Upcoming UFC 132 Cruz vs. Faber

Upcoming UFC I32 Dominik Cruz. Vs. Urijah Faber, July 2^nd, 2011 from Las Vegas, Nevada

Dominik Cruz vs. Urijah Faber – featherweight championship

This is a fight I have been looking forward to since I saw this kid defend the last WEC belt at WEC 53. Cruz was so exciting in that fight! Faber made his UFC debut just a short while ago when he went to battle with Eddie Wineland and took the unanimous decision win. Its so hard to pick a winner, Cruz hasn't fought yet in 2011 and has not fought in front of a UFC crowd so both of those factors could play against him. I'm going with Faber in this match up but I think we are in for a good fight. 

Wanderlei Silva vs. Chris Leban - middleweight

Silva has only had one fight at middleweight and it was a great win ver Michael Bisping at UFC 110. But that fight was in February... of 2010. Leban has been fighting a lot more recently with 3 wins, one by knockout and one by submission. His most recent fight was of course a loss to Brian Stann but I wont hold that against him, it's Brian Stann. I'm going with the crippler in this one. 

Tito Ortiz vs. Ryan Bader - light heavyweight

After his loss to current champ Bones Jones I'm not too happy that I feel like this fight is way below Bader. The last time I saw Tito fight was an ugly defeat by Matt Hammil and I felt he was fighting like a sparring partner, throwing some nice combinations but instead of going in for the finish, stepping back. Tito is a great fighter, he has had a great career in the UFC but I think it's time for him to move solely to coaching, he's good at it. But I suppose we will see how this fight goes for him and what Dana has to say after his likely loss. 

Carlos Condit vs. Dong Hyun Kim - welterweight

Kim and Condit I feel are both in the same place right now, definitely on their way up, breaking into the top guys of the welterweight division. I'm picking Condit in this fight simply because his knockout of Dan Hardy is still one of my favourites. If you haven't seen it, go youtube it now, seriously, UFC 120, ridiculous!

Dennis Siver vs. Matt Wiman - lightweight

Both of these fighters are great and are currently on win streaks but I feel like Siver is going to take it. He has that intimidating quiet confidence, it may just be because he can't speak English so he is always quiet. But I've said before he also has that German soldier in a movie look to him, I'm hoping for a submission victory. 

Upcoming UFC 131 Dos Santos vs. Carwin

Upcoming UFC 131 Junior dos Santos vs. Shane Carwin June 11, 2011 BC, Canada


This is going to be short and sweet since time is limited and I'm in the middle of moving! Busy busy with NBA finals and NHL playoffs all going on! All three result blogs will be coming soon though, promise!

Junior dos Santos vs. Shane Carwin - heavyweight

Even though Carwin has the interim belt I'm going with Junior. I've been informed by a trained mma buddy his fighting style is more fluid and I think that will do well against Carwin who is a little more robotic with his movement. I would also like to see a Carwin vs. Lesnar rematch and I think that would happen if Junior took this fight and then got his chance at Velasquez. Either way though, I'll be happy with either fighter winning, they're both great fighters and with these big dudes in the cage I don't see it leaving the first round. 

Demian Maia vs. Mark Munoz - middleweight

I've never really been entertained by Maia so I think I have to go with Munoz on this one. Both fighters have won their last two bouts so we'll have to see how this fight goes. I'm hoping it's an exciting one though, Maia tends to let it go to a decision. 

Kenny Florian vs. Diego Nunes - featherweight

Now that Florian is down from lightweight to a more comfortable spot at featherweight I think he will do well. So I'm going with Ben Stiller's twin!

Krysztof Sosynski vs. Mike Massenzio - light heavyweight
I have to go with the crazy Polish experiment who has been doing pretty well winning his last fight and getting fight of the night honours in his rematch with Stephan Bonnar


Nick Ring vs. James Head - middleweight
Simple, Canadian, TUF vet, going with the Canuck

Upcoming UFC 130 Rampage vs. Hamill

Upcoming UFC 130 Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Matt Hamill May 28th, 2011 from Las Vegas, Nevada

So this card was meant to include the third fight between lightweight champ Frankie Edgar and challenger Gray Maynard but unfortunately due to injury (both fighters being injured) that fight is being postponed. Edgar was the first to be injured with broken ribs and initially Anthony Pettis (who is in line for the title shot as he was the last to hole the WEC lightweight title) was going to replace him. I’m not happy Maynard got injured but I am happy that he doesn’t have to take on Pettis before getting his chance against Edgar again. This has left the main card to be mostly big guys but there are still some great fights, which should make for a very entertaining evening.

