Sherdog.com Preview: Liddell-Ortiz II Main Card
Griffin vs. Jardine
Dec 28, 2006
Forrest Griffin (Pictures) vs. Keith Jardine (Pictures)
Now we get into the serious meat of the card. The winner of this bout should get a title shot in the next four to six months. Both fighters have experienced steady climbs in the cage and possess a series of impressive victories on their ledgers.
Ironically, the pair has each suffered just one loss in their UFC
careers and both were questionable decisions. Forrest is more
popular and has many of the fans of the fight world in his grip.
Jardine, on the other hand, has taken out a series of division
rivals since his stint on TUF 2, and quietly put himself in
position to make a run at a title bid.
Forrest Griffin (Pictures) trains as part of the Straight Blast Gym with Rory Singer, Adam Singer and Daniel Ancheta. Griffin, 13-3-0, began fighting in 2001 and won two four-man tournaments in the Submission Fighting Open.
Griffin is 3-1 since winning the contract. His lone defeat came in a competitive bout with former UFC champ Tito Ortiz (Pictures). He was in trouble early and it looked like Tito would pound out another win, but Griffin came out refreshed in the second round and stuffed many of the wrestler’s takedowns. He continued to foil takedown attempts and did some damage to Tito’s legs in the third round. However, the judges saw something different and awarded the former light heavyweight champion a split decision.
Last August Forrest fought Bonnar for a second time in a somewhat unnecessary rematch of their TUF contract tussle. Though mildly entertaining, the magic was gone from this match-up (truth be told it would’ve been hard to top the first one) and Griffin took home the unanimous decision win.
Keith Jardine (Pictures) trains with Greg Jackson in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He is 11-2-1 as a pro in MMA and 3-1 in the UFC. After fighting on the team of former UFC middleweight champ Rich Franklin (Pictures), Keith stopped Kerry Schall (Pictures) with leg kicks at The Ultimate Fighter 2 finale.
He beat Mike Whitehead (Pictures) by decision at UFC 57. Then lost a somewhat questionable unanimous decision to Stephan Bonnar (Pictures) when Jardine was clearly the aggressor. His most recent appearance was last June at the TUF 3 finale in a bout with Wilson Gouveia (Pictures). The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt took “The Dean of Mean” the distance and looked to be winning the bout early, but Jardine came back in the second and third rounds to take the decision.
I’ve no doubt both competitors will be bloodied in this encounter. Forrest is the more complete fighter and has faced top shelf competition even before he was in the UFC.
It would be tough for Jardine to bring a look Griffin hasn’t seen before. Keith will be the most complete striker Forrest has faced in the Octagon and that certainly works in his favor, but Griffin’s ground game is far superior. This could be the most competitive bout of the main card and has all the potential to be a highlight reel for both fighters. Griffin by TKO.
Now we get into the serious meat of the card. The winner of this bout should get a title shot in the next four to six months. Both fighters have experienced steady climbs in the cage and possess a series of impressive victories on their ledgers.
Advertisement
Forrest Griffin (Pictures) trains as part of the Straight Blast Gym with Rory Singer, Adam Singer and Daniel Ancheta. Griffin, 13-3-0, began fighting in 2001 and won two four-man tournaments in the Submission Fighting Open.
During his stint on The Ultimate Fighter 1 he tapped out
both Alex Schoenauer
(Pictures) and Sam Hoger (Pictures) with strikes. Griffin’s bout with
Stephan Bonner for the contract is considered one of the most
exciting in UFC history, and his performance earned him the TUF
light heavyweight contract.
Griffin is 3-1 since winning the contract. His lone defeat came in a competitive bout with former UFC champ Tito Ortiz (Pictures). He was in trouble early and it looked like Tito would pound out another win, but Griffin came out refreshed in the second round and stuffed many of the wrestler’s takedowns. He continued to foil takedown attempts and did some damage to Tito’s legs in the third round. However, the judges saw something different and awarded the former light heavyweight champion a split decision.
Last August Forrest fought Bonnar for a second time in a somewhat unnecessary rematch of their TUF contract tussle. Though mildly entertaining, the magic was gone from this match-up (truth be told it would’ve been hard to top the first one) and Griffin took home the unanimous decision win.
Keith Jardine (Pictures) trains with Greg Jackson in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He is 11-2-1 as a pro in MMA and 3-1 in the UFC. After fighting on the team of former UFC middleweight champ Rich Franklin (Pictures), Keith stopped Kerry Schall (Pictures) with leg kicks at The Ultimate Fighter 2 finale.
He beat Mike Whitehead (Pictures) by decision at UFC 57. Then lost a somewhat questionable unanimous decision to Stephan Bonnar (Pictures) when Jardine was clearly the aggressor. His most recent appearance was last June at the TUF 3 finale in a bout with Wilson Gouveia (Pictures). The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt took “The Dean of Mean” the distance and looked to be winning the bout early, but Jardine came back in the second and third rounds to take the decision.
I’ve no doubt both competitors will be bloodied in this encounter. Forrest is the more complete fighter and has faced top shelf competition even before he was in the UFC.
It would be tough for Jardine to bring a look Griffin hasn’t seen before. Keith will be the most complete striker Forrest has faced in the Octagon and that certainly works in his favor, but Griffin’s ground game is far superior. This could be the most competitive bout of the main card and has all the potential to be a highlight reel for both fighters. Griffin by TKO.
