What next for ‘The Dragon’? | Thebigtip

Losing is not something Lyoto ‘The Dragon’ Machida has become accustomed to throughout his MMA career, having previously put together a 16 win-streak.

However his last two fights in the octagon have ended in disappointment, for two very different reasons.

His first by a devastating knockout against Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua in the first round, which in an instant saw ‘The Dragon’s’ unbeaten record, pride and more importantly his UFC light-heavyweight belt taken away from him.

His second loss came last week at Auburn Hills- Michigan, in a more controversial manner, against former UFC light-heavyweight champion Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson.

The fight was a very tightly contested affair, and the only round that any fighter took command in was the third and final round.

This dominance was signified when Machida attacked with one of his trademark flurries, the Brazilian waited for ‘Rampage’ to attack, before pushing forward to land five unanswered blows to the head, then managing to score a take-down.

At the end of the fight many thought that Machida had won the fight due to his dominance in the third round and on the basis that he edged the first round.

Well-respected MMA statistics website- fightmetric.com revealed that Machida landed 33 significant strikes to Rampage’s 16 and through its own scoring system gave Machida 162 points to Jackson’s 68.

However the opinions that mattered in this case, were the three judges sitting ringside, one scored the fight in favour of Machida- 29-28, however the other two judges both credited ‘Rampage’ with a 29-28 decision.

Which meant ‘Rampage’ had won the fight by split decision and inflicted Machida’s second loss in six months.

‘The Dragon’ has been in the firing line from the media ever-since his controversial victory in the first of his two fights against ‘Shogun’. Many MMA fighters and members of the public also thought that awarding Machida a unanimous decision was a poor call, and that his opposition showed enough dominance in the fight to take the victory.

Having experienced a shaky year; embodied by two losses and one questionable decision victory, one begs to question; what next for the 32 year-old?

It seems like a long road back to the top for a man once hailed as ‘invincible’, although one would imagine his road to redemption will probably start against the loser from the mouth-watering fight between the two brightest prospects in the light-heavyweight division of the UFC- Jon Jones and Ryan Bader.

A loss for ‘The Dragon’ in his next fight would leave him in a perilous position; with the prospect of facing three consecutive losses, it is fair to say that Machida’s next fight might just be one of the most important he has faced in his seven year career.

Which fighter will turn up? The dragon that has lit up the octagon with scintillating knockout displays over Thiago Silva and Rashad Evans? Or the dragon that was so infamously slayed six months ago by ‘Shogun’?