UFC 44: Undisputed ResultsStory By: Matt Boone
September 27, 2003
The following report was written by Matt Boone of MMANews.com:
MATCH #1:
-Hermes Franca def. Caol Uno (KO, Rd. 2)
>> Good match with Uno taking the first round pretty easily. Second round was a different story as soon as Franca nailed Uno with a head-kick, and later knocked him out in a brutal manner.
Comments: There goes Caol Uno's chances at a third fight with B.J. Penn for the Lightweight title. One would assume Penn is still in the mix if he gets past Takanori Gomi, but the real question is, which of the other exciting UFC Lightweights will they match him with?
MATCH #2:
-Nick Diaz def. Jeremy Jackson (Submission, Rd.3)
>> Another good fight with Diaz controlling the tempo for the most part with a lot of strikes on the ground. He took the first round easily, but got busted open in the second. He finished Jackson in the third with an armbar submission in a fight he basically dominated.
Comments: It was their third fight, and was every bit as good as the previous two, neither of which lasted nearly this long. Diaz gets the win giving him the 2-1 record vs. Jackson, owning the trilogy. Diaz looked impressive, and wouldn't doubt seeing him back in the UFC again real soon.
MATCH #3:
-Josh Thomson def. Gerald Strebendt (Referee Stoppage, Rd. 1)
>> Good fight once again. Thomson dominated throughout, but Strebendt was staying busy with his submission attempts. Fight ended in round one after Thomson landed a couple heavy shots, and Big John had to step in to call the fight. Strebendt fell flat after the stoppage, proving it's obvious legitimacy.
Comments: Good for Josh. Had an opportunity a few times to fight in UFC, injuries prevented them. He finally got to the big stage, and looked very impressive. He seemed happy about his win, and he looks like he'll be back.
MATCH #4:
-Karo Parisyan def. Dave Strasser (Submission, Rd.1)
>> The most one-sided fight of the night so far. Parisyan dominated standup, and had some submissions in deep in the first round. He almost got the victory with a leg lock, but Strasser escaped, only later to be thrown in a kimura that finished the fight in round one.
Comments: Was surprised the most by this match. Franca's KO of Uno caught me off guard, but this was one of few fights tonight I wasn't undecided about. I thought it was Strasser no if's, and's, or but's about it. I was wrong. Very impressive showing for Parisyan.
MATCH #5:
-Rich Franklin def. Edwin Dewees (Referee Stoppage, Rd. 1)
>> Entertaining fight. Franklin pummeled a game Dewees near the end of round one. He landed some brutal knees and kicks before folding Dewees and landing strong strikes on the ground to a first round referee stoppage.
Comments: Franklin continues to build his career in the right direction, and definitely has a bright future in UFC. I would expect UFC to up the level of competition for Franklin in his next fight, as he has proven himself a force in the Light Heavyweight division.
MATCH #6:
-Jorge Rivera def. David Loiseau (Unanimous Decision, Rd.3)
>> Arguable decision. Rivera pretty much stopped Loiseau in the third round, but David was saved by the bell after being floored. He raised Rivera's hand after the fight to signal the fact that he recognized him as the winner. Rivera got the decision, but some may question it as Loiseau arguably got the first two rounds.
Comments: Rivera looked amazing in the knockout in the third, and overcome some big cuts on his face, but was taking a beating in one and two. However, he did land some good shots on Loiseau early, but not enough to win the rounds. Rivera will probably need another fight to prove this as a non-upset, which shouldn't be hard because he appears to be able to go with the best.
MATCH #7:
-Tim Sylvia def. Gan McGee (Knockout, Rd. 1)
>> Tim Sylvia completely destroyed McGee in this fight, probably more so than he did Ricco Rodriguez to win the title. The two felt each other out for a few minutes, McGee landed a few shots, but it was a one-two shot from Sylvia that completely floored McGee, and had him out of it for a couple minutes. Absolutely dominating outing from Sylvia.
