Storylines That Emerged From UFC 119

UFC 119 “Mir vs. Cro Cop” was one giant contradiction at the Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Brilliant performances went unrewarded, boring fights ended with spectacular violence and a supposed “Fight of the Year” candidate came and went with a whimper. The aftershocks of the night have produced many stories about which fight fans are being told to care. Here are those to which one should be paying attention.

Left Leg, Cemetery

It’s time to thank Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic for all the memories and to put those memories in a box. The days of Filipovic high kicking the universe are long gone, and hope of a renaissance died a slow, painful death in his loss to Frank Mir.

For nearly three full rounds, Mir was a mostly immobile target and was awfully heavy on his lead leg. Instead of chopping the man in half, Filipovic chatted with him in the clinch and basically wasted a lifetime’s worth of kickboxing skills.

Given how badly the UFC’s heavyweight division needs solid gatekeepers who can separate the wheat from the chaff, Filipovic is a natural for that role. Envisioning the Croatian Jack Bauer as a doormat to future stars may seem sad, but it’s even worse to think he may not last very long in that role.

Slave to the Grind

One of the more frustrating aspects of following a prospect’s career is when it becomes clear that he will never get the chance to polish his game against middling veterans and unheralded up-and-comers. Ryan Bader can obviously beat world-class light heavyweights, but he’s not ready to contend for the title.

The boxing technique is not quite there yet, and his cardiovascular conditioning needs improvement. Unfortunately, Bader is being positioned for a title eliminator against fellow mega prospect Jon Jones. The difference between them is that Bader is not making the effortless quantum leaps in skill that Jones so routinely shows off.

Prospects are a valuable commodity, and they do not all evolve along parallel timelines. However, the UFC’s loaded schedule creates constant turnover, and not even a “The Ultimate Fighter” winner like Bader will be exempt from those scheduling demands until the promotion decides to make a more concerted effort to groom its prospects.

In the Mouth of Madness

Sean Sherk won a split decision over Evan Dunham thanks to some, frankly, horrific judging. The only upside here is that everyone acknowledges that Dunham deserved the decision and needs to keep being built towards a title shot.

More importantly, he showed an ability to come from behind against a version of Sherk for which everyone had been waiting. When Sherk combines his boxing with his wrestling, he remains a brutal style clash for anyone in the division, and Dunham learned that lesson early after a sharp elbow turned his brow into a crimson faucet.

Watching Dunham respond to the adversity by dragging Sherk into the woodshed was easily the high point of a flat evening. Fight sport holds no place for moral victories, but let us hope Dunham gets treated the way any fighter should after pure madness from the judges’ table negates a brilliant performance.

Cheap Shots & Quick Thoughts

The Ballad of Meathead: If Matt Mitrione was 10 years younger, he would easily be one of the best prospects in the heavyweight division. That said, he’s picking up the game at a rate that allows him to beat far more experienced competition than he should. Here’s hoping some borderline NFL prospects build on Mitrione’s example by skipping the NFL altogether.

Caldwell, UFC 119 MVP: Judge Kevin Caldwell’s work at UFC 119 was overshadowed by the crimes against humanity committed by his colleagues. While his judging proved to be for naught, he deserves credit for being the man who had both Dunham and Jeremy Stephens winning their respective fights. The next time the UFC rolls into Indianapolis, one can only hope Caldwell will be teamed with judges more capable of following his lead.

Follow Tomas Rios on Twitter as he tries to find the meaning of life through violence at www.twitter.com/Tomas_rios.