UFC Fight Night 18 recap and final thoughts
by MMAmania.com on Apr 1, 2009 10:21 PM EDT
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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) tonight strummed the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tenn., for the first-time ever, playing some entertaining mixed martial arts action for the fans in attendance in "Music City."
UFC Fight Night 18: "Condit vs Kampmann" featured the Octagon debut of the last man to hold the World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) welterweight title, Carlos Condit, before the promotion dissolved the weight class in a 170-pound contest opposite UFC veteran Martin Kampmann.
For those who thought that Condit didn't belong in the UFC, fighting scrubs and beefing up his reputation as one of the best welterweights in the world, think again.
"The Natural Born Killer" survived several early -- and very tight -- submission attempts from the Danish kickboxer before he was able to open him up with a huge flesh-splitting knee while the pair was clinched up against the fence.
It was a thrilling back-and-forth battle from that point on with both fighters transitioning from submission attempts and mixing it up between with nice strikes. Both fighters were giving so much that it was evident they were both extremely exhausted.
Nonetheless, it was more of the same as the third round opened up in a very, very close fight.
Kampmann appeared to have more left in the gas tank, however, keeping Condit on his back and defending his submissions from the bottom. Condit was incredibly active. In fact, he nearly pulled out a submission win as the seconds ticked down to zero to end the fight.
It's unfortunate that there was a loser in this type of fight, which saw both fighters give everything they had. But in the end, "The Hitman" was able to eek out a razor thin split decision in a fight that could have gone either way, snapping Condit's impressive eight-fight win streak.
Big win for Kampmann and a tough loss for Condit, which should not hurt him at all moving forward. It may even motivate him to get better the next time out -- sometimes losing isn't a bad thing.
Neither is winning. And Kampmann just tucked a very nice feather in his cap.
In the co-featured fight of the night, TUF 8 light heavyweight winner Ryan Bader kept his perfect record intact with a dominant unanimous decision win over Carmelo Marrero. The decorated Arizona State University (ASU) collegiate wrestler controlled the entire fight from bell to bell, keeping the pedal to the medal for the full 15 minutes.
Marrero had no answers for his smothering attack. He spent most of the fight on his back defending submissions and eating knuckle sandwiches. Bader displayed some very nice submission attempts and nearly finished the fight in the opening frame with a slick armbar that Marrero was able to eventually escape.
Bader admitted that he was not thrilled with his performance; however, it's clear that he is indeed improving and could very well be a force in the 205-pound division in the near future as the rest of his skills catch up with his phenomenal wrestling pedigree.
Whether or not fans will enjoy watching him develop during that time remains to be seen.
In other action, Tyson Griffin made his seventh straight UFC appearance since 2007 and once again was involved in his seventh decision. He won, which he does more often than not, but the Xtreme Couture-trained fighter has to be wondering when he will taste absolute victory.
His opponent, Rafael Dos Anjos, put up a nice fight, twisting Griffin's right tree trunk intro a painful-looking pretzel early in the first round that appeared to have him hurt (Griffin later stated he was fine). The Brazilian followed it up with more holds, including a standing kimura that could not have felt good.
But it wasn't enough -- Griffin scored a clear-cut unanimous decision from the judges sitting ringside.
Griffin is now in a very odd spot. He has been in against the best, and now he couldn't finish a foe -- who isn't near the level of a Sean Sherk, Marcus Aurelio, Clay Guida or Gleison Tibau -- once again. Talk about a dilemma for UFC matchmaker Joe Silva.
Last but not least, lightweights Cole Miller and Junie Browning kicked-off the televised portion of main card action, which promised to be a heated contest after The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) alums from different seasons of the show entered into heated exchanges prior to the bout.
And it was the far more experienced Miller who had the last word with a fight-ending submission (guillotine choke) early in the first round.
