined by anyone in the top 10.

There is a trend which seems to be the reversal of what it was before, when other organizations were much closer competitively to the UFC their fighters who eventually came over and became champions were called B-Leaguers, while now since it's popular to hate the UFC (with good reason) people are attributing a much higher skill level to fighters who have done little to nothing to prove they aren't B-leaguers.

 

[TempleoftheDog]

4. White belts shouldn't be allowed to make threads

He’s a complete idiot, and a troll.

 

[Rorschachxx]

Belal will be #1 WW in the world.

He has a win over current no. 1 Brady, and could easily fight Shavkat next.

Him having a great fight with JDM could help his case if he wins a big fight next. Esp. if JDM remains champion.

His age plus the current timing with Islam moving up is doing him no favours though.

But you never know what happens, somebody pulls out, Belal might step in on short notice. If I'm Belal I'm staying ready in case something falls apart.

Anything can happen. I'm not writing Belal off just yet. Plus I don't think the UFC is as reluctant as many make it seem.

Belals stock rose with this loss, most likely in the eyes of the promotion as well. We'll see what happens.

 

[hbombbisping]

No, the propaganda that LW is the most stacked division because the largest amount of average sized men can cut to that weight is just that, propaganda but that's a whole different story.

However, it's also propaganda to pretend that Hughes and Usman haven't been fighting cans, washed vets, and journeymen in PFL/Smellator while being each others only serious competition outside of shab and i guess primus.

Usman in his last 4 wins has Bendo and Patricky, who are both beyond washed. In his NC he had to roid to get past Primus. Oh, imagine, another Eagles fighter testing positive, it's almost as if there seems to be an inherent issue at that gym, strange...

Hughes I'm actually more impressed with, but like with Usman, I predict he would be a middle of the road ranked fighter.

That's the issue with Smellator/PFL, the 4 guys in each division they have who might be talented are stuck facing the same subpar competition outside of eachother, plateauing them. Guys that get cut from the UFC go over there and win tournaments, Kasanganay who is a highlight reel meme for Buckley gave Eblen the fight of his life, who was also supposed to be able to come over and smash the UFC's MW division, but would end up getting fucking flatlined by anyone in the top 10.

There is a trend which seems to be the reversal of what it was before, when other organizations were much closer competitively to the UFC their fighters who eventually came over and became champions were called B-Leaguers, while now since it's popular to hate the UFC (with good reason) people are attributing a much higher skill level to fighters who have done little to nothing to prove they aren't B-leaguers.

Usman is not far behind Islam in the training room even at his young age so I adjust from there. Of course, there was a time when the internet told us that Islam was not worthy of a title shot, and now he's the #1 p4p fighter in the world.

 

[laleggenda27]

The only way Belal ever gets another title shot is if he steps in as a short-notice replacement...and I doubt the UFC would even give him that opportunity.

He needed to follow the Merab playbook and hold onto the belt at all costs because those kinds of fighters will never be given a second chance.

 

[HP_Nut]

It is unlikely Belal ever gets another title shot. However, Dana was impressed by the fight, usually Dana isnt a fan of Belals style but Dana thought Belal put on a good performance (for the fans). So I don’t think theyre gonna completely bury him with a impossible road back to the TS. I just think age isnt on his side. After rd 2, his corner shouldve been screaming that he needs to spam TD, they were too relaxed. Belal bought into his own hype about Canelo. His striking is good, but clearly not as good as JDM. Belal stubbornly didnt change course until rd 4

 

[hbombbisping]

He’s a complete idiot, and a troll.

I would love for you expand on that thought and cite anything you disagree with here. Show me what it means to be a 2020 account.

Did you expect Islam to become the #1 p4p fighter in the world? Or are you one of those who doesn't actually think and just flies off the handle everytime the universe exposes your inherant bias?

 

[gentel]

4. White belts shouldn't be allowed to make threads

I do agree but not because of this thread. This TS knows his stuff well enough. But they're already 136/150 of the way to reaching yellow belt so they could unlock thread-making permissions in a day or two

 

[WoozyFailGuy]

Usman is not far behind Islam in the training room

According to his team, when they're asked about it in interviews? Come on.

Of course, there was a time when the internet told us that Islam was not worthy of a title shot

Perhaps when he lacked top ranked wins. He got a title shot off of beating Bobby Green. Best win pre-title was Hooker. Those people weren't entirely wrong at the time when they talked about "deserving" a title shot, but just like JDM, Islam got a shot and took the title, proving he "deserved" it all along.

However, this isn't a conversation about whether or not Usman deserves to be in the UFC it's about his actual ability, and from what I've seen, I do not believe he would contend for a title in the UFC in his current form outside of, like Umar, being given favorable treatment due to his last name.

I do agree but not because of this thread. This TS knows his stuff well enough. But they're already 136/150 of the way to reaching yellow belt so they could unlock thread-making permissions in a day or two

I agree. TS is already better than 90% of white belt posters, you can at least tell he has a triple digit IQ

 

[AL-Tappo McSnappo]

Unless Belal goes on a 7 fight finishing streak against top contenders, which of course will not happen

One or two fights against the right opponents and he could get it if he is smart.

 

[pick999]

One or two fights against the right opponents and he could get it if he is smart.

Dana won't give him another one

 

[AL-Tappo McSnappo]

Dana won't give him another one

What if Sean Brady becomes champion and Belal is on a win streak and he calls him out?
That could work.