UFC: Will He Chuck it All Away?
There's just no escaping the Ultimate Fighting Championship, perhaps because certain hacks keep bringing the damn thing up, but also because its popularity and media coverage in general continues to increase. Coming up on Dec. 29 from Nevada are two very important fights, especially to the four fighters themselves.
Thanks to the
Ultimate Fighter reality series, the UFC and its employees have become more accessible, and, naturally, the interest in their fights has grown. The first matchup sees the opposing team leaders from the last series going head-to-head. The frosty relationship between reigning UFC Welterweight Champion Matt Serra and former titleholder Matt Hughes that was witnessed on the show means there's likely to be plenty of real blood spilt in this one.
Serra, who was a surprise winner over George St-Pierre, expressed his distaste for the bible-bashing Hughes and will have a point to prove amid sneers that he is an unworthy champion. The champion is undoubtedly limited, and if Hughes has regained the form he lost after his defeat to St-Pierre, he'll prove too much for Serra. If he hasn't and is as sluggish as he was in his comeback from defeat against Chris Lyttle, Serra could provide another shock knockout.
Defeat for either will knock them well down the pecking order, leaving a long road back to the top.
The most exciting fight of the night is the long-awaited meeting between former UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell and former Pride Middleweight Champion Wanderlei Silva.
A meeting between the two was talked about when Chuck still held his title. Rumours are that Silva pulled out of the proposed matchup, though he denies avoiding Chuck. Both have suffered additional losses, which takes some of the sheen off this fight, but both fighters have points to prove and some may argue that both are fighting for their futures in the UFC.
Liddell, though a potential future Hall of Famer, needs a big performance after suffering a devastating knockout loss to Quinten Rampage Jackson and a tepid points loss in what was meant to be a reasonably easy comeback against Keith Jardine.
Silva has two defeats in his previous three UFC appearances, the last of which was nearly seven years ago, and was knocked out in his last two fights. A motivated Liddell will prove to be too strong for Silva and will win by a knockout. This is nearing last-chance saloon for The Iceman, and his familiarity with the octagon, which isn't used in Pride, could prove key, making it more likely that we're going to see Silva melting under the bright lights.
Darts: Get Thrown on Course World Grand Prix
If there's one thing they get right in the world of darts, it's their scheduling. The bigwigs who constantly have Premier League managers whinging about their fixtures may want to take note. The PDC in particular deserves a doff of the cap. In what other major (well, major-ish, anyway) sport does the world champion start his reign on Jan. 1? Starting on Dec. 17, Raymond van Barneveld will defend the title he wrestled from Phil Taylor's grasp in a classic final on the first day of 2007.
That was the Dutchman's first attempt in the
PDC World Championship, and with his year in on the throne almost up, things are looking good for him to make it two in a row. Phil "The Power" Taylor has occasionally awoken from the slumber that too many years spent cruising to victory in third gear left him in, but a subsequent heavy defeat to van Barneveld and shock defeats to Mark Dudbridge in the inaugural
World Grand Prix and to Adrian Gray in Ireland have the sport's greatest player pondering his future.
Taylor has flashed his teeth to pick up his fair share of titles this year, and may well come back stronger, but from what we've seen in 2007, the hunger isn't always there anymore. Could this be the last time Taylor takes to the oche?
Instead of a 12th win for "The Power," this could be the year of the young guns. James Wade proved by winning in Las Vegas that he has the ability and, more important, the temperament to win a world title. He's a serious contender here if he can get a few early wins under his belt.
Former BDO Champion Jelle Klassen looks to be finally settling into life in the PDC. His improved form in the latter part of the season, which included a tournament win in Ireland, has ensured his participation, and he is well worth a bet at a decent price to add the PDC title to his 2006
BDO World Championship.
The youngest of the lot, 18-year-old Michael van Gerwen (pictured), is priced as one of the more favoured outsiders. Undoubtedly a talented tungsten thrower, the youngster didn't fare well in the major competitions and is probably still a year or two from becoming a major threat. He's worth backing to come through the first few rounds, but an outright bet looks like money in the bookies' pockets.
The BDO trails the PDC in appointing its champion, as it does in most other departments, but we'll know by Jan. 17 whether Martin "Wolfie" Adams has retained the title. With most of the better players having defected to the PDC, only the more avid darts fans will know the majority of the field at the Lakeside. One name the occasional fan will know is Gary Anderson.
The Scotsman picked up his first major televised win with the
International Darts League, and by doing so beat players from both organisations. He added three more titles to his haul in 2007 and should be considered the favourite here. Adams will be similarly priced, but having failed to reproduce the form of 2006, he doesn't represent particularly good value. He could fall foul to a shocking early exit. Of the others, Simon Whitlock, whose previous best was a semifinal effort in 2005, is in with a chance, but is a little slim in most books and isn't worth more than a small to medium wager at a stretch. Mark Webster, on the other hand, has had a successful year after falling at the first hurdle on his debut at the Lakeside in 2007. A second place in the
International Darts League, a quarterfinal in the
World Darts Trophy, and a couple of smaller wins make him a reasonable each-way bet.
