The mixed martial arts world has seen its fair share of action throughout 2012. So many memorable fights and moments stand out in each of the 12 months that have passed. As we look back at this year in the sport, we at MMA Ratings are picking out particular moments from every month that stand out amongst them all. These are some of the highlights that came from November 2012:
Fight of the Month: Georges St-Pierre vs. Carlos Condit, UFC 154
I was lucky enough to attend the UFC 154 welterweight
championship bout between Georges St-Pierre and Carlos Condit and I can say
that without a doubt it’s the best MMA fight I’ve ever witnessed live in
person. For five rounds, St-Pierre and Condit battled on the feet and on the
ground, but at the end of the day — and after a near knockout loss when Condit
surprised GSP with a head kick in the third round — St-Pierre retained his
title.
What makes St-Pierre’s performance most impressive is the fact
he was coming off a 19-month injury layoff after blowing out his knee and
having reconstructive surgery. But even with the long layoff, St-Pierre looked
fantastic on the feet and his trademark takedowns were money, too. Now,
St-Pierre fights Nick Diaz at UFC 158, while Condit fights St-Pierre’s teammate
Rory MacDonald. If both men keep winning, don’t be surprised if they eventually
rematch down the road, because that November 17 night in Montreal proved that
St-Pierre and Condit are the top two welterweights in the world.
Knockout of the Month: Cung Le vs. Rich Franklin, UFC on FUELTV 6
Just like everyone, I bet on Rich Franklin to defeat Cung Le.
And for a few minutes, things were looking good. Then, in the blink of an eye,
Le hit Franklin with a massive right hand that felled the former UFC
middleweight champion. In the UFC’s debut event in China, things couldn’t have
gone any better. Le’s KO on Franklin was the biggest upset of the year in many
people’s eyes, and earns Le the knockout of the month award for November.
After losing to Wanderlei Silva in his UFC debut, Le has now
defeated both Franklin and Patrick Cote in successive fights. For his next
bout, we’ll likely see Le against another huge name. Yeah, he’s 40-years old,
but he knows how to fight, and he’s incredibly exciting to watch. Expect Le to
fight someone like Alan Belcher, Tim Boetsch, or Hector Lombard in his next
fight, and continue to make an unexpected climb to the upper echelon of the UFC
middleweight division.
Submission of the Month: Ivan Menjivar vs. Azamat Gashimov, UFC154
It was a weird matchup from the start. Why did the UFC match up
veteran Ivan Menjivar against UFC newcomer Azamat Gashimov? It didn’t make any
sense. But after Gashimov scored a quick takedown against Menjivar in his hometown
of Montreal, all of a sudden those who picked “The Pride of El Salvador” to
easily win were nervous. But then, out of nowhere, Menjivar slapped a
Russian armbar on the Russian Gashimov, and just like that had earned himself
the “Submission of the Night bonus.” Stunning.
There weren’t many submissions in November but out of all of
them, Menjivar stood out. There was also Thiago Silva’s arm-triangle choke submission on Stanislav Nedkov at UFC on FUEL TV 6, but after Silva tested
positive for drugs after the bout there’s no way he can surpass Menjivar for
submission of the month.
With the win, Menjivar earned himself a date with former WEC
featherweight champion Urijah Faber at UFC 156, and if he wins that fight, he
could be in line for a title shot in the UFC’s bantamweight division. And it
couldn’t happen to a nicer guy.
Most Controversial Fight of the Month: Patrick Cote vs. Alessio Sakara, UFC 154
The first few minutes of the UFC 154 bout between Patrick Cote
and Alessio Sakara were crazy. Like most expected, Cote came out hot right off
the bat and started to beat Sakara up with punches. But Sakara’s chin held up
and all of a sudden it was Cote who was on the ground and Sakara dropped him
with a massive standing elbow to the temple.
Then, controversy ensued.
Sakara clearly hit Cote in the back of the head like five or
six times, but referee Dan Miragliotta didn’t warn him for the illegal shots
and stopped the fight. But after replays clearly showed Cote was knocked out
with illegal punches, Miragliotta reversed his decision on the fly and ruled
Cote the winner via DQ.
Yes, Cote deserved to get the win, but the way it went down was
funny. UFC president Dana White tried to book a rematch, but due to weight
cutting, Sakara’s kidneys forced him out of their second fight. Now, Cote is
dropping to 170 pounds while Sakara is sitting on the sidelines, so
unfortunately it doesn’t look like we’ll ever have any closure to this
incident.
Overall, November was a good month for MMA. Aside from UFC 154
and UFC on FUEL TV 6, the World Series of Fighting also held their first event
and the Score Fighting Series put on a great show up here in Ontario. But
ultimately the month will be remembered for St-Pierre’s return to the Octagon
and Le’s stunning KO on Franklin.
What do you think the Fight of the Month was? Be sure to rate these fights and others, so that your favorite fight can be considered for the 2012 Fans’ Choice award.
