Roundtable: Does Andy Ogle Deserve Another Fight in The UFC?

Roundtable: Does Andy Ogle Deserve Another Fight in The UFC?

On Saturday night Newcastle's Andy Ogle fought Charles Oliveira in Brazil at UFC Fight Night 36. A huge underdog going into the fight Ogle put in a noble effort arguable winning round 2 and looking good to take the third round as well before being caught in a triangle choke from the submission specialist which ultimately led to Ogle's 2 loss in a row, and 3rd in his last 4.

While Ogle has proved he is a tough guy taking on some real tough guys in his time with the UFC, one has to start questioning at 1-3 since making his debut for the promotion, how long will Dana and co. keep the 25-year old around.

The team at kingdom MMA discuss whether Andy Ogle deserves another fight, or if the bout with Oliveira will be his last under the promotion.

Chris Houten - @mrhouts
I've been impressed with Ogle since making his debut, the guy has held his own in some pretty tough fights. Although 1-3 in his last 4 fights,  Ogle is a better fighter than his UFC record suggests.

Since making his UFC debut at UFC on Fuel 5, Ogle has had a hellish run fighting top featherweights such as Oliveira, Cole Miller, Josh Grispi and Akira Corassani, and to his credit, he has held his own - its fair to say he has done himself and the UK proud.

Although Ogle hasn't looked like he could finish any of the opponents he has faced, which could ultimately be his downfall in the argument if he deserves another fight in the UFC, Ogle has shown excellent grappling and ground control beyond what the average fight fan would expect from a Brit.

There is no shame in losing to Charles Oliveira - the guy is a killer with his only losses coming to top 10 guys in Jim Miller, Donald Cerrone, Cub Swanson & Frankie Edgar,  as there is no shame in losing to 15 fight UFC vet Cole miller - the guy has had 15 fights in the UFC for a reason, he's that good. An argument could be made that Ogle defeated Akira Corassani also.

Its fair to say, no matter how tough Ogle has had it, he can't keep losing. I'd like to see Ogle have another fight in the UFC but I would total understand if he was cut.

Ben Heather - @benheather
For me this is an easy question to answer. YES

Andy Ogle is certainly a UFC calibre fighter, in my mind two issues have led to people asking will he be cut after his latest loss.

1) He has been matched up really badly in every fight.
2) He is too tough for his own good and has accepted to fight anyone, anywhere. To Andy Ogle getting offered a fight is accepting a fight.

Lets look at my first point. In his UFC debut he got matched up against Akira Corassani, a fight in which going in to it nobody gave him a chance and while we was waiting for the decision 99% of the crowd thought he won. If it wasn't for some poor judging he would have won that fight.

Next up he gets matched with and defeats Josh Grispi. Again, going in to the fight nobody gave him a chance but he proved everyone wrong again and dominated the fight winning this time on the judges scorecards.

Then he accepted, but had to pull out of the fight against Conor McGregor at UFC on FOX Sports 1. Once he was fully recovered he faced Cole Miller in Manchester. This fight was the first time we had seen Ogle dominated but even then in the third round he changed the whole fight around but it was too little, too late. Taking his UFC record to 1-2.

This past weekend he then faced Charles Oliveira in Brazil. This is the same Oliveira who last time out went toe to toe with Frankie Edgar for 15 minutes losing a decision in the co main event of the July 4th weekend card where Weidman defeated Anderson Silva. That is how highly the UFC rate Oliveira and when the fight was booked I thought Ogle had been thrown to the wolves again.

Now Ogle is 1-3 in the UFC a place no fighter wants to be however, I think he deserves one last shot on one of the european shows which have been planned for this year against another fighter who is like Andy Ogle a mid tier UFC fighter. If he gets matched up well for the next couple of fights I see Andy Ogle bringing his UFC record back to a healthier position. The fact he has taken the fights he has and only once pulled out of a fight has to be in his favour and I hope to see him in the Octagon again soon.

Tommy Strong - @strong_tea
Andy Ogle hit our screens on the first ever 'Ultimate Fighter Live' series back in 2012 where he defeated Brendan Weafer via unanimous decision to book himself a place inside the house.
I've got to admit, since the first time I saw Andy fight I've not been very impressed at all. Yes he's game, yes he durable, and yes he gives you 100% every time he fights. Though this simply isn't enough if you want to have a sustainable career within the UFC where the standards are set so high.

