(Mark "Frankenstein" Coleman staggers into an uppercut. Photo courtesy of NBC Sports.)
Thanks to our psychic abilities, we know exactly what two questions went running through your precious little head immediately after the curtain dropped on UFC 93: 1) How did I fare in the Cage Potato UFC 93 Pick-em Contest?, and 2) What will the Potato Index’s arbitrary numerical ratings system say about this event?
The answer to the first question is coming soon. There are, after all, a lot of entries to sort through, and for that we thank you. The answer to the second question begins…now! Potato Index!!!!
Dan Henderson +23
He won the fight. That’s the good news. He didn’t look spectacular doing it, and we aren’t dying to see more of that particular style in the future, but a win is a win. Now we have Hendo-Bisping to look forward to. And that’s, you know, okay…
Honestly, this decision easily could have gone the other way (just ask the judge who scored it 30-27 Franklin), but it didn’t. This loss isn’t a sign that Ace is washed up and he didn’t want to coach TUF anyway, so it’s not the end of the world. It is, however, an indicator that he’s just treading water in the UFC for now, going neither up nor down. There are worse fates. At least this one pays.
Mark Coleman -54
Poor, poor Coleman. Literally. He says he didn’t have the money for a proper training camp, hence the non-existent cardio and an enthusiastic but misinformed Phil Baroni in his corner. But what did we expect? The man was great once, but nothing lasts forever, even cold November rain and explosive wrestling ability. Please, either fight someone else in your age bracket, or call it quits. We say this because we care.
“Shogun” Rua -133
It is hard to win a fight via third-round TKO and come out worse than the guy you beat in the Potato Index. Matter of fact, this might be a first. But Rua looked so bad as he struggled to avoid takedowns and throw arm punches at the stationary, unguarded head of Coleman that he earned this honor. ‘Sup Shogun? You did train for this, right?
Marcus Davis +31
Give him credit, he did what he promised. He stood and he banged. He also backpedaled quite a bit. If only he hadn’t set the bar so high with all his pre-fight hype, we might be talking about this as the unexpected gem of UFC 93. Still, makes you wonder how that decision would have gone if the fight had been in Vegas instead of Dublin.
Chris Lytle +28
Of the two guys who promised us a war, one of them kept coming forward all night and looking for the fight. For that, Lytle deserves some love. You can’t point to any one thing he did wrong in this fight. It just didn’t go his way. Tough luck, Chris. Maybe a takedown near the end of each round would have helped sway the judges? But what do I know. I’m a pussy.
Denis Kang -29
Things were going well, and then he got a little too careless on his takedowns. After nearly getting stuck in the same guillotine in earlier takedown attempts you’d think he’d have known it was coming, but you’d be wrong. Let’s be generous and chalk it up to Octagon jitters. But that excuse only works once.
Alan Belcher +73
He looked like an easy target for Kang in the first round, but his mean guillotine off the double-leg saved him in the second. If they fought ten more times, it’s hard not to think Kang would win nine of them. Now what is the UFC supposed to do with “The Talent”?
Jeremy Horn -37
That look on Horn’s face as he did just enough to avoid being finished by Palhares? That was the look of a man who had already calculated the tax on his show money. Just another day at the office for Horn. Maybe it ought to be the last time for him at that particular, Octagonal office, though.
Congratulations on your win. Now prove that you can finish somebody and maybe we can have a serious talk about your future. Until then, you might be better off on Fight Night’s or the dark portion of pay-per-views.
John Hathaway +30
A TKO win in your UFC debut is always cause for celebration, even if it comes against a guy who knew he was too inexperienced to be in the Octagon and looked clueless on the ground. Now you get to wait around to get your ass kicked by a real UFC fighter. Maybe try and get a little sun in the meantime. Just saying.
Tom Egan -12
I have no idea what you said in your post-fight interview, Tom, but you looked sincere as you said it. I admire that. The best way to think of this is as quality experience that you can build on moving forward. Your fifth pro fight was in the UFC. At the very least, you can tell the story down at the pub for the rest of your life.
