Tag: Ultimate Fighting Championship (Page 5 of 7)

      UFC 115 Picks & Predictions

      June 12, 2010 /

      UFC 115: Liddell vs. Franklin takes place tonight from the General Motors Palace in Vancouver, British Columbia. The card is pretty solid but not overwhelming. Here are my thoughts on each of the main card bouts.

      Light Heavyweight Bout – Chuck Liddell (21-7) vs. Rich Franklin (27-5) – Both of these guys are past their prime and looking for another win to add to their career list. Liddell looks to be in great shape for the fight but unless he changes the way he fights, he is probably in trouble. Franklin is a more technical striker and he utilizes body kicks, which Liddell will have trouble with. I expect Franklin to use his jab to keep Liddell and bay and slowly wear him down before scoring a big punch that leads to a finish in the third round.

      Heavyweight Bout – Mirko Cro Cop (26-7) vs. Pat Barry (5-1) – This should be a very entertaining fight as neither fighter wants it to go to the ground and both are excellent with their kicks. Unfortunately for Cro Cop, he has lost his killer instinct that made him a star and his apprehension will allow Barry to set the tone with his brutal leg kicks. Look for Barry to win this fight by a TKO in the second round.

      Welterweight Bout – Paulo Thiago (13-1) vs. Martin Kampmann (16-3) – Kampmann seems to be getting overlooked in this fight as he is a tough guy to beat and he is very well-rounded. Thiago is probably over-confident in his striking after his last win over Mike Swick, but that will play into Kampmann’s favor. Look for the Dane to get a decision victory as he dictates the pacing and location of the bout.
      Heavyweight Bout – Ben Rothwell (30-7) vs. Gilbert Yvel (36-14-1) – These are two big sluggers that are going to probably tire themselves out early in the fight. The key to victory will be the bigger size and better wrestling skill of Rothwell, who should be able to use his weight to lay on Yvel and tire him out quicker. Once Yvel is gassed, look for Rothwell to pounce and score a second round TKO win.

      Welterweight Bout – Carlos Condit (24-5) vs. Rory MacDonald (10-0) – There is a lot of promise in MacDonald, who is just 20-years-old, but he is stepping up in competition with this fight against the experienced Condit. Condit will be ready anywhere the fight goes and MacDonald still has some learning to do before he can get into contender status. Look for Condit to out-class MacDonald on their feet and on the ground as he scores a decision win.

      External Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, UFC

      What a difference 5 years makes in MMA

      June 5, 2010 /

      The main event of UFC 115 next weekend would have been one of the biggest fights ever five years ago. Former champions Rich Franklin and Chuck Liddell will meet in a fight where in all reality, the loser should retire. The winner won’t have much of anywhere to move up the ladder and the loser will really only deserve to be on a PPV undercard.

      It is amazing how quickly things have changed in MMA and looking back just five years ago to see who the UFC champions were and where they are now. On June 4, 2005, the UFC held UFC 53: Heavy Hitters where Franklin won the middleweight title over Evan Tanner. As of that show, here is a look at who the UFC champions were and how their careers have quickly headed south.

      Heavyweight Champion – Andrei Arlovski: At UFC 53, Arlovski defended his title for the first time defeating the late Justin Eilers by TKO in the first round after Eilers blew his knee out. It was Arlovski’s fifth-straight win at the time, all of which were by stoppage. Arlovski followed that win with a one-punch KO of Paul Buentello at UFC 55 and was largely considered the most dominant champion in the organization. However, a bizarre loss to Tim Sylvia at UFC 59, in which Arlovski has Sylvia beat but then was caught with as straight jab that led to a TKO loss, started the downfall of his career. Another loss to Syliva led to a five-fight winning streak, but the fighter was never quite the same. He lost his aggression and confidence and has since lost three-straight fights and is almost an afterthought in MMA. His most recent fight was a decision loss to Antonio Silva, which was a sad performance where he never showed the aggression that made him the dominant champion of five years ago.

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      External Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, UFC

      UFC 114 Picks & Predictions

      May 29, 2010 /

      The long-awaited fight between Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Rashad Evans finally takes place tonight, as the main event of UFC 114 from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Here are my picks for that bout and the other four fights on tonight’s PPV card.

