UFC 47: It’s On! Preview
Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz
Mar 30, 2004
Light Heavyweight Contender Bout: Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell vs.
“The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz
CHUCK LIDDELL: American kickboxer, collegiate wrestler at Cal Poly, former North American National Kickboxing Champion, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Purple Belt, IVC veteran, former IFC Light Heavyweight Champion, recognized as a top contender for UFC light heavyweight title, trains with John Hackelman, Scott Adams, Gan McGee and The Pit Fight Team as well as John Lewis and members of the Lewis/Pederneiras Vale Tudo Team, with a 13-3 record in MMA, making his 11th appearance (8-2) in the UFC
Abbreviated Fight History: Chuck Liddell wrestled at Cal
Poly and became an avid kickboxer. Liddell had his first MMA bout
at a Neutral Grounds event and faced a member of the Gladiator’s
Training Academy, beating him with strikes. Chuck made his Octagon
debut at UFC 17 in a preliminary bout. He traveled to Brazil to
fight in the International Vale Tudo Championships and battled
“Pele” Landi-Jons for half an hour in the Superfight. He returned
to the cage at UFC 19 and has remained committed to the UFC since
1999. Chuck has been to Pride on three occasions, scoring a KO win
over Guy Mezger in 2001, beating Alistair Overeem by KO in the
Pride Total Elimination middleweight tournament and losing to
Quinton Jackson by TKO in the semifinal round of that event. He now
returns to the UFC face Ortiz and get back in contention for the
light heavyweight title.
Liddell/Guy Mezger: Good stand-up war. Mezger was scoring frequently and controlled the pace of the bout early on. He threw a looping right hand late in the round that momentarily dropped Chuck. Mezger clearly won round one but his momentum was fading. In round two, Liddell had one thing in mind; ending the fight. He KO’d Mezger with a solid short right hand that made guy drop like a sack of wet cement.
Liddell/Paul Jones: Jones is not a big name in the sport but he’s a quality wrestler and was 18-0-1 in MMA at the time. Jones makes three quick attempts for takedowns, all thwarted by Liddell, before finally locking up on the side of the cage. They exchange strikes and again Jones goes for a takedown but Liddell sprawls out of danger and delivers knees to the top of the head and body. They separate and Chuck goes to work standing, delivering high kicks and punches to Paul’s weary head. Liddell avoids most every offensive tactic of Jones and is in complete control. Back on the feet Liddell misses with a high left roundhouse to the head but John McCarthy notices a huge cut on Paul’s head and stops the bout via medical stoppage.
Liddell/Vitor Belfort: Yet another #1 contender’s bout to determine who would never meet Tito for the title. Liddell put away the re-emerging Vitor Belfort in Chuck’s most impressive performance in a while and won a decision at UFC 37.5.
Liddell/Randy Couture: Most favored Chuck to win and few, if any felt he would be outgunned on the feet by another wrestler. Couture had the perfect gameplan; bring the fight to Chuck and don’t let up. He executed it to perfection and earned the interim title with strikes midway through the third round.
Liddell/Alistair Overeem: They both strike to open but Overeem gets inside with a knee. They continue to engage with Chuck swinging and Alistair kneeing. Overeem lands a short left that may have dazed Liddell but Chuck shoots in for the takedown. Alistair avoids it and gets back to his feet where both fighters separate and take to the center of the ring. Chuck has a cut over his right eye and Alistair continues to pressure with the knees but Liddell scores another takedown. Liddell controls from there as Overeem tries to fend off a series of knees to the head while on all fours. Alistair eventually gets back to his feet and shakes Chuck off. Overeem lands left knees to the body and hands to the head, wobbling Liddell in a good exchange. Liddell gathers himself while keeping Overeem at bay and mounts his attack. A series of right hands and a knee to the body set up a big hard right to the head and a short left that ends Overeem’s night.
Liddell/Quinton Jackson: Liddell “didn’t stick to the gameplan” if you ask Dana White and was rocked by Tito Ortiz training partner Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in the semifinal round of the Pride Final Conflict 2003 Middleweight Tournament. Chuck stood and struck with Jackson but virtually abandoned his kicks. Once on the mat, Jackson dominated position and punished Chuck until the bout was stopped at 3:10 into the second round.
