The Doggy Bag: Topics of the Week

---

[Frankie] Edgar should’ve been Sherdog.com’s "Fighter of the Year." I can't understand how beating up a faded Nogueira and Brock Lesnar, who can't even take a punch to the face, makes you the "Fighter of the Year." Edgar was an underdog to B.J. Penn both times, beat him [twice] and became champion in the top division in MMA. Nobody had a better 2010 at the highest level of MMA. You guys screwed up.
-- Aaron from Oklahoma

Greg Savage, Fight Week executive producer: If we screwed up, it wouldn’t be the first time but I have to say, although Frankie Edgar was the only person we really considered a competitor to Cain Velasquez for "Fighter of the Year" honors, I didn’t really see it being that close. Velasquez went into both fights with relatively little fanfare and came out the best heavyweight in the world.

Edgar, for his part, defeated a legend of the sport two times but the first was so close the UFC decided a rematch was in order. In much more convincing fashion, the toughest guy from Jersey took it to Penn and beat him in a convincing decision to rightfully claim the lightweight division’s top spot.

Velasquez, on the other hand, spent a grand total of 6:32 in the Octagon en route to a masterful knockout via a slick combination and follow up depth charge to the grill of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and a brutal beatdown of Lesnar that surely left even the most skeptical Cain-haters impressed.

The sheer violence and precision Velasquez displayed was more than enough to sway the majority of the Sherdog staff in his direction and by the look of things, a number of other outlets in the MMA media sphere.

Again, this does nothing to discount the performances of Edgar. Taking out B.J. Penn twice is an amazing feat unto itself. Add in his awe-inspiring comeback against Gray Maynard on New Year’s Day and “The Answer” undoubtedly cemented his status as one of the baddest hombres to lace up a pair of four-ounce gloves.

Continue Reading » Page Five: Hominick is Worthy