HeadKickLegend Movie Review: The Fighter

I am a Micky Ward fan. He was my favorite boxer when I was growing up. I tend to follow the "blood and guts" type as they lay it all on the line and always put on a performance of a lifetime every time they step into the ring. When I found out they were making a biopic about his life, I was extremely excited. He has an incredible life story and his fights always ended up being complete wars, so logically, one would surmise that the movie would be just as riveting. Unfortunately, the movie was disappointing. There were highlights but overall, as a boxing fan and a Micky Ward fan, I wasn't impressed.

First, the positives for the movie. It was refreshing for the film to explore a bit of the life of Micky's brother, who was his trainer and inspiration to become a boxer. Christian Bale was phenomenal as Dicky Eklund, known as the "Pride of Lowell". Dicky Eklund is best known for his fight with "Sugar" Ray Leonard, where he lost a 10 round decision and had a questionable knockdown of the boxing great. The movie opens up with HBO filming him for what he says is his comeback fight. It turns out HBO is actually filming a documentary that aired in 1995 called "High on Crack Street: Lost Lives in Lowell". Bale does an incredible job as Eklund, physically changing to embrace the role as a crack addicted former boxer. Amy Adams and Melissa Leo are also great in their portrayals of Charlene Fleming and Alice Eklund, who are Micky's wife and mother.

Unfortunately, there are some legitimate complaints about this movie. The biggest one is that Mark Wahlberg is completely forgettable as Micky Ward. There was no difference in his portrayal of Micky Ward than his role in the Departed. It was essentially the same character with the same accent and mannerisms. There were also a ton of liberties taken when it came to the career of Micky Ward. The first bout featured in the movie is Micky's fight against Mike Mungin. The movie leads the viewer to believe that Micky's career was already on the rocks when it couldn't be further from the truth. At that point Ward was 18-1. The fight montage for Micky's return to form was completely made up. None of the fighters mentioned appear on Ward's fight record. The movie closes with his bout against Shea Neary. The dramatization of the fight has Neary work Wahlberg over for the entire fight only for the "Rocky Balboa comeback moment" where Wahlberg rallies back to win the fight at the last possible moment. I'll let Boxing Rec break down what actually happened...

In a competitive European televised WBU Lightweight title bout held in London, Irish Mickey Ward dominated 22-0 Shea Neary by moving forward with combinations the entire bout as the aggressor, with Neary backing up on the defensive and trying to counterpunch mostly ineffectively, holding alot and taking a beating. Nonetheless, Ward got decked from a clean right hook in the eighth round. However, Ward did a somersault on the canvas, got right up, and rallied to stop Neary in the same round. The bout had noteworthy contrasting colors. Ward wore green gloves, black trunks and black shoes. Neary wore yellow gloves, white trunks with black trim and white shoes.

The other major issue is that the movie doesn't touch upon the Gatti trilogy. Micky Ward's career was built upon his classic fights with Arturo Gatti. To finish the movie with some type face on explaining he had classic fights robs the viewer of an essential part of Ward's career.

Overall, I'd say its an enjoyable movie if you can put the liberties taken with Ward's career aside. It's definitely worth viewing for Bale's portrayal of Eklund, who puts on a classic performance. I suggest seeing this movie with an open mind.

Originally posted at my new home: Headkicklegend.com

Garcia vs Phan 2 at UFC Fight Night 24

Photo courtesy of MMA Junkie:

The guys at MMA Weekly bring word that featherweights Leonard Garcia and Nam Phan are set to rematch at UFC Fight Night 24 in Seattle. The two previously fought at The Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale back in December where everyone but three people at the Pearl of the Palms believed Phan had done enough to earn a decision victory as evidenced by Garcia's coach Greg Jackson's reaction to the decision:










Gif courtesy of the Nerd Society

I believe Phan will do everything he can to keep the rematch out of the hands of the judges this time around. No word yet as to whether the fight will be televised or not.

Jits: Caveman-Jitsu Prevails

This post courtesy of Dev over at devbjj.blogspot.com


Photo via windsorstar.com

Clay Guida has always been known for his wrestling, but not many people comment much on his awesome jiu jitsu. I think they might start after Saturday night.

