I’m naming this my post-opinion review after I spent Sunday and Monday randomly dropping by some blogs and discussing UFC 84 with friends and other fans for most of the day. I must say… I was surprised by some of the opinion surrounding the event, and it somewhat made me see the divide that there is within the MMA fanbase.

Most notably, the style matchup between Lyoto Machida and Tito Ortiz was the most argued about fight of the evening. Many fans absolutely hate the fact that Machida eludes his opponents and rarely strikes while hardcore fans appreciate his style. I fall in the latter category of being a huge fan of Machida because he understands one basic principle to the fight game. To hit and never be hit, that’s the ultimate goal. Of course, fighters get hit, but the key to the fight is to avoid as much damage as you can in while dishing out your own. There are exceptions to that generalization though. Some fighters slug it out, take the hits, but ultimately knock their opponents out first. Those are the fights that casual fans want to see, not Lyoto Machida masterfully countering.

It wasn’t a huge surprise when various blogs around the Internet blasted Machida for being ‘boring’ and eluding Tito’s standup game while countering with kicks that scored points. Fightlinker stated that Machida was basically winning two to three exchanges and then being elusive for the rest of the fight, and other writers stated that his style needs to change in order to end fights. Specifically, he landed a heavy knee that crumpled Ortiz to the floor. Some fans believe Lyoto was slow to finish the fight after the knee.

While I don’t agree with those opinions, I can see where their roots are coming from. Lyoto isn’t a Wanderlei Silva. He isn’t an explosive striker, but he’s a smart tactician that uses his unusual style to demoralize opponents. It’s almost a masterpiece to see in the cage. Other fans would say its complete garbage, and someone needs to stop him. He wins fights decisively without a doubt, and he has had some drive to finish fights. It’s amazing to me that people still cling to the concept of two guys simply going toe-to-toe for the knockout is the ultimate ‘awesome’ fight.

Sherk vs. Penn

One of the other amazing opinions I heard from some casual fans and friends was that Sherk had better striking that Penn during the event. I can probably attribute this to see Sherk’s massive arms quick throw jabs at Penn. None of them actually landed, and it really didn’t take a keen eye to see Penn’s jabs landing at will all over Sherk’s face. There’s a reason why it has been said that Penn possesses K-1 striking skills.

I didn’t hear any of the same opinions once the fight finished, but Sherk had a horrible gameplan. I’m not too sure why he wasn’t trying to topple onto Penn for top control, but maybe all that hype and smack that Sherk had said before just wasn’t in his mind come fight time. It’s possible that he was scared of Penn’s jiu-jitsu.

Gouveia vs. Reljic

The only fight of the night I didn’t pick was Gouveia vs. Reljic. I mistakenly thought Reljic wasn’t as big as he looked during the fight, and it cost me. While he wasn’t unbelievably impressive, he did have some great power that caught Gouveia off guard a few times. Why did I pick Gouveia?

Oddly enough, I bought into some of the hype, and I’ll never do that again. While I didn’t believe Gouveia was going to be in contention if he won like Yahoo! Sports did, I did think he could beat Reljic. Unfortunately, I was wrong. Reljic wasn’t that impressive though, and I doubt he’ll make waves in the division like people are claiming all of the sudden. Having Roger Gracie as your jiu-jitsu coach helps, but it doesn’t make you an insta-legend.

Wanderlei Silva vs. Keith Jardine

The fight went exactly as I expected, and it was made evident that Jardine isn’t a great matchup against aggressive strikers with big power. Alexander and Silva both used their aggression to get inside on Jardine quickly, and it paid off big time for Silva in this fight.

A lot of fans were confused after this one. How could Silva absolutely crush Jardine, but Chuck had huge problems? Chuck’s gameplan during his fight with Jardine had one flaw that hampered what he could do against Keith. Jardine’s leg kicks were effective for most of that fight, but Chuck managed to reset his stance after nearly every kick. This caused Chuck to lose rhythm in nearly every single round, and he never really got going the way he did against Silva.

Newcomers dominate

I found it very hard to believe anyone picked Koppenhaver over Yoshida, but it happened. I bet large on Yoshida with the peace of mind in knowing he would crush Koppenhaver. A lot of fans picking “War Machine” had doubts that Yoshida would do well in the cage since he was from Japan. The problem is that Yoshida is a nightmare in Cage Force in Japan.

Palhares was another great bet for me as he was underdog’d by nearly all the betting sites. Big mistake. Palhares has a great submission game, and he showed it with an impressive armbar from the back transition. He’ll likely break out some leglocks later down the line as well. He should be a man to watch out for… definitely a smaller Paulo Filho.

