Customer Reviews

UFC 94: St-Pierre v. Penn

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I was very disappointed in this dvd release for the following reasons:

-the 24/7 tv special was not included.

-pre-fight interviews from BJ/GSP were not included.

-The behind-the-scenes material was dull and ordinary. This was supposed to be the biggest fight in UFC history, but you wouldn't really know it based on the bonus material they included. They should've focused the coverage on the main event, instead of spreading it out over all the main card bouts.

-They separated the prelim fights and main card fights on 2 discs. Now you have change discs to see all the bouts...which sucks.

There are a lot of rumors floating around regarding the reason for delay, but it is not due to "Greasegate" nor is it regarding the royalties from the "Primetime" series from Spike TV. The real reason is that the contract with previous distributor First Look Pictures has expired. The UFC struck a deal with Anchor Bay Home Entertainment and they will be handling the distribution of their license going forward. Here are the dates for upcoming titles:

UFC 94 - July 21, 2009
UFC 95 & 96 - July 28, 2009
UFC 97 - August 4, 2009
UFC 98 - August 18, 2009
UFC 99 - September 8, 2009

There has been nothing officially announce for UFC 100.

This was supposed to be so HUGE!! And it was...and the finger pointing began. One man defends his title, is put on trial basically, and found not guilty. Another man wins a razor close split decision, which is overturned do to his own stupidity. And then the DVD emerges, and it isn't so great either. One reviewer stated that preliminary fights and main card fights are divided between the 2 DVDs...TRUE! Which is crap. Because it also means that viewers aren't treated to the Countdown to UFC 94 show, just some Behind the Scenes. So, aside the gripes, what's UFC 94 all about? Read on!

GSP and B J Penn fought back in UFC 58. GSP took a split decision, many thought the win belonged to Penn. And now, with the title in GSP's hands, wrapped around his waist, it is St-Pierre vs. Penn II. They've both been waiting for this, and GSP looks to finish. Nothing would be better for Penn to have a title in 2 weight classes. Both are hungry, but are both prepared?

The Co-Main Event features 2 undefeated fighters. Lyoto Machida is known for a crafty, elusive style, that some call boring. His one finish was a 2nd round submission. Is this doomed to go the distance, or is he looking to put a stop to the decisions? Thiago Silva is as aggressive as they come. Quick hands with a quick attitude make him a force to be reckoned with. So, who will remain undefeated?

There are 2 DVDs. There are 10 fights. I will list them below.

DISK 2

Matt Arroyo vs. Dan Cramer: To say the least, Arroyo would like nothing better than to win this quickly with a submission. Dan Cramer on TUF 7 is not only making his UFC debut, but his MMA debut as well. And unfortunately, this isn't too great a fight, that goes to a split decision.

Jake O'Brien vs. Christian Wellisch: I never thought I'd say this, but for a fight with Jake O'Brien, it wasn't a bad fight. Although with his ground game, I thought Wellisch should've finished this quickly. This is a close fight that goes to a split decision.

Chris Wilson vs. John Howard: They call Wilson "The Professor." They call Howard "DOOMSDAY." This is a very satisfying fight, and it as well, goes to a split decision.

Manny Gamburyan vs. Thiago Tavares: In only 12 seconds, Rob Emerson knocked out Manny. And Thiago got handled the whole way through his last fight against Kurt Pelligrino. This is a great scrap between 2 warriors, both in need of a win. A unanimous decision forces one of these guys to go down in weight to the WEC.

Jon Fitch vs. Akihiro Gono: Fitch had his title shot, and Gono is experienced to the point where he can bring it the whole time. But this is for the win, and a unanimous decision is awarded to a dominant performance!

DISK 1 MAIN CARD

Nate Diaz vs. Clay Guida: Diaz wants to whoop the wild man carpenter. And it is a great fight that goes to a split decision.

Karo Parisyan vs. Hyun Kim: Well, a split decision was awarded. But due to some poor choices, it was overturned, and this fight in the VERY END was nothing but a NO CONTEST.

Stephan Bonnar vs. Jon Jones: With an undefeated record on his belt, Jon Jones is given a very stern test in Bonnar. The result surprised a lot of people, and a unanimous decision was well earned.

Lyoto Machida vs. Thiago Silva: A surprise knockout at the very end of the 1st round! WOW!!

Georges St-Pierre vs. B J Penn: The long awaited rematch was simply dominated. Some say there was a cheater, but the winner was found not guilty when all was said and done. In my eyes, the loser never prepared, and it showed, and the fight was given up after the 4th round.

Also on disk 1 is UFC features. THERE you can find pre-fight interviews for the Main Card, and 1 for Arroyo/Cramer. The rest of the pre-lim interviews are the back stage interviews.