Boxing: All Punched Out?
It was the legendary American football coach Vince Lombardi who said, "The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender," and nowhere does that seem to ring truer than with boxers. Too many times we've seen a fighter stagger on well past his peak until a one-time hero becomes little more than a spectacle. It's slightly embarrassing, slightly sad, and more than plenty dangerous to the fighter's health.
This is where we find Roy Jones Jr. these days. He's still a more than capable pugilist, but nowhere near as good as he was four years ago when he beat Antonio Tarver comfortably on points. Three defeats in a row, starting with a knockout at the hands of Tarver, followed by two unimpressive points wins should tell him that it's time to quit.
It's not an easy thing to do for a man once hailed as the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world. At 38, he no longer even gets mentioned when compiling a top 10, and not even a win over Felix Trinidad should change that. Jones wants that last taste of glory, one last crack at the title so that he can retire at the top. His fans will hope for a return to the good old days against the world-class, if also ageing, Trinidad, but nothing he's done in the four years since beating Tarver suggest that we'll get anything more than a few flashes of those great talents.
On the whole, it's sure to be an underwhelming affair, with the slightly fresher Trinidad taking it on a points decision - unless, of course, the deterioration in Jones is worse than feared and he finds himself on the floor in the early rounds, unable or unwilling to get to his feet, the final sign that it's time to surrender to the crumbling reality of age.
On the same card on Jan. 19 in Madison Square Garden, Cory Spinks defends his IBF Light Middleweight title against Verno Phillips. Spinks is coming off a close points loss to Jermain Taylor up at middleweight, and could well be in for another long night. With only four knockouts on his record, steer well clear of any bets involving Spinks winning inside the distance. Phillips, although a 20-year veteran of the ring, looked in good shape in his points win over Eduardo Sanchez, and at big prices, may be worth backing to stop Spinks in the later rounds.
NFL: Pats Just the Way it Is
Although this is being written before the final few regular-season games are played, one thing is certain. The Colts and the Patriots will be playing each other in the AFC Championship game come the end of January. Although both sides dismissed their meeting in the regular season as a pivotal point, that may be exactly what it was.
New England's offence struggled to get a foothold when it travelled to the RCA Dome at the beginning of November. New England's defence seemed disorganised and a little panicky at times when Joseph Addai ran the ball at them, and with Indianapolis leading by 10 points early in the second half, we seemed to be looking at a defeat of a team that, up to that point in the season, appeared to be an unstoppable force.
The Pats looked to have met an immovable object in the well-balanced Colts, led by future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning. New England has its own future entrant to the halls of legends, and Tom Brady was good when needed most and the Patriots' defence finally worked out how to play Manning and Addai. It's what the Pats and coach Bill Belichick found out in this game, rather than the result, that is of most importance.
It took them nearly an entire game, but if New England has Indianapolis figured out, they'll cruise to the AFC Championship and then become the Super Bowl champion for the fourth time in seven years. The Patriots appear to be the biggest certainty in sports, and not even the challenge of the formidable Indianapolis Colts can change that.
Tennis: Changing of the Guard?
January also sees Roger Federer successfully defend his
Australian Open title. There's little point in talking up anyone else to win, but there are a few notables who'll be worth backing to reach the later stages. Andy Murray was unlucky with injuries in 2007, but still ended the year at No. 11 in the world, and if he is ever to win a Grand Slam event, it's more likely to be the
Australian Open or
US Open rather than
Wimbledon, as his home fans would doubtless prefer.
Murray, if fully fit, will make a good fist of improving on last year's fourth-round finish. David Nalbandian had a storming finish to 2007, picking up the
Madrid Masters, where he defeated Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic on his way to the title, and the Paris Masters, where he again had to overcome Federer and Nadal.
If the Argentine can carry his late 2007 form into 2008, he, if anyone, could do the unthinkable and beat Federer in a Grand Slam event that isn't the
French Open.
Changing sports but maintaining the strong-finish theme, Justin Rose's European Order of Merit win and the playoff at the
Volvo Masters, which gave it to him, topped off a great year in which he had strong performances in the
PGA Championship and
Masters, and more than hinted that he'll one day win a major. The Englishman will have his already considerable confidence boosted by being named the European number one, as well as jumping up to seventh in the world.
He's definitely one to watch at the start of the year, and don't be surprised if he joins the ranks of the elite before the year is out. The question will be, can Padraig Harrington build on his British Masters win or will he continue to break the hearts of his supporters and backers by continuing to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory? Be cautious of backing him early in the year, as he may suffer something of a second-season syndrome, failing to reach the heights of a career-defining year.
