In advance of a week that will be filled with serious MMA news concerning UFC 128 in the New York City area, here is a little MMA humor to get started, courtesy of former Welterweight Champion, Matt Serra. In a recent discussion with Fighters.com Radio, Serra was asked about his current weight.  In response, he veered off into comparing his waistline with his UFC boss Dana White’s figure and fellow fighters, Georges St. Pierre and Martin Kampmann‘s abdominal structure.  He also commented on how he would modify the very popular and successful MMA weight loss program, “The Dolce Diet.”

Serra also hints about his time-table for his next fight.

Fun stuff with Mr. Serra.  Click through to listen. (Beware of NC 17 language!)

Click through to listen.

Pete Sell is known for delivering and taking big blows.  His knockout of Phil Baroni and war with Scott Smith are UFC classics. After going 1-4 in his last five UFC fights and being released in the spring of 2009, the man called “Drago” is plotting his return.  His go-for-broke style was fan pleasing yet not the best strategy for his long term career.  After his loss to Matt Brown at UFC 96, Sell took a much needed breather and a very hard look at his career.

“What are you going to do to me that hasn’t been done to me already.  I have been knocked out on national television.  I know what it is all about.  I feel like I am in a good head right now.”

The wars may have taken their toll on Sell but also opened his eyes to what he needed to do.

“I took the time to reflect on things and reinvent myself.”

What this reinvention will look like is still to be determined.  Sell knows his MMA DNA is as a brawler, but not many know he is a black belt in Jiu Jitsu, which may play a larger role in his future style as he works to surmount his desire to slug.

“Let me tell you something, this wasn’t an easy thing for me to overcome, but over practice and time I have gotten a lot better with that. I know when you go at somebody you can’t just get it back right there (if hurt), you got to be ‘I am going to get you’ it may not be right now but I will get you … you got to keep emotions out of it.”

Sell’s manager is on the job, seeking out his first comeback fight with a national organization and they expect some news very soon.  “Drago” is back in the gym twice a day, at Ray Longo’s for striking and Serra Jiu Jitsu for his ground game.  Both gyms are in good spirits with the rise of Sell’s training partner, Chris Weidman, as he prepares for his first UFC fight against Alessio Sakara.

“The guy (Weidman), his Jiu Jitsu got phenomenal, his wrestling is retarded … his boxing is awesome, if I was going to pick his weakness – I don’t really know.  The kid has a bright future ahead of him.”

Sell’s long layoff has been partially due to a serious groin tear he suffered last summer.  Now fully healthy, “Drago” feels the big blows he took in the UFC have not slowed him down and his chin is as strong as ever looking forward to his second act as a mixed martial artist.

“When I am in there sparring, I am getting hit, hit hard, and coming back, I feel so good.  I am good to go man. I am playing a smarter game now, playing it safer and not gonna take a couple to give a couple.”

Look for the new and improved Pete “Drago” Sell in a big time MMA cage very soon.

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What are your favorite Pete Sell memories from his UFC career.  His fights were never dull!

Who needs a Matt Serra fix?  Always entertaining in front of the mic, Serra joined Fighters.com recently to talk about a range of issues from why he kept his fight against Chris Lytle at UFC 119 standing, to his UFC future and hopes to scrap at Madison Square Garden, to if his good buddy, Pete “Drago” Sell will be making a comeback … he also throws in a movie review and recomendation.  Serra is an avid movie buff.   This is a great MMA value if you have seven minutes for Serra!

Click through to listen to the audio interview with Matt Serra.

Champion GSP will look to make his fifth successful title defense against foe Koscheck. The two had met previously at UFC 74, where the American Kickboxing Academy product was riding a 5-fight win streak inside the cage coming into the bout, meanwhile, “Rush” was coming off of a disappointing and shocking knockout loss to the unheralded Matt Serra at UFC 69.

While competitive in spots, St. Pierre was able to dominate the wrestling department against the former NCAA champion, en route to a unanimous decision victory.

UFC officials made the fight-card official yesterday, with GSP vs Koscheck serving as the headliner. While the card is filling up quickly, no co-main event has been announced as of yet.

The rematch is 3 years in the making, and both competitors have improved leaps and bounds. While GSP has gone undefeated since then, eventually reclaiming his welterweight title against Matt Serra in a rematch at UFC 83 in his native Montreal Josh has faltered against some of the top competition in his division. With losses to Brazilians Thiago Alves and Paulo Thiago inside of a three-fight stretch, Josh was able to bounce back with three-straight wins over Frank Trigg, Anthony Johnson, and most recently UFC castoff Paul Daley (UFC 113), have enabled the brash and cocky fighter his shot at the title.

No other bouts have become official as of yet, however the following bouts are rumored for the fight card as well.

Thiago Alves vs. John Howard
Mark Bocek vs. Dustin Hazelett
Sean McCorkle vs. Stefan Struve

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the fight card so far? With the bout officially official, who do you think takes the rematch? Sound off in the comment section below.

Both Matt Serra and Mirko Cro Cop received indefinite suspensions following their losing efforts to Chris Lytle and Frank Mir respectively. Both men are indefinitely suspended until they get a head CT scan by a doctor and are medically cleared to fight again, at which point their suspension is reduced to a minimum of 180 days. Co-main event fighter Antonio Rogerio Nogueira was suspended for thirty days, with no contact for thirty days. The “thirty-thirty” suspension also applies to Joey Beltran and Steve Lopez. Evan Dunham was suspended for 45 days with 45 days no contact. Sean Sherk and Sean McCorkle were also suspended thirty days, with 21 days no contact for both fighters. Matt Mitrione was suspended for thirty days with twelve days no contact. Mark Hunt was suspended indefinitely, pending the results of an X-Ray on his left elbow, with thirty days no contact.

It’s unfortunate that both Mirko Cro Cop and Matt Serra are looking at basically a half-year off even if they’re medically cleared. Both are getting older and, based on their UFC 119 performances, their abilities may be on the decline as well. In Serra’s case, realistically he simply made the mistake of standing with a former boxer in order to give the fan’s a good fight. I think Serra shouldn’t be criticized, though, because he did give us a good fight, and I personally felt both he and Lytle were robbed of “Fight of the Night” honors. But ultimately, Serra’s desire to make up for their lackluster first fight caused him to take a ton of damage. Hopefully he takes these six months off to heal up, attend to any nagging injuries, and come back with a renewed sense of purpose and a back-to-basics approach.

Mirko Cro Cop’s indefinite suspension is, at least in my honest opinion, yet another nail in the man’s coffin. Robert Rousseau recently penned on article detailing why he thinks Mirko Cro Cop should retire, and I have to tell you, fans and friends…I agree with him wholeheartedly. If Mirko Cro Cop hasn’t lost his heart, he’s certainly lost his desire and tenacity. Some Cro Cop fans are saying that Mirko may have one last good run in him as a divisional gatekeeper, but honestly, is that something we need to see? After failing so hard in his attempts at UFC glory, shouldn’t we be spared the pain of seeing him flop around as a gatekeeper only to keep getting blasted whenever he’s put against a top-division athlete? I predicted Filipović would lose from the beginning, and even I don’t want to see him reduced to such a state.

And what do you think, fans and friends? Where will we see these fighters, especially Serra and Cro Cop, once their injuries heal up and their medical suspensions are lifted?

There were two Co-Fight of the Night performances on the card. Matt Mitrione and Joey Beltran made the “Prelims LIVE” special on Spike TV well worth watching. Both men displayed iron chins, heavy hands, and a willingness to engage that so many fighters seem to be lacking these days. While neither man is anywhere near top-division status, both men are still talented individuals and are now $70,000 richer for their efforts at giving the fans a fun fight.

The other Fight of the Night award was given to both Sean Sherk and Evan Dunham for their three-round war of attrition. Despite a sizable layoff, Sean Sherk looked to be back to his former glory in the first round of their three-round tilt, scoring several impressive takedowns and nailing good Ground and Pound, the highlight of which was an elbow that produced a sizable gash on Dunham’s head. Dunham would go on to rebound and in my fans’ eyes win rounds 2 and 3, although the judges would ultimately give the decision to Sherk. Even though the ending was controversial, the fight itself was very entertaining and both men deserve their $70,000 bonuses.

Surprisingly enough, no “KO of the Night” bonus was awarded. Usually this only happens when no KO is recorded, but UFC 119 saw the dramatic KO’ing of feared Croatian striker and PRIDE FC legend Mirko Cro Cop at the hands (more specifically, the knees) of former UFC Heavyweight and Interim Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir. It’s true that the finale came near the end of a rather boring three-round stall-fest, where both men nailed only small offensive flurries, but I think Mir should have gotten his $70,000. Even if the fight itself was boring, let’s not kid ourselves: the UFC just found another great segment to add to Frank Mir’s highlight reel, and you can bet that they’ll be milking it for every cent it’s worth in Mir’s next fight. Due to that I really think Mir should have been awarded “KO of the Night”.

I also disagree with the Matt Serra/Chris Lytle fight not being awarded “Fight of the Night” status. I felt that the fight was an easy pick for such an award. Neither man ever left his feet, but neither man ever wavered either. Both men were constantly moving forward, constantly landing shots, it was like their first rather-boring fight had never happened. What we saw was two incredibly tough veterans slugging it out, leaving it all on the line, and having absolutely nothing to apologize for when the final bell rang. I won’t dispute that Mitrione/Beltran and Dunham/Sherk were both very fun and entertaining fights, but I honestly think Serra/Lytle beat them both out by a not-inconsiderable margin.

I’m very glad that this event was such a success, and I’m equally as glad that the UFC continues to up the ante and award bigger and bigger “Of the Night” bonuses. UFC 119 was an entertaining event, period. It may not have lived up to everyone’s expectations, it may have featured some controversial decisions, some fights may have been a bit on the boring side, and the main event may have seen the man mostly vilified by the masses KO the man who holds semi-revered status with most MMA fans. But none of that makes it an event that was boring overall, or horrible. It wasn’t “Event of the Year” material, but in a world where everyone’s a critic and nothing is as good as it could have been, UFC 119 got my seal of approval.

But what about you, fans and friends? What did you think of UFC 119, and what do you think about these “Of the Night” bonuses?

Next for Mark Hunt: Retirement. No one comes back from six straight stoppage losses. Hunt did give us an exciting fight, but he got submitted so quickly that I honestly don’t see him ever being taken seriously again. There will always be a home for him in places like lower-level promotions and (most likely) the entirety of Japan, but I think he should just save himself the trouble and retire already.

Next for Sean Sherk/Evan Dunham: Each other, which is why I’m grouping them together. Trust me: this story will see a second chapter. It may happen immediately, it may not, but Sherk/Dunham 2 must take place before Sherk is ever taken seriously again. Despite sporting a hideous gash on his head for most of the fight, Dunham remained dynamic, engaged frequently, and should have taken the Split Decision victory. Even Dana White has said that he hated this decision, so a rematch is a no-brainer.

Next for Ryan Bader: Losing to Jon Jones, plain and simple. Bader proved at UFC 119 that his “dynamic mode” has an “off” switch. When he doesn’t want to engage he can be downright boring. Bader’s tepid performance was certainly good enough to give him the win, I’m not disputing that. But unless he brings his best from the first bell to the last, the Ryan Bader we saw at UFC 119 will be easy pickings for Jonny Bones, who doesn’t seem to know how to fight in any style other than “awesome”.

Next for Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: A decent run at Light Heavyweight that never truly lives up to the potential it could have had when Nogueira knocked out Luis Arthur Cane. “Little Nog” will likely stick around and be successful just like his bigger brother, but like Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, his success will only go so far. And unlike “Big Nog”, I don’t see Rogerio ever becoming a UFC champion. It’s becoming increasingly apparent that the Nogueira brothers are a part of the “old guard” that today’s current stars are quickly passing by.

Next for Frank Mir: A rematch with Shane Carwin, perhaps? Or maybe someone like Roy Nelson. Mir took an important step towards re-establishing himself as an elite-level Heavyweight, but he’s not there yet. I’d be a hypocrite if I said that Mir is at the top of the rankings after beating Cro Cop, because I’ve adamantly stated and defended my stance that Mirko Cro Cop is not a top-division UFC fighter. When you look at it from that point of view, and when you consider how timid Mir was until he scored the surprise KO, Mir still has quite a road ahead of him before he’s up there and challenging for the belt again. But beating Cro Cop did prove that it’s still a possibility.

