Making the Grade: Passes/Fails for UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Thatch
Following a phenomenal performance in the main event from Colorado on Saturday night by Benson Henderson as he tapped out Brandon Thatch, we're going to dig a little deeper into the card to see what worked and what didn't fly.
You already know the results, but what stood out above all else and what didn't exactly work once the night was over?
These are the passes and fails for FOX Sports 1 UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Thatch.
PASSES
Everything Benson Henderson
When the news broke that Benson Henderson was going to venture to the welterweight division for at least one night when the UFC came calling to ask him to step in and face Brandon Thatch in the main event of UFC Fight Night from Colorado, it seemed like a fun idea. Henderson had flirted with the idea of moving up to 170 pounds before and Thatch was a great prospect, but not a top 10 guy, so it would be a good gauge of how successful the former lightweight champion could do in a higher weight class.
Then the weigh-ins happened.
Thatch towered over Henderson by several inches and when the scale read only 169 pounds for the Washington native, it started to look like this wasn't such a good idea after all. While the jury was still out on how good Thatch could eventually be, he was well-known as a fierce first-round finisher with a ton of power and size for 170 pounds, and now he was facing a man who looked more and more like somebody who should have stayed at lightweight.
But then Henderson came out on Saturday night and put on one of the most inspirational performances in recent memory. He attacked a gigantic welterweight with no fear. Henderson ate more than a few punches and even looked bullied at certain points during the fight, and it seemed like surviving until rounds 4 or 5 would be victory enough.
Instead, Henderson put the pressure on Thatch, and after nearly finishing the fight in the third round, he got the Colorado native on the mat and sunk in a fight-ending rear naked choke in the fourth. Henderson left the Octagon unscathed, looking as fresh as he did when he walked in 20 minutes earlier, while Thatch had two black eyes and some wounded pride after losing in front of his hometown crowd.
Henderson should be absolutely applauded for stepping up to the plate when the UFC needed him, but the fact that he went out there and beat a legitimate welterweight might just be a career-turning point for the former lightweight champion.
Colorado faithful
Saturday night's card from Colorado took a number of big hits before the show ever started. The main event changed three times, and -- let's be honest -- it wasn't exactly chock-full of big stars.
But the Colorado faithful still showed up to the 1stBank Center in Broomfield on Saturday night. By the time the main card started, seats were filled and the crowd was as raucous as any other show that's taken place recently. The fans roared when hometown boy Neil Magny picked up his sixth straight win and reacted with vigor when Henderson staged an incredible performance against Thatch.
A lively crowd makes everything better, but the Colorado fans deserve a standing ovation for showing up and making good on Saturday night's card, whether it was star-studded or not.
Ray "Resistance is Futile" Borg
The flyweight division desperately needs new contenders because champion Demetrious Johnson has basically dispatched everybody who has posed a threat to him in the past two years. Johnson is now facing Kyoji Horiguchi, who said candidly last November that he believed he was still a few fights away from challenging for the belt. Not exactly the kind of brimming confidence you hope for in a title contender.
But a name to watch is Ray Borg.
He has looked fantastic throughout his young UFC career, and some would argue he should be undefeated if not for two judges who saw him losing to Dustin Ortiz in his debut. Borg shut down and shut out Chris Kelades on Saturday night, and hopefully, unlike Horiguchi, he'll actually get some time to develop.
Borg isn't ready for the top guys in the division just yet. But given another year of solid fights to climb into the top 10 and then maybe a marquee showdown with someone like Joseph Benavidez or John Dodson could be just the fight this division needs so Johnson has somebody worthy to fight.
Oh and one more thing -- how is this guy's nickname not Ray 'Resistance is Futile' Borg? Somebody close to him get on that one.
FAILS
Still not playing the game
It's something that seems so simple, but the fighters from UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Thatch once again forgot that when the spotlight is on, make the most of your moment.
Time and time again when Jon Anik stood in the Octagon with a microphone in hand and closed out his post-fight interviews with "Who would you like to see next?" mundane answers followed.
"I'll fight whoever the UFC wants" is never going to be an acceptable response.
There are plenty of ways to ask for a fight without sounding disrespectful or rehearsed. Just speak from the heart, but make the most of those 45 seconds in the cage when the entire world is watching.
Even Benson Henderson, who might be the nicest guy in the entire sport, took a shot at landing another short-notice welterweight fight against Rory MacDonald. Unfortunately, he didn't get it, but it was the buzz of the moment, as he looked willing to take on the top contender in the world at 170 pounds because he was ready for the challenge.
Make the most of those moments because they don't come around often.
Knees on the ground
Chas Skelly had a big win on Saturday night over Jim Alers, but once again the infamous "knees to the head of a grounded opponent" haunted the finish. Skelly was pummeling his opponent with punches, but just as Alers started to sink to the mat, the Texas native uncorked a big knee strike that officially put an end to the fight.
The problem is Aler's leg looked like it hit the mat before Skelly connected with the knee, which would make the strike illegal. Except it shouldn't be.
This rule has existed in the MMA rulebook for years, but it's time for a change. It's one thing to take away an illegal move like groin strikes or eye gouging, but knees to the head of a grounded opponent should be a viable option and it should be legal. Hopefully, at some point, somebody with a little bit more power than I stands up and says enough is enough. This should be a legal strike and then fighters like Skelly wouldn't be treated like cheaters when in reality he was just looking to end the fight with every weapon at his disposal.
Epic fail
Never again
Dan Kelly (left) vs. Patrick Walsh
Dan Kelly and Patrick Walsh certainly didn't set the world on fire on Saturday as they put on an abysmal fight over three rounds on Saturday night in Colorado. What made it worse was the fact that Kelly and Walsh got a spot on the main card, which means anyone who tuned in to eventually see fighters like Benson Henderson and Max Holloway compete also had to sit through this sorry excuse for a UFC fight.
Listen, both guys deserve credit for showing up and stepping into the Octagon in the first place. That's not easy to do, and there are plenty of people who would puke their guts up at the thought of standing in the middle of a cage for a fight. But still, the UFC is supposed to be the breeding ground for premium mixed martial arts, and Kelly vs. Walsh was anything but that.
Hopefully, both take a huge lesson from this debacle -- especially Walsh, who not only looked bad in the fight, but also missed weight on Friday -- and they come back with a renewed spirit to put on a great performance. There's no way either guy wants to have this as the defining moment of their career, so let's just pretend it never happened and move onto better memories.
