UFC Fight Night on FX: Maynard digs deep for win

Guida v. Maynard

Clay ‘The Carpenter’ Guida’s locks needed to be tied up due to a complaint, not from his opponent, Gray ‘The Bully’ Maynard, but from Maynard’s camp. More problematic for Maynard in this fight is Guida’s broken rhythm and ridiculous pace. Maynard’s better wrestling pedigree and one punch KO power had him favoured slightly in this lightweight  eliminator.

Constant motion and a herky-jerky style, as well as a pair of bogus green ribbons tied in Guida’s hair, made it impossible for The Bully to bully Guida early on. Guida  opened a cut on Maynard’s nose by peppering with rabbit punches. By the middle of round two, Maynard began to cut off the cage and find some timing. Surprisingly, there wasn’t one take down attempt in rounds one or two.

Round three demonstrated why many fans can’t stand Guida’s style of zipping, zapping, moving, but not fighting. Maynard communicated those frustrations by giving Guida the finger and telling him, “Fuck you.” 

In the fourth Maynard had had enough of the lameness of Guida’s game by coming in, hands down, goading Guida to hit him. Guida obliged with a clean shot on the chin, and Maynard just smiled. That’s the difference between someone who wants to fight, and someone who won’t engage.

Both men landed big shots in the 5^th, but eventually the ref had to warn Guida for sprinting away from Maynard.

“I wanted to be respectful,” Maynard said of his goading, “But the stuff got old,” referring to Guida’s unwillingness to fight.

Gray Maynard won the split decision,  to the joy of fans frustrated with Guida’s antics. Guida’s record falls to 29-13, while Maynard's stands at 11-1-1.

Think twice before paying to see Guida fight.

Stout v. Fisher

London Ontario’s Sam ‘Hands of Stone’ Stout (19-7-1) and Spencer ‘The King’ Fisher (25-9) began their 155 pound rubber match where their first two fights had left off: standing in the pocket testing each other’s chins. Stout was on the wrong end of the early exchanges and answered with some solid take downs and ground and pound.

Fisher’s pace and speed were good answers for Stout’s technical Muay Thai striking and movement. Stout landed some gut-wrenching body blows to boot, but over two rounds, the stand up benefitted Fisher more than it did Stout, evident in the Canadian’s puffed, red face.

In the third, Stout began to land more combinations, which set up another take down, after which he advanced to half guard. Strangely, the ref stood the men up, which turned out to be a bad omen for Fisher. Stout began to land more freely, and by the end of the third, Fisher’s nose had opened split open.

Take downs and solid striking throughout earned Stout unanimous 30-27 scores from the judges. While not exactly a knock out artist---only one KO since 2006---Hands of Stone does take good punches. Perhaps his nickname should be ‘Jaw of Granite’.

Click here for all the results.

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