So was this all worth it? Nope. I wanted more. I expected more. And I truly hope the UFC, along with Anchor Bay gets it together and gives the fans what they want when they buy UFC DVDs. They skimped, and that sucks. But it wasn't all bad. Just could've been better

The entire fight card was extremely BORING. A bunch of fights that were dominated by fighters who implemented the infamous "lay and pray" strategy. ALL fights except the Machida vs Silva and Penn vs St. Pierre went the distance. A good number of those were split decisions. Very little action. Main event did not live up to the hype.

Below is the reply to my inquiry at the UFC Store Customer service line regarding the 94 DVD delay:

"Dear X,

Thank you for your email. I believe the UFC 94 will be released around 7/21, but this is only a tentative date. If you need any further assistance, please let me know.

Best regards,

X
Customer Service"



It is rumored to be delayed due to royalties disputes over the SPIKE PRIMETIME series, involving both St. Pierre and Penn.

I was very disappointed...they did not include the 3 part series of the GSP vs Penn 2 fight, that was played on Spike TV. Whatever their reason was, all the bonus features do not do justice to the actual event.

You want to know why the DVD's been pushed back: "Greasegate". I think the UFC pushed this back from its original relase date because GSP is fighting at UFC 100. I don't think they wanted the DVD out in advance of his next title defense--the UFC tends to try to bury controversial stuff if it might get in the way of them making money. That's why Rampage is still with them, and is going to coach next season's TUF.

Which sucks as I really wanted to see if they had any behind the scenes stuff on Machida--which they have not before. But I can't think of why they wouldn't now (especially since he's now the Light Heavyweight Champion).

Not one to usually complain, but this is really starting to get annoying.

Give us a confirmed date!

UFC94
ST-PIERRE VS PENN 2

This was the event that would showcase the biggest fight in the history of the UFC as the rematch we all wanted BJ Penn taking on the man who he really beat the first time GSP. If you know me or have read the review I did for their first fight you know how I feel about that fight. Well once again BJ was cheated but more on that later, as far as the DVD release goes it is really kinda disappointing. There is absolutely no mention of "Grease Gate" at all even though this huge fight turned into one of the most if not most controversial fights in the history of not only the UFC but the sport of Mixed Martial Arts as well. Also they did not include the first ever UFC Primetime special that was on Spike, and they pulled an Elite XC and put all the prelims on disc two.

DISC 1

1.CLAY GUIDA VS NATE DIAZ-the opening fight on the televised card starts out excellent with Nate picking Clay apart on the fight only to be dominated on the ground and slammed. This is also one of the few times if not the first time I have seen a full nelson in MMA, Clay uses it to get side control. The second round goes to Clay as well as he just stays on Diaz at all times and other than two throws that actually keeps Clay on him Nate does nothing really. But to be fair Diaz does not get hurt and tries some submission attempts. The final round is much closer than the first two as Nate starts to really let loose with some nice combinations. But Clay stays on him gets take downs and ultimately gets the split decision.5/5

2.KARO PARISYAN VS DONG NYUN KIM-Kim really dominates the whole round buy just out working Karo on his back and on the ground. Even when Kim is on his back he is winning this fight. The second round is much closer as Kim controls the first half while Karo makes a come back in the last half. The final round is even closer and is very back and forth but Karo takes a split decision.5/5

3.STEPHAN BONNAR VS JON JONES-extremely entertaining round and a very dominate round for Jones as he just takes the fight to Bonnar. Jones is one of the most exciting fighters I have ever seen. The second round sees Bonnar fair a little better but Jones still is putting it on him. The third round was much better for Bonnar as he does more damage in the third but Jones takes the decision.5/5

4.LYOTO MACHIDA VS THIAGO SILVA-this fight only lasts one round with Lyoto controlling this fight with his elusiveness. He sticks and moves and picks Silva apart in this battle of undefeated fighters. Lyoto literally ends this fight at the bell and takes home another victory.5/5

5. [WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP] GEORGE ST-PIERRE BS BJ PENN-this was supposed to be the fight of the century that was going to be the biggest war of all time. Instead it turned into the most controversial fight of all time. In the first fight I really feel that BJ won that fight hands down if you go back and score it but only one judge agreed with me. In fact Bruce Buffer who is the announcer told BJ that was the hardest decision that he ever had to read because he believed BJ won that. Still I liked GSP and even though I feel he lost it was close enough that if BJ lost at least it was to him.

