Some things in life are unarguable. Such as, right now there is no better introduction to a fight show on TV anywhere than Bodog. Not that loopy pseudo-gladiator themed tune the UFC plays. Not the Fight Girls stuff (is anyone still watching that?) Not the IFL, although they’re not bad. No, Bodog is the lead dog. Don’t like that? Too bad. Go to my mmatorch.com forum zone (Just Click HERE) and complain. Go on. I’ll wait.

Back? Good. Let’s see what’s on tap on the beach tonight.

Fun stuff. Bodog brings us a lightweight clash and former WWE embarrassment Daniel Puder makes his Bodog debut. If you don’t remember why Danny got the boot from RAW is Vince and company, here’s the youtube link. Click Here

Tyler “TNT” Jackson (7-4-1, 4 TKO) vs. Kyle Watson (8-5-1, 7 Sub) – Lightweights

Jackson is a boxer (translation: striker) from North of the Border. He has a relatively undistinguished record against nondescript competition, although he has a loss to Sam Stout in there somewhere. He’s not a Bodog rookie though. That distinction falls to Watson who is no more distinguished (on paper anyway) than Jackson. Watson is a submission guy. Jackson is a knockout artist. Translation: This is a “clash of styles” in MMA terms. Watson is coming down in weight it seems and we will see how he fairs in the bright (hot) Costa Rican sunshine. To the beach!

Colonel Bob Sheridan and Paul “The Champ” Lazenby are at ringside. (The Champ? Champ of what? Why can’t he pull a TIMMAH! And wear his belt? Boy, am I confused.)

I will say this, Lazenby has gotten better and better. His “Mickey” reference to Jackson’s trainer was money. Check out the replay on bodogfight.com.

ROUND 1 – Hey, Calvin, get a real horn/bell/barking Chihuahua to start the fights. The bleat to get it going now does not fit the theme. Watson (the grappler) forces Jackson (the striker) back in to the corner. We get some grappling and Jackson works his way back to the middle of the ring. They clinch up again while third man out of the ring, Jeff Osbourne comments on the corners and gives us some decent insight, including Watson’s distinct reach advantage. If the action catches up with the play-by-play and color, this should be a heck of a fight. Meanwhile, back in the ring, both fighters are clinched and trading some reticent knees. We get a nice little flurry from Watson as Jackson stuffs another takedown. Watson is gaining confidence on his feet, but catches Jackson with an unintentional low left kick, not unlike GSP’s first low blow on Hughes. Jackson takes a quick breather and we’re back at it. Watson goes right back to the inside leg kick and scores with it. No fear there, eh? Jackson stuffs another takedown. Watson would do well to continue with the jabs and inside kicks. And that’s exactly what he does and starts peppering Jackson with shots. This, however, wakes up Jackson and he connects twice with stiff punches. Watson pulls guard as the round ends. I got it 10-9 for Watson. Osbourne waffles when asked for his opinion and does not actually score the round. C’mon Jeff, answer the question! Geez!

ROUND 2 – Back from break. Tell me there isn’t a huge difference between Bodog and EliteXC in terms of between round activities. Yes, one is a TV show, one was live. Still though. You can tell me I’m a nut job at my forum zone listed above. Sheridan looks to Lazenby for an opinion on who won the first round. Lazenby (The Canadian Champ, as it turns out!) pulls an Eggo just like Osbourne. Sheridan sounds a little grumpy and we go back to the ring. Both fighters are active with their hands. Watson is more than holding his own and lets go with a Superman punch that glances off the top of Jackson’s head. Jackson stuffs another takedown. Jackson isn’t landing as often, but he definitely has more pop. Some mild exchanges with Watson landing a few more kicks. Jackson can’t seem to “get in the pocket”. The round ends with both fighters circling. Osbourne seems to be leaning towards Jackson, but he gives the round to Watson. Huh? Jeff, please, enough. By my count, Watson won that round also. He was more active and is dictating the pace of the fight, although not the venue (i.e. the ground).

