"A warm up fight is the most dangerous thing to do. F*ck it give me a big fight right away !!! I’ll be back on top soon'' !! Rich Franklin said than he want to take time off until May, hope he will come back at 185 and fight me here in Montreal !!! UFC 113 May 1st Cote vs. Franklin sounds good to me !!!"
Former number one middleweight contender Patrick Cote — who underwent major ACL knee surgery in November 2008 — talks via his Facebook account about returning to the Octagon in a big way by calling out former division champion Rich "Ace" Franklin. "The Predator" has been sidelined since shredding his knee while opposing uber-champion Anderson Silva at UFC 90 back in October 2008. The bout resulted in a technical knockout loss for the Canadian, which he feels may have gone his way if the freak accident never happened. The 185-pound class is now teeming with possible title contenders, making his road back to the summit (now possible for UFC 113) more than likely a long and difficult one. Is he biting off more than he can chew?
I definitely wouldn't want them to be the main event though like Cote makes it sound. Would make an ok co main event depending on the other fight though.
This obviously isn't what Franklin wants though and fighters like Cote should show a bit of respect before calling out a fighter that wants to fight at 205 and has paid enough to the sport to be able to do that without being treated like a gatekeeper.
Theres a lot of great fights for Franklin at 185, Cote being one of them, Nate, Akiyama, Bisping, and others. If Franklin dropped back down to 185, he would definitely be the 2nd ranked person in no time, as the only MW giving him trouble would be Belfort, but I think Franklin could take him in a rematch.
Franklin at LHW isn't a good idea. While thats where he wants to be, I think he'd struggle against a lot of the larger and very heavy handed guys. Rua, Rampage, Evans, and Nog would give him a lot of trouble. But I have no doubt that he could beat Couture, Forrest, Vera, and most of the mid carders.
Well I've felt this way ever since Rich said he was moving up. But if he can't beat Anderson, what's the point in being a gatekeeper? Either way, he said he feels great with the easy cut and generally feels more comfortable at 205. So I guess that's where he's staying.
That'd be a great fight, and I'd be pulling for Cote. Thing is, Franklin's coming to the end of his career and I just don't know if he has that fire inside him anymore ... Cote is just raring to go, and with hands like his - Franklin better come prepared. Either way, never count out Ace.
Rich Franklin is a great guy, he's done a lot for MMA and the UFC and has a lot to offer to the sport...
That being said I don't get all this gatekeeper talk. If he is going to stick around and continue to fight without altering his approach and style then he is going to rack up more losses and naturally end up in the role. Cote isnt some noob MMA stiff looking to get over, he has serious skills and it's an excellent matchup IMO.
Why do people think its insulting to Rich? The fact that people hold him in that high of regard that they believe a win over him puts them at the top of the heap is a huge sign of respect. Can you blame Cote for calling him out though? I mean really who is not booked for a fight that is gonna get him where he wants to be (back in title contention), everyone is either booked or not a big enough win. Cote takes this fight to and hopefully IMO gets the respect he deserves.
I would put my money on....Damn I dont know. This one is tricking. SHould make for an interesting matchup. Definitley not main event material though
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