Next for Mirko Cro Cop: I bet right about now a lot of people are expecting me to go on a big “TOLD YOU SO” rant, especially when you consider how I sat back and let the critics get in their shots when Randy Couture demolished James Toney. But you know what? I honestly felt sad when I saw Cro Cop go limp. Cro Cop was a good fighter. No, that’s wrong. He was an amazing fighter. His run in PRIDE rivals all the other famous runs that PRIDE fans loved so much: Wanderlei Silva’s, Fedor Emelianenko’s, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s, the list goes on. But he’s a shadow of a shadow of his former self, and this fight proved it. So, yeah, I’m honestly sad that Mir proved once and for all that Cro Cop will never be relevant in the UFC, even after the Cro Cop defenders lambasted me for saying as such. I honestly don’t know where Mirko goes from where, but I can say with certainty that it won’t be anywhere good.

So there’s my take, fans and friends. What do you think the future holds for the big winners and losers of UFC 119?

Sean McCorkle defeated Mark Hunt via Submission (Kimura) at 1:03 of Round 1. TJ Grant defeated Julio Paulino via Unanimous Decision. Waylon Lowe defeated Steve Lopez via Split Decision. Thiago Tavares defeated Pat Audinwood via Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 3:47 of Round 1. Matt Mitrione defeated Joey Beltran via Unanimous Decision. C.B. Dollaway defeated Joe Doerksen via Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 2:47 of Round 1. Melvin Guillard defeated Jeremy Stephens via Unanimous Decision. Sean Sherk defeated Evan Dunham via Split Decision. Chris Lytle defeated Matt Serra via Unanimous Decision. Ryan Bader defeated Antonio Rogerio Nogueira via Unanimous Decision. Frank Mir defeated Mirko Filipovic via KO (Knee and Punches) at 4:02 of the Round 3.

I’m gutted that Mark Hunt lost and lost so quickly, I honestly don’t think he has any sort of future in MMA. I still respect the man a lot, but it really doesn’t get much worse than a six-fight losing streak. I really enjoyed the Mitrione/Beltran fight, as both men displayed near-infallible chin and spared no time swinging for the fences. CB Dalloway’s fight was also a blast, and I was practically falling out of my seat when he and his opponent began rolling and rolling.

Did the main card let me down? I’ll be honest, it kinda did. Sherk vs. Stephens started off wildly with Stephens immediately catching Guillard, but then it slowed down considerably. It just felt like neither man was all that wiling to engage. Things got a little better in the Sherk/Dunham fight, though, but the judging in that fight was atrocious. I’m a huge Sean Sherk fan, I really wanted him to win this fight, but I honestly think that Dunham was robbed. It’s going to be very interesting to see where both men go from here.

I was positively ecstatic that Chris Lytle defeated Matt Serra in the easy pick for Fight of the Night. I’ve been a fan of Lytle for so long that to see him take another step towards top-contender status made my night. His striking looked awesome in this fight, and his chin is as near-indestructible as ever. It’s highly unlikely that we’ll ever see some UFC Welterweight gold around his waist, but everyone, including me, enjoys an against-all-odds story. Right now, Chris Lytle has cemented himself as a top-division athlete. And that’s more than good enough for me.

Unlike Lytle, Ryan Bader entered top-division status with a whimper. I’m glad he won, but it was honestly a very boring fight. There’s really not much to say about it because not much happened. I think Bader does deserve some big names to match up against now that he’s beaten a Nogueira brother, who are legends in this sport, but I’m disappointed that we didn’t see the dynamic striker that KO’d Keith Jardine.

I’ve got conflicting feelings regarding the main event. Make no mistake, I’m overjoyed that Mir won and KO’d Cro Cop. He proved me right: Cro Cop will never be big in the UFC, he’ll never be relevant again in today’s Mixed Martial Arts. But Mir simply seemed afraid to go for broke against Cro Cop. Cop seemed just as afraid, but as a fan of Mir, I was disappointed in his overall performance. Even though seeing him turn Cro Cop’s lights out brought me immense joy.

Overall, UFC 119 was an interesting event. It wasn’t “Best of the Year” status, but I’ve already seen people call the event “horrible” and I have to tell you, fans and friends…I disagree with them wholeheartedly. But what about you? What did you think of UFC 119?

Courtesy of MMAWeekly, the weigh-ins went down as follows: Frank Mir (252) vs. Mirko Filipovic (227). Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (205) vs. Ryan Bader (205). Chris Lytle (171) vs. Matt Serra (170). Evan Dunham (156) vs. Sean Sherk (155). Melvin Guillard (155) vs. Jeremy Stephens (155). C.B. Dollaway (186) vs. Joe Doerksen (186). Matt Mitrione (253) vs. Joey Beltran (239). Thiago Tavares (155) vs. Pat Audinwood (156). Steve Lopez (156) vs. Waylon Lowe (154). T.J. Grant (170) vs. Julio Paulino (170). Mark Hunt (265) vs. Sean McCorkle (263).

I think it’s funny how Frank Mir still talks about potentially dropping down to Light Heavyweight when he’s weighed in at 265 for his last few fights and only cut thirteen pounds for this fight. I’m saying this half-critically and half as a Mir fan. Mir just wouldn’t work at Light Heavyweight, he’d be downright emaciated. Mirko Cro Cop as a 205’er I can see. In fact, that may be his only option left once Mir gets through with him. Mir’s sizable weight advantage should give him a lot more power in his takedowns, which will put Cro Cop in a heap of trouble.

I think it’s interesting that Lytle took advantage of the one-pound-over limit when he’s always been a smaller Welterweight. I’m also surprised that Evan Dunham used the same allowance while his opponent Sean Sherk didn’t need it, because Sherk has always been a muscular and massive Lightweight. I don’t think that one pound will help either man: Sherk has always been an incredibly dominant wrestler while “Lights Out” is facing one of the toughest tests in his career when he rematches Serra.

Something that absolutely did not take me by surprise was the fact that Mark Hunt came in at 265. Hunt is a Super Heavyweight no matter what anyone says and I respect him a whole lot for making what I know must have been a not-inconsiderate weight cut. It remains to be seen how much of that 265 is muscle, and how the cut affected Hunt’s cardio, but I’m honestly pulling for him.

In other weigh-in news, I think Matt Mitrione will have a pretty good fight with Joey Beltran, but I actually see the weight disparity acting in Beltran’s favor. If Beltran can keep it active and avoid the heavy hands of “Meathead”, he may actually tire Mitrione out and leave him open for some big shots.

And now that all is said and done, the anticipation continues to build. With every fight official and no fighters missing weight, I can’t wait to see what UFC 119 has in store for us. It should be a very fun night of fights.

And what about you, fans and friends? This is your last shot to get your opinions in on UFC 119 before the Octagon door closes and we go live on both Spike TV and Pay-Per-View. What did you think of the weigh-ins, and who do you see emerging as the big winners and losers of UFC 119?

5. Does Mark Hunt Deserve to be in the UFC?

It seems as if many have taken on a tone of negativity when it comes to Mark Hunt’s impending undercard debut in the UFC. People are quick to point out that he would normally not be given a second glance by UFC President Dana White due to the fact that Hunt has lost so many fights recently. But whether we like it or not, Hunt is in the UFC. And whether his detractors admit it or not, Hunt has an incredible amount of heart and always tries to put on a great performance. If Mark Hunt proves that he’s deserving of his place in the top promotion in the world, we may have a certifiable mid-level attraction on our hands.

4. Will Chris Lytle Ever Hold a Championship?

Chris Lytle hasn’t been within shouting distance of a title shot in quite some time (cynics would say “never”, but I find that a bit too harsh). Now that he’s on a three fight win streak, with two great submissions back-to-back, Lytle is ready to put himself into prime title contention if he can get past the super-tough Matt Serra. I know that many find it very unlikely that Lytle will ever hold a championship, but 2010 proved that even the impossible is possible. If Lytle beats Serra, we may have a new challenger for GSP.

3. What’s Left for Sean Sherk?

Sherk hasn’t competed in over a year, and was last seen going 1-2 in his last three fights. As Sherk creeps ever closer to the dreaded four-zero, it remains to be seen if his aging body can combat the sizable amount of ring rust he’ll have going into his fight with Evan Dunham. If Sherk can beat Dunham, he’ll make a solid addition to a Lightweight division that has been blown wide open now that Frank Edgar is unquestionably the best Lightweight in the world. If he loses, we may be seeing the beginning of the end for one of the hardest-working fighters in MMA.

2. Do the Nogueira Brothers Still Have It?

One paragraph would never do justice to the amount of heart, will, and fighting spirit that the Nogueira brothers have. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira are two are the best Brazilian Jui Jitsu-based MMA fighters that have ever competed…but unfortunately, they’ve begun to show their age. “Big Nog” was last seen getting  his once-unbreakable chin shattered by Cain Velasquez, “Little Nog” was last seen squeaking out a victory against Jason Brilz. If Rogerio can rebound with a dramatic win over “Darth Bader”, he’ll put himself into prime title contention. If not, it seems as if the Nogueira brothers may be nearing the end of their shelf-life.

And my number one spot quite obviously goes to…

1. Does Mirko Cro Cop Still Have It?

I’ve debated it. You’ve debated it. Everyone has debated it. It’s by far the most important question that UFC 119 will answer. Mirko Cro Cop is staring down a former UFC Heavyweight and Interim Heavyweight Champion when he faces Frank Mir tomorrow. Mir is a submission specialist that famously broke Tim Sylvia’s arm, became the first man to ever stop Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and put a temporary halt to the meteoric rise of current UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar by submitting him via kneebar. Mir is a top-division athlete and by far the toughest opponent Cro Cop has ever faced in the UFC. Does the famous Croatian striker have one last run in him? I certainly don’t believe he does, but that’s the thing: never say never. I can’t say that I won’t be biting my nails in anticipation, hoping that Mir proves me right. And no matter who you support, we’ll soon find out just which one of these fighters still has it in him to remain relevant in the increasingly-competitive UFC Heavyweight Division.

So there’s my list, fans and friends. What about you? What are some important questions that you think will be answered at UFC 119?

Courtesy of the official UFC.com website, the press release is as follows: “Legendary Croatian striker Mirko Cro Cop has been examined by an ophthalmologist in Indianapolis, site of Saturday’s UFC 119 event at Conseco Fieldhouse, and has been medically cleared to compete in the main event this weekend against former two-time heavyweight champion Frank Mir. Cro Cop suffered a poke in the eye in the last round of his final sparring session for the bout last week, but after a few days of rest, he is in tip top shape for this pivotal battle of heavyweight contenders.”

I’m very glad that Mirko got the go-ahead, since I think Mir/Cro Cop is a solid main-event that I’m quite honestly looking forward to. And if I’m being perfectly honest, I’m looking forward to this entire card. So here are my predictions for some of the major fights of UFC 119 “Mir vs. Cro Cop”.

Sean Sherk vs. Evan Dunham

Say hello to the return of the wrestler. Sherk will come in with a not-insignificant amount of ring rust, but due to that he’ll rely almost solely on his wrestling and only use his striking to set up takedowns. And Sherk’s wrestling has always been incredibly dominant. It’ll be another case of “beautiful ugliness” when Sherk continues to take Dunham down, slamming him into the canvas with authority on more than one occasion, and pounding his opponent out. Sherk takes a dominating three-round decision and immediately puts himself back “into the mix”.

Matt Serra vs. Chris Lytle

My prediction is that I’m going to both love and hate this match. I’m a fan of both men, and I really, really don’t want to see either man lose, especially when a big win for Lytle puts him “into the mix” again, while Serra stays “in the mix” if he beats “Lights Out”. It’s going to be a fantastic war, and I think we’ll see a sizable chunk of this fight go to the ground. And it’ll be just as exciting as when both men are standing up and swinging for the fences. I’ve just got to go with Lytle, but only because I want him to win more. Lytle takes a super-close, grueling three round decision.

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Ryan Bader

Look for “Darth Bader” to cement his status as a top 205’er with a big win over “Little Nog”. I hate to pick against a Nogueira brother, but Little Nog’s fight with Jason Brilz left a sour taste in my mouth. Nogueira still has plenty of years left in him, but he’ll have a very hard time against Bader, who has solid wrestling and super-sneaky one-hit KO power. He’ll be only the second man in history to ever do it, but I’m predicting that Ryan Bader is going to KO Rogerio Nogueira. But it won’t be easy, which is why I’m also predicting that it’ll happen late in Round 2 or early in Round 3.