Rampage Jackson vs. Matt Hamill – light heavyweight

UGH I hate when this happens, I like both of these guys! I know a lot of people can’t stand Rampage because he is so cocky and the stunts he pulled delaying the coaches matchup against Rashad Evans and leaving the sport temporarily to pursue his “acting” career but I have always kinda liked something about him. Hamill is a typical good guy, well liked and for good reason. He is definitely an inspiration to a lot of people. He is deaf and recently beat Tito Ortiz at UFC 121after he had made fun of his disability. Hamill is an awesome fighter but I really want to see old Rampage back on top. I can see this being a early first or second round knockout.

Frank Mir vs. Roy “Big Country” Nelson – heavyweight

Unfortunately this is a fight I see as choosing the lesser of two evils. I am going with Big Country on this one, not because I like him, but because I like Mir even less! Mir will probably act like his cocky self coming off a recent defeat of UFC big name, Cro Cop in a painfully boring fight where it felt like Cro Cop didn’t even show up. Before that though he was totally demolished in a first round KO by Shane Carwin. Big Country’s last fight was for the title shot against Junior Dos Santos, which he obviously did not win. Before that, however, he was on a bit of a streak defeating both Stefan Struve (also on this card) and Brendon Shuab by first round KOs. I am really reeeally hoping for another one of those! 

Stefan Struve vs. Travis Browne – heavyweight

I have said it before that I think Struve is going to be a big name in a couple years and I definitely want to stick with that. He is a big dude at 6’11” and as he continues to put on more muscle as he trains for each fight I can only see him getting better. His last fight was an impressive TKO finish of Sean McCorkle at UFC 124 and before that a gross KO victory over Christian Morecraft at UFC 117. Browne has not been in the UFC long at all. His last fight, and UFC debut, was a draw (lucky for him) against Cheick Kongo at UFC 120. Before that fight though he seemed to be a KO/TKO king so this may be a tough one for Struve who doesn’t seem to be able handle fast pressure too well. Let’s see what the kid can do!

Thiago Alves vs. Rick Story – welterweight

Simple answer, I made the mistake at UFC 124 of going against the pitbull and I’m not going to again. Story is not a fighter to be looked past, he is on a five fight win streak but my decision is made.

Brian Stann vs. Jorge Santiago – middleweight

After the UFC 125 I became a huge fan of Stann. He mentioned taking on Wanderlei Silva next but first will have to take on UFC rookie Santiago who has spent most of his mma career in Japan. After seeing this guy’s record where most of his wins are a stoppage, wither TKO, KO or submission I feel like it will be a great fight for Stann and I can’t wait to see him better his position in the middleweight division. 

UFC 129 St-Peirre vs. Shields (coming soon-ish)

UFC 129 Georges St-Pierre vs. Jake Shields April 30^th, 2011 from Toronto, Canada

Due to some unfortunate obnoxious company while I watched UFC 129 I need to wait for the replay to not be seven hundred dollars to watch again before I rant. In general, however, it was an amazing night of fights! No surprise GSP is still the champ but according to two of the judges he did loose a couple rounds. My full review will be coming soon!

Upcoming UFC 129 St-Pierre vs. Shields

 Upcoming UFC 129 Georges St-Pierre vs. Jake Shields April 30^th, 2011 from Toronto, Canada

Better late than never, this night is HUGE for Canadian fighters, two guys in title fights and some big up and comers in the undercard. By this point most of my picks will be extremely predictable and a bit self-explanatory but I'll share them anyway. As I have a custom made t-shirt ready for tonight (yep, I’m that nerdy) I’m more than ready for the action!

