sportchampps wrote:
The UFC's Heavyweight class was clearly the worst the past 5 years. The last good fighter he beat was NOG in 2005
Brett Rodgers ( up and comer maybe in the top 10 in the UFC HW division right now)
Andrei Arlovski (washed up who was never very good to begin with)
Tim Sylvia (see Andrei Arlovski)
Hong Man Choi ( A fight made for show b/c he was so big)
Matt Lindland (wasn't even as good as Sylvia or Arlovski)
Mark Hunt ( have you even seen this guys resume its worse then some guys who fight locally in columbus)
Mark Coleman (Pretty good but toward the end of his career and a old style UFC fighter meaning someone who relied on one thing not a well rounded fighter of today)
Zuluzinho (has lost to anyone he has fought who is a real name)
Cro Cop (A good win at the time)
Tsuyoshi "TK" Kohsaka ( not very good)
Nog ( a good win)
In his last 10 fights he has fought only 2-3 people who were good at the time he fought them lets see him go against a top tier fighter every 1-2 fights someone like Lesnar, Carwin, or Cain Velasquez. Let me see him fight someone who is new school MMA someone who is well rounded hell id even like to see him fight Frank Mir stop with the up and comers and the 40 year old men fight someone in their prime.
In the last 5 years MMA is a totally different sport then it used to be. 5 years ago guys could either wrestle, box, or were good with submissions. Today there are world class athletes who do this year round as their only job and can wrestle box and submit each other. Fedor is the best HW of that time but is he still able to beat the new breed of MMA stars, ic ant awnser that becuase he wont fight them.
Arlovski was never good? Come on, the guy has great boxing and a good submission game, he just has a glass chin.
I'll give you Sylvia, the guy never impressed me, he ONLY won because he was big and had KO power.
I'll give you that MMA has got better in the last 5 years, but to say 5 years ago guys could only do one thing is a farce at best.
5 years ago the UFC champ at each division...
HW-Arlovski-great standup and darn good submissions/ground game. Very well rounded fighter at that time.
LHW-Liddell-great standup and great wrestling, he just used wrestling as a way to keep the fight standing. No one not named Couture could take the man down.
MW-Franklin-good standup, decent ground game but again, used his ground game to keep the fight standing (detrimental to his health against Silva)
WW-Hughes-great ground game, horrid standup, here you go, here's your "one dimensional fighter" from 5 years ago.
LW-Sherk/BJ Penn-Sherk was a great wrestler and while having zero power, has good technical boxing. BJ is about as well rounded as they come. Great boxing and one of the best ground fighters in all of MMA.
Yes I know LW didn't exist in 2005, but it did in 2006, so close enough.
Pride champs of 5 years ago.
HW-Fedor-good standup, good ground game, no way he's one dimensional
MW-Wanderlei-exellent Muay Thai, good BJJ, no way he's one dimensional
WW-Henderson-good standup, great wrestling, again not one dimensional
LW-Gomi-good standup and good ground
So, of the 10 top fighters of 5 years ago, only 1 of them was one dimensional, so while I agree with you that the sport has got much better, to say that 5 years ago everyone was one dimensional is a complete farce.