Frank Mir vs. Mirko Cro Cop

Nothing has changed from my first opinion piece about this fight. I firmly believe that Mirko Cro Cop is not relevant in today’s Heavyweight division and that nothing short of a full-on rebirth a la Randy Couture will make him relevant again. I’ll eat my crud yet again if Mirko does the seemingly-impossible, but time and time again I see people boiling this fight down to two simple things: people hate on Mir for his attitude while lauding Cro Cop for his accomplishments in PRIDE. The reality is this: Frank Mir can be quite an unlikeable person, but he’s also got an incredible amount of skill. And Mirko Cro Cop may have been one of the best PRIDE FC fighters ever, but he hasn’t beaten any top-ranked opponents since PRIDE and has in fact looked horrible in several of his recent losses to top-ranked talents. Mir will likely be called all manner of derogatory terms for it, but I see him wasting no time in getting a takedown and scoring a submission. Look for Frank Mir to win by submission early in Round 1, Round 2 at the latest.

And those are my picks, fans and friends. How do you see UFC 119 going down?

In this video, go behind the scenes with Serra at his new state of the art MMA facility on Long Isalnd and listen to his concerns about fighting the red-hot Lytle in his hometown of Indianapolis.  Click through to watch the video.

What do you think of Serra’s chances to beat Chris Lytle at UFC 119?  Will he win or lose?

twitter: @john_moody

In an interview with ESPN, here’s what “The Terror” had to say regarding his opponent and his future: “When I’m an old dude in a rocking chair, I’ll have these great war stories… Last time it was two guys fighting not to lose, and this time it’s two guys looking to take each other out… He’s going to want to make a statement. You know, we’re both durable veterans that are well-rounded… We’re both not easy to get out of there. I know he’s thinking the same thing as me, if he’s able to take me out, that’ll say something. And I’ll tell you right now, there’s nothing I want more, either… To me, it’s all about the journey. The glass is always half full for me. Life is short and so am I.”

It’s hard not to like Matt Serra. He’s brash, a bit arrogant, at times he looks and talks like a walking stereotype. But he’s also an incredibly talented fighter and has got to have one of the biggest hearts in this business. He’s done the impossible already, so there’s really nothing left to prove. Serra could rest on the laurels of the GSP victory until he was an old man, yet he continues to throw himself into the mix with some of the best Welterweights the UFC has to offer. And he doesn’t do it for the money or the fame. He does it simply because he can. Matt Serra is all balls.

Which is why I’m really looking forward to his fight with Chris “Lights Out” Lytle. I’ve talked in the past about fighters being “dark horse favorites” of mine. That term originated with Chris Lytle. Time after time I enjoy seeing him fight, and he’s stolen the show several times in my eyes. His striking has always made for exciting fights, and now his recent string of crazy submissions makes him even more exciting. He may never hold a UFC championship, but I don’t see him ever again getting the axe from the UFC. He simply produces too many fun fights.

I wouldn’t call this one of my most anticipated fights of the year, but I would call it (you guessed it) a “dark horse favorite”. Even though all eyes seem to be focused on Frank Mir vs. Mirko Filipovic and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Ryan Bader, I think this fight could steal the show and take two out of the three “Of the Night” awards, depending on how the fight is finished. But no matter how it ends, if this fight lives up to its potential it should be a lock for “Fight of the Night”. And I can’t wait to see how it all goes down.

And what about you, fans and friends? Matt Serra. Chris Lytle. Who wins it and how?

Longo is very candid in judging that St. Pierre has never been the same fighter since Serra pounded him out, and suggests there is a “panic” in his posture and with his corner team whenever he is in a stand-up situation.  Never one to parse words, Longo goes further using the word “awful” when explaining St. Pierre’s current fighting style.  Read on.

Moody: Look, you guys were basically an after-thought.  Nobody, nobody … gave Matt a chance in the first GSP fight.  What is that like when the world is writing off your fighter?  Where did you see an opening with GSP?

Longo: The game plan going into GSP-1 was really to take away what GSP does good.  He has a couple of tricky kicks. We just didn’t want Matt to get drawn into that.  I knew he was a guy who did not want to get hit or get in exchanges.  My belief was that GSP thought that his striking would be superior so he was willing to stand, which was proven in the second fight.

Moody: Did you honestly think Matt could execute a right hand like that against GSP?

Longo: I always knew he could execute a right hand.  I have seen him knock guys down in sparring. I have seen him break guys jaws in sparring.  It (power) was always there.  But he is a Jiu Jitsu guy and that is what he likes to do.  You know, when he went into that GSP fight, he had won the show – he was already like ‘I’m done, this is all gravy.’  He was airing that shit out one way or another.  He was relaxed.  Go back and look at the tape. Look at him in the corner.  He didn’t care, then he started believing, I can do this.

Moody: You have an interesting take and opinion that GSP has never been the same fighter since Matt knocked him out.  Explain.

Longo: Matt really changed his (St. Pierre’s) whole career.  Because he made him fight way more conservative and it’s not good for the fans.  It is actually awful.   You ever watch … they panic in the corner any time he gets into an exchange.  They are panicking. They want to get him back to take him (opponent) down and don’t even pass the guard. Don’t do anything just stay there.

Moody: You also were cornering Luke Cummo that night in his win over Josh Haynes. Why is that important per the outcome of Serra/GSP 1?

Longo: Luke Cummo had fought Josh Haynes and hit him with an overhand right that knocked him out and he (Haynes) grabbed the referee’s leg.  I was screaming for Luke to back out.  After he dropped him, I said get out of there; the guy is on queer street.  The guy grabs the referee’s leg.  I said to Matt, if you get St. Pierre hurt, chase him but don’t over run him so he can grab you.  We went over it in the dressing room based on Cummo’s fight.  You don’t want to let it go (the dominant position) but didn’t want him (GSP) to grab you where is he going to use his strength and hold and recover.

Moody: And now.  Looking back.  Must be a great memory.

Longo: You think of the journey I had with this guy, how is that possible.  You know, he gets knocked out in his first fight (v. Shonie Carter) then he knocks out GSP to win the title.

(Stay tuned to Fighters.com for part three of our exclusive interview with Ray Longo, coming next week, as Longo talks about Serra v. Lytle at UFC 119.  How can Serra stop the surging Lytle in his hometown.)

–

Do you think Serra’s knockout of GSP has changed the way GSP fights?  Is GSP afraid to stand and box now?  Sound off!!

Twitter – @john_moody

In part one of this three part interview, Longo remembers the early days, early losses, and touches on the Lytle fight ahead.  In part two, (coming soon) he relives the glorious win over GSP and why Serra changed St. Pierre’s fighting style forever.  In part three we zero in on Chris Lytle and how Team Serra-Longo plans to beat the Indiana native at UFC 119.

Moody: Can you sum up Serra’s career to date?  What a ride this must have been from being cut by the UFC to the title run?

Longo: It is really a storybook tale.  Here is a guy in his first UFC fight gets knocked out.  So now, he has to overcome that adversity.  That loss was against Shonie Carter.  At that time, he was doing mainly Jiu Jitsu, at that point in time it (MMA) was mostly ground based.  So, he has to overcome that defeat, and fight a striker the next time in Yves Edwards, which he wins.  He wins a couple more fights, and then he loses to Karo Parisyan.  The UFC drops him.  So, he is down again, then he does the comeback show and he has another chance.  We got together and he said ‘listen man, this is the last chance I am going to get, let’s do this … and the rest is history.’

He ends up winning the show and ends up knocking out the guy who is considered the best pound for pound MMA fighter in the world, ever!  No one else has done that.  He goes on to fight some pretty decent names and he starts knocking people out … technically.  It is a really good story for people to never quit, never get down on your self.  I know guys, who if they were in the same predicament, would never have come back from that.

Moody: So, before that “last shot” going on the Ultimate Fighter show, what did you change to win it all?  Was his standup improving at that point?

Longo: Sometimes it takes a situation to mentally focus on what the hell is going on.  He didn’t have a bad fight with Karo Parisyan (which got him cut).  He was injured going in.  He dropped him. He was progressing with his striking and happy with that.  Another ref could have stopped that fight (in Matt’s favor) if you go back and look at it.

He hits Karo with a beautiful counter right.  It was just at that point in time for whatever reason Matt got dropped.  But we knew he was on the right track, but needed more time to prove it.

Moody: To gain his George St. Pierre title shot he beat Chris Lytle.  What kind of fighter did Lytle find in the first fight?

Longo: He is a really intelligent fighter.  What Lytle found out in the finale fight, is this guy is not easy to hit. You took a pro boxer (Lytle), in with a guy with no boxing experience with no pro fights.  Lytle basically could not hit him.  Matt is smarter than people think and harder to hit than people think and now he believes in his power.  He knocked out GSP, He knocked out Trigg flat, he knocked Hughes almost into oblivion and he knocked Parysian down.  You got to be a jerk not think this guy is hitting hard.

Moody: How has this discovery of his hands affected his use of Jiu Jitsu?  Does all Matt’s success with the right hand disproportionately have him looking for the right hand to the point of excluding his Jiu Jitsu?

Longo: I think at this point. He is in such a good place in his life and he is grounded that he doesn’t really care.  He loves fighting.  He found a renewed interest. I am not sure he cares which way it goes.  He is going to go in there and do the best he can do at the time … that is the best mindset.  Sometimes it takes this evolution; it is 10-12 years he has been fighting to come to this point.  He is going in with a clean head.  That is why he is dangerous, they look at it as if they beat him, not a big deal but if they lose … they have the pressure, he has no pressure.

—-

(In part two, Longo remembers Serra’s monumental win over George St. Pierre and why Matt’s brutal KO of GSP changed forever how the Canadian star now fights in the cage.  Stay tuned to fighters.com for part two soon)

What do you think of Matt Serra’s career?  As a constant underdog, he has carved a lasting legacy in the UFC whether you like him or not?  Sound off!

twitter - @john_moody

5. Matt Serra vs. Chris Lytle

I know it may be considered a “dark horse candidate”, but this fight interests me for several reasons. The winner will most likely be put back “into the mix” with a strong victory. Both men are veteran fighters that have almost always given us some very entertaining fights. It’s a rematch, but the best kind of rematch: both men are at very different points in their careers compared to when they first fought. And most importantly, this is a fight between a fighter with a great ground game and very under-rated striking going against a fighter with great striking and a very under-rated ground game.

4. Jake Shields vs. Martin Kampmann

I admit that you could put Jake Shields inside the Octagon against thin air and he’d still probably make this list, but I think Martin Kampmann is a great opponent for Jake Shields’ first fight inside the UFC. Kampmann was in serious contention for a title shot not too long ago, and Shields has never looked better. Shields is also coming off of the biggest win of his career, and will most likely receive a hero’s welcome based on how Strikeforce mistreated and mishandled Shields leading up to his surprise victory over PRIDE FC legend Dan Henderson. On the feet or on the ground, this should be a very, very exciting fight.

3. Jose Aldo vs. Manvel Gamburyan

To be bluntly honest, I don’t see anyone beating Jose Aldo for quite some time. But I also see every fight being immensely fun to watch and bringing something new to the table. In regards to top-tier opponents, Manvel “The Anvil” doesn’t get much better, given the great steak of wins he’s been on for over a year, which includes wins over a former WEC Featherweight Champion and a WEC Featherweight Championship contender. But Aldo is one of the most dynamic, exciting fighters currently fighting in MMA , and the best fighter in the WEC. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for Jose Aldo, so I can’t wait to see this fight.

2. Nick Diaz vs. KJ Noons 2

Now this is the type of rematch everybody loves. Both men have a lot of ill will and bad blood towards each other, and both are at very different points in their careers. Noon has had to re-introduce himself to MMA fans following a stint in pro boxing, while Diaz needs no introduction and is standing tall as Strikeforce’s Welterweight Champion. Diaz’s striking has never looked better, while KJ’s stint in boxing has made his striking even more precise and powerful. There’s going to be fists flying a mile a minute in this fight, and as wild brawls go, this has the potential to be one of the wildest we’ve seen in quite some time.

But my number 1 must-see fight has simply got to go to…

1. Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez

So many questions will be answered in this match. Can Cain handle Brock’s wrestling? Can Brock stand up to the punching power Cain will be throwing consistently throughout all five rounds (if it goes that long) of their fight? How will Lesnar’s cardio look when he’s not almost completely dictating the pace of the fight? Both men are great wrestlers, both men are big Heavyweights, and both men have an amazing amount of skill. A few years ago the UFC Heavyweight division was a non-entity, but now, the division grows by leaps and bounds with every single fight.

