UFC St. Louis: Stephens vs. Choi – Winners and Losers

The UFC’s kickoff to 2018 wasn’t a home run by any stretch of the imagination — no one was expecting it to be considering it was an FS1 Fight Night event — but it wasn’t a strikeout either. The main event delivered as expected, as Jeremy Stephens and Doo Ho Choi slugged it out until one man could slug no more. The opener to the main card saw Darren Elkins do what Darren Elkins does in outlasting a better physical talent in Michael Johnson. And though it only lasted for a minute, Marco Polo Reyes and Matt Frevola threw down in epic fashion.

However, outside of those three contests, the rest of the action was ho hum. Kamaru Usmanmopped the ring with Emil Weber Meek’s carcass for 15 minutes, but that was expected.Jessica-Rose Clark and Paige VanZant had some good moments, but fell flat in the last round to kill any simmer their contest had to it, though that can partially be explained by VanZant’s broken arm. The rest of the card… eh. Given it wasn’t a card many were hyping up, it delivered what it was supposed to deliver.

Winners

Jeremy Stephens: Huge win for the perennial gatekeeper. Win or lose, Stephens tends to show up for opponents with name recognition and he did so in a big way here. Choi landed some big shots too, but the young Korean began to lose confidence when Stephens didn’t go away. In fact, Stephens kept coming. The win should set up the longtime veteran to get a big fight that could set him up for a title shot. Sure, he’s already lost to both Max Holloway andFrankie Edgar, but doesn’t it seem like they’ve beaten everybody in the division who matters anyway? Stephens called out Brian Ortega and while I don’t think that’s a bad idea, I like the idea of him matching up with Josh Emmett better. Elkins needs a high-profile contest too and Elkins is unlikely to be hip to facing Emmett considering they train together. See where I’m going with this….

Kamaru Usman: There are some people who don’t believe Usman made much of a point. Sure, he didn’t secure a finish against Meek, but he dominated him in a way nobody else has. Ten takedowns over the course of a 15-minute contest is nothing to scoff at. There are many – myself included – who believe he’s a top five welterweight who isn’t ranked higher simply because he doesn’t have the requisite names under his belt to move up the ladder. The UFC has zero excuses for why they can’t get him a notable opponent at this juncture. GIVE HIM A CONTENDER ALREADY!

On a side note, what the hell was Usman trying to prove with the 30% promo? I like Usman, but he dropped the ball on that to the point I almost didn’t put him in the winner’s column. Then again, I know he doesn’t care what I think…

Darren Elkins: There isn’t a bigger winner on the card. Very much like his fight with Mirsad Bektic, Elkins took a hell of a beating in the opening moments of the fight only to come back and secure a finish over a more hyped opponent. There were moments in the first it looked like Johnson was one punch away from putting Elkins away. Then that punch would land… and Elkins was still there. In fact, he was still coming forward. Elkins got Johnson down early in the second, took his back, and battled to cinch in the RNC until he got it. That makes six wins in a row for Elkins. I know there isn’t anything sexy about Elkins’ style, but the guy deserves to fight a contender at this point. GIVE IT TO HIM ALREADY!

Marco Polo Reyes: If you can score a KO – and an additional knockdown too – in a minute’s time, you’ve had a very good night. Reyes ate some heavy shots from Matt Frevola, but you wouldn’t have known it based on the way he continued to swing away in the pocket. I know I’m not the only one who continues to underestimate the Mexico native. Maybe this performance will get all of us to give him the credit he deserves.

Irene Aldana: It wasn’t a dominant performance, but it was Aldana’s most complete performance in the UFC thus far. She dominated Talita Bernardo early on the feet and showed enough savvy on the ground to escape Bernardo’s assault of submission attempts and ground control. Plus, did you see Bernardo’s face after the fight? Aldana is fun as hell.

Kyung Ho Kang: Kang’s debut almost went south in a hurry, but he recovered and slapped a slick triangle choke onto Guido Cannetti to make the Argentinian tap before the first round closed. Then again, some rust would be expected after over three years away from the sport after his mandatory military service for his home country of South Korea. Expect Kang to look that much better in his next effort.

Jessica Eye: It didn’t matter how Eye won, she was going in the winner’s column if she walked out with a W. There was no way she could suffer a fifth loss in a row and be considered a legit UFC talent, especially when the UFC finally opened her natural weight class of flyweight. She gave Faria every chance to win the fight – as she seems to do in every contest – but she managed to walk away with her job intact.

JJ Aldrich: I don’t know many people who were picking Aldrich. Instead, Rose Namajunas’ training partner played to her strengths, remaining disciplined as she pressured the smaller Taylor and picking her apart. There was nothing sexy about the performance, but mad props to her.