Georges St-Pierre vs. Jake Shields - Welterweight Championship

No question I am going for one of my top fives and fellow Canadian GSP! I'm not taking anything away from Shields, especially after watching the three-part primetime series. Shields is a stand up guy that has been working his way through tough opponents and holding world titles in different leagues, such as strikeforce before the UFC bought it. He is crazy strong on the mat but I still don't think its enough. GSP is a total well-round fighter. He does seem a little more nervous for this fight than any other though. I think that mainly comes from the fact that so many people around him are already looking past this fight. Because of Shield's blahzay first appearance in the UFC at UFC 121 people don’t expect much. These people are definitely naïve. I know this will be a great matchup. GSP has a ridiculous training regiment. The most interesting I feel would be his gymnastics training. Helping on his agility and control it’s something you can see is helpful in his fights and I haven’t heard of any fighters that train that way. GSP is without a doubt an amazing athlete but he can also be beat. He doesn’t have a strong chin like a lot of other fighters are. He says himself you can be winning all four rounds and you make one mistake in that fifth round and its all for nothing. That’s why I feel he doesn’t finish fights. His last matchup against Koscheck he could have gone hard to finish but as Koscheck was still throwing punches and throwing them hard he didn’t want to risk getting too cocky and getting clipped with one. I like what one of Shield’s trainer’s said about GSP. He explains that GSP is not the average fighter, you have to take him into deep water. You have to see what is inside of his soul, and then defeat that. Kinda sounds like a weird video game boss battle but it makes sense, you can’t just go in and hope to catch him, you have to beat GSP in every aspect of the fight, and today is not the day for that to happen.

Jose Aldo vs. Mark Hominick – featherweight Championship

This will be the first title defense for Mr. Aldo. Too bad it’s against another top notch Canuck, Mark Hominick. After his amazing appearance at UFC Fight for the Troops 2 I am totally behind this kid. He’s got crazy talent in addition to being a cool dude. I’m excited for this fight. Watching featherweights is totally a different game. They’re usually more fast and agile than the bigger weightclasses and obviously have a lot more room to work with in the cage. Go Canada!

Randy Couture vs. Lyoto Machida – light heavyweight

Captain America is one of my all time favourite fighters and always will be. Machida lost his title in his rematch again Rua and then went on to loose his most recent matchup against Rampage. Not sure what’s up with him, he hasn’t seemed to be the great fighter I know he is lately. I’m okay with that though, a W against Machida will look great on Coutures list of fights and I’m excited to see him take out the dragon.

Mark Bocek vs. Ben Henderson – lightweight

I made the mistake of underestimating this kid at UFC 124 and I will not be doing that again. Henderson is great and held the title in the WEC before it was taking by Pettis right before the merge at WEC 53 but Bocek is better. I’m expecting another victory for team Canada here.

Sean Pierson vs. Jake Ellenberger – welterweight

Yet another great Canadian! After an impressive and exciting victory in his UFC debut at UFC 124 I have high hopes for Pierson.

Nate Diaz vs. Rory MacDonald – welterweight

No real reason, I just like this guy and I read an article about him and his brother Nick Diaz in an mma magazine a few months back that made me like him even more. I wouldn’t be too disappointed if MacDonald pulled off a W though, as long as it’s a great fight.

John Makdessi vs. Kyle Watson – lightweight

Watson was on team GSP on the 12^th season of TUF but unfortunately lost out in the quarterfinals. He defeated a fellow cast member at the TUF finale but this will be his first fight since the show. I like this guy and even though he’s fighting a Canadian on Canadian soil, I’m hoping he’ll pull off the win.

UFC 128 Shogun vs. Jones

UFC 128 Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs. Jon "Bones" Jones March 19th, 2011 from Newark, New Jersey.

Wow what a dummy, I didn't press the “publish post” button so this results blog has been sitting for 2 weeks, sorry about that. 

Edson Barboza vs. Anthony Njokuani - lightweight

Not as impressive as his win at UFC 123 but winner of fight of the night it was definitely a battle. You can watch it on UFC.com in the videos section.