So those are my picks, fans and friends. What remaining fights are you still looking forward to as we get closer and closer to 2011?

It’s generally agreed upon that a divisional champion should not switch weight divisions, however permanent or impermanent that switch may be, until he has thoroughly ran through his division and eliminated any and all worthwhile contenders. Penn seemed on the verge of doing just that with a win over Frankie Edgar at UFC 112, but as we all know, Edgar pulled off the upset. However, Penn raised an interesting point recently regarding that generally-held rule: in a promotion as large and intensely competitive as the UFC, no weight division remains free of championship contenders for long. Penn said this specifically: “Even if you do clean out the division, then you go to welterweight for a little while, there’s going to be another new Frankie, and all these guys. They’re always going to be popping up.”

This holds true for a number of reasons. However brief a break a champion takes from his division, it always seems that a new contender emerges to fill in the gap. Look no further than the case of Anderson Silva, perhaps the clearest example of a MMA fighter almost completely cleaning out his division. Even with mismatched opponents like Thales Leites, Patrick Cote, and Demian Maia, Silva always had someone to defend against, no matter how deserving or undeserving of a title shot they seemed to be. And now that Silva has gotten past a brief absence of quality Middleweight contenders, the Middleweight division seems to be recuperating and bringing up several worthwhile challengers to the throne, with the prime example being Chael Sonnen, who dominated Silva for nearly 23 minutes in their recent championship fight. Other than a rematch with Sonnen, a superfight with Vitor Belfort is waiting in the wings, and there are several perennial Middleweights that are finally becoming championship-caliber: Alan Belcher, Michael Bisping, even Chris Leben. 2010 has proved that no one is invincible or unbeatable, so even if a division has to go through a period of recuperation, no division in the UFC has ever been permanently down and out.

I look forward to BJ Penn giving the welterweight division another go-round for one main reason: there’s a lot of good, quality competition he hasn’t faced, and the competition at Welterweight he has faced are at different points in their careers and I’d honestly enjoy seeing some rematches. I’d love to see how Jon Fitch or Josh Koscheck would fare against BJ Penn, and I think rematches with Matt Serra, Matt Hughes, and even Georges St. Pierre would make for exciting fights. I still think Penn has it in him to beat GSP, and a trilogy fight to prove as much would likely bring in huge buys, especially with MMA now being legal in Ontario and Hawaii. Like Penn, I think it’s critically important to only be paying attention to the rematch with Edgar, but one more run at Welterweight would likely only further add to the already-great legacy of BJ Penn’s career.

And what do you think, fans and friends? If BJ Penn were to make the trip to the land of 170 once again, how successful do you think he would be?

To his credit, Matt Serra was a wily MMA veteran leading into this fight. He had three full years of experience over the defending Welterweight Champion, and he had just won the fourth season of the popular reality television show “The Ultimate Fighter”. Unlike previous seasons of TUF, this comeback-themed season guaranteed the winners a shot at the championship of their division as well as a six-figure UFC contract. Up until then, the closest Serra ever got to a championship was when he lost to BJ Penn in the first round of a two-round mini-tournament for the UFC Lightweight Championship. It was the opportunity of a lifetime, and the only thing standing in his way was one of the most dynamic MMA fighters in the history of the sport.

The entire world seemed to belong to GSP leading up to UFC 69. He was on a six-fight winning streak, the highlight of which saw him avenge the only loss of his professional career when he TKO’d his former idol, the legendary Matt Hughes. With Hughes no longer the lone blemish on an otherwise spotless career, many fans and insiders were falling over themselves in their rush to proclaim that “The Era of GSP” had begun. Leading up to this fight Matt Serra was as high as an eleven-to-one underdog, with virtually no one giving him any chance at dethroning the newly-minted champion.

Then the fight began…and the impossible happened. During a punch exchange, Matt Serra clipped GSP near the back of the ear, and it seemed as if GSP’s forward momentum caused him to stumble a bit. Then he got up, backed away, and fell in earnest. Whether it was “panic mode” setting in or a survival instinct, the scramble-brained GSP attempted to half-heartedly grapple with the first American to ever receive a black belt in Brazilian Jui Jitsu from the famous Gracie clan. After shrugging GSP off of him, Serra continued to unload, nailing punch after punch, until GSP fell onto his back. Serra quickly pounced, pounded out GSP, and captured the UFC Welterweight Championship.

And I missed it. I’m a proud Houstonian as well as a proud Texan, and I missed one of the most shocking moments in the history of this sport right as it went down in my hometown. At the time of this event I had been working as a security guard for entertainment venues in and around the Houston area, and yes, the Toyota Center (where this fight happened) was a venue that I could have worked at. I campaigned hard to see this fight even though I was a relative newcomer to MMA, but instead, my supervisor sent me to the Miller Outdoor Theater for the next three days. And, as I said earlier in the article, the venue was booked for a three-day showing of a Cinderella play, the one that’s a musical. While Serra was shocking the world, I was supervising a bunch of soccer-moms and their little children. Just my luck, I guess.

Above all else, I think this fight proved once and for all that anything can happen in MMA. Even if Matt Serra would go on to lose the belt right back to GSP in his next fight, nothing will ever diminish what he accomplished at UFC 69. GSP cynics still trot out the loss to Serra like it’s a scarlet letter. This one fight perfectly embodied the never-say-never nature of Mixed Martial Arts, so it quite easily makes it into my list of “Great Moments in MMA History”.

However, I think it’s Serra that will find himself in “do-or-die” mode when this rematch goes down. After being thoroughly dominated en route to losing his championship back to Georges St. Pierre, Serra then proceeded to get dismantled by arch-rival Matt Hughes. Serra had only dropped two straight one time before in his. A fantastic drubbing of Frank Trigg gave Serra back some of his luster, but this fight with Lytle will prove once and for all if Serra deserves his spot near the top of the division.

And while Serra is fighting to keep from moving down in the rankings, Lytle is fighting to claw his way back up. It’s been two long years since Lytle has fought someone whose status at the top of the division is unchallenged, and that was when he lost a Unanimous Decision to Josh Koscheck. Lytle has managed to work his way back to the top with three spirited performances that have resulted in three straight victories and what should have been three straight “…Of the Night” bonuses: for my money, his excellent and very intricate submission at UFC 116 deserved the “Submission of the Night” bonus more than Brock Lesnar’s, even if Lesnar’s was more entertaining to watch.

I think the great thing about this fight is that no matter where it takes place, it’s going to be entertaining. Both men are such perfect foils to one. Matt Serra has always been known for having a great ground game, but recently he’s let his fists fly and proven that he has undeniable knockout power in his hands- against Frank Trigg he looked positively beastly before pounding Trigg’s lights out and sending him to the unemployment line. Chris Lytle has always been known as a striker that loves to brawl, but recently he’s shown off one of the most critically-underrated ground games in the Welterweight division- his UFC 116 Straight Armbar/Mounted Triangle Choke was a thing of pure beauty.

One way or another, I think there’s a lot riding on this fight. If Serra wins, he’ll have proven that he can still hang with some of the best in the UFC. If Lytle wins, he’ll have proven that he is once again ready to test the waters of the UFC’s top tier. But no matter who wins, this fight has all the signs of a show-stealer. If it stays on the feet, I think both men have the ability to do some serious damage to each other: both men have only lost by (T)KO twice in their long careers, so there’s a real possibility that this could turn into a three-round all-out war of attrition that I won’t be able to take my eyes off of. If it goes to the ground, both men are so technically gifted that we’ll likely see some pretty crazy things before all is said and done. I may be a bit biased because I’ve always been a fan of Chris Lytle, but I truly believe that, if the stars align and this goes down as good as I think it can go down, Chris Lytle vs. Matt Serra 2 has serious “dark horse” potential for Fight of the Year candidacy.

The ceremony took place during the UFC Fan Expo on the main stage at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. UFC President Dana White made a presentation of Matt’s achievements and then presented Matt with the award. Matt Hughes thanked the fans for the award.

“To be honest, it’s you guys that pay that admission that write my check, so I’ve got to take my hat off to you guys,” Hughes said.

Dana stated that Matt could have taken other offers to move to other promotions but he chose to stay in the UFC all these years.

“He’s acting very humble here; he’s been a great partner and been one of the people who have helped build this sport and the UFC to what it is today,” White added.

Hughes’ first fight inside the Octagon came at UFC 22 before Zuffa purchased the company. He defeated Valeri Ignatov (0-2) via unanimous decision. Since that time he has fought 22 more times in the UFC going 17-5.

His most recent fight came at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi where he beat Renzo Gracie (13-7-1) in the third round via TKO. This is his second win in a row after defeating former Renzo student and rival “The Terror” Matt Serra (10-6).

Matt’s next fight will be against another Gracie pupil as he steps inside the Octagon to take on “Cacharrao” Ricardo Almeida (12-3) at UFC 117 in Oakland, California.

Matt holds the record for the longest welterweight title run in UFC history with five consecutive defenses from UFC 34 to UFC 45. He lost the belt to “The Prodigy” B.J. Penn (15-6-1) before regaining the title with a submission win over current UFC welterweight champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (20-2) at UFC 50 and defended it another two times before Georges avenged the loss at UFC 65.

Matt Hughes joins Fellow UFC Hall of Famers Royce Gracie (14-3-3), “The World’s Most Dangerous Man” Ken Shamrock (27-14-2), “The Beast” Dan Severn (93-16-7), “The Natural” Randy Couture (18-10), “The Hammer” Mark Coleman (16-10), “The Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-7) and Charles “Mask” Lewis Jr.

How do you feel about current fighters being inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame and who do you feel should have been inducted?

Matt Hughes was one of the most dominant fighters the UFC welterweight division. Matt has stepped into the Octagon 21 times and only tasted defeat a total of five times with three of those coming in the last four years.

The former champion controlled the Octagon like no other before him using his far superior wrestling which included highly dominant top control. That dominant control lead to a UFC record nine straight title defenses in which he beat a legend in Royce Gracie (14-3-3) at UFC 60.

I know that for many the fight between Royce and Hughes was hard to watch. It is difficult to watch the man many give credit to for bringing them into the sport and falling in love with jiu jitsu and mixed martial arts (MMA) get thoroughly beaten. Enter Renzo Gracie to defend the family name.

Renzo has been involved in MMA for a long time now and as a Gracie, he feels the need to defend the family name. This is something we have seen time and time again from the Gracie family. When one man goes down another steps up to take his place. Renzo very well could be on the verge of revenge.

Royce was dominated in his fight with Hughes but that was almost four years ago. The Matt Hughes then is not the same Hughes we see today. This is a fight many would think would end up being a stand up war like so many fights between wrestlers and jiu jitsu guys. They cancel each other out and end up trading. I don’t think this is how this fight will go down though.

Hughes has said he needs to get back to what got him the title in the first place. That would be his wrestling and even though he seems to have lost a step, I believe he can get Renzo down. The problem is that Renzo works very well off his back unlike a former opponent Matt faced.

Matt fought “The Terror” Matt Serra (10-6) at UFC 98 where he won a unanimous decision. During that fight Hughes put Serra on his back often. Serra is a jiu jitsu black belt but rarely have we seen him work well off his back. Yet in that fight he did well off his back and some believe Serra could have won that fight. Renzo is a different beast altogether though.

Renzo will work to not just tie up Hughes on the ground but will be looking to use the infamous Gracie jiu jitsu to submit the man that beat his cousin.

This may be a fight between two men who are past their primes but how can one not be intrigued by another Gracie inside the Octagon looking to defend his families honor against a dominant ex-champion? Regardless of age or recent defeats, drama can be found in this fight and should be rather than be dismissed as a battle between two men who have no significance in the division at this time.

You also have to take into consideration that if Renzo wins this fight he will be looking to drop down to 155 so that he can work to avenge his own loss to the top-ranked and UFC lightweight champion “The Prodigy” BJ Penn (15-5-1) which came at K1: World Grand Prix in 2005. Renzo dropped a decision in that fight and has talked of dropping down after this fight. A win will allow him to do that while a loss makes that possibility very slim even though BJ has talked about moving to 170 once again if he can get past “The Answer” Frank Edgar(11-1) on the same night.

As fans we must be willing to look past age, significance of the fight in the division and many other factors. We can always find something that makes the fight worth watching and something to look forward too.

Saturday will be round two in the battle between Gracie versus Hughes and I am one that is excited to see the results.

UFC Fight Club Q&A is a Q&A session held with a UFC fighter before each event.  It’s attended by fans who pay to join the UFC Fight Club and media.