Comments: While Sylvia did prove he can hang with the best, and that his knockout on Ricco was not an upset as many thought due to lower expectations of Sylvia from Ricco, I think Joe Rogan's comments of him being ready to take out Emelianenko Fedor are a bit premature. Sylvia proved he's no fluke, and belongs where he is in the UFC Heavyweight division, but I can't see him handling Fedor just yet. On a side-note, I noticed how great Sylvia's stand up actually is in his fights with Wesley Correira, Ricco Rodriguez, and Gan McGee. With that said, while I don't know if he could beat Mirko CroCop, that's a fight I would definitely like to see.
MATCH #8:
-Andrei Arlovski def. Vladimir Matyushenko (Referee Stoppage, Rd. 1)
>> Arlovski completely dominated Matyushenko. The fight lasted half a round, with Arlovski dominating Matyushenko in the stand up game, and didn't have to worry about anything but just that. Arlovski eventually pummeled Matyushenko to a referee stoppage at the mid-point of the first round.
Comments: Arlovski now definitely deserves a title shot at Tim Sylvia. The guy has proven himself worthy in this fight alone. This was another one of few I was sure about, leaning towards Matyushenko, and I was completely wrong. Frank Mir is rumored to be next for Sylvia, and I personally feel it's way too early for Mir to be trying for the World title against someone like Sylvia. I felt before this fight that the winner of this one should be next for the champion, whether it be Sylvia or McGee, and still do despite it being who I didn't expect it to be. Arlovski should be next.
MATCH #9:
-Randy Couture def. Tito Ortiz (Unanimous Decision, Rd. 5)
>> Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz is finally here. The anticipation is incredible for this one, with it probably producing the most mainstream coverage of a UFC main-event in history. Round one begins and Couture and Ortiz battle around in the clinch, with Tito constantly working for the takedown, but not succeeding. Each land a couple of solid knees to the mid-section and legs of one-another. Randy eventually gets it back standing and lands a good shot on his feet. Tito throws some bombs to no avail and once again goes for the takedown. Couture gets Ortiz on the ground and gets his back. First time Tito has ever been on his back in UFC to my knowledge. Couture nearly sinks in a rear-naked choke, but Ortiz gets loose. The two get up against the octagon once again, Couture again takes Ortiz down and moves to half guard. Round ends with Tito defending. Round definitely goes to Couture, I'm shocked.
Couture and Ortiz round two is here and Ortiz comes out attempting a big high-kick, which Couture avoided. Couture immediately takes Tito down and gets his head up against the fence. Couture attacks Ortiz with vicious ground and pound the entire round, and Ortiz was getting pounded big. Incredible round for Couture, I'll be surprised if Ortiz can hang on.
Round three starts and Couture quickly takes down Tito again. Wow. He's working some ground and pound again with Tito pushed up against the fence. Eventually Tito gets his first takedown, but quickly finds himself back on his back eating mean elbows from Couture. Round ends with Tito taking another beating.
Round four begins with Couture taking Tito down fast once again. Couture is completely dominating Tito right now. He's going for chokes, he's elbowing and throwing nice punches, Ortiz is taking a huge pummeling here. Round four ends with Couture dominating as time runs out once again. Not looking good for Tito.
Round five starts with Ortiz looking visibly beaten and he tries changing his game plan and strike with Couture. He doesn't find much success, and eventually gets pushed up against the octagon and taken down again. Couture lands a huge suplex on Ortiz, this is amazing. Couture pounds Tito as usual, but Tito goes in for a leg lock. He appears to be getting somewhere with it, but, Couture is spanking him on the ass! Randy takes this round as well, no doubt who's got this one.
The decision is announced - unanimous for Randy Couture, the new UNDISPUTED Light Heavyweight champion of UFC. Ortiz starts to cry, but shows a lot of class putting the belt around Randy Couture's waist.
Comments: This was a simply incredible fight. Entertainment through the roof, worth every penny. Randy Couture has no doubt sealed his spot in MMA history this year. He drops down from Heavyweight to 205 lbs. and beats an incredible striker who the champion dodged, Chuck Liddell, with strikes! Then, he takes on the seemingly unstoppable Tito Ortiz, and uses his against-the-fence elbow ground and pound style against him for five rounds 'til victory. He beat the top two guys in this weight division, using their own style to do it....at age 40! Easily topping any legends list out there now with his record, I am amazed. I knew he had a good chance, but I really thought age would play a factor, as well as conditioning. Great fight, great show. Catch the replay if you missed it!
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