UFC 126

I am extremely excited about this upcoming UFC. The card is stacked and I can’t wait to watch the event. Here are my predictions and thoughts on the fights/fighters:

Silva Vs Belfort
This one should be a great fight. Anderson (27-4), of course, is a phenom considered by many to be the best pound for pound fighter alive. Vitor (19-8) is also an incredible fighter who since early UFCs has shown great speed and power. Silva has, unfortunately, not had the best performances lately. He hasn’t lost; he just hasn’t seemed very interested in finishing his opponents. All the dancing around antics have turned many fans, including me, off. Belford, has shown that there are two versions of himself. When he’s the “on” Vitor, he’s unstoppable; when he’s the “off” Vitor, he just doesn’t seem to be there mentally. I am hoping for a great fight, and would love to see Vitor win this. I’d love for him to knock Silva out. It’s not that I don’t like Silva, I’m just tired of him.

Forrest Griffin Vs Rich Franklin
Both are very skilled fighters and both have great cardio. Both are former world champions and either one could win this fight. Franklin (27-5) has been very successful and has a lot of experience. Forrest (17-6) has a bit of the “Belford syndrome” in that he can be “on’ or “off.” They are both well rounded, and Forrest will probably have the size and reach advantage, but I see Franklin winning.

Jake Ellenberger Vs Carlos Eduardo Rocha
Both great but not familiar enough with them to make a call.

Jon Jones Vs Ryan Bader
I am more excited about this fight than any other on the card! They are both awesome and it stands to be a real war. Bader (12-0) is undefeated and a real powerhouse. Incredible wrestling base and knock out power in both hands. Jones (11-1, really should be 12-0) is long, ultra athletic, and very skilled. He also has great wrestling base, as well as great spinning back kicks, vicious elbows (I call them “hellbows),” etc. I am a huge fan of Jones, and I see him winning this fight. I also see him becoming champion of this division in the near future.

Miguel Angel Torres Vs Antonio Banuelos

These guys are both coming from the WEC and are very scrappy. Torres (37-3) is a former WEC champion who held the title for years. He has good muay thai skills and will have the reach advantage for sure. He is also a Gracie Jiu Jitsu black belt. Banuelos (18-6) is very formidable as well. He has great wrestling and ground and pound skills. This should be a really fast paced and exciting fight. Giving this one to Torres.

Paul Kelly Vs Donald Cerrone

Paul Kelly Vs Donald Cerrone (13-3)
Kelly (12-3) is a solid striker and has scored 5 TKOs in his 12 wins. “Cowboy” Cerrone is coming from the WEC and has been very impressive, especially in the submission department (10 of his 12 wins were via submissions). He has a sick triangle. This should be another great battle and I’m going with Cerrone on this one.

Chad Mendes Vs Michihiro Omigawa
The winner of this 145 lb fight will probably be in line (in the near future) for a fight with Jose Aldo. Omigawa is12-8-1 overall, 0-2 UFC but is on a five fight winning streak. He’s come a long way and is pretty balanced with his skill, but prefers submissions. Mendes (9-0) is from team Alpha Male (Uriah Faber) so as you’d expect, he’s a powerhouse. He as an extensive collegiate wrestling background and really pushes the pace. I don’t think Omigawa will be able to control the pace or distance of this fight (or be able to submit Mendes when it hits the ground, which will definitely do). Mendes wins this one.

These are all the fight’s I’m discussing. The rest of the card is as follows:

• Gabe Ruediger Vs Paul Taylor
• Norifumi Vs Demetrious Johnson
• Kyle kingsbury Vs Ricardo Romero
• Mike pierce Vs Kenny Robertson

UFC 121

Ok, so I’ve been away fro a while but am back now. UFC 121 on Saturday night looks like an exciting one. Brock Lesnar vs Cain Velasquez is the headline fight and I can’t wait to see this fight. Will Cain be the one to dethrone Brock? Maybe. Here’s my take on it: Brock is a force of nature. He is crazy big with the strength of a silver back gorilla. It doesn’t stop there. He was a NCAA Div 1 heavyweight wrestling champion so he has incredible skills on the ground. His stand up has come a long way, and though not great on his feet, all it takes is one if those huge lunch box hands to connect and its lights out. He showed his ability to pull off a submission against Shane Carwin (as well as take punishment and keep going). He has some outstanding people working with him in his camp and he continues to improve with every fight.