Serra has local ties, being a native of Long Island, New York and running two Brazilian jiu-jitsu training facilities in that state.

Serra’s biggest win was a knockout of UFC 111 main event fighter Fighters.com and UFC Welterweight Champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (19-2) at UFC 69 in Houston in 2007.  St. Pierre avenged the loss at UFC 83 in Montreal a year later and will defend his titles versus fifth-ranked “Outlaw” Dan Hardy (23-6) at UFC 111.

The beginning of the UFC saw a small stature man twisting his opponents into knots and putting them in moves most of the world had never seen before.
Royce Gracie (14-3-3) was that man. He introduced us to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu or rather Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. Fast forward to modern day and we had to sit in pain and watch him get beat senseless by Fighters.com eighth-ranked welterweight Matt Hughes (41-7) at UFC 60. Then at UFC 109 Rolles Gracie Jr. (3-1) put on what was a miserable and embarrassing performance in his defeat.

Enter Renzo Gracie who will face Matt Hughes, the man that beat his cousin, at UFC 112. Not only did Hughes beat his cousin but he also beat one of Renzo’s prized pupils in “The Terror” Matt Serra (10-6) after a long war of words leading up the fight.

Renzo told MMA Junkie Radio that his wife feels he is going through a mid-life crisis but rather than buy a sports car he is getting back inside a cage. Renzo said “I was able to set up all the goals I had before – to set-up my schools and tune-up my business so I could push my art to future generations of my family. I was able to do that, so now my business is running by itself, and I can just concentrate on myself for the first time in my life and just train to fight. I believe I’m going to surprise a lot of people.”

I am not sure he will actually surprise people as most of us still expect a lot out a Gracie, especially a well-respected and veteran fighter such as Renzo. What we can expect is for him to tep up and defend the family name.

When talking about the Matt Hughes that beat his cousin he states “I hope to fight that guy. That’s the guy I want to see in April – in that kind of shape. I want to test myself against the best that [Hughes] has ever been. I hope he’s in good shape. I believe where Royce came up short, I’m coming up to get the flag. We are a large family, and anywhere a Gracie comes up short, someone should be there to push that thing forward.”

This is what we have come to expect from the long line of the Gracie family. When one goes down another rises up to accept the challenge for the family. Excepting this challenge means Renzo will have to step inside the Octagon prepared to do more than work submissions.

Matt Hughes was an accomplished wrestler that used his wrestling to beat fighter after fighter, win the UFC welterweight title and become one of the most successful fighters in the history of the sport, cementing himself as a future Hall of Famer.

Renzo will need to utilize striking in order to get inside on Hughes. Trying to ignore the striking game and just go for broke with a take down would be a futile attempt against a Division I NCAA wrestler. “You cant take a wrestler down,” Gracie said. “If you’ve got a Division I wrestler, I’m not taking him down. I will need the striking to take him down. If I get him out of balance by striking, I’m able to shoot, and even a Division I wrestler will end up on his butt. But if you just go in, and he’s not afraid of getting hit by you, you’re going to be on your back every single time. How are you going to take a guy like Matt Hughes down if you’re not going to strike? That’s the reality.” said Renzo.

It seems like Renzo is in a good place in his life where he will be able to focus solely on him and his fight with Hughes. With a six-fight contract signed this is his first step in defending the Gracie name and taking the family back to the top of mixed martial arts.

I was very excited to see another Gracie step inside the Octagon but that fight was hard to watch. I am shocked the UFC actually showed the fight. I would have probably ended the broadcast early before showing that to awful display of MMA to fans. Neither fighter was worth watching and rarely, if ever, do I say that.

“The Terror” Matt Serra (10-6) had me eating crow as I called for “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (19-8) to use his wrestling to dominate the smaller Serra. Frank did not look for the shot and ended up getting knocked out by Serra.

Fighters.com sixth-ranked Demian Maia (11-1) has been working his striking and it was very evident in his fight with Dan Miller (11-2). Let’s not jump the gun here though. He could never stand with a clean striker but his improvement shows he is serious about trying to become the UFC champion.

This is the worst I have done with picks on any fight card,ever! Fighters.com ninth-ranked “Quick’ Mike Swick (14-4) did not help me out any. His loss to the man I am now calling the “AKA Hunter”, fourth-ranked welterweight Paulo Thiago (9-1) made a statement to the division. Paulo is a fast rising star in the division and his D’arce choke was very well set up.

Phil Davis (5-0) showed why he is such a great prospect. While his striking was sloppy, his speed and athleticism shined through. He moved from dominant position to dominant position during the fight. The UFC will need to bring him along slowly and allow his stand-up and submissions to improve before throwing him into the deep end of the division. He will be one to watch in the future.

After watching UFC 109 and thinking about the last Strikforce card, the UFC production team does a very good job of moving seamlessly from one thing to another. Plus they get prelim fights on the pay-per-view. Strikeforce will need to work harder to provide a painless broadcast like we saw last night.

A card that many mocked ended up with some entertaining fights, a knock out, great submissions and some shockers. All this and I did not have to sit through painful post-fight interviews by the fight professor.

Paulo Thiago (8-1) versus “Quick’ Mike Swick (14-3)

Fighters.com fourth-ranked welterweight Thiago takes on ninth-ranked Swick. Thiago was originally slated to fight seventh-ranked “Kos” Josh Koscheck(14-4) but that fight feel through and his teammate stepped up to get revenge.

Thiago is primarily known for his grappling but after the brutal uppercut KO of Koscheck many have been talking about his punching prowess, including Paulo himself.

Swick is a fast and aggressive striker with amazing takedown defense. His striking, while not technically perfect, has vastly improved and his use of the counter-punch is something he has relied on after his stint on The Ultimate Fighter Season One.

Thiago has a great chin and even though he knocked out Kos, his striking is sloppy. He loves to drop his hands and against the speedy Swick this could be trouble.

Swick is looking to get a rematch with fifth-ranked “Outlaw” Dan Hardy (23-6) and even though he is taking this fight on short notice he has quite the advantage in training with Kos and third-ranked Jon Fitch (20-3). Fitch, in his usual style, ground out a decision win over Paulo.

I know Paulo could throw that Kos shot and catch Swick but I feel Swick is going to work to keep this fight standing and try to look for those dropped hands of Thiago. The one trend from Swick that concerns me is when he has fought in big fights in the past he seems to hold back.

The Gospel on this one is Mike Swick by Decision.

Demian Maia (10-1) versus Dan Miller (11-2)

Dan Miller is a hardcore MMA fan’s dream. Just a gritty fighter who loves to grind and usually puts on quite the show.

Fighters.com sixth-ranked Damian Maia has the best MMA jiu-jitsu in the sport and is looking to rebound from his crushing knocking out at the hands of fourth-ranked “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2).

Miller has good but not great muay thai skills and just recently received his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. There are differences in skills from one black belt to the next and I feel Dan will want nothing to do with hitting the mat with Maia.

Maia has rudimentary striking at best and will need to take this to the ground but Dan has a good grappling game and will need to use that to keep this fight standing where he has the clear advantage.

This fight may hit the mat and get stalled. I don’t think this will be a Fight of the Night candidate but I feel Maia, if his psyche has recovered from that KO, will catch Miller.

The Gospel is Maia by late third-round submission

“The Terror” Matt Serra (9-6) versus “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (19-7)

The smack alone before this fight has been epic however I don’t feel the fight will live up to the hype. Serra has said he refuses to lose to a man with a tramp stamp while Trigg has made cracks about Serra being a guido. Great stuff from these two guys.

The fight though will not be a barn burner. Matt Serra is another jiu-jitsu black belt but in contrast to Maia, he has not finished a fight via submission in eight years.

Trigg is a wrestler at heart and although Serra has not posed a threat on the ground in years, Trigg’s kryptonite is the rear naked choke.

Serra will likely want to turn this into a stand up war that will make boxing fans cringe as neither man has very clean striking.

I think Frank’s size and strength advantage will play a huge role in this fight

In the end Trigg will need to use a smothering top game to defeat Serra as a loss for him could mean leaving the UFC.

Gospel: Frank Trigg by unanimous decision

I will skip the Sonnen versus Marquardt fight as I wrote a piece this week on my thoughts of that fight..basically it will be Nate winning and getting the next title shot.

This leads us to the much talked about main event.

“The Natural” Randy Couture (17-10) versus “The Hammer” Mark Coleman (16-9)

You either love this fight or hate it. Some see it as two over-the-hill fighters making their last stand and trying to stay in a sport that is passing them by. Others see it as a fight they have been waiting to see since UFC 17.

Tenth-ranked heavyweight, but now fighting at light heavyweight, Couture is a greco roman wrestler who helped to define dirty boxing in MMA.

Mark Coleman is a freestyle wrestler who is the inventor of brutal ground and pound.

Mark has not evolved over the years like Randy has and this is a major area of concern in this fight.

Randy has taken his wrestling and used it to push fighters against the cage, use his dirty boxing and win fight after fight when he has been told he is to old.

While Mark did beat Couture the last time they met, in the 1989 Olympic Wrestling Festival, it was only by a point and much has changed since then.

The first key to this fight is obviously wrestling. While I feel Mark was the better wrestler, the additions to Randy’s game will help him to keep this fight standing where he has a huge advantage over Coleman.

The second key is cardio, cardio, cardio. Randy has it and Mark lacks it. Randy will want to keep the pressure on Mark, pushing him against the cage, using his dirty boxing and wearing him down.

Mark needs this fight to hit the mat with him in top position so that he can use that ground and pound to shock the world. Sadly for Mark he will not see this come to fruition.

Randy will tire Mark out and end up getting the takedown himself and beat Coleman at his own game.

I am a born and bred Buckeye and it hurts me to say, Randy Couture wins via TKO due to ground and pound in round two.

Fighters.com and UFC Welterweight Champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (19-2) and fifth-ranked “Outlaw” Dan Hardy (23-6) are set to battle for the top spot at UFC 111 in Newark March 27.  Predictions range far and wide, from Hardy has one foot in the grave to Hardy is the man to upset St. Pierre like “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-6) di at UFC 69 in Houston in 2007.

Fighters.com doesn’t worry about Hardy’s health, but think he’ll be easily handled by the champ.

An exciting rematch between second-ranked “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (16-4) and third-ranked Jon Fitch (20-3) has also been rumored for UFC 111.  Fitch TKO’d Alves at UFC Fight Night 5 in 2006 and claims he gets a rematch versus St. Pierre if he stops Alves.

Fourth-ranked Paulo Thiago (8-1) and ninth-ranked “Quick” Mike Swick (14-3) of American Top Team will matchup at UFC 109 in Las Vegas Saturday.  Thiago is 1-1 versus ATT, knocking out seventh-ranked Josh Koscheck (14-4) and losing a decision to Fitch.

Koscheck will take on “Semtex” Paul Daley (20-9-2) at UFC 113 in Montreal May 8.

Eigth-ranked Matt Hughes (41-7) and and PRIDE veteran Renzo Gracie (13-6-1) will fight at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi April 10.

Tenth-ranked “Killa B” Ben Saunders (8-1-2) and “Hitman” Martin Kampmann (16-3) will matchup at UFC 111.

Sixth-ranked Jake Shields (24-4-1) has moved to middleweight as the champion in Strikeforce.

Fighters.com’s February Welterweight Top Ten

1. “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (19-2)

2. “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (16-4)

3. Jon Fitch (20-3)

4. Paulo Thiago (8-1)

5. “Outlaw” Dan Hardy (23-6)

6. Jake Shields (24-4-1)

7. Josh Koscheck (14-4)

8. Matt Hughes (41-7)

9. “Quick” Mike Swick (14-3)

10. “Killa B” Ben Saunders (8-1-2)

After Hardy’s victory in Manchester, St. Pierre entered the Octagon to graciously acknowledge his next challenger, but also seemed bored by the prospect of fighting Hardy. St. Pierre’s last loss was at a similar peak of dominance with the prospect of defending his title versus an underwhelming challenger, “Terror” Matt Serra (9-6).  At UFC 69 in Houston in April 2007, St. Pierre was TKO’d in the first round versus Serra.

Like Serra at the time he beat St. Pierre, Hardy had a confident calm standing in the Octagon having earned a challenge versus St. Pierre.  Hardy simply said, “I’m excited,” but looked more interested in celebrating his victory over Swick with his team.