Yeah, he won 60,000 clams for “Submission of the Night” with his attempt to rip Takanori Gomi’s head and spine right out of his body, but the sexiness of the technique he used is more subtle than that.

Guida started out by single-leg manhandling Gomi to the ground (was anyone else as impressed as I was by Gomi’s takedown defense up to that point? That is a slippery little bastard).

Gomi used a combination of wrestling setups (posting his arm inside Guida’s leg) and solid jits (controlling the wrist) to prevent getting man-crushed from underneath Guida’s top half guard), and he utilized a really cool trick of switching his control leg on Guida’s trapped leg to keep him there while Guida tried to pass. Gomi almost popped out once, but Caveman-Jitsu took over and Guida took him back to the ground.

I like how Gomi controlled Guida’s wrist from underneath. Most of the other jits-centric fights on the card involved guys gunning for the kimura from bottom half guard (or bottom side control, in the case of Jeremy Stephens). Gomi, however, wasn’t trying to get the kimura – he was doing an awesome job of preventing Guida’s shoulder from rearranging his face like happened to Brandon Vera (although in fairness that was a Brazilian fist, not a shoulder). Anyway. By holding Guida’s wrist way down by his legs, Gomi prevents the crossface, and gives himself plenty of space from which to work.

Unfortunately for Gomi, MONGO SMASH. Guida used brute strength to move up on Gomi’s body, then popped him a couple times in the face with backward elbows (like a shoulder strike, except weirder) to get him to let go of that hand. Then, because he was up high, instead of trying to flatten Gomi with the crossface, he looped his arm over Gomi’s head. From half guard, this could be either a setup or just an attempt to do something with his arm. Either way, it turned into a setup.

Now here’s the cool part of what Guida did. He used a concept that takes awhile to gather from jiu jitsu – top mount is almost identical to being in bottom full guard. There are some significant differences, sure, the main one being that you have much more freedom of motion, but for the most part, the leg and arm positions are the same.

A guillotine choke is strongest from inside your full guard, because as you pull up on the neck, you can push your opponent’s body down with your legs. You also prevent him from moving to the side, which takes your forearm off his neck. You can do it from half guard, but it’s not nearly as effective.

Guida, once he decided to commit to the guillotine, knew he had to get to full mount…OR full guard. Either one works. So as he slid his leg out of Gomi’s half guard, Gomi rolled him easily. Except Guida had the same position, just upside down, and the roll allowed him to get that leg free. And he squeezed Gomi’s little head like a zit. Awesome. And apparently worth $60,000.

Wicked Awesome MMA Tattoo: Thiago Silva

photo via tattooblues.blogspot.com. The place Thiago is getting the back piece done is Tattoo Blues in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Thiago Silva made his first Octagon appearance in 364 days last night and a few things were apparent:

1. He has not lost his aggressive style that has made him so popular.

2. He has either been hanging out with hippies or watching John Stamos in The Beach Boys video for "Kokomo" on a continuous loop because Brandon Vera's shoulder blades inspired him to play the bongos as a prelude to some vicious open handed strikes that I am sure made Sakuraba a happy camper.

3. He has been spending a lot of time in the chair getting a beast of a tattoo on his massive back.

Although it is only partially complete, it is already clear that this tattoo is very well done and will be a great finished product. It's a shame that the warrior has to share a canvas with that small Geico gecko on his right shoulder blade but shit happens and shit.

Congratulations to you, Thiago Silva. You made a triumphant return to the UFC last night, you made Brandon Vera capable of smelling his own eyeball, and you are the owner of a Wicked Awesome MMA Tattoo.

UFC 125 Aftermath

photo via SBNation.com

-Thiago Silva is not only a fighter, he is a musician. I have not seen bongo skills like that since John Stamos in a Beach Boys video. I really wish he would have finished Vera. I guess I will have to settle for him being completely dominant in his first fight in nearly a year.

-Brandon Vera is done. He is also the only human being alive that can do a line of coke off his own ass.

- Edgar v. Maynard was a draw. Frankie won 2, 4 and 5. Gray won 1 (10-8) and 3. It really sucks for Gray but much like Jason Brilz and Evan Dunham last year, his career will benefit greatly through defeat.

