Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard

Background

Prior to fighting in mixed martial arts, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard each competed in amateur wrestling. Edgar became an All-American at Clarion University, graduating in 2005. Maynard, a three-time All-American who competed in the NCAA Championships, graduated from Michigan State University in 2003. In making the transition to MMA, Edgar utilized a successful combination of boxing, speed, and wrestling.

First fight

After joining the Ultimate Fighting Championship's lightweight division, Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar fought for the first time on April 2, 2008 at UFC Fight Night 13. The event took place in Broomfield, Colorado. At the time of this encounter, both were undefeated. Edgar expressed confidence prior to the event, but remarked that he was "expecting a tough fight." Maynard stated, "Unless I get a good clean one in for the KO, I'm expecting a three-round brawl."

Maynard utilized superior wrestling to earn a unanimous decision victory by a score of 30–27.

On April 10, 2010, Edgar won the UFC Lightweight Championship at UFC 112. He defended the belt in August at UFC 118, while Maynard won a title shot on the same night.

Second fight

Edgar and Maynard fought for the UFC Lightweight title on January 1, 2011 at UFC 125. The event took place in Maynard's hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada. In the opening round, Maynard appeared to be on the verge of winning the fight after stunning Edgar with a left hook and landing a series of follow-up punches. However, Edgar recovered and out-struck Maynard 22–8 in the second round, executing a slam in the process. The fight went to a judges' decision and was declared a draw. As a result, another rematch was scheduled.

Edgar and Maynard's second meeting earned "Fight of the Night" honors and was named "Fight of the Year" by the World MMA Awards. Sports Illustrated's Jeff Wagenheim called the contest "legendary", and noted it as "one of the most memorable fights in recent UFC history." Sherdog's Todd Martin lauded the bout as a classic. Sergio Non of USA Today praised Edgar's resiliency, stating, "The fact that Edgar made it out of the first round at all stands as a testament to his fighting instincts."

In the post-fight interview, Edgar remarked that he did not remember much of round one. Maynard commented, "I kind of punched myself out in the first, so round two, I couldn't really go that hard." He later cited nervousness as a factor, but noted that he had learned from the experience.

When asked about his outlook on a third fight, Edgar stated, "It's hard to say who has the mental edge, if anyone. You know, he may have tasted it from being so close, and now he's super-motivated. And there are a lot of ways for me to look at that last fight, too: as a guy who barely got through it or as a survivor. I don't know how he approaches it, but I know I'm fired up to settle things."

Both remarked that they were excited about fighting for a third time.

Third fight

A third meeting between the two was initially scheduled for May at UFC 130. However, both men withdrew due to injury. The fight was rescheduled for UFC 136 and took place on October 8, 2011 in Houston, Texas.

Following the third bout, Maynard posted a Twitter message in which he stated, "Hats off to Frank Edgar. Great competitor and person, true champ!" Edgar also posted a message via Twitter, stating, "I wanna wish Gray the best in the future, he was my toughest opponent as he forced me to bring the best out of myself."

References

References

1. Martin, Todd. (January 1, 2011). "UFC 125 live results: Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard". Los Angeles Times.
2. Knapp, Brian. (May 9, 2011). "Edgar, Maynard Both Injured; UFC 130 Deck Shuffled". [[Sherdog]].
3. "Frankie Edgar". ultimatefighter.com.
4. Yarborough, Chuck. (July 17, 2011). "Unyielding desire to succeed drives Gray Maynard as he prepares for UFC title fight". cleveland.com.
5. Cofield, Steve. (August 28, 2010). "Maynard's wrestling too much for Florian at UFC 118". Yahoo!.
6. Bolender, Derek. (July 22, 2011). "UFC champ Frankie Edgar: "Heavy lies the crown" ahead of UFC 136". MMAWeekly.
7. Martin, Todd. (March 31, 2008). "Edgar, Maynard ready for 155-pound throwdown". [[CBS]]Sports.com.
8. Morgan, John. (April 23, 2009). "UFC 98's Frankie Edgar credits loss to Maynard for evolving his game". mmajunkie.com.
9. Knapp, Brian. (August 28, 2010). "Couture turns lights out on Toney". Sherdog.
10. Penick, Jamie. (January 2, 2011). "UFC 125 post-fight thoughts and analysis—Edgar-Maynard one of the best ever and more from Las Vegas event". mmatorch.
11. Hui, Ray. (January 2, 2011). "Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard Wins UFC 125 Fight of the Night". mmafighting.com.
12. Wagenheim, Jeff. (March 31, 2011). "Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard Wins UFC 125 Fight of the Night". Sports Illustrated.
13. Martin, Todd. (October 6, 2011). "Edgar–Maynard 2: Dissecting a Classic". Sherdog.
14. Non, Sergio. (January 2, 2011). "Edgar survives 1st round, battles Maynard to draw". USA Today.
15. (March 10, 2011). "Edgar-Maynard III lands in Vegas". fightnews.com.
16. Wayne, Mark. (October 10, 2011). "Nothing But Respect Shared Between Edgar And Maynard After Epic Trilogy". FightLine.com.