finally watched this and was pretty saddened as a Machida fan. It seems like his stance is different than what it was when he fought Tito, Rashad. He's not leaned as far back at the waist and his feet aren't as far apart anymore. It has some advantages with his power kicking game but I wonder if this has compromised his balance and TDD as well as his ability to avoid head shots? Do you guys think the damage he took from the Rockhold fight had any effect on his quick finish at the hands of Romero or was it the broken nose? Both? Or is romero just a beast? I think probably all of the above but wanted your guys opinions. Thanks
I think you may be right. A part of me wants to think Lyoto can still hang with the top 5 but when you compare him now to his older fights (in particular his three fights with Tito, thiago and Rashad for the title) it's like a completely different fighter
When he won the title he looked like a different animal and almost unbeatable. Top striking, great takedown defence, fast movement, unpredictable. I do think he gave Weidman a run for his money though in their fight (but ultimately not enough).
In terms of the changes in stance and fighting style, it's cus he's been training at Kings MMA. That place is detrimental to his style. He has always been a defensive counterstriker, training there has turned him into an offensive striker but he isn't tough enough nor can he hit hard enough to fight like that.
I know man. I miss all his weird shootakan takedowns and clinch work too. Very unpredictable. The Weidman fight actually does hold up really well. The first and fifth rounds of that fight were a coin toss although most would disagree with me. Fourth was obviously a great round for him
Father Time is undefeated. Rampage, Shogun, The Nigs, Machida, they all haven't looked impressive in a long time. Penn, Liddell, etc all have not so glorious endings to their career. Machida is still good enough to hang top 5 and out maybe but the elite in that division all destroy him. When you have big power to fall back on you always have a shot but Machida doesn't possess that. He relied upon his finesse, speed, accuracy, and elusiveness. Those things are always the first things to go away with age.
Its pretty obvious to me that while although he has gotten older he has also changed his style to be more fan friendly and agressive. I wish he didn't do that.
Machida isnt the fighter he was 2 years ago, that's the crazy part i think the machida that fought weidman would handle rockhold and romero, or at least do a lot better considering he's the kind of guy that keeps in shape in between camps and hasn't talen that much damage over his career i can't understand how is decline has be so sudden
Maybe he should go back to light heavyweight. If anything there are some interesting rematches there for him.
Fighting years, not age years. Everyone peaks and declines at different times with outside influences.
Lol, Machida just gave Weidman still his hardest fight to date. Then he took out a gritty veteran with one kick in a minute. Then he loses to 2 high level guys, and suddenly he is old, 5-6 years ago, blah blah blah. Internetz is nothing if not fickle.
Also, for a physical beast like Romero it was too soon. His Rockhold elbow gash wasn't evenhealed yet.
I think a huge part of his decline is his more aggressive strategy. Sure it is fan friendly and he is getting highlight reel footage, but the beginning of his career was just, land a punch and run the clock out and win decisions
