Quinton "Rampage" Jackson established himself as one of the most dominant forces in UFC by defeating Keith Jardine and putting himself in prime position for a shot at the light heavyweight championship. Some people had doubted Jackson's ability to bounce back after some legal trouble slowed his training and as the fighter continued to move up in age. However this former champion has shown that he deserves to take on Rashad Evans and reclaim his spot as the best light heavyweight in the world. The fight should be one of the best this year for UFC although with the fight between Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir being pushed back due to injury Jackson may have to fight much sooner then expected.
The match against Keith Jardine was a stunner from start to finish. Both fighters came out well trained and seemed evenly matched throughout the fight, which turned into a brawl towards the end of the third round. It was in those final thirty seconds that many people say Jackson won the fight with this flurry of well timed bunches against the visibly fatigued Jardine. The match then went to decision with Jackson winning unanimously, although two of the three cards were scored 29-28, showing how close this match actually was. Before that exciting finish both fighters seemed evenly matched in a wonderful exhibition of stand up fighting and some surprising versatility on the ground from both fighters. They showed everyone in the light heavyweight division how their training resulted in vast improvements over the last few months.
Another bright spot during the most recent UFC 96 event was the fight of Tim Boetsch against Jason Brilz. This was another exciting match that went to decision but the most enjoyable part about it was the technical ground work and the fight control exhibited by Brilz during his eventual victory. Against an opponent who is known to end a fight with one punch, Brilz kept his distance, putting on a defensive exhibition and finally gets his opponent to the ground where he was completely superior. After that point the match was Brilz for the taking, controlling Boetsch at every point and landing some devastating blows to eventually get the victory. This puts Brilz at 17-1-1 overall and he has not been defeated in 13 straight fights. While he's relatively new to UFC I believe that he deserves a shot at a better opponent soon. Luckily UFC head Dana White is known for his "sink or swim" method for his fighters and Brilz next match should be against an opponent that will truly test his ability in the octagon.
The match against Keith Jardine was a stunner from start to finish. Both fighters came out well trained and seemed evenly matched throughout the fight, which turned into a brawl towards the end of the third round. It was in those final thirty seconds that many people say Jackson won the fight with this flurry of well timed bunches against the visibly fatigued Jardine. The match then went to decision with Jackson winning unanimously, although two of the three cards were scored 29-28, showing how close this match actually was. Before that exciting finish both fighters seemed evenly matched in a wonderful exhibition of stand up fighting and some surprising versatility on the ground from both fighters. They showed everyone in the light heavyweight division how their training resulted in vast improvements over the last few months.
Another bright spot during the most recent UFC 96 event was the fight of Tim Boetsch against Jason Brilz. This was another exciting match that went to decision but the most enjoyable part about it was the technical ground work and the fight control exhibited by Brilz during his eventual victory. Against an opponent who is known to end a fight with one punch, Brilz kept his distance, putting on a defensive exhibition and finally gets his opponent to the ground where he was completely superior. After that point the match was Brilz for the taking, controlling Boetsch at every point and landing some devastating blows to eventually get the victory. This puts Brilz at 17-1-1 overall and he has not been defeated in 13 straight fights. While he's relatively new to UFC I believe that he deserves a shot at a better opponent soon. Luckily UFC head Dana White is known for his "sink or swim" method for his fighters and Brilz next match should be against an opponent that will truly test his ability in the octagon.
