Many believe that if Chuck Liddell were not present, Tito Ortiz would be UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion; but after two bouts both reaching the same conclusion, there is little doubt as to who is the best UFC Light-Heavyweight. The result is that Ortiz has been rendered the unofficial number two seed- although having now lost number one contender status. No fighter wants to be another’s ‘steppingstone’, yet Ortiz has found himself to be the ‘steppingstone’ of an entire division. Ortiz represents the bar over which all contenders must leap before getting to Chuck Liddell; he is the barrier, blockade and sentinel guarding that coveted spot of number one contender. Ortiz must be beaten before the mantle of number one contender can be taken up with any credibility
But who is next in line to take on ‘The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’?
Well originally it was speculated that Ortiz would be facing Renato "Babalu" Sobral, but presumably the UFC saw little sense in matching two of Liddell’s past victims to vie for the chance to face the champion for a third time.
Then it was speculated that Ortiz would be engaged in a rematch with Forrest Griffin at UFC 70 in England, but Griffin has now been matched with Ryoto Machida (which seems to be a step up in class, even though Griffin lost his last fight- curious). Furthermore, Griffin lost to Keith Jardine at UFC 66, thereby disentitling himself to a promised title shot. Interestingly Keith Jardine was not made the same offer. Unfortunately for UK fans, it also appears that Griffin will not be fighting at the M.E.N Arena either, owing to a staph infection.
Jardine was however speculated to be Ortiz’s next opponent. The proposition was even confirmed by Ortiz in an interview held by mmatoday.com. A fight with Jardine would have made for an interesting match up of styles as Ortiz loves to take down opponents and pound out the victory, whereas Jardine aims to utilise good takedown defence and hard low kicks to dismantle his opponents. However it would appear that too much credence was given to Ortiz’s nuncupative ‘confirmation’ of the Jardine bout.
It as this point that Rashad Evans enters the picture. Rashad was a contestant on the second series of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’; and as such, has found himself to be at the heart of criticisms which labelled the show as a proving ground of the mediocre fighter and its contestants as substandard. Dana White has been accused of ‘grooming’ these reality show fighters to excess in an attempt to engage the mainstream sector of the UFC’s audience. Rashad was used as evidence for such diatribe as his bouts with Keith Jardine, Sam Hoger, Mike Whitehead and Brad Imes were all won via decision. Yet one Cro-Cop-esque head kick later, scored against the then unheard of Sean Salmon, and Rashad Evans is being considered as contender material. Now it would appear that many commentators are giving it the old “I told you so” routine stating how they knew all along that Rashad would one day be considered for a title shot. In reality only one man can make such a claim and that man is Dana White. Throughout all of the criticism White has stuck by his reality show fighters and has now been rewarded with a real prospect. White is perhaps very close to receiving the dividends from keeping the faith.
MMAWeekly.com confirmed this week that the Evans vs. Ortiz fight will take place on July the 7th in Las Vegas. A win here is sure to give Rashad number one contender status, but whether he’ll be fighting Chuck Liddell is another matter all together…
Perhaps the only man currently signed to the UFC that doesn’t need to go through Ortiz to get his chance at Liddell, is Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. But then if you look at Rampage’s fight record, you’ll notice that the tally mark next to the name ‘Chuck Liddell’ is in the ‘W’ column. A mark like that speaks volumes, and a rematch has apparently been confirmed for the 26th of May, also in Las Vegas. Although an official announcement is yet to be made, the bout was confirmed by Jackson’s manager and trainer Juanito Ibarra earlier this month- an official announcement is expected to follow soon.
With such a deep pool of light-heavyweight talent, the UFC are now finally starting to match Liddell with new opponents and not the UFC’s ex-poster boys (Ortiz and Couture). With the haze of whispers and rumor surrounding the possible $65 million Pride takeover, the speculation that Liddell may end up fighting one of Pride’s ‘big three’ is rife. After Jackson, who comes next: Wanderlei Silva; Dan Henderson; Antonio Rogerio Nogueira; Rashad Evans? The possibilities are endless.
Needless to say, should Tito Ortiz defeat Rashad Evans, he may find himself with a whole host of fighters waiting for their shot at the number one spot. Granted, many of you will say that the aforementioned Pride fighters aren't required to prove themselves worthy of a title shot. All that may be said to that is: Cro Cop and Jackson don’t need to prove themselves either, but have still benefitted from tune-up fights. Should any of Pride’s trifecta find themselves within the ranks of the UFC, who better to ‘tune-up’ against than a former champion?
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