In a recent interview, UFC Lightweight Nate Diaz was as candid as I have ever heard him. He said many things that were over the top, and many things I do not agree with, but I had never heard him as relatable as he was during that conversation. It was so fascinating that it prompted me to tweet his manager to encourage him to do more of them.

However, Diaz’s recent comments on Twitter – while not the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen in cyberspace – are probably in my top ten. For those that don’t know, Diaz insulted Bryan Caraway for ending up with the bonus money that would have gone to Pat Healy had he not tested positive for marijuana after his UFC 159 bout with Jim Miller. While it’s easy to understand his support, the problem with Diaz’s reaction is that he chose to call Caraway “the biggest fag in the world.”

Diaz’s disciplinary problems started as an unlicensed cornerman at the famous “Strikeforce Brawl” in Nashville when he decided to jump into the foray in the cage that night. For his actions, Diaz was suspended for three months and was fined $7,500. This would be the first bad decision  Diaz would make in a long line of them.

With the new UFC Code of Conduct policy now firmly in place, the hammer came down hard and fast. As soon as UFC President Dana White heard of the post, he vowed action from the UFC, and before the story was six hours old, the UFC had issued a statement and suspended Diaz indefinitely. As I write this, the post is twenty hours old and Diaz has not apologized nor even deleted the tweet. As if things weren’t ugly enough, his manager isn’t doing his client any favors.

Diaz representative Mike Kogan vehemently defended his client, and tried (and failed miserably) to rationalize the unfortunate choice of words from his fighter. Kogan, who obviously doesn’t understand that you don’t get to decide how people take the things you say, basically said by calling him that, he meant Caraway was “a punk, or a bitch.” Does this sound shocking to you? How could the guy who manages such high-profile athletes like Royce Gracie, Roy Nelson and Mo Lawal choose his words so poorly? The answer is because that’s what Kogan does.

Not only was I not shocked by Kogan’s comments, I expected them. A while back Kogan wrote an article and he chose to use the term “house niggas” when referring to Quinton Jackson and Jon Jones. While explaining that the racism among MMA fans bothered him, Kogan would go on to say the most ignorant things I have ever heard from a manager.

That’s why Rampage and Jon Jones are so popular. They are “house niggas”, they are for the white folk, you know what I mean? I’m not trying to put down black folk, but if you sit down and listen to Jon Jones, ain’t no black folk saying that shit man, come on. The last person that said that shit is Barack Obama, and that nigga the President, so of course he gonna say that shit- Mike Kogan  (link)

What does this have to do with Diaz? Diaz decided that this was the man who should represent him professionally. Kogan isn’t even telling the fighter to delete the tweet. In this case, Kogan does not have his client’s interest ahead of his. Any smart manager would go into damage-control mode and put together a multi-step plan that included apologies, communicating to the UFC that they would accept any and all punishments, and that they would do all they could to undo the damage done. Part of a good manager’s job is to protect their client 365 days a year, and yes they need to protect them from themselves.

If the UFC was going to make an example out of someone since implementing their code of conduct policy, can you imagine a better candidate than Diaz? Diaz has a tremendous amount of abilities as a fighter that I predict will one day outshine his brothers, but it really seems like he is hellbent on squandering them. Diaz’s decision-making GPS seems to be set on Bellator or WSOF.

Photo Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The post Nate Diaz’s Decision Making Problem appeared first on Fighters.com.

UFC 159 was no doubt a strange event. It was such a weird night that when Chael Sonnen walked to the Octagon, for about four and a half seconds, I thought there was a chance he could win against Jon Jones. The night featured two technical decisions, the first time in UFC history, and they were both over eye pokes. I won’t even get into what a sideshow the Gian Villante-Ovince St. Preux reffing was, but after that tilt and the Michael Bisping-Alan Belcher bout, UFC commentator Joe Rogan had had enough. Rogan has drawn a line in the sand when it comes to eye pokes, and to him the fix is to change the gloves.

According to Rogan, the solution lies in covering the tips of the fingers on the glove that is allowed in MMA competitions. To date, I haven’t heard any fighter or even UFC President Dana White say a change like that is needed. Yet every time a fighter takes a digit in the eyehole, Rogan seems to go on and on about what I can only describe as ‘finger-condoms’ that will somehow protect the fighters so much that the time to act is RIGHT NOW! What does Rogan’s co-pilot say about this? Well, Mike Goldberg seems to always agree with whatever Rogan says when it comes to the analysis, and that means he is on the finger-rubber train too.

This is a dangerous sport by its very nature. The primary target for most punches and a majority of kicks is the front of the head, and eye injuries happen in every fight as a result. Sometimes these eye injuries are just small cuts, or swelling around the eyes, and sometimes it looks like a man’s brains are leaking out of his skull through an empty socket. We all have a set of eyeballs, and we all wince or tear up a bit when we see someone get poked in the eye, but part of the sport is to disrupt the vision of your opponent. The fighters know the risk, and they sign on the dotted line. To put it more simply they vote with their feet, and If they didn’t like the rules they wouldn’t compete under them.

Some fighters think changes to the gloves should be made, or more time should be allotted for the fighters to break in the gloves. They may have a valid point on this one as some commissions will let you break them in when you get them, and some will only give you a few minutes before you put them on. I have a hard time believing these changes would affect the pokes to the eyes though. Maybe it would prevent the corner of the glove going into the eye, but if a fist is that close to your face, its the fist doing the damage and not the glove. That’s the thing to remember here – these guys are trying to go after each others eyes with strikes.

Rogan is one of the best at his job, but he is way off the mark on this one. What’s going to hold these finger covers on? You can’t have these things flying over the cage, and won’t they peel off when their is hand fighting on the ground? Are we going to cover the toes as well? Rogan has good intentions when it comes to protecting the fights, as I highly agree with his Thai Cup advice (it’s like having your boys in a Sherman tank,) but this is not a realistic change or one that could prevent evepokes.

Is there a solution? Tell me what you think in the Comments section below!

The post Covering The Fingers Of The MMA Glove Isn’t A Realistic Solution appeared first on Fighters.com.

UFC 159: Jones vs. Sonnen is tomorrow, and with it comes a main event that has left many heads a-scratchin’. Light-heavyweight champ and heralded superstar Jon Jones will defend his belt against… Chael Sonnen? The same Sonnen who’s been competing at middleweight for while now? The same Sonnen who fell short against 185-pound king Anderson Silva twice? He’s challenging Jones for the belt? Yeah, he is. Which begs the question: Is this match-up bad for the sport? Take it away my Rebellion brethren!

John Petit, Fighters.com

Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen isn’t a phoenix that rose from the ashes of UFC 151, this is as much of a freakshow fight as Randy Couture vs. James Tony. The UFC heads off any notion that Sonnen talked himself into the fight at the pass with an immediate “No he didn’t” that is so defensive it’s transparent. The difference between this fight and other fights contenders talked their way into is Sonnen doesn’t have any recent light-heavyweight bouts. When Silva said he wanted a title fight at 205 pounds he was told he would have to fight someone else first, but because of the disparaging remarks Sonnen makes about two defending champions, he finds himself in another title fight. Are fights like this good for the sport? I don’t think the juice is worth the squeeze, but we might get a good fight. However, we might get a fight that looks like “Bones” vs. Vladimir Matyushenko.

Joe Lisnow, FightLine.com

In September, Chael Sonnen and Jon Jones had created a real buzz in the matter of one conference call. Jones took heat for not accepting a new opponent at UFC 151 on short notice and Sonnen looked like the white knight, ready to save a pay-per-view from being cancelled. In typical Sonnen fashion, he used the power of speech to relay his message as Jones remained silent. Sonnen does deserve a title shot for stepping up when all these highly ranked light heavyweights declined. When the UFC was in a dark hour, Sonnen wanted to turn it into another big payout and nobody can blame him. It’s not like he’s going out there and taking a dive. This fight doesn’t hurt the sport as it will draw major numbers, which the UFC is always looking at.

Marco Scolari, CagedInsider.com

Anything with Chael Sonnen involved is great for the sport and nobody can argue with that. Does it look competitive? Maybe not. Is it fair for Chael, after a loss in a lower division, to earn a light-heavyweight title shot? No, but you can’t deny Chael’s ability to promote a fight, and the UFC knows that. At the end of the day, any publicity is good for the sport and there isn’t a single person in the world that can create buzz like the “American Gangster” from Oregon.

Mike Drahota, MMAFrenzy.com

I’d have to say that Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen is bad for MMA because it places an emphasis on talking your way into a title shot rather than earning it with wins. Also, even though Chael has had a few good lines recently, fans may be growing weary of his act. The hype of this main event seems forced, and it will have a very tough time living up to the great cards this month. Like mostly everyone else, I doubt it will be anything but a whitewash for Jon Jones. Thankfully we don’t see too many title fights that fall into this category, and if Sonnen loses handily, it’ll be a long time before we see him in another one.

Dana Becker, FightLine.com and MMAConvert.com

Chael Sonnen makes any talk of “super mismatch” obsolete. This is the guy that took Anderson Silva – the G.O.A.T. – five rounds, and had him beat. Sonnen talks, but he backs it up. This is MMA, the unknown, and yes, these matches are good for the sport

Kelsey Mowatt, MMAFrenzy.com and Caged Insider.com

Considering Chael Sonnen hasn’t fought at light-heavyweight since “King of Queens” was still on the air, he has no business fighting Jon Jones for the title at UFC 159 Saturday night. Now does that mean it’s bad for the sport? No. While hardcore fans want to see the top contenders get rewarded, the reality is that there will be thousands of people watching Saturday who will have no idea Sonnen’s even fighting at a new weight. The sport still needs to grow and “The American Gangster” promotes fights.

Keith Fitzpatrick, Caged Insider.com

This is one of the least interesting title fights I can remember for the last few years. Despite all Chael Sonnen’s efforts to convince us to the contrary, I just can’t see past another straightforward and dominant Jon Jones title defense. Even Jones seem uninterested in this fight, which may be the only thing that makes this fight competitive in that he may underestimate Sonnen in the same way Anderson did. I just can’t see it though. Sonnen will lose by submission in the first three rounds and his assimilation into full-time MMA analyst will begin in earnest.