The situations aren’t analagous on many levels, most significantly in St. Pierre’s commitment to MMA.  But, would you blame St. Pierre for becoming complacent with the welterweight division?  He’s already dominated second-ranked “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (16-4), third-ranked Jon Fitch (19-3), sixth-ranked Josh Koscheck (14-4), and seventh-ranked Matt Hughes (41-7).  Fourth-ranked Paulo Thiago (8-1) couldn’t step-up versus Fitch to earn the shot, but frankly it wouldn’t have been a much more compelling matchup than St. Pierre versus Hardy.

St. Pierre’s next best challenge at 170-pounds is fifth-ranked Jake Shields (24-4-1), but Shields is contracted to Strikeforce.  Ironically, if St. Pierre dominates Hardy, perhaps it’s time for St. Pierre to follow Shields into the middleweight division for new challenges.  UFC President Dana White has said he’d let St. Pierre fight at 185-pounds when St. Pierre clears out the division.  With a win versus Hardy, can we consider the division cleared?

Fighters.com’s November Welterweight Rankings

1. “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (19-2)

2. “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (16-4)

3. Jon Fitch (19-3)

4. Paulo Thiago (8-1)

5. Jake Shields (24-4-1)

6. Josh Koscheck (14-4)

7. Matt Hughes (41-7)

8. “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (11-4)

9. “Outlaw” Dan Hardy (23-6)

10. “Quick” Mike Swick (14-3)

Welterweight Matt Hughes (41-7) signed a four-fight deal that sources inside Hughes’s camp tell Fighters.com Hughes expects to lead him into retirement.

Hughes won a unanimous decision over “Terror” Matt Serra (9-6) three months ago and White announced in a pre-UFC 102 presser that Hughes won’t return for at least another three months. Hughes was on hiatus for nearly an entire year before his UD over Serra.

That’s the schedule Fighters.com’s sources say Hughes expects winding down his career: no more than two fights per year.

But, Hughes refuses to be cast as stepping-stone for 170-pound potential, nor does he expect to compete at the top of the division any longer. Hughes wants competitive fights versus established names.

However, after Serra called for a rematch at MMA Weekly last month, Hughes confidant Brian Patton told Fighters.com, “[Hughes] already beat [Serra]. What does fighting him again gain Hughes? I would not think that fighting [Serra] is in [Hughes's] plans.”

The established name most interesting to Hughes is recently UFC-signed “Superman” Dennis Hallman (41-12-1). Hallman has two stoppages over Hughes in 37 seconds of fighting, a 17-second guillotine chokeout at Extreme Challenge 21 in Wisconsin in 1998 and a 20-second armbar submission at UFC 29 in Tokyo in 2000.

Old scores among warriors aren’t settled with time, they’re settled in the cage. And, the matchup meets Hughes’s requirements and has street cred’ among the MMA core.

Hallman’s agent, Ken Pavia, told Fighters.com Tuesday, “It has been discussed. Seems inevitable that the matchup will happen again.”

Another acceptable matchup for Hughes is another Pavia’managed recent UFC returnee: “New York Bad Ass” Phil Baroni (13-11), but Fighters.com speculates Serra is more likely to draw Baroni in a cross-Long Island affair while Hughes takes a shot a settling his score with Hallman.

However, the wild card is Hughes’s drawing power. Hughes could be asked by White to step-in to strengthen a card at any time and, as he did versus “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (16-4) at UFC 85 in London in June 2008, loyal Hughes will oblige whether or not it’s in his own interests or according to his plans.

None of these matchups have been confirmed by the UFC.

In the excrutiatingly drawn out conclusion to The Ultimate Fighter 6, Serra lost a disappointing UD to Hughes at UFC 98 in Las Vegas 23 May.

“I do feel I won that fight,” said Serra at MMA Weekly. “Or, at least I should have got the nod. If not, it’s a draw and let’s do it again.”

Hughes is incommunicado on a hunting excursion, but Patton responded, “With respect, Matt Serra must not have watched the fight. Except for the inadvertent head butt, I am not sure if I remember Serra doing a lot except for the end of the third round. Maybe he meant he thought the first round was a draw. But, the fight was certainly not a draw nor did Matt Serra win. I have heard Matt [Hughes] talk about the fight and he does not think it was close either. I would say it was a good thing for Matt Serra that they did hit heads in the first round because that did the most damage of anything he did.”

Serra told MMA Weekly, “I think we should do it again. Why not? I think it would be fun for everybody.”

But, Patton told Fighters.com why not: “[Hughes] already beat [Serra]. What does fighting him again gain Hughes? It does not move him higher up in the rankings. I would not think that fighting [Serra] is in [Hughes's] plans. I see [Hughes] having a rematch with ["Pitbull" Thiago Alves (16-4)] or someone higher in the rankings.”

A late replacement in the main event originally scheduled to pit Fighters.com’s ninth-ranked light heavyweight “Iceman’ Chuck Liddell (21-7) versus sixth-ranked “Shogun” Mauricio Rua (18-3), Hughes was TKO’d in the second round at UFC 85 in London in June 2008 by a bloated Alves who missed the 170-pound limit by four pounds.

MMA Weekly reported Monday morning that Brown was a possible opponent for former UFC welterweight champion “Terror” Matt Serra‘s (9-6) return from a disappointing UD to fellow former titlist Matt Hughes (41-7) at UFC 98 in Las Vegas 23 May.

Once described by Fighters.com’s fifth-ranked light heavyweight “Rampage” Quinton Jackson (28-7) as “born to be a fighter“, Brown has racked up three wins versus a single loss in the Octagon since losing to Amir Sadollah (1-1) on season seven of The Ultimate Fighter.

He TKO’d “Drago” Pete Sell (8-5) at UFC 96 in Columbus 7 March.

“This week, I talked to Joe Silva at the UFC and a possible date for Serra and I is in April. I don’t know the exact date right now or venue. So, that is something that I can look forward to and I can set my training up for that schedule,” Hughes wrote.

Hughes and Serra, opposing coaches on TUF 6, were scheduled to set to do battle at the end of that season for then-champion Serra’s welterweight title at UFC 79 in December 2007.

However, Serra was forced to withdraw with a herniated disc in his lower back, and “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (17-2) stepped in to win the interim title after forcing Hughes to verbally submit in the second round.

Hughes and Serra both fought only once in 2008.

Fighters.com’s Welterweight Champion and current UFC champ St. Pierre won his belt back from Serra by second-round TKO in April; Hughes was TKO’d in the second round by second-ranked “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (15-3).

Yoshida has stoppages of Katsuya Inoue (16-6-3) and Akira Kikuchi (16-4); but, few this side of the Pacific (besides you and I) know how impressive that is.

A good showing versus physically and technically tough Parisyan would’ve put him on North American radar too.

Fighters.com has developing information that another anticipated fight, between sixth-ranked “Terror” Matt Serra (9-5) and seventh-ranked Matt Hughes (42-7), is unlikely to ever happen.  More on that as it develops.

Fighters.com’s Welterweight Champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (17-2) will fight Fighters.com’s Lightweight Champion “Prodigy” B.J. Penn (13-4-1) in Las Vegas 31 January.

In Chicago 25 October, top contender “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (15-3) and eighth-ranked “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2) will fight to get first dibs on the winner.

Third-ranked EliteXC titlist Jake Shields (21-4-1) will have a confident “Semtex” Paul Daley (18-6-2) on his hands in Fort Lauderdale, north of Miami, 4 October.

AKA teammates fourth-ranked Josh Koscheck (11-2) and fifth-ranked Jon Fitch (17-3) await match-ups that’ll put them back into title contention.

Tenth-ranked “Goat” Nick Thompson (36-10-1) awaits an opportunity to avenge himself of the beating handed to him by Shields in his last fight.

September Welterweight Rankings

1. “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (17-2)

Since “Terror” struck at UFC 69, “Rush” has had to scrape pieces of Fitch, Koscheck, Hughes, and Serra off the bottom of his feet on his steamroll back to the UFC belt many believe the 27-year old will wear for a generation.

2. “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (15-3)

Alves has dealt three big stoppages to Karo Parisyan, Chris Lytle, and Kuniyoshi  Hironaka.  St. Pierre hears “Pitbull” scraping at the door, but he’ll have to prove he can make 170-pounds and make Sanchez a would’ve-been.

3. Jake Shields (21-4-1)

Shields added Thompson, a legit top-tenner, to a two-year run of stoppages that in includes Mike Pyle among lesser known challengers.  But, Thompson was as good as Shields can get outside of the UFC.

4. Josh Koscheck (11-2)

After revenge over Sanchez, Koschek was overwhelmed with a St. Pierre bouncing back from a loss. Like St. Pierre, “Kos” has all the physical tools to be a champion and absorbs new skills like a sponge. Time and continued top competition will tell.

5. Jon Fitch (17-3)

Fitch tied a record for most consecutive wins in the Octagon, including a stoppage of Alves and a decision over Sanchez, plus UDs over tough Chris Wilson and Kuniyoshi Hironaka, before losing a UD to St. Pierre.

6. “Terror” Matt Serra (9-5)

After knocking out the 170-pound division’s champion, St. Pierre, Serra was outclassed in their ’08 rematch.  However, Serra looked no worse than St. Pierre’s two previous victims, Koscheck and Hughes and hopes for his own fight with Hughes.

7. Matt Hughes (42-7)

Since getting KO’d by St. Pierre for the first time since ’01, Hughes hasn’t fought the same in a throw-away decision over Christ Lytle and another stoppage by St. Pierre. It’s apparent a return to MFS is required.

8. “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2)

All the hype can’t replace a loss in the Octagon, and, in Sanchez’s case, two losses to Fitch and Koschek.  An ’06 decision over Karo Parisyan in one of the fights of that year proves he has the talent, but does he have the focus?

9. “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2)

“Zenko” debuted in the UFC with 56 second stoppage of Jon Koppenhaver and is without an “L” in two years, all wins also by stoppage. With overseas wins over Katsuya Inoue and Akira Kikuchi, Yoshida hopes to fare better than countryman Kuniyoshi Hironaka.

10. “Goat” Nick Thompson (36-10-1)

“The Goat” had bucked twelve straight challengers, eleven by stoppage, a list including Chris Wilson, Ansar Chalangov, Eddie Alvarez, and Fabricio Monteiro, until becoming the dot at the end of Shields’s exclamation point.

On the gutsy unanimous decision loss, Fitch dropped three ranks to fifth in August’s rankings.  However, to those who’ve called Fitch St. Pierre’s “toughest challenge”, Fighters.com reminds them that sixth-ranked “Terror” Matt Serra (9-5) knocked St. Pierre out in the first round in Houston 7 April, 2007.

In fact, it was obvious in the stand-up exchanges between St. Pierre and Fitch that the 2007 knockout remains in the forefront of St. Pierre’s mind as St. Pierre was more cautious than he had been in previous fights.

But, rather than St. Pierre match-up versus Penn, Fighters.com would rather sanction a title fight between St. Pierre and the winner of the match-up between Fighters.com’s new top contender “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (15-3) and seventh-ranked “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2) to be fought in Chicago 25 October.

Alves attains the top contender rank on Fitch’s loss, but not because of his stoppage of eighth-ranked Matt Hughes (42-7) which wasn’t fought at welterweight due to Alves’s inability to make the 170-pound limit, which remains a question.

Moving up five spots to rank third in August was EliteXC Welterweight Champion Jake Shields (21-4-1) on his dominating first-round stoppage of tenth-ranked “Goat” Nick Thompson (36-9-1).

Thompson dropped a rank which allowed “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2) to ease into the ninth spot before his 6 September match-up versus “Heat” Karo Parisyan (18-5) in Atlanta.

Josh Koscheck (10-2) held rank at fourth after winning a bloody unanimous decision over virtually unstoppable, but beatable “Lights Out” Chris Lytle (25-16-5) in Las Vegas 5 July.

August Welterweight Rankings

1. “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (17-2)

Since “Terror” struck at UFC 69, “Rush” has had to scrape pieces of Fitch, Koscheck, Hughes, and Serra off the bottom of his feet on his steamroll back to the UFC belt many believe the 27-year old will wear for a generation.

2. “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (15-3)

Alves has dealt three big stoppages to Karo Parisyan, Chris Lytle, and Kuniyoshi  Hironaka.  St. Pierre hears “Pitbull” scraping at the door, but he’ll have to prove he can make 170-pounds and make Sanchez a would’ve-been.