Dublin Fans +48
I don’t care what anyone says, I love hearing all your soccer songs and other crap during the fights. It’s a nice change of pace. Plus it reminds me that you’re all drunk and trying to figure out whether you have time to run for another beer between rounds. My kind of people.
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Comments
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:06
What a shock! I don't see the -500 arbitrary score for the CP Prize Committee. And since today is Martin Luther King day, all posters should hold off on their witty comments this week... the Prize Committee is notorious for not handing out awards during a 4 day work week
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:10
You sir, are an idiot. That is not at all what it said, please learn to read.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:12
hendo isn't exactly a spring chicken, but hes still dangerous I think give him another crack at the spider in 2009
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:14
Whoever wrote this piece has a clear bias saying the decision could have easily gone Franklin's way then justifying it by using the judge who scored the fight 30-27 Franklin as an example. Instead of pointing out how ridiculous the judge was for giving Rich all three rounds. You use him as a reason to say hey Rich was robbed just ask this dumb fuck who thought he dominated the fight and won every round. Absolutely ridiculous.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:20
Watching the Coleman fight was like watching your dad fight your sisters looser boyfriend, after just finding out that he knocked her up. Your dad looks tough and used to be a bad ass, he hung in there with him, but he was just no match for the young "whipper snapper". Spot on CP for the advise to Coleman. Good luck champ...
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:25
Keith Jardine, you're dead!
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:26
Rich lost, clearly. He didn't throw a single punch or combination that had any bad intentions. His leg kicks looked like sparring kicks (you know, where you're trying NOT to hurt your opponent). Sure, he was worried about getting put on his back, but, c'mon Rich... throw a punch and mean it. Enough of this awkward pitter-patter stuff. He had a couple body kicks that connected cleanly, a couple of connected punches in the 3rd... and that wall he had to show for three rounds of fighting. Whereas Dan racked up several minutes of very effective ground and pound. Rich's style needs an overhaul if you ask me (you didn't, I know). He needs to extend on his punches and utilize his reach. Furthermore, if he's content to make every match a striking match it would do him well to learn how to generate a little bit of power.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:30
On this photo, the Hammer looks like a victim of Kenshiro (hokuto no ken ...), with some bubbles ready to burst all over the head. As he also look like hellboy, maybe this fight was the perfect casting for a movie. I was thinking of something like "Helldaddy vs Fist of the gassing star"
Mon, 01/19/09 - 09:46
Kimbo -1000000 just because.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:00
Dublin Fans +48 I don’t care what anyone says, I love hearing all your soccer songs and other crap during the fights. It’s a nice change of pace. Plus it reminds me that you’re all drunk and trying to figure out whether you have time to run for another beer between rounds. My kind of people. Truer words hath never been spoken...! @ Dabix Awesome "Fist of the Northstar" reference! Hearing that Coleman didn't have enough cash for a proper training camp just makes his whole appearance even sadder. You'd think someone like Coleman could properly (and deservedly) cash in on his name and fame. So what was Shogun's excuse? If Rua went through a proper training camp and put on THAT performance, he's got bigger problems than Coleman does!
