Why machida lost

There are no boasts, no outrageous statements, just a grace to his manner, his speech, and his style. From youth my heart has been inclined toward the Way of strategy. My first duel was when I was thirteen, I struck down a strategist of the Shinto school, one Arima Kihei.

When I was sixteen I struck down an able strategist, Tadashima Akiyama. When I was twenty-one I went up to the capital and met all manner of strategists, never once failing to win in many contests.

After that I went from province to province dueling with strategists of various schools, and not once failed to win even though I had as many as sixty encounters.

This was between the ages of thirteen and twenty-eight or twenty-nine. At the age of 29, Machida has not once failed to win in mixed martial arts competition. The native of Salvador has taken these criticisms to heart though, and with his last two wins over Nakamura and Sokoudjou, he has shown a more aggressive style intended to not just win fights, but to finish them.

First, he must beat Ortiz though, and to do that, it takes a single-minded approach to the fight that can only be achieved by constant training. As Musashi wrote:. In strategy it is necessary to treat training as a part of normal life with your spirit unchanging.

Fight week. For some fighters, the days leading up to their Saturday battle can be the worst part of their entire routine as pro athletes. Weight cutting, nerves, media obligations, waiting.

One, some, or all of these can tear at their psyches, making them pray for the moment when the Octagon door closes and the bell rings.

Love him or hate him, the man has made his bones in mixed martial arts, and if he has taken you down and is raining elbows down on your head, there is probably no worse place to be. Despite his previous wins over the likes of BJ Penn, Rich Franklin, Stephan Bonnar, and Sokoudjou, this fight will likely be the one to define his career.

Win it, and he will move closer to a shot at the light heavyweight title held by Quinton Jackson. Lose, and he may have damaged his chances of getting to the championship anytime soon.

For Machida, each fight requires not only reinforcement of fundamentals, but opponent-specific training and strategy. In other words, his record means nothing when the bell rings. He humbly deflects such praise though. He lives the life of a samurai, the life of an athlete, the life of a father, son, husband, and brother. All of those elements have combined to make him who he is today, but ask him what he was born to be, and there is no hesitation in his response.

Flawless both offensively and defensively, the Brazilian was closing in on a lopsided unanimous decision win when — with just 35 seconds left — Ortiz almost pulled off an improbable comeback with a triangle choke, the last maneuver you would have expected from the former UFC light heavyweight champ.

I had trained a lot of ground work so I was prepared, but it surprised me. For what seemed like an hour long ten seconds, Machida struggled as Ortiz then moved him into an armbar.

But Machida would pull loose, and with the crowd roaring, he made it through the round and to a well-deserved. Either way I was able to stay relaxed. But I do believe that I was better in both fundamentals — on my feet and on the ground. Regardless, Machida is preparing for Silva with the same Spartan work ethic that has become his trademark. There have been few mistakes by Machida in his UFC career thus far, a stint that has encompassed five fights in which the Salvador native has yet to lose a round, let alone a fight.

Keeping that streak of perfection has got to be a lot of pressure on the year old. Does Thiago Silva have the tools to beat him?

Does anyone at pounds? All that matters is Saturday night. His son, Lyoto, calls him his toughest critic. But just getting the title shot is not enough. You have to close the deal and take the belt. So when Lyoto Machida broke the news to his father that he would be facing Rashad Evans in the main event of UFC 98, the response was what you would expect from the karate master.

Ever since that day, Machida has practically lived in the gym back home in Brazil, preparing more intensely than ever for the fight that will change his life. My technical training remained the same. If he beats Evans and straps the light heavyweight championship belt around his waist, the change in his life is obvious — he will now be an international star and ambassador for mixed martial arts and the undisputed best pound fighter on the planet.

If he loses, it will be the first time he has ever tasted defeat as a pro fighter, and you never know how such a setback can affect you in or out of the Octagon. In fact, Machida has to go back years and years to remember the last time he lost any competition.

I am just very calm, I like to relax and read. But when it comes to fighting, there is nothing more serious for him. Machida, with the exception of a late triangle choke attempt by Ortiz in their May bout, has never been close to losing a fight.

And if you think he fought stiffs before coming to the organization, the names Stephan Bonnar, Rich Franklin, and BJ Penn dot his victims list. Bottom line, Machida has yet to face a fighter that can push him to the brink or over it, but every night, the man across the Octagon from him may very well be the first one to do it. I have trained other martial arts to learn how to defend myself against different opponents, but I never trained to learn how to use them.

So far, no one has been able to come up with a strategy to beat him either. But he has great hands and great takedowns. In terms of picking a winner for this bout, most pundits are stumped, and when pressed, the lines are usually drawn down the middle.

For that reason alone, this is one of the most highly anticipated title fights in recent memory and certainly the hardest to handicap. Not for Lyoto Machida though. He knows what he has done in the gym, what his techniques have brought him so far, and what he can do when the bell rings. About people from my home town are travelling to Las Vegas to support me, and there is going to be a lot of good positive energy. With this decision from the UFC to give him a title shot , I have the chance to fulfill a lifelong dream, and I want to show everyone that it is possible to accomplish your dreams.

With under a minute to go in the second stanza, Machida opened up on his foe while on the ground, but again, Hoger was able to weather the storm and make it to the bell. The third was fairly uneventful, with Machida continuing to control the action both standing and on the mat as he pounded out the lopsided decision win.

I spent a lot of time watching tape and that definitely paid off tonight. Light heavyweight contender Lyoto Machida kept his unbeaten record intact by outpointing David Heath , but the fans were less than thrilled with the bout, which was serenaded with boos for the majority of its 15 minutes due to a lack of action.

The first round could be politely described as tactical, as both fighters circled each other with only sporadic action coming from Machida and Heath, with Machida holding an edge due to his more frequent and accurate leg kicks.

Round two was a near carbon copy of the first with the exception of the booing getting louder and Heath attempting a couple of unorthodox maneuvers in an effort to either catch Machida napping or force him into a mistake. Neither scenario played out. Finally, midway through the third round, Machida erupted with a series of unanswered knees to the head that eventually sent Heath to the mat. The second round mimicked the first, with Machida again pushing the pace. Machida kept working though, getting into the mount position and opening fire before Nakamura got back to his feet.

While standing, Machida was a step ahead speedwise, leaving few options for Nakamura, who was able to score a takedown but only with seconds left in the round. Down two rounds, Nakamura pressed forward in the final stanza, still trying to score with one of his judo throws. Machida defended well, eventually getting the fight back to the mat, where he got the mount for a moment before Nakamura got back to his feet and landed with a couple of hard rights.

At close range, Machida continued to hold the upper hand as he fired away with body punches and knees until the bell ended the bout.

With under three minutes left, Sokoudjou pulled his arm loose, but Machida remained in control from the top position before referee Mario Yamasaki stood the fighters up with under left. After some standup, Sokoudjou tripped his foe to the canvas briefly, but neither man was able to sprint into the lead before the bell sounded.

Now, I have a goal back. I'm starving to fight. I want to be a champion again. During the suspension, Machida opened an academy south of Los Angeles, which he operates and teaches classes. He says he never considered asking the UFC for a release to fight elsewhere, as some others have done in similar situations. He asked for the toughest opponent available in his return, and the UFC answered with Brunson , owner of nine career first-round knockouts.

With a new handle on his career, Machida is looking forward to showcasing new wrinkles in his game. Skip to main content Skip to navigation. Machida admits he'd 'probably be retired' without suspension. Masvidal injured; fight vs. Edwards off UFC Godinez set for record 3rd UFC fight in 43 days. McGregor up for Chandler match 'at some stage'.

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