Thursday, February 24, 2011

UFC 127 Penn vs. Fitch will give us No. 1 contender for Georges St. Pierre championship belt

For UFC 127 Penn vs. Fitch fans will get to see what the future of the UFC welterweight division might look like. With Georges St. Pierre set to defend his welterweight title against Jake Shields in Toronto at UFC 129 and possibly jumping to the middleweight division and a super-mega-fight against Anderson Silva, the B.J. Penn/Jon Fitch match-up sets up the winner as the number one contender for the presumably vacant middleweight title. The bigger question is will anyone care? Georges St. Pierre domination of the welterweight division has made all other 170 competitors obsolete. Georges St. Pierre makes everyone look bad and normal regardless of their skill level. What's worse is if Jon Fitch defeats B.J. Penn, he is even more dominant (i.e. boring) fighter than St. Pierre. The last time one of Jon Fitch's fights did not go to decision was almost four years ago on June 2007. As for B.J. Penn he's already lost two straight to Georges St. Pierre and looked wholly outclassed in their last outing. Fans have seen nothing to indicate a different outcome a third time.

As for the fight itself, it is a bit interesting. B.J. Penn is undoubtedly one of the top five most talented athletes in MMA. He can do things in the Octagon that normal fighters don't even dream of. He has outstanding speed and punching power, excellent balance, flexibility and agility. He is a world class BJJ practitioner. He is probably the most difficult fighter to achieve a takedown against. He has challenged himself throughout his career. He fought Lyoto Machida, a light-heavyweight UFC champion, and lost a decision. There is nothing B.J. Penn can not do in a MMA battle. Except maybe go a full three rounds, much less five. That is where a fighter like Jon Fitch comes in. The only thing that Jon Fitch does really well is keep going and break his opponent's spirit and will.

Jon Fitch is not the best wrestler, striker, or grappler. He has average stand up and fairly slow hands. He throws decent kicks. What he can do is push, push and push. He has a granite chin. Just take another look at his bout with St. Pierre if you doubt that. So far in his career, Jon Fitch has not faced the man that wants the victory more than him. Although B.J. Penn is a warrior and takes a bout in the Octagon with the mentality of a samurai, I do not think he is the man to break Jon Fitch.

Yes, B.J. Penn has the ability to end the bout in the fraction of a second with a punch or submission. But he has rarely showed those dynamics against the top talent he's faced. He has a tendency to gas or fold or fade or whatever anyone wants to call it, against the top competition. He did it against Jens Pulver, against Matt Hughes, and twice against Georges St. Pierre and Frankie Edgar respectively. I hope this is a competitive fight and really, I'm pulling for B.J. Penn to come out from under the shadow that has haunted him against top tier competition. Unfortunately, history does not favor him.

In the co-main event at UFC 127, Michael Bisping meets the surging Jorge Rivera. Rivera is making the most of his second shot in the UFC and used his mouth to put himself in the co-main event against the UK poster boy for the UFC. Bisping is not my favorite fighter. He has good, average skills and excellent footwork but he has benefited most from a huge push by the UFC and being placed against the right competion. Anytime he has faced anything above C level competion he has either failed miserably (Dan Henderson) or barely survived a boring decision (Matt Hamill, Chris Leben). Unfortunately, I don't see Jorge Rivera being one of the ones to topple Bisping. Rivera is a brawler with lots of heart but rarely imposes himself on an opponent. I see this fight going much like Bisping's fights against Hamill and Leben. Bisping will use his footwork to avoid punishment and pepper Rivera with the occasional jab or straight right. Just doing enough to escape another highlight KO and earn a decision. As much as I may want Rivera to flatten Bisping, I don't see him overcoming Bisping's footwork.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Liam Neeson's "Unknown" is not at the level of action he's delivered recently

It's always interesting to watch actors reinvent themselves onscreen. Sometimes the attempt falls flat (Vin Diesel comes to mind) others, as is the case with Liam Neeson, the success is welcome by both audiences and studios. With starring roles in recent action films such as “The A-team”, “Clash of the Titans” and “Taken” Liam Neeson has placed a solid foothold in the action genre. Liam Neeson's latest effort, “Unknown”, unfortunately does not live up to his recent successes. Burdened with the tag line of “Take back your life”, the story centers around Dr. Martin Harris who after a car accident and coma awakens to the reality that his wife does not know him and another man (Aidan Quinn)is Dr, Martin Harris.