It actually wasn't much of a fight -- Miller outclassed "The Lunatik" from the opening bell, taking down Browning and immediately working for a submission. Browning was able to defend, but it wasn't so easy the second time around.
So much for being overrated.
Miller called out the winner of the UFC 99 match between Spencer Fisher and Caol Uno in his post-fight remarks, which would appear to be a decent match up whoever prevails. It may not be so clear for Browning -- his inexperienced showed tonight.
The bad news for Browning is that there are no real easy fights in the talent-rich 155-pound division. He'll need to hit the gym hard and demonstrate his next time out that he belongs inside the Octagon ... hopefully on the under card portion of the event.
To check out complete UFC Fight Night 18 main card blow-by-blow coverage click here. Solid night of fights!
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Actually i was shocked that he got it right this time. Also Dos Anjos is the worst fighter ever. Who in the fn world wouldn’t kick a leg jacked up that bad? Seriously, no fighter instincts, no ring generalship, gets rocked all the time and generally sucks. All his strikes are just practiced prepackaged combos and he didn’t even change up the height at which he learned them so they just all missed coz tyson is short. I can’t believe i thought about putting money on him. I would rather wait for Shammy-Tank than ever care to see him fight. Anyways, sorry for the rant but he had me raging.
by NameNotRequired on Apr 1, 2009 10:34 PM EDT up reply actions
Interesting how there was only 1 TKO, 4 submissions (3 of which were guillotine) and rest decisions.
Not often is the least used finish the TKO.
by Synyster on Apr 1, 2009 10:42 PM EDT up reply actions
“Dos Anjos is the worst fighter ever”
This is why fighters don’t like mma bloggers. Try putting a pair of gloves on and taking on Griffen. We’ll see who the worst fighter ever is.
by rhv on Apr 1, 2009 11:22 PM EDT up reply actions
I can’t say that I disagree with you rhv. NNR did say one thing that I was also saying to myself though, and that was why didn’t he attack that leg? If for some reason he could not tell that it looked like he hurt Tyson’s leg, you would think that his corner would mention it?
by naturalshadow on Apr 2, 2009 12:38 AM EDT up reply actions
lets not forget he was the one that actually hurt Tyson’s leg with an amazing sub in the first place….how bad could he be?
by Robert(1) on Apr 2, 2009 8:51 AM EDT up reply actions
Im so damn sick of Tyson griffin. I dont care how good u are, if you cant finish an opponent…The I dont want to see you fight. Sorry but seriously, who the hell can tyson ever finish? nO ONE!!!
Tyson Griffin and Clay Guida should just fight each other every 4 months on an undercard that no one will ever see. R his fights exciting, yeah I guess….but when a fighter has ZERO chance of ending a fight…I lose interest!
Those extreme Couture boys cant finish a fight to save their lives!
by john on Apr 2, 2009 9:12 AM EDT up reply actions
“This is why fighters don’t like mma bloggers. Try putting a pair of gloves on and taking on Griffen. We’ll see who the worst fighter ever is.” RHV, try reading the whole statement to which you responded. One to many shots to the face to be able to read an entire paragraph?
by Eds119 on Apr 2, 2009 9:12 AM EDT up reply actions
“Tyson Griffin and Clay Guida should just fight each other every 4 months on an undercard that no one will ever see.”
LOLOLOLOLOL
by ViolentMike on Apr 2, 2009 9:40 AM EDT up reply actions
John, I actually thought Tyson would’ve finished him if he didn’t tweak that knee and insist on going for TD’s. I can’t defend him for going for TD’s after his leg almost got ripped off but in the 2nd rd he looked shaky and wasn’t striking like he was in the first. He did land some hard shots in the 1st and 3rd. Another part of the problem was that his opponent was doin the Machida/Florian pedal(which I have no problem with at all). Tyson will finish fights, his boxing is looking better and better and he throws hard punches. I predict he will come up with some highlight KO’s pretty soon much like Kos has done.
by Crowls on Apr 2, 2009 1:58 PM EDT up reply actions
I thought it could have gone either way. I had $35 to win $99 on Cole, Tyson, and Condit, and man was/am I pissed at the decision. Mania gave the fight to Condit, so I dont think it was a matter of Cecil Peoples judging a fight “right”.