Also worthy of note: Liddell battled Noe Hernandez (win/decision), Jose “Pele” Landi-Jons (win/decision), Steve Heath (win/KO), Jeff Monson (win/decision), Amar Suloev (win/decision) and Renato Sobral (win/KO)
Strengths And Weaknesses: Chuck brings big time striking ability and solid wrestling skills to the Pride GP. He has back to back KO’s (UFC, Pride) and a total of 4 KO’s on his record. Two of those are by kicks so his feet are nearly as deadly as his hands. Liddell’s wrestling ability cannot be discounted either. People forget this aspect of his game because he carries himself like a kickboxer. Sunday night we will likely see a little of everything because whoever intends to move on in this tournament had better bring their “A game”. Chuck’s weakness, given last loss in the UFC, appears to be ground defense. Couture controlled from the mount and Chuck looked unprepared. We also rarely see the submission aspects of Liddell’s game even though we know he works with leg lock master Scott Adams.
How He Can Beat Ortiz: Standing. Chuck has the ability to KO any opponent with kicks or punches. Most opponents he doesn’t hate. Taking out Tito will be a pleasure. If Chuck can avoid the takedown and keep Ortiz in his sites, he may be the first person to silence the “Bad Boy”.
TITO ORTIZ: American wrestler, 2-time California State Wrestling Champion (58-1 in Jr. College) semi-finalist at 2000 Abu Dhabi Submission Wrestling World Championships, current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, training with Colin Oyama, Ricco Rodriguez and members of Team Punishment, with an overall record of 12-3 in MMA, making his 13th appearance (9-3) in the UFC
Abbreviated Fight History: Tito was a wrestler at Golden West College and Cal Bakersfield. He always wrestled and when the original Huntington Beach bad boy David “Tank” Abbott needed a sparring partner, Ortiz stepped up. Tito can be seen in many of the early UFCs as part of Tank’s entourage. He fought in Neutral Grounds against UFC veteran Eugene “The Wolf” Jackson and then entered the UFC 13 tournament as an alternate with amateur status (fighting for no prize money to keep his eligibility). From there he was a fixture in the UFC. The loss to Frank Shamrock likely made him the driven fighter he is today as Ortiz is known for his supreme conditioning and drive to succeed. He won his title in Japan in ’00 in a bout with Wanderlei Silva. Tito took a decision victory and has held the title until he was beaten by former UFC Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture. Now Ortiz finds himself in position to move toward earning the title back. A win over former training partner Chuck Liddell will do a lot to push for a title shot against current champion Vitor Belfort.
Ortiz/Guy Mezger: A tale of two battles. Tito was winning the first bout but a cut stoppage allowed Mezger a second opportunity at victory. A headstrong Ortiz was easily guillotined for the choke. The second bout nearly 2 years later and Ortiz was more confident having beaten Lion’s Den fighter Jerry Bohlander. Tito battered Mezger and finished him with strikes in less than 10 minutes.
Ortiz/Frank Shamrock: Considered for a long time as the greatest UFC fight ever. In some opinions (mine for instance) the bout has been surpassed. Shamrock out worked and out muscled the larger but less technical Ortiz. Tito’s whole philosophy of fighting was revolutionized as a result of this bout.
Ortiz/Vanderlei Silva: Ortiz took the title in Japan by stifling Silva’s stand-up game and worked the mat to pull out the decision. Somehow I think a rematch would look dramatically different.
Ortiz/Vladimir Matyushenko: Tito controlled the tempo but had to work for everything he got. Ortiz only had a handful of takedowns by the 3rd round (yes, Vladdy was holding the fence) and he began to work the G’n’P. The outcome was never in doubt but the Russian wrestler is one of only three people to ever make Ortiz go the distance.
Ortiz/Ken Shamrock: A bout nearly 3 years in the making. Although obviously past his prime, Shamrock went toe-to-toe with the youthful champion and paid for it. It looked as though he momentarily stunned Ortiz early but Shamrock was never able to make the bout competitive. The legend, beaten down and bloodied up, was unwillingly passing the baton to the next generation of fighters in the UFC.
Ortiz/Randy Couture: Everyone saw it so I won’t give it the full treatment. Ortiz haters and fallen opponents around the world cheered as round by round the “old man” Randy Couture beat Ortiz to every takedown and schooled him in the cage. Many thought they would never see it. In Tito’s favor, he was not KO’d or submitted or even bloodied up and went the entire 5 rounds with the champion.