He made an impressive start inside the house defeating number Mike Rio via submission in the 2nd round, though lost his following fight in the quarter finals losing to Al Iaquinta inside the first round via TKO and forcing him out of a fight in the Ultimate fighter final. 

Ogle went onto made his UFC debut in Nottingham England where he narrowly lost to Akira Corassani via split decision. I've got to be honest. I thought he was very unlucky not to get the decision that night. If he had won that night , we might not be here now discussing about his future.

His style of fighting really doesn't lend itself to a mass market, and there is little appeal for me to go out of my way to watch him fight, this could be his biggest downfall here. We all know Dana and the UFC love fighters that come to fight regardless of the outcome. Look at Dan Hardy , Leonard Garcia, both went on long losing streaks and held onto there jobs because they entertained the fans. This I'm afraid just isn't Ogle's style of fighting.

At just 25 years old Ogle has his career still in front of him. In my opinion, he would be better off signing himself to a promotion like Bamma or Cage Warriors where he could build on his career and develop his game against fighters more on his level.

 

Can Rory MacDonald emerge from GSP's shadow?

With GSP gone for now, can Rory MacDonald take the limelight?

by Chris Marzella @ChrisMarzella

There is but one man who could stand to benefit from the recent semi-retirement of the longtime UFC welterweight king Georges St.Pierre.
Rory "Ares" MacDonald was the long time protégé of GSP. Always living in his shadow, taking a back seat to, quite frankly, the greatest welterweight of all time.
As GSP sails off into the sunset, at least for now, MacDonald now finds himself in a position where he can legitimately make a run at the UFC title.
For as long as St.Pierre ruled at 170-pounds, MacDonald would always be an after thought when you think of Canadian fighters, hell even Tristar fighters, and was certainly firmly behind the eight ball when it came to the UFC's consideration of top contenders due to his and GSP's unwillingness to get in the octagon and fight.
Now with the path clear MacDonald can re-focus himself and finally attempt to get his hands on the title so familiar to all at Tristar.
The first step in his attempt to bounce back from his split decision loss to title contender Robbie Lawler begins this Saturday night as he gets set to take on Demian Maia at UFC 170.
Perhaps the one criticism levelled at MacDonald on too many occasions is what seems to be his willingness to "play it safe" and play a point scoring game. Dana White recently publicly slated Alistair Overeem for doing the very same thing in his victory over Frank Mir at UFC 169 and it is that type of performance which could very well hold back the 24-year-old Canadian.
It would seem then that MacDonald has some way to go before he can convince the powers that be that he is the man to get a crack at either Johny Hendricks or Robbie Lawler. A Lawler win at UFC 171 against Hendricks for the vacant title would push MacDonald further away from that precious number one contender spot given the manner of his win over MacDonald.
A win however, is far from a foregone conclusion on Saturday night. Maia himself was edging close to title contention since his move from middleweight until he was dominated by Jake Shields at UFC Fight Night 29 last October.
What Saturday night does present for MacDonald is his first opportunity to realistically stake his claim for consideration to be a future UFC welterweight title contender.
A door that has always seemed firmly shut has suddenly opened and with GSP offering no definite retirement, it could be the case that MacDonald must impress now and get his opportunity before St.Pierre returns to claim back his crown.
A move away from the recent technical performances and a shift towards a win with riskier, more offensive strategy could see him catapulted back towards the top spot, a win of any kind will still be a huge feather in the cap, a loss pushes a title shot to one side at least for now.
If MacDonald ever had aspirations for the title then UFC 170 is the time to begin planning a route to his chance.
UFC 170 takes place Saturday 22nd February from the Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas.

Matt Inman out points Gregor Weibel

Matt Inman vs Gregor Weibel: Cage Warriors 64 Fight Review

by Ben Heather @benheather

Photo: Dolly Clew | Cage Warriors

On Saturday night at The Forum in Kentish Town, Matt Inman opened the main card of Cage Warriors 64. This was good positioning for Cage Warriors as Inman had finished every fight he has won in the distance and was looking to continue his current 3-0 run. Standing the opposite side of the cage on the night was Gregor Weibel, the Swiss submission specialist with an 8-1 record with every win coming via Submission. It had all the makings to perfectly open the main card in style.