Mirko Cro Cop (Filipvic) - Brendan "The Hybrid" Schaub – heavyweight

Shaub comes out aggressive throwing a lot of punches to get the fight going early. Shaub gets a "strong warning" from ref Herb Dean to make sure he avoids punches to the back of the head. He follows that up with a takedown instead. Cro Cop lands a pretty nice up kick against Shaub but is still on the bottom taking some huge, heavy punches. They stand up with just over a minute left but Shaub keeps Cro Cop close to stuff his lethal kicks. He finished the round landing a couple knees and some nice body shots. Cro Cop lands a great left kick to Shaub's head but is taken down right after. While Cro Cop was on the mat Shaub lands a punch to the back of Cro Cops head and while Cro Cop tried to protest ref Herb Dean explains it wasn't targeted, that happened because he moved his head. That's why he's an awesome ref! Cro Cop's lucky he didn't get a warning himself for landing an up kick while Shaub's knee was still on the mat. Shaub continues to keep Cro Cop in close and does eat a few elbows himself getting cut up a bit but I still feel like he had control. Unfortunately that strong warning was serious, and Shaub gets one point taken away for hitting the back of Cro Cops head again. Third round I feel like Shaub is up 2-0 but with that point taken away he still has to come out strong. Shaub gets a nice takedown early in the third round. They stand up but Shaub stops that really quick taking the fight down again. Shaub lands a bit of ground and pound but they get back on their feet. Cro Cop gets another beautiful left kick right to Shaub's head. I would not want to be on the receiving end of one of those. Rogan and Goldberg said a couple times Cro Cop is always just one kick away from ending the fight but I don't think they saw the one punch coming from Shaub... KO!!! (Offically by TKO but it was one punch from where I was sitting) Out cold one punch just over a minute left Cro Cop is laid out! Man that was a nice one for the highlight reel. KO as Cro Cop is throwing another kick too, that was pretty cool. Its nice to see Cro Cop was actually fighting this time, not like his recent match up against Mir but this is definitely the result I wanted. Happy 28th Birthday to the Hybrid as this earned him one of two knockout of the night bonuses. Dana mentioned this will probably be the last time we see Cro Cop in the octagon, just seems like he can’t quite fight like he used to.

Nate Marquardt vs. Dan Miller - middleweight

In the post fight press conference we found out that Miller lost his daughter and she would have been two years old that night. Very impressive Miller, brother of Jim Miller, also on this card, took this fight on such short notice after Akiyama pulled out after the disaster in Japan on March 12^th and on such an emotional evening. Miller was able to get close to a guillotine in the first round but Marquardt showed some great defense being able to get out of it. Marquardt landed some nice elbows from his top position but with just over a minute left the ref stood them up. From that he was able to land a huge slam takedown, which probably earned him the round. Second round Marquardt lands some nice combinations. Getting in and getting out quickly. Miller landed a nice takedown grabbing Marquardt's flying knee but didn't do much with it. The fight goes to the mat and Miller again grabs a pretty tight guillotine but Marquardt is able to get out and ends the round on top. That was a pretty close round to me and I think Marquardt definitely had the stand up game but you never know how the judges will score it. Marquardt comes out strong again third round landing a very pretty head kick early. Miller gets a takedown but again winds up on the bottom. Marquardt takes advantage of his top position dealing some brutal knees to bloody up Miller's left eye and finishing the fight strong. It goes to the judges and all three call it 30-27 for Marquardt. Not the most exciting finish but a great fight from both guys.

Jim Miller vs. Kamal Shalorus – lightweight

Shalorus has some skills. He started off the first round throwing some nice quick punches but Miller was countering every one of them. He landed a few leg kicks a sweet head kick and a damaging punch that started to swell up Shalorus' right eye pretty badly. Miller stayed aggressive the rest of the round but so did Shalorus. Second round Miller grabs a takedown and immediately takes Shalorus' back. He holds on with a body triangle to prevent Shalorus to spin around and face him. Miller tries for the submission but just can't get the right hold. Miller is not tired at all going into the third round and lands pretty solid knees to the body right away. Just under three minutes left Miller lands a beautiful uppercut then a lethal knee to Shalorus' face the totally rocks him. He jumps right on him and lands punch after punch to finish the fight by TKO. Miller is an awesome fighter and a really modest guy and I like him more and more each time I see him fight, he is quickly becoming one of my favourites. Of course a title shot was brought up during the post fight press conference but since the lightweight division is becoming so powerful there are a ton of guys up at the top waiting for that shot. I think Miller definitely deserves it but I think he will have one or two more fights while waiting.