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:07
I understand how Hendo won that decision, but I don't think any MMA fan should agree with that decision. Hendo won by using his wrestling to ineffectively lay on top of Franklin for 2 1/2 minutes of each round. The only damage he really did came from an illegal headbutt and an illegal eyepoke. The only other effective offense he had was a few punches he landed while Franklin was trying to stand up in the first round. Outside of that, Franklin was the one who was scoring on the feet all night. During the 2 1/2 minutes of each round that Henderson was not ineffectively laying on top of him, Franklin was beating Hendo to the punch over and over again. So do you score a round for the guy who spends half the round dominating the stand-up and doing actual damage, or do you score it for the guy who scores a takedown and accomplishes nothing with it other than spending the other half of the round in top position? I'm not saying MMA should be scored on stand-up alone, but takedowns and top-position alone are not sufficient for winning decisions, and judging needs to reflect that. Franklin did far more (legal) damage, and scored far more with his strikes, when you account for both the ground and the feet for both men. I really like both guys, but Hendo's style was awful, and grinding out a win like that should impress nobody. Franklin should have won that fight, and the judging should reflect that. And one last point... if people think Franklin was so ineffective, does anyone think if this had been a five round fight that Franklin wouldn't have won the last two embarrassingly easily? Franklin punished Hendo so much that Dan looked like Mark Coleman until he was saved by the eye poke. Two more rounds and Dan would probably hav suffered his first KO loss.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:09
1. What about the points to the UFC uppers for giving Coleman some extra cash for stepping up and taking a whooping.?.?.? 2. Hendo/Franklin and 205 was a name fight. Trying to use this fight as any indication of their futures (other than coaching TUF) is just retarded; they both fight at 185, neither one even weighed 205. Yeah, yeah, Hendo was pride champ at that weight....blah blah blah. 3. It appears that the PRIDE days are over and Rua is now a one-round warrior, sad but true. By rnd 3 I just kept picturing a zombie flailing it arms around. Now I think: Please, let Chuck end your career, please.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:14
@Imbecile...Agreed. Completely.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:17
Definitely props to Lytle. I always liked Lytle better than Davis, since I felt Davis was trying to avoid the ground at all costs, but still Lytle gave us the war he promised. Davis backpedaled and jabbed, while Lytle really put the hurt on in a few occasions. In each round Lytle had Davis stunned and covering up, but the same can't be said in reverse. I think that while Davis scored more actual punches, Lytle scored more significant punches and was closer to finishing the fight. Davis is moderately exciting, but I won't go out of my way to watch him. Lytle, however, I will watch anytime he is on a PPV. Lytle made that fight, and Davis, for all his talk, juat went for the win over excitement. Given that, Lytle should have taken him down and submitted him. I still would have thought of Davis as the pussy in that scenario.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:20
Imbecile Franklin and Henderson trained for a three round fight not a five round fight you have no idea what would have happened in two more rounds.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:21
If Coleman is such a can and such a terrible fighter then what does that say about Shogun?
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:30
@Tyler You're right. It was a three round fight, and by the third round Henderson looked exhausted and pretty awful. So for all his training, he wasn't even able to push it at three rounds. That gives me a pretty good indication of where it would have been at five rounds. You can think differently........but you're wrong.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:32
Hendo was boring and didn't really do any damage. Franklin should've won. Lytle deserved the win over Davis for moving forward the whole time. And was that a Boondock Saints clip in Davis' walkup music? Another reason he should've lost.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 10:47
Moving forward is not a sufficient reason to win a decision. Lytle threw wild windmill punches and few of them landed. Davis backpedaled, but landed much more frequently. It's not just about aggression, its about effective aggression. Davis was the better fighter.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 11:01
@Filmdrunk, I agree Lytle should have won. I also think it's funny that the UFC allowed a worked fight but Dana gave himself a hernia yelling about EliteXC and "standgate". I think Hendo winning was fine; I had it on my imaginary scorecard 29-28, but would have had no problem with Franklin winning. Also, my imaginary scorecard was made of graham cracker and I ate it after the fight. But why the hate on Boondock Saints? Do you not appreciate slow-motion shots for 90% of the movie while Willem DeFoe overracts? It also had Jeanna Fine who is the most underrated BJ-giver of all time. Tied with Debbie Diamond. And all of your moms. boosh.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 11:03
My God, ya know, every fighter looks bad after a fight where he takes punches to the face, but dammit Coleman always ends up looking like the stress ball on my desk after a hard day's work!
Mon, 01/19/09 - 11:10
Excuse me; I meant Debi Diamond.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 11:29
remember when Coleman wanted to show Lesnar what ground-and-pound was all about?? thank goodness for that "training injury"...it almost makes me ill to think what Brock would have done to the old man had they actually fought. maybe it's time for a GreyBeard division? bring back Mo Smith, Severn, Frye, etc...