Shane Carwin looked good as well, although I must say that his striking wasn’t unbelievably impressive. He has some great power though, and will be a good addition to the Heavyweight division for the future of the UFC.

Overall opinion

I thought the event was absolutely fantastic. I loved the Machida-Ortiz battle for the mere fact that all the hype surrounding Ortiz’s tiff with Dana White concluded with Ortiz being unable to catch Machida. The highlight of the fight for me came from the knee, but hilarity ensued when Tito dropped his hands in disapproval of Machida’s tactics only to get one-two’d directly in the kisser.

Silva is back for right now, but he may approach tougher opponents with a different gameplan. I love to see the aggressive Axe Murderer in the cage, and hopefully that style of fighting will continue to be his foundation.

Watch out for Yoshida and Palhares. They are the real deal, and Carwin may actually be a formidable opponent as well, but I’d like to see more. His ground game is apparently one of his stronger points.

As we watch UFC 84’s highly anticipated main event card this weekend, think about a few things before rushing to judgment on what you really think of Tito Ortiz in the context of how it can benefit the UFC or another promotion in the long run. Here are a few factors that surround his matchup with Lyoto Machida:

• Ortiz is fighting the #1 contender after Forrest Griffin for the Light Heavyweight title
• Ortiz has proven that he is a drawing power for the UFC, and that he has a very recognizable name to the casual fanbase
• A win will not only give him a much needed kick up the rankings ladder, but also solidify his spot as a top fighter in the UFC’s LHW division once again.
• The amount of trash talk that Tito will likely spout throughout the media could potentially hurt the UFC’s image as having the best fighters in the world
• And finally… Ortiz may be hated by many, but he still produces buys from those individuals

While many of those factors on the list are small in comparison to the big picture in that Tito Ortiz is one of the higher drawing fighters that the UFC has, combining all of those factors together creates a huge problem for the UFC.

The most prominent issue will be his drawing power. Ortiz has made a career as a hype machine. He’s able to not only use his mouth to promote fights, but he’s also proven it in the cage. While he hasn’t had the most impressive run as of late, we have yet to see if Tito Ortiz at 100% can produce the results he did in the past.

Ortiz’s antics and confidence seem to bring out the haters and the lovers at the same time. We either love him or hate him, but nonetheless, pay to see Tito Ortiz fight. It’s a quality that cannot be thrown away. I’ve sometimes compared his antics to that of Muhammad Ali’s hype tactics when he fought Sonny Liston. Ali would go to Sonny’s gym and heckle him while he actually trained. With cameras rolling, Liston and Ali nearly scrapped at the gym.

While Ortiz isn’t at the same status as Ali ever was, his promoting ability to the fight game is similar. Can the UFC allow him to leave the promotion if he happens to knock off the UFC’s next contender? It would be very doubtful that they would allow such a drawing fighter to leave the UFC and likely land at EliteXC, a promotion with an even bigger stage in CBS primetime. Ortiz’s personality could potentially thrive there.

Regardless of what people think, Ortiz can draw fans with opposite views of him and it’d be a huge mistake if the UFC allowed him to leave, win or loss. If Tito happens to defeat the elusive Lyoto Machida on Saturday night, there is no question that the UFC must keep Ortiz in the mix if they want to continue profiting from his out-of-the-cage personality.

Sean Sherk vs. BJ Penn

The most anticipated bout so far this year has to be BJ Penn vs. Sean Sherk. With Sherk’s positive steroid test and the UFC stripping him of his title, he definitely has much to prove to the UFC fanbase. Penn is also trying to prove that he has changed his ways from being only a fighter who relies on talent to a fighter who has the cardio and determination to dominate in the UFC. Any way you look at this fight, it’s going to be an epic war.

Stylistically, it’s a damn good matchup. Sherk has unbelievable cardio, great wrestling skills, and an active enough ground and pound game to keep the fight on the ground. Penn has K-1 striking abilities, good power, world class grappling game coupled with amazing flexibility, and an improved gas tank. Penn should have a standing advantage while Sherk’s wrestling skills should be the controlling factor on the ground. The x-factor lies in Penn’s jiu-jitsu and ability to attempt submissions with Sherk’s massive physique on top of him. If Penn can create some dangerous situations for Sherk, it could cause some shifts on the ground and potentially allow Penn to submit or at least escape to the feet where he can strike.

Historically, Sherk has only had problems with bigger Welterweights Georges St. Pierre and Matt Hughes. St. Pierre had some great striking abilities to counter his shoots, and Hughes was the better wrestler. Penn will have a striking advantage, but it’ll be interesting to see how his flexibility becomes a factor in avoiding the takedowns.

