Howcome Ricardo Almeida Was Able To So Thoroughly Thrash Matt Brown?

[The Reed]

IMO Almeida could have been something special had he focused on his MMA career instead of retiring the first time. When he came back he still had skills but had he kept his focus he would have fixed a lot of holes in his game.

Wish he got the nod in the Cote fight too, I'd have enjoyed watching him fight Anderson(although I do love Andersons fight with Cote).

 

[TSK]

Almeida is a superb grappler and that is Brown's weak point. Brown KO'd Pyle before it could get to that (plus Pyle is more willing to stand than Almeida) and most of the other people he has fought during his streak are strike first, grapple later kind of fighters.

Also, Brown has obviously improved since then.

 

[MontrealMauler]

He has found himself as a fighter. Before TUF he got by on being TUF. But then he started learning skills. When this happens you usually get worse before you get much better but if you don't go through this you will always be the same fighter who never left the comfort zone.

 

[TKJ]

Mentally, he just wasnt the same monster. Its like he did some ibogaine or something and now is a force from helltown, Ohio.

This...

Almeida was a beast at one time, and a huge WW. Of course you pointed out how much time can improve people. Brown seems to have created an entirely new gameplan/philosophy though. He fights a really high-pressure, on-your-ass-the-entire-time strategy that has revitalized his career. It's almost a Cain Velasquez/Khabib Nurmagomedov style. It wears people down quickly, lowering their explosiveness, and the danger in standup later in the fight by virtue of them being exhausted. Works really well if someone has the wrestling chops, and is dedicated enough to get their cardio to that place.

And this.

Brown wasn't the same fighter he is now.

He's alway had that confidence IMO but he's seemed to back that up recently with a better game plan.

More than that, he's seemed to go from a street brawler to an MA fighter who brawls. There's a MASSIVE difference between those two.

 

[FlyingKimurabar]

Almeida is elite at browns main weakness, sub defense. Oh and he has cardio that goes longer than 3 minutes.

I wouldn't be shocked if he could beat brown in a rematch.

 

[Unbreakabull]

Same way Brown thrashed Pyle and Pyle thrashed Almeida

 

[Glumberjack]

Almeida was a very good fighter at the time and Brown was very susceptible to being submitted at that point, especially by chokes. I wish there were something more interesting to say about it, but Brown has simply improved a lot since then in every respect.

 

[GKY]

People get better over time. Also, some times you just have off nights and lose to guys you're more skilled than (not saying this way the case). Plus Almeida was underrated.