I knew Cole would crush Junie, and I can’t believe how some people thought Junie would win.
The same with Bader. How some of you picked Carmelo to win is beyond me. I was surprised how Bader seemed to be a submission wrestler as opposed to a GnP guy. He reminded me of Matt Hughes, in the sense that HUghes is always looking for submission when he wrestles, whereas wrestlers like KOS/Fitch sit in 1/2 guard and pitter patter till the end of the round.
Only fights I got wrong were Condit and the Tibau fight. I also picked Catone as an upset, but didn’t really think he’d win. So not too bad! Except for my FUCKING BET DIDNT WIN!!! AHHH!
by Synyster on Apr 1, 2009 10:40 PM EDT up reply actions
Come on Synyster “some of you” we all know I was the only guy here picking Marrero lol.
Congrats on calling Cole from like a month ago!!
Im just glad Kampmann and Larson won.
so howd you do?I did pretty well I got 9-2 not bad ahh.
by NM on Apr 1, 2009 11:29 PM EDT up reply actions
Well I was trying NOT to call you out, but you did it for me. lol.
How’d I do? Read the last paragraph of my post bro.
Only fights I got wrong were Condit and the Tibau fight. I also picked Catone as an upset, but didn’t really think he’d win. So not too bad! Except for my FUCKING BET DIDNT WIN!!! AHHH!
by Synyster on Apr 1, 2009 11:33 PM EDT up reply actions
NM I replied but in Moderation. Said a bad word.
Anyway, for fighter’s awards, I’ll say:
Kampmann/Condit Fight of the Night
Cole Miller Submission of the Night
and I don’t know who to pick for KO of the Night…
maybe.. Aaron Simpson?
by Synyster on Apr 1, 2009 11:36 PM EDT up reply actions
Did you stream it and watch the whole fight card?
By the way did it even show Tibau/Stephens?
by NM on Apr 1, 2009 11:39 PM EDT up reply actions
I watched it on SPIKE.
All we got was what was advertised:
Cole vs Junie
Tyson vs RDA
Bader vs Caramel
Condit/Kampmann
by Synyster on Apr 1, 2009 11:44 PM EDT up reply actions
hahaha I know hey atleast he didnt get stopped,he lasted the whole fight.But a loss is a loss!!
Stephens over Tibau yeah I remember you saying that,I got Browning and Bader.
Man I wanted to see the under card!!I was stuck at work and out of all the damn days today is overtime owell money in the bank saving for UFC 100.
by NM on Apr 1, 2009 11:44 PM EDT up reply actions
Me to dammit I had it recorded so I fast forwarded thru the commercials and the Griffin and Bader fights thanks to Mania I didnt need to sit through them wondering.
well Let’s see who else Condit will face he is gonna be high in the ranks I say 2010.Till then lets put some top fights up now for Kampmann!!Kos,winner of Fitch/Thiago,Rumble……winner of Swick/saunders?
Thoughts?
by NM on Apr 1, 2009 11:48 PM EDT up reply actions
well synister I hope you learned to go with what you know to be a “lock” on your parlays. You knew Bader was going to win but didn’t use him! I put a tiny bet on kampman but knew it was high risk so I kept it out of my parlays. try building a parlay on A. Silva, Luis Cane and Kryzstof next time.
by naturalist on Apr 2, 2009 2:59 AM EDT up reply actions
8-3, not terrible – not great though. Losses were JB, Stephens, and Joe Vedepo (who in my defense I didnt know much about either).