Also worthy of note: Ortiz battled Eugene Jackson (win/dec), Jerry Bohlander (win/cut stoppage), Yuki Kondo (win/neck crank), Evan Tanner (win/slam) and Elvis Sinosic (win/strikes)
Strengths And Weaknesses: Wrestling. No doubt Tito is a premiere grappler and submission wrestler. His Abu Dhabi performances coupled with his ring generalship have proven that countless times in the past. His conditioning is always phenomenal as well. Tito’s stand-up game is solid and he’s trained with enough boxers to stay on his feet for an entire round if necessary. As for a weakness, he needs to perform physically with the same intensity as he speaks. He always states he’s training 10 times harder than he did for his last fight but was completely dominated by a fighter he described as an “old man”. Again prior to this fight he is saying he has “changed everything” and he is “a completely different fighter” than the last bout. Time will tell.
How He Can Beat Liddell: With Ground’n’Pound. If Ortiz can avoid the stand-up battle and get Liddell to the mat, he can employ the same game he always uses and pound out a victory on the mat will elbows and knees to the head.
MY PICK: Liddell. Chuck was always quiet and reserved until this Ortiz mess started brewing. He seems genuinely ticked off and sometime the nicest guy, if a guy with a Mohawk and tattoos who knocks people down for a living can be described as “nice”, gets upset. Tito himself said Liddell had the upper hand in sparring sessions and I know the response was “but that was sparring, not a fight. This is a fight”. I seem to remember a certain former light heavyweight champion making a similar remark about a certain opponent’s wrestling prowess stating “but that was wrestling and this is a fight”. Do we ever learn? I just hope it isn’t a Randy Couture/Maurice Smith debacle. Somehow I don’t think it will be. I feel it will be Liddell by TKO from strikes in the 3rd Rd.
DOWN THE ROAD:
Liddell/Wanderlei Silva: This fight was supposed to happen way back at IVC 9 in Brazil, even before the Ortiz issues. If Chuck wins here, he should battle Silva as a title bout in the 2004 Pride GP.
Liddell/Randy Couture: It is a natural (no pun intended) follow-up. Chuck beat Vitor and lost to Couture. Randy should get the first shot Belfort for the title so whoever wins that bout should be Chuck’s next fight.
Ortiz/Rich Franklin: I’d like to see Tito in a ring instead of a cage and watch how his game evolves in a different setting. Franklin never got his fair shake in the UFC so Ortiz would have to get on an Inoki card for it to happen.
Ortiz/Vitor Belfort: How many times was this bout shelved? It should happen now but after Couture gets his crack at him, not before.
CHUCK LIDDELL: American kickboxer, collegiate wrestler at Cal Poly, former North American National Kickboxing Champion, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Purple Belt, IVC veteran, former IFC Light Heavyweight Champion, recognized as a top contender for UFC light heavyweight title, trains with John Hackelman, Scott Adams, Gan McGee and The Pit Fight Team as well as John Lewis and members of the Lewis/Pederneiras Vale Tudo Team, with a 13-3 record in MMA, making his 11th appearance (8-2) in the UFC
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Liddell/Guy Mezger: Good stand-up war. Mezger was scoring frequently and controlled the pace of the bout early on. He threw a looping right hand late in the round that momentarily dropped Chuck. Mezger clearly won round one but his momentum was fading. In round two, Liddell had one thing in mind; ending the fight. He KO’d Mezger with a solid short right hand that made guy drop like a sack of wet cement.
Liddell/Murilo Bustamante: Chuck next faced a heavy version of the
most recent UFC Middleweight Champion, Murilo Bustamante at UFC 33:
Victory In Vegas. Chuck’s condition for the fight was poor and it
was definitely a factor, prompting many to feel he lost the bout.
Murilo stood with him but Chuck won the first round through his
strong takedown defense and tagging Bustamante on a few occasions.
In round two, Bustamante established himself standing but had a
hard time taking Chuck down all night. The third round was
basically even but Liddell walked out with a unanimous
decision.
Liddell/Paul Jones: Jones is not a big name in the sport but he’s a quality wrestler and was 18-0-1 in MMA at the time. Jones makes three quick attempts for takedowns, all thwarted by Liddell, before finally locking up on the side of the cage. They exchange strikes and again Jones goes for a takedown but Liddell sprawls out of danger and delivers knees to the top of the head and body. They separate and Chuck goes to work standing, delivering high kicks and punches to Paul’s weary head. Liddell avoids most every offensive tactic of Jones and is in complete control. Back on the feet Liddell misses with a high left roundhouse to the head but John McCarthy notices a huge cut on Paul’s head and stops the bout via medical stoppage.
