“They say as we get older, we get smarter. I guess I’ve kind of got to agree a little bit. I still like to have fun, I still like to get my heart rate up, do exciting things. After my last little stint in jail, a lot of things that have happened to me in my life, I’ve realized there’s a lot of situations that are good fun, safe fun, beneficial fun - and then there’s other kinds of fun and situations that I now choose to abstain from…. Believe or not, moving to Hawaii definitely is not a difficult move. For me or for anybody for that matter. I had just an awesome opportunity. (Icon’s) T.J. Thompson offered me a job out here, being the head coach at Icon Sport. I came out to check it out. Everything clicked great and just things started falling into place and I tell you what I couldn’t be happier. I can’t tell you the future but I can tell you I’m definitely happy right now…. More than anything, a gradual progress. I think obviously maturing as a person and again as a fighter and being a coach, now I can’t tell the guys I’m training with, do this, don’t do that - when I’m doing something different. To some extent, I’ve got to walk the line.”
– Chris Leben reflects on his progress with the Canadian Press from season one of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) as a wild and unpredictable party animal several years ago to a responsible and sober full-time fighter and instructor today. “The Crippler” will look to put his new stamp on Michael Bisping at UFC 89: “Leben vs. Bisping” at The National Indoor Arena (NIA) in Birmingham, England, on October 18.
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i still think bisping wins this one. He looks wayyy better at middleweight.
Leben’s gonna kill that fool!
man i hope he knocks off Bisping over-rated head off!!!
i hope he puts him tp sleep like evans on liddell!!!!!
Leben is the favored underdog here[if there was one]. He’s gonna prove a lot of doubters wrong here…Trust me…
im not a fan of both guys, I actually hated the way bisping fights until he moved to middleweight.. and the vera fight is the only one im looking forward to in the card. But i think skill wise bisping is better than leben.. but who knows, leben can always catch him.
Leben’s still a chump that’s gonna lose to Bisping
Sounds to me like that chump has good things to say and wants to be a good role model as well. some chump eh?
5 years of being a chump to one year of pretending to be a role model. Doesn’t average out to me. Anyone can say things about how much they think they’ve matured. I dont buy it. How long ago was this guy in jail? And in jail only because he had to, to try to get his Visa.
I give him the benefit of the doubt. Will he walk the walk? Time will tell, but I give him my encouragement and my positive thoughts that he can change. Everyone can. I did, and many others have changed too.
Typically when people doubt others, it’s because they have a lot of self-doubt, and project that to others. And if he isn’t able to maintain this new path, it still says something about the guy that he’s now trying to. I give him credit, he’ll now hopefully affect those around him in a positive way.
The only people who can tell if he has matured are the people who knew him in the past and are still in contact with him.
Nobody on this thread knows shit about his personality so keep the analysis to his MMA skills.
I think Bisping stays away from Leben’s heavy hands and wins by decision.
Leben is going to knock Bisping out!!!!
Leben had to get wiser, if he was somehow able to get dumber, he would have to walk around wearing a helmet and kneepads.
lol natural, good point
OJR the whole paragraph above is about him maturing since TUF. I do believe we all got to see a wild and wreckless Leben. The plain fact is I don’t care what he does on his spare time but when it shows up on television then it reflects his maturity and the MMA community as a whole. (If you had picked Leben to win, I would have taken your post a little more seriously.
Riverhorror, in my best “kung fu” voice, “even the longest journey begins with buy a single step, grasshopper.”
Chris Leben is a good and sane person, compared to Koppenhaver…
I think Leben will win. I just see him landing bomb after bomb.
He’s gonna win simply using his chin. Only concentrated high volume attack will put him down. Bisping may have fast hands but he can’t throw down for squat. And bisping’s submissions are still a question while leben has very underrated bjj. I see 2nd round tko.
Leben’s going to actually knock Bisping out with his chin.
Wow! Quite a feat!
Never seen Igor-Illukhine?
I got bisping
How much u gonna put down on him if any? Personally, i think this is a terrible match up for him. better hope his chin holds up.
Kevin may not know shit but he knows who’s gonna win this fight.
Bottom line no matter what, Chris has matured both as a fighter and man. We are proud to have you as our coach.
Your going to have everyone at the gym rooting for you Chris!!!!
Aloha ~
lol
I don’t get what you think is so funny about that comment?
kevins just a jackass, dont worry about him… he has more money than all of us, a hotter wife, better kids, better job, how could we possibly be as cool as kevin?
thank brendan, my wife is hot, but my stock is down 8 dollars this week, so the economy is hurting me. I was just amused with the post, nothing more! I got a strike vote sat…I figure I can go 6 months without hitting savings or stock…stressfull times!!
by the way, phil and VM have seen my wife, they’ll tell you how hot she is!!
My question was based on curiousity. Not looking to bag on anybody.
Kev, can I get a glimpse at ur wife too? No disrespect or anythin’…
who cares kevin.. Does telling everyone make you sound cooler? haha.
Yea he’s definitely matured which is good for him and the sport. However, I think Bisping is a better striker now that he’s moved down in weight. It’s gonna take a lot of strikes to bring down Leben, but its been done before.
just once by the pound 4 pound best in the world
That was first TKO loss too, i believe.
lol, thats great man…email me
I just dont see bisping winning
Good to see anyone embrace sobriety.