I am VERY interested to see who the UFC will match Kampmann up with next. I think him vs Kos would be an AWESOME fight. After Alves who is next for GSP?
by WB on Apr 2, 2009 9:03 AM EDT up reply actions
I cant believe people actually thought that Junie was going to beat Cole! hahaha what a joke!
I only placed 3 bets last night, and they all HIT! I had money on cole and Tibau straight, and I had a parlay with tyson/larson/Bader!
I didnt watch the event, but I am very surprised that they didnt air the Tibau fight. What a damn joke! The fight was going to air when it was the inferior match up of stephens vs. Escudero. Escudero is replaced with a MUCH better fighter Tibau, who is a rising STUD, and the fight gets relegated to the undercard? WTF is wrong with the UFC. NO one cares about these dumb ass reality stars…..stick them on the undercard…and give us a dose of UFC vets!
by john on Apr 2, 2009 9:09 AM EDT up reply actions
Nice John, I went “undefeated” as well. Now I’m just mad that I didn’t risk more. You know you’re an addict when you are mad when you lose a bet because you lost money and when you win a bet because you didn’t bet enough money. Craziness, anyways…
I had Griffin at -375 like a month ago.
I had Tibau at -160 before he went to -170
I had a cheap lil parlay on Aaron Simpson/Kampmann
I had Cole, Griffin, Tibau, Larson, and Bader on that parlay at first, but decided to keep it small. Prior to the odds finally coming out for the Tibau fight I said to myself, if he is better than -200, I am betting ALOT on him. He opens at -160 and I bet, but not big. Curly Headed Deuchy Kos scared me away from putting big bucks on an “unknown” and the fact that Tibau was taking the fight on short notice and that they were both overweight made it too much of an “unkown” for me to follow up my initial bet with my big one.
Uconn to Score 1st has been a lock all season. I’ve been riding it for a while now and I’m not jumping off my horse just yet, even though this is the first time they are -120 in a while. (Thabeet wins most tip offs, and they have great defense even when they lose the tip off).
by ViolentMike on Apr 2, 2009 9:51 AM EDT up reply actions
some very good calls you are making VM!!! Congrats, n I love the Uconn bet!
by john on Apr 2, 2009 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions
Peoples was on that! Carlos was sic on the ground
by krusty on Apr 2, 2009 12:00 AM EDT up reply actions
Tyson’s stand up looked very crisp. Dos Anjos should have kicked at that knee that he turned into a pretzel. No gameplan. Not too bright but I blame his corner.
Cole did not impress me because I have always thought that Junie was garbage anyway… Not to doubt Cole’s skills, he looks dangerous. But Junie is a small stepping stone and not a real test IMO.
Bader looked good even though the fight was a snoozer overall.
Kampmann (sp?) and Condit. Great fight. I thought it was a draw. Both looked great. Looking forward to seeing them again.
Nice set of fights.
by OJR on Apr 2, 2009 8:53 AM EDT up reply actions
Is the WEC that bad? There champ cann’t beat a Guy like Kampman? UFC is the best no question!!
by iagoof22 on Apr 1, 2009 10:24 PM EDT reply actions
Kampman is no joke, True BMO. But he got handled.
by iagoof22 on Apr 1, 2009 10:40 PM EDT up reply actions
In the third round only and Kampmann did no damage from the top. Wait, do you mean Condit got handled or Kampmann got handled? Carlos controlled the first two rounds, was more varied and dynamic, was more aggressive, landed more shots, and did more damage. Martin had more submission attempts but Carlos escaped them all. I must say great fight and I hope they both go far in 170.
by wAyNe on Apr 1, 2009 11:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Condit and Kampmann were both impressive. I believe Condit has more upside potential, but both of these guys can make waves in the division. The fight was as entertaining as any I’ve seen so far this year.
by CL on Apr 1, 2009 11:45 PM EDT up reply actions
Absolutely. In my eyes, both fighters walked away with a win. Condit looked spectacular in defeat. In fact, I had him winning the first two round and Kampmann winning the 3rd, so I had it 29-28 for The Natural Born Killer. MANY people thought that Kampmann would run through Condit, but I just couldn’t see it happening. Carlos can SCRAP!
