Tag Archives: Anthony Pettis

UFC Rankings Matrix – October 2015

November 4, 2015MMA, Rankings Matrix2015, Alistair Overeem, Anderson SIlva, Anthony Johnson, Anthony Pettis, Conor McGregor, Demetrious Johnson, jon jones, MMA, October, Rankings, Rankings Matrix, Ronda Rousey, UFC, UFC Rankingsdarkotto23

Since I posted my last UFC Rankings in September there have been only 2 UFC events, and 22 fights (including 1 title fight).

In the past month we saw an epic battle between two of the best Light-heavyweights of all time. Champion Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson put on one of the best championship fights of all time back in UFC 192. There was also a small show in Dublin on October 24th, and while the fights were fun to watch, the card was so injury plagued that there weren’t really any big ranked fighters who fought that night. October was a bit of a slow month for the UFC, but that’s okay because there are 4 shows scheduled for November and 4 shows scheduled for December so we should see a lot of movement in the rankings in the upcoming months.

I’ve added a new feature this month. From now on fighters in the top 16 that are fighting each other will have their names highlighted in the same color in the matrices.

Here are my UFC Rankings Matrices for October 2015:

(Click on Images to see them Full Size) (Champions in bold):

Past Rankings: (May 2015 – June 2015 – July 2015 – August 2015 – September 2015 )

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Women’s Strawweight (115lbs)

* I included the fights from the 20th Season of the The Ultimate Fighter even though they were technically “Exhibition” matches because they were part of the tournament that crowned the inaugural champ. The fighters TUF records are in parentheses next to their MMA Records.

Biggest Move

None (This division hasn’t changed much since last month)

Upcoming Fights

#1 Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs #11 Valerie Letourneau on on November 15th @UFC193

#5 Michelle Waterson vs #7 Tecia Torres on December 12th @UFC194

#8 Rose Namajuanas vs #10 Paige VanZant on December 10th @UFN80

#9 Randa Markos vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz on December 19h @UFConFOX17

#18 Nina Ansaroff vs Justine Kish on January 2nd @UFC195

#21 Seohee Ham vs #24 Cortney Casey on November 28th @UFN79

#26 Kailin Curran vs #29 Emiliy Kagan on December 10th @UFN80

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Women’s Bantamweight (135lbs)

Biggest Move

#8 Juliana Peña up 3 spots from #11

#10 Holly Holm up 2 spots from #12

Upcoming Fights

#1 Ronda Rousey vs #10 Holly Holm on November 15th @UFC193

#6 Sarah Kaufman vs #17 Germaine de Randamie on December 19th @UFConFOX17

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Flyweight (125lbs)

Biggest Move

#15 Sergio Pettis up 8 spots from #23

#16 Chris Cariaso down 4 spots from #12

Upcoming Fights

#5 Jussier Formiga vs #9 Henry Cejudo on November 21st @UFN78

#13 Justin Scoggins vs #27 Joby Sanchez on December 11th @TUF22Finale

#22 Ryan Benoit vs #26 Ben Nguyen on November 15th @UFC193

#24 Richie Vaculik vs Ryan Martinez on November 15th @UFC193

#29 Fredy Serano vs Zhikui Yao on November 21st @UFN78

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Bantamweight (135lbs)

Biggest Move

None (This division hasn’t changed much since last month)

Upcoming Fights

#1 TJ Dillashaw vs #3 Dominick Cruz on January 17th @UFN81

#4 Urijah Faber vs #14 Frankie Saenz on December 12th @UFC194

#6 Aljamain Sterling vs #12 Johny Eduardo on December 10th @UFN80

#8 Thomas Almeida vs #28 Anthony Birchak on November 7th @UFN77

#19 Erik Perez vs Damian Stasiak on November 21st @UFN78

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Featherweight (145lbs)

Biggest Move

None (This division hasn’t changed much since last month)

Upcoming Fights

#1 Jose Aldo vs #2 Conor McGregor on December 12th @UFC194

#3 Chad Mendes vs #4 Frankie Edgar on December 11th @TUF22Finale

#5 Ricardo Lamas vs Diego Sanchez on November 21st @UFN78

#6 Max Holloway vs #9 Jeremy Stephens on December 12th @UFC194

#8 Charles Oliveira vs #12 (155lbs) Myles Jury on December 19th @UFConFOX17

#11 Nik Lentz vs #29 (155lbs) Danny Castillo on December 19th @UFConFOX17

#12 Clay Guida vs #19 Thiago Tavares on November 7th @UFN77

#22 Chas Skelly vs Edimilson Souza on November 7th @UFN77

#27 Cole Miller vs Jim Alers on December 19th @UFConFOX17

#29 Sam Sicilia vs Doo Ho Choi on November 28th @UFN79

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Lightweight (155lbs)

Biggest Move

None (This division hasn’t changed much since last month)

