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[pa99fighter]

Keith Jardine Is Climbing the Ladder One Legend At A Time
By Rhett Butler

When Keith Jardine stepped into the Octagon against Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell on September 22, 2007 in Anaheim, California, most people were certain the “Dean of Mean” would crumble under the fury of Liddell.
Liddell and Jardine were both attempting to rebound from first round losses to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Houston Alexander, respectively, but for Jardine the latter name was a newbie who seemed to expose a Jardine weakness to pressure on full blast. Three rounds and one split decision later, the Dean prevailed, much to the surprise of the MMA world. Handing the former light heavyweight champion his first back to back loss, the question began to float: was as a legend killer in our midst? One thing is certain, the UFC is curious to find out as Jardine’s next challenge is the legend recently beaten by Liddell and bearer of the scariest nickname in MMA, “The Axe Murderer.”

“This is a great fight for me and I think it’s my toughest fight to date,” said Jardine. “I think Wanderlei (Silva) had a tough fight last time but I’m in for a war and that’s why this is a good fight for me.”

Indeed, as Jardine presses his cause for a title shot, this battle will definitely quick start that campaign. The chance to defeat the man who holds two PRIDE wins over the current light heavyweight champion would certainly spark the interest for that matchup and solidify Jardine as the new standout in the division’s crowded roster.

A hearty, “Absolutely,” is the immediate answer when Jardine is asked if this bout will yield a title shot. “I’m not worried about it or thinking about it, if I keep winning it will all take care of itself. I’m fighting a legend of the sport that will be in the Hall of Fame one day, what more can I ask for.”

Jardine’s ride atop the UFC’s promotional bandwagon is not your prototypical fighter storyline. There were no pubescent martial arts training or extensive NCAA wrestling background that made the transition to mixed martial arts a predetermined cakewalk. Jardine’s journey is one of deep self discovery and the realization all combat specialists come to terms with, that the need to compete and release aggressive energy overrides everything else. It’s a sojourn that begins in Butte, Montana and is still unfolding in the bowels of Greg Jackson’s gym in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Born in Butte, Montana then living in Oregon up until high school, Keith Jardine’s scenery frequently shifted during his youth. By high school, Los Angeles was his new backdrop and wrestling started to spark his interest. “Los Angeles is not the best place for high school wrestling,” according to Jardine, and he ventured back to the mountains, attending New Mexico Highlands University in pursuit of an Exercise Science (Performance Sport) degree.

This led to personal training after college, where the eventual Dean of Mean was the Dean of Fitness for a fee. Additional stints as a football coach for his Alma Mater, mining work with his father and eventually as a pseudo bounty hunter saw Keith wearing more hats than a Baptist Sunday Service.

“I was a bail bondsman for a few months, you can call that a bounty hunter; I stopped because it interfered with my training. You’ve always got to be prepared to pick someone up at weird hours or days. It didn’t work with my training schedule.”

During this time, Jardine had a penchant for entering local wrestling tournaments in what he looks back and calls “silly”, but it was the spark for the career ahead of him and led to his eventual meeting with gaidojutsu creator, Greg Jackson.

“Fighters have something in us that we have to get the energy out or we will just get into bar fights. There is something inside me that wants to get pushed; when I saw the UFC I just got it in my mind. When I met Greg Jackson I learned fast and decided to dedicate my life to this.”

Turning pro in 2001, Jardine went on a two fight win streak out of the gate, boosting his confidence despite his demurred experience. It was his third bout, a first round knockout by Travis Wiuff that occurred in seconds that sent Jardine back to the strategy room. That first loss gave him a new perspective and taught the most valuable lesson any aspiring fighter can learn, humility.

“That taught me that I wasn’t as good as I thought I was. Back then I was a heavyweight but I was too small for that. I knew I had to work on my boxing and I met Mike Winklejohn and have been with him ever since.”

He rebounded and went on a six fight unbeaten streak, that included one
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draw, mainly in the smaller King of the Cage and Pancrase organizations. It wasn’t long before the UFC called bearing gifts in the form of a reality show slot for Jardine on the second season of The Ultimate Fighter. Jardine would lose on the show to future teammate Rashad Evans, but he rebounded on the finale, defeating Kerry Schall via TKO due to leg kicks in the second round. Like many, the reality experience was a mixed bag.