ROUND 3 – More Costa Rican scenery as we come back. The horn bleats and off we go. Lazenby is still counting on Jackson to turn it on. If Jackson pulls this out, he’ll look like a genius, although, both fighters are upright and the standard cliché, “This is MMA, anything can happen”, applies here. In any case, I think Jackson needs a stoppage as any judge who is actually watching the fight and not the girls at ringside (although that would be tough to ignore) has this for Watson, 20-18. Almost on cue, Jackson lands a snapping left jab that backs up Watson. Jackson wades in and gets hit, but he shakes it off and backs up Watson again. Jackson clearly has the heavier hands and Watson would be well advised to get on his bicycle and pull a Lance Armstrong. Watson shoots in. Jackson stuffs it and they clinch. Watson comes up with a knee that catches Jackson on or around the inguinal (groin) region. Jackson winces and the ref calls time for the low blow. Lazenby says that Watson should lay off the inside leg kicks even though it was a knee that caused the damage this time. Huh? Anyway, Jackson recovers and we get set for the homestretch. Left kick by Watson. Hard right overhand from Jackson. Watson shoots for a single leg takedown and Jackson shoves him all the way across the ring. Holy spirit of WWE, what a sequence! Still over two minutes to go and Jackson looks much fresher. Jackson pacing Watson around the ring. Both fighters exchange with Jackson getting the better of it. Forget the bicycle, Watson needs a motorcycle. Jackson is looking pretty marked up, but pushes forward, although there isn’t a great sense of urgency. Does he think he’s ahead? One minute to go and another failed shoot from Watson. Both fighters continue to toss, although Watson looks a little better in this part. The horn bleats and we’re done. Lazenby admits his bias for Jackson which comes as no surprise giving his commentating tonight (Canadian Champ and the Canadian fighter, I’m catching on! Heh. You crazy canucks!). Lazenby says he’d give it to Jackson, although I don’t see how, given that Watson won the first two rounds. I agree Jackson was the better guy in the third though, 10-9 for Jackson. But, I have Watson winning 29-28. Even under Pride (remember them?) rules, I had Watson as the winner. Meh. Let’s go to the judges.

RESULT – Tyler Jackson by split decision.

RATING/RAMIFICATIONS – (**) - Not a bad fight. I question the decision, but that’s MMA for you. Or, it’s a commentary on having too many pretty girls at ringside. Jackson won the third round easily, but it wasn’t a 10-8 round. Anyway, there it is, neither guy is what I would consider a top lightweight, but you never know. Not a bad fight, but nothing special. Let’s move along.

We get a little promo for the upcoming Bodog event on July 14 in Trenton, New Jersey. A couple of title fights including my #1 and #2 ranked women in the 135 pound division. Tara Larosa and Laura D’Auguste will go for the Bodog Women’s Championship. If you’re in the area, it’ll be worth your time and it doesn’t carry the UFC price tag and I’m told Trenton is lovely this time of year. Well, two out of three ain’t bad…

Daniel Puder (4-0, 3 Sub) vs. Michael Alden (1-0, 1 Sub) – Heavyweights

Well, you know Puder’s story by now. From the MMA side, he has won three straight by submission in the Strikeforce promotion. Alden has a win in Hook’N’Shoot back in May 2006 by submission as well. Looks like a feeder match for Puder. Although Bodog has Alden listed as (6-0). Let’s see. Sherdog vs. Bodog. Hmmm. Anyone remember Pound Puppies? Just kidding.

We get the promo and this is looking more and more like a Puder wipeout. We get Puder doing a pushup. He says, “I’m going to take the”, he does a pushup, “ugly stick to your head.” Heh. Too late, Daniel, too late. Have you seen this guy? Yikes! Can you say “Deliverance”? Lazenby tells us that Alden is coming down from 310 pounds. He looks like he came down from the cornfield as he enters the ring wearing a straw hat and overalls with one suspender unhooked. Who’s the former pro wrestler here, anyway? Lazenby references the “Angle incident” as Puder walks to the ring. In retrospect, the WWE ref did a great job tapping three on Puder while he was jerking Angle around in the Kimura. Unsung hero that guy. I wonder if he got canned. Anyway, to the fight we go. Puder is channeling Tito Ortiz with the side-to-side bob during the introduction. Sheridan tells us that since both fighters are wearing black trunks, we can tell the fighters apart because Puder has the blond hair. Or, he could say that Alden is the one with the boobs.

ROUND 1 - The horn bleats and it’s fight time. Tentative jab from Alden. Puder smiles and tosses a combination. They circle and Puder lands a four-punch combination that sends Alden trundling backwards. Puder throws the fifth punch, misses and lands on the ropes as Alden circles away. Huge left head kick from Puder. Puder slips and falls. Alden eats the kick and falls. Puder is up first and begins sitting in half guard applying the old fist-face combinations. Alden is flailing in defense and ref Troy Wahl jumps in to halt the inevitable. I’m not sure Alden was out of it yet, but that was the next chapter in the book. Alden tosses his mouthpiece in disgust as Puder does a Batista on the ropes.

RESULT – Daniel Puder by TKO at 0:44 of round one.

RATING/RAMIFICATIONS – (*+) – Not much of a match. Alden was way overmatched and it was obvious before he got to the ring. Puder is a name, plus he’s a great talker. As he improves, his upside will only get a greater. Good fighter plus great personality equals big ratings. For reference, see Ortiz, Tito or Jackson, Quinton.

And that’s that for this week. Not too bad. The biggest thing is the production has gotten A LOT better. As usual, you can comment on this or, more or less, anything you like by hitting up the mmatorch message board at the link given a few paragraphs back.