You know MMA is mainstream when there are little girls making prediction videos and asking Dana White if they can be UFC cage girls when they grow up. Can UFC Barbie be far behind?

Tags: barbie, lyoto machida, prediction, thiago, UFC

Thiago Silva joins a long list of fighters who are frustrated with Lyoto Machida’s “elusive” style. And he hasn’t even fought him yet. But the two are scheduled to clash at UFC 94, and Thiago believes that he’ll be the first man to beat Machida. He intends to do this by keeping the pressure on.

In an interview with Sherdog, Silva had this to say:

“The opponents who have faced him attacked and stopped; I’ll have a different gameplan. I want to see how he deals with someone who’s in very good shape and attacks him for five minutes over three rounds. I’m not underestimating him. He’s a great fighter, but I’d bet on me. I’m not here to joke around. I have my goals, and I’m ready to beat Lyoto.”

And about Lyoto’s style, Silva told Sherdog:

“Lyoto’s a fighter who runs more than he fights. He’s not a fighter who will knock me out easily. He scores points, and I’ll make it hard for him to score. I already faced the toughest fighters. I believe it will be more of a psychological fight than a physical fight for me.”

Well, there you have it. Machida, aka roadrunner, has been making his opponents look as inept as Wily E. Coyote. We’ll see soon enough if Thiago will be the first one to actually catch up with the elusive Machida–without the help of an Acme rocket sled.

Tags: interview, lyoto machida, run, thiago silva, ufc 94

Lyoto Machida’s fighting style is often described as “elusive.” His opponents and critics, however, prefer to think of it as “boring.”

But the fact is that Machida remains undefeated and his style has beaten everyone from BJ Penn to Rich Franklin to Tito Ortiz. So it’s not surprising that Machida bristles when people call him boring.

In a recent interview with Bloody Elbow, Machida addressed the issue:

“Everyone has their own opinion and I really respect that. I am a martial artist, there is a lot of thought and strategy that goes into the way I fight. Give me time and in the future every one will understand my style.  It is like jiu-jitsu in the beginning (UFC 1, 2, 3…), it was boring but now it is necessary. If you don’t like it, sorry.  I always try to win. For some that is boring, I know, but I am beating the best in the world.  After my fights I do not have nothing on my face, no scratches, no bruises.  I am like a ghost they can not find me. If that is boring, that is their opinion.  But I will be there for long time WINNING.  Let everyone underestimate me. I will always be training ready for the next.”

Now there are ghosts and there are ghosts.  I don’t think Machida fits into the Casper the Friendly Ghost category.  He’s more like Ghost Rider.

Tags: boring, interview, like a ghost, lyoto machida, UFC

Oh man, Rich Franklin just finds it hard to stay awake when Machida is fighting. When they fought each other back in 2003, Lyoto put Rich to sleep with his fists. Now he’s putting him to sleep with his style.

In response to a question at a UFC fan-club session prior to UFC 91, Franklin had this to say about fighting Machida again:

“I’d fight him. The thing about a Machida fight that isn’t appealing to me is that stylistically, Machida is kind of a boring fighter. That’s not a putdown. It’s not a putdown. He’s very, very effective. He’s good at what he does. He’s constantly backing away and forces his opponent into mistakes, and that’s how he catches you.”

I hear ya, Rich. For fans, Machida can be frustrating to watch because his “elusiveness” can sometimes be interpreted as “safety first” and UFC fans are more keen on seeing guys like Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin who prefer to mix it up more.

Still, you can’t deny Machida’s talent and skills. He’s here to stay.

Prop to MMAJiuJitsuFighter for the ‘Shop

Tags: boring, lyoto machida, MMA, rich franklin, snoozefest, UFC