Watching the preview we are led to believe “Unknown” is more in line with Liam's “Taken” character. Unfortunately, “Unknown” comes nowhere near the action level of “Taken”. “Unknown” limps along at a speed too fast for an inept plot. Dr. Martin Harris is not a trained killing machine as we hoped. He ends up being much, much less. Except for a hilarious (in a bad way) action scene near the end, we are left yearning for a release, a climax of punches and guns firing that never arrives. The best scene in the movie comes about half way when two cold war spies, Bruno Ganz and Frank Langella, face off both knowing what the outcome must be. Unfortunately, even this scene feels out of place and context in a film lacking purpose.

Liam Neeson delivers a good performance. I don't think he is capable of acting badly. But he was not given much to work with. Action heroes must make us believe in them. We must believe they can overcome the perils they are put into. Unfortunately, Liam Neeson's character is never put in a situation where we believe he is a hero. He escapes danger by sheer luck not by his defying hand. The viewer must also empathize with the hero. I never felt empathy for Dr. Martin Harris. Even the easily foreseeable twist at the end does nothing to save the film.

“Unknown” does not bring anything new to the action genre and wastes Liam Neeson's talents. I'm sure “Unknown” will fare well at the box office. There is not much competition right now. I personally wished I had waited for the DVD release.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Top AC/DC songs of all time

Surprisingly, it was much harder than I thought ranking the best AC/DC songs of all time. Angus Young was once quoted as saying, “I’m sick of people saying we’ve made eleven albums that sound exactly the same. We’ve made twelve albums that sound exactly the same.” The band believed their music should be simple and direct because that was more in line with the person on the street. Although the tongue in cheek lyrics and swagger lost some momentum with the death of original lead singer Bon Scott in 1979, the band has stayed the course for over 30 years reaching their highest commercial success with 1980’s Back in Black. The album astonishingly ranks fifth in U.S. album sales and second in world album sales behind only the King of Pop’s Thriller album. AC/DC deservingly reached number one once more with 2008’s highly advertised Black Ice, hitting number one in 29 countries in its debut.

10. Given the Dog a Bone / Back in Black / 1980
            The fourth song in the legendary Back in Black album, ‘Given the dog a bone’ holds its own amongst the many classics in that CD with guitars that do no less than punch the listener in the gut and double entendre lyrics in the vein of Bon Scot’s classic, ‘Big Balls’.

9. Back in Black / Back in Black / 1980
            Anything the listener needs to know about AC/DC can be found in the intro to this all-time classic. Instantly recognizable to most rock listeners, the guitar riff grabs you by the collar demanding you listen. While controversy about who really wrote the lyrics for the Back in Black album prevails, I believe Brian Johnson showed listeners who doubted he could replace Bon Scot that he could hold his own in his shadow and amidst the brilliance of the Young brothers get us to listen to him. Catchy, on time and mean rhymes became Johnson’s trademark in contrast to Scot’s funny and sexually influenced style.

8. Highway to Hell / Highway to Hell / 1979
            The title song to Bon Scot’s last recorded album also starts with a riff that refuses to be dismissed and takes over the listener. While the cover (featuring Angus with devil horns) and Lucifer related lyrics fueled rumors that the band practiced Satanism (Richard Ramirez, aka The Night Stalker, would later partly attribute his killing spree to AC/DC) Bon Scot explained that the lyrics had nothing to do with Hell itself but were meant more metaphorically to explain the excesses and hardship the band endured while touring.

7. Ain’t No Fun (Waiting Around to be a Millionaire) / Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap / 1976
            Even though the title song to Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap received most of the airplay from the album, I’ve always been partial to this little gem. As usual, Malcolm and Angus’ guitar work carries the song, the lyrics set it apart for me. Bon Scot sings about the early days before the band made a living in the music industry.