Also, after watching the fight, I think its safe to say that Condit is for sure the “more dangerous” fighter.
It was nice to not see that ol’ man from Alberquerque that beefs with Greg Jackson in his corner too. I always thought that that camp was too small for him and there wasn’t enough top training partners. Now that he is at ACS, he joins Jamie Varner and Aaron Simpson as their only exciting fighters. But Condit is just on another level as far as excitement goes, but I am a fan so I am biased. time for breakfast
by ViolentMike on Apr 2, 2009 9:57 AM EDT up reply actions
i was rooting for kampman but think he really won. and conduit is a good fighter no matter how the judging went.
by rob u on Apr 1, 2009 10:33 PM EDT up reply actions
You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. Kampman has only lost to Marquardt and he gave Leites the beating of his life. That was a terribly close fight between two excellent fighters.
by Jono on Apr 1, 2009 10:36 PM EDT up reply actions
You do know that Kampman beat MW #1 contender Thales Leites, right?
by Killer on Apr 1, 2009 11:41 PM EDT up reply actions
Browning’s “15 minutes of fame” may be over. Disappointed in Condit.
by Muscle Dolphin on Apr 1, 2009 10:24 PM EDT reply actions
carlos condit vs. martin kampmann amazing fight!!!
by matt on Apr 1, 2009 10:35 PM EDT reply actions
agreed i called most of the winners tonight. i terribly underrestimated cole miller and he beats the winner of uno/fisher ill for sure be a big fan of his he looked good tonight. also kampamnn i knew he would win but fuck eh, that fight was GREAT! i felt it couldve went either way as the first was like a draw, condit had the second by a bit, and kampmann dominated the third overall decent card cant wait to watch the prelims
by Jared on Apr 1, 2009 11:01 PM EDT up reply actions
I don’t know who won the Condit vs Kampmann it was a close fight, all I know is Junie Browning lost so I’m happy.
by j-dub on Apr 1, 2009 10:37 PM EDT reply actions
Dos Anjos is amazing. That guy has some serious talent. Give him Miller so that he can beat that ass.
by Jono on Apr 1, 2009 10:37 PM EDT reply actions
Dos Anjos had Griffin hurt badly but didn’t once go for a finish. Hardly amazing.
by T-Rex on Apr 1, 2009 11:28 PM EDT up reply actions
When is Tyson Griffin gonna win a fight by anything other then a DECISION? His last 7 fights have now ended in a decision.
by anom on Apr 1, 2009 11:28 PM EDT reply actions
who gives a sh*t if a fight goes the distance. tyson is a badass. he brings it the entire fight. i would rather see it go the distance than have a fluke ending in the first 20 seconds of the fight
by day1er on Apr 1, 2009 11:38 PM EDT up reply actions
I think Kampmann won that…why is Peoples always the odd man out. It wasn’t a steam-roll by any definition, but I think Kampann took that.
by MM_Eh on Apr 1, 2009 11:32 PM EDT reply actions
the only round that was clearly won was the third round in which kampmann controlled almost the whole round, the first two were extemely close and i can see a case for either of the fighters winning it.
by matt on Apr 1, 2009 11:38 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed. I saw it the same way. I may have given a slight edge to Kampmann in the first, but both of the first 2 rounds could have went to either fighter.
by naturalshadow on Apr 2, 2009 12:53 AM EDT up reply actions
An edge to Kamp in the 1st? I really dont understand that.He ate what was by far the most brutal strike of the fight in the first round and a nasty elbow. I agree the 2nd was a toss up but i thought the 1 and 3rd were pretty clearly won by Condit and Kampman respectively.
by naturalist on Apr 2, 2009 3:03 AM EDT up reply actions
I actually meant to say the second round for Kampmann with a slight edge, which would have given him a 29-28 victory. I also gave the 1st to Condit and third to Kampmann.
