<B>By MATT MOLGAARD<BR>
MMANEWS.COM Staff Writer</B><BR><BR>
Well, we?re gearing up to usher in a new year, and given the holiday, I figure it?s a great time to run through a brief list of things that occurred in 2010 worthy of heartfelt thanks.<BR><BR>
<B>Jose Aldo Proves His Worth:</B> It?s one thing to win a title, it?s another to defend it. Jose Aldo, who took the WEC featherweight title from Mike Brown last year proved he?s the undisputed champion at 145 pounds in 2010 by outclassing two extremely dangerous contenders: former champion Urijah Faber and powerhouse Manny Gamburyan. While Faber managed to force Aldo to fight five full rounds for the first time in his career, he was never even close to making the bout competitive. Aldo punished the legs of Faber for 25 minutes and left the ?California Kid? hobbling out of the cage. As for Manny, he never made it to the third round, as Aldo put the UFC veteran to sleep early in the second frame with a barrage of brutal punches.<BR><BR>
<B>Frankie Edgar, The Unlikely Hero:</B> Frankie ?The Answer? Edgar answered any questions viewers may have had this year, as he bested dominant lightweight champion BJ Penn for the overall course of 10 rounds. The two first clashed in April, when Edgar outworked BJ Penn to take a narrow decision, as well as Penn?s belt. The fight was close enough to warrant an immediate rematch, which took place on August 28th. This time around, Edgar left no doubt in anyone?s mind who the superior champion truly is, as he easily outworked Penn for five more rounds to hold on to the lightweight belt. While this piece of MMA history may sting Penn fans, it?s good to see some shifts in one of the sports most dangerous divisions. It?s a nice reminder that anything can happen in MMA.<BR><BR>
<B>Bellator Fighting Championships Lives:</B> The American MMA fanbase has been holding their collective breaths, hoping that Bellator would avoid the IFL plague and manage to stay in business. Closing out the year, we can finally exhale. Bellator survived a second season, and they?ll be back to offer us a third come 2011. While still a very young promotion, things look promising. And while two seasons running isn?t indicative of untouchable popularity, it?s a step towards legitimate longevity.<BR><BR><!--more-break-->
<B>Anderson Silva Overcomes Adversity:</B> What happens when Anderson Silva fights a talented grappler with vicious ground and pound? He finds a way to sink a fight ending triangle choke with seconds left on the clock, that?s what happens. We?d all pondered this style clash, as none of Silva?s UFC opponents (save for a fading Dan Henderson) possessed the proper skill set and style preference to make this hypothetical clash a reality. None until brash contender Chael Sonnen fell into the fold, that is. For nearly 25 minutes Sonnen had his way with the champion, and as the fights clock ticked down it seemed we?d be eyeing a new middleweight champion. That?s when lightning struck and Silva managed the impossible, forcing a tap from the dominant Sonnen with less than two minutes remaining on the clock.<BR><BR>
<B>Paulo Filho Exits Contender Picture:</B> Paulo Filho was once a fighter to be feared. A physically powerful force of nature, Filho earned a reputation for submitting some of the best middleweights in the business. And then, in the blink of an eye, he threw it all away. Rumored drug problems lead to a decline in Filho?s performances, as the Brazilian began showing up for fights out of shape and off weight. What?s worse, he seemed completely indifferent, showing not a trace of remorse for the lack of respect he?d spilled forth on a sport that had treated he and his career quite well prior to 2010. In the last year Filho?s fought three times, securing victory just once. A draw to Denis Kang in July, followed by a loss to Marcos Rogerio de Lima in October have left Paulo a forgotten commodity. And that?s just fine, if you call yourself a professional fighter, act in accordance, or meet the Paulo Filho fail machine. Disrespecting the sport, the fans and fellow fighters is a no-no, and Filho is the perfect example of what happens when you hold your personal cash cow (In Filho's case, the sport of MMA as a whole) in such low regard.<BR><BR>