Well here in this fight after the first very even round GSP dominates Penn and when we were watching this live we all knew something was wrong. My brother even called it and said something wrong went down in between rounds. Turns out that a day or two later video was leaked of GSP getting greased by his corner which is very illegal because then BJ's jiu-jitsu becomes ineffective. The grease made it to slippery for BJ to apply anything and if you go back and watch the fight now you can see his legs just slid right down GSP's back anytime he tries something. Footage was also leaked of UFC President Dana White and other fighters catching GSP in the act and Dana is heard saying "George is in trouble, the commission caught him using grease". GSP slips in and out of BJ's guard with ease even though Penn has a legendary guard, even Rogan called that. Add in that BJ went up in weight for this fight and mix that with the endless amounts of energy he exerted trying to use his jiu-jitsu on a greased opponent and it is more than understandable why the doctor and his corner called the fight. I recommend all watch the "Grease Gate" video.

As for the fight the first round was excellent and keep in mind this is pre greasing and all, GSP tries the clinch game and tries with out luck to take BJ down. BJ lands some nice shots as does GSP but he really wants that take down which he does not get. The round ends very even as both go back to their corners this is were the first greasing begins; they even show a little on this DVD. Notice in GSP's corner he is getting the grease put in his face [perfectly legal] but then his corner man very sneaky like puts the grease all over his chest, shoulders, and back. All places in which he can slip out of BJ's submissions and guard. In the second round BJ lights GSP up with nice shots so George clinches and finally gets that take down. But it is here that you see BJ's legs just slid down GSP's back, even when BJ pulls rubber guard his legs are sliding all over the place. If you know this game especially when utilized early in a fight when there is not very much sweat you are holding that leg in place, there should be no movement because you take out that side of their body. Here even in rubber GSP is sliding all over the place, it is disgraceful on GSP's part. Between these rounds for a split second you see GSP's corner man hiding the grease and putting it into his pocket, cheating once again as the grease him again. The third round looks just like the second with that grease helping Pierre slip in and out all over Penn. Through out this fight you can see GSP's back shining and not from sweat, it's pathetic. In this round Pierre's cheating continues as eve after 4 warnings not to hit the back of the head which is also very illegal he still does it. It is no wonder that the doctors and BJ's corner stops this fight after this round.

I honestly have lost all respect for GSP because a guy that is as good as he is does not need to cheat. But I can see why he did because Penn is a master and when these guys first fought after the first round Pierre actually said he was scared of Penn. This fight also shows what is wrong with these so called fans who even after all this stuff was released to the public they say it was ok for GSP to cheat. They all have turned on Penn saying he is wrong to be mad about Pierre cheating, WHAT? These "UFC FANS" as I like to call them [not a knock on the UFC I just use that to describe these new age only like brawls fickle fans] are not true MMA fans. Any one who knows anything about this sport or Jiu-Jitsu knows how GSP cheating affected BJ's game. His cheating is absolutely pathetic and disgrace to Martial Arts he should have been stripped of his title or at the very least have had this fight thrown out as a no contest or BJ wins on DQ or something.

The UFC.com feature is really good on this disc especially for Penn and Pierre as it spends a lot of time on them.

DISC 2
THE PRELIMS

1.MATT ARROYO VS DAN CRAMER-a great first round between these two as they play chess on the ground for most of the round. The second round was a little different as not to much was going on but good enough. The third round was a mix of the first two but Cramer takes the win.4/5

2.JAKE O' BRIEN VS CHRISTIAN WELLISCH-the first round is excellent as both of these guys swing for the fences and also take this to the ground. The second round was just as good as the first with some ground work, take downs, and some nice hands thrown. The third round is a little slower but still they go at it and O' Brien gets the decision victory.4.5/5

3.CHRIS WILLSON VS JOHN HOWARD-the first round is good with both guys doing their best to win this fight, some good slams and punches. The second round was good as well with a great leg kick and some good strikes. The third round showcases so excellent sweeps by both fighters but John Howard gets the judges nod.4.5/5

4.MANNY GAMBURYAN VS THIAGO TAVARES-we start out with a very good round with Thiago controlling the majority of the round but Manny tries so nice submissions, but only ends up slammed. Another good round with Manny finding himself on top this time for the majority of the round. The final round is a fun one as the both deliver some heavy blows, one of which rocks Manny. Thiago takes a unanimous decision victory in this one.4.5/5

5.JON FITCH VS AKIHIRO GONO-this is a good fight with a somewhat dominate round for Fitch by staying on Gono's back for a lot of the round. Fitch controls the second round as well from the top, on his back and even goes for an arm bar. The third round is another dominate one for Fitch as he takes the decision victory.4.5/5

This was actually a really good event but the main event tainted it with the so called champs cheating ways. I can't believe that the UFC just let GSP get away with this, illegal is illegal no matter who does it. I have seen people do much less in lesser fights and get kicked out of the UFC, GSP's actions are not only a disgrace to the UFC, and himself, but also to Martial arts as a whole.

The special features on this disc are the weigh-ins and a nice behind the scenes feature. Like I said nothing on Grease Gate or the Primetime special.

I know this DVD is awesome, but why is it taking so long for it to be released?!