Urijah Faber vs. Eddie Wineland – bantamweight

It was a really solid first round. Both guys working hard for a takedown and Wineland lands the big slam halfway into the round. He lands a couple nice punches but not a whole lot of damage. Wineland does a really great job stuffing a couple big takedown attempts. Faber does land a few nice punches himself but I would absolutely give the round to Wineland. During the break you can see Wineland has a nice little goose egg developing over his left eye, Faber certainly does damage. Second round Faber finally gets a takedown. He is able to use it more that Wineland did landing some really nice elbows. A couple times Faber did this crazy thing where he was able to lift Wineland up while he was in his guard and slam him again. Wineland was almost able to stand up and did do a pretty good job holding Faber in so not a lot of damage could be done but this round still goes to Faber. He was continuously attacking from the top. Not doing a ton of damage but still working. Going into the third round it's 1-1, the fight is definitely not over. The fight stays standing and both fighters are attacking but Faber is definitely more effective in his punches. They're fast, precise and absolutely powerful. One more takedown from Faber in the last minutes of the fight that I think won the fight for him. The decision goes to the judges and no surprise all three call it 29-28 for Faber. This was a great fight and even though Wineland wasn't able to pull off the upset he was not at all a stepping-stone or just an opponent to introduce Faber to the UFC. I'm excited that this division is now in the UFC and I'm looking forward to seeing both of these classy guys continue to fight. Faber is a little disappointed in his performance as he is still getting used to the weight class but he had no problem calling out current UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz, saying “Hide your kids, hide your wife and hide your belt” (if you don’t know what he is referring to just look up Antoine Dodson on youtube). it looks like that fight will be happening in July at UFC 132. 

Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs. Jon "Bones" Jones - light heavyweight championship

Ladies and Gentlemen we have a NEW CHAMPION!! This man is a real champion and an inspiration. Just a couple of hours before the fight Jones was meditating in a park and heard a couple getting mugged. He chased down the thief and held him until the police arrived. If you haven’t heard him tell the story himself go watch the post fight presser now, what a funny and great guy! The first round both fighters come out aggressive. Jones grabs the first takedown though about 30 seconds in. Jones maintained control on top landing some hard elbows to Shogun's face and body. About a minute and a half left in the round the two stand up and Jones gets some nice connections, a knee to the body and a kick to he face against Shogun on his way up. Shogun is still trying to push forward but you can tell he is wobbly and he definitely looks tired. Round one to the rookie, no doubt about it. About thirty seconds into the second round Jones lands his famous spinning elbow. Its great to see that he is not letting up at all even though it is a big title fight. He's fighting like he always does, strong, aggressive, creative and effective. Jones finishes the round on top continuing to land solid elbows to shoguns face and smothering him making it hard for him to breath in his tired state. The way I see it, clearly 2-0 for the kid. Not counting Shogun out, the beginning of the third round he gets close to a leg lock on Jones. Unable to hold it Jones gets on top and deals some painful ground and pound. He lands elbow after elbow and just as Shogun is able to stand up he gets a brutal left hook and a knee to the face and the fight is over! The youngest Champion ever in the UFC, Jones wins in the third round via TKO. Now THAT is how to take a belt! So excited he gives Joe Rogan a cute little kiss to the cheek before the interview. Dreams do come true for him; he was signing autographs 2011 Champion and tonight he proved that’s exactly what he is. Very soon the smile went away though. The game face is back on as Jones is told he will be taking on his teammate and training partner Rashad Evans for his first title defense. He will take off a little time to spend quality time with his daughters and future wife but I’m sure the battle will happen in late 2011.

During the post fight press conference Dana White was asked if he would arrange a fight between Jones and Anderson Silva after such a dominating win. Dana explained Silva does not want to fight at 205 at all so it’s not likely that will happen. All the other fighters spoke very highly of Jones. Not only speaking about his athletic ability and skill but his personality and what he will do for the sport.

So I was six for six on all my fight picks... well that's new. A great night of fights, exciting finishes and proper decisions! The next season of TUF (after the current one on Spike) will be 135/145 fighters to introduce the new divisions to the UFC a little bit better. Faber has been looked at as a possible coach but we’ll have to wait and see. During the post fight presser I also found out Anthony Pettis (who was the last WEC lightweight champ after defeating Ben Henderson at WEC 53 and was supposed to have the next shot at the belt after Maynard and Edgar fought the first time) will be taking on Clay Guida at the TUF 13 finale this summer. If Pettis wins he will still get the title shot after the Maynard/Edger rematch but Guida would likely not. (Yay)

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Upcoming UFC 128 Shogun vs. Jones

Upcoming UFC 128 Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs. Jon "Bones" Jones March 19th, 2011 from Newark, New Jersey.