Mon, 01/19/09 - 11:55
I think we can put the "Wanderer" apron back on Coleman and get him back to his rest home.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 12:01
I too am sick of position alone dictating decisions. Why should it even matter to the judges? Position means nothing unless a fighter's doing something with it. I don't care if you're on top or on the bottom when it hits the mat, every strike that lands should score the same points. If you are on top and landing, that should count for points. If you're striking from the bottom, it should count just the same. The fighter on top already has the advantage since his strikes are more likely to do damage - shouldn't that be enough? A takedown that is finished should just be considered another strike that lands - that's all. Reversing a takedown should count the same. Also, a takedown should be looked at like catching a football - you gotta hold onto it for a little to make it count. Submission "attempts" and "escapes" should mean nothing - they either stop the fight or they don't. That's the whole danger of them. Trying a sub and missing is like throwing an overhand and catching air - it may look impressive but it didn't do squat. Aggression and cage control factoring into the score cards is just absurd. It's two guys locked in a cage who do nothing but train to fight... Let them fight their style and see who lands more.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 12:01
"Poor, poor Coleman. Literally. He says he didn’t have the money for a proper training camp, hence the non-existent cardio and an enthusiastic but misinformed Phil Baroni in his corner." correct me if im wrong but I thought cardio takes hard work, not money.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 12:11
I concur with the last point.. the Dublin crowd really added something to the PPV. They deserve a stronger card next time the UFC visits IMO.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 12:41
PAUL HARRIS BROKE HIS HNAD FUCKING IDIOT!That's why he didnt' finish Horn.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 01:14
Denis Kang has to be the most disappointing fighter in MMA. Other than Crocop that is.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 01:15
This was by far, the absolute worst PPV I've ever watched the UFC put on. None of the fighter looked like they were conditioned for their fights except for Rich Franklin who managed to loose a very weird split decision. My biggest gripe is that the pathetic excuse of a fight was the Coleman-Rua fight! Coleman looked terribe. So bad in fact that I believe with all my heart that Kalib Starnes could have ended him in the first round. Shogun looked like sh*t, and was gassed by the 2nd round. The bad thing is that Shogun could have ended the fight like 5 times in the 2nd round and at least twice in the first. After this display I will say, that I will no longer be a fan of either fighter.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 01:19
I call bs on this post! Coleman was close, Rua barely scraped out that win -- not bad after an 18 month layoff, but still. And Henderson/Franklin could've gon either way.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 01:19
I agree with Imbecile's take on the scoring. I'm still not sure how educated these judges are when it comes to scoring on the ground. I'm not sure that securing a takedown and laying on an opponent should be enough to win a round. If I'm Franklin, I'm upset but I guess that's why you never leave it to the judges...
Mon, 01/19/09 - 01:22
No BS to it bro....BOTH fighters looked like sh*t. Had Coleman not went down, I'm sure he could ahve won a decision victory. I'm commenting about how bad and completely out of shap both of them looked.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 02:32
Kang's stock should have gone down a lot lower. I have to sell a kidney cause of that fight.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 02:57
LOL I concur I concurrrrrrrrrrrr oh man im so fuckin stoned right now you guys dont even know you dont even KNOW. WIZZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Mon, 01/19/09 - 02:59
i agree i concur i agree i concur say whaaaaaaaaaaat. can i get a WHAT WHAT
Mon, 01/19/09 - 03:13
LMFAO @ jay
Mon, 01/19/09 - 03:15
WOW! You absolutely robbed Jeremy Horn of his credit in this edition of Potato Index. I loved that fight. Palhares is a stud and should be dominating the devision. Even though he isn't doing well right now he certainly is a scary opponent in modern MMA. With that said, Horn stole the show, Horn and Coleman have been in this game two long and they both showed the kids out there what fighters are, young and old. Horn basically showed us that even the old dogs who should not really be competing anymore can shut down these young hyped up powerhouses. Horn made Palhares look bad as Coleman made Shogun look bad, as Hendo made Rich look bad. These guys grinded out 15's with top ranked fighters. Common Potato Index, Respect is due!
Mon, 01/19/09 - 03:57
Palahres broke his hand, that's why he couldn't finish. Don't be a dick.
Mon, 01/19/09 - 06:53
I thought I'd explain to you what sarcasm was, but then... ya know what... nevermind.
Tue, 01/20/09 - 12:59
Glad you gave my home town crowd a +..you should realise as well that tickets for this where going for up too $500 dollar..hopefully UFC will be back..judging by Whites reaction afterwards I reckon they will.
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