Penn’s losses were to a much bigger Lyoto Machida, a controversial decision to Georges St. Pierre, Jens Pulver, and to Matt Hughes at UFC 63. Penn claimed to have been hurt during his bout with Hughes, and it’s been speculated whether Penn simply ran out of gas due to a rib injury. Of course, that’s all in the past. A healthier Penn with a bigger gas tank could be the key to success against Sherk in this case. History would certainly point toward those areas needing improvement, and Penn has trained to do so.

Who should I pick? It’s a tough call. Many writers are leaning toward Sherk due to his wrestling ability being a huge problem for Penn. Ben Fowlkes pointed out that Penn has had problems against both St. Pierre and Matt Hughes in the wrestling department, and that his standup striking hasn’t been a finishing factor since Paul Creighton. I disagree. Penn was defeating St. Pierre with below average cardio and damaged St. Pierre much more than anyone I’ve seen. Penn dominated Hughes in their first matchup, and was likely disadvantaged from the rib injury in their second fight. As for his striking, it’s still an effective way to damage opponents which usually causes them to try to shoot to the ground to recover. Penn is damaging his enemies with his strikes, but most of those opponents get submitted as they try to escape to the ground to avoid damage.

I’m going to take Penn by TKO/KO here. I think Sherk has some great submission defense, but Penn has the great striking to pick apart Sherk steadily and eventually pound him out. To be perfectly honest, I can see Penn pushing the damage to a point where Sherk sloppily shoots for horrible takedowns that leave him open for the submission, but I think Penn will want to make a statement here.

Leland’s Prediction: BJ Penn via TKO/KO, Round 3

Lyoto Machida vs. Tito Ortiz

I’d have to see some significant changes from Tito Ortiz during the fight to give him a chance in this one. His last performance wasn’t his best, and it led to many fans claiming that Ortiz has past his prime of fighting in mixed martial arts. While I agree that he’s lost some of his old school beatdown skills, he’s still a fairly decent fighter against mid-tier talent. Is Machida a mid-tier fighter? No, he isn’t.

Ortiz has claimed that he’ll push the pace, get in Machida’s face, and put him into a world of pain on the ground where he likely won’t be able to use his elusiveness to evade. Although I believe only a quicker fighter can defeat Machida at this point and that the strategy he claims he wants to use has potential to work, can Ortiz actually pull it off? I don’t think so.

Ortiz hasn’t shown blazing speed in the cage, and Machida eats opponents alive when they bull rush him into the cage. While Machida may not have impressive knockout power, I still believe he possesses it. Great counter-striking has stopped Ortiz in the past, and Machida’s ground game isn’t a weakness for Ortiz to exploit.

Leland’s Prediction: Lyoto Machida via unanimous decision

Keith Jardine vs. Wanderlei Silva

As with most of the MMA action recently, here’s a little in-depth analysis of the betting odds that have been released. Fans can head over to Bestfightodds.com for an aggregation of all the odds around the Internet, but for the most part, they fall within +/- 50. Let’s check out some of the better deals out there for those of you wanting to cash in on some underdogs.

BJ Penn vs. Sean Sherk

While I adamantly made my case that BJ Penn will defeat Sean Sherk, I’m still curious about winning money. Sherk’s line is around +200 - +215, which is a solid bet considering Sherk’s dominance in the lightweight division over the years. He’s a solid fighter with a great ground game. If you think he can lay n’ pray his way to victory, by all means, place some money on him.

Lyoto Machida vs. Tito Ortiz

I normally wouldn’t make this bet. He’s at +175 - +185 on most betting lines, and his last few performances haven’t exactly been impressive. Machida, on the other hand, is such a strategist in the cage; it’ll be hard to defeat him in any capacity. Tito has stated he’s 100% though, and at 100%, we may actually see a Tito of old. I wouldn’t bet on it personally, but if you believe Tito can really put Machida into danger on the ground, he is the underdog bet.

Keith Jardine vs. Wanderlei Silva

I like this line a lot. Jardine has great reach to stay away from Wanderlei for the three rounds, and it could end up being another decision matchup that sees Jardine winning. I have a bit of favoritism toward Wanderlei, but when it comes to money, bet on who you think wins the style matchup. This should be a decent bet.

Ivan Salaverry vs. Rousimar Palhares

I’ve been unbelievably impressed with Palhares since his Fury FC leglock display on two quality opponents. Negao and Acacio were crushed by his leglocks, and while Salaverry is a venerable opponent and veteran of the sport, Palhares could very well be a Paulo Filho clone.

