Vs.

Phil Baroni

If you follow the game, then you know what this match means and what it could be.

Frank Shamrock was a dominant force in the mid 1990s when he went undefeated in the UFC® and reigned supreme. He never went the distance inside the Octagon® and won by a wide variety of ways including armbar (Kevin Jackson), body slam KO (Igor Zinoviev), kneebar (Jeremy Horn) and dispatched the whole Huntington beach connection with a pair of old fashioned beatdowns (John Lober and Tito Ortiz). He was versatile, cocky and dynamic.

But that was the better part of 10 years ago – Frank’s last big name win was when he stopped Tito in 1998…(Shamrock has fought a total of four times since then).

“The New York Badass”, Phil Baroni, on the other hand has not won the acclaim of Shamrock, simply because he has not captured a title or been consistent. Phil’s hastiness can be a blessing and a curse, depending on his opponent.

Regardless of not having a perfect record (Frank’s isn’t spotless either), Baroni HAS fought some of the world’s best fighters LATELY. Two decision losses to Matt “The Law” Lindland (2001 & 2003) are nothing to fold up shop about…and his TKO loss to former UFC® middleweight champ Evan Tanner was controversial (but his rematch decision loss in 2004 wasn’t)…and his late submission loss to Pete Sell (2005), a fight he was winning…well, everyone gets caught at one time or another. A common theme? Yes - ground-oriented fights can slip through Phil’s fingers on occasion.

But those fighters who could not take Phil down and keep him there paid the price: Amar Suloev, Dave Menne, Ikuhisa Minowa, Ryo Chonan and Yuki Kondo all had a panoramic view of the ceiling while resting on the canvas after tasting an NYBA punch (or six). Baroni commits to his punches like no other in the game, and that has served him well…most of the time.

Even though Frank is notoriously outspoken about his upcoming opponents in the past, this time out it is mainly Baroni who has done most if not all of the smack talk. And this is one of the reasons Phil Baroni, who has never won a championship and has lost 5 out of 8 UFC appearances, is part of (potentially) the biggest non-UFC MMA pay per view eva: he knows how to sell a fight. That combined with his ever-present knockout power makes this an intriguing matchup.

To me the obvious game plan for Frank Shamrock is two-fold: to use movement and counter punching (and kicking) to frustrate the charging bull and to take him deep into the late rounds to test Baroni’s previously questioned cardio. Phil’s method for getting Frank is to bull him in his usual fashion. But the New Yorker must be thrifty at the right times also. To shoot a lot of punches that do not land would haunt him the later this epic clash goes.

Frank fought a relatively lackluster match against Renzo Gracie in February of this year, a fight he lost by disqualification when he landed several illegal knees to the back of the Brazilian’s head. But this fight with Phil Baroni is a completely different animal, one in which Frank Shamrock must fight not only to win, but to also protect his legacy.
 

Vs.

Joey Villasenor

The obvious difference here is in experience with world class competition: even though Murilo “Ninja” Rua (13-7-1) has lost 6 of his last 11 fights, look at WHO he battled with – Ricardo Arona, Sergei Kharitonov (Ninja should have never fought at heavyweight), Denis Kang and Paulo Filho, Kevin Randleman and Quinton Jackson (many felt he won his fight with “Rampage”), all solid top ten fighters. Joey Villasenor with a record of 23-5 actually has more fights than Murilo and is coming off an impressive decision over the previous hot David Loiseau. But his fight before that was an explosive KO loss to Robbie Lawler.

But these details only equate things in a statistical sense. Some wonder if all those losses have damaged Rua’s belief system in that he can get into serious contention worldwide. Too many losses can have the reverse effect that “experience” is supposed to have; it can make one more accepting of defeat. But I doubt Murilo is approaching the fight with former King of The Cage Champion Villasenor with anything but victory in mind.

One thing is for certain, because both fighters have a fast paced style, this one will deliver action, along with a solid contender for consideration for a match with the winner of Baroni/Shamrock.

Vs.

Carter Williams

Paul “The Headhunter” Buentello is rugged and loves to get into tooth and nail battles inside the cage. And that is exactly the strategy he needs for a win here with Carter “The Beast” Williams. Williams burst onto the American K-1 kickboxing scene years ago and showed so much promise. But then he got knocked out a few times and people started to doubt his staying power.

If Paul stays on the outside and tries to play a technical game with Carter it will only give the K-1 USA champion a chance to notch a win. A takedown or two will get Carter’s mind off kickboxing long enough for Paul to secure the victory.

Vs.

Tony Frykland

Cung Le continues his transition from San Shou champion to mixed martial arts fighter in front of his hometown crowd. Tony “The Freak” Frykland is a solid, if not declining, former contender who will give Cung solid work before losing.

Vs.

Victor Valenzuela

I saw the first match in King of The Cage and felt that Victor Valenzuela easily won (the judges ruled the contest a “draw”). But I think Charles “Crazy Horse” Bennett will win this time…if he’s in shape. Valenzuela is a striker and seemingly does not possess the thing that has given Bennett problems in the past, submissions.