You declared you would be three inches taller
You only became what we made you
Thought you were chasing a destiny calling
You only earn what we pay you
– Pete Townsend

Although this UFC promised to be the "rebirth," the "launching pad" into a new MMA millennium, one thing is for certain; Randy Couture upset everybody's plans with some good ole fashioned ass kicking. C'mon folks, wake up! What where you thinking? Did you really think some self proclaimed "bad ass" high school wrestling champ from Cali could man handle an Olympic level Greco Roman national champion veteran?  
 
The punk indeed met the Godfather, and everybody else was duped for thinking Tito would crush Couture. As Chuck D and Flavor Flave put it. "Don't believe the hype."
Is it that we respect big talkers rather than humble men? Has MMA suddenly become a popularity contest where you prove yourself with image and publicity and attitude, when it's really about the dukes? I think that this was Tito's first real proving ground as a "defending champ." In his younger days Tito had already lost to Frank Shamrock and the gutsy Guy Metzger, and I say gutsy because Metzger stepped into the great big world of MMA competition, something that Ortiz has thus far avoided.

Let's face it, there are conquerors and there are housekeepers. Perhaps his only real challenge up to date was against Wanderlei Silva, who definitely shook Tito's foundation in the Octagon. Tito played the usual wrestling riding game, "lay and pray" controlling the top position and received the judges' favor. Usually Tito has been the bigger more powerful fighter in this Light Heavyweight division, having out powered and slammed many opponents, but Couture truly out muscled, out thought, and out maneuvered the younger grappler. Couture controlled Tito's limbs like a Judo man, completely avoiding being taken down. He used leverage extremely well, and kept his elbows constantly on Tito's face.
What most amazes me is the lack of respect that Team Quest leader Couture receives from both the fans and the promoters. Randy had to tip over Tito's "octa - nest" to finally get some respect. I think he was feeling like the Rodney Dangerfield of MMA, while Tito was "Arnold, the man who would be king." The joke here turned out to be on everyone. I won't go as far as saying that Tito is a joke, but he was definitely taken to school and had the attitude beaten and rubbed out of him. Perhaps a little rumble against Sakuraba would liven his spirit, and allow him to prove himself as the champ he has been packaged to be.  

Also, perhaps its time the fans opened their eyes to this spectacle, which is much more intricate than what meets the eyes. The more this sport grows, the more we learn that things aren't, as they seem. Fans need to put their preconceptions of "what a fight is" aside, especially now that more and more full time MMA fighters are entering the Octagon.
One thing the promoters did get right was bringing in the exciting 170 lb match ups between Judo magnifique, Karo Paryssian vs. Dave Strasser as well as Nick Diaz (Cesar Gracie Jiu- Jitsu disciple) and "The Scorpion" Jeremy Jackson. Both these matches were extremely exciting and technical. Karo Paryssian is the man to watch out for. He is superbly, artfully, and eloquently skilled in throws, locks, strikes, and submissions. He finished off the scrappy veteran with a Kimura in the first round. Diaz also pulled off an arm bar after a back and forth spidery roller coaster match. Also heads up for the working class man from Laborers Local 609 in Framingham, MA. In his UFC debut he took out Canadian legend David "The Crow" Loiseau. The Crow had pecked away at "The Conquistadors" head with powerful elbows, which were no chicken wings. Rivera wound up with two huge gashes on his left cranium, and lost the first two rounds of a close battle. But this Boriqua's heart is bigger than a sky scrapper, and his head is harder than a hard hart. He sucked it up and came back and punished Loiseau who ran out of stamina. Rivera nailed The Crow with an uppercut, which made him tumble from the sky right before the final bell, and won by a unanimous decision.

Also the enigmatic appearance of Takada (the man who made Mark Coleman tap out with an ankle lock once upon a time) who announced to TV land "Everyone, we at Pride, I will send Fujita and Sakuraba to Octagon." That's right folks, Pride vs. UFC; it's a very positive thing. No more UFC Anthem, pyre-techniques, or talking-Barbie. Hopefully the reward will now go to the fighters themselves, as competition gets bigger and better.
Although there is still no word regarding the lightweight title, the heaviest upset of the night was the mythical Caol Uno getting knocked out in the second round of the first fight by Hermes Franca. By the way, B. J. Penn just took out Gomi in Hawaii and is expressing interest in PRIDE – Bushido. So where does this leave that weight division with so much talent? Goddamit, we want an answer!

Well folks, another UFC heavy weight champion has gone down in infamy, Tim Sylvia has officially been busted and dethroned by the steroid police. It's too bad because I really wanted to see him take on Japan's own missing link, Fujita. What a match up, "The Maniac" versus "The Missing Link." I suppose as things stand, the next challenger should maybe be the scary "Pit Bull" Andrei Arlovsky, a Sambo master who swept away "The Janitor" Matushenko before he could reach for his broomstick. But this is also becoming a vicious circle, which is basically what this sport is. Pedro Rizzo knocked Arlovsky out cold, but lost on a decision to the superior grappler Matushenko. So lets have a four-man heavy weight tournament, with Rico as the wild card. Obviously, Gan Mgee is back in the picture as well.
It's hard to believe Rich Franklin hasn't been purged from his puritan hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio for fighting in MMA. After all this is the place that purged their former mayor Gerry Springer for paying an underage prostitute with a city check. This is also were they censored the Robert Maplethorpe photo exhibit, and prosecuted the curator. To boot, strip bars are illegal, but they are across the river in Newport, Kentucky. Anyways, Ohio has always had its yearly dense crops of high caliber wrestlers, so it isn't surprising to see another Buckeye on the rise in the Octagon, although this one likes to use knees and strikes. He took out the young, but experienced Edwin "Baby Face" Deweebs in the same fashion as he had previously taken out the already "Tito shocked" Evan Tanner, who is by the way going down a weight class to fight Phil Baroni. (just as I predicted) Franklin is basically a striker who likes to deliver knees while clinching the head and neck. So far his strategy has worked, but he needs to prove himself against better opponents. Hell, feed him to Tito.
Randy Couture gets the final word here, naturally.
For those of you who thought he should have retired already, I guess you were plain wrong. Randy, take a cue from your stable mate Dan Henderson, there are millions of Japanese fans awaiting your return to Nippon. Its time!
 
You were under the impression
That when you were walking forward
You'd end up further onward
But things ain't quite that simple – Pete Townsend