Inman started the fight mixing up his striking using his jab well to keep Weibel at distance. He then added to his superior striking bringing in his kicks and a takedown to dominate the first round and towards the end of the round even went for a leg lock.

You could tell that Weibel was constantly looking to take the fight to the mat and in the second round his persistence was rewarded when he got Inman down and kept him there for a couple of minutes. Weibel lands a heavy punch to the head from a standing position to the downed Inman and followed it up by dropping in to his guard. Weibel tries to pass guard and attempts to take Inman’s back but its Inman who comes out on top. Once Inman is on top he tries to fold Weibel up to prevent him from defending his ground strikes.

The fight goes to the third round, this marks the first time Weibel has been past the second round in his career but he starts the round the stronger and gets the takedown he has been looking to exploit all fight. Once they are down though it doesn’t take Inman long to reverse and end up on top. From the top he again gets to a standing position and tries to fold up the downed Weibel looking for the finish. The fight ends as Inman continues to push for the finish and it looks like it could be the first time he picks up a decision victory. The judges agree and score the fight 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 to Inman.

The win takes Inman to 13-5 and 4-0 since he lost to Jack Mason in March last year and solidifies his spot in the top 10 welterweights on the Cage Warriors roster. Knowing how regularly Inman likes to fight I am sure it won’t be long before we see him back in the Cage Warriors cage again.

Jeremy Petley vs Andre Winner Set for Europa MMA 1 Co-Main Event

Jeremy Petley vs Andre Winner Set for Europa MMA 1 Co-Main Event
by Chris houten - @mrhouts

A lightweight bout between 2 UK MMA veterans has been confirmed as the co-main event for Europa MMA 1.

5 time Bamma veteran, Jeremy Petley will take on Ultimate Fighter Season 9 runner up Andre Winner in the penultimate bout of Europa MMA 1's debut show in March.

Europa MMA 1 takes place March 22nd, at the Brentwood Centre, Essex and is headlined by Germany’s no.2 and Sweden’s no.2 ranked featherweights Max Coga and Niklas Backstrom. Tickets are now on sale HERE.

Fighting out of London Fight Factory, Canadian born lightweight Jeremy Petley has amassed a 10-4 record since making his pro debut in 2010. A well rounded fighter, Petley has finished 6 of his 10 victories - 2 TKOs, 4 submissions. Petley enters the bout at Europa MMA 1 on a 5 fight win streak, which has seen the 28-year old pick up victories in both Bamma and Made 4 the Cage, defeating notables such as Richie Downes and Dyson Roberts.

Best know for his time on the Ultimate Fighter Series 9, where he came runner up to Ross Pearson, 6 fight UFC vet, Andre Winner enter the bout at Europa MMA 1 hoping to get back to winning ways having lost his most recent bout against rising Polish prospect Mateusz Gamrot at KSW 24 this past September.

Since his release from the UFC, 32-year old Winner has put together a 3-2 run which includes an unsuccessful attempt at the Bamma lightweight title lossing a split decision to Rob Sinclair at Bamma 10. Widely considered one of the best technical boxers in MMA, Winner has finished 6 of his opponents - 3 by submission, 3 by TKO, and hold victories over notables such as Drew Fickett, Jason Ball, Rafaello Oliveira, and Roli Delgado.

"Putting this bout together was a tough challenge, Jeremy has been down to fight since day one and his opponents have change twice since December 2013. Every time we threw a name at Petley he said 'let’s do it'. So when the opportunity came for us to invite Andre Winner to compete on this card, Jeremy was the first guy we wanted to give the opportunity to." a Europa MMA Official said.

"We are incredibly happy to have Andre on the card, I was a big fan of his on the Ultimate Fighter, and in my opinion is still one of the best lightweights in the UK. I know this is an important fight for both guys and I think we can expect a great fight."

Stay tuned to KingdomMMA.co.uk for all the latest on Europa MMA 1 

Cory Tait forces Pennington to tap in the first round

Cory Tait vs James Pennington: Cage Warriors 64 Main Event Fight Review

by Ben Heather @benheather

Photo: Dolly Clew | Cage Warriors

James Pennington came in to the fight having spent some time on the sidelines due to injury which was incurred the night of the Cage Warriors bantamweight title tournament and prevented him fighting for the title after winning his semi final fight against Kris Edwards. A win on Saturday night would have surely put Pennington next in line for a fight with Cage Warriors champ Brett Johns.