I like both of these guys. That said I will be rooting for Leben in this fight, he has come a long way since TUF and is a way better fighter now. Chris is a super tough guy and I just dont think Bispings skill will be good enough for the new, tougher and more skilled Leben.
people are sleeping on this kid… truth be told he has had more experience in the octagon while at UFC than Bisping. He has faced more forbidable opponents. He has lost good ones and won good ones which to me makes him more well rounded overall. Not until you lose do you humble yourself.. I think Bisping lost to Hammil and Rashad but still isn’t humbled. He feels he won against Hammill and barely lost to Rashad when he was clearly out sized in his opinion. So I think a knockout will humble him and bring him back to reality. Its not his fault. The UFC does baby him because he is the British Golden Boy and need him to help sell tickets over seas and has plans for the new tuf competition which the theme is Brits Vs USa… Thats just my take on the situation
As someone who saw the Bisping/Hammil fight live I can tell you the fight was very close(I had Bisping but it could have gone the other way). I was very suprised then when I watched it again at home with Joe Rogan commentating. Joe was so one sided it was unbelievible. Try watching the fight again without sound! The funniest part was when Joe Rogan says that the crowd were booing at the result….no way, they were booing one of Hammils corner men who had to be sorted out by the security.
Although I love listening to Rogan and think he’s the best he really can change the way you see a fight going.
The reason the Bisping Hammil fight looks wrong is because Hammil won the 1st more decisively than Bisping won the second two rounds. It was a fair call IMO. I don’t know about the UFC babying him though, except for his first fight at middle weight, he’s fought some decent fighters in Rashad and Hammil, and now Leben, all of whom have proven their worth.
Bisbing is a Penis!!!!! ever since his post fight interview after the hamill fight i have hated his guts. I hope lebin gives him the Seth Petrezelli.
this is actually a pretty tough fight to call ill be rooting for leben but i think bisping might take this one just cause hes in his home country
Bahiano - Hamill fight was closer then people make out! Hamill dominated round one throwing bombs while Bisping was shocked and was just walking/running backwards from the bigger guy who he thought was just going to take him down! but rounds 2 & 3 Hamill was throwing bombs again but it didn’t work! his hands were down so Bisping was able to win because of jabs and leg kicks! Evans fight was very close also! Stop hating. LEBEN R.I.P
Tony- I can respect your point of view in regards to the Hammill and Evans.. and yes I am hatin on Bisbing… I just want Leben to win.. I think he can.. .We’ll see what happens… Thanks for the feedback!
Tony-
Everyone but Bisping’s diehard fans think that Matt clearly won that fight.
Bahiano is spot on with his observation.
Stop hating on people who don’t share your crazy adoration for Bisping.
Yup, everybody.
Bisping by decision.
It’s not a bad matchup, but I think Bisping is better technically across the board, and has a size and strength advantage. He’s relatively big middleweight, whereas Leben has always been a bit on the flabby side - and, last time I saw him fight, still pretty sloppy with his striking.
leben cant get any dumber then how he was on TUF
i got bisping winning this fight. he outclasses leben in every aspect of the game except one punch ko ability. he’s faster, got better ground game, better maui tai and is the stronger wrestler of the 2. bisping is also the bigger and stronger fighter. leben should probably be fighting at ww imo. every time leben has stepped up in class, he’s lost. unless leben lands one of those hail mary bombs like he did against terry martin, bisping will win a 3rnd ud. lebens chin is the only thing i think might keep bisping from stopping him.
Leben has KO power that will but LHW out. I havent seen that kinda power from Bisping. I agree Bisping is faster/stronger, but Leben is tougher more durable in my opinion. I really like this matchup and hope to see a great fight. I think Leben will eat alot of shots, there will be alot of running and I suspect Leben to win last minute KO Terry Martin style
Leben was on the verge of losing to Terry Martin before he threw that big punch at Martin. Martin would’ve definitely won the decision, especially since Leben had been deducted a point earlier in the fight.
And your point is…. . Leben can take a better punch than anyone you have ever came in contact with.
I got Leben by TKO in round 2.
part of the reason leban takes so much damage during his fights is he refuses to put on a boring fight. bisbing may be a better fighter (i personaly dont think so) but more than once he has put on a snooze fest. I see bisbing backing up the whole time getting frustrated and going for the take down just to get stuffed and then knoked out.
bisping isn’t a better “fighter”. he is a more technically sound boxer and kick boxer and probably wrestler but leben has a way of getting people to stand and bang with him. bisping has to use a lot of movement head and feet, stay on the outside and use his reach and pop his jab untill something opens up. anderson silva out boxed and kickboxed him, he didn’t get into any wild exchanges. he used the reach, stunned leben which is hard to do and had the wherewithall to pounce on the opprotunity. that being said, leben will probably land a sloppy bomb right on the button while he’s half asleep like he usually does. this is gonna be the shit!
im hoping for leben to ko him but part of me remembers the loss to kalib starnes and that gives me some doubt… still go with leben tho
yup. leben is the man telling it like it is! gotta upgrade the fighter and the person. much respect.