Chris McDevitt, Fighters.com

Main events like these are fantastic for the sport. The bad matchups are the ones we will get stuck with like Jones v. Lyoto Machida II. A common opponent is a great icebreaker for super fight talks between Silva and Jones. People forget that Sonnen made Silva exciting again. There’s nothing wrong with giving the fans a fun fight once in a while; I say as long as the agreed upon weight is made bring on more of the kind of matchups usually only possible in video games.

Sam Genovese, MMAConvert.com

How can increased buyrates be bad for the sport? Chael Sonnen has been on Sportscenter all week promoting the bout. He has also produced two of the highest selling bouts in recent memory in his fights with Anderson Silva. More people buying the event means more people seeing the sport and that is always a good thing. At the moment, there aren’t any other clear challengers in the 205 division who seem like clear-cut challengers so it’s not like Chael is stepping on anyone’s toes. The fight will sell decently well and Jones will probably be able to show off his brilliant skills on a very big stage. That’s always a good thing.

Chris Leslie, MMAFrenzy

Match-ups between Chael Sonnen and Jon Jones are generally hit-or-miss when it comes to MMA. In this case, the bout was really diminished by the two fighters appearing on The Ultimate Fighter. Sonnen has always relied on his pro-wrestling gimmick to promote fights, but after his toned down appearance on the UFC reality show (and the law of diminishing returns) the whole shtick feels completely forced now. MMA always needs big bouts, but this fight just lost all of its post-UFC 151 fallout hype with the amicable showing on TUF and people coming to grips with how large the mismatch truly is. Well-sold fights are always important, but when the bout feels like it is more hype than a great fight it can hurt the sport.

Casey Hodgin, MMALinker

I think they are bad. They waste the time of legitimate contenders! I think they should make it a rule that if you can NOT be involved in a title fight unless you have atleast one fight in that division within the last 5 years. Sure, it may hinder the reality of super-fights, but it’s much more logical to give the shot to a worthy contender than to someone who doesn’t deserve it, but can “sell” it. However, I think this situation in particular is an exception. At the time, you had Gustafsson fighting Jones, and Lyoto fighting Henderson. There wasn’t going to be a clear definite number one contender by the end of all that, so a “super fight” probably was a good idea. I just hate seeing worthy contenders being shut in the closet (Johny Hendricks) just because they’re other guys who can “sell” the fight more. These guys are athletes, not performers.

Brendhan Conlan, FiveOuncesofPain.com and Fighters.com

As fun as some of the back-and-forth banter between Sonnen and Jones has been, the bottom line is that this match-up never should have been made. Awarding a title-shot to an individual coming off a clear cut loss in a smaller division simply because he can spew smack demeans the essence of the sport and is a slap in the face of deserving contenders like Alexander Gustafsson. Sure, there’s an entertainment component required for MMA to be successful, but at the end of the day it is rooted in competition and without integrity the sport runs the risk of inching closer to WWE territory instead of a spot alongside the likes of the NBA, MLB, and NFL.

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UFC 159: Jones Vs Sonnen takes place this Saturday night on pay per view, and the preliminary card will be broadcast on FX and on Facebook/Youtube. While the conflict between the main event and co-main event combatants has taken center stage in the marketing of UFC 159, there happens to be a solid under-card leading up to the main card action. Here is a fight by fight breakdown of the undercard, and make sure to check back tomorrow for the main card picks.

Kurt Holobaugh vs. Steven Siler

Steven Siler gets to roll out the UFC welcome wagon for Strikeforce import Kurt Holobaugh in this one. Holobaugh was able to put up a decent short notice fight against Pat Healy at the last Strikeforce card, but came up short in the process. Siler ran into the wrestling of Darren Elkins at UFC 154, and now both UFC 159 fighters are looking to get back in the win column. Siler’s experience is going to a long way in this one, and if he gets put on his back he will threaten with submissions or attempt to scramble up to his feet. Although Holobaugh is coming off of his first loss, I’m not sure if he is going to be able win two rounds on Siler.

Steven Siler via Unanimous Decision

Nick Catone vs. James Head

Depending on how this one plays out, we may a welterweight pink slip grand prix happening in this fight. Both fighters are coming off of losses, and although Nick Catone is coming off of two losses, if Catone can tear up James Head he will likely be on his way out as well. Head was absolutely handled in his last fight against Mike Pyle in under two minutes, and although it looked awful he had a two fight winning streak going into the fight. That was the first time Head was finished in his professional career, and that should be motivating him in this fight. Head will likely start fending off the takedowns from Catone towards the end of the first round, and win the rest of the fight on his feet peppering Catone.

James Head via Split Decision

Leonard Garcia vs. Cody McKenzie

Leonard Garcia has been losing so much he has been saying that if he loses he will give himself his walking papers from the UFC. Garcia is tough as nails, but his skills just don’t match the size of his heart. He arguably got jobbed by the refs against Hollaway but he is now 1-5 in the UFC. Cody McKenzie made his featherweight debut against Chad Mendes and ate a liver shot that crumpled him early in the fight. Even by decision, I just don’t see how Garcia pulls off this win. McKenzie has eaten some hard shots so I doubt he will get hurt by anything Garcia is selling, and for that alone I see him winning this fight.

Cody McKenzie via Unanimous Decision

Rustam Khabilov vs. Yancy Medeiros

The last time we saw Rustam Khabilov he was throwing Vinc Pichel around the octagon like a bag of leaves, and seconds later he was pounding him out for the win. Certainly one of the better octagon debuts in quite sometime. Yancy Medeiros is returning to the cage for the first time since 2010, and despite fighting at light heavyweight and middleweight, he will be making his octagon debut as a lightweight. Too many variables, and the flashiness of Khabilov, makes it really hard to go with Medeiros in this bout.

Rustam Khabilov via Technical Knockout, Round 2

Sheila Gaff vs. Sara McMann

If there was ever a ‘play this one safe’ fight in the career of Sara McMann, her fight against Sheila Gaff is it. Gaff has some solid striking skills and she has put away her last three opponents in a combined time under 2 minutes. McMann, the USA Silver Medalist in wrestling, is undefeated and with a win she is in the mix for a title shot. Her grappling will prove too much for Gaff in this fight, and if she doesn’t get the submission early in the bout, she will likely skater her way to a decision win.

Sara McMann via Unanimous Decision

Ovince St. Preux vs. Gian Villante

When Ovince St. Preux gets comfortable, and fighters allow him to get his rhythm, its usually curtains for the first person he is fighting. Outside of a loss to Gegard Mousasi, OSP is 6-1 and is looking to make a brutal mark in his octagon debut to send a message. Gian Villante, who is also making his debut, is riding a 3 fight win streak and his most recent fight was just under a year ago. His grappling background and wrestling chops should be enough to win a close decision over OSP, but he just can’t let the flashy striker get comfortable.

Gian Villante via Split Decision

Johnny Bedford vs. Bryan Caraway

Both fighters were castmates on “The Ultimate Fighter 14”, and both have put together modest UFC records since the show. Caraway is stepping in for an injured Erick Perez, and he has his hands full up against the streaking the streaking Bedford. This should be a ‘rinse, wash and repeat’ for Bedford if he elects to take Caraway down and pound holes in him. All Bedford would really have to do is be wary of Caraway’s slick bottom control and make him think about the punches coming in hard and fast.

Johnny Bedford via Unanimous Decision

Photo  Credit: Josh Holmberg-USA TODAY Sports

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UFC On FOX 7: Henderson Vs Melendez takes place this Saturday night in San Jose, California and you can watch the whole card on FOX. In the main event, Defending Lightweight Champion Benson Henderson will take on incumbent Strikeforce Defending Lightweight Champion Gilbert Melendez to see who will sit atop the UFC lightweight division. There are several close fights on the card, but this is how we see them playing out. Feel free to post your picks in the comments below.

Jordan Mein vs. Matt Brown

Brown’s striking really seems like it has turned a corner over his past 3 or 4 fights, but the most dangerous improvement in his game is how comfortable he is getting in the cage. His improving fight IQ was a big part of his wins over Mike Swick and Luis Ramos and he is now looking to make it 5 in a row. Mein is on 3 fight win streak himself, and is coming off of his UFC debut which was a KO win over Dan Miller.

Brown was originally facing Hardy, and now faces a different kind of striker in Mein. Mein has shown the ability to be very technical at times, but he does have holes in his game. As Brown becomes more cage and confident, and while I think Mein will have the advantage on the inside, I think Brown can have success if he is able to keep Mein on the outside of his punches and kicks. I’m not sure he will be able to do that in this fight, and I think Mein will turn on late in the fight to win the decision.

Jordan Mein via Decision

Josh Thomson vs. Nate Diaz

One of the big ifs in this pick is if Thomson is healthy or not. He always seems to say after fights he wasn’t 100%, and he is going to need to be in tip top shape in order to win against Diaz. The intriguing thing is while Diaz is looking to finish the fight the whole time, I expect Thomson to be looking to win rounds. Sure, Diaz’s plan could add up to him still winning the rounds, but if Thomson is able to do what Henderson did he is cage savvy enough to win the fight. I see a part of this fight being Diaz on his back trying to submit Thomson, but while Thomson is defending he will be scoring points. I think Thomson can do this enough to win two rounds.

Josh Thomson via Decision

Daniel Cormier vs. Frank Mir

If you had to pick one place where Frank Mir had the advantage, it would be on the ground against Daniel Cormier. He will have to get it there, and doing that against Cormier isn’t going to be easy. I see Cormier stopping all of Mir’s shots, and Cormier using his quickness to pick a part Mir. In his lull of the night performance against Crocop, Corcop danced with him all night intil the third round, but he won’t get a dance partner in Cormier on Saturday night. The beginning of the first round might look like that, but after that they will look like different fights. Cormier will turn up the pressure as the fight goes on, and will likely either put Mir away in the third round, or secure himself a decision.

Daniel Cormier via Technical Knockout round 3

Benson Henderson vs. Gilbert Melendez

The big advantage for Melendez in this fight is that he is basically training for the UFC lightweight champion twice now. Melendez was a big part of the training camp for Nate Diaz, and now he is training for Henderson himself. His coaches and teams, and now you add in the fact that Diaz can explain what Henderson feels like in the cage, you have at least a few extra feathers in your hat than the normal contender. However, when opponents come forward on Melendez, he has no problem letting them. This seems like a dangerous game for Melendez if this is what he decides to do on Saturday night. Always reacting to whatever Henderson does in this fight will end in him getting another loss on his record. Henderson isn’t going to have an easy fight on his hands, and Melendez will definitely remind him he is in one, but this fight is his to win or lose.

