Miocic vs Ngannou should be a great fight if Ngannou has improved his take down defence and ability to get up after being grounded. Will be risky for Stipe to stand and trade with him so I can see a repeat of the first fight.

Is Volkanovski a good grappler? Obviously his striking is top class. They say Ortega is now a striker, but for this fight I think he should take Volko down and I think he can dominate him on the ground. Would be a bad idea for Ortega to try to trade with Volko IMO. Volko traded with Holloway and won twice, even though the second win was a bit fishy, whereas Holloway destroyed Ortega. Obviously not as simple as that though.

Sterling vs Yan
Sterling came out of the blocks quickly but Yan was able to weather the early storm and he was well on his way to winning the fight, until he landed that foolish illegal knee and got disqualified. I do feel that disqualifications shouldn't see a title change hands but those are the rules and I am sure they will book the rematch for 2021. I think Yan beats him in that rematch.
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If the fight had finished, Yan would have won, but I think Sterling was ahead when it was stopped. I think he had had a good couple of rounds and for sure he won the first round IMO.

What stops the champ from delivering an illegal blow of the title can't change hands via disqualification?

Imagine the champ being dominated for five rounds and then keeping his title because he kneed his opponent in the last minute?

If youre disqualified then it's a loss IMO and you lose your title.

Challengers have to properly beat the champs already, any doubt and they give it to the champ. Odds are already stacked against challengers. We can't give champs a get out via disqualification, can we?

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

Agreed. He has the ability, what he needs is an effective game plan

I have no issue with Yan losing via DQ but I don't like the title changing hands in that way. If anything, I would prefer the title to become vacant and neither man wins it.

I fully expect Yan to beat Sterling in the rematch.

comment by Thorgen Kloppinson - Son of the Soil (U1282)
posted about an hour ago
Miocic vs Ngannou should be a great fight if Ngannou has improved his take down defence and ability to get up after being grounded. Will be risky for Stipe to stand and trade with him so I can see a repeat of the first fight.

Is Volkanovski a good grappler? Obviously his striking is top class. They say Ortega is now a striker, but for this fight I think he should take Volko down and I think he can dominate him on the ground. Would be a bad idea for Ortega to try to trade with Volko IMO. Volko traded with Holloway and won twice, even though the second win was a bit fishy, whereas Holloway destroyed Ortega. Obviously not as simple as that though.
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Volk vs Ortega is off the card, due to Volk getting COVID.

I am curious to see how Stipe does at this lighter weight. He looked quick and durable against DC but Ngannou hits a lot harder and he is bigger. Will Stipe's chin and strength be depleted?

comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 8 hours, 35 minutes ago
comment by Thorgen Kloppinson - Son of the Soil (U1282)
posted about an hour ago
Miocic vs Ngannou should be a great fight if Ngannou has improved his take down defence and ability to get up after being grounded. Will be risky for Stipe to stand and trade with him so I can see a repeat of the first fight.

Is Volkanovski a good grappler? Obviously his striking is top class. They say Ortega is now a striker, but for this fight I think he should take Volko down and I think he can dominate him on the ground. Would be a bad idea for Ortega to try to trade with Volko IMO. Volko traded with Holloway and won twice, even though the second win was a bit fishy, whereas Holloway destroyed Ortega. Obviously not as simple as that though.
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Volk vs Ortega is off the card, due to Volk getting COVID.
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FFS. Poorer card then.

comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 8 hours, 37 minutes ago
I have no issue with Yan losing via DQ but I don't like the title changing hands in that way. If anything, I would prefer the title to become vacant and neither man wins it.

I fully expect Yan to beat Sterling in the rematch.
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Still unfair on the challenger because he loses his title shot having done nothing wrong. Still benefits the champ even though he used an illegal strike and got DQ'd.

comment by Thorgen Kloppinson - Son of the Soil (U1282)
posted about 2 hours ago
comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 8 hours, 37 minutes ago
I have no issue with Yan losing via DQ but I don't like the title changing hands in that way. If anything, I would prefer the title to become vacant and neither man wins it.