Other action…

Yoshida vs. Koppenhaver has been a hot topic with Koppenhaver as the underdog. Stay away from that one as Yoshida has been an animal in Cage Force in Japan. He uses the cage very well to his advantage, and I don’t see Koppenhaver having an easy time with him at all. Plus, he’s only at +135 - + 150, not huge money to be won.

Etim vs. Clementi has been discussed a lot. While Clementi is my favorite to win, Etim has a chance. I would still recommend staying away from the bet on Etim though. He’s taken some beatings in the past and luckily won via some great submission work. He can’t continue to win with such luck as he moves up in competition.

Good luck with your betting everyone, and check out BetUS for your betting needs. Click the link below if you want to get started over there and make some solid bets for this weekend’s UFC event.

Sherdog.com's Greg Savage sat down with Tito Ortiz for an interview that has some great insight into the mindset of Ortiz as he steps into the Octagon for his last fight for the UFC this weekend against Lyoto Machida. Savage asked Ortiz during the interview to tell the camera a few good things that Dana White has done for him and the sport in the past. The answers were very interesting and should give fans a look at what the beef is between Ortiz and the UFC. Check it out here, props to Greg Savage.

Ortiz talks about Dana White's tenacity as a manager and as a businessman and how the two occupations differed in many ways. He stated that he loved having White on his side when negotiating contracts, but he became a monster once he took over the UFC with the Fertitta's. He mentions the evidence of Dana White's obsession with becoming a superstar. Namely, he talked about Dana White being focused on heavily in the Ultimate Fighter reality series.

One of the more intriguing ideas Ortiz threw around were once again the figures. He talked about the million dollar deals that the UFC has been pushing, and the fighters aren't seeing any of the benefits. He named off the SpikeTV $100 million dollar deal as a basis for one of his arguments.

The lowdown

Ortiz actually makes some solid points. Although his numbers aren't accurate, the machine that is the UFC remains the biggest money making venture in MMA today. In fact, they make much more than any other promotion in the game right now. With many of the North American promotions failing, the UFC stands to make even more money through sponsorships, events, and exploring new markets. Add in the fact that MMA is pushing to be sanctioned in new states, the UFC could make a killing in some of the larger markets such as New York City.

So, does Tito have a point? Should the fighters be making more money? Of course they should! Although the pay has steadily increased a bit, the UFC still makes much more than the total fight purses at each event. The one underlying factor that we don't know is the percentage of cuts they must give to PPV providers, PPV revenue agreements in contracts to fighters, and production costs.

Has the UFC shit all over Tito Ortiz? In my mind, it's hard to really say without accurate numbers, but Tito Ortiz did manage to help make the UFC relevant throughout it's infancy. The problem for Ortiz is that today is what gets you the big money, and today... he isn't the world championship caliber fighter that he once was. A big win for Ortiz on Saturday could very well put him back into that class though, so this could be a do-or-die fight for his career to take back off again.

As we move into the coming week before UFC 84, many questions are going to be asked in regards to the three main card matchups that will be featured. One of those questions will be whether or not the Axe Murderer is going to be the fuel behind Wanderlei Silva. Is the dominating terror from PRIDE going to steamroll Keith Jardine?

From a fan’s perspective, I must argue a biased opinion that Wanderlei Silva must come into this bout with a hunger to destroy Keith Jardine. Playing it safe will never be Wanderlei’s gameplan and his legacy as an absolutely scary nightmare of an opponent needs some validation to the UFC fanbase. There were days in the past when Wanderlei’s entrance to the PRIDE ring caused shivers down spines and created hysterical excitement from even the most hardcore fans. Those days have passed by, but I believe Wanderlei has one more run in his tank.

Luke Thomas pointed out that Jardine’s style doesn’t bode well for Silva’s assumed gameplan of rushing forward. His analysis is spot on that Jardine’s use of his range will be a formidable counter to Silva’s rushes, and it should be a big test to see whether Silva can get inside on Jardine. While I agree with his assessment, I’m going to go against the grain in this particular matchup. I’m picking Wanderlei Silva.

As of late, I’ve been increasingly becoming more and more disappointed with the current pedigree of fighters coming out of the minor leagues. While I understand that wrestling and ground control is a huge advantage, it makes for some ridiculously boring battles at times. Jiu-jitsu’s chess game and strategy adds a lot of excitement for me, but the ground and pounders with little submission ability continue to litter the canvas of the future. The only real plus is that there is still a lot of talent out there that hasn’t reached my ears yet that will likely surprise us all.

