Post by The Texas Rattlesnakes on Sept 3, 2019 22:15:03 GMT -5
St-Pierre Stops Askren;
Weidman Loses to Silva in Rematch
Issue #2: September 3, 2019. By Austin Heer
Last weekend at ManMMA 465: Askren vs. St-Pierre 12, yes you read that right. 12. Ben Askren put his title on the line against Georges St-Pierre, and Chris Weidman faced Anderson Silva in an epic rematch. Many questions were asked leading into the PPV, all of them were answered in one way or another.
St-Pierre after defeating Ben Askren and reclaiming ManMMA gold
Not only was it the twelfth time St-Pierre fought Askren, he had a chance to make history. GSP joined the ranks of Anderson Silva and Gina Carano in having 100 wins, and he was the first to win a belt in his hundredth victory. Silva and Carano both achieved their hundredth victories in the finals of a Grand Prix. Although we were unable to reach GSP before the fight, we got in touch with the former champ, Ben Askren. Askren had a lot of thoughts heading into the fight, claiming St-Pierre was just like all the other opponents he has "shredded" inside the octagon.
Askren: GSP is just one of about 70 people I've shredded in the cage. He's just another check in the box, another digit in the win column. When he was with us, we didn't cross paths much. I was focusing on retaining my belt. We didn't train together. Being champion, there wasn't much he could teach me. And since I was focused on the title picture, I didn't have much of a chance to teach him anything either. Again, title fights. I am happy he did his job and helped us take another Grand Prix win. I appreciate him filling in for me, but let's be honest. Until the guy has a GP MVP award like I do, he is what he was on our team - a backup.
Headline: What are your thoughts on xx - Team GAP and his training methods?
A: I have more championships and accolades than Team GAP's entire team combined. You tell me.
H: Thanks for taking the time to chat with us, we look forward to your fight!
A: What fight? I'm going to walk to the cage, have a cup of tea, then head home with a belt and a paycheck. I'll get in touch with you when I have a fight coming up.
Unfortunately for Askren, he was forced to eat his words last weekend when St-Pierre brutalized his face with elbows. We chose not to get in touch with Askren, as he didn't seem very happy after the stoppage. Some fans argued the stoppage was too soon, but Askren was being dominated for the entire 3rd and 4th round, it didn't appear it would have taken long for it to be finished anyway.
Chris Weidman after losing rematch with Anderson Silva
Earlier that night, Chris Weidman squared off with Anderson Silva in a rematch. The first time they fought, Weidman stunned Silva and fans around the world when he filled in at ManMMA 453 and defeated Silva to win his first ever Middleweight Championship. Yes, filled in. Weidman didn't even win a tournament to earn the shot at the title, instead he was placed into the fight on a two fight winning streak. Early in that match, after taking punishment standing, Weidman landed a takedown and landed a brutal elbow, knocking out Silva. Silva returned the favor last weekend in a match that played out quite the opposite. Weidman started off strong with solid wrestling and ground and pound, but Silva managed to get on his feet, where he landed four solid kicks, one being a powerful low kick that dropped Weidman. In fear of a leg injury, official, John McCarthy stopped the fight. We caught up with Chris Weidman, and this is what he had to say:
Headline: Chris, that was a solid fight, but it didn't go your way. What do you think went wrong?
Weidman: Honestly, it went wrong when we stood up. I should have kept the fight on the ground where I was confident. The second we ended up on our feet, was the second things went sideways.
H: Tell us about the kicks that led to the stoppage.
W: When we stood up, I actually went for a leg kick myself, but he checked it, and followed up with a lightning fast head kick. It actually caught me right above my left eye and busted open my eyebrow. It definitely did some damage, but I don't think I was hurt necessarily. Then he hit me with a leg kick that really fucked up my knee, and followed up with another head kick, but I was dealing with blood in my eyes, so I didn't really see it coming. That kick rocked me, and busted open my chin, and while I was already kind of wobbly, he hit me again with another leg kick. I didn't really feel the last leg kick, but my coaches told me it hyper-extended my knee, and then I went down. I'm not mad about McCarthy stopping the fight, but I do think I could have kept going. The fight was just getting started, and I think we both deserve to put on a better fight for the fans.
H: Do you see a trilogy fight in your future?
W: I would definitely be interested. I think I very much have the tools to beat him again, and I want the chance to prove the first win wasn't a fluke. Hopefully we don't have to worry about a disappointing stoppage in that fight.
H: After your fight, xx - Former Phoenix Fight Club's Jason MacDonald called you out. What are your thoughts on that?
W: The dude fought on the same card as me, and got finished by Chael Sonnen. I'm not sure he's in any real position to be calling people out, but if it's a fight he wants, then sure, I'll give him one. We've actually faced each other three times in our career. Our very first fight in ManMMA was against each other and he got the win via RNC. He then beat me by armbar and kimura. But that was early on in my career, and I was training at a different gym. I think I'm a next level fighter now, and I think I've gotten better. Jason MacDonald on the other hand peaked long ago. There's no improvement coming from him.
H: Well thanks for talking to us, and we look forward to your next fight!
W: Thanks for having me.
Unsurprisingly, fans all over have been tweeting about the potential fight between Chris Weidman and Jason MacDonald. Even the ManMMA President spoke out displaying interest in a possible fight between Weidman and Ma Before his loss to Chael Sonnen, MacDonald hadn't fought since ManMMA 439 in January. Perhaps MacDonald's most recent loss was due to the long break, and not training at a gym for a while, but now that he is training full time again, a lot of people are curious to see if he could defeat his first ever ManMMA opponent for a fourth time.
That concludes the second issue of Headline: ManMMA! Many possible stories for the third upcoming issue, which is expected to release after ManMMA 466: Arlovski vs. Fedor.
Have 9 points in celebration of this monumental achievement!