This will be Melendez’s first trip to the octagon, and while he has been in marquee fights in the past, many fighters will tell you the octagon jitters are a very well occurrence. When I add up all of these things, and look at the dominance Henderson has displayed to date, I have a hard time picking against him.

Benson Henderson via Split Decision

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I was recently asked by a colleague what was the worst thing I ever saw at an amateur MMA event. We were discussing the ills of amateur MMA, and how its clearly a necessary evil to the sport. You can spar in the gym with complete strangers, and physically feel what its like to be in a professional MMA bout, but it’s a different story when crowds of people are watching. There is no reason to get anecdotal about this, for every ‘breakout-star’ we hear about there are 20 guys who are destined to be gym champions. When they get under ‘the lights’ they are different fighters. There is only one way to find out if you can perform with the pressure of the crowd.

When you cover amateur MMA bouts, the promoters routinely sit you in what photographers lovingly call the blood seats. You are usually at the table right along side the fence where its not uncommon to have to give your laptop a Purell bath when you get home (pro tip: don’t wear white.) Some amateur promoters will sit you right next to the judges, who are sometimes relatives of the promoters or even former sparring partners with the combatants. I was shown my seat by the staff, and introduced to the ‘judge’ sitting next to me who was the brother of the promoter. It was a weak set up, and the lights were exactly one notch above of what you would hang in your garage so you could restore a car.

The house lights were beginning to dim, and I took a look around where I noticed there was no one who looked like a doctor or an EMT. I saw a guy who had some cut man gear and a bucket, but by the way he was dressed I was pretty sure he wasn’t a doctor. I went in the back to look for signs of a medical staff, and when I didn’t find any I went to look for the promoter. He was cageside trying to get the show started when I caught up with him. They were ‘running late.’

I asked him if there was a doctor or any EMTs around, and he smiled and told me not to worry cause they were on the way. I laughed completely expecting him to laugh with me, but he simply looked back at me like this was a perfectly reasonable response. He began motioning for the announcer to get in the cage to bring the fighters out, and I stopped him. The short conversation ended with me threatening to climb into the cage and calling 911 if he tried to start the fight. I really expected to be thrown out, but the guy listened.

Make no mistake, he was ready to start the card and had intended on starting without doctors or EMTs there. When the card got started, 20 minutes in a fighter took a knee to the face on a takedown and we eventually learned he broke his orbital bone. I was new to covering MMA, but I now know that that’s one of those head trauma injuries you want a doctor around for.

UFC President Dana White is right – some people just want to make money without paying the fighters. But, there are definitely honest regional promoters. You can’t weed out the scumbags without regulation, and those scumbags are prepared to do anything to make money. That typically costs much less than doing the right thing, and that makes it that much harder for the honest guys to stick around. Amateur MMA is a part of the sport that isn’t going away, and much like the UFC ran toward regulation when it comes to professional MMA, we should be encouraging states to do the same thing.

The post A Professional Look at Amateur MMA appeared first on Fighters.com.

Saturday night, the UFC returned with yet another free event that was headlined by a magnificent bantamweight bout between frequent training partners Urijah Faber and Scott Jorgensen. The event was the finale of Season Seventeen of the UFC’s hit TV show, The Ultimate Fighter. This bout capped off a great night of fights which included the second women’s fight in UFC history and the finals of TUF 17. The main event had just about everything one would expect from a main attraction of a fight card, not only did the fight go into the fourth round, but the bout ended in definitive fashion, Faber by Rear-Naked Choke at 3:16 of the fourth round.

While MMA’s combat cousin pro boxing aired a somewhat one-sided, albeit it unexpected upset on HBO, the UFC produced a rather superb and evenly matched main event in addition to a respectable under card. Which was by no means boxing’s fault, it just turned out to be a one-side shellacking. However I would like to place the blame on HBO and Top Rank for having absolutely no co-main event or even an undercard on the broadcast, shame on you HBO and Top Rank. In that respect, this was certainly not the UFC’s most stacked card either, but realistically you can’t expect a Super Saturday card every month. None the less, the UFC offered an under card, period.

Anyway, back to the main event. The bout displayed the very definition of mixed martial arts, with portions of the contest taking place on the ground and with both fighters having their moments while there. Constant scrambles, submission attempts and submission defense gave viewers the impression that if you were to look away, even for a brief second, you could and most likely would miss a crucial moment of the bout. The stand up displayed its rendition of the same, with both combatants throwing their fair share of punches, kicks, knees and elbows. Some of these strikes landed while some missed, some to the face and some to the body but all thrown with fight-ending intentions. Urijah’s high pace and active ground game coupled with Scot’s heavy hands and willingness to plant his feet to mix it up all but ensured fans that we would witness a very entertaining bout.

Credit must be given where it’s due, these fighters showed moments of technically sound grappling, some fundamentally basic striking sprinkled in between with mild defensive skills on the feet to up the ante in the drama department. But in reality, even if two other mixed martial artists with similar traits and skill sets met in the octagon, it wouldn’t necessarily deliver the kind of action Faber and Jorgensen did. It took the will of both of these particular fighters to take chances, go for broke and put on a show for the fans who purchased tickets for the event and for the viewers at home, only a week removed from a rather lackluster event last week in Sweden. This bout even had a low blow tossed in the mix for shits and giggles, but besides that there was constant action with very few lulls, if any.

Its fights like this that make me appreciate the sport on an entirely different level, fights like Cruz/Benavidez 1, GSP/Condit, Henderson/Cerrone 1 and others that I’m sure I’m leaving out. Faber and Jorgensen displayed heart, guts and were very deserving of that main event spot. 2013 has produced some high lever and entertaining main events which Faber and Jorgensen added to, let’s keep the momentum going next week shall we?

Photo Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The post Faber vs. Jorgensen: My Opinion appeared first on Fighters.com.

The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale: Faber Vs Jorgensen takes place tonight, and we broke down the main card that will air live on FX. When all is said and done, we will find out who is going to be driving away with a brand new Harley Davidson and a six figure contract as Kelvin Gastelum and Uriah Hall fight to see who is the season 17 winner, and we will see if its Urijah Faber or Scott Jorgensen who is one step closer to the top of the bantamweight division. Check out the breakdown below.

Travis Browne Vs. Gabriel Gonzaga

Gonzaga has very quietly put together a three fight winning streak since being cut and brought back to the UFC. His guillotine win over Ben Rothwell in Brazil was enough to secure him the bout with Browne who is coming off of a first round loss to Antonio Silva. Browne piled up 3 wins before the loss to Silva, and is now looking to right the ship on the main card of the TUF finale. Gonzaga has issues when fighters come forward and crowd him, and if a fighter can do this for a few rounds, thats when Gonzaga has had the tendency to wilt later in the fight. This was the theme of his loss to former champion Junior dos Santos. I don’t think Browne can do that, and I am not sure he is capable of the kind of pressure to make Gonzaga rethink his game plan in mid fight.

Gabriel Gonzaga via decision

Miesha Tate Vs. Cat Zingano

There is a lot on the line in this fight. The winner will not only get a title shot and they will coach the next season of The Ultimate Fighter opposite of Ronda Rousey. A rematch between Tate and Rousey could be a ratings bonanza for the UFC, but there is also a good story if Zingano won because she is undefeated. Out of her 7 wins, 6 of them were decided without the judges, and while Tate has only been finished once it would be foolish of her to not recognize how dangerous Zingano can be. The key will be the top game of Tate, and the ability of Zingano to fight off her back. This fight will be much closer than everyone thinks it will be be, as I think many analysts are looking past the BJJ abilities of Zingano. While I see Tate having a hard time getting Zingano in the first round, I think she will eventually crack the code later in the fight. Tate has a smothering top game if she gets comfortable on the floor, and I think that is how this story will play out. I will not be surprised if this ends up being one of those divisive decisions that splinters fans and analysts.

Miesha Tate via split decision.

Kelvin Gastelum vs.Uriah Hall

Uriah Hall didn’t just spring up overnight. Fight fans and insiders on the east coast know all about him, and almost everyone west of the Mississippi was picking him to win The Ultimate Fighter from the beginning. Gastelum has been a virtual sponge on TUF, and he is only 22 years old, but he more than likely can’t handle what Hall will be bringing to the table. Gastelum is going to come forward and try and fight his fight, that has been the brilliance of his TUF run, he wasn’t supposed to win but he put his head down and went for it. That will only get you so far, and you will eventually run into someone like Hall. Gastelum has a bright future, and he will be leaving with a contract from the UFC as well(albeit less lucrative), but I don’t think he can get it done against Hall.

Uriah Hall technical knockout round 2

Urijah Faber Vs Scott Jorgensen

The interesting dynamic to this bout is the training partner aspect. We really don’t know how much they really trained before, and while Faber will say it wasn’t that much, he will also tell you that he got Jorgensen into the sport. This will be a back and forth fight that will likely see the championship rounds, and we are going to find out about the durability of both of these guys. The longer a fight, the longer the experience factor has a chance to play into the bout, and experience is where Faber has the clear advantage. As long as he can avoid that kill shot from Jorgensen, he should be able to walk out of the octagon with another win.

Urijah Faber decision

Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

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Though Bellator may not boast the deepest roster there’s no question the organization has a handful of fighters under contract with the ability to compete against the best MMA has to offer. One of Bellator’s supremely skilled scrappers is featherweight champion Pat Curran.

The 25-year old Curran is 18-4 thus far in his career with more than a few impressive wins under his belt, not to mention some solid success at 155 pounds including a victory over Roger Huerta. Though he’ll have his hands full next Thursday night with Shahbulat Shamhalaev in the main event of Bellator 95, Curran will definitely be the favorite as he’ll likely be in most match-ups for some time given his current ability and potential for growth.

That being said, fans will never know exactly how good Curran is until he sees action against Top 5 talent. Here’s a look at how Curran might fare against five of the UFC’s top 145ers…

Frankie Edgar:

Curran has some of the same characteristics as Edgar – he’s scrappy, he’s a good boxer, and he’s got above-average grappling. He’s also got a solid chin and, like Edgar, hasn’t been knocked out yet in his career. However, he’s younger and a little less battle-worn. The bout would definitely be close but one Curran could certainly edge out on the scorecards.

