Cool night of fights. Two good main fights that could both easily be main cards.

Matt Hughes Vs. Georges St-Pierre

(Georges St-Pierre Wins by Submission (Arm Lock) at 4:54 in the 2nd round by arm bar)

RESULTS: GSP out fought Hughes on every level. He threw some punches and kicks and Matt wasn’t able to come up with much. He tried a little punch fake to a takedown, but GSP saw it coming. That was the last thing Hughes was able to throw at him. GSP dominated him until the end of the first round where GSP might have pulled off a submission, but the bell rang. GSP came in and dominated some more and got an upside down triangle on Matt and started to go for the Kimura, but Hughes powered out of it, but GSP just slid into an armbar.

This will be match three between these two guys. Pierre said he lost the first time to Matt Hughes because of jitters to his idol. He proved it when these two matched up the second time and Pierre executed a game plan perfectly. Both of these guys have had a short time to prepare for each other specifically, but since they have fought each other twice, Matt was training already and Pierre stays in phenomenal shape I think that advantage is a wash. I now Matt really wants this one, but I think Pierre will dominate Hughes in every aspect of the game. GSP is just good. I was really impressed with the way GSP dