UFC 198: Werdum vs Miocic – Winners and Losers

Even before it took place, UFC 198 was the best Brazil vs the World card we had ever seen, with various surefire hall of famers participating in matchups that were almost guaranteed to be tremendous fun. Even with the loss of Anderson Silva vs Uriah Hall, we got some pretty amazing moments and some great fights that were capped off with a stunning upset for the ages.

Winners

Stipe Miocic – An unlikely contender rose through the ranks being the underdog in pretty much every outing as he defeated top ten opposition, and came in once again underestimated by many to punch his ticket on the big stage. A bit of a slow start for Miocic as far as getting his timing right is concerned, but he made it count when it mattered most and slept one of the most complete fighters to hold a heavyweight title. Excellent job by Miocic and he deserves all the credit he can get for this massive accomplishment. The UFC now has another American heavyweight champ they can get behind, which means he’s going to get far more exposure and marketing opportunities for their business that will also benefit him greatly. From former baseball prospect to MMA champ? I guess dreams really do come true. Another illustration of hard work meeting opportunity in a bizarre sport.

Ronaldo Souza – Jacare was dominant en route to a finish, but now that the fight is over he’s aiming for a title shot that he richly deserves at this point. Most curious was his phrasing – “I deserve the opportunity…” This man wants to prove himself. More than that, he seems to want to prove to everyone else how good he is. Sure, Belfort isn’t what he used to be. That was still a very impressive win as the technical aspects of his grappling were sharp while his movement was fluid while his pace was constant. Now, there’s no doubt as to who gets a crack a the winner of Rockhold vs Weidman, and his promise to finish Rockhold in a possible rematch raises the stakes a bit.

Cris Cyborg – Yes, it was way overdue for her to be in the UFC. It was still a bit surreal to see Cyborg in a Reebok kit being introduced by Bruce Buffer, but her performance showed she was still ready to fire on all cylinders. Her work with Jason Parillo really paid off, because she looked better hitting Leslie Smith than she did hitting pads. Her timing and combinations looked great, and she was surprisingly composed and accurate in the process. This wasn’t the Daria Ibragimova fight. Cyborg didn’t come in with the patented bumrush, which makes this performance so much more impressive. Despite the premature stoppage, she was gracious in victory and showed a lot of respect to Smith. In fact, the buildup to this fight since her signing to the UFC has been one of the best low-key PR goodwill tours in some time. She has been tremendously respectful and humble throughout the entire thing. She was also strangely but expectedly noncommittal to staying exclusively in the UFC or defending her title in Invicta, but after that performance it stands to reason that there’s way too much money on the table for Zuffa to let her go back to Invicta at this point. Especially considering that there aren’t as many fresh and compelling challenges for her there outside of a superfight with bantamweight champion Tonya Evinger as well as the fact that they’re building a women’s featherweight division practically from the ground up.

Mauricio Rua – I wish this were a “Shogun still got it” piece, but no. Shogun is gone. That guy left after the legendary fight against Dan Henderson in 2011. This, well… is different. The work with Cordeiro was more than evident here as he was far more measured, punctuated combinations with leg kicks and didn’t let himself get drawn into a dogfight. He fought in equal parts smart and hard, beating a young and hungry talent that has a lot of upside, and even dealt remarkably well with Anderson’s wrestling. What this means for his immediate future is uncertain, but perhaps the best thing we can say about this is that he didn’t get reckless and his performance was a better representation of what he’s capable off than say, the OSP fight. He very well may have extended his career for another while, and if it means more performances like this …

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