Hear me out here. It's a serious post. I'm not just referencing JDS' ring entrance music.
It seemed to me that JDS was rolling going into this fight. Right after getting the championship belt in dominant fashion, he got the Nike sponsorship, his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt, and another devastating win over Mir (who was, obviously, no match). Overall, he was raking in the success, and he came into this fight as a heavy favorite, despite Cain being obviously hungrier.
We also saw that he was overflowing with confidence. He didn't seem to be training in his usual style, and he went to some expensive gyms and such, abandoning his roots with his original team. In his interviews, his smile could be seen from a mile away, and his English has never been sharper.
Now, lets look back at Rocky 3. Balboa was rolling in success after beating Apollo, he bought a huge house, fancy car, got lots of endorsements, and he was coming off a huge win streak (against weak opponents). He came into the fight as a favorite against Clubber Lang, who was far hungrier than he was.
Rocky was also overflowing with confidence and seemed to abandon his usual training methods, instead smiling far more to reporters and posing for endorsements instead of listening to his old trainer.
Basically, I think that JDS' poor performance in gassing like that so badly in the first round is a result of his pre-match activities. He was far too hyped up in himself, while Cain was so focused and hungry to win. You could see how JDS' wonderful takedown defense faded after a few minutes, while that had never happened previously. It came down to the 'Clubber Lang' syndrome.
And yes, it was ironic he came out to Rocky's music.
It seemed to me that JDS was rolling going into this fight. Right after getting the championship belt in dominant fashion, he got the Nike sponsorship, his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt, and another devastating win over Mir (who was, obviously, no match). Overall, he was raking in the success, and he came into this fight as a heavy favorite, despite Cain being obviously hungrier.
We also saw that he was overflowing with confidence. He didn't seem to be training in his usual style, and he went to some expensive gyms and such, abandoning his roots with his original team. In his interviews, his smile could be seen from a mile away, and his English has never been sharper.
Now, lets look back at Rocky 3. Balboa was rolling in success after beating Apollo, he bought a huge house, fancy car, got lots of endorsements, and he was coming off a huge win streak (against weak opponents). He came into the fight as a favorite against Clubber Lang, who was far hungrier than he was.
Rocky was also overflowing with confidence and seemed to abandon his usual training methods, instead smiling far more to reporters and posing for endorsements instead of listening to his old trainer.
Basically, I think that JDS' poor performance in gassing like that so badly in the first round is a result of his pre-match activities. He was far too hyped up in himself, while Cain was so focused and hungry to win. You could see how JDS' wonderful takedown defense faded after a few minutes, while that had never happened previously. It came down to the 'Clubber Lang' syndrome.
And yes, it was ironic he came out to Rocky's music.
