Post by The Sandmen on Jun 14, 2012 11:42:40 GMT -5
The Road to Awe was an interesting one indeed. We had a main event championship fight with two guys I don't think anyone would have guessed would be top in their divisions. And despite massive wins and winning streaks on both sides, neither got the respect he deserved heading into this main event. But in the end, after everything he fought for, after all the upsets and controversy, Bonnar could not rise up that last rung on the ladder to amazing. He fell short, fell flat, and fell hard. For Bonnar, his road to awe stopped at ManMMA 40 with his win over Machida. For Griffin, though, the road continues. He has a hot-streaking Chuck Liddell to face next, and I am sure no one expects him to come out on top of that fight. But this is what makes Griffin the perfect poster boy for this road to awe theme. No one expected him to fight for the title. Then no one expected him to beat Brock Lesnar. With all of these unexpectations under his belt, Griffin has the making of a superstar in this league. But only time will tell how long that ride lasts.
For Kimbo Slice and Pedro Rizzo, their match-up was just the beginning of the road. With both men almost standing as a gate-keeper to the other, the winner will likely see great things in his step up in competition, whereas the loser will move down, and have to work his way back up. That said, how can we say Kimbo has not already had that step up in competition? We can't. But we can say that with this demolition of almost-contender Pedro Rizzo, Kimbo has proven he is the real deal, and we have not seen the end of him. Not yet at least.
And this brings us to the last major fight of the evening - Cro Cop and Rutten. We COULD say this was a HUGE win for Rutten. But I choose to believe it was a HUGE loss for Cro Cop instead. There was really no reason to lose this fight, and getting destroyed by a frequent ManMMA prelimer just stings. Cro Cop has not only taken a detour from the road to awe, but he has taken a swan-dive off of the nearest curb-side cliff as well. But will his road end there, battered, beaten, and bruised in the gutter of filth? Time will tell...
Have 9 points in celebration of this monumental achievement!