Upcoming Fights

#1 Rafael Dos Anjos vs #3 Donald Cerrone on December 19th @UFConFOX17

#2 Anthony Pettis vs #6 Eddie Alvarez on January 17th @UFN81

#5 Ben Henderson vs #9 (170lbs) Thiago Alves on November 28th @UFN79

#8 Michael Johnson vs #15 Nate Diaz on December 19th @UFConFOX17

#9 Edson Barboza vs #10 Tony Ferguson on December 11th @TUF22Finale

#16 Jim Miller vs #25 Michael Chiesa on December 10th @UFN80

#17 Evan Dunham vs #20 Joe Lauzon on December 11th @TUF22Finale

#18 Gleison Tibau vs #28 Abel Trujillo on November 7th @UFN77

#21 Dustin Porier vs #26 Joseph Duffy on January 2nd @UFC195

#22 Paul Felder vs Darren Cruickshank on January 17th @UFN81

#30 Kevin Lee vs Leonardo Santos on December 12th @UFC194

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Welterweight (170lbs)

Biggest Move

None (This division hasn’t changed much since last month)

Upcoming Fights

#1 Robbie Lawler vs #5 Carlos Condit on January 2nd @UFC195

#7 Damian Maia vs #13 Gunnar Nelson on December 12th @UFC194

#9 Thiago Alves vs #5 (155lbs) Ben Henderson on November 28th @UFN79

#10 Don Hyung Kim vs #15 Jorge Masvidal on November 28th @UFN79

#12 Jake Ellenberger vs #14 Tarec Saffiedine on January 30th @UFConFOX18

#16 Ryan LaFlare vs Mike Pierce on December 11th @TUF22Finale

#17 Neil Magny vs #15 (185lbs) Kelvin Gastelum on November 21st @UFN78

#18 Lorenz Larkin vs #25 Albert Tumenov on January 2nd @UFC195

#21 Tim Means vs John Howard on December 10th @UFN80

#23 Patrick Cote vs #28 Ben Saunders on January 17th @UFN81

#26 Warlley Alves vs #29 Colby Covington on December 12th @UFC194

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Middleweight (185lbs)

Biggest Move

None (This division hasn’t changed much since last month)

Upcoming Fights

#1 Chris Weidman vs #2 Luke Rockhold on December 12th @UFC194

#3 Jacare Souza vs #4 Yoel Romero on December 12th @UFC194

#6 Uriah Hall vs #16 Robert Whittaker on November 15th @UFC193

#9 Vitor Belfort vs #15 Dan Henderson on November 7th @UFN77

#12 CB Dolloway vs #25 Nate Marquardt on December 19th @UFConFOX17

#17 Tim Boetch vs #20 Ed Herman on January 17th @UFN81

#19 Antonio Carlos Jr vs Kevin Casey on December 10th @UFN80

#22 Thiago Santos vs #23 Elias Theodorou on December 10th @UFN80

#24 Josh Samman vs Tamdam McCory on December 19th @UFConFOX17

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Lightheavyweight (205lbs)

* Even though #1 Jon Jones is technically not the champion anymore, I still have him ranked as #1 since he was stripped of the title and didn’t actually lose the belt to another fighter.

Biggest Move

#7 Rashad Evans down 2 spots from #5

Upcoming Fights

#2 Daniel Cormier vs #1 Jon Jones on TBA

#3 Anthony Johnson vs #5 Ryan Bader on January 30th @UFConFOX18

#7 Glover Teixeira vs #11 Pat Cummins on November 7th @UFN77

#15 Fabio Maldonado vs #18 Corey Anderson on November 7th @UFN77

#17 Gian Villante vs #24 Anthony Perosh on November 15th @UFC193

#20 Illir Latifi vs #23 Sean O’Connell on January 17th @UFN81

#22 Francimar Barroso vs Abdul-Kerim Edilov on January 17th @UFN81

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Heavyweight (265lbs)

Biggest Move

None (This division hasn’t changed much since last month)

Upcoming Fights

#1 Fabricio Werdum vs #2 Cain Velasquez on TBA

#3 Junior Dos Santos vs #9 Alistair Overeem on December 19th @UFConFOX17

#4 Stipe Miocic vs #5 Andrei Arlovski on January 2nd @UFC195

#6 Travis Browne vs #13 Matt Mitrione on January 17th @UFN81

#8 Mark Hunt vs #14 Antonio Silva on November 15th @UFC193

#15 Stefan Struve vs #22 Jared Rosholt on November 15th @UFC193

#17 Mirko Flipovic vs #25 Anthony Hamilton on November 28th @UFN79

#18 Gabriel Gonzaga vs #30 Konstantin Erokhin on December 11th @TUF22Finale

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Thanks for reading! Let me know if you have any questions, comments or criticisms. Any feedback is appreciated.

UFC 185 Pettis vs Dos Anjos – Fight Picks

March 14, 2015Event Preview, MMAAlistair Overeem, Anthony Pettis, Carla Esparza, Joanna Jędrzejczyk, Johnny Hendricks, Matt Brown, Rafael Dos Anjos, Roy Nelson, UFC, UFC 185darkotto23

The prelims just started so this is very very late, but better late than never hahaha.

UFC 185 is what I like to call a stacked card. 2 title fights, and plenty of top ranked fighters, I can’t wait.

