As some of you know, long-time MMA HQ reader Amir recently attended UFC 71 in Las Vegas. Well, Amir was kind enough to write up a few thoughts on his UFC experience and send me a few photos. So, here is Amir’s recap and some of the great photos he was able to take.
How can anyone put into words the experiences of a lifetime? I made it into the MGM Grand in Vegas
at around 3pm after a long, 5+ hour drive through the desert from San Diego.There was an incredible buzz in the air the moment we got into town. It was as if the desert sands knew that this would be a magical day for many people. Maybe it was the heat outdoors, or the air conditioning indoors, or maybe it was just the excitment of the holiday. An endless sea of people everywhere from everywhere. There were probably many “Joes” from Kansas, a “Hanks” from Tennesee, a “Johns” from Utah, and of course, a named Amir from NY, along with many other strangers who would unite for a common love of the UFC and the world of MMA. They were all there to see what was considered the most anticipated fight in UFC history. I, for one, was certainly not dissapointed. I don’t see much sense in summarizing what everyone has already seen on PPV
or heard or read about. I will just say that I was one of very few people cheering for Rampage…lol.The most striking exhibition of all though, aside from Rampage’s, was the diversity of the crowd. It seemed as if a rich man and a pauper were separated by merely two or three rows. Of course, at the $200 minimum ticket price-tag, I use the term “pauper” very loosley. From those I spoke to near my seat, they were fans of the UFC and TUF show, but seemed much less knowledegable of any other MMA information, organization, fighters, or news. It was somewhat bittersweet. After all, these tickets were probably much pricier for a farmer from Nebraska than they were for me. I would think a true love for the sport needed to exist for anyone to cough up that kind of dough. I could not get a a solid impression of whether many were there for the true events of the night, or for the current “hottest ticket in town”. I will say that it was without doubt one the greatest moments of my life.
Unfortunatley, we missed out on many of the weigh-in events of the day before, but apparently our hotel room was located in the same section of the hotel where many of the fighters and UFC personnel were staying. I did manage to grab a few pics of some people you guys might know. Hope you all enjoy and get to see an event as monumental as this in your lifetimes.
Here are links to Amir’s Photos. (The photos were good high res shots, so I’m just linking to each photo to save space).
UFC Ticket
Big John McCarthy
Brandon Melendez
Leben vs Starnes
Karo vs Burkman
Rampage vs Liddell
Chaos
Former champ
Former champ 2
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Caesar Gracie
John
Yael Grauer
Dale
Tyler Johnson
felo
Mike
Tony
Shawn
Ben Cartlidge
nice pics bro!!! man i wish i could have been there!
@Amir
Great writing, awesome photos, wow, I am sure the experience was phenomenal and exciting!
Thanks…it was a blast…I couldn’t believe we’d run into Chuck @ Body English just a week after is loss. Rumors were that he had been spending too much time there before his fight too.
chuck had to lose this fight two things were wrong he was on to high a pedistal way to much way way way way to much hes good but not as good as people thought.Plus its the year of upsets
I agree…I’m cautious to start an entire fiasco here again about this topic of what happens to Chuck when fighting a striker as opposed to a grappler or BJJ master, because I’m sure a few peeps will come out saying that it was a lucky punch or Chuck didn’t train or about a bazillion other excuses.
I dont think quinton is a master striker, but we will see how good he is against a REAL master striker in wanderlei silva, at least that is what wandy said, he said his next fight would be chuck
todd
wandy has already beat rampage
no no i meant when wandy fights chuck
I think, since Wand has beaten Rampage twice, it would only be fair to give Wand an easy fight against a guy like Tito, to avenge, like the whole Marvin Eastman/Quinton Jackson fight, then after Wand stomps Taco Bell he can fight Rampage, then when he 3 peats Rampage he can fight Chuck, which will give Chuck his final chance at redemption against a guy everyone has always wanted to see him fight….
I don’t see Wandi making a debut anytime soon. I think we will see Shogun fight in the UFC before him. Right now, Shogun is much more marketable for Dana, who definitely wants to put Shogun on the map with the U.S. crowd. We might see Shogun/Ortiz…Dana would love to see Titty get his *** handed to him. I don’t see the 2 Chute box buddies Wandi & Shogun debuting simultaneusly. It’s going to be tricky to have them both fighting in the same division without eventually having to meet.
@DR J
yo doc didnt wandy say his next fight is going to be chuck liddell late this year or earyl next year but the deal is still being talked about?
Amir……nice job Bro. Lucky fooker.
@Dennis,
Welcome back bro.