3. Jake Shields (21-4-1)

Shields added Thompson, a legit top-tenner, to a two-year run of stoppages that in includes Mike Pyle among lesser known challengers.  But, Thompson was as good as Shields can get outside of the UFC.  So, who’s next?

4. Josh Koscheck (11-2)

After revenge over Sanchez, Koschek was overwhelmed with a St. Pierre bouncing back from a loss. Like St. Pierre, “Kos” has all the physical tools to be a champion and absorbs new skills like a sponge. Time and continued top competition will tell.

5. Jon Fitch (17-3)

Fitch tied a record for most consecutive wins in the Octagon, including a stoppage of Alves and a decision over Sanchez, plus UDs over tough Chris Wilson and Kuniyoshi Hironaka, before losing a UD to St. Pierre.

6. “Terror” Matt Serra (9-5)

After knocking out the 170-pound division’s champion, St. Pierre, Serra was outclassed in their ’08 rematch.  However, Serra looked no worse than St. Pierre’s two previous victims, Koscheck and Hughes and looks forward to his own fight with Hughes.

7. “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2)

All the hype can’t replace a loss in the Octagon, and, in Sanchez’s case, two losses to Fitch and Koschek.  An ’06 decision over Karo Parisyan in one of the fights of that year proves he has the talent, but does he have the focus?

8. Matt Hughes (42-7)

Since getting KO’d by St. Pierre for the first time since ’01, Hughes hasn’t fought the same in a throw-away decision over Christ Lytle and another stoppage by St. Pierre. It’s apparent a return to MFS is required.

9. “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2)

“Zenko” debuted in the UFC with 56 second stoppage of Jon Koppenhaver and is without an “L” in two years, all wins also by stoppage. With overseas wins over Katsuya Inoue and Akira Kikuchi, Yoshida hopes to fare better than countryman Kuniyoshi Hironaka.

10. “Goat” Nick Thompson (36-10-1)

“The Goat” had bucked twelve straight challengers, eleven by stoppage, a list including Chris Wilson, Ansar Chalangov, Eddie Alvarez, and Fabricio Monteiro, until becoming the dot at the end of Shields’s exclamation point.

Alves established himself as the top contender to the winner between Fighters.com’s Welterweight Champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (16-2) and second-ranked Jon Fitch (17-2), to be fought in Minneapolis 9 August.

Hughes finds himself at a crossroads as confidants close to H.I.T. Squad have confided to Fighters.com that Hughes didn’t prepare for his tussle with “Pitbull” with the determination that’s marked his storied career.

The day after Alves finished Hughes, ninth-ranked “The Goat” Nick Thompson (36-9-1) finished hard-punching “Maicon” Michael Costa (9-4) in Tokyo.

Thompson is negotiating to fight eighth-ranked Jake Shields (20-4-1) for the EliteXC title, but tells Fighters.com, “I would really like the fight but I am not willing to fight below my value in order to make it happen.”

Tenth-ranked “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2) made an even bigger American splash than Fighters.com predicted 24 May in Las Vegas when he choked “War Machine” Jon Koppenhaver (5-2) unconcious in 56 seconds.

Fourth-ranked “Kos” Josh Koscheck (10-2) loses his third-ranking to Alves and is scheduled to fight tough brawler “Lights Out” Chris Lytle (35-15-4) 5 July in Las Vegas.

Fifth-ranked “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-5) also drops a rung in favor of Alves’s ascent.  Somewhere on Long Island, Serra is on a mat plotting to hammer a nail on Hughes’s career.

Sixth-ranked “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2) takes a step up as Hughes fills his May seventh ranking.  Sanchez fights Luigi Fioravanti (12-3) Saturday in Las Vegas.

June Welterweight Rankings

1. “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (16-2)

Since “Terror” struck at UFC 69, “Rush” has had to scrape pieces of Koscheck, Hughes, and Serra off the bottom of his feet on his steamroll back to the UFC belt many believe the 27-year old will wear for a generation.

2. Jon Fitch (17-2)

While louder fighters have claimed title contendership, Fitch has quietly earned it with a stoppage of Alves and decision over Sanchez, plus UDs over tough Chris Wilson and Kuniyoshi Hironaka.  The wrestler is next in line for a UFC title shot.

3. “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (15-3)

Alves has dealt four big stoppages to Hughes, Karo Parisyan, Chris Lytle, and Kuniyoshi  Hironaka.  St. Pierre and Fitch hear “Pitbull” scraping at the door.

4. “Kos” Josh Koscheck (10-2)

After revenge over Sanchez, Koschek was overwhelmed with a St. Pierre bouncing back from a loss. Like St. Pierre, “Kos” has all the physical tools to be a champion and absorbs new skills like a sponge. Time and continued top competition will tell.

5. “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-5)

After knocking out the 170-pound division’s champion, St. Pierre, Serra was outclassed in their ’08 rematch.  However, Serra looked no worse than St. Pierre’s two previous victims, Koscheck and Hughes and looks forward to his own fight with Hughes.

6. “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2)

All the hype can’t replace a loss in the Octagon, and, in Sanchez’s case, two losses to Fitch and Koschek.  An ’06 decision over Karo Parisyan in one of the fights of that year proves he has the talent, but does he have the focus?

7. Matt Hughes (42-7)

Since getting KO’d by St. Pierre for the first time since ’01, Hughes hasn’t fought the same in a throw-away decision over Christ Lytle, another stoppage by St. Pierre, and a KO by Alves. It’s apparent a return to MFS is required.

8. Jake Shields (20-4-1)

Shields may be the world’s top welterweight, but a lack of competition outside the UFC keeps him from breaking through.  Still, he’s stopped all opponents in the last two years except in a unanimous decision over WEC champ Carlos Condit.

9. “The Goat” Nick Thompson (36-9-1)

“The Goat” has bucked twelve straight challengers, eleven by stoppage, since leaving the UFC after a TKO by Karo Parisyan; and, though no top tenners, it’s a list including Chris Wilson, Ansar Chalangov, Eddie Alvarez, and Fabricio Monteiro, all tough.

10. “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2)

“Zenko” debuted in the UFC with 56 second stoppage of Jon Koppenhaver and is without an “L” in two years, all wins also by stoppage. With overseas wins over Katsuya Inoue and Akira Kikuchi, Yoshida hopes to fare better than countryman Kuniyoshi Hironaka.

With respect to MMA’s classiest act, I disagree.

The UFC’s stranglehold over the top of the sport has ensured the best fighters fight each other.

The best match-up in boxing right now is WBC welterweight titlist Floyd Mayweather, Jr. versus WBA and IBF welterweight titlist Miguel Cotto.

For those not in the boxing know, it ain’t happenin’.

Mayweather is ducking the young bull Cotto for more lucrative, less competitive rematches with Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton.  Those happen to be match-ups Mayweather is more likely to win.  Hell, he’s already beat them both.

It’s the UFC’s umbrella over the sport that has made sure champions fight contenders, not pretenders who allow champions to hold on to belts maximizing the marketability of their reign.

You see, when free agent fighters and their management pick their opponents, whether in boxing or MMA, they tend towards safe fights.

Exhibit A:  Everyone’s favorite MMA ducker, sixth-ranked heavyweight “The Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko (27-1).

While a showdown with third-ranked “Babyface Assassin” Josh Barnett (21-5) has been an option, Emelianenko has picked fights against middleweight “The Law” Matt Lindland (20-5) and kickboxer “Techno Goliath” Hong Man Choi (1-1).

Such is matchmaking when managers and free agent fighters seek to prolong their marketability versus the safest reasonable opponents.

I mean, Lindland and Choi are both world champions, right?  Nevermind that their championships were in a different weight class and sport respectively than Emelianenko.

I’m not advocating for the UFC.  I could care less about which promoter logo is atop a fight card.  It’s the card itself that interests me.  The fact is, the UFC’s centralized organization of the sport has produced the best fights and, by definition, avoided “becoming a fractured sport the way boxing has.”

Notes From Around MMA

* Top Strikeforce lightweight contender “The Punk” Josh Thomson (14-2) maintains “The Carpenter” Clay Guida (23-9) oiled up before their March 2006 title fight, won by Guida by UD.  Thomson claims, “I mentioned it to Clay’s brother one time.  I said, ‘Clay was really slippery in that fight…’  He just looked at me, shrugged, and said, ‘You do what you have to do to win.’  I just thought, ‘Whatever, douche bag.’  But, Clay…I think his career has leveled off.  He got a few big wins, but he’s taken some losses the last couple of years.”

* Couture (16-8) told IGN he’s pursuing a video game deal with EA Sports.  He also claimed, “I don’t care where the fight happens,” in response to a question about fighting sixth-ranked Emelinanenko in the UFC.  Couture had previously expressed his desire not to fight Emelianenko in the UFC.

* UFC middleweight Rob Yundt (6-1), who lost his UFC debut in February to “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-2), will return to the Octagon 21 June on the TUF 7 finale versus one of the TUF contestants.  The UFC won’t reveal Yundt’s opponent to him until that fighter is eliminated on the show.

* The Tennessee House of Representatives passed a bill to legalize and sanction MMA in the state by a vote of 95-2.  The bill is held-up in the Senate by Senators Dewayne Bunch of Cleveland and Bo Watson of Hixson.  The two southeast Tennessee legislators have attached an amendment earmarking the profits from MMA events for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Division I wrestling team.  According to the Nashville Post, the amendment may violate NCAA rules.  Tennesseans are urged to contact their state Senators and urge the passing of the bill next week without the earmarking amendment.

* Fourth-ranked welterweight “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-5) and UFC light heavyweight “The Hammer” Matt Hamill (4-1), both New York state residents, and UFC executive Marc Ratner were lobbying New York state Senators Tuesday to legalize and regulate MMA in the state.  A bill legalizing and regulating the sport in New York has passed the state’s assembly, but is opposed in the senate.

* Canadian kickboxer “Black Sniper” Michael McDonald (1-1), 2002 and 2004 K-1 North American Grand Prix Champion, won a decision over American kickboxer “The Jet” Rick Roufus (1-1) in an MMA bout fought under the radar in Romania last month.

* “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-5) and “Kimbo Slice” Kevin Ferguson (1-1) will go head-to-head 31 May in a ratings battle.  SpikeTV will air Ultimate Iceman to compete directly with CBS EliteXC Saturday Night Fights at 9:00 PM EST.  SpikeTV will air an entire day of UFC programming on 31 May, beginning at 11:00 AM EST.

* Star magazine reported that actress/singer Mandy Moore has a crush on top-ranked welterweight “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (16-2).  Moore was in the UFC 83 crowd last month when St. Pierre claimed the UFC welterweight title from Serra (9-5).

* You know it’s a slow MMA news cycle when eighth-ranked lightweight “The Muscle Shark” Sean Sherk (32-2-1) testing negative for steroids in a Nevada State Athletic Commission test is a headline.  Of course he tested negative!  The headline is if he had tested positive…again.

* As I concluded after the first episode of this season’s The Ultimate Fighter, Jeremy May (5-5) is a douche bag and nothing could’ve made me happier than seeing him get smashed by fellow-Cincinnatian Matt Brown (9-6) last night.

Many had no doubt that St. Pierre was the best at 170-pounds, but it was important for St. Pierre to win the top spot with revenge on “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-5) at UFC 83.

The truth is that Serra looked no worse in defeat to “Rush” than future UFC Hall of Famer Matt Hughes (42-6) did in December.  Serra drops to the fourth spot.

Hughes and Serra have a date to dance before the end of ’08, but Hughes has been drafted into the UFC 85 main event to replace an injured “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-5) on the 02 Arena marquee.

In London, Hughes faces sixth-ranked pup “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (14-3), who’s on a St. Pierre-ish steamroll through the division with stoppages of “The Heat” Karo Parisyan (18-5), “Lights Out” Chris Lytle (25-15-5), Kuniyoshi Hironaka (11-5), and Tony DeSouza (10-4).

“Kos” Josh Koscheck (10-2), who moves up a spot on Serra’s stoppage loss, will get a swing at Lytle in July, a true test of the third-ranked wrestlers grit and chin.

Jake Shields (20-4-1) has had his EliteXC title fight with Drew Fickett (33-5) rescheduled again, this time to July.  Shields loses ground in the rankings as his 2006 unanimous decision over WEC Welterweight Champion Carlos Condit (22-4) falls from his two-year record.

In June, “The Goat” Nick Thompson (35-9-1) returns to Sengoku versus an as-yet unnamed opponent, but told Fighters.com, “For the right amount of pay, I’ll fight Fedor or Jesus himself.”