Chad Mendes:

The Team Alpha Male staple’s wrestling would be a tough test for Curran as it is for all of his opponents. If stuffed, the door would certainly open up to step through and out-strike the haymaker-throwing Mendes. Of course, that’s easier said than done, and Mendes can’t be discounted when it comes to grinding his way to a decision win.

Cub Swanson:

Swanson has looked sharp as of late, though he’s also faced opponents who haven’t looked great in subsequent showings either. Curran’s wrestling would likely make the difference in this tilt and either set him up for a submission or decision victory.

Chan Sung Jung:

Jung is similar to Swanson in the sense his recent success has involved beating guys on a downswing. However, he’s beloved by fans because he’s “The Korean Zombie”, fighting like the only way to put him down is a crossbow bolt through the brain. Though the recipe for a Fight of the Night effort is certainly there with Curran involved, one for Jung’s triumph isn’t anywhere close to a lock. Curran’s hands are better, as is his chin, and his ability to stop takedowns and throw strikes seem tailor made to take Jung out.

Ricardo Lamas:

Lamas is, as Joe Rogan would say, “a scary dude”. He’s taken out a few top contenders and done so in fairly violent fashion. Of course, he’s also been knocked out twice in his career and not necessarily by superior strikers. If Curran could land a big punch or two, the win would be his for the taking. If not, chalk one up for Lamas.

Jose Aldo:

Simply put, Aldo is the best featherweight in the business and Curran’s chances of beating him are akin to Justin Bieber winning a UFC championship (including the belt Ronda Rousey currently wears). It would be a great fight to be sure, but the Brazilian is too good and not likely to fall barring an unlikely exhaustion issue or “lucky punch”.

PHOTO CREDIT: BELLATOR

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The Ultimate Fighter Brazil  finalist Daniel Sarafian has agreed to roll out the blue canvas for the octagon debuting Eddie Mendez at UFC on Fuel TV 10: Nogueira vs. Werdum. Sarafian was riding a four fight win streak going into his fight with C.B. Dollaway at UFC On FX 7, but he came up short in the split decision. There is no report as to where this bout will take place on the card.

Tatame was the first to report the bout. UFC on Fuel TV 10 will act as the ‘Finale’ card for The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 2, and will feature a heavyweight fight between Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira and Fabricio Werdum and the finals to determine who will be awarded the UFC contract. UFC on FUEL TV 10 takes place June 8 at Ginasio Paulo Sarasate in Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil.

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Former Strikeforce Welterweight Champion Nick Diaz is an emotional fighter. In training, in the media, and in the octagon; what you see is what you get. The ‘Diaz dichotomy’ is one of the reasons he is one of the most recondite anti-heros in the sport. It is easy to see that altogether Diaz is a good person, but it seems like everything else around him is like a box of hand grenades that won’t stop exploding. In the cage, Diaz is one of the most calm and collected guys in a fight, and that good person is nowhere to be found. Diaz said after the fight that he is trying to retire from the sport and that he has been doing this a long time, but is Stockton’s Son really going to hang  up the four ounce gloves for good?

Diaz is a fighter in every sense of the word. While you may have been getting into cars, music, or the opposite sex; Diaz was putting on a gi and learning how to fight.  For almost half of his life he has been training to learn how to render people unconscious, and snap limbs. This is what Diaz was born and bred to do,  and assuming he passes his post fight drug test from his main event bout with Georges St-Pierre, he will get the same itch all fighters get when he is sparring with his teammates. Think of it as an homage to B.J. Penn.

Diaz made a comment at the post fight press conference, that he has ‘never paid taxes.’ The comment startled UFC President Dana White who later said “I would rather have f*cking ninjas after me than the IRS…I hope someone is taking care of him.” If what Diaz is saying is true, it may be possible  that he can’t afford to quit fighting. There is no question that he made a substantial amount of money last night in his title fight, but who knows what Diaz may have collected over the years from random promoters and sponsors. With penalties that compound year after year, there is no telling what Diaz might owe. The number is probably more than what Diaz thinks it is.

Twenty minutes didn’t go by after leaving the octagon at the Bell Centre before Diaz was already saying he would take another fight.  This fight is going to make Diaz even more popular, and there are at least a handful of fights that would be fun to see him take. A rematch between him and Carlos Condit, Demian Maia, or they could maybe even run a second fight between him and Robbie Lawler. Nick Diaz got a taste of what it was like to be a UFC champion at UFC 158: St-Pierre Vs Diaz, and if Diaz really believes he has what it takes to win a rematch, we will see Diaz winning and calling out St-Pierre sooner than we might think.

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The weigh ins are in the books, and all fights are a go for UFC 158: St-Pierre Vs Diaz tomorrow night in Montreal at the Bell Centre. We broke down the prelims yesterday, and you can get an eyeful of our main card picks for UFC 158 below. 

Colin Fletcher vs. Mike Ricci (Lightweights)

Both recent The Ultimate Fighter alums did fairly well in their respective seasons of the show. Both fighters are likely fighting for their roster spots as they are both coming off of decision losses. Fletcher will enjoy a slight reach advantage, which he usually has in fights, and he will look to keep RIcci on the outside with low kicks and jabs. Fletcher seems to have a hard time doing using his distance for entire rounds, and sometimes lets fighters on the inside of his reach and he gets taken down. That happens to be  one of the things Ricci is good at, and he will look to use his inside trips to put Fletcher on his back.

Fletcher is confident in his BJJ skills, and his long limbs allow him to get chokes at odd angles from different positions, but Ricci is cage savvy enough to stay out of most submissions. Fletcher will always make a fight out of any scrap he is in, but Ricci will use his position to win two of the three rounds and get the decision win.

Mike Ricci via unanimous decision

Chris Camozzi Vs Nick Ring (Middleweights)

There are two things you shouldn’t expect in this fight. The first thing you shouldn’t expect is a technical striking match. This fight will be ugly, and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way, I mean that thats the type of fight both fighters will look to have. The other thing you shouldn’t expect is a for Camozzi to take down Ring, as he hasn’t shot for a takedown in his 8 UFC fights.

Ring recovered well from his first career loss to Tim Boetsch by defeating Court McGee by decision, and Camozzi has quietly put together a three fight winning streak in the division. Once Ring gets a taste of Camozzi’s punches he will look to turn this into a grappling match, and while I expect Camozzi to land on his back once or twice from takedowns, I don’t see him keeping him there.  Expect Camozzi to eek out a close decision win in an exciting fight that will win both of them a lot of fans.

Chris Camozzi via decision

Jake Ellenberger Vs Nate Marquardt (Welterweights)

When the card got shuffled because of Rory MacDonald’s injury, Marquardt stepped right in as he was relatively healthy after his win at the last Strikeforce card.  This is a fight where the two have a very good chance of stalemating each other trying to get it to the ground. If that happens you can expect some of fun exchanges as both guys have had their chins tested in the past. Ellenberger has a counter left hook he knows  how to set up effortlessly, but other than that he really just sets up his punches off of his jab. Marquardt will vary it up a bunch more, and is much more creative with his striking.

I expect both fighters to abandon their takedowns early in the first round, and it won’t it be until someone gets tagged once or twice until we see either of them secure one. I expect  that someone to be Ellenberger.

Jake Ellenberger via split decision

Carlos Condit Vs Johny Hendricks (Welterweights)

Every fighter expects Hendricks to be able to punch very hard, and everyone knows he is quick, but people are just now figuring out how much ground Hendricks can cover in a short amount of time. Coming in with a five inch reach disadvantage, Hendricks is counting on lulling Condit into his wheelhouse and closing the deal with a knockout. Even in tense situations, like his last fight against Diaz, Condit is able to remain calm and stick to his game plan. Which will likely be to keep Hendricks on the end of his punches for most of the fight.

Fans forget about the wrestling abilities of Hendricks, but don’t think for a second that Condit has. Look for Condit to use his knees to stymie a double leg from Hendricks that stuns him late in the fight, and for Condito overwhelm with punches to secure the W.

Carlos Condit Technical Knockout, round 3

Georges St-Pierre Vs Nick Diaz  (Welterweight)

GSP is an exceptional natural wrestler. Nick Diaz has a fierce striking game he has been honing for the better part of his life. GSP is no slouch on the feet, and Diaz is so confident in his his jiu-jitsu that he will let guys take him down, but when we talk about both combatants ‘bread-and-butter’ its a grappler vs striker match-up. We all know how that plays out, grappler stays on the inside of the punches, and if possible get a takedown. Rinse, wash. and repeat. St-Pierre is very capable of doing that in this fight, and add in to the scenario that he only has to win three of the five rounds, and the odds Vegas laid down on the fight start to make sense (It’s like they watch the sport or something.)

Diaz is not going to NOT come forward in a fight, its one of the things that fans love so much about him, but that is the ‘prisoners dilemma’ for Diaz. Diaz’s best ability is getting his opponents to freeze while he  is feinting and setting up punches, and when it comes down to it his defense is a really good offense. Nick doesn’t mind eating punches, and because of his hand speed he will almost always land more strikes than whoever he is exchanging with.

It’s like Diaz’s coach Cesar Gracie just pulls a string on his back at the beginning of each round and he will just keep coming forward. As far as conditioning is concerned, Diaz will have a clear advantage, and he will look to wear out GSP. GSP might stand and trade with him a bit, but once St-Pierre sees how fast those punches are coming in, he will shoot on Diaz. I think GSP can do enough on the ground to get three rounds on Diaz, but this is such a coin flip that I was close to picking against GSP for the first time since he won his belt back.

Georges St-Pierre via unanimous decision

The post Breaking Down UFC 158: St-Pierre Vs Diaz: Main Card appeared first on Fighters.com.

UFC 158: St-Pierre Vs Diaz takes place this Saturday night, and as always the UFC will be streaming the first few fights on facebook and youtube, and the rest on the FX network in the states. There is plenty to breakdown on the UFC 158 prelims, so take a look at how they all stack up and stay tuned to Fighters.com for the Main Card predictions.