Cain is a very well rounded fighter who also has a wrestling background (although not near the pedigree of Lesnar). He is very skilled with his hands and moves very well. He is undefeated so far and has beat some very talented and tuff opponents. He will, however, be giving up 30 to 40 pounds to Brock (which doesn’t make as much a difference if the smaller fighter is much more skilled, but when skill levels are anywhere comparable, it make a lot of difference). He has the heart of a lion and the will to win, but will it be enough?

My first impulse is no. I don’t think he’ll be able to pull it off. But this being MMA, of course, anything can happen. He certainly has the skills, and if he can keep it standing and use his footwork well he might be able to pull it off. Even if it hits the ground, as long as he ends up on top, he might pull it off. However, if Brock takes him down and gets on top of him, that’s going to be bad…very bad. Brock has an unbelievable ability to keep an opponent down and deliver brutal punishment. It is also very hard to defend Brock’s takedowns. Carwin did it successfully in the first round, and had Brock worrying about the barrage of punches being thrown at him. However, after gassing out in the first round, Brock was able to take him down easily in the second. I believe Cain will have a lot more in the gas tank than Carwin did, but battling someone that much heavier will certainly tax the energy stores.
I used to despise Brock when he first entered the sport (due to his antics that belonged in the WWF instead of the UFC). However, I don’t mind him so much now, as he seems to have mellowed out lately and his more humble now (or at least he’s learned to play the game and realizes that he’ll build a much bigger fan base being humble than over the top cocky).

In the end, I hope Cain pulls if off. I’m a big fan of his and would love to see him take it. We’ll come Sat night.
Also on the card are great match ups such as:

Jake Shields V Martin Kampman
Sanchez V Thiago
McGee V Swenson
Cote V Lawler
Schaub V Gonzaga
Stout V Taylor

UFC 114 Thoughts/Predictions

Jackson V Evans
Theses two have talked major stuff back and forth and it appears they truly don’t like each other, and really want to smash the other with bad intentions. They were supposed to fight late last year after coaching the season of TUF but Rampage (Jackson) cancelled so he could star in the A Team movie (playing Mr. T’s former role). Anyway, I am pulling for Rampage cuz I’ve never been a big fan of Rashad’s (I was at the UFC last year when Machida knocked him out and it was great!) However, having said that, I’m going to have to predict that Rashad will take it. I think he is too fast for Rampage, moves well, and is used to going against big guys (he won the TUF show in the heavyweight div). He will probably used movement to keep Rampage off balance. Rampage is big and powerful with knockout power. However, he tends to loop his punches a bit so I think it’ll be easier for Rashad to defend against them (if he connects with a few if them well though, look out). Like Rashad, Quinton has good wrestling ability, as shown in his fight against Dan Henderson. Hopefully, he has learned how defend against leg kicks (think Forest), as I’m sure Rashad will be throwing them. It has the makings of a good fight. We’ll see what happens.

Michael Bisbing V Dan Miller looks like a good match up. Think Miller will take it.

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira v Jason Brilz should be good. Predict Nogueira will take it.

Diego Sanchez V John Hathaway Should be a good one. No predictions there.

Amir Sadollah v Dong Hyun Kim in the prelims should be good.

UFC 113 Thoughts and Predictions

Machida V Rua Rematch:
Ok, so I’m in the minority because I thought Machida actually won last time. It was close, and a great fight indeed. Rua did an awesome job and certainly earned my respect (actually I’ve been a fan of his from way back during his pride days). However, I feel Machida won the first 3 rounds during their last fight and even though Rua gave Machida a better fight than anyone previously, he didn’t take the belt away from Machida. Anyway, my prediction in this encounter will be Machida winning again. I think Rua win stick to the same game plan (namely brutal leg kicks) because they were very effective last time and he feels he can win it with this strategy if he pushes it even harder. Machida will be ready for the leg kicks and effectively deal with Rua this time in what I think will be another war.

