Make Way For The New King Of San Jose

March 30, 2008

img_8481-le-vs-shamrock-03.jpgI didn’t have the guts to go all out and predict a Cung Le victory prior to his bout against Frank Shamrock but I wish I did because as far as performances by a fighter with six career MMA fights against someone with 34, this was one of the best ever. As for Shamrock, other than the fact that he was able to eat some of Le’s best shots (especially in the third round) I thought he fought a HORRIBLE fight. Le has no ground game while Frank does so why would he not try to expose him on said ground? Makes no sense. I know he wanted to prove all his doubters wrong but I am sorry to say that his ego was a major reason why he lost. Furthermore, all his antics during the match really got under my skin. I appreciate the fact that he’s a salesman and an entertainer but when it’s time to fight just shut up and fight.

Le needs to develop that KO power but last night he used his best kicks as an axe and just kept chopping away. Mauro Ranallo said it best when he referred to him as a lumberjack. It reminded me a lot of the Keith Jardine vs. Chuck Liddell fight from September.

All that said, I am not so quick to label this “fight of the year” just yet. This was more of a kickboxing than MMA match and that leads me to compare it to the great boxing bouts of 2008 which, in that case, it doesn’t quite measure up. I guess I am a little spoiled but for MMA fans that pay little attention to the sweet science I can sort of understand why they are giving it such high praise. It certainly was a an epic clash but when one fighter sweeps all three rounds its hard to call it a real classic.

One thing’s for certain, though, I hope that the next time we see Frank Shamrock get ready for a fight he will keep the talking to a minimum. I am all for showmanship and bravado but since signing with EXC he is 1-2 and I simply don’t want to hear any nonsense from a fighter who has lost two of his last three. Legend or not.

Photo courtesy of Tom Casino/Elite XC

  1. 3 Responses to “Make Way For The New King Of San Jose”

  2. I too think this was not the greatest fight ever as some have called it. No doubt that it was great and both men deserve a ton of credit but it was just a great main event and nothing more.

    I wonder where Cung Le goes from here? Rematch? If not, who is there to fight in Strikeforce or does EXC try to get him on a CBS show which seems to be the best idea.

    By Dubs on Mar 30, 2008

  3. I think the match was a perfect set up for a primetime rematch… for quasi mma heads this was an action packed, exciting and most of all an ENTERTAINING fight that will be very easy to consume on N-B-C.

    By Sang on Apr 1, 2008

  4. If Shamrock had healthy knees it would have been a different fight. He probably thought he could knock out Le the way he knocked out Baroni – not a bad assumption considering he looked twice Le’s size. Le, at 5’9″, looks heavy at 185 and should probably fight at 170-175 lbs (his best sanshou weight).

    Although Le dominated the stand up game, I was impressed by the way Shamrock connected with leg kicks and by the way he rocked Le once he connected with punches. Shamrock also showed that he has a great chin and a lot of heart.

    It was a bad idea for Shamrock not to take the fight to the ground. Had Shamrock taken Le down, he most likely would have won the fight. He did not shoot even once during the fight.

    It will be exciting to watch Le’s ground game progress. He currently has the best kicks in all of MMA. He is also a good wrestler with devastating throws and take downs. Once Le is more comfortable on the ground, he will eventually incorporate these techniques into his MMA arsenal. He will be even more dangerous -and even more exciting to watch – when he does.

    Congratulations to both men for an exciting fight and to Cung Le as the new champ.

    By Mat on Apr 16, 2008

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