At the end of May in Vegas, Japan’s “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (9-2) will debut in the UFC versus “War Machine Jon Koppenhaver (5-1) after an impressive run in his homeland.

“Zenko” debuts on Fighters.com’s top ten after “The Heat” Karo Parisyan (18-5) drops off because his two-year record lost a 2006 stoppage of Thompson.

May Welterweight Rankings

1. “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (16-2)

Since “Terror” struck at UFC 69, “Rush” has had to scrape pieces of Koscheck, Hughes, and Serra off the bottom of his feet on his steamroll back to the UFC belt many believe the 27-year old will wear for a generation.

2. Jon Fitch (17-2)

While louder fighters have claimed title contendership, Fitch has quietly earned it with a stoppage of Alves and decision over Sanchez, plus UDs over tough Chris Wilson and Kuniyoshi Hironaka.  The wrestler is probably next in line for a UFC title shot.

3. “Kos” Josh Koscheck (10-2)

After revenge over Sanchez, Koscheck was overwhelmed with a St. Pierre bouncing back from a loss. Like St. Pierre, “Kos” has all the physical tools to be a champion and absorbs new skills like a sponge. Time and continued top competition will tell.

4. “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-5)

After knocking out the 170-pound division’s heir apparent, St. Pierre, Serra was outclassed in their April ’08 rematch.  However, Serra looked no worse in defeat than St. Pierre’s two previous victims, Koscheck and Hughes.

5. Matt Hughes (42-6)

Since getting KO’d by St. Pierre for the first time since ’01, Hughes hasn’t fought the same in a throw-away decision over Christ Lytle and another stoppage by St. Pierre. One wonders if he’s getting the same quality of training since leaving MFS.

6. “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (14-3)

Alves has dealt 3 big stoppages to Karo Parisyan, Chris Lytle, and Kuniyoshi  Hironaka to plant himself firmly in the welterweight top ten, and only an ’06 TKO to Fitch keeps him from Fighters.com’s top five. This juggernaut will run into Hughes in June.

7. “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2)

All the hype can’t replace a loss in the Octagon, and, in Sanchez’s case, two losses to Fitch and Koschek.  An ’06 decision over Karo Parisyan in one of the fights of that year proves he has the talent, but does he have the focus?

8. Jake Shields (20-4-1)

Shields may be the world’s top welterweight, but a lack of competition outside the UFC keeps him from breaking through.  Still, he’s stopped all opponents in the last two years except in a unanimous decision over WEC champ Carlos Condit.

9. “The Goat” Nick Thompson (35-9-1)

“The Goat” has bucked eleven straight challengers, ten by stoppage, since leaving the UFC after a TKO by Parisyan; and, though no top tenners, it’s a list including Chris Wilson, Ansar Chalangov, Eddie Alvarez, and Fabricio Monteiro, all tough welterweights.

10. “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (9-2)

“Zenko” debuts in the UFC versus Jon Koppenhaver in May without an “L” in two years, all wins by stoppage. With overseas wins over Katsuya Inoue and Akira Kikuchi, Yoshida hopes to fare better than fellow Nipponese Kuniyoshi Hironaka.

Former UFC Middleweight Champion and Fighters.com’s second-ranked 185-pounder “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3) also found the land of maple leaf friendly in a second-round TKO of “The Serial Killer” Travis Lutter (9-5).

TUF Champions “The Count” Michael Bisping (15-1) and Mac Danzig (18-4-1) debuted in new weight classes with stoppages.

Les habitants “The Athlete” Jason MacDonald (20-9), “Dooms” Jason Day (17-5), and Jonathan Goulet (22-9) also had success for the home team, while “The Rock” Nathan Quarry (10-2), Demian Maia (7-0), “No Love” Rich Clementi (31-12-1), and Cain Velasquez (3-0) scored wins as visitors to the true north, strong and free.

Though seven of the 11 duels on 83′s lineup featured St. Pierre’s fellow countrymen, this French-Canadian bon soirwas entirely the Quebecois phenom’s. He entered the Octagon blazing a crimson gi with the strength of 22,000 at the Centre Bell.

Serra had played a clever villain during the event’s promotional tour, but had no quips for “Rush” as St. Pierre packed him into the mat upon stuffing Serra’s initial shot.

St. Pierre mauled “The Terror” with short, sharp elbows as Serra pedaled through guards, all passed by St. Pierre. Serra finally crawled up the cage to his feet.

In the center of the cage, St. Pierre blasted Serra with a Superman punch, setting up a double-leg takedown near the end of round one.

Serra, a mouse puffing beneath his right eye, emptied his tank about 90 seconds into round two as “Rush” tagged “The Terror” with five snapping jabs before planting him back onto the mat with a double-leg takedown.

St. Pierre’s G’n'P onslaught poured on, driving Serra into turtle guard. A series of unanswered rib-rattling knees persuaded referee Steve Mazzagatti to end the fight at 4:45.

“I tired him out,” explained the best 170-pound fighter in the world.

Serra countered, “I ended up coming up short, no pun intended.”

Welterweights Goulet and Kuniyoshi Hironaka (11-5) both pocketed 75 grand for battling the “Fight of the Night” in the card’s opening bout.

Goulet got the worst of it in the punch-up’s first round. Attempting to press his striking advantage, Goulet got tagged with a short Hironaka left hook. The Japanese fighter fell the Canadian and followed with a mix of fists and elbows to close the round.

“He tried to finish me,” Goulet admitted after the fight, “but he got too excited. I was careful because of my experience.”

The two fighters traded evenly to open the second before Hironaka was stunned with a punch that backed him to the cage. Goulet stalked with a flurry that dropped his opponent for a TKO at 2:07.

In the co-main event, Franklin also rebounded from a lost first round in which Lutter took the former champ to the mat and worked his jiu-jitsu juju. Franklin was nearly tapped in an armbar before he countered in a nifty maneuver that rolled him into Lutter’s full guard.

Lutter had worn himself weary by the second round and got caught with head kick as he shot for single-leg takedown. Franklin hammered “The Serial Killer” and motioned for the referee to stand him up. “Ace” picked Lutter apart on their feet with a combination of slick boxing and knees until the referree stopped the fight at 3:01

Danzig predicted to Fighters.com that Mark Bocek (5-2) is susceptible to a knee and the debuting 155-pounder delivered three big knees to set Bocek up for a rear naked choke submission at 3:48 of the third round.

“I paced myself, and I needed that; because, if I didn’t pace myself I wouldn’t have been able to do what I did in the last round,” Danzig said.

His fellow TUF Champion Bisping debuted at 185-pounds with a dominant TKO “W” over “Chainsaw” Charles McCarthy (10-5), who was unable to continue due to an arm injury after round one.

“Charles couldn’t get up,” “The Count” expalined after the fight.

Middleweight Quarry chased down a timid Kalib Starnes (8-3-1), who probably ran himself out of the UFC, for a unanimous decision.

Middleweight MacDonald added $75,000 to his bank balance with a “(T)KO of the Night” versus Joe Doerksen (39-12) at 54 seconds of the second round.

Middleweight Maia also earned 75 grand for “Submission of the Night”, a triangle choke of “Short Fuse” Ed Herman (14-5) at 2:27 of round two.

Middleweight Day made a successful UFC debut with a 3:58 TKO of “The Talent” Alan Belcher (12-5).

Lightweight Clementi ruined Canadian “Hands of Stone” Sam Stout‘s (13-4-1) homecoming with a split decision victory.

Finally, touted heavyweight Velasquez only spent 2:10 in his Octagon debut before TKOing Brad Morris (9-3).

1. “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-4)

“If you beat the guy, you’re the guy,” Serra said, and “The Terror” dismantled 170’s heir apparent, St. Pierre, last April for the UFC welterweight title and Fighters.com’s #1 ranking. His slim record makes it hard to predict the length of his reign.

2. “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (15-2)

Barely breaking a sweat stopping Hughes twice and winning a UD over Koscheck fulfilled St. Pierre’s physical promise, but his malfunction versus Serra raises questions great fighters have had to answer before. Does his hype distract from his focus?

3. Jon Fitch (17-2)

While louder fighters have claimed title contendership, Fitch has quietly earned it with a stoppage of Alves and decision over Sanchez, plus UDs over tough Chris Wilson and Kuniyoshi Hironaka.  The wrestler is probably next in line for a UFC title shot.

4. “Kos” Josh Koscheck (10-2)

After revenge over Sanchez, Koschek was overwhelmed with a St. Pierre bouncing back from a loss. Like St. Pierre, “Kos” has all the physical tools to be a champion and absorbs new skills like a sponge. Time and continued top competition will tell.

5. Matt Hughes (42-6)

Since getting KO’d by St. Pierre for the first time since ’01, Hughes hasn’t fought the same in a throw-away decision over Christ Lytle and another stoppage by St. Pierre. One wonders if he’s getting the same quality of training since leaving MFS.

6. “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (14-3)

Alves has dealt 3 big stoppages to Parisyan, Chris Lytle, and Kuniyoshi  Hironaka to plant himself firmly in the welterweight top ten, and only an ’06 TKO to Fitch keeps him from Fighters.com’s top five. Whoever’s next for Alves will meet a juggernaut.

7. Jake Shields (20-4-1)

Shields may be the world’s top welterweight, but a lack of competition outside the UFC keeps him from breaking through.  Still, he’s stopped all opponents in the last two years except in a unanimous decision over WEC champ Carlos Condit.

8. “Nightmare” Diego Sanchez (18-2)

Sanchez is St. Pierre light. All the hype can’t replace a loss in the Octagon, and, in Sanchez’s case, two losses to Fitch and Koschek.  An ’06 decision over Parisyan in one of the fights of that year proves he has the talent, but does he have the focus?

9. “The Heat” Karo Parisyan (18-5)

Parisyan has been criticized for his conditioning.  Maybe it’s true because the tough, exciting judoka hasn’t been able to break into the top of the division after losses to Sanchez and Alves. A TKO of Thompson shows how hot “The Heat” can get.

10. “The Goat” Nick Thompson (35-9-1)

“The Goat” has bucked eleven straight challengers, ten by stoppage, since leaving the UFC after a TKO by Parisyan; and, though no top tenners, it’s a list including Chris Wilson, Ansar Chalangov, Eddie Alvarez, and Fabricio Monteiro, all tough welterweights.

The fight card’s big bout features interim UFC Welterweight Champions Matt Serra and Georges St. Pierre.

“To be the champion, I have to beat the champion,” St. Pierre clarified.

St. Pierre, 15-2, was TKO’d by “The Terror” Serra at UFC 69 last April, but has dominated his subsequent two opponents.

“A bit of an underdog?  Is that what you heard?” Serra teased a reporter.  “What were the odds?  Something ridiculous, like 14 to one?”

Serra’s “W” was the upset of ’07, a year which included “Rampage” Jackson’s KO of top-ranked former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell and Forrest Griffin‘s submission of highly-touted PRIDE standout Mauricio Rua.

Serra, 9-4, echoed St. Pierre, “That’s what I always heard: You beat the guy, you’re the guy.”

Serra’s championship is considered a fluke.

Serra lamented, “If I beat [St. Pierre] again, they’ll want to give him the best three out of five!”

“Serra likes being Rocky,” White explained, likening Serra’s role to Sylvester Stallone’s character in “Rocky IV”.  “I want to thank Matt Serra for taking this fight in Canada.  I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of Matt Serra fans here in Canada.”

UFC 83 will be the preeminent MMA promotion’s debut in Canada.

Quebec Boxing Council Commissioner Mario Latraverse announced, “In April, we have our Super Bowl.”

Quebec was the first Canadian province to sanction MMA in 1998.

White told a curious Canadian press corps, “People in Canada don’t even realize how big this sport is in Canada.”

Tickets went on pre-sale yesterday and White claimed “13,700 were sold on the first day.  We’re almost sold out now.  This event here will be the biggest UFC event ever.”

“It’s a dream come true,” a swaggering St. Pierre boasted of fighting in his hometown.  “I can’t be more happy than I am right now.”

St. Pierre’s loss to Serra is blamed on his mental focus.

“I had a lot of issues before,” St. Pierre admitted.  “It’s done now.”

However, fighting in his hometown will compound distractions unimaginably.

“My life might change,” St. Pierre mentioned thoughtfully.

White confirmed the card will also feature former UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin versus TUF champion Travis Lutter, Brit TUF champion Michael Bisping, lightweight TUF champion Mac Danzig, and Canadians Patrick Côté and “Hands of Stone” Sam Stout.