Ricardo Almeida vs. Kendall Grove
Ricardo Almeida defeats Kendall Grove Supposedly, this was Almeida’s last fight at middleweight. Even though he won, it’s understandable why he made the decision to drop down a weight class. He had to work really hard to get Kendall Grove down. Much of the fight consisted of Almedia dry-humping Grove against the fence. As fun as that is to watch, we’d rather see him grappling with someone his own size. Despite the size difference, Almeida managed to pull off a beautiful slam to close the first round. It looked great, but it probably contributed to his fatigue as well. If he can pull off the cut to 170, he’ll get to spend less energy taking down his opponents. If Almeida can’t work his submission skills on his opponent, he’s left with little else to do. He did get beat up on the feet by Kendall. What’s even worse is that Almeida (the alleged submission master) almost got caught in an arm bar. How the hell does that work? Luckily for Ricardo, Grove isn’t a great MMA fighter. Kendall is competitive enough to hang around in the UFC, which says something. However he still can’t use his height and reach to his advantage. He should have been coached to keep Almeida at arm’s length for the entire fight. Mind you, that’s a lot easier said than done. Next Fight: Johny Hendricks vs. Amir Sadollah
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