Reuben Duran Vs George Roop (Bantamweight)

Roop has been as streaky as they come in the UFC featherweight and bantamweight divisions, but is capable of lighting up an opponent in spectacular fashion. Both Roop and Duran are likely fighting for their contracts, as Duran is ls also coming off of a knockout loss, but Duran seems to be a perfect opponent for Roop. I see Roop overwhelming Duran early with strikes early in the fight.

George Roop via technical knockout, round 1

T.J. Dillashaw Vs Issei Tamura (Bantamweights)

Tamura is going to have an uphill battle in this one against a grappler like Dillashaw. Tamura will likely have a hard time landing anything besides his jab, including his overhand right, and will spend a lot of time fighting underneath the Team Alpha Male member. If Dillashaw feels that things are going his way on the feet, he may chose to exchange with Tamura, but I expect him to either ride this out in half guard to get the win or earn a submission late in the fight.

T.J. Dillashaw via unanimous decision

Rick Story Vs Quinn Mulhern (Welterweights)

Mulhern is a Strikeforce import who is riding a three fight winning streak. Mulhern was riding a seven fight win streak when he fought Jason High in his first Strikeforce bout, and has won all three of his fights since. He steps in on short notice to fight Story who is coming off a painful looking neck crank loss to Demian Maia at UFC 153.  Expect the bjj black-belt Mulhern to control the fight early and into the second round, but Story really turning it around in the bout for some late fight heroics and rattling the ground fighter with strikes.

Rick Story via technical knockout, round 3

Daron Cruickshank Vs John Makdessi (Lightweights)

Cruickshank lost an exhibition bout on TUF, but he hasn’t lost a professional bout since 2011, and he has rattled off 6 straight wins. He has been able to use his striking to finish opponents, and out point them. Makdessi is looking to continue the momentum after snapping a losing streak, which included his first professional loss, when he won over Sam Stout at UFC 154. This is a fight of the night candidate, and if Makdessi can focus on his technical kickoxing background he can out point Daron much like he did to Stout.

John Makdessi via unanimous decision

Dan Miller Vs Jordan Mein (Welterweights)

Miller is going to do whatever he has to do to slow down this fight. Mein is going to come forward in a hurry looking to put Miller’s lights out, and Miller can not let him get comfortable in the octagon on Saturday night. Miller will close the distance, and smother Mein until he gets the submission late in the  second round.

Dan Miller via submission, round 2

Darren Elkins Vs Antonio Carvalho (Featherweights)

Elkins is riding a four fight decision streak in the featherweight division while Carvalho has a two fight winning streak of his own going. Carvalho is no slouch on the ground, and that is exactly where Elkins wants this fight to take place, but chances are Elkins will be slick enough to avoid any submissions he may attempt. Elkins decision train keeps rolling him toward an eventual title shot and  gets the ud.

Daren Elkins via unanimous decision

Bobby Voelker Vs Patrick Cote  (Welterweights)

This is Cote’s welterweight debut, and a big part of the  outcome in this one is about how this will affect the 33 year old Canadian. Voelker will be making his UFC debut after winning his last three in Strikeforce. Voelker will take the fight to Cote from the second the bell rings looking to test the weight advantage Cote will have supposedly gained. Look for clubbing right hands from Voelker that will catch Cote late in the second round to finish off the preliminary card.

Bobby Voelker via technical knockout, round 2

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Mizuto Hirota vs. Rani Yahya

While Hirota last few losses have come from top shelf lightweights, he doesn’t seem to perform as well against dare I say lesser opponents. He should be finishing guys like Katsunori Kikuno and Seichi Ikemoto if you are going to use that as a stat in his favor. Hirota has a way of getting caught in odd submissions, and most of the time he gets out of them, but I see Yahya grabbing one he can’t escape from.

Yahya submission, Round 1

Hector Lombard vs. Yushin Okami

Okami is a larger middleweight with solid wrestling who has started  training with Chael Sonnen. In other words, its always improving. Lombard is a top middleweight who is still trying to figure out what it takes to win the top five of the division. He came over from Bellator with a lot of earned hype, and has yet to really show it. A knockout win over Palhares at UFC On FX is a step in the right direction, but unless  he finishes Okami, he will fall short of the hype again. Okami has  more than enough  wrestling skills to close the distance and out grapple Lombard, and I see the fight going that way.

Okami Decision

Diego Sanchez vs. Takanori Gomi

I had the advantage of waiting till after weigh ins to breakdown this fight, and this is one of those cases where I think Sanchez missing weight is a telling sign. Sanchez had a terrible weight cut when he fought Joe Stevenson, and it  showed in the fight. Sanchez missed weight by two pounds, and lost $24,000 of his purse to Gomi and went on twitter to talk trash about him. Sanchez is rattled heading into the fight, and I think Gomi has what it takes to frustrate him and destabilize him even more. I think Diego will make it a fight, but I think Gomi edges out the split decision.

Gomi via Decision

Mark Hunt vs. Stefan Struve

The  one thing that has been improving in the game of Struve is his ability to use his reach. For a long time he wasn’t good at it, but the pendulum is swinging the other way in his last few fights. That is something Hunt has always had to deal with in his career, he is always the smaller fighter. While getting by on grit and natural toughness goes a long way in the UFC, especially in the heavyweight division, it will only get you so far when you start fighting upper echelon fighters. Both of these guys are in that grey area between the top tier heavyweights and that drop where talent takes a step down. All of these reasons are why this fight is hard to pick. I see Struve frustrating Hunt early, and I see the fight going more his way as the seconds tick by.

Struve Unanimous Decision

Wanderlei Silva vs. Brian Stann

It’s peculiar both fighters decided to fight at light heavyweight. However, I don’t think there is much to it other than they didn’t want to cut weight halfway around the world in Japan. Before coming to the UFC, Stann was running the light heavyweight division in the WEC and Silva’s historical run in PRIDE needs zero introduction. Stann will likely be using a strike and bike game plan, and staying on the outside landing leg kicks early in the fight. If Stann can decrease the speed or impact of Silva’s left hand his chances of survival increase by the minute. I can’t imagine Stann making a dumb mistake in this fight and eating a power shot from Silva, and I think Stann gets the TKO win in another high light fight for Wanderlei Silva in Japan.

Stan via TKO, Round 2

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Marcelo Guimaraes vs. Hyun Gyu Lim

Lim, from Korean Top Team, is making his octagon debut on Saturday, and Guimaraes should be wary early in the fight. Lim is riding a five fight win streak, finishing all 5 of his opponents in the first round, and Guimaraes should expect Lim to give him the business end of his fists and knees early in the fight. Guimaraes won his debut by decision, but expect Lim to overwhelm Guimaraes early in the fight.

Hyun Gyu Lim Via Technical Knockout Round 1

Alex Caceres vs. Kyung Ho Kang

While Caceres’ style is known to throw off his opponents, mainly because he is a southpaw and throws from odd angles, he should not expect Kang to fall subject to that. Kang, whose last two wins came in the same night by second round submission, will not let Caceres set up and start getting comfortable. Kang will come forward, and make ‘Bruce LeRoy’ fight his fight while backing up.

Kyung Ho Kang via Decision

Cristiano Marcello vs. Kazuki Tokudome

Another Pride veteran in Marcello is coming home to roost at the Saitama Super Arena, and while MMA pundits and analysts babble about his superior grappling ability (which is well deserved,) Marcello has yet to apply it in the UFC. Tokudome is a Pancrase fighter who will be making his octagon debut, and he will have his hands full. I expect Tokudome to get the upper hand early in the fight, but it won’t last long as Marcello will lace up a submission in the middle of the fight.

Cristiano Marcello via Submission, Round 2

Bryan Caraway vs. Takeya Mizugaki

Caraway is currently undefeated in the UFC, and while his submission skills were good enough to get him wins over Mitch Gagnon and Dustin Neace, he should probably not focus only on trying to submit Mizugaki. To date, Mizugaki has only been submitted once in 25 fights, and that was after Urijah Faber landed some solid shots on him. I don’t think it will be pretty, but I see Mizugaki getting the decision win.

Takeya Mizugaki via Decision

Riki Fukuda vs. Brad Tavares

While Fukuda, former DEEP title holder, has done well to use his clinch and frustrate fighters, Tavares has been slowly building a solid resume in the UFC. Currently 4-1 in the promotion, Tavares has used his gritty style to rope people fighters into brawls, and make them fight his fight. I think this is what he does against Fukuka, and will wear him out until he gets the TKO win in the third round.

Brad Tavares via Technical Knockout, Round 3

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Che Mills Vs Matt Riddle

When Riddle gets flustered in a fight, he has a tendency of just ducking his head and throwing haymakers everywhere. He forgets that his wrestling abilities are the reason he has gotten where he is right now and decides to let it all hang out. He has said in the run up to the fight that he wants an all out stand up war with Mills, and if the two really go toe-to-toe, expect the ref to be waking of Riddle on the floor of the Octagon assuring him everything was going to be okay. Of course, that type of talk is often what wrestlers do. The second Mills comes forward Riddle will shoot and take him down. Or, if that doesn’t work, he will clinch on the fence. If the Ultimate Fighter alum can get Mills down and stay on top of him, he will win this fight. However, if he is being serious about the stand up war, or tries to ‘out clinch’ Mills, he will not like the result. Riddle is a tough dude who can take a beating, but I think Mills finds his way to a decision.

Che Mills via Decision

James Te Huna Vs Ryan Jimmo

This is a bad draw for Jimmo, and that makes it a solid one for Te Huna. Fans should expect Te Huna to come right at Jimmo in this one. As such, the MMA world will learn a lot about Jimmo if this fight goes long and Te Huna can get his game plan going. Jimmo will most likely look to play an outside game of sticking and moving, trying to keep Te Huna on the outside of his jab and low kicks. He will do his best to avoid the power strikes of Te Huna, and that’s where I see him falling short. Either Te Huna will eventually land one of those clipping hooks or Jimmo will be backing up the whole time trying to avoid them. If the latter is the case, don’t expect Jimmo to get his hand raised.

Te Huna via TKO Round 3

Gunnar Nelson Vs Jorge Santiago

Santiago should just pretend he is playing with a live hand grenade this entire fight. Santiago has had two stints in the Octagon, the most recent of which saw him fight twice and lose. Now, the Brazilian is back after getting two wins outside of the organization. Santiago is a dangerous fighter, but I am not real sure he has enough to poison Nelson’s well and get a win. He also might not have that kind of time in this fight. Nelson has only been to third round once (in his first fight that ended in a Draw) and nine out of his ten wins were finishes in the first round. Nelson doesn’t play around in the cage, and I expect him to overwhelm Santiago early in this bout.