-Clay Guida was bouncing around like a goddamn idiot and it seemed to really throw Gomi off. I didn't think Clay was gonna be able to do it, especially when his strikes were all barely landing. It seemed like he couldn't find his range but he ended up getting his 3rd submission victory in a row.

-Brian Stann killed a zombie. It was a damn impressive performance and I have decided I cannot hate him any longer.

-Buff Bagwell, I mean Phil Baroni, is now a .500 fighter. See ya.

- Will somebody figure out that you DO NOT go to the ground with Daniel Roberts?

Overall, I thought it was a very good card. It also gave me back my man points I lost the night before when I went and watched Black Swan. Thanks to the UFC, I got my balls back!!!!

UFC 125 Shitty MMA Gear Challenge Results

UFC 125 is in the history books. None of us picked very well. Winning this challenge was like winning the NFC West. Let's get to it.

Gold Medal
MDH and Marta Gallo (5-5-1)

Shitty MMA Gear Medal
Matt aka Thisredengine (3-7-1)

Here are the delightful garments Matt will be wearing:





It should definitely be noted that L.A. Fields and Damon tied at 5-5-1 in the "Are Only White People Stupid Enough To Participate In The Challenges? Consolation Bracket".

Pictures forthcoming after UFC 126.

UD Guest Spot: The Embarrassment of Josh Thomson

This is a guest column by my man Dev from devbjj.blogspot.com. Expect more of these in the future because the man has the BJJ knowledge that I do not and quite honestly, if he is as big of a smartass as I am, I am really gonna be pissed because I can't do anything about it. I'm fairly certain he can break me into little tiny pieces.

I don’t know if the title of this article is fair, quite honestly. I like Josh Thomson. I like watching him fight, and I think he’s pretty frigging awesome, particularly on the BJJ side (9 of his 18 wins are by submission). He was just awarded his black belt in June by Dave Camarillo, so there’s no denying he’s got some slick moves on the mat.

On the other hand, Tatsuya Kawajiri is no slouch on the ground. While he got his foot damn near ripped off by Shinya Aoki in July at DREAM 15, he’s effectively outwrestled (more than out-jiu jitsu’d) some pretty significant dudes. “Crusher” is a pretty appropriate nickname, because he’s not a submission machine, but he’s got excellent wrestling-to-beat-jits. I’d call it “defensive” jiu jitsu, except he was “offensively” bitch-slapping Thomson through positional improvement on the ground for pretty much the whole fight.

So I want to mention two jits-related aspects of this fight.

The first one is mount control. Kawajiri started out by knee-sliding like Rickey Henderson right out of Thomson’s half guard (3:15-3:25 on the Youtube vid). And he went right to mount, which is commendable against a guy like Thomson. Once Kawajiri got to mount, he used a pretty sexy trick to keep Thomson’s legs contained – he leg triangled them.

This isn’t a new concept, by any means. It’s the same leg position you use in a triangle choke, and you see it used a lot around the mid-section (a body triangle) when guys have back control (because it sucks). But to control the legs? You just don’t see it a whole lot.

Thomson did the only thing he could do – he kicked his legs like a 4-year-old throwing a tantrum, and attacked Kawajiri’s fist with his face. In fairness, he tried using his underhook to get out, but Kawajiri’s wrestling is WAY better than that. Thomson finally got his knees out by squirming into butterfly guard.

The second thing Kawajiri did is make Thomson look virtually incompetent by passing his guard over and over and over. I don’t know Thomson’s jiu jitsu game, but it looked to me like he was trying to get out to the side a lot, and from half guard (especially with an underhook, which he worked for a lot) this can be a good thing.

The problem with it is that anytime you’re on your side, your bottom leg is vulnerable to pass because you’ve limited its range of motion. Kawajiri exploited this multiple times, including the example above (the first pass at 3:15), but also in the second round with a variation on a technique called the Tozi Pass (also called a São Paulo pass or a Godoi pass), made famous by Roberto Tozi.

Here’s a great link to some Youtube vids that show the technique:

http://dutchassassinbjj.blogspot.com/2008/12/sao-paulotozigodoi-pass-redux.html

Basically, Kawajiri gets his hips up and shoves his chest into Thomson’s face. Then he drops quickly to the side, which turns Thomson’s hips and blocks that bottom leg against the mat. The key here, though, is pressure on the upper body – for it to work, he needs to twist Thomson’s body with his shoulders one way and his hips the other way.