      UFC Light Heavyweight Bout – Quinton Jackson (30-7) vs. Rashad Evans (19-1-1) – This fight should be exciting as both clearly dislike each other. I think the key to victory will be for Jackson to use his size on Evans and for Evans to use his quickness and wrestling on Jackson. In the end, I like Evans to utilize his hand speed and mix in more wrestling to keep Jackson off guard. Look for Evans to also utilize leg kicks, which Jackson has shown he can’t defend. I am going with Evans to win by decision in a tough fight.

      UFC Middleweight Bout – Michael Bisping (19-3) vs. Dan Miller (11-3) – Bisping is hungry for a strong showing after his tough decision loss to Wanderlei Silva. Miller is a game fighter that will keep Bisping on his toes, but Bisping has too much talent and big-fight experience for Miller. Look for the Brit to win by TKO in the second or third round.
      UFC Heavyweight Bout – Todd Duffee (6-0) vs. Mike Russow (12-1) – Duffee has been an explosive monster in his MMA career, as he is 6-0 with six KO’s. Russow has the experience edge and will be the better grappler, but the fight always starts on the feet, where Duffee has a clear edge. Look for Russow to push Duffee a little bit before Duffee lands the big punch and scores a TKO late in round one.

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      External Sports, March Madness, UFC

      Top 5 UFC Rivalries

      May 22, 2010 /

      With the much-anticipated fight between Rampage Jackson and Rashad Evans taking place next Saturday, I decided to look back and think of other fights that had this much animosity between the two competitors. Here is my list of top five rivalries in the UFC since the Zuffa inception:

      1. Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock – While the fights were pretty lopsided, you could always feel the heat and rage between these two. Tito was a showboat and Ken was mister intensity. They never really had a chance to be friends. The first fight really did a lot to help the UFC land a network television deal and bring more attention to the sport. Then, the two added to their rivalry with their coaching appearance on The Ultimate Fighter Season 3. Too bad for Ken he lost all three fights to Ortiz, but the rivalry was still classic.

      2. Matt Hughes and Matt Serra – This rivalry is about two guys that want to be the Alpha Male. Serra is always playing the disrespect card and Hughes is an honest jerk. Hughes dominated the UFC Welterweight division for years and had no problems talking about how inferior his opponents were while Serra shocked the world a few years ago and Hughes called his title reign a “fluke”. These two also coached opposite one another in The Ultimate Fighter Season Six, which led to a fight at UFC 98 that Hughes narrowly pulled out. Still to this day, Serra has preached for a rematch and still proclaims his dislike for the future Hall of Famer.

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      External Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, UFC

      UFC 113 Picks & Predictions

      May 8, 2010 /

      Tonight brings the rematch of Lyoto Machida and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua with UFC 113: Machida vs. Shogun 2 from the Bell Centre in Montreal. The card doesn’t have a lot of overwhelming bouts outside of the main event, but each fight should be interesting. Here are my picks for tonight’s main card:

      UFC Light Heavyweight Championship – Lyoto Machida (16-0) vs. Mauricio Rua (18-4) – Shogun exposed weaknesses in Machida’s once-thought unstoppable style in the first meeting at UFC 104. Now, in this rematch, look for Machida to approach the fight from a different style and make the proper adjustments to win this fight decisively. Shogun gave one of his best efforts at UFC 104 and he has the potential to win this fight, but Machida has a better team around him to have him prepared to win this contest. I like Machida to win by TKO in round four.

      UFC Welterweight Bout – Josh Koscheck (16-4) vs. Paul Daley (23-8-2) – This fight will determine who will coach alongside UFC Welterweight Champion, Georges St. Pierre, in the next Ultimate Fighter and also be the new No. 1 contender to St. Pierre’s title. This fight can be won by Koscheck if he checks his ego at the door and takes the fight to the ground as Daley is the better and more powerful striker but struggles on the ground. Look for Koscheck to feel Daley out early, but eventually rely on his wrestling skills to get the fight to the ground where he will sink in a choke in round two.

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      External Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, UFC

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