This fight card has been altered, flipped and switched around so many times but I'm finally happy with it! First the major title fight was supposed to be between Shogun and Rashad Evans. Evans had earned the title shot after defeating fellow TUF season 10 (the heavyweights) coach, Rampage Jackson in 2010 but because of a recent knee injury during training he is not able to fight. Joe Rogan announced that Jones would be offered the opportunity to step up in his place after his first round finish of Bader at UFC 126. A little hunting and I found out that Rampage was actually offered this fight first but refused saying he currently weight 250 meaning he would have to drop 45 pounds in 4 weeks and he would not take a fight on that kind of notice. I'm guessing that means he will have the chance to take on the winner of this fight if Evans is still not healthy. Brendan Schaub was also supposed to demolish Frank Mir but instead he will be fighting Cro Cop. Tito Ortiz and Little Nog (Antonio Rogerio Nogueira) were to fight on this card as well but instead were moved to headline Fight Night a week later. (Following that switch Tito suffered an injury and won’t be fighting then either; I really think he needs to go away now). Chael Sonnen was also initially on this card but because of his recent run in with the law (pleading guilty to money laundering) he will not be fighting until that is sorted out. For those that may not know, Sonnen tested positive for performance enhancing drugs after his fight with Anderson Silva. It was later determined that those drugs were for a medical condition. Since then of course he has been suspended because of the legal charges against him. I still want to see that rematch, he has been the closest man to defeating Silva in a looong time... and I liked it! Nate Marquardt has stepped up in his place. So on to my predication bout the fights that are actually happening on the 19th... Hold that thought, one more last minute change. On March 12^th it was announced that Marquardt’s opponent, Yoshihiro Akiyama pulled out of the fight because of the recent tragedy in Japan. No surprise here, everyone continues to send their best wishes to those suffering in Japan. Dan Miller will take Akiyama’s place.

Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (Champion) vs. Jon "Bones" Jones - light heavyweight championship

Here's the trailer nick the face (see my post here for the rest of his trailers)

This is such a tough call. It’s like the veteran versus the rookie (I was calling it that before I saw the countdown, just sayin). Jones has only been fighting in the UFC since the summer of 2008 and only started fighting mixed martial arts professionally a few months before that. Shogun, on the other hand, has been in the UFC since 2007 and fought in pride the four years before that. 

Jones has a very unorthodox fighting style. Watch any clip compilation of his fights and you are sure to see more than one flying knee and spinning elbow. Usually these kinds of moves annoy me. (Like what Ebersole did in his recent fight against Chris Lytle at UFC 127 when he attempted a couple weird cartwheel kicks) But Jones has mastered them so well that they have become a legitimate tool in his arsenal. His fights are always exciting, usually ending in TKO or KO. Jones’ only loss was a disappointing DQ for illegal 12-6 elbows against Matt Hammill in 2009.  I wasn’t too impressed when I saw that, but he has totally redeemed himself in my eyes with his three fights since then with two first round TKO finishes and one submission. Shogun is also a beast! When he first fought Lyoto Machida in 2009 in Abu Dubai it was a very controversial loss for him. Personally I thought that Shogun won the fight but I didn't feel like he did enough to take the belt so I was happy with the instant rematch. Shogun did not waste any time in that second chance opportunity. He came in fierce, guns blazing and finished the fight via TKO in the first round. In a 5-round title match that's pretty impressive. He has not fought since that rematch almost a year ago so he may have a bit of ring rust to get over. Since this will also be his first time defending his belt that is another thing to put pressure on him. 

There is no pressure on Jones in this fight. If he wins, he will be the young gun that took out the vet. If he looses, he'll be the young guy that couldn't quite take advantage of the opportunity and will have to work back up the ladder after that small slip. Personally I see the first scenario happening. He has so much momentum since taking out Bader in a quick win. There has been no break in his training. He trained hard to prepare for Bader and just over a month later he takes on the champ. When Shogun took the belt I was excited for a new champ in the light heavyweight division but now that people are talking about the beginning of a Jon Jones era I’m pretty pumped for that. He’s a bit of a goofball but a completely cool and humble guy and I think he would make a fantastic champion and inspiration to other young fighters. Jones also has the biggest reach in UFC history and I am looking forward to him using it in this title fight to take home the belt. 

