5 Great MMA Photos at UFC 136: Edgar vs. Maynard III from Esther Lin
Billed as one of the most stacked cards of 2011, all of the fighters came out and proved the promoters right. If you wanted grueling fights, you got that with Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan. If you wanted submissions, you got that with Joe Lauzon and Chael Sonnen. If you wanted charisma, you got that and then some with Sonnen’s post-fight interview. If you wanted to see what legends are made of, you got that with Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard. Another great card, and now a break until UFC 137.
(Photos via Esther Lin / MMA Fighting)
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QUESTION: What was your favorite part of UFC 136?
Weigh-In Photos for UFC 136: Edgar vs. Maynard III
To get back into the swing of things, what better to do it with UFC 136: Edgar vs. Maynard III. Not only do you have a rubber match with two solid Lightweights, we’re treated with another championship fight with Jose Aldo and a Middleweight contenders match with Chael Sonnen and Brian Stann. This card is sick, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it all turns out.
UFC 136 Main Card:
- Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard
- José Aldo vs. Kenny Florian
- Chael Sonnen vs. Brian Stann
- Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan
- Melvin Guillard vs. Joe Lauzon
(Photos via Dann Stupp / MMA Junkie)
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QUESTION: What excites you most about UFC 136?
1. Who’s power will win in the battle of the Heavyweights?
Both Junior Dos Santos and Shane Carwin carry dynamite in their hands, some heavier than others and some quicker than others. This is probably a fight I don’t know who’s going to win. I really think it’s a matter of game plans. If Dos Santos is able to keep his distance and pick Carwin apart with his speed, he’ll win the fight. Although, now if Carwin is able to bully Dos Santos and get a hold of him — that’ll be bad news for Cigano. I can’t wait.
2. Will the weight cut affect Kenny Florian’s performance?
Kenny Florian came into the UFC as a Middleweight and has slowly become the vanishing man by moving down to nearly all of the weight classes: Welterweight, Lightweight, and now Featherweight. That’s a huge difference and granted he was able make the cut yesterday, but on fight night — will he be too dehydrated? Will he be able to bring his strength down to the lower weight class? Diego Nunes is a huge test — definitely not an easy test.
3. Is this Mark Munoz’s coming out party against Demian Maia?
Demian Maia is a legit Top 10 Middleweight, and it’s going to be a huge test for Mark Munoz. For a person who’s pedigree is in wrestling, you’d assume he’d like to take it to the ground, but that’s where Maia’s most dangerous. Now, will both working hard on their striking — who’s going to win that battle? If Mark can bring the power he’s shown in the past, this could rocket him up the rankings quick.
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OK, I don’t think Jose Aldo is scared of Kenny Florian, but there’s definitely some sentimants that show that Aldo’s management is scared of KenFlo. Rightly so, Florian is one of the best in the UFC Lightweight Division and would be a huge test for the Featherweight Champion’s debut at the 155lb Division. Here are my reasons why they declined the fight:
1. Florian is widely considered one of the best at Lightweight
Although Florian has never been the UFC Lightweight Champion, there’s no doubt that he’s one of the best. It takes a ton of talent and perseverance to climb the mountain twice, you can’t discount him that. Aldo’s manager says he wants to fight a (Former) Champion, but is Sean Sherk really a better opponent? That’s what the management would like to push for. Come on now, Florian’s name is big.
2. This fight was risky, doesn’t want to lose debut
There’s a lot of risk here for Aldo to fight Florian. If he lost to Florian in his debut, that would stifle his hopes to ever go up for a while. Aldo is definitely a candidate for winning titles in several different weight classes, and Lightweight is one of them. You got to protect your fighter and I believe his manager doing just that here.
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