by naturalshadow on Apr 2, 2009 10:37 PM EDT up reply actions
Actually, I rewatched the fight, and I had it right the first time. Kampmann almost subbed Condit on more than one occasion in the first. He did eat one punch from Condit that cut him, but one punch doesn’t give him the round. It was close, but I gave it to Kampmann. The second round was a toss up, but I thought Condit got the better in the end. The third was all Kampmann, giving him the fight. Close fight either way, and it would be nice to see the occasional 10-10 round in mma.
by naturalshadow on Apr 3, 2009 2:27 AM EDT up reply actions
it looks like the clock is turning on the 16th minute in Junie’s 15 minutes of fame.
by Killer on Apr 1, 2009 11:42 PM EDT reply actions
I’ve been watching Cecil Peoples score boxing fights and MMA fights for a very long time. I can easily recall that there has never been a fight that I saw, in which I agreed with him! His scoring is almost always off!
by Dana's a CrossDresser on Apr 1, 2009 11:45 PM EDT reply actions
He is pretty much always the 1 judge in a split decision that didn’t agree.
by naturalshadow on Apr 2, 2009 12:54 AM EDT up reply actions
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AhbI4IVRDw
short 8 minute cut of Cole Miller Documentary. Feature length coming.
Cole is one of the bright rising stars of MMA. He got lost in the shuffle behind Nate Diaz, Joe Lauzon, and Gray Maynard during Season 5 of TUF, but Cole is for real. Take notice.
by Cool Hand Chad on Apr 2, 2009 12:06 AM EDT reply actions
I liked Cole Miller the moment I saw him tap Allen Berube back in season 5. His tough bout with Lauzon showed he’s got skill. And Tyson Griffin needs a nickname…..how ’bout “decision?”…..Tyson “Decision” Griffin. Rhymes AND makes sense…..lol, could be offensive.
by Clint on Apr 2, 2009 2:14 AM EDT reply actions
I think the judges got it wrong on the Tyson Griffin/De Santos fight (and I was pulling for Griffin – he’s awesome)
I think Tyson lost the first round due to the near knee submission and struggled in the second round due to the knee.
I think he did win the third round however.
by TufEnuf on Apr 2, 2009 8:20 AM EDT reply actions
I was thrilled that Cole Miller destroyed Junie!
by TufEnuf on Apr 2, 2009 8:21 AM EDT reply actions
I hope there’s a rematch with Kampmann and Condit.
Great fight!
by TufEnuf on Apr 2, 2009 8:22 AM EDT reply actions
kampmann should now fight A. Johnson or Swick. Condit maybe Burns or the winner/loser of serra hughes
by kneetotheface on Apr 2, 2009 9:42 AM EDT reply actions
the only reason over-rated tyson keeps gettin put on main cards is bcause hes randy hgh daughter jus like gray maynard..they both suck
please joe silva after nate diaz beats down fat over-rated joe daddy let him beat down tyson or gray…again
by juggalomike on Apr 2, 2009 12:40 PM EDT reply actions
Sorry my friend gray would do nate if they went at it now. Was really disappointed with nates last effort, not that guida looked good but he controlled the fight. Diaz boys are some classless chumps that need to be dealt with.
by mr guillotine on Apr 2, 2009 3:57 PM EDT up reply actions
Excellent night of fights. Brilliant main event. Full props to all fighters win or lose.
The cherry on top though, of course, is Browning got his ass whooped. Oh how I laughed, the worthless riff raff scumbag.
by UK_Chris on Apr 2, 2009 5:19 PM EDT reply actions
Wasnt excellent at all. I was bored outta my mind.
How ever the new tuf episode was AWESOME, it was much mroe action packed then ufn18.
by Lester the Pimp on Apr 2, 2009 7:03 PM EDT up reply actions
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