<B>Mirko ?Crocop? Filipovic Earns A Legit Victory:</B> There was a time when few favored the idea of entering a cage (or ring for that matter) with Croatian striker Crocop. His lethal left high kick rendered many a foe unconscious during his run in Pride, and his fists packed big power for a relatively small heavyweight. The days of fearing Crocop however, have disappeared. Filipovic has looked a shell of his former self since Gabriel Gonzaga delivered him a dose of his own medicine: a brutal fight ending high kick. He?s managed to rattle off a few victories since the defeat, but he?s now become a gun shy striker with limited resources due to his hesitance to let his strikes go. As a result, Crocop has lost a slew of recent fights to opponents that a prime Filipovic would?ve scoffed at before sending them to the hospital. While he lost his last bout against former champion Frank Mir, he did post an impressive come-from-behind submission victory over rising prospect and fellow kick boxer Pat Barry. Sadly, it may be the last quality win Crocop earns.<BR><BR><!--more-break-->
<B>Cain Velasquez Proves Skill Is Superior To Power:</B> Heading into his October 23rd showdown with UFC heavyweight champ Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez looked to be a fighters favorite, though none of us truly knew what to expect. Well, fighters were correct in their predictions of a Velasquez victory, though few believed he?d dispose of the champion in the fashion he did. In 4:12 Cain Velasquez nullified Lesnar?s ?unstoppable? wrestling, and delivered a beat down of epic proportions, blasting the champion with huge punches until Lesnar lay a defenseless, bloody mess. Welcome to the time of Cain, a heavyweight with the skillset of a welterweight.<BR><BR>
<B>Shogun Returns To Form:</B> When Mauricio ?Shogun? Rua made his way to the UFC he was touted as the best light heavyweight in the world. 15 fight minutes later and Forrest Griffin had stolen the aura, when he outworked Rua en route to a third round submission victory. Many wrote the Brazilian off, citing injuries as the premature death of his career. Rua however had other plans, as he began an impressive career rally in 2009. After stopping Mark Coleman and Chuck Liddell, he was awarded a shot at champion Lyoto Machida?s title in late 2009. The first bout made for a technical fight that most viewers believe Shogun decisively won; the judges however disagreed, and Machida kept his belt with a unanimous decision victory. But Shogun returned to prove his first performance against ?The Dragon? was no fluke, and in an immediate rematch he destroyed Machida with a flurry of punches that left the Karate practitioner unconscious in just 3:35.<BR><BR>
<B>Eddie Alvarez Reminds North America He?s A Top 5 Lightweight:</B> Eddie Alvarez is still a relative unknown in the North American MMA scene. He?s made quite the reputation for himself in Japan, tearing a hole through the Japanese circuits lightweight division. This year, courtesy of Bellator Fighting Championships, we Americans got a nice reminder of just how dangerous Alvarez is. Eddie took to the Bellator cage twice this year, and completely destroyed two durable UFC veterans in Josh Neer and Roger Huerta. Both of whom are notoriously difficult to finish, neither of which survived to see a third round with Alvarez. What?s more impressive, is the ease in which Alvarez disposed of both men; neither looked to ever be remotely near the skill level of the proud Philadelphian, and neither man ever offered the hint of a threat inside the cage.<BR><BR><!--more-break-->
<B>Nick Diaz Evens The Score With KJ Noons:</B> Nick Diaz and KJ Noons have nothing but bad blood for one another. In 2007 Noons managed to cut Diaz badly enough to prompt a doctors stoppage, and Nick Diaz - a warrior to the end - wasn?t too happy about it. Brash statements from Noons and plenty of smack talk from Diaz followed, and the two kept their heated rivalry alive for three years. On October 9th, a newly focused Diaz (who?d then put together an impressive seven fight win streak) took to the cage to rematch Noons at Strikeforce: Diaz VS Noons 2. This time around, we saw what we expected from the first clash, complete domination from Diaz, who outboxed the boxer to take a convincing decision win and even the score. Perhaps 2011 will offer a rubber match?<BR><BR>
These are just my personal highs of 2010. Your list likely differs to some extent, and we?d like to hear it - so be happy to share your thoughts with us in the comment section below!<BR><BR>
Source: http://www.mmanews.com/home.php
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