Gunnar Nelson Submission Round 1

Jimi Manuwa Vs Cyrille Diabate

Both of these guys have the power and the precision to put the other guy out cold. This is one of those 50-50 picks. If you stood both of these guys toe-to-toe, these two guys will split the outcome right down the middle. Since this a mixed martial arts fight,  I would think it would be foolish for a guy with some ground skills to take that approach. Manuwa, at the very least has a questionable gas tank, and since Diabate has a decent ground game, I suspect he’ll utilize it. I expect Diabate to strike just enough to get Manuwa to come forward, and duck under a strike to get the takedown. I expect Diabate to do this in the first two rounds, and either put Manuwa away on the feet in the third, or skate to a decision.

Cyrille Diabate via Decision

Renan Barao Vs Michael McDonald

There are a lot of unknowns when it comes to breaking down Michael McDonald. Can he unseat Barao from his interim title? Sure, he can finish a lot fighters, but its hard to imagine him winning this one from more than just his hands. That alone has me leaning the way of Barao, but when you look at Barao’s capabilities in the Octagon the pendulum swings even further in his favor. Another key to this fight is that it can take a a few minutes for McDonald to get his feet underneath him and get comfortable. Those will be dangerous ticks on the clock for McDonald as Barao won’t have that problem. While McDonald will have the power advantage in this fight, the speed will go to Barao, and I expect him to land something clean half way through the second round, and swarm on McDonald for the submission win.

Renan Barao via Submission Round 2.

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The Best: UFC Superfights. The 2013 pay-per-view schedule kicked off with a long-awaited superfight between featherweight champion Jose Aldo and former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. Boxing is littered with examples of huge high-profile fights that never came to fruition. From the recent talks of Mayweather Jr and Manny Pacquiao, to the long-gone Bowe and Lewis implosion, it’s widely known that when major fights like these are signed, fans know they’re in for something incredibly special. It’s rare that we get a superfight in general, and rarer still that a superfight is signed when both fighters are in the prime of their careers. We got to see this last night thanks to the careful supervision of the Zuffa brass. 2013 is only beginning and Aldo/Edgar has set the bar quite high. I look forward to potential superfights later in the year, but only after I re-watch Aldo/Edgar a few dozen more times.

The Best: The Flyweights. The UFC played a very smart game by opening up the pay-per-view with an exciting flyweight bout. If there were any doubts that the flyweights belonged in the UFC after the Demetrious Johnson/John Dodson title fight – I have no idea how there would be – the opening fight between Joseph Benavidez and Ian McCall should eliminate them. We saw what’s best about the lighter divisions in a three-round fight between two fighters coming off a loss (coincidentally to the same fighter). They both felt as they had their backs against the wall and came out to put on a show. I have high hopes that casual fans are warming up to accepting the lighter fighters who provide just as much, if not more, action, knockouts and edge-of-your-seat suspense.

The Best: The UFC Heavyweights. The lone heavyweight bout of the card delivered what we tend to expect from a heavyweight fight. In an era where heavyweight boxing is ruled by a set of tactical brothers who initially made a splash in the sport with outstanding knockouts, it’s extremely refreshing to see two heavyweight monsters throw down the way we saw Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva and Alistair Overeem throw down last night. The UFC’s heavyweight division has long been considered their weakest division, particularly during the time of PRIDE. It’s ironic that these two fighters, who came from another promotion, came through with the first major heavyweight knockout of the year. Overall, this event as a whole was one of the best fight cards in quite some time, giving a little bit of everything, enabling this card to cater to just about every type of fan watching. The UFC delivered again on Super Saturday by putting together a sensational event to kick off the 2013 pay-per-view schedule – and hopefully, this is just the beginning of more superfights to come this year.

The post UFC 156: The Best appeared first on Fighters.com.

As evident by the win, “T-Wood” is an intriguing new player in the division thanks to his blend of athleticism, power, and top notch wrestling. And, based on the speed in which he stopped Hieron, Woodley should be ready for action again sooner than later.

Here are three logical options the UFC should consider for Woodley’s next clash:

Martin Kampmann (20-6)

For starters, Kampmann is a good friend and former teammate of Hieron’s, so there’s already a built in storyline as far as promoting the fight. Kampmann’s also got some name value, giving Woodley an opportunity to increase his profile if victorious. And, last but certainly not least, Kampmann is a helluva challenge too considering his technical striking and underrated BJJ ability.

Demian Maia (18-4)

A stiff test for sure considering Maia’s success at welterweight since a solid run at 185 pounds, but also the type of tilt Woodley needs if wanting to establish himself as a legitimate contender. Maia’s grappling and submissions could prove tricky for Woodley, as they were for Jon Fitch this past weekend, but that’s not to say the Mizzou Tiger wouldn’t be up to the task. Also, Maia exited UFC 156 healthy and should be ready for a quick turnaround despite most of the divisional best already being booked.

Tarec Saffiedine (14-3)

Saffiedine still needs an opponent for his UFC debut after earning a spot in the organization with a convincing win over Nate Marquardt to become Strikeforce’s final welterweight champion. The rumble would mark a rematch of a scrap Saffiedine lost a little more than two years ago, plus it would give Woodley a chance to get another win in the Octagon under his belt against an adversary he knows he can beat.

PHOTO CREDIT: UFC

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UFC color commentator Mike Goldberg opened up the broadcast by proclaiming 2013 will be “super fight” year. UFC 156 was the UFC’s first pay-per-view of the year, and they started it off with a stacked card that included one of those super fights “Goldie” was talking about.

Often with events as stacked as this one, the expectations are so high that they fail to meet those expectations. But this event did in fact reach those expectationswith a dynamite main event leading the pack, a solid co-main event and an undercard that was undeniably one of the best in quite some time.

Even thought this event passed the Super Saturday test with flying colors, there wouldn’t be a “best” if there wasn’t a “worst”. And since when it comes to hearing good news and bad news, I tend to lean towards hearing the bad news first, that’s where I’ll start. So without further ado, here are my picks for the worst of UFC156: “Aldo vs. Edgar”.

The Worst: The co-main event between “Sugar” Rashad Evans and Antonio Rogerio “Minotouro” Nogueira. The co-main event of the evening turned out to be a rather forgetful affair. The majority of the bout took place on the feet, with “Lil’ Nog’s” boxing making the biggest impact, if you can even consider slightly better jabbing an impact, earning a unanimous decision victory. With both fighters being away from the light-heavyweight scene for an extended period of time, it may very well have been ring rust that truly made an impact in the fight. That said, Nogueira had spent a longer time away from the Octagon due to injury, thus it stands to reason that it would be Nogueira who suffered the worst case of ring rust, not so much Evans. But it was in fact Evans who looked flat. Over all the fight wasn’t exactly setting me on fire, but it wasn’t all that boring. Nogueira did what he needed to do; he stuffed Evans’ shots and imposed his southpaw boxing skills to get the nod to secure his spot as potential light-heavyweight title challenger.

The Worst: The Referees/Judges. Being a referee or judge in combat sportsis thankless job. So much pressure is placed on their shoulders to ensure a fair and totally unbiased outcome to the competition their assigned to. Thus, it’s expected that the human element of error will sporadically surface. By no means was I shocked to see referee Kate Winslow wait a tad bit too long when it came to stopping the bout between Edwin Figueroa and Francisco Rivera. It was pretty obvious that Figueroa was out on his feet and it may have looked like he was back-peddling, but I believe he was simply struggling to keep his balance. Later in the night, during the prelims on FX, Winslow again made her presence known in the Volkmann/Green bout. Green, in half-guard on top of Volkmann appeared to be working diligently, when out of nowhere, Winslow felt the need to stand the fight up. Green was being out-grappled by Volkmann during most of the fight and may have been behind on the scorecards. With Green on top, this may have been his only shot of possibly stopping Volkmann with vicious elbows. Without much reason, this was cold heartedly taken away from him by Winslow. As it turned out, that was not a factor at the end of the fight, as Green was able to catch Volkmann with a rear naked choke in the third round, earning “Submission of the Night” honors andunofficially ushering in the invasion of Strikeforce.

Herb Dean did his part as a Winslow follow-up act by taking his sweet time stopping both the Jay Hieron/Tyron Woodley and Alistair Overeem/Antonio Silva bouts. Dean is one of the best and most experienced referees in the game and it did shock me to see how slow his reaction time was in stopping these two fights. Hieron was out after the second punch once he turned into Woodley. Overeem was left imitating Dave Menne against Phil Baroni after “Bigfoot” was finished with him. It could be that Dean was confused when Overeem had his hands down against the fence taking shots. After all, Overeem had been doing that the entire fight, so maybe it took Dean a second or four to catch on and realized Overeem was out cold.

The judges weren’t as present as I would’ve expected them to be. The only real gripe I have about them was their scoring of the main event between Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar. Two judges turned in scores of (49-46), meaning, in their perspective, Edgar only won one round. Truth be told, that’s an absolutely pathetic scorecard, when just about everyone, including the third judge, had Edgar winning two rounds. If the third round had swung more towards Edgar, I wonder how those two judges would’ve scored the fight. Nonetheless, it’s a problem that needs to be taken seriously and looked into very closely.

Come back tomorrow for Part 2: The best of UFC 156.

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Luckily for Edgar, he put together one of the best challenges that Aldo has faced in his title reign. Other than the final round of his bout with Mark Hominick, there have been few times where Aldo looked beatable. During rounds four and five of his bout with Edgar, the American was landing clean, hard, and effective blows that were punishing the tired Brazilian.

Edgar could possibly move back up to lightweight, but there is a logjam of contenders in the 155-pound division. It would be in his best interest to stay at 145, where he might be a fight or two away for another crack at the belt.

A bout with former contender Chad Mendes would be a good way to build either of the former contenders up for a rematch with Aldo. Mendes has been given two bounce-back fights with Cody McKenzie and Yaotzin Meza, so he is due for a step-up in competition. A win against Edgar can legitimize his claim for another shot at the title.

On the other hand, a win against Mendes for Edgar would shoot him right back into the title picture; with Aldo’s current run of dominance, there aren’t as many clear-cut contenders who he hasn’t already beaten.

