Yahoo Sports From Wheaties box to milk carton: Anthony Pettis of old is missing
LAS VEGAS — If it seems like it wasn’t that long ago you couldn’t avoid Anthony Pettis even if you tried, you’re right.
It was just over a year ago the Milwaukee native was not just the UFC lightweight champion, but also a fighter who seemed poised for a superstar breakthrough.
Pettis was the first mixed martial artist ever featured on a Wheaties box. He was capable of moves — like his famed “Showtime Kick” — that seemed more suited for a video game than a real-life sporting competition.
How the mighty have fallen.
Pettis was schooled by veteran Edson Barboza on Saturday night at UFC 197, losing by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
That marked the former champion’s third straight loss in 13 months and Pettis’ remarkable run of nine wins in 10 fights from 2010-14, in which he laid waste to the division and collected UFC and WEC belts in the process, further into the rear-view mirror.
It also was yet another indicator the UFC’s lightweight division, the deepest on the company’s roster, is an absolute shark tank.
Pettis lost the championship to Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 185 in a one-sided beatdown that was considered a staggering upset at the time. Dos Anjos, of course, has been making a lot of very good fighters look really silly over the past couple years. But Pettis has yet to regain his mojo since losing the belt.
But in a January fight against Eddie Alvarez in Boston, Alvarez stayed in Pettis’ face for 15 minutes, outwrestling him and taking the clinch battles in a dull but effective decision win.
Barboza didn’t use the same approach as Alvarez on Saturday night, but Pettis simply seemed a step slow and a bit out of sorts, never able to show the sort of explosiveness which marked his heyday.
The former champ wasn’t at the post-fight news conference after UFC 197, so his younger brother, Sergio, was left to do the talking for the family.
Sergio Pettis was victorious over Chris Kelades in a flyweight undercard bout, which, remarkably, pulled the 22-year-old into a tie with his older brother with five UFC wins apiece.
The elder Pettis had made a public issue in the past about the stress of both brothers fighting on the same card, particularly after Sergio Pettis lost a fight at UFC 185 before Anthony Pettis went out and lost his title. But Sergio Pettis refused to use it as an excuse for his sibling.
“It was a lot easier this time around,” the younger Pettis said. “We had such a depressing outcome than the first time, we always had a go-together talk, and realized there’s two separate routes. He has to take control his reality and I have to take control of my reality … it’s really tough to see your brother lose, but we’ve dealt with hard losses. We’ll be back.”
In the meantime, the lightweight division rolls on. Just a year and a half ago, Pettis, former champion Benson Henderson, and former Strikeforce champ Gilbert Melendez were considered head-and-tails above the rest of the pack. Henderson’s gone to Bellator, where he lost Friday night in his debut fight for the promotion, Melendez hasn’t won a fight since 2013 as he serves a PED suspension and Pettis’ woes continue.
Barboza’s victory could finally be the one that puts him in the mix with the new elite at 155, along with fighters like dos Anjos, undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov, and red-hot Tony Ferguson.
The Florida resident by way of Rio de Janeiro has long seemed to have the tools to make a run toward the top of the division, but never seemed to know how to arrange them. Over the course of a 15-fight UFC run which dates back to 2010, Barboza often seemed on the cusp of the division’s elite. But every step along the way, he seemed to put in his worst performances when it mattered most — split-second mental errors leading to losses to Jamie Varner and Donald Cerrone chief among them.
There were no such gaffes against Pettis (18-5), though. Barboza beat Pettis’ lead leg raw with ruthless leg kicks, which took their toll later in the fight, rendering Pettis unable to gain any momentum when he knew he needed a finish to win. On the occasions when Pettis managed to close the distance, he found himself running into one crisp left hook after another.
Even Barboza (17-4) himself seemed a bit in disbelief of what he accomplished.
“I didn’t imagine dominating him like I did, but it was my plan to pressure him,” Barboza said. I’m very happy with my performance, all the time I go out there I give my best. I don’t do the game plan. My game plan is to do my best every day in the gym. He’s definitely one of the best in the world, he’s No. 3 in the rankings, I feel it’s my time now, I’m going to get the belt for sure.”
But Barboza better not get too comfortable. All he has to do is take a look at the opponent he just vanquished to remind himself elite status in the UFC’s lightweight division can have a shorter sell-by date than a box of Wheaties.