Liddell/Vitor Belfort: Yet another #1 contender’s bout to determine who would never meet Tito for the title. Liddell put away the re-emerging Vitor Belfort in Chuck’s most impressive performance in a while and won a decision at UFC 37.5.
Liddell/Randy Couture: Most favored Chuck to win and few, if any felt he would be outgunned on the feet by another wrestler. Couture had the perfect gameplan; bring the fight to Chuck and don’t let up. He executed it to perfection and earned the interim title with strikes midway through the third round.
Liddell/Alistair Overeem: They both strike to open but Overeem gets inside with a knee. They continue to engage with Chuck swinging and Alistair kneeing. Overeem lands a short left that may have dazed Liddell but Chuck shoots in for the takedown. Alistair avoids it and gets back to his feet where both fighters separate and take to the center of the ring. Chuck has a cut over his right eye and Alistair continues to pressure with the knees but Liddell scores another takedown. Liddell controls from there as Overeem tries to fend off a series of knees to the head while on all fours. Alistair eventually gets back to his feet and shakes Chuck off. Overeem lands left knees to the body and hands to the head, wobbling Liddell in a good exchange. Liddell gathers himself while keeping Overeem at bay and mounts his attack. A series of right hands and a knee to the body set up a big hard right to the head and a short left that ends Overeem’s night.
Liddell/Quinton Jackson: Liddell “didn’t stick to the gameplan” if you ask Dana White and was rocked by Tito Ortiz training partner Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in the semifinal round of the Pride Final Conflict 2003 Middleweight Tournament. Chuck stood and struck with Jackson but virtually abandoned his kicks. Once on the mat, Jackson dominated position and punished Chuck until the bout was stopped at 3:10 into the second round.
Also worthy of note: Liddell battled Noe Hernandez (win/decision), Jose “Pele” Landi-Jons (win/decision), Steve Heath (win/KO), Jeff Monson (win/decision), Amar Suloev (win/decision) and Renato Sobral (win/KO)
Strengths And Weaknesses: Chuck brings big time striking ability and solid wrestling skills to the Pride GP. He has back to back KO’s (UFC, Pride) and a total of 4 KO’s on his record. Two of those are by kicks so his feet are nearly as deadly as his hands. Liddell’s wrestling ability cannot be discounted either. People forget this aspect of his game because he carries himself like a kickboxer. Sunday night we will likely see a little of everything because whoever intends to move on in this tournament had better bring their “A game”. Chuck’s weakness, given last loss in the UFC, appears to be ground defense. Couture controlled from the mount and Chuck looked unprepared. We also rarely see the submission aspects of Liddell’s game even though we know he works with leg lock master Scott Adams.
How He Can Beat Ortiz: Standing. Chuck has the ability to KO any opponent with kicks or punches. Most opponents he doesn’t hate. Taking out Tito will be a pleasure. If Chuck can avoid the takedown and keep Ortiz in his sites, he may be the first person to silence the “Bad Boy”.
TITO ORTIZ: American wrestler, 2-time California State Wrestling Champion (58-1 in Jr. College) semi-finalist at 2000 Abu Dhabi Submission Wrestling World Championships, current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, training with Colin Oyama, Ricco Rodriguez and members of Team Punishment, with an overall record of 12-3 in MMA, making his 13th appearance (9-3) in the UFC
Abbreviated Fight History: Tito was a wrestler at Golden West College and Cal Bakersfield. He always wrestled and when the original Huntington Beach bad boy David “Tank” Abbott needed a sparring partner, Ortiz stepped up. Tito can be seen in many of the early UFCs as part of Tank’s entourage. He fought in Neutral Grounds against UFC veteran Eugene “The Wolf” Jackson and then entered the UFC 13 tournament as an alternate with amateur status (fighting for no prize money to keep his eligibility). From there he was a fixture in the UFC. The loss to Frank Shamrock likely made him the driven fighter he is today as Ortiz is known for his supreme conditioning and drive to succeed. He won his title in Japan in ’00 in a bout with Wanderlei Silva. Tito took a decision victory and has held the title until he was beaten by former UFC Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture. Now Ortiz finds himself in position to move toward earning the title back. A win over former training partner Chuck Liddell will do a lot to push for a title shot against current champion Vitor Belfort.
