I remember Forrest Griffith from the first TUF show and his bloody three round battle with Stephan Bonnar. I was at UFC 66 when he cried in the ring after his lost to Keith Jardine and he cracked me up with his "temper tantrum" bit duringthe recent TUF 7. Suffice to say, he's a fighter I love watching and as much as I like Rampage both in and outside of the Octagon, I am very happy with Forrest being crowned the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Congrats Forrest!!! Below is Dann Stupp analysis.
Reality bites: Quinton Jackson loses title to Forrest Griffin
Dann Stupp
MMA Junkie
July 6, 2008
After nearly a half hour of nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat, back-and-forth action, Forrest Griffin (16-4 MMA, 9-2 UFC) -- the UFC's original "Ultimate Fighter" -- staked claim to UFC gold by defeating former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson (24-6 MMA, 3-1 UFC).
The five-round championship bout capped off Saturday's UFC 86 event at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.
Early leg kicks that hobbled his opponent gave Griffin the advantage he needed for a close -- but unanimous -- decision victory.
After taking the opening round with crisp striking, including a right uppercut that floored Griffin, Jackson felt the gears shift in the second.
"He jacked my leg up," Jackson said.
The former champ was referring to Griffin's stinging leg kicks. Jackson was knocked off balance in the first round, but the kicks really did damage in the second, when back-to-back blows forced him to retreat. However, Griffin gave his opponent a chance to recover when he took the fight to the ground. There, Jackson fended off a fairly ineffective ground and pound to get to the third round.
"The second round, when he had me on the ground the whole time, I was resting up," said Jackson, who suffered his first loss in more than three years.
After splitting the first two rounds, Griffin and Jackson fought through three very close final rounds. (In fact, MMAjunkie.com had the fight scored 48-47 in favor of Jackson). However, Griffin's submission attempts and aggression earned him the unanimous-decision victory on the scorecards that meant the most. The ringside judges had it 48-46, 48-46 and 49-46 in favor of Griffin.
However, the new champ was forced to shake off a number of stiff punches to survive the five-round fight. Jackson staggered him on a few occasions.
"Every [expletive] punch hurt," said Griffin, who was also forced to deal with a cut above his eye midway through the fight. "Hell, everything hurt."
Aside from Matt Serra, who won a special "comeback" season of "TUF" geared toward already-established fighters, Griffin becomes the first fighter from the UFC's reality series to capture a championship.
The five-round championship bout capped off Saturday's UFC 86 event at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.
Early leg kicks that hobbled his opponent gave Griffin the advantage he needed for a close -- but unanimous -- decision victory.
After taking the opening round with crisp striking, including a right uppercut that floored Griffin, Jackson felt the gears shift in the second.
"He jacked my leg up," Jackson said.
The former champ was referring to Griffin's stinging leg kicks. Jackson was knocked off balance in the first round, but the kicks really did damage in the second, when back-to-back blows forced him to retreat. However, Griffin gave his opponent a chance to recover when he took the fight to the ground. There, Jackson fended off a fairly ineffective ground and pound to get to the third round.
"The second round, when he had me on the ground the whole time, I was resting up," said Jackson, who suffered his first loss in more than three years.
After splitting the first two rounds, Griffin and Jackson fought through three very close final rounds. (In fact, MMAjunkie.com had the fight scored 48-47 in favor of Jackson). However, Griffin's submission attempts and aggression earned him the unanimous-decision victory on the scorecards that meant the most. The ringside judges had it 48-46, 48-46 and 49-46 in favor of Griffin.
However, the new champ was forced to shake off a number of stiff punches to survive the five-round fight. Jackson staggered him on a few occasions.
"Every [expletive] punch hurt," said Griffin, who was also forced to deal with a cut above his eye midway through the fight. "Hell, everything hurt."
Aside from Matt Serra, who won a special "comeback" season of "TUF" geared toward already-established fighters, Griffin becomes the first fighter from the UFC's reality series to capture a championship.
(emphasis added)
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