UFC Fight Night 19 Thoughts

Another season premiere of The Ultimate Fighter, another sound Ultimate Fight Night for free to entice the fans. I love these events because A) they're free and B) they allow the lower ranks of UFC's lower three weight divisions to really showcase their talents. You have a 50/50 shot of the fights being bland or competitive. Last night, we got a good dose of some solid action with some valiant efforts and a few come-from-behind victories. Onto my thoughts...

"Rock" Solid. I was really worried Nate Quarry was going to be ousted in the first round following some of those hard punches by Tim Credeur. Quarry's comeback in the second was almost out of a movie, and he proved himself to be tenacious even at age 37. With experience either comes two things if you're a stand-up fighter: a solid chin or a glass one. Quarry falls into the former category. I wouldn't have given it fight of the night as I thought it was a bit sloppy at points, but that said I give both guys credit for gutting it out the way they did. Good way to open the night.

Natural Born Thrillers. Now this was my pick for fight of the night. I love Carlos Condit for many reasons, and thought he was robbed when he fought Martin Kampmann. Not knowing much about Jake Ellenberger when he came in other than his record, I figured this would be a quick dust up for Condit. Man, was I wrong. Ellenberger won me over with his punching power, damned impressive. However, Condit was very smooth in defending himself, and his rebound was wonderfully tactical. Mark my words, this kid will be welterweight champ some day. Great, great fight. This came down to the gas tank and Condit being able to outlast his opponent. If Ellenberger can improve his conditioning to go past the first round, he'll go far. No shame in losing to a guy like Condit, though.

Shades of Gray. Another competitive fight, another split decision. Although to be honest, I wasn't hugely impressed with the fight as a hole. Both guys seemed very gun-shy at points, almost hesitant. Huerta looked good in the first round, but that quickly shifted midway through the second. Gray Maynard is just a resilient guy. He simply outclassed Huerta in the later rounds. But I give Huerta a ton of credit for not tapping to that head-trap kimura... I've been caught in that before and it is a nasty, nasty submission. He must have some serious flexibility in his shoulders to withstand that type of pressure. It's too bad he has to exit on a losing note, as he's a good fighter and a crowd-pleaser. Hopefully "El Matador" can swing his cape in the Octagon again sometime soon.

Melvin Guillard + Jiu-Jitsu = Loss. I don't mean to say I called it, but I called it. Yeah, the round and method weren't spot-on, but Melvin Guillard's track record proves he doesn't mesh well with Jiu-Jitsu. He won the first round and almost looked a full weight class above Diaz. His striking is tight, but Diaz has a good chin and sound defense. Kenny Florian called it early on when he noted this typically Diaz's style as a slow starter. When he started maneuvering to the mat a bit more, it was only a matter of time. That modified half guard guillotine is a favorite of mine, especially when there's a guy shooting for the legs. Rich Clementi called it two years ago when he choked Guillard in the first round: the man needs to learn some Jiu-Jitsu. He can't rely on his typical style, as multi-dimensional fighters will chew him up. That said, Nate Diaz probably needs to be a faster starter, because sooner or later, someone will catch him with a good shot and end the fight fast. However, he did what he had to for this fight and picked up a much-needed win.

I went a perfect 4-0 for my main event predictions for a 1.000 average. This brings my "career total" for picks to 9-5 for a 0.643 average. Hot.

No PTN Minutiae this time around, as I'm about to begin working on my Ultimate Fighter review for the season premiere. If the Fight Night was a good opener, the show itself was highly entertaining.

Well, up to the fight.

Stick around.