If he comes that far off to the side with no upper body control, Thomson can easily come out the side, take his back, and strangle his ass.

Kawajiri keeps his underhook in this case, which is good, because that’s precisely what Thomson is thinking – and nearly accomplishes, almost taking Kawajiri’s back. But Kawajiri’s gorilla strength and pressure with his arm and shoulder (and kind of an upside-down whizzer) barely keep Thompson underneath.

(Youtube vid 10:06 – 10:29 shows the whole sequence.)

Intriguingly, Thomson didn’t transition at all to attack the arm that Kawajiri left out – during a Tozi pass if you don’t tuck that arm, you can succumb to a lot of attacks from the exact position that Thomson was trying to work from earlier – you could call it “side guard” (Cobrinha has a whole series of sequences from this position if you’re interested).

I say all this as a shoulda-coulda-woulda, but I’ve never been punched in the face while trying to pull it off. I have to imagine that changes your perspective slightly.

Don’t let this half-assed analysis indicate that I think Josh Thomson isn’t awesome – he is, and he showed some really strong moves on the ground and a lot of situational awareness. But the simple fact is that yesterday, Tatsuya Kawajiri out jiu jitsu’d the jiu jitsu guy. Repeatedly.

Predictions: UFC 125 Resolution - Shitty MMA Gear Challenge

image via fightinginsider.com

UFC 125 is on New Year's Day and the Lightweight Title is on the line. We will have a RESOLUTION!

Since this is UD and we have consequences for poor fight predictions, here are the stakes for the first card of the year:
The last place finisher will have to purchase the Shitty MMA Shirt of the winner's choosing. The loser will then have to wear said shirt to the sports bar for UFC 126 and take photos to be posted on this very blog. On with the show:

Marta

Pick:Maynard
Opinion:Edgar is always going to be undersized, we know that. Edgar is great at sticking and moving, using his speed to make up for his lack of size. However that doesn't matter when you have a bigger superior wrestler laying on top of you.
How It Will End:UD

Pick:Leben
Opinion:Other than Anderson Silva no one stops the Zombie Leben, well maybe the Hawaii police too...Leben will win the striking enchanges and take the decision.
How It Will End:UD

Pick:Silva
Opinion:If this was my first fight back after having my face rearranged by Jon Jones, I might be a little hesitant with striking. Silva by über violence.
How It Will End:TKO

Pick:Guida
Opinion:Guida is an Energizer Bunny, he will avoid Gomi's big shot by bouncing around like one. The wildman Guida and his iron chin are going to grind this one out.
How It Will End:UD

Pick:Diaz
Opinion:I can't help it, I like the Diaz brothers. This is a considerable step up for Stun Gun and his judo will help him neutralize Nate's ground game but it isn't going to be enough. Dirty boxing and reppin the 209 to victory.
How It Will End:Decision

Pick:Davis
Opinion:This may just be wishful thinking, but I think Davis has be reenergized at 155 and has a few good fights left in him.
How It Will End:TKO

So thankful I have crappy ION TV....

Pick:Grispi
Opinion:He is on a 10-fight winning streak and was originally scheduled to face Aldo. He's on fire, and this will be Dustin Poirier first try at featherweight, I just can't see Grispi losing this fight.
How It Will End:TKO

Pick:Tavares
Opinion:There isn't a lot to base this on, other than Tavares wrestling and I'm assuming he has the better cardio.
How It Will End:UD

Pick:Nunes
Opinion:Although he has 6 wins by submission I am hoping he utilizes some kickboxing to win this one. Brown is more experienced but this is his first time at featherweight and Nunes is a gamer.
How It Will End:TKO

Pick:Roberts
Opinion:Ninja is going to get this fight to the ground and I expect a slick sub.
How It Will End:Sub

Pick:McKee
Opinion:Victim number one for Mandingo, Jacob Volkmann
How It Will End:UD

MDH

Pick: Gray "The Bully" Maynard
Opinion: Gray has already taken Frankie out and I think he is going to do it again. Get ready for a 25 minute viewing party of Gray's tramp stamp because Edgar is spending this night on his back.
How It Will End: Unanimous Decision

