Pat Curran, Uriah Hall, and fight-ruining cuts: Where do they fall on Cagewriter’s Hot or Not list?
Leading into UFC on Fuel and Invicta, it's been a drama-filled week of MMA. What was hot and what wasn't?
Hot — Pat Curran: Bellator's featherweight champion held onto his belt on Thursday night with a first-round submission of Shabhulat Shamhalaev. It's been two years since his last loss. Since then, he has six wins, including two title defenses.
Not — Practical jokes: When Alexander Gustafsson's status for Saturday's fight was still uncertain, Wanderlei Silva tweeted that he was in for Gustafsson against Gegard Mousasi. He even told media members privately that he was fighting. But the next day he revealed it was an "April Fool's Day" joke. A joke, or a lie?
Hot — Uriah Hall: When he knocked out Adam Cella in the first round of "The Ultimate Fighter," it was hailed as the nastiest knockout ever on TUF. Then Hall went and topped it. He knocked out Bubba McDaniel in a vicious, nine-second bout that ended with McDaniel asking what happened, and UFC president Dana White wondering if it was right to applaud Hall's performance.
Not — Fight-ruining cuts: What was worse — Gustafsson getting cut a week before his fight with Mousasi, or the will-he-or-won't-he drama leading up the the Swedish MMA Federation's medical committee deciding that he couldn't fight? Or was the worst part that they made that decision days before the weigh-in when they could have given the cut more time to heal? It's a bad deal all around.
Still taking temperature — Ilir Latifi: Gustafsson's training partner has the opportunity of his life as he steps in on Saturday to fight Mousasi in the main event of UFC on Fuel 9. He can make his UFC debut very memorable, but will it be good or bad for him.