“Honestly, I hated it; I felt like I was in jail doing time and couldn’t get out. I like creative, artistic things and my freedom, and being cramped in the house I couldn’t do that. At the same time it was the best thing that happened to me. I met some of my best friends on the show and now I can fight for a living.”

Wins over Mike Whitehead, Wilson Gouveia and current Ultimate Fighter coach and Ultimate Fighter season one winner Forrest Griffin followed, with a controversial decision loss to Stephan Bonnar in between. With the exception of Houston Alexander, Jardine’s UFC game plan has seemed infallible to say the least. If one looks at the Alexander loss and the earlier loss to Travis Wiuff, you can assume Jardine’s only perceived weakness is intense striking beginning with first round pressure applied from the opponent.

Obviously, this fits the criteria of the Wanderlei Silva brand of entertainment precisely: stand and brawl until one man hits the canvas hard. With a showman whose drive stems from the desire to deliver a passion-filled entertaining experience with no regard for winning or losing, it is certain this is the biggest fight of Jardine’s career. Once the horn sounds signaling round one, the biggest obstacle will be to avoid the early barrage from an always fired up “Axe Murderer.” One thing is certain, if the fight moves into round two, where Jardine will be over the historical hump, the Dean will transform into the newly minted “legend killer”, a scary thought for the current champ and the entire division.

“That’s what I’m working on, becoming the greatest of all time, and in order to do that I have to beat the greats. I’m just trying to be in the conversation, and the UFC is allowing me to do that by fighting back to back legends, Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva.”
Source: UFC® : Ultimate Fighting Championship®

Good Read. Jardine via upset decision

[gotblood?]

I like Jardine.

He's got a nice attitude(i.e. humble) and he rides a Harley.

What's not to like?

He sort of reminds me of a better skilled, in shape, Tank Abbott.


Not just facial-wise though, I can't put my finger on it.

[Noise Chopped]

I just never thought his win over Liddell was as impressive as people have made it out to be. That's not to say it wasn't a great get, but...Shit, I wish people could distinguish between one fighter beating the shit out of another and getting a win. I guess it's a little late to say I don't want to take anything away from him, but I just haven't seen enough to rank him real high.

Wanderlai's going to be a great proving ground, though. What makes Wanderlai so great is if you beat him, he'll make you famous. That's to say, if you knock him out - You'll get your highlight reel. If it goes the distance - Instant classic. Which is why he's my favourite fighter - WAR WANDERLAI, !

[jhell]

Jardine's a likable guy and all, but he got Wanderlei at the wrong time. He's hungry and has something to prove. Jardine's climb stops here.

[POINDEXTER]

Originally Posted by jhell

Jardine's a likable guy and all, but he got Wanderlei at the wrong time. He's hungry and has something to prove. Jardine's climb stops here.

I think so too. I don't dislike Jardine, he just keeps going up against fighters I like better. I actually like him more since his doppelganger the Techno Viking reared his freakish head.

[Severn]

Originally Posted by Noise Chopped

I just never thought his win over Liddell was as impressive as people have made it out to be. That's not to say it wasn't a great get, but...Shit, I wish people could distinguish between one fighter beating the shit out of another and getting a win.

The way I had he should have won a unaimous decision. No way a judge with two fucking eyes would give Chuck that match. Split dicision my nuts. He knocked him down outworked him and made Chuck look old towards the end, countering with the left constantly. People aren't giving Keith enough credit is how I see it.

[pa99fighter]

Originally Posted by Severn

The way I had he should have won a unaimous decision. No way a judge with two fucking eyes would give Chuck that match. Split dicision my nuts. He knocked him down outworked him and made Chuck look old towards the end, countering with the left constantly. People aren't giving Keith enough credit is how I see it.

amen.

[Mr. Raider]

Jardine is a warrior but wandy has to win this fight. I thought he should have beat chuck, he has a better skill set than liddell but just didnt use the tools in that fight. I think we will see a totally different fight with jardine. wandy will fight his kinda fight not jardines. He fought chucks style of fight and thats why he lost. I wanna see wandy go on a tear to end his career. Rampage vs. Wandy in the cage is the fight I want to see. It will be interesting to see who he fights if he wins this jardine fight.