Fighter Rant: Kenny Florian.

A very well thought out post showing laud from a member on ufc.com. Thought I'd share.

Kenny Florian showed allot of heart in his last bout against Aldo, and he earned some more respect from me. 
Florian has competed in four weight classes in the UFC, and that is amazing, he started in 185 on The Ultimate Fighter, making it to the Finale against against Diego Sanchez, a fight which he ultimately lost. After that fight, he dropped to 170 lbs and won two fights there, only to drop to Lightweight where he was a mainstay for years. 
Kenny's Lightweight career was where I started to see him in a new light, he dominated Sam Stout for a shot at the Lightweight Title against Sean Sherk, where he was out-wrestled. This would be his first Title loss, and the only shot he would get for three years. 
After the loss to Sherk, Florian went undefeated for over a year with 7 wins and 6 finishes over top LW competition, earning his second challenge for the Lightweight belt. Sadly, this time he had to fight a BJ Penn at the top of his game, and of course, Florian lost that fight. Proving that he isn't the best in the division, but a strong #2. Kenny proceeded to get two more finishes by submission in the Lightweight division, gaining another #1 contender fight, this time against Gray Maynard, which Kenny lost. Florian was still #2 in the division as Gray Maynard was essentially tied for the #1 spot with Frankie Edgar until last Saturday, given the draw. 
Florian opted to move to Featherweight after the loss to Maynard, rather than making another run at the coveted Lightweight belt. He made a quick run at the Title at 145 lbs, getting a shot with only one decision win over Diego Nunes. 
The bout with 145 champ Aldo was a great technical display where Kenny just came up short against the younger, faster fighter. Kenny is #2 again. 

The reason I am writing this is because people hate on KenFlo for always coming up short, where I think he deserves a tonne of respect for always putting it on the line and being able to fight for a Title so much. This guy had four number one contender match ups, and won 3, that is really impressive. Kenny always comes to finish fights, and he is one of the best technical fighters in the UFC; he has outstanding Jiu Jitsu, great Muay Thai striking, and he uses his reach well. Yet people hate on him for not winning a World Title.
I see nothing wrong with being #2, with so many people striving to be numero uno, there has to be some respect for the second best. No one has been able to hold that number two spot longer, and in more places than Florian. Kenny also has a good win percentage, if you can't beat Kenny, the chances are, you aren't Championship material, he is the Ultimate gatekeeper. KenFlo also has a great finishing record, seriously, does anyone in the UFC have more Rear Naked Choke wins in the Octagon than Florian?
Regardless of whether he has worn the belt, he has always been around to fight for it, and he has always been a challenge for the Champion. Sherk was cut and bleeding all over the place against Florian, BJ Penn took four rounds to get him out of there. While Aldo couldn't put Kenny away despite being the younger, higher ranked, more athletic fighter.
Florian is a nice guy, he is articulate, intelligent, and good looking. He makes a good commentator when he isn't fighting. When he is fighting, Florian is exciting, he finishes fights, and he is respectful, all good things to see in MMA. Regardless of his future, I don't think he will be going away from MMA anytime soon. 
This thread was actually inspired by the article on the UFC home page, and I just wanted to give my thoughts on Kenny's current position, his past, and his future. I hope my opinion is welcome, and leave some thoughts on Florian's future, and what you think of the long-time bi-divisional number two fighter on the planet (even if he does have a stupid nickname).

He gets down on himself because of his lack of a championship.  He really is an incredible fighter and a great model for the sport of MMA.  I'm sure no matter where he ends up he will thrive.  He makes a great commentator and he could still dominate a lot of people in a lot of divisions.  Easily one of my favorite fighters of all time.  Hopefully we find out his fate soon.

I'm a fan of his and hope he sticks around.  He's a wonderful fighter, has tons of heart & I enjoy his fights.  I'd love to see him fight Edgar, Henderson, Guillard and lots more.  Hang in there, Kenny!

@Bill are there any FW matches you want to see?

kenny is a great fighter and i think we'll see him fight again, but hopefully in the LW divison he looked good against nunes and won 2 rounds against one of the best p4p fighters, at least on my score cards, but LW is the better div. for him. maybe he could rematch with sean sherk or something like that

Kenny is not my favorite

I thought Florian gave Aldo the biggest challenge to date and fought an excellent fight. 

KenFlo is a good fighter.

I think he could take Mendes at 145 @freeman, or Jorgenson. 

@thefreeman  I am really not that familiar with the FeatherWeight division.  I've seen Jose Aldo fight Mark Hominick and it was great.  I know that Mike Brown defeated Urijah Faber twice.  Tyson Griffin is good but I wish he had stayed at LW.  I'm sorry the UFC released Joe Stevenson.  He was a long-time favorite of mine.

I haven't taken the time to really research the FW or BW yet.  But I will get to it.  I can't afford to buy the PPVs so I have to catch whatever else is shown on free TV.  

Go to a bar @Bill

@Bill Good suggestions, I think the UFC will make the Hominick fight if Kenny decides to continue his career. Mike Brown probably needs a few wins before they give him a contender again as he just rebounded off a losing streak although I personally believe he will make a comeback.

@prodigy I think Mendes is too strong a wrestler for Florian but you never know. As for Jorgensen, who I love to watch, I don't think Kenny will be dropping weight again haha.