Here are my fight picks for UFC 185: Pettis vs Dos Anjos (winners in bold):

(155lbs) #1 Anthony Pettis vs #3 Rafael Dos Anjos

(W115lbs) #1 Carla Esparza vs #2 Joanna Jedrzejczyk

(170lbs) #2 Johny Hendricks vs #7 Matt Brown

(265lbs) #10 Alistair Overeem vs #12 Roy Nelson

(125lbs) #12 Chris Cariaso vs Henry Cejudo

Let’s see how many I get right this time.

Fighter Profile: Anthony “Showtime” Pettis

March 11, 2015Fighter Profile, Highlights, MMA, VideoAnthony Pettis, MMA, UFC, UFC 185darkotto23

#1 Anthony Pettis (18-2)

Anthony “Showtime” Pettis is the future of MMA. He represents the new elite crop of MMA fighters, athletes who are complete mixed martial artists and who will lead the sport to new heights. He is in the same class as Ronda Rousey, Demetrious Johnson, TJ Dillashaw, Jose Aldo, Chris Weidman, Jon Jones, and Cain Velasquez. All these men (and women) represent the very best our sport has to offer, and they are also arguably the best fighters their respective divisions have ever witnessed. We are truly living in a golden age of MMA right now, and Anthony Pettis is one of this era’s brightest stars.

Showtime just has that star quality that not all fighters posses. I can’t think of a better way to put it other than he’s got swag. There is a certain confidence that a person has when he knows he’s the best and Anthony Pettis has that. His looks, fighting ability and charisma have helped land him major sponsorship deals with the likes of Reebok and Wheaties. He isn’t just all looks and charisma though, this man can fight.

Anthony has a very unique and dangerous MMA style. He is a lethal striker with proven knockout ability in both his hands and legs. He is also a deadly submission specialist who has been able to tap out legitimate black-belts with relative ease. He is absolutely dangerous in all aspects of the sport, and he is unique in the way that he can mix in some truly amazing techniques into his fights. Showtime (a very appropriate nickname by the way) is best known for his amazing “Showtime Kick” where he literally jumped off the cage like a ninja and kicked (then champion) Benson Henderson in the face (you can see the kick at :38 in the video). He is arguably the most creative striker in MMA today and it is just a pleasure to watch him perform inside the octagon.

(The famed "Showtime Kick", image thanks to fighthub.tv)

Pettis started his MMA career in 2007 and he has a career record of 18-2 with 7 KO’s and 8 submissions. His only 2 loses were both controversial judges decisions against Bart Palaszewski in 2009 and Clay Guida in 2011. Many people feel he won both of those fights but in the end the judges disagreed leaving those two blemishes on his otherwise stellar record.

After compiling a 12-1 record at just 23 years of age Pettis earned a shot at the WEC Lightweight belt. In December of 2010 Showtime became the WEC 155lbs champion by defeating Benson Henderson in the WEC’s last event before merging with the UFC. After winning the belt Anthony was supposed to fight the UFC Champion to combine belts, but the Frankie Edgar vs Gray Maynard trilogy delayed his title shot. In order to stay active he took a fight against Clay Guida and ended up losing a controversial judges decision.

Following his loss to Guida, Pettis rebounded by winning 3 straight fights against top fighters Jeremy Stephens, #21 Joe Lauzon, and #4 Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. During this run Pettis was finally able to show UFC fans some of his deadly finishing ability. He beat Joe Lauzon by landing a beautiful, head-kick knockout, and he defeated Cowboy Cerrone (an elite striker in his own right) with a scary, liver kick knockout.

This earned Anthony Pettis his long promised shot at the UFC Lightweight title against none other than Benson Henderson, the same man Pettis had previously beat to win the WEC Lightweight title. The first fight between these 2 men was a back and forth battle that went 5 rounds and was declared fight of the year back in 2010. Their second encounter couldn’t have been more different. It was a one sided affair, after landing some vicious body-kicks, Pettis was able to snatch Henderson’s arm and he forced him to tap out all in less than 5 minutes.

(Pettis after beating Henderson at UFC 164, image thanks to roufusport.com)

Pettis then went on to coach the 20th season of the Ultimate Fighter against Gilbert Melendez, who he then proceeded to beat in his 1st title defense at UFC 181. Pettis proved to be the clearly better fighter by rocking Melendez on the feet with punches and then chocking him out with a sleek guillotine choke in the second round, earning his first title defense at 155lbs.

Anthony Pettis is already the best lightweight fighter in the world, that much is a fact. Now he has to prove that he is the best fighter in lightweight history. He already has wins over the #4 (Cerrone), #5(Henderson), & #6(Melendez) ranked lightweights and he is about to face #3(Dos Anjos).

BJ Penn and Benson Henderson both hold the record for most title defenses in the lightweight division at 3. Currently, Pettis only has 1 title defense, but he’ll get the opportunity to get 1 more this Saturday when he faces #3 Rafael Dos Anjos @UFC185. Dos Anjos is a legitimate challenger that should prove to be a tough test for Pettis. If Pettis can defeat him it will only further cement his legacy as arguably the best lightweight fighter in MMA history, and maybe even the greatest fighter of all time.