The final option for Edgar is to just keep dropping weight. He is a small guy and could probably diet and cut his way all the way down to bantamweight if he really wanted to. Is this the best option? Probably not. We already saw that his usual speed advantage was nonexistent against Aldo. Moving down would only exacerbate that problem.

But we’ve seen fighters view “dropping weight” as a panacea for their problems before, when really their issue is skill, not size. For Edgar – who gave both Aldo and Benson Henderson a run for their money – a lack of skill is clearly not the issue.

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Joseph Benavidez (16-3) vs. Ian McCall (11-3-1)

I can think of a dozen reasons to pick Benavidez in this fight over McCall, and can only think of one way McCall wins this fight. Benavidez happens to be very good at all the things that gave McCall problems in both of his fights with champion Demetrious Johnson, and when you add in all of the public personal issues McCall has had this past six months, its hard for me to assume he  will be 100% focused on Benavidez. Yes, they both lost to Johnson by basically the same way – they were  outstruck and out grappled over the course of the three fights.

The key to this one will the be takedowns and scrambles from Benavidez. He is an expert in transitions and is able to sneak around into submissions to take fighters by surprise. I think this is going to keep McCall preoccupied in this fight, and Benavidez will do enough to take the decision. McCall is going to make a true test out of this, and it wouldn’t be shocking to see him get the  upset win, but its a really steep uphill battle in my opinion.

Prediction: Joseph Benavidez unanimous decision

While Maia has looked like a whole new fighter in the welterweight division, his main obstacle will be the pristine position grappling of Fitch. Maia is definitely schooled enough to pull something off that Fitch won’t be expecting, but Fitch is so good at using his BJJ too stay out of submissions that he will have to pull of something very unorthodox to catch him.  That said, Maia will find out exactly where he stands at welterweight tomorrow night as he faces one of the divisions many wrestlers he will have to deal with in his hunt for the belt. That’s what I think this fight will be for Maia, and as such I expect him to win a round though Fitch will ultimately take the victory home via decision.

Prediction: Jon Fitch split decision

Alistair Overeem (36-11) vs. Antonio Silva (17-4)

Overeem is calling this fight a warm up fight for a title fight, but he should definitely not be looking past “Bigfoot”. The last guy who did that was Fedor Emelianenko, and that worked out terribly for him. Overeem has the tools to beat Silva nine times out of ten, but his confidence leading up to this should be checked as I have a hard time believing he is going to finish Silva quick. I think Silva’s chances increase the longer the fight lasts, as I think he could get some serious damage in he gets on top of Overeem. Its a possibility, but not a likely one in my opinion.

Prediction: Alistair Overeem TKO round 1

Rashad Evans (17-2-1) vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (20-5)

This is a really tough fight for Nogueira, and if he can  pull off a win here he will turn the top of the light heavyweight division on its head. Nogueira’s only real way to win this fight is to knock out Evans, and while Evans has been knocked out in the past, its not something that happens a lot. Lets not forget how much Evans’ striking has improved since his run on The Ultimate Fighter, where he went in as a heavyweight wrestler and is now a former champion who still has a good chance at getting back in the title hunt.

I think Evans will play on the feet a little bit with Nogueira, and if he is doing well I expect him to stay there until the end of rounds where he will secure points with takedowns. Nogueira will probably do little to defend them, as he is able to fight off his back, but I expect Evans to stay out of submissions and do more than enough damage on the ground to secure the win.

Prediction: Rashad Evans Unanimous Decision

Jose Aldo (21-1) vs. Frankie Edgar (15-3-1)

Edgar has done well in recent fights by being very durable come showtime. His ability to recover from punches and stay in fights has been a joy to watch, but eventually he is going to meet someone who has the power to put him away with strikes. I think that person is Aldo.

Edgar has been using his speed advantage to keep his opponents on their heal, but I don’t think that is going to work on Aldo. I think Aldo is quicker than Edgar, and especially when it comes to his responses in quick transitions.  His match-up with Chad Mendes is a perfect example, as the timing on the knee that put him away was perfect, and it was instinct/twitch reflexes that landed that strike. Only a few people are that quick with throwing strikes in the UFC and Aldo is one of them. I see Aldo neutralizing the speed advantage of Edgar, going on to finish him in the fourth round.

Prediction: Jose Aldo TKO round 4 

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Like fans around the world, we at Fighters.com are stoked about the scraps to come, though there’s another face off set to go down too related to the fights on FOX. Below, staff writers Brendhan Conlan and John Petit offer up their picks on the event in what will become a running feature over the next number of months to see which man is left standing at the end of 2013 as the premier prognosticator.

Results will be worth one point for winner with an additional point if the proper type of outcome is predicted.

Brendhan Conlan:

Simeon Thoresen def. David Mitchell via Decision
Rafael Natal def. Sean Spencer via Submission
Pascal Krauss def. Mike Stumpf via Decision
Clay Guida def. Hatsu Hioki via Decision
T.J. Grant def. Matt Wiman via Decision
Mike Russow def. Shawn Jordan via TKO
Ryan Bader def. Vladimir Matyushenko via TKO

Erik Koch vs. Ricardo Lamas

Koch was in line for a crack at Jose Aldo’s championship before an injury forced him out of the fight. Unfortunately, I don’t think he’ll be cementing his status as top contender this weekend. Lamas has been on a tear lately and has the kind of polished technique to give Koch fits in the fight.

Winner – Ricardo Lamas def. Erik Koch via Decision

Donald Cerrone vs. Anthony Pettis

The only thing easy to pick about this bout is the likelihood of it being named Fight of the Night. Cerrone and Pettis are both well-rounded, aggressive, and exceptionally tough. In the end I think Pettis’ athleticism will earn him a win, opening up more opportunities on the striking front while allowing him to attack Cerrone from above after scoring a few takedowns en route to victory.

Winner – Anthony Pettis def. Donald Cerrone via Decision

Quinton Jackson vs. Glover Teixeira

I don’t fault Teixeira for not wanting to go toe-to-toe with “Rampage” but I sure wish he’d reconsider! This bout could be a ton of fun or somewhat snooze-worthy depending on Teixeira’s approach. I can see Jackson giving up to an extent if grounded for an extended period of time, going out of the UFC on a sour note. Interestingly enough, Teixeira hasn’t faced many wrestlers in his career and Jackson could actually have an advantage if deciding to use takedowns in his attack. However, he’s stubborn and won’t, likely leaving the UFC on a sour note as a result.

Winner – Glover Teixeira def. Quinton Jackson via Decision

Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson

Dodson’s a helluva talent but Johnson is “next level”. His win over Joseph Benavidez was an eye-opener to say the least. While Dodson has power and speed, Johnson’s technique is superior and will lead him to a convincing victory tonight.

Winner – Demetrious Johnson def. John Dodson via Decision

John Petit:

Simeon Thoresen def. David Mitchell via Submission
Rafael Natal def. Sean Spencer via Decision
Pascal Krauss def. Mike Stumpf via Decision
Clay Guida def. Hatsu Hioki via Decision
T.J. Grant def. Matt Wiman via TKO
Mike Russow def. Shawn Jordan via TKO
Ryan Bader def. Vladimir Matyushenko via TKO

Erik Koch vs. Ricardo Lamas

Lamas has ben beating top shelf guys in the division and certainly has the momentum going into this fight. I see things coming down to distance. Koch is going to want to trade on the outside with Lamas and pick him apart, while Lamas is going to want to make this an ugly fight in the clinch. Both are more than capable of accomplishing this goal. This is the toughest fight on the card to pick, but I’ll go with the underdog and take Lamas.

Winner – Ricardo Lamas def. Erik Koch via Decision

Donald Cerrone vs. Anthony Pettis

This is also a close fight on the card, but when you add up all the bad things that have happened to Pettis over the last year, and throw in the fact Cerrone still has a chip on his shoulder from dropping the Nate Diaz fight, its hard for me not to give the edge to Cerrone. “Cowboy” is a tough out for anyone, but taking care of him after a year off is going to prove to be impossible for Pettis. Also, Cerrone is a REAL fighter, and you will have to remove him from consciousness or come close to ripping off a limb to beat him inside the distance. You don’t ‘break’ a fighter like “Cowboy”. I don’t see Pettis doing that, and I don’t see him winning more than one round.

Winner – Donald Cerrone def. Anthony Pettis via Decision

Quinton Jackson vs. Glover Teixeira

There are too many things that need to go Jackson’s way in this fight for him to win, and it would also entail Teixeira getting baited into a stand-up war. If Glover does that, his chances of winning drop from about 80% to 50%. While 50/50 sounds like good odds sound good to the gamblers, the stakes are so much higher for the talented Brazilian. Teixeira is dancing on the edge of a title-shot with a win on Saturday and this likely Jackson’s last fight in the Octagon (especially since he has said money isn’t the problem). I see Teixeira marking up the legs of Jackson with low kicks early in the fight, and, if they pay dividends early, expect all of his striking to be based around that strike. Teixeira might lose a round – if any the first – but I expect him to win two and get the judges’ favor.

Winner – Glover Teixeira def. Quinton Jackson via Decision

Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson

Two ways to look at the fight – Johnson just has to survive five rounds to win or Dodson has five rounds to land that one shot. If I had to pick one of the two, I am going with the former. If Dodson doesn’t land a power punch, and rest assured the key to winning for him is to land it early, he will not come out of the clash with his hand raised. Simply put, I don’t see that happening. Johnson is going to be tough to put away, and when the going gets tough he has no problem mustering up the energy and power to win later rounds. Johnson is too good at setting up his takedowns with strikes, and it seems like he wins just about every scramble he has ever been in.

Winner – Demetrious Johnson def. John Dodson via Decision

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For that, we share in the culpability of his creation.

We demand of our heroes a certain capacity for violence. We also demand that they look the part. And in an age of regulation and feigned decency, we demand at least a modicum of respect for the half-measures put in place to curb the use of those very chemicals that could maximize violence and looks. So really, it’s at least little bit our fault – as fans, as consumers, as rule makers and enforcers – when they fail to effectively straddle that impossible line and tumble into the abyss of Winstrol and nandrolone.

Sure, none of us actually stuck those needles into Ken Shamrock, or provided Stephan Bonnar with those vials of Drostanolone. But we did put a premium on a very particular kind of success. When they looked like fighters, we gave them big fights; when they won, we rewarded them handsomely.

