This UFC welterweight division is truly, insanely deep. I can’t even think of enough hyperbolic analogies to write in order to properly explain how deep the UFC welterweight division is. Really deep. That’s the best way I can put it. You know it’s deep when you have two guys like Jake Ellenberger and Rick Story who are somewhat on the outside looking in at the Hendricks’, Diazs, GSPs and Condits of the division (and Rory MacDonald). Ellenberger has been on a tear over the last three years, going 9-1 with wins over Jay Hieron, Diego Sanchez, Jake Shields and Mike Pyle. In fact, over the last five years, the only people Ellenberger has lost to are Carlos Condit, Martin Kampmann and Rick Story. Interesting. Ellenberger is surging towards a top 5 seeding in the ranks, and it’s not unwarranted, but this does not make Rick Story happy. Sure, Story has lost 3 of his last 5 fights to the likes of Charlie Brenneman, Damien Maia, and Martin Kampmann, but he knows he beat Ellenberger once, and doing it again would thrust him right back to the middle of the food chain. If not near the top of the food chain, kinda. Welterweight is so deep.
This is what Story posted to his Facebook account today:
I want to fight Jake Ellenberger! It pisses me off that he’s getting all of the accolades when I already beat him. It’s annoying that people keep making the excuse for Jake “well that was earlier in your guy’s career”.
OK, even back then he had 3 times the amount of fights that I had.Also, let’s look at more recent times, he got Ko’d by Martin Kampmann in the 2nd round where as I went the distance with Kampmann with 1 leg.
The bottom line is I want to be in the position he is in right now and if I have to beat his ass again to get there…… Then Let’s do it!