I’m ready to move back to a nostalgic period for one weekend. I want to see the old Wanderlei Silva. The man who came to the ring with a grudge on his face, an evil stare that could strike fear into your heart, and the menacing demeanor that was the Axe Murderer. In his most recent bout with Chuck Liddell, I saw the Silva that wanted to please fans. I want to see the Silva that needs to prove to us that he is still menacing. All business, heavy hands, relentless rushes, and no guts, no glory… one last run for the fans who remember your dominance.

Fightlinker pointed this out in a posting on their website, and I just got around to checking out the article from MMAWeekly on Yahoo! Sports this afternoon. I must say that Mitch Gobetz is likely trying to create some hype around Gouveia’s matchup with Goran Reljik, but the article smells of garbage claims. While I think Wilson Gouveia is a venerable opponent in the mid-tier of the Light Heavyweight division, I fail to see how Gouveia defeating Goran Reljik would “propel” him into a contention spot or even a mention of being considered in the contention group of fighters. Here are a few statements that I’m calling “inventive”:

• In his most recent fight, Gouveia faced off against the highly touted Jason Lambert. He passed his test with flying colors, knocking out Lambert in the second round to secure a place for himself in the list of top contenders at 205 pounds.

Giving credit where credit is due, Fightlinker tells the tale of how Gouveia was being dominated until he took advantage of Lambert’s horrible flailing striking skills. Passing the test with flying colors was hardly the situation in that battle and Gouveia barely escaped. The fight also proved that Gouveia really won’t be able to break into the contention as he was dominated by the top control game of Lambert.

• When Gouveia knocked out Lambert, most would believe that his next fight would be against a top ranked opponent. While Gouveia is slightly disappointed about not getting a top ranked contender, he does not take Reljik lightly.

Who was surprised that Gouveia didn't get to fight a top ranked opponent after defeating Lambert? I sure wasn’t. What justifies the idea that he deserves a top ranked opponent? If Dana White’s history of creating matchups is any indication, being dominated and luckily winning in the end surely doesn’t deliver you to the promise land that is contention for the UFC’s light heavyweight title. Gouveia definitely needs more fights, and the LHW division has such a large roster of great fighters. It’ll likely be awhile before you even think about entering contention.

While these are blatantly aimed at getting this fight some recognition and Gouveia some time to show his drive to want to fight mixed martial arts and for the title, I still get a sense that Gouveia is underestimating Reljik excessively. He mentions in multiple quotes that he “thought he’d get a tough fight” implying that Reljik will be a pushover. He claims he will knockout Reljik and that he’s going to try for one of the big bonuses as well. It just seems a bit much for Gouveia to be spouting off just because he caught a sloppy striking Jason Lambert after being punished on the ground.

Prove me wrong, Wilson.

Jason MacDonald doesn't get it. The 19-9 "Athlete" will take on Joe Doerksen, who sports a pitiful 1-5 record in the UFC and recently lost to TUF alum Ed Herman in an exciting 3 round war that ended with Herman's fist on Doerksen's chin. Despite the lost, Doerksen nearly had Herman submitted near the end of the second round, only to be saved by the bell. In any case, Doerksen at least provided some excitement to an otherwise uninteresting matchup for casual fans. Doerksen now faces a stiffer challenge in Jason MacDonald, the fight set for UFC 84 in Canada.

So, why am I saying MacDonald just doesn't get it? Plain and simple. Doerksen is Canadian, MacDonald is Canadian, clash of the Canadians on a Canadian card. When hasn't the UFC done something like this before? They do it quite often in the same areas of the country, pitting Ohio boys against one another or Midwesterners, or even Brazilians. The fact is that it's something they can minimally promote with at least some payoff in those regions. It also provides for some potential animosity between the two combatants, and it looks like MacDonald is now fueling some fire for Doerksen.

Secondly, Doerksen will be looking to revenge his loss to MacDonald, and to be perfectly fair, his jiu-jitsu is still dangerous to many fighters. Do I think MacDonald will be beaten by Doerksen? Probably not considering the beating he dished out on Doerksen in their last matchup, but the biggest factor in the works for this fight is the talent level in the division.

Silva cleaned it out. Franklin beat both MacDonald and Okami, the two front runners. MacDonald taking on a guy he already beat once isn't the end of the world for MacDonald's comeback to the top. Most importantly, he should rack up a good solid win over Doerksen, and then the UFC should set up a battle between MacDonald and some of the guys he himself has mentioned.

Bisping, Almeida, or Tanner would be great fights, and I'd much rather see those matchups right now. MacDonald has created some fire though. He has verbally said that this fight shouldn't be taking place because he's already beaten Doerksen. This could be a dark horse candidate for a bad blood matchup at UFC 84. Keep an eye on it.