We made it worthwhile for them to cheat.

The running joke with PRIDE officials was that since not many people in Japan used performance enhancing drugs, why bother testing for them? That climate, and the desire for “freakshow” match-ups, led to the creation of many a hero, Overeem included. But where others stumbled, the Dutchman excelled – unlike the rest, he could fight for real. So much so that all that was required by way of explanation for his sudden transformation were the words “diet of horsemeat”, and aside from some chuckles, all was good. Prior to his Octagon debut, Overeem promised to rip Brock Lesnar apart, and he was true to his word.

But the Nevada State Athletic Commission dinged him when his drug screening came back positive, and now, after the better part of a year on the shelf, he’ll face Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva at UFC 156 on February 2. Beyond that looms a title shot, and the expectation that he and Velasquez throw down in epic fashion.

It’s a fascinating match-up on even just a visceral level, the images conjured painting a picture of two titans shaking the very foundation of the Octagon. And we want it. We want to see the biggest, baddest warriors around going toe-to-toe. Would Overeem be one half of that championship bout equation if he looked like a human who’d accepted his genetic predispositions? Would we want him fighting for the belt if he looked like his older, yet much smaller, brother Valentijn?

No. TUF winner Roy Nelson has yet to fail a drug test, yet few are clamoring to see the portly heavyweight square up against Velasquez. We want Overeem, because he’s huge and monstrous, and we made him into a hero.

Think about that the next time Overeem fails a drug test.

PHOTO CREDIT: UFC

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While the match-up is being billed as a super-fight of sorts, many fans aren’t giving Diaz much of a chance at dethroning St-Pierre, and rightfully so considering the mountain Diaz has to climb when the cage door closes. He’s been out of action for more than a year due to a drug-related suspension, has struggled against superior wrestlers, and is facing one of the top fighters to have ever graced the Octagon.

However, a fight is a fight, and through strategy along with a little luck there’s no reason Diaz can’t actually emerge with his hand raised rather than a middle-finger in the direction of the judging panel. Below are three keys Diaz should consider if hoping to unlock the seemingly invincible armor of GSP in hopes of leaving the Montreal crowd silent at the conclusion of the March 16 event…

Don’t Engage in Trash Talk

To say Diaz dislikes St-Pierre would be an understatement along the lines of labeling Anderson Silva a decent striker. Diaz absolutely loathes GSP, calling him a variety of expletives on a handful of past occasions including some unintentionally entertaining rants while driving. That being said, the time to put his nose to the grindstone instead of get caught up talking trash about St-Pierre is now. “Rush” is notorious for finding motivation in malcontents. There’s no doubt he’ll train tremendously hard for the fight no matter what but why throw gas on a fire you hope to extinguish? In fact, respectful silence might even irk St-Pierre to a certain extent if he’s expecting an all out onslaught of smack.

Train Extensively from His Back

St-Pierre’s takedowns are among the best in MMA if not tops altogether. He’s highly effective and is excellent at controlling his foes from above. Diaz needs to be ready for such and train to find openings from the bottom rather than pretend he won’t end up on his backside for at least half of the bout. Fortunately, teammate Gilbert Melendez recently implied Diaz would be working on just that area so it sounds like the former Strikeforce champion should be ready to throw up submissions, strikes, sweeps, and the kitchen sink if necessary when it comes to attacking from his back.

Elbows, Elbows, Elbows

Diaz has a few reputations including that of a bleeder. He used to cut so easily in the past he actually got surgery to fix some scar tissue issues. While St-Pierre is nowhere near that level thanks to his semi-safe style, he is starting to show some wear and tear including in his recent clash with Carlos Condit. If Diaz can use his elbows, and knees for that matter, he may be able to open up a few cuts either swinging momentum, get a doctor to intervene, or at least leave GSP so bloodied officials have to consider scoring things in Diaz’s favor.

PHOTO CREDIT: UFC

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Nick Diaz vs. Paul Daley
April 9, 2011
Valley View Casino Center
San Diego, California

We get used to the tiresome rhetoric from MMA fighters, and the phrases begin to mean less and less. It’s hard to tell if they are serious if they say things like, ‘We’re going to go toe-toe.’ Since Paul Daley had little to no ground game at the time, we all knew he had no choice but to stand and trade with Nick Diaz. As for Diaz, when he says he is going to throw hands with someone, you can assume he means it 99.99% of the time.

Everyone knew what was going to happen in that fight, and it somehow lived up to everyone’s expectations. As usual, Diaz came forward and was the aggressor, but Daley slipped a punch early and landed a counter that dropped Diaz. The Gracie fighter turtled up and kept calm, regained his composure, and came back to finish Daley with three seconds left in the round. When great champions are tested, they do exactly what Diaz did in San Diego on that night.

Another important tidbit in this fight is that Diaz would land 44 significant strikes in the round with an accuracy of 54%, scoring on 65 out of 103 strikes. The bout made it on to many Fight of the Year lists, but Diaz-Daley is the only one on the list that was a title defense.

Rafael Cavalcante vs. Dan Henderson
March 5, 2011
Nationwide Arena
Columbus, Ohio, USA

Dan Henderson came into Strikeforce with much anticipation, but when he lost to Jake Shields in a middleweight title fight, questions began to rise again about Henderson’s age. The 40-year old wasn’t having it though, and found himself in a light heavyweight title-eliminator with Renato Sobral. The win set Henderson up for his championship clash with Rafael Cavalcante, which silenced many pundits who had concerns for Henderson’s age.

Cavalcante had success in the fight, but it was Henderson who was able to turn it into his type of tilt. Henderson used his grappling to force “Feijao” against the fence, and used his dirty boxing too, positioning to win the second stanza after a very close first round. In the third frame it was all Henderson, as “Hendo” landed the same right hand that has haunted many fighters along his MMA journey. The blow dropped the Brazilian in the first minute of the round and set Henderson up to attack from above. After securing his position, Henderson landed enough shots to convince referee Dan Miragliotta to jump in and save Cavalcante.

Miesha Tate vs. Ronda Rousey
March 3, 2012
Columbus, Ohio
Nationwide Arena

If you were one of those people who thought women’s mixed martial arts was on its deathbed at the end of 2011, then there is no doubt that current UFC champion Ronda Rousey was the defibrillator that kept it from flat-lining. Sometimes the stakes are even higher than a championship, and many argue Rousey won much more than a fancy belt that night. In reality, the fight had historical implications, as it helped seal the future of women’s MMA on a large platform.

Miesha Tate will be known as the only person to last longer than a minute in the cage with Rousey in her Strikeforce run, and to her credit she showed a tremendous amount of will to struggle out of submission attempt after submission attempt. Rousey was pretty much glued to Tate the entire fight, and kept her thinking about the lifespan of her limbs the whole time. With 33 seconds left in the opening frame, and her arm bent at an obscene angle, Tate submitted, giving the Olympic Judo Bronze Medalist her first taste of Strikeforce championship gold.

Photo Credit: Strikeforce

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However, Marquardt passed those two tests with flying colors and  knocked out Tyron Woodley in the second minute of the fourth round.

Tarec Saffiedine would seem to have an uphill battle in this fight dealing with the experience on the side of Marquardt. There is no arguing that Saffiedine is a well rounded fighter, but trying to bridge the gap between well rounded and being a champion will push him to his limits. Saffiedine will have to deal with a Marquardt that will be coming forward and cutting off the cage, and the most difficult thing for him to do will be to grapple with Marquardt on his terms. Saffiedine shouldn’t plan on sweeping Marquardt from the bottom if he gets taken down, and in order for Saffiedine to utilize his grappling he will need to initiate the takedown himself or keep Marquardt’s back on the fence.

The odds have been hovering around -300 in favor of Marquardt and deservedly so. I’m hesitant to use the word swarm, since I don’t think he will come out throwing hands like a nineteen year old Vitor Belfort, but pressure should come early and often. Basically, “Nate the Great” needs to handle a guy like Saffiedine with ease if he wants to catapult himself into UFC title-contention, and if he wants to leapfrog anyone in line he is going to need to finish Saffiedine early in the tilt. Saffiedine is savvy enough to last a round, but I think he will run out of answers for Marquardt’s pressure sometime late in the second or early in the third.

PHOTO CREDIT: Strikeforce

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The power of Dos Santos is something people are only beginning to understand. If you will indulge me, I was cageside for Dos Santos’ UFC debut against Fabricio Werdum at UFC 90. I was astonished at the power and the noise it made when the upper cut landed that folded Werdum in just over 90 seconds into the fight. The speed was something I would come to appreciate later when i saw the replay, but it sounded like a car door had slammed shut from my seat. In person, I have only seen one other punch land like that, and that was when Fedor Emelianenko knocked out Brett Rogers.

Velasquez’s name was the first name  out of almost everyone’s mouth when you asked them if there was any up-and-comers we should keep an eye on in California. So far he has lived up to the accolades in spades. Velasquez has a very quick first step that he can cover a lot of ground with, and while its not as pure looking as a regular wrestling take down, he can use his strength to quickly adjust and pull most of his opponents to the floor. Some of his past opponents, like Antonio Silva, thought ‘I am going to end up on the ground anyway so I should sharpen my jiu jitsu.’ This is a bad idea for anyone in the division as Cain has one of the most controlling top games in the sport. The best part about it, especially in the Silva fight, it doesn’t even look like he is doing much. He almost made it look effortless in the closing seconds of the fight.

Dos Santos isn’t going to make that mistake in this fight, while the Nogueira brown belt is far from a stranger to submission fighting, he will do all he can to keep this fight standing. Dos Santos boasts a take down defense percentage of 88% in UFC run so far, and while getting him down is one thing, keeping him there will be another story. While some fighters use their take-downs to set up their punches, like Velasquez for instance, dos Santos uses his take down defense to set up strikes.

When watching clips of Dos Santos training and fighting, it is easy to see the amount of time he spends on footwork and foot placement when he throws his punches. His technique is one of the reasons they contain so much force. Dos Santos’ ability to not only defend the take down, but force scrambles while he is doing it will be the key when Cain commits to take downs. I expect Cain to survive longer than 64 seconds, he definitely learned a bunch in the only minute they fought, but fans should expect dos Santos to be champion on Sunday morning.

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