Oh, Canada...

The historic and record-breaking UFC 129 from Toronto, Canada was as good as any event to finally start the blog I'd been contemplating for a while now. I think I know a lot about the sport, have a somewhat unique perspective on certain elements of it and might as well have an outlet for throwing thoughts down. Which brings us to now. Fortunately, this first posting is greatly assisted by the fact that last night's fights were, you know, really good.

Come on, when the most uninteresting bout on the card (on paper) ends in a crushing knockout in under a minute, you're having a good night. No disrespect to Vladimir Matyushenko or Jason Brilz but of all the bouts on the televised portion of the card (Spike and PPV,) it was the least compelling to me. The Janitor swiftly put those concerns to rest by dimming the running lights of Brilz in 20 seconds to take home his second win in a row since the nasty loss to Jon Jones. As for other thoughts on the card, here's the rundown:

GOODBYE TO THE NATURAL

Many people seemed skeptical about Randy Couture's talks of retirement coming into his bout with Lyoto Machida. The major difference between Randy now and Randy when he initially retired in 2006 is that now Randy is 47 years old. Those added years mean a lot in your late 40s, especially for a professional athlete. Couture finally admitted to feeling the effects of Father Time after his loss to Machida and admitted he felt slow. Hard to argue after losing a tooth via a foot to the face, but Randy went out the way he came in: taking on the very best of the world and doing everything he could to try to pull off the upset. Last night, it wasn't to be and the book closes on one of the most exciting and IMPORTANT careers in MMA history. He's earned a happy and healthy retirement and I'd like to see the UFC bring him back into the broadcast booth. Machida has meanwhile got people talking again after a flashy double-jump kick KO that was reminiscent of Daniel LaRusso foot-blasting Johnny into the annals of cinematic history. I thought Machida should have gotten the decision against Rampage. He looked great against Couture and I think he's one of the most intriguing style match-ups for champion Jon Jones at 205 pounds.

MARK HOMINICK IS A BAD, BAD MAN

Mark Hominick may have been defeated in his bid to claim Jose Aldo's featherweight title but I can't think of another fight where a fighter's stock rose so much in a losing effort. Hominick's will was unbreakable as he was bloodied and battered to the point of having a massive hematoma warping the side of his head while simultaneously bleeding from under his eye. Not only did "The Machine" refuse the doctor's offers to stop the fight, he turned the tables on the fading Aldo in the final round and laid a beating on the previously dominant champion that made me think Hominick would have possibly claimed the title had the fight had more time. It was an absolutely awesome showing of will and guts coupled with the talented striking that we knew he had. He definitely needs to work on wrestling defense but anyone who saw that fight has to be interested in where Hominick goes from here. In one night, he went from overmatched underdog to one of the featherweight division's most intriguing personalities. The fact that he dropped to the ground and started doing pushups (while what looked to be a space alien was growing out of his head) after the final bell only endeared him to the hometown crowd even more. Hominick became a star last night. Period.

As for Aldo, many are decrying his performance as evidence that the touted pound-for-pound great has been overhyped. Possibly, but let's not ignore the fact that he dominated a very game challenger for 20 minutes of a 25 minute fight. I didn't see a fighter who was lacking skills or who was the product of hyperbole. I saw a really talented guy coming into his first fight since back surgery. Aldo was slower, got tired more easily and didn't have the same killer instinct that's defined his career until now but he still showed flashes of absolute brilliance against Hominick with his mixing of punches, his trademark leg kicks (which I think he needed more of) and a smothering top control that I hadn't seen from him in the past. If Aldo looks the same in his next fight, maybe we can start talking about if he's not as advertised but I saw last night as him knocking off some rust, getting back into the grind and barring injury I think he'll be returning to top form sooner rather than later. Then we can see if he's hype or substance.

"DON'T BLINK"- HOW PROPHETIC

Georges St. Pierre gets more venom spewed his way from fans than any other champion in the sport right now. (At least he has since Anderson Silva snap-kicked his way back into the good graces of the UFC audience.) He does himself no favors by promising finishes he ends up not being able to deliver on but the real story is he once again got a dominating win against a top 5 challenger. No one has faced the Murderers Row that GSP has or looked as dominant doing it. The eye injury is a concern but early reports indicate it's not a retina detachment, though St. Pierre has yet to regain full sight in his left eye.

The larger story going into the fight, in my opinion, is that GSP looked considerably leaner than he has in the past and he didn't look as quick as he usually does. Loretta Hunt from CBS Sports had gone on record to pick Shields to win based on some confidential information she'd heard from one of the training camps. While she understandably did not wish to divulge what that info was, I'm wondering if it concerned illness or injury in Camp St. Pierre. He did what he needed to do last night but there were times where it looked as if he'd rather be anywhere else.

Credit to Shields for giving a tough fight, though his gameplan seemed to evaporate after the first few minutes. He didn't land much, but when he did he he hurt St. Pierre. One thing that does bear mentioning about GSP's performance is that there always seems to be one technique that stands out in each of his recent fights. From the guard passing against Penn to the jab against Koscheck, GSP always has some textbook technique that he simply does better than nearly anybody else in the game. While his Liddell-like looping right was a new wrinkle in the Shields bout, I was most taken by his head movement. Couture is often praised for using head movement to throw off opponents but his is a wide sway that takes him far left, right, up or down and often requires him to reposition his feet before he can do anything with it. St. Pierre moves his head just a few inches left, right, or back so a punch BARELY misses him while keeping in range to immediately fire back. I think that's definitely a result of his time with Freddie Roach and a boxing skill that does translate very well to MMA if you have the skillset to pull it off, which GSP certainly does. Not an explosive fight but a fascinating one with some wrinkles people weren't expecting. In the end, another dominant win for GSP though not the showcase many had hoped for.

QUICK THOUGHTS

While Hominick ensured a lot of interest in his next bout, the same can't be said for Shields. While he put up a tough fight in losing a decision, it wasn't the type of performance that will make people clamor to see him again. Ironically, the most relevant fight for him right now is probably the one most casual fans would balk the loudest at: a bout against perennial #2 welterweight Jon Fitch. BJ Penn could be another interesting fight for Shields since I have zero interest in a Penn/Fitch rematch, with the first bout being one I thought Fitch soundly won.

Georges St. Pierre clearly does not want to bulk up to middleweight and Anderson Silva is seemingly indifferent to cutting weight so why not just make this fight happen at a catchweight of 178 lbs and make it a 5 round fight? If ever a non-title bout deserved the added time, it's this one and a St. Pierre/Silva contest would not be made any less relevant without a title on the line. Let St. Pierre stay at welterweight as he clearly prefers and Anderson Silva can either continue running roughshot over the middleweight division or bulk up to 205 if they can convince him. Make no mistake, this potential fight is the Pacquiao/Mayweather of MMA and let's not lose it because the UFC wants to force St. Pierre to bulk up in a way that he believes is a detriment to his future. Let them fight as they are, since that's what got them here to begin with.