Ortiz/Guy Mezger: A tale of two battles. Tito was winning the first bout but a cut stoppage allowed Mezger a second opportunity at victory. A headstrong Ortiz was easily guillotined for the choke. The second bout nearly 2 years later and Ortiz was more confident having beaten Lion’s Den fighter Jerry Bohlander. Tito battered Mezger and finished him with strikes in less than 10 minutes.
Ortiz/Frank Shamrock: Considered for a long time as the greatest UFC fight ever. In some opinions (mine for instance) the bout has been surpassed. Shamrock out worked and out muscled the larger but less technical Ortiz. Tito’s whole philosophy of fighting was revolutionized as a result of this bout.
Ortiz/Vanderlei Silva: Ortiz took the title in Japan by stifling Silva’s stand-up game and worked the mat to pull out the decision. Somehow I think a rematch would look dramatically different.
Ortiz/Vladimir Matyushenko: Tito controlled the tempo but had to work for everything he got. Ortiz only had a handful of takedowns by the 3rd round (yes, Vladdy was holding the fence) and he began to work the G’n’P. The outcome was never in doubt but the Russian wrestler is one of only three people to ever make Ortiz go the distance.
Ortiz/Ken Shamrock: A bout nearly 3 years in the making. Although obviously past his prime, Shamrock went toe-to-toe with the youthful champion and paid for it. It looked as though he momentarily stunned Ortiz early but Shamrock was never able to make the bout competitive. The legend, beaten down and bloodied up, was unwillingly passing the baton to the next generation of fighters in the UFC.
Ortiz/Randy Couture: Everyone saw it so I won’t give it the full treatment. Ortiz haters and fallen opponents around the world cheered as round by round the “old man” Randy Couture beat Ortiz to every takedown and schooled him in the cage. Many thought they would never see it. In Tito’s favor, he was not KO’d or submitted or even bloodied up and went the entire 5 rounds with the champion.
Also worthy of note: Ortiz battled Eugene Jackson (win/dec), Jerry Bohlander (win/cut stoppage), Yuki Kondo (win/neck crank), Evan Tanner (win/slam) and Elvis Sinosic (win/strikes)
Strengths And Weaknesses: Wrestling. No doubt Tito is a premiere grappler and submission wrestler. His Abu Dhabi performances coupled with his ring generalship have proven that countless times in the past. His conditioning is always phenomenal as well. Tito’s stand-up game is solid and he’s trained with enough boxers to stay on his feet for an entire round if necessary. As for a weakness, he needs to perform physically with the same intensity as he speaks. He always states he’s training 10 times harder than he did for his last fight but was completely dominated by a fighter he described as an “old man”. Again prior to this fight he is saying he has “changed everything” and he is “a completely different fighter” than the last bout. Time will tell.
How He Can Beat Liddell: With Ground’n’Pound. If Ortiz can avoid the stand-up battle and get Liddell to the mat, he can employ the same game he always uses and pound out a victory on the mat will elbows and knees to the head.
MY PICK: Liddell. Chuck was always quiet and reserved until this Ortiz mess started brewing. He seems genuinely ticked off and sometime the nicest guy, if a guy with a Mohawk and tattoos who knocks people down for a living can be described as “nice”, gets upset. Tito himself said Liddell had the upper hand in sparring sessions and I know the response was “but that was sparring, not a fight. This is a fight”. I seem to remember a certain former light heavyweight champion making a similar remark about a certain opponent’s wrestling prowess stating “but that was wrestling and this is a fight”. Do we ever learn? I just hope it isn’t a Randy Couture/Maurice Smith debacle. Somehow I don’t think it will be. I feel it will be Liddell by TKO from strikes in the 3rd Rd.
DOWN THE ROAD:
Liddell/Wanderlei Silva: This fight was supposed to happen way back at IVC 9 in Brazil, even before the Ortiz issues. If Chuck wins here, he should battle Silva as a title bout in the 2004 Pride GP.
Liddell/Randy Couture: It is a natural (no pun intended) follow-up. Chuck beat Vitor and lost to Couture. Randy should get the first shot Belfort for the title so whoever wins that bout should be Chuck’s next fight.
Ortiz/Rich Franklin: I’d like to see Tito in a ring instead of a cage and watch how his game evolves in a different setting. Franklin never got his fair shake in the UFC so Ortiz would have to get on an Inoki card for it to happen.
Ortiz/Vitor Belfort: How many times was this bout shelved? It should happen now but after Couture gets his crack at him, not before.
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