Urijah Faber vs. Eddie Wineland – bantamweight

Faber was basically the poster boy for WEC. He’s a pretty cool guy but definitely reminds me more of a BMX dude or a snowboarder. Until you see him fight… This guys is crazy talented. When he started fighting MMA he won 11 of his first 12 fights. This will be his first fight in the UFC but he has faced a couple names already well known. One being two big victories over Jens Pulver and current UFC bantamweight champ, Dominick Cruz. Faber is also a big family guy, which I like. He grew up in a very Christian family in a community that, as his dad says, “Shared everything but their toothbrushes and their wives”. He took part in fashion shows and commercials, and was a pretty boy that knew how to entertain a crowd at a young age. One other thing I really like about Faber’s life outside of the cage is how he wakes up to goals he has written on paper and posted on his bedroom wall. He’s just a really awesome guy that makes you want to see him succeed.

I’m definitely not counting Wineland out for this fight though. He has more of a bad boy image, tattoos and shaved head but he is just as family oriented as Faber is. He became close with his family when his brother battled through a devastating accident. When he was three years old he was trying to fill a lawnmower gas tank and it ignited the garage. As a result of the inferno, 98% of his body was burned. The family spent most of the next year by his side in the small hospital room. This scenario runs through Wineland’s head when he’s fighting and training, he may be in pain or hurt but is he willing to walk through the wall of fire, as his little brother did. Odd that I think Faber looks the part because Wineland actually was BMX champ at 17 years old. Ironically he decided that was too dangerous so he switched to fighting. Going into this bout, Wineland believes the UFC is using this fight to introduce Faber. A similar story to Joe Lauzon’s first fight in the UFC against Pulver; expected to be a stepping stone. This is definitely giving Wineland motivation and he is looking for the big upset.

Jim Miller vs. Kamal Shalorus – lightweight

I am without a doubt going for Miller in this fight. After his submission victory at UFC 124 I realized how good this guy really is. I don’t know anything about Shalorus because he is an import as a result of the WEC merge but with his nickname “Prince of Persia” and a 7-0-2 record I can only assume this will be a great match up. In my opinion Miller is right up there with the top dogs in the lightweight division and but there are two people in line before him to get their title shot so he has a bit of time to wait, may as well spend it beating people up.

Nate Marquardt vs. Dan Miller - middleweight

Marquardt's most recent fight was a loss to Yushin Okami at UFC 122. That fight was to determine the next fight to get a title shot after the Silva Belfort fight that just took place at 

UFC 126. Oddly enough, just two fights before that Marquardt fought for the title challenger position against Chael Sonnen. He lost that fight as well. He seems to get so close to that title shot but just barely misses out. If he wins this fight against Miller I can only assume that he will be involved in one more fight where the victor will go on to take on the champ, whomever it is at that time.  As far as I know this will be Miller’s first time on a UFC main card. He recently defeated Canadian Joe Doerksen at UFC 124 but he has lost to big names like Chael Sonnen, Demian Maia and Michael Bisping before that. I’m hoping that Marquardt finishes the fight strong with a decisive win and gets closer to that coveted title shot again.

Mirko Cro Cop (Filipvic) - Brendan "The Hybrid" Schaub – heavyweight

I’m absolutely cheering for Schaub in this one. I really like watching him fight. He was initially supposed to take on Frank Mir, which would have been amazing, but instead Cro Cop stepped up. Cro Cop recently lost in the most boring and ridiculous fight ever to Mir at UFC 119. I’m hoping Cro Cop just gets the snot kicked out of him. When the kickboxing side of him shows up he is deadly but he has not been doing that recently and has become boring in my opinion. The saying regarding Cro Cop’s lethal kickboxing moves has been, “Right kick hospital Left kick cemetery”. Shaub likes to see himself as “Left hand fight of the night, right hand knockout of the night”. Not quite the same ring but I like the confidence. 6 out of his 7 wins have come from a first round finish but I like that he has shown he can go the distance by going all 15 minutes with UFC big gun Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 121. Obviously I would prefer a first round KO again but its good to see his endurance too so he doesn’t pull a Shane Carwin and gas out his first time seeing a second round. Shaub for 


Last minute addition, I didn't even notice the Captain is on this card!
Edson Barboza vs.  Anthony Njokuani - lightweight
Again I have no idea who his WEC imported opponent is but after seeing Barboza's lethal leg kicks at UFC 123 I am a fan. Plus the whole Captain Barboza thing is just plan cool. (Thats not actually what he calls himself, but I like it)