6. Ballbreaker / Ballbreaker / 1995
            This album was lost in the mid-nineties rise of grunge and hip-hop and received literally no airplay or attention. Rock and roll fans missed out on one of the band’s best efforts. By then the Young brothers took over lyric duty as well and probably did their best work. The song itself builds steam as Brian Johnson tells the story of his encounter with a woman who can give it just like she gets it. In the end, the guitars help him sing her praises. With great rhythm guitar by Malcolm Young, this is a great, turn up to ten, fist in the air, rock and roll anthem.

5. Hells Bells / Back in Black / 1980
            From the first time I heard the toll of the bell in the intro to ‘Hells Bells’ to the slow build up in lyrics and guitars, this song hooked me. I’ve always felt this would make great addition to any horror movie soundtrack. I can easily imagine the killer walking behind an unsuspecting victim then wreaking havoc as the guitars let loose. Again, Johnson provides classic lyrics that set an ambiance of pure evil.

4. You Shook Me All Night Long / Back in Black / 1980
            Nothing but good, good times here. Unforgettable riffs as always coupled with the story of an extraordinary night with a woman who kept “knocking [him] out with those american thighs” make for one of the best songs of all time. There’s nothing not to like about this song. The video also became a classic, featuring scantily clad women riding mechanical bulls, receiving airplay on MTV and VH1. I miss those eighties videos.

3. Ride On / Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap / 1976
            The only slow song I’ve ever heard by AC/DC. Angus Young shows off his blues savvy and Bon Scot pours his soul out. It is a very simple, soul driven song with lyrics that force the listener to rethink everything else Bon Scot has told us about living free, good times and highways to hell because in this one “it’s another lonely evening and another lonely town.” In the end he knows what he’s going to do, and it’s not changing his ways, he’s gonna ride on.

2. It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock and Roll) / T.N.T / 1975
            This became Bon Scot’s signature song. He plays the Scottish bag pipes near the end and takes full control of the song making it all his own and taking it over the top. Again, the lyrics tell a story of the hard times of a band starting out. “If you think its easy playing one night stands, try playing in a rock and roll band” he warns the listener. Showing respect to Bon Scot, Brian Johnson refuses to play this song. While I normally stay away from covers, I highly recommend Lemmy’s version of this song in the album Remixed to Hell.

1. Jailbreak / ’74 Jailbreak / 1976/1984
            While the song was originally released with the Australian version of Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, it was not available in the U.S. until 1984 with the release of ’74 Jailbreak. The song kicks off with a head banging guitar and Bon Scot singing the declarations of a friend of his who is not spending his life “breaking rocks on the chain gang” for the murder of his lady and her lover anymore. He continues his story with a chorus of JAILBREAK! by his band mates. In the end his friend makes it out . . . “with a bullet in his back.” 

Steven Seagal Knocks out Vitor Belfort

In the post-fight news conference Anderson Silva revealed that the front kick that helped him finish the fight against Vitor Belfort was taught to him by, amongst others, Steven Seagal. It seems Anderson Silva has trained for some time with Steven Seagal, a very accomplished Aikido practioner. Seagal was even seen talking to Anderson Silva just before Silva entered the Octagon. It seems Steven Seagal was giving Silva last second instructions on that specific kick. So basically, Steven Seagal knocked out Vitor Belfort. Hear it from Anderson himself by clicking the link below.

Silva on The Kick Heard Around the World

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Thursday, February 3, 2011

HINTS OF SPLENDOR

I held greatness so long ago.
Then greatness escaped me.
Was I sixteen or 32?
Or was I just holding you?

You were such a sudden beautiful,
And I just a lonely fool.
Thinking of ownership,
Singing with the band on a sinking ship.

