White: With UFC 136 Win, Edgar Is World’s No. 2 P4P Fighter
UFC President Dana White is pretty high on Frankie
Edgar right about now.
In a thrilling display of heart, skill and toughness, Edgar (Pictured, file photo) retained his UFC lightweight title on Saturday night, knocking out rival Gray Maynard in the main event of UFC 136.
“That’s movie s--t. That doesn’t happen in real life,” White said
of Edgar’s performance during the event’s postfight press
conference. “There are only two guys I’ve seen do that: Arturo
Gatti and [Edgar]. He has a heart the size of this room, and that’s
not promoter bulls--t.
“He’s the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and the only thing keeps him from being No. 1 is Anderson Silva,” White asserted. “You can’t deny Frankie is No. 2. I don’t give a s--t what anybody else says. Tonight, he beat a guy who had him out of it -- a guy who many people believe had his number -- and he knocked him out. I’ve never seen s--t like that in my life.”
Saturday night at the Toyota Center in Houston, however, Edgar left no doubt as to who was the champion. Though Maynard once again hurt Edgar badly in the first frame, buckling his smaller foe with a perfectly-timed uppercut and landing solid power punches as the round wore to a close, Edgar recuperated magnificently to win rounds two and three before stunning Maynard in the fourth with a crisp right uppercut. The champion wasted no time in following up, landing several more brutal hooks which forced referee Josh Rosenthal to save the challenger and end the contest.
“[After getting hit], I was thinking, ‘Not again,’ you know? He came at me, and he hits hard. I was definitely out of it. But I knew from the previous fight that I was able to come back, so had no problem this time,” Edgar said. “After the first round, I felt the momentum shift my way. I scored with the right uppercut, and I [saw] it rocked him. Then [I landed] a right hand, and I jumped on him and finished the fight.”
After dropping his first fight with Maynard and watching the second end in a draw, tonight’s victory came with a certain degree of relief for the champion, who has now beaten the man who some said possessed his stylistic kryptonite.
“It’s a weight lifted off my shoulders,” Edgar explained. “I just think it puts some closure on there. The last fight was a draw and there was no definitive winner. This one ended with a bang, so it’s good to go home and be done with it.”
Though White stated at the press conference that he had not yet decided on Edgar’s next challenger, three names currently dominate that discussion: Ben Henderson and Clay Guida, who will lock horns Nov. 12, and Gilbert Melendez, Strikeforce’s reigning lightweight champion. While Edgar stopped short of expressing a preference regarding who he would like to fight, the UFC king did address his potential options when asked.
“I’m down with anything,” said Edgar. “I’ll fight anybody. Gil makes a lot of sense, not taking anything away from Clay or Ben. It’s up to [the UFC], but me and Gil would definitely sell a lot of pay-per-views, I think.”
In a thrilling display of heart, skill and toughness, Edgar (Pictured, file photo) retained his UFC lightweight title on Saturday night, knocking out rival Gray Maynard in the main event of UFC 136.
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“He’s the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and the only thing keeps him from being No. 1 is Anderson Silva,” White asserted. “You can’t deny Frankie is No. 2. I don’t give a s--t what anybody else says. Tonight, he beat a guy who had him out of it -- a guy who many people believe had his number -- and he knocked him out. I’ve never seen s--t like that in my life.”
The UFC 136 headliner marked the third confrontation between Edgar
and Maynard. The two last met in a likely “Fight of the Year”
candidate at UFC
125 on New Year’s Day, battling to a draw after five
hard-fought rounds. Though Maynard clobbered Edgar in the first
round, the champion somehow survived, arguably winning the next
four frames. At the end of the contest, two judges were split in
their verdicts, while one judge saw it even.
Saturday night at the Toyota Center in Houston, however, Edgar left no doubt as to who was the champion. Though Maynard once again hurt Edgar badly in the first frame, buckling his smaller foe with a perfectly-timed uppercut and landing solid power punches as the round wore to a close, Edgar recuperated magnificently to win rounds two and three before stunning Maynard in the fourth with a crisp right uppercut. The champion wasted no time in following up, landing several more brutal hooks which forced referee Josh Rosenthal to save the challenger and end the contest.
“[After getting hit], I was thinking, ‘Not again,’ you know? He came at me, and he hits hard. I was definitely out of it. But I knew from the previous fight that I was able to come back, so had no problem this time,” Edgar said. “After the first round, I felt the momentum shift my way. I scored with the right uppercut, and I [saw] it rocked him. Then [I landed] a right hand, and I jumped on him and finished the fight.”
After dropping his first fight with Maynard and watching the second end in a draw, tonight’s victory came with a certain degree of relief for the champion, who has now beaten the man who some said possessed his stylistic kryptonite.
“It’s a weight lifted off my shoulders,” Edgar explained. “I just think it puts some closure on there. The last fight was a draw and there was no definitive winner. This one ended with a bang, so it’s good to go home and be done with it.”
Though White stated at the press conference that he had not yet decided on Edgar’s next challenger, three names currently dominate that discussion: Ben Henderson and Clay Guida, who will lock horns Nov. 12, and Gilbert Melendez, Strikeforce’s reigning lightweight champion. While Edgar stopped short of expressing a preference regarding who he would like to fight, the UFC king did address his potential options when asked.
“I’m down with anything,” said Edgar. “I’ll fight anybody. Gil makes a lot of sense, not taking anything away from Clay or Ben. It’s up to [the UFC], but me and Gil would definitely sell a lot of pay-per-views, I think.”
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