Recapping UFC Fight Night 35, Plus Results
Tonight’s UFC Fight Night 35 was a decent night of scraps. We saw a pile of decisions, a few decisive finishes, and a whole mess of Middleweights. Here’s what struck me as interesting in these Wednesday bouts.
Isaav Vallie-Flagg: Jackson MMA is known as the elite of the elite schools, yet they’ve always had one trait that bothers me. They allow fighters to fight as themselves. This may not seem like such a bad thing, with guys like Jon Jones turning the Octagon into a real-life game of Tekken or Donald Cerrone turning it into a real-life Rambo; walking through fire for a win. However, guys like Keith Jardine, Leonard Garcia and Isaac Vallie-Flagg suffer from a clear lack of direction in their training. These guys are all notorious for being “bad” at technique yet manage to make careers due to their heart, power and other natural traits built into their fighting styles.
On one hand, that’s awesome that fundamentally broken fighters can make it work on their own terms, yet we saw tonight what happens with a fundamentally broken fighter meets someone with a bit of patience and far more skill. There was no shortage of fire from Vallie-Flagg, but his footwork and timing couldn’t possibly be worse; launching punches with feet in mid-air or staggering into range.
Silverio isn’t a world-beater, but he’s a smart man whom saw the limitations of Vallie-Flagg and stood right where he needed to every time, hitting effortless takedowns and clubbing him mercilessly with counter hooks and rapid straight shots. I’d like to think Vallie-Flagg goes back to the drawing board after this disappointing fight, but history repeats itself, especially at Jackson MMA.
Sam Sicilia vs Cole Miller: A fight that went nothing like I imagined, Sicilia found himself outgunned consistently against the suddenly busy Miller, getting juggled with punches and ultimately choked out. Sicilia is a likable guy, but his frame makes him an easy man to counter-fight; arms too short to jab and legs too short to close distance rapidly. To make matters worse, Miller fought brilliantly for once, going back to what allowed him to beat Ross Pearson ages ago: Using his reach and keeping active with both footwork and strike output. If Miller could consistently work this strategy, he would be well on his way to being a Featherweight version of Donald Cerrone, which is kind of funny if you think about the post-fight interview.
TJ Dillashaw: I’ve been hard on Dillashaw in the past, mostly for his firm belief that he’s Urijah Faber’s long-lost brother, yet he continues to impress with his advancing skill set. While I still hate that he hands his arms and uses the same shoulder shimmy move that Faber pulls of, sans the same ungodly reflexes, he’s starting to put together outstanding combination work and really working well within his range. He never over-pursued, never blew out his arms with wasted strikes, and always kept the pressure on, showing mastery of footwork and cerebral fighting. While he’s got a long way to go in the division, the prospects of Dillashaw landing a title shot look better every time.
Brad Tavares: One of the most criminally underrated fighters in the sport, Tavares came out strong tonight and demanded respect against Larkin in a performance that showed his mettle. Tavares is well-rounded, not just in terms of technical abilities across multiple platforms, but in a physical and mental sense as well. He’s gritty, has outstanding balance and endurance, plenty of strength, has a solid mind for fighting, and goes well under pressure. He doesn’t have a single weakness, and the only thing holding him back from a title is time and a few warm bodies in the way. Tavares could well be in the running with a couple more wins, and it’ll be about time he gets his due.
Complete UFC Fight Night 35 Results:
Main Card:
Luke Rockhold defeated Constantinos Philippou by 1st rd. TKO (2:31)
Brad Tavares defeated Lorenz Larkin by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
T.J. Dillashaw defeated Mike Easton by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Yoel Romero defeated Derek Brunson by 3rd rd. TKO (3:23)
John Moraga defeated Dustin Ortiz by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Cole Miller defeated Sam Sicilia by 2nd rd. Rear-Naked Choke Submission (1:54)
Preliminary Card:
Ramsey Nijem defeated Justin Edwards by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Elias Silverio defeated Isaac Vallie-Flagg by Unanimous Decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
Trevor Smith defeated Brian Houston by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Louis Smolka defeated Alptekin Ozkilic by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Vinc Pichel defeated Garett Whiteley by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Beneil Dariush defeated Charlie Brenneman by 1st rd. Rear-Naked Choke Submission (1:45)
About the Author (Author Profile)
I'm a 20+ year veteran of martial arts and a fan of MMA since UFC 1, when my world was thrown on its head by the budding sport. I'm obsessive in the pursuit of martial abilities and have competed across the country in everything from Vale Tudo to archery to Scottish broadsword. Once my body broke down, I picked up a pen and went in the direction of writing. I specialize in betting advice, predictions, and I'm a walking encyclopedia of MMA trivia. I own a cafe in Exeter, NH called Hammersmith Sandwich Company and write out of my office between customers.Subscribe
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