You gave me a hint of splendor.
As pretty as a song
Sung by Angels
At a funeral.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

UFC 126 Silva vs. Belfort will put Anderson Silva's Considerable Skills on Display

At UFC 126, fans will get to see MMAs premier talent, Anderson Silva face probably his greatest threat in Vitor Belfort. The outcome of the match-up carries heavy consequences for the UFC and MMA. Anderson Silva has ruled over the UFCs middleweight division since his destruction of Rich Franklin in 2006 and successfully dabbled in the light heavyweight division. If Anderson Silva wins, that leaves only Yushin Okami as a contender but even though Okami is the last man to defeat Anderson Silva (via disqualification) that match-up is not likely to garner interest from fans or Dana White. But if Vitor Belfort pulls off the upset? That opens up the UFCs middleweight division.

Can Vitor Belfort pull off the upset?
Vitor “the Phenom” Belfort is almost a tailor made foil for Anderson Silva. From his introduction to MMA fans in UFC 12, Vitor Belfort has carried a Mike Tyson-esque aura about him. Gifted with blinding hand speed, one-punch knockout power and excellent ground acumen, Belfort has the necessary MMA tools to defeat anyone. Unfortunately, Vitor tends to run hot and cold. At times pushed around as in his UFC loss to Randy Couture and at others plain over matched or uninterested as in losses to Alistair Overeem and Kazushi Sakuraba. Luckily for UFC fans, Vitor Belfort seems to finally have put it all together and not lost since a uninamous decision to Dan Henderson in 2006. At every outing he has looked crisp, sharp and focused. More importantly, he seems to always have a game plan instead of relying on natural talent as in the past.

Only Chris Leben has been foolish enough to challenge Anderson Silva on the feet and that ended badly for Leben. But the Phenom will not be afraid to stand against Anderson as he himself has never been knocked out. The problem is, Anderson Silva absorbs shots with a granite chin and is way too crafty on his feet. Anderson will probably be the only opponent Vitor will ever face with more natural talent than himself. That's where Vitor Belfort will have to show maturity and patience. It is unlikely that Vitor Belfort can win a stand up battle against Anderson Silva. Silva has way too many weapons for Belfort. The fact that Vitor Belfort does not have to run from a stand up battle though is a game changer. If the Phenom uses Chael Sonnens game plan and utilizes the stand up as a set up for take downs, Vitor stands a chance. Can Vitor Belfort submit Anderson? Highly doubtful. But the biggest chink in Anderson's arsenal has been the ability for opponents to ground him a la Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen. What Vitor needs to look for is control and ground and pound from the top. Anderson Silva was in many precarious positions against Sonnen, but Sonnen lacked punching power. Belfort does not have that issue. The problem with this game plan is that Vitor has a tendency to fade in fights and not react well when opponents do not crumble at his feet. Will he take Silva down? Will he be able to ground and pound and avoid the Spider's lethal stand up and submissions?

How the fight will unfold and what's in it for Silva
My thoughts for the main event of UFC 126 are that Anderson Silva will withstand an electric first round from the Phenom and end the fight with either a TKO or submission in the second round. I just can't see Anderson Silva being caught by Vitor early and Vitor has never shown he can overcome ring adversity. He folded against most of the top competition he faced. Couture, Liddell, Sakuraba and others all found ways to withstand or neutralize Belfort's strengths and impose their own, something I see Anderson Silva doing. For Silva though, this is an opportunity for him to showcase his skills. MMA fans have criticized Silva for not taking chances in previous fights and laying back. His retort has been that those fighters were not willing to trade with him and it was not his job to deliver exciting fights but to win. Well, Vitor Belfort will certainly welcome a stand up battle at least initially and has the skills to trade with Anderson. Silva will not have an excuse this time for a boring fight but rather an open door to deliver fans a wide display of his MMA skills. Plus, if he wins, Anderson Silva will have essentially cleaned out the UFC middleweight division and can entertain more invitations to the light heavyweight ranks that so far have shown no more an obstacle than middleweights. Look for an explosive first round which Anderson Silva may finish late or at the very least tip the momentum his way en route to a second round stoppage firmly establishing himself as the top pound for pound MMA fighter in the world.