Ballet of Violence

Judo Chop: Brad Pickett Wins With a Peruvian Necktie at WEC 45 - Bloody Elbow

I’m still waiting for a good, clear photograph of this, as it was just beautiful. But Kid Nate’s Writeup and the Fightlinker GIF will have to hold me over. Enjoy.

21 December 2009 • Brad Pickett Kyle Dietz WEC Judo Chop Kid Nate BloodyElbow Peruvian Necktie

Strikeforce Evolution Preview - Judo Chop: The San Shou Take Downs of Cung Le - Bloody Elbow

The moral of the story: taking down Cung Le is going to be easier said than done.

15 December 2009 • Cung Le Strikeforce Judo Chop Kid Nate Bloody Elbow

Judo Chop: In a Collision of Southpaws, Luis Cane Has No Answer for Antonio Rogerio Nogueira's Left at UFC 106 - Bloody Elbow

Despite these achievements, MMA commenters have slept on Nogueira’s dramatic improvements in his striking game. In large part this is because Little Nog’s MMA career took an unfortunate two year detour. In 2005, he approached the very top of the division, losing a razor thin decision to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at PRIDE Critical Countdown in 2005. Shogun went on to win the PRIDE 2005 205lb Grand Prix and cement his status as the uncrowned champion of the division. But Nogueira„ after taking an impressive TKO win over Alistair Overeem in 2006, found himself on the wrong end of a KO loss to Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou in 2007. Then PRIDE collapsed and Little Nog spent most of the next two years in exile, wandering from Sengoku to Affliction to Jungle Fight. Because of the dramatic drop-off in the caliber of his competition, few noticed that Nogueira was racking up a string of TKO wins — of his 5 career TKOs, all have taken place in the last three years.

27 November 2009 • Antonio Rogerio Minotouro Nogueira Luiz Arthur Cane UFC Judo Chop Bloody Elbow Kid Nate

Judo Chop: Katsunori Kikuno's Standing Crucifix Neck Crank on Eddie Alvarez at DREAM.12

Absolutely phenomenal fight, if you haven’t seen it yet. Dramatic.

DREAM.12 featured Bellator champ (and #3 ranked lightweight in the world on the USAT/SBN Consensus MMA Rankings) Eddie Alvarez, a fighter who epitomizes the combination of boxing and wrestling that has become a mainstay of MMA. His opponent was the fast-rising Katsunori Kikuno whose success with Kyokushin karate, an eccentric Sanchin dachi stance and use of crescent kicks have made him a cult favorite with those of us who are fascinated with the successful use of “traditional martial art” styles that were long believed to be of extremely limited effectiveness in MMA.

11 November 2009 • Eddie Alvarez Katsunori Kikuno Dream Judo Chop Bloody Elbow Kid Nate