I am by far a UFC fan over Pride, for everything from the pace of the fights to the production value. But fighting in the cage is different from fighting in the ring, which can be a difficult transition for fighters like Crocop and Shogun. There were definitely other factors in the fights, but I think the cage has contributed to each man's losses. Read Big John's take on it:
http://mmamadness.com/insight.html?newsitem_id=152