Losers

Doo Ho Choi: Choi didn’t lose any fans for his performance here. He ate some heavy leather early and landed some in return to make for an exciting contest. He just didn’t pick any up in the process and needed a win in the worst way to give the impression that he can become a contender. As much fun as Stephens is to watch, he doesn’t beat the best in the division. However, he just beat Choi. Choi is only 26, but like Kang already did, he still has his own mandatory military service for South Korea to serve. That could eat up his prime years depending on when his service begins. With this loss, he’s unlikely to claw his way into contention before he gets called. Choi is still one of the best action fighters in the UFC, but all those factors make him the biggest loser of the night.

Michael Johnson: Nobody denies Johnson’s talent. Hell, he looked like a world-beater for the first five minutes. Had he been able to finish Elkins in the opening round – he appeared to be close to doing so several times – he very well could have received a top five opponent in his second fight at featherweight. Instead, he crumpled as soon as the new round began and has now dropped five of his last six. Johnson can still make some noise in his new home, but he needs to manage his energy and his emotions.

Matt Frevola: It isn’t rare for an undefeated fighter to have an air of indestructability. It’s even more rare when a fighter like that doesn’t have that bubble burst sooner rather than later. Sooner arrived for Frevola against Reyes. Frevola doesn’t necessarily need to be in the loser’s column should he learn from this loss as he’s possesses enough physical gifts that he shouldn’t be reliant on winning a firefight. But I worry about his willingness to adjust and learn from this. Thus, I felt it appropriate to put him here.

Guido Cannetti: Cannetti looked very good early, rocking Kang and holding his own in the wrestling department. But I can’t put you anywhere other than the loser’s column when you lose every one of your professional contests by submission and then you lose this one by… submission. The book on Cannetti isn’t going to change.

Kalindra Faria: I was tempted to put Faria in the neither category as she looked far better than she did in her UFC debut against Mara Romero Borella. She actually showed a semblance of a ground game! I can’t say the status quo remains the same though when this loss could have cost Faria her job in the UFC. She may get another opportunity, but I have serious doubts.

Danielle Taylor: Given the progress she showed in her last two contests, some viewed the explosive Taylor as a wild card. I don’t know if Aldrich deserves all the credit for her game plan, but Taylor had next to nothing to offer her. She managed the occasional burst of offense, but nothing came of it. There isn’t a fighter on the roster who would benefit more from a women’s atomweight division. Unless the UFC is desperate to make Michelle Waterson a champion, it isn’t happening soon.

Mike Santiago: This was the type of fight Santiago is supposed to win. As an experienced vet who finally found his way into the UFC through the Contender’s Series, he was expected to get a read on Mads Burnell and make the youngster pay. Santiago made some good adjustments before the first round was up to steal it away after Burnell, but he didn’t do enough over the final two rounds to sway the judges. Even though the fight was close, it just looked like Burnell wanted it more. This loss may have brought a close to Santiago’s UFC career.

Neither

Jessica-Rose Clark: She was well on her way to the winner’s column before a lackluster final round. I get she probably didn’t know VanZant broke her arm, but she didn’t even attempt to take the fight to the ground in the final frame after dominating VanZant there in the first two rounds. She had a chance to make a statement and instead coasted in the last round. Being unable to finish an opponent who has a broken arm isn’t a good look.

Paige VanZant: Much like Clark was on her way to the winner’s column, VanZant was on her way to the loser’s column through two rounds. However, toughing out a fight when you have a broken arm will earn you mad respect. I still disagree with VanZant’s decision to move up to flyweight and this fight certainly adds to my argument, but it’s hard to rip on VanZant when she displays the level of toughness she does in this contest as well as her loss to Namajunas two years ago. Whether you like VanZant or not, no one can deny her toughness.

Emil Weber Meek: Perhaps it’s a surprise to see Meek here considering Usman threw him around like a ragdoll… but who didn’t expect him to? Meek did what many don’t want to do by stepping in the cage with Usman and didn’t quit. This loss shouldn’t hurt him at all.

James Krause: I know Krause got the W, but I didn’t see it that way. He did use his savvy to reverse position on Alex White a few times to get the top control which fooled the judges into giving him the win, but he was also on wobbly feet more often than not over the course of the final two rounds when the two exchanged fisticuffs. Given he was the favorite, more was expected out of Krause.

Alex White: I know I just talked about White a bit in the last paragraph, but keep in mind that damage is supposed to be the premier category in which fights are judged. There is no doubt White hurt Krause far more than Krause hurt White. He didn’t lose the fight. Thus, I can’t put him in the loser’s category.

Talita Bernardo: Though I admit Bernardo could lose her job, I think she gets another shot as she doesn’t quit. She doggedly pursued takedowns and showed some progress on the feet. She’s got enough potential the UFC would be crazy to cut her loose. Plus, she brings it in the way that Dana White wants his fighters to bring it. I’m impressed with her.

Mads Burnell: I would have put him in the winner’s category, but the young Dane missed weight badly. Given he used his size to his advantage, I can’t in good conscious put him in that category. He showed improved ground control to go with his wrestling slams, proving to be enough for him to pick up the win. Still, he needs to make weight.