I fully expect Yan to beat Sterling in the rematch.
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Still unfair on the challenger because he loses his title shot having done nothing wrong. Still benefits the champ even though he used an illegal strike and got DQ'd.
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I don't think it does benefit the champion, as he loses his belt. All it means is the challenger doesn't become champion, which shouldn't be decided on a DQ. What makes it a more compelling case is the manner in which the fight unfolded. Yan was dominating as the fight wore on and I suspect he would have stopped Sterling.

I also didn't like Sterlings post fight behaviour. I view him as a paper champion until the rematch happens.

comment by Thorgen Kloppinson - Son of the Soil (U1282)
posted about 2 hours ago
comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 8 hours, 35 minutes ago
comment by Thorgen Kloppinson - Son of the Soil (U1282)
posted about an hour ago
Miocic vs Ngannou should be a great fight if Ngannou has improved his take down defence and ability to get up after being grounded. Will be risky for Stipe to stand and trade with him so I can see a repeat of the first fight.

Is Volkanovski a good grappler? Obviously his striking is top class. They say Ortega is now a striker, but for this fight I think he should take Volko down and I think he can dominate him on the ground. Would be a bad idea for Ortega to try to trade with Volko IMO. Volko traded with Holloway and won twice, even though the second win was a bit fishy, whereas Holloway destroyed Ortega. Obviously not as simple as that though.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Volk vs Ortega is off the card, due to Volk getting COVID.
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FFS. Poorer card then.
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Agreed.

comment by Sideshow (U11809)
posted about 12 hours ago
Sterling’s game plan was just stupid. If he toned it back a bit (or a lot) and didn’t fight like someone pressing all the buttons on a video game he could have caused Yan a lot of problems.
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I suspect he fought that way to overwhelm Yan, which worked in the first round. In the rematch, if Sterling slows it down, it gives Yan a chance to cause sterling problems early. The most damning part of the fight was the takedowns. Yan took Sterling down on numerous occasions whilst Sterling could barely take Yan down.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

That's the only way Sterling can pressure him. Yan's boxing and movement is too good for him to be cut off and Sterling doesn't have the power to keep Yan on the back foot. A slower paced fight suits Yan in my opinion.

The only route for victory I see for Sterling is to take him down early and submit him. Yan gets better as the fight goes on and in a 5 round contest, that's a nightmare for a fighter like Sterling.

comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 7 hours ago
comment by Thorgen Kloppinson - Son of the Soil (U1282)
posted about 2 hours ago
comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 8 hours, 37 minutes ago
I have no issue with Yan losing via DQ but I don't like the title changing hands in that way. If anything, I would prefer the title to become vacant and neither man wins it.

I fully expect Yan to beat Sterling in the rematch.
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Still unfair on the challenger because he loses his title shot having done nothing wrong. Still benefits the champ even though he used an illegal strike and got DQ'd.
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I don't think it does benefit the champion, as he loses his belt. All it means is the challenger doesn't become champion, which shouldn't be decided on a DQ. What makes it a more compelling case is the manner in which the fight unfolded. Yan was dominating as the fight wore on and I suspect he would have stopped Sterling.

I also didn't like Sterlings post fight behaviour. I view him as a paper champion until the rematch happens.
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The champ benefits by getting an automatic rematch and time to sort his head having already seen what the challenger is bringing into the octagon. If the champ gets DQ'd in a fight he was losing or going to decision then thats a huge benefit to him. Also, why should that privilege be granted to the champ only? If the challenger gets DQ'd then it's the back of the queue for him.

I don't see any reasonable reason for the title not to change hands by DQ apart from a bit of ego. If you get DQ'd through your own stupidity then that's a loss for you and a win for your opponent IMO, title or no title. It's part of the game.

Imagine a challenger doing well in a fight, puts his hand on the floor so he doesn't take a knee to the cranium but takes the knee anyway. What happens? The champ gets a rematch at a later date and you don't even have the title. When you lose the rematch you'll feel cheated. Totally unfair and there's really no reason that should happen.