Josh Koscheck v Paul Daley.
Josh K is one of the best takedown artist that the UFC has ever seen. He has mad skill, and his stand up has obviously improved by leaps and bounds, and indeed, he can put people to sleep with those hands. Daily has incredible ability to KO his opponants and has done so one many occasions. I think Kos would be crazy to stand toe to toe with daily because he’ll get knocked the f out. I think his ego might convince him to try to do just that. The smart move would be to use his superior wrestling and get it to the ground and take care of business. I respect Koscheck’s abilities but I don’t particularly like him overall. If he fights the smart fight he will win. However, I hope Daily wins this one

Kimbo Slice V Matt Mitrione:

Either one could win this one. Matt is probably more well rounded but Kimbo is brutally strong and has been dedicated in training with American Top Team so I’m hoping he’ll have the skill to pull it off. I’m a recent Kimbo fan mind you. I didn’t like him when he was with Strike force and was so hyped up with out the skill to go along with it. But seeing him in the Ultimate Fighter show impressed me a great deal, as he seemed humble, sincere, and ready to learn and improve. He’s already old for a UFC fighter but I hope he can pull this one off and have a decent UFC career before getting too old and going down hill.

UFC 112 Results and a word from Jeff H

Well, UFC 112 has come and gone. While, exciting in some ways, it didn't live up to my expectations at all. The three main fights I was looking forward to were not so great. First, Renzo Gracie looked terrible in his fight with Matt Hughes. I have long been a big fan of Renzo, and was hoping he'd win (or at least do well). Matt hammered him with leg kicks, and it seemed as if Renzo had never seen one before. I don't think he checked/blocked even one of them.

Next, there was the Damian Maia V Anderson Silva fight for the middleweight title. I expected Silva to win but was hoping Maia would find a way to pull it off. The display put on by Silva was terrible. He show boated his way to the victory, toying with Maia most of the fight. He didn't really engage with Maia or try to finish him at all. Hey, Silva, if you're that much better, then use your skill and finish him (instead of dancing around).

Finally, there was the BJ Penn V Frankie Edgar fight. My friend Jeff H had a few thoughts on that one so I'll let him take it from here....
BJ PENN v. EDGAR

The tagline for this fight should have been "unbelievable" instead of
"invincible."

I will go on record as saying I'm a BJ Penn fan. I've always admired his
abilities as a true mixed martial artist and he's also a good entertainer on top
of that.

But all of that aside, I can't understand how the Machida v. Rua fight can come
out the way it did, but in the same organization, with the same rules, the Penn
Edgar fight could turn out in such a contrary fashion.

Rua clearly had the better of Machida the whole fight. He did more damage and
was the aggressor. However, he lost the fight on the theory that in order to
beat the champion, you have to convincingly beat the champion, not just eke out
a victory.

Edgar did not clearly have the better of Penn in this fight; at best he eked out
a victory. And by the logic of the Machida v. Rua judges, he should not have
won.

Yes, he was successful in delivering a couple of shots to BJ's face. But Penn
landed at least as many, and was throwing counter combos that were landing.
Edgar had to struggle to get in one shot at a time. Striking could have gone
either way, but it wasn't convincingly a victory for Edgar.

BJ controlled the Octagon. Period. He held the center of the mat and Edgar
danced around him hoping to get in a shot here or there. Octagon control goes
to Penn.

Edgar scored one solid take down on Penn late in the fight. He got what
appeared to be an almost accidental trip on Penn, but BJ popped right back up on
his feet. There's an argument that that should give Edgar the edge in
grappling, but for every one take down he scored, BJ stuffed 10. In my mind,
that gives the edge to Penn and it certainly doesn't give a convincing victory
to Edgar.

On the flip side, BJ did not beat Edgar. Edgar looked like his compatriot Clay
Guida hopping up and down the whole fight and was not harmed in any meaningful
way by BJ. Regardless, in order to win fights, you don't have to physically
punish the other guy. You have to win points based on striking, grappling, and
effective Octagon control. As noted above, Edgar did not have a convincing edge
over BJ in any of those realms. As the lightweight champion, BJ Penn is owed
the benefit of the doubt in this case and he should have been awarded a
decision.

As our buddy Bryan noted during the fight, a wise man once said, "To be the man,
you got to beat the man." Edgar did not beat the man Saturday night. He was
handed an unbelievable gift by inconsistent judging and I think the UFC is a
more confusing and unpredictable place as a result.

