Post Fight Thoughts: UFC 126

A lot went down at UFC 126 and it's really going to be interesting to see where the UFC goes from here. Here are my thoughts on what went down and where I see some of the fighters going.

Kyle Kingsbury quickly finished Ricardo Romero in devastating fashion in a performance that is certainly the most impressive of his UFC career. Kingsbury is one of those guys who is in great shape and a great athlete, but I'm not sure how far he's going to be able to take his MMA career. Some MMA journalists are calling for a step up in competition for Kingsbury, but I'm not 100% sure he's ready for it. The biggest step up I'd give him without getting too aggressive would be someone like Krzysztof Soszynski.

Gabe Ruediger has no business being in the UFC. His stand-up is awful and his stand-up defense is even worse. Paul Taylor beat him silly and finished it off with a beautiful headkick that will certainly be accompanied by Ruediger's walking papers.

Kid Yamamoto's UFC debut went pretty much like I expected. Demetrious Johnson's speed is seriously one of the craziest things I've ever seen as he was able to avoid Kid's power shots and transition into takedowns seamlessly. Johnson is one of those guys who would seriously benefit from the addition of a 125 pound weight class, but I expect that he'll continue to have success in the UFC. If Joe Benavidez gets past Ian Loveland in his next fight I'd love to see him and Johnson fight. As for Kid, I think you keep him around for at least one more fight and give him a gimme fight to let American fans see what all the hype was about.

Chad Mendes taking a decision over Michihiro Omigawa wasn't really that much of a surprise to me. Mendes is likely very close to a title shot while Omigawa is likely in the same position as Kid...he needs a gimme fight to justify why American MMA fans should give a shit about him.

Donald Cerrone's win over Paul Kelly looked a lot like his other wins in that he took some early punishment but survived it and turned it into a nice win. Kelly pulled a pretty BS move by trying to punch Cerrone during the opening fight glove tap, but ended up getting choked out in the end. It's pretty obvious Cerrone needs to be brought up nice and easy as he didn't look great in this fight, so a fight with Terry Etim or Joe Lauzon makes sense. Cerrone could be a potential draw, but he can't be thrown into the deep waters too early.

Miguel Torres got the win in his UFC debut but he certainly didn't look great doing it. A fight with Demetrious Johnson or the winner of Page/Bowles makes the most sense, but Torres needs to be impressive in his next appearance if he hopes to earn back the hype he had back when he was the WEC champ at 135.

Ellenberger learned that to be successful in the UFC he's going to have to learn that his wrestling will only get him so far and that strong submission specialists are going to be able to put him in danger even though he's on top. A fight with Mike Pierce could be a way to go, but a fight with fellow wrestler Charlie Brenneman makes a lot more sense to me.

Jon Jones got surprised with a title shot thanks to a Rashad Evans injury, and I can't help but be even more excited. I'll be at UFC 128 so the thought of getting to see Jones and Shogun facing off in the cage is already giving me goosebumps. Jones once again walked through an opponent that was supposed to be his stiffest test yet. Bader looked lost when he got put on his back, and Jones's striking is obviously well above and beyond most fighters in the division. I don't think this will hurt Bader too much as Jones has a reputation for embarrassing people, so a fight with fellow loss-sufferer Rich Franklin makes sense. As for Jones we know he'll be getting the next shot against Shogun, and I can't help but love his chances.

Forrest Griffin defeated Rich Franklin in a fairly uneventful one-sided decision. Griffin's size and strength made the difference in the fight and on top of that it looked like Franklin's age is starting to catch up with him. Franklin was obviously down on the scorecards yet he fought with zero urgency. I suggested Franklin be matched up with Bader next and I'd like to see Griffin face off against Lyoto Machida should he get by Randy Couture or Little Nog if he gets past Tito Ortiz.

Anderson Silva KO'd Vitor Belfort with a friggin front kick...Wow. Apparently if GSP gets past Jake Shields then Silva/GSP will finally come true. That's pretty unfortunate for Yushin Okami, who once again is being forced wait for his title shot. At this point I just think Jon Fitch should move up to 185 and he and Okami can fight each other for the rest of their careers. I look for the Silva/GSP fight to come to fruition as I don't think Shields is the guy to dethrone GSP. Belfort is an interesting case as he's a draw, but his career has pretty much peaked as it's apparent he's not able to to hang with the new age top of the food chain fighters. At this point in his career I think you just put Belfort in fights that are more about flash and excitement rather then trying to get him to the top of the division. I could also see Belfort moving back to 205 as his last cut to make 185 was around 30pounds. If he stays at 185 then fights with Leben, Wanderlei Silva, Akiyama, and Marquardt all options. If he goes to 205 then fights with Forrest Griffin, Randy Couture, Machida, or Thiago Silva would all be fun as well.

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(Image from HeavyMMA)