Anthony Pettis thrust himself into the spotlight with his victory over "Bend it like" Ben Henderson at the last World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) card last December. Through a 5 round war which went back and forth, a clear winner was never determined until the final minute, when Pettis ran off the cage and dropped Henderson with a sidekick that brought millions (myself included) out of their chairs. With it, he took the promotions 155 lb. strap and secured a lightweight title shot against the winner of the next month's fight between UFC champion Frankie Edgar and top contender Gray Maynard.
When that fight at UFC 125 ended in a controversial split draw, many wondered what Pettis would do next. Would he bide his time, wait until the 3rd fight between Edgar and Maynard had taken place and then take his shot at the title? Or would he take a chance, fight a non-title fight and see where the chips laid thereafter.
It turns out, he chose the latter. And on Saturday night at the Ultimate Finale for season 13 of the "Ultimate Fighter", Pettis took on UFC mainstay Clay Guida. Through 15 exhausting minutes, Guida clearly showed his wrestling experience to wear the younger Pettis down, scoring takedowns time and again and imposing his will in grinding out a decision. Pettis had his moments during the fight, including an amazing sidekick off the cage and several submission attempts that had Guida in trouble, though he was never able to put him away. With the loss, Pettis relinquished his title shot and now it appears Guida, not Pettis, will be next in line for a crack at the UFC World Lightweight title.
So, was Pettis' risk worth it? I would argue that yes, even after losing his shot, it was. After waiting through a draw (and a subsequent cancellation of the 3rd bout due to injuries suffered by both Edgar and Maynard), One has to give the man they call "Showtime" credit for not wanting to sit on the sidelines. Had Pettis waited until it was his time, He no doubt would have had to waited over a year in between fights (as Edgar-Maynard III has not been rescheduled) and only being 24 years of age, was quite aware of the risk the fight with Clay Guida involved. He also took solace that the loss exposed the holes in his game (including wrestling defense), and in the post fight interviews, promised to work on those holes to improve his skill set. Being so young, I have no doubt that the "Showtime" kick was no fluke against Henderson, and I figure for this guy to be in the mix of the 155 lb. division for a long, long time.
-In other news, Tony Ferguson won the TUF 13 finale with a spectacular TKO over Ramsey Nijem. He wins a six figure contract with the UFC. But I also figure Nijem, who was a JDS' disciple, to also figure in the welterweight division soon.
-MMAJunkie reports that 2 main card fights have already been lined up for the "Fedor vs. Henderson" card on July 30th. Maroles Coenen, coming off her best Anderson Silva impression over Liz Caramouche, will take on top contender Miesha Tate, who was to take her at "Henderson vs. Feijao" in March but was sidelined due to injury. As well, former Strikeforce 205 lb. kingpin Muhammad "King Mo" Lawal will make his return from injury versus Roger Gracie. Lawal will be fighting for the first time since a TKO loss against "Feijao" Calavante this past August. Strikeforce also announced that an announced tilt between current middleweight kingpin "Jacare" Souza and Luke Rockhold was prematurely announced, and will take place at a later date.
-TUF 12 graduate Jonathan Brookins will make his UFC debut -- as a featherweight at UFC Fight Night 25 on June 25th in New Orleans according to MMAJunkie.
-and On the rumor mill, I have caught wind that July 23rd will mark Bellator's first foray into Canada as part of their "Summer Series". All I'm going to say is a little bird named Mercedes Terrell said they "would be coming here soon". I didn't figure it was going to be so fast. My money on where the first card will be held?
Either Caesar's Windsor or Casino Rama.
Questions? Comments? Leave me one or email me at mmarmaggeddon@gmail.com or follow me on twitter at twitter.com/mmarmaggedon.
Until next time, fight fans!
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