UFC Match-Ups...Oh man, Oh man, Oh man

It has been a extremely long time since I have written an article on the blog, with all the distractions going on lately. I feel like I needed to take a break, with that being said I am here to write and talk to you all about the latest fights and how amazing it has been to see. Let's run it back:

The Fall of "Hapa"

I have made it no secret that I am a fan of Travis Browne, however since 2014 Browne has has 2 wins in his last 8 fights. I am not a betting man, but I am going to assume that is not good. At one time Travis was considered one of the most fierce heavyweights in the UFC. His team is not giving him good advice and even during his fights in between rounds have not given him any information on how to better fight his opponents. In his last three fights I had Travis winning those rounds, then coming out of the second round he has either lost momentum or the fight in general. It is almost like he has given up. Clearly he is suffering from lack of cardio and judging by the kicks he threw last night. His shin game is not as strong as it once was. There is no doubt he still has heart but how much of it is in the UFC is yet to be determined.

Travis was offended by Derrick Lewis who was calling out his fiance, after KO'ing Browne. Travis has also requested they "run it back" but judging by his fight last night at UFC 213 prelims. He is no where ready for that work again. Travis needs to change up his camp and find a new team to work with. Travis trained with one of the top teams in the world with Greg Jackson and suddenly left to train with Edmond Tarverdyan (you know the guy who "trained" Ronda Rousey). I am not impressed with Edmond and in fact I think he is going to get Travis' career cut short, if Travis continues to train with him. When you train with the best, you are going to get the best results, and it will bring the best out of you. Hopefully Travis can return to the form he was once at and not look like this again:

The New King of the Featherweights

You have to admire someone like Jose Aldo, sure he lost to Conor McGregor. Dana gave Jose the belt back after it was stripped from Conor, after Conor won the Lightweight belt. But a change had to come, and with that Max Holloway showed up. I have said I am fans of Hawaiian fighters which is why I am glad that Max showed up. 

 He forced Jose Aldo to throw punches in bunches at a pace his body could not handle. A new champ was crowned, Max is a fan favorite because he does not shy away from punches. If you challenge him in the center of the Octagon, he will stand there and throw blows with you, it does not matter where you are from he loves to throw, and throw often. Once of my favorite things about Max is, he is humble. After winning the title he made sure to pay his respects to Jose Aldo, in the interviews he acknowledges the great things Jose did for the sport. I am excited to see Max get his next defense, more than likely he will be a co-main event kind of fight but it will be fun to see. Congrats to the new champion.

The Upset of the Year?

Unless your name is Brock Lesnar and you demand a high profile fight, it is more than likely Dana is going to laugh at you and tell you to earn it. However at UFC Ultimate Fighter 25 Finale, we saw UFC Debut of Justin Gaethje fighting Michael Johnson (rated Number 5 Lightweight in the world). Justin and Michael threw punches left and right in the first round and heading in the second round, Justin gained the advantage and finished Michael with a few seconds left in the round. That was a huge win and gives him a enormous boost up the ranks. Shout out to Justin and what heart he showed in the ring, he called out Tony Ferguson (maybe Dana will reward him with that fight) and I would love to see those two go to war.

The Cowardly Lion

I expect to catch some heat for this one, but really I do not care. There is something to be said about a person when they do not make weight, lack of discipline or maybe just a poor camp in general. There is another thing to say when you show up to a fight, talk smack, make weight, then complain of an illness. Then the day of the fight, you claim an illness, get cleared to fight, and tell your boss you still can not go. Maybe something is wrong with Amanda (No Longer the Lioness) Nunes but right now, I am calling her out for ducking Valentina Shevchenko. Sorry but you get no love from me right now, I was excited for you when you fought: Shayna Baszler, Sara McMann, Valentina Shevchenko (the first time), Meisha Tate, and Ronda Rousey. I was excited to see you get in the Octagon and get ready to go to war, but now and until something medically comes out, you ducked Valentina. Sure the last fight was close, sure you two were banging and connecting, but you had a gameplan for what she brought to the table. Maybe you did not properly make the weight and your body was feeling off, sure it happens but to not fight at all, after fans wanted to see you and paid to see you...that is cold right there. Valentina prepared for you and was ready to make some money and you took that from her. A champion always looks for the opportunity to win, and make themselves better but you definitely dropped the ball on that. 

Side note: Shout outs to Joanna Jedrzejczyk for trying to step in and fight Valentina on an hour notice. There are rules in the fight game and unfortunately the Nevada State Athletic Commissions needed 72 hours for a pregnancy test to clear her. She was ready to fight and even brought her gear with her to fight. 

As of July 9, 2017 Dana White has said Amanda will no longer headline a fight in the future and for good reason. 

That is all my stories I wanted to touch on today. Leave me a comment down below on what you want to see covered next week and I will try my best to get to them. Also be on the look out later, GET THE KO Podcast will get started and it will be fierce as my co-host Anthony Lujan and I talk about the UFC.