Cory Tait came in to the main event a 2-1 underdog with the bookies but was determined to prove them wrong by winning on Saturday night in the main event of Cage Warriors 64. It wasn’t just the win that made this fight special it was the way he did it. I can’t imagine many fans in the audience expected Cory Tait, the man famous for his highlight reel knockouts to win via first round submission but that’s exactly what happened.

James Pennington came out and began the better of the two fighters getting the better of the early exchanges before taking down Tait twice. Tait didn’t stay down for long though and after getting back up for the second time Pennington looked to shoot in again as he aimed to keep the renowned striker on the mat.

Tait this time managed to not only defend the takedown but got a hold of the head and neck of Pennington locking in a standing guillotine choke. Once Tait knew he had it locked in he cranked on it and it didn’t take long before Pennington tapped.

I am sure that Pennington will be back soon and try to go on another run which will push him back in to contention. The loss for James Pennington drops his record to 9-2 while Cory Tait improves his record to 8-2 keeping up his 100% finish percentage when he wins, with 4 wins by TKO and 4 by submission.

The win for Tait makes the title picture a bit clearer as I imagine now that Pennington’s team mate James Brum will be next in line for the title fight with Brett Johns while Cory Tait should be part of a number one contenders fight next time out.

Nad Narimani defeats Benjamin Brander by Rear Naked Choke

Benjamin Brander vs Nad Narimani: Cage Warriors 64 Fight Review

by Ben Heather @benheather

Photo: Dolly Clew | Cage Warriors

This fight on paper looked to be a close battle between two fighters with very good records. Narimani came in to the fight having only previously lost to Graham Turner at Cage Warriors 56 while Benjamin Brander came in unbeaten at 6-0.

The fight starts as both men exchange leg kicks but its not long before Narimani completes a takedown in to half guard and is constantly looking to pass while working his elbows and ground strikes. Brander gets back up but Narimani won’t let go of his back and is attacking the thigh of Brander with his knees. Narimani gets Brander down again and goes straight back to working his ground strikes mixing up his punches with some elbows.

Narimani pushes on to the back of Brander and goes for a rear naked choke but lets it go as he uses his position to pass guard and mount Brander. From mount he works around on to the back of Brander again but this time he makes sure that there is no escape for Brander who taps after 4:53 of round 1.

The loss for Brander is the first of his career who drops to 6-1 while Nad Narimani makes it back to back victories and takes his overall record to 7-1 as he looks to push his way back to the top of the featherweight division.

Danny Roberts defeats Juan Manuel Suarez at Cage Warriors 64

Danny Roberts vs Juan Manuel Suarez Fight Review

by Ben Heather @benheather

Photo: Dolly Clew | Cage Warriors

Going in to this fight all the talk was about the return to action of Danny Roberts, who last fought back in July in his home town of Liverpool. At 9-1 and on a 3-0 run a lot of people have been wondering how long it will be before the UFC would want some "Hot Chocolate". However on Saturday night he came up against a very tough test in the form of Juan Manuel Suarez.

Roberts started the fight well with a good leg kick but it was Suarez who got Roberts to the ground first with a trip. From the bottom Roberts caught Suarez with a perfectly timed up kick. While on the ground Suarez latches on to an arm of Roberts and locks in an armbar. Roberts struggles to get out but in the end lifts up Suarez and dumps him back down on the mat to get him off. Suarez continues to look for the armbar and nearly has it again before the end of the round.

The first round seems to have gone Suarez's way and Roberts certainly comes out with more urgency in the second and takes the fight to Suarez getting him down on numerous occasions and looks to be implementing his game plan for this fight. By my card I had it even going in to the last round and it was time to see who wanted the W more.

The third round goes much the same as the second as Roberts keeps control of the fight dumping Suarez on his back again and looks to push for the win. Unfortunately for Roberts he couldn't get the stoppage but he did pick up the win 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 on the judges scorecards.

The fight proved to be a tougher test for Roberts than most fans expected however, the manner in which he pushed through this test will be good for Roberts as he continues his career. The next time we see Danny Roberts fight I expect it to be against a tough opponent ranked in the top 10 of Cage Warriors welterweight division.