Pick: Chris "The Crippler" Leben
Opinion: Brian Stann his Slipknot and pointless tribal tattoos (which tribe you ask? Honky Tribe) are going to be sent packing back to the lower tier of 185. Hopefully before Chris puts him to sleep he tells him the name of his tattoo artist. It would be a nice thing to do.
How It Will End: KO Round 2

Pick: Thiago Silva
Opinion: Vera is fresh off getting his eye socket caved in by Jon Jones and if he wasn't gun shy before, he damn sure will be now. Silva sends Brandon Vera to Strikeforce here.
How It Will End: TKO Round 2

Pick: Takanori Gomi
Opinion: It pains me to pick against Clay but I think Gomi is going to give "The Carpenter" the Tyson Griffin treatment.
How It Will End: KO Round 1

Pick: Dong Hyun Kim
Opinion: This one is tough. Dong Hyun Kim is coming back from Tommy John surgery and Nate Diaz is returning to the cage after lumping Marcus Davis up. Kim is undefeated still and although Nate is on a roll since moving to 170, I think Dong takes this via Judo.
How It Will End: Split Decision

Pick: Jeremy Stephens
Opinion: Marcus is making his 155lb debut here and I don't know how the cut is going to treat him but I know Jeremy has the quickness on him and that will be enough.
How It Will End: Unanimous Decision

Pick: Josh Grispi
Opinion: After Jose Aldo pulled out of the title fight Grispi decided to fight another guy instead of wait for Jose to heal. Hopefully that doesn't bite him in the ass and simultaneously give Rashad Evans' approach credibility.
How It Will End: Unanimous Decision

Pick: Brad Tavares
Opinion: Baroni is one loss away from being .500 for his career. Tavares evens up his career record and sends him to the unemployment line.
How It Will End: NYBA Special - Lactic Carwinosis.

Pick: Mike Brown
Opinion: Brutalization.
How It Will End: TKO Round 1

Pick: Daniel Roberts
Opinion: After seeing Roberts choke the shit out of Mike Guymon in person at UFC 121 I feel like we can add this one to the highlight reel. SOTN here.
How It Will End: Submission Round 2

Pick: Antonio McKee
Opinion: So McKee finally gets to the big show. It is certainly well deserved and I think he makes a dominant debut.
How It Will End: Unanimous Decision

Matt

Pick: Frankie Edgar
Opinion: This is a shot in the dark to be honest. Frankie is coming into this fight as the smaller fighter. I'm making this pick for one reason, Maynard has never been in the championship rounds and I think that makes the difference.
How: Split Decision

Pick: Chris Leben
Opinion: Brian Stann needs to stop trying to compare himself to Leben. Yes, you both have shitty head movement, but Leben is a zombie. He will walk through your powderpuff punches and plant his own on your chin.
How: KO in round 2

Pick: Thiago Silva
Opinion: I'm sick and tired of hearing that we'll see the "old Brandon Vera" and expect the over rated Thiago Silva to be more than Vera can handle.
How: KO in round 2

Pick: Kim
Opinion: This is a shot in the dark, really I flipped a coin.
How: Decision

Pick: Gomi
Opinion: Guida is taylor made for Gomi. Unless Gomi can't keep pace which he can, this is a highlight reel fight for the Fireball Kid.
How: KO round 2

Pick: Stephens
Opinion: I really hate Marcus Davis. Honestly, everything about his face just makes me hate him.
How: Stoppage via cuts

Pick: Grispi
Opinion: This is a great fight to introduce the young featherweight to the world. Grispi is being molded to take on Aldo and this is a highlight fight.
How: However he wants.

Pick: The Best EVA!
Opinion: He's the man!
How: YEAAAAAH!!!

Pick: Brown
Opinion: I'm not sure where his mind is at, he had some personal problems in the fight against Gamburyan but hopefully he's turned a corner.
How: KO

Pick: Soto
Opinion: I'm a Pelligrino MMA guy, can't not pick him.
How: New Jersey!!!

Pick: McKee
Opinion: He's gonna wrestlerape Volkmann for 3 rounds
How: TKO RD3

See you all after the event!