Dana White is famous for admonishing fighters not to let the judges decide
fights. I suppose when you have judges as incompetent as he's hiring, that's
great advice. The good news for BJ Penn fans is this is the type of thing that,
at least in the past, gets BJ to train even harder. He'll get a rematch
(hopefully first thing, barring any injury covered up by the mysterious knee
brace) and he'll be ready. And when that time comes, my money is on the
Prodigy.


Thanks for the fight assessment Jeff

UFC 111 Mar 27th

I’m very excited about UFC 111 this Sat night. The main event features George St. Pierre vs Dan Hardy. I can’t wait for this fight. When I first heard about the match up I thought to myself, oh Hardy is gonna get owned (and that certainly could be the case, given that NO ONE has been able to stop GSP from taking them down, and Hardy’s main chance to pull off an upset would be to stay on his feet and knock GSP out). But after watching all the hype shows the past couple of weeks (which of course build it up as either one could win) I’ve bought in to Hardy’s chances a bit, and I hope he pulls it off. Now, logically, I know there’s a very slim chance to this happening. GSP is incredible and brings amazing people into his camp to always help him get to an even higher level (people like Nate Marquart, Kenny Florian, and Patrick Cote, etc). His strength and conditioning seems better than ever before, and he has stated that he’s never been more prepared for a fight. Hardy, in most people’s eyes is a stand up brawler, but he’s much more rounded than most give him credit for. He’s been training with Matt Serra for this fight and he’s incredibly strong for a 170 pounder (he’ll need it). So, major odds are that GSP will defend his title and keep the roll going, but hey, this is MMA, so never say never.

The co-headliner fight is Frank Mir vs Shane Carwin. I expect dynamite for this fight. Frank Mir is a very skilled heavyweight who is more focused than ever. His mission is to beat Carwin and then seek his revenge on Brock Lesnar. He’s incorporated a new, hard core strength and conditioning program and seems to be in fantastic shape. I have mixed emotions about Mir (I admire his skill but don’t care for his attitude). Carwin is one of my new heroes (along with Jon Bones Jones) in the MMA world. He’s a big wrestler with serious knock out power. I hated that his fight with Lesnar had to be cancelled due to Brock’s illness and I am so ready for him to destroy Lesnar this year. I’m picking Carwin for this one. BTW, the heavyweight division used to be the worst division in the UFC (in fact it was pretty lame), but currently it’s very exciting with several great fighters (Carwin, Mir, Dos Santos, Velasquez, and Lesnar). Expect some great heavyweight fights coming up.

No other predictions but looking forward to the rest of the fights as well. Jon Fitch and Thiago Alves should be a great one. Here’s the official card:
Main Card
• Welterweight Championship bout: Georges St. Pierre (c) vs. Dan Hardy
• Interim Heavyweight Championship bout: Frank Mir vs. Shane Carwin
• Welterweight bout: Ben Saunders vs. Jake Ellenberger
• Welterweight bout: Jon Fitch vs. Thiago Alves
• Lightweight bout: Jim Miller vs. Mark Bocek
Spike TV Card
• Welterweight bout: Nate Diaz vs. Rory Markham
• Welterweight bout: Ricardo Almeida vs. Matt Brown
Preliminary Card
• Lightweight bout: Kurt Pellegrino vs. Fabricio Camoes
• Light Heavyweight bout: Rodney Wallace vs. Jared Hamman
• Middleweight bout: Rousimar Palhares vs. Tomasz Drwal
• Welterweight bout: Matthew Riddle vs. Greg Soto

UFC Live Mar 21 on Versus

UFC Live tomorrow night will be the first live UFC event on Versus and features Brandon Vera V Jon Jones for the headline. I’m going with Jones in this fight. I am extremely impressed with Jones and believe he will win this fight as well as continue to climb the UFC latter and quite possibly be light heavyweight champ someday in the not to distant future. He has mad skills, agility, and speed, as well as recently joined up with Greg Jackson’s camp for higher level instruction, training, and game plan preparation.

Another great match up is Gabriel Gonzaga V Junior Dos Santos. Both are hard hitting, powerful heavyweights who both have great ground skills as well. I’m predicting Dos Santos on this one. He is on a major roll right now and has been steam rolling through his opponents. He’s training with the Nogueira brothers and is headed for the top tier of heavy weights.

Looking forward to this event but even more to the next one, UFC 111 (more on that later).
Cheers