Sterling will get whacked in the second fight, he might not even last very long but he put in the work, hot himself a title shot, did nothing wrong and probably had a round or two in the bag and for that he will be rewarded by being champion for a few months. Yan delivered an illegal blow in a fight he wasn't exactly winning when it was stopped. He would have probably win but we can never know for sure. For that mistake he loses the title for a few months. He should feel fortunate that he gets an automatic rematch after having bungled up the first fight all by his lonesome.

The same if it happens again in future as I think it seems pretty fair to me personally.

comment by Sideshow (U11809)
posted 5 hours, 59 minutes ago
Nah he fought like a harem globetrotter. You don’t need to do that to pressure someone. Yan just played it smartly by shielding himself in the first round then dominating him once Sterling’s game plan went out the window and he used up all his energy.
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We must have seen a different fight

Also, takedowns don't carry as much weight if you can't keep your opponent grounded and he keeps getting up and punching you in the face. Sterling was slowing down badly though and I was thinking Yan by knockout in the 4th or maybe 5th round.

Thorgen

The title should not change hands on a DQ.

You mentioned the scenario where the champion is losing and he decided to DQ himself. What happens if the champion is winning and gets DQ'd in round 5? That benefits the challenger because he gets a rematch and can work on a strategy to make the adjustments.

The beauty of having the title being vacant is if the champion is DQ'd and it was clear that he was losing the fight, they don't have to book a rematch. They can move on and have the challenger face some one else for the vacant title.

I personally don't like a title changing hands on a DQ. If you want to become the champion or retain your title, it should be done through an actual win as opposed to a DQ. That's just my opinion.

Sterling has already received major backlash for his post fight behaviour and most, me included consider him to be a paper champion. His stock has dropped and I don't think he would have received this much criticism if he had won the title by actually physically beating Yan. The rules say he gets the title however, so he is the champion on paper but that's all it is for me.

Yan should feel fortunate to get a rematch? Why? He's not a dirty fighter and made a mistake in the octagon in the heat of the moment. He was beating Sterling and was on his way to stopping him, that is more than enough reason to give him the rematch.

As you said it was Yan that made the mistake. He's lucky to have the chance to correct that because if his opponent had made the mistake, they would never get another chance.

Also, the aim is to win the title under the rules and that's what Sterling did. He won it under the rules therefore won it fair and square and is the champ for now. That's how I see it.

The beauty of having the title being vacant is if the champion is DQ'd and it was clear that he was losing the fight, they don't have to book a rematch. They can move on and have the challenger face some one else for the vacant title.
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So from a position where he's winning the fight, the challenger is denied the title and has to fight again against a new opponent when he did absolutely nothing wrong?

Any result where the challenger doesn't get the title is grossly unfair IMO, and for me, fairness cannot be trumped by something like "the title should not change hands by DQ". There must be reason and fairness behind that statement.

What if the ref DQ's a fighter for something that was unintentional but the referee saw it as intentional? Is that fair?

comment by Thorgen Kloppinson - Son of the Soil (U1282)
posted 6 minutes ago
Also, the aim is to win the title under the rules and that's what Sterling did. He won it under the rules therefore won it fair and square and is the champ for now. That's how I see it.
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According to the rules, yes Sterling is the champion.

I recall something similar happening in the Jones vs Johnson fight , the only difference was, Johnson carried on, instead of taking the DQ and winning the title.

comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 3 minutes ago
What if the ref DQ's a fighter for something that was unintentional but the referee saw it as intentional? Is that fair?
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Like what? An eyepoke? Not sure how that could happen tbh.

However, if officials make mistakes then that's a different scenario from a fighter bungling a fight on his own. As with all other sports, officiating mistakes are taken mostly on the chin. But mistakes by players or fighters are always punished.

comment by The Guvnor XI -Iron sharpens Iron- (U12889)
posted 3 minutes ago
I recall something similar happening in the Jones vs Johnson fight , the only difference was, Johnson carried on, instead of taking the DQ and winning the title.
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Yeah, I remember that I think but maybe Johnson wasn't hurt too bad and maybe Sterling was hurt badly. We can't be sure. A knee to the head is a big blow that often leads to a knockout when done properly, and you might feel fine immediately after but then get your lights shut off when the next punch lands.

A chin can be like a gas tank, keep getting hit and you run out of gas and get put to sleep. The accumulation matters.