My observations from 182 - Felder/Cerrone/Jones are badasses etc.

I'll start by saying that as a card overall it I thought it was lacklustre, or at least it just seemed slow. Almost felt like the card was fought at altitude. Seemed to be more posturing than anything else.

Evan Dunham vs Rodrigo Damm - Dunham looked much improved, his striking overall was crisp and effective. The fact that Rodrigo's striking looked God-fucking-awful may have helped but ... Good to see him back in the win column.

Shawn Jordan - Really starting to like this guy. Seems like a jovial dude and he hits like a truck. He won't be fighting for the belt any time soon (at all?) but I could see him potentially beating some of the lower ranked HWs as his game improves.

Paul Felder - His striking is fun as shit to watch. Very technical and clean and he does what all great strikers do, he doesn't flinch or take his eyes off his opponent. I see him doing well in the LW division, someone to watch.

Hector Lombard vs Josh Burkman - Burkman is not UFC caliber, that fight was embarassing. That being said, Hector was also a disappointment. For someone many are touting as the next WW champ/destroyer of worlds/God he looked average at best. Any fighters in the WW division that are looking for a solid jump up in rankings should be calling this guy out NOW. Not saying he's a can and he would be a walk-through but he's clearly beatable.

Nate Marquardt - Also no longer UFC calibre. The killer of old is no longer and he should continue his fighting career in another league. He's taken to throwing looping punches while ducking and staring at the ground and that is never a good sign. I like Nate as much as the next guy but it's time to face reality.

Donald Cerrone - Is the fucking man, that is all.

Jon Jones vs Daniel Cormier - Jones is also the fucking man. I picked DC to win this fight via superior wrestling and was proven drastically wrong. I admired Cormier's aggression but aside from that the fight was Jones from start to finish. Impressive TDD and striking defence, Jones was never in any real danger.

So, the only real contenders for Jones at LHW now are a rematch with Gus or a fight with Rumble and Gus is the only one I could see potentially taking a win.

 

Agree on Felder and Cerrone. They both put on clinics. Felder's striking is brutal.

Have to mildly disagree on the Jones fight though. For the first 3 rounds, it was a very competitive fight, and Cormier was holding his own. But Jones did solidify his claim of being one of the all time greats.

 

Love Rumble, but you're right, he ain't beating Jones. If Rumble beats Gus (which seems possible), the UFC will pump it up and make you think he has a chance, but the fight will be pretty one sided.

 

I will just add this:

Cody Garbrandt vs Brimage was very fun to watch. Cody as an underdog doing what he did was impressive. It was not a one punch thing he just beat Brimage up and said he even thought his hand was broke in the first round. I will be looking forward to him fighting again, new fan here

Love Jones in the cage but hate him out of it. I really think DC is a great fighter and Jones is just that good. He took control of a close fight and finished strong.

 

Felder and Cerrone only

 

Absolutely agreed. Considering it was his first fight in the UFC he looked ridiculously calm and composed. And starting with a TKO win over Brimage is a solid start to his UFC career.

 

Also I think Brimage knew he had to get that finish so that is why he went in so close and tried to bang with him. I really like that and the fact that Cody did not just back up and move to play it safe. He went after it and I am sure he made a lot of fans

 

I will add that whoever skipped the early prelims did the right move.