King of King of Fighters: Anderson Silva

This past weekend's UFC 162 marked the end of an era.  Undisputed middleweight champion and pound for pound greatest fighter in the world today, Anderson "The Spider" Silva was knocked out by challenger Chris Weidman.  Many a fan relished the sight of the king of kings being taken out while clowning around in the Octagon.  Was he too old?  Too slow?  Had the sport passed him by?

Nope, he just lost the hunger.  Like any band that starts out exciting and raw, after a few successful albums and endorsements, what is there to be hungry for?  Here's a guy who hasn't lost a bout since 2006, went undefeated in TWO weight classes in the UFC and is pushing 40 with a wife and kids.  Sure he's had some lackluster showings but there have been plenty of snooze fests in the UFC.

This past Saturday, The Spider employed his usual antics but this time they backfired.  Will the loss refuel his fire?  I doubt it.  The guy has been fighting a long time and put on some of the most exciting displays of martial arts prowess, accuracy and creativity we've ever seen.  He just doesn't need it anymore.  And he probably hasn't blown his earnings on an extravagant lifestyle that will require him to keep fighting into old age and humiliation.

How anyone can dispute his claim to be one of if not the greatest boggles the mind.  Let's take a quick look at his UFC history, shall we?

Destroyed Chris Leben who was on a 6 fight win streak.
Destroyed champion Rich Franklin who was on an 8 fight win streak.
Seemingly in trouble against arguable contender Travis Lutter, who didn't even make weight, comes back and takes it with ease.
Destroyed Nate Marquardt who was on a 6 fight win streak.
Destroyed Rich Franklin again.
Destroyed Olympic wrestler and Pride Fighting Championships favorite Dan Henderson.
Jumps weight class for shits and giggles, destroys James Irvin.
Was in no trouble against Patrick Cote (who injured his knee mid-fight) who was on 5 fight win streak.
Coasts to an easy decision win over Thales Leites, who was 5 fight win streak.  Sentiment begins to turn on the champion.
Jumps weight class, destroys former champion Forrest Griffin who runs out of the cage in embarrassment.
Coasts to another win against Demian Maia, who was 12-1 going in.
Gets pushed to the limit by Chael Sonnen, submits him just to prove a point.  Bandwagon fans rejoice that this could be the beginning of the end for the champion.
Destroys former champion, Vitor Belfort, who was on a 5 fight win streak, with a frigging front kick to the face supposedly taught to him by Steven Seagal.
Destroys perennial title contender, Yushin Okami, who was 10-2 in UFC.
Destroys trash talking Sonnen again.  I wish he'd beat up on him more.
Jumps weight class to save UFC 153 main event and destroys Stephan Bonnar who was on 3 fight win streak.
Clowns and gets caught, loses to Chris Weidman.

Other contenders?  Fedor is great but his resume isn't any stronger than Silva's and The Last Emperor was annihilated in 3 straight fights.  Chuck Liddell and his three straight KO losses?  Tito Ortiz didn't win a fight for five years.  Randy Couture with his gifted opponents and title shot?  Georges St. Pierre has never jumped weight classes and hasn't finished a fight in 4 years.

In the end, Anderson Silva didn't lose for 7 years, defended his title 10 times and only went to decision twice in his 17 fights in the UFC.

Yup, greatest of our time.

King of Fighters: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic

I used to watch a lot of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) but was a closet fan since for a long time it was referred to as "human cock-fighting" (by a douche bag who ran a state where regular cock fighting was legal) or brought to mind a bro-douche bag clad in a Tapout shirt (catchy name but means surrender in the sport).  During the heyday of Pride and UFC, you had super stars, athletes with larger than life personalities and a cool mystic.  Knock out artist, Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell, shoot-fighter Ken "The World's Most Dangerous Man" Shamrock, Sambo expert Fedor "The Last Emperor" Emelianenko and my personal favorite, Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic; a K-1 kickboxer who also served on his native country of Croatia's Anti-Terrorist Unit and in Parliament.

Today, Mixed Martial Arts is everywhere in the form of juggernaut UFC, on Pay-Per View and several FOX affiliates.  But where have all the stars gone?  Where have all the characters disappeared to?  The Greatest Of All Time, Anderson "The Spider" Silva is ready to retire.  Lyoto "Ryu from Street Fighter" didn't quite live up to his early promise.  Georges "Rush" St. Pierre dominates but can't finish a fight.  Chael Sonnen runs his mouth, earns title shots and gets destroyed.  The fact that it runs on multiple channels and PPV has saturated the market with fighters you've never heard of and too many bouts to keep track of.  Ah well...

Cro Cop's story always interested me; a young kid, inspired by Jean-Claude Van Damme movies, teaches himself how to fight in the outskirts of Croatia.  Making his own weights, kicking walls and running around, the kid starts to box and eventually kickbox.  In 1996 at age 22 he was a commando for the Croatian police and had his first professional bout in K-1, the wildly popular Japanese organization of karate, kung fu and muy thai.  Cro Cop fought the best of the best in K-1 and won legions of fans with his displays of courage, heart and aggressiveness that were manifested in his crisp punching combinations, wicked low kicks and deadly high kicks.  His statuesque physique, cool facade, sense of humor and well rounded background made him a fighter you could root for in and out of the ring.

By the early 2000's, MMA was growing and Cro Cop transitioned to Pride Fighting Championships, home of Fedor, Big Nog, The Axe Murderer and other colorful characters/fighters.  Each event was a spectacle and the Japanese loved Cro Cop.  After winning the Open Weight Grand Prix and mulling retirement, Cro Cop changed organizations and headed for the big show, the UFC.  Early chatter put him on a collision course to meet then current champ Randy "The Natural" Couture but after losing to Gabriel Gonzaga in arguably the biggest upset in MMA history, Cro Cop never seemed to recover mentally and finished out with 3 straight losses before leaving in 2011.

Life after the UFC wasn't quiet for long as Mirko has fought sporadically in MMA and more regularly in K-1.  After quietly rattling off a string of victories in the ring, Cro Cop was back in the hunt for K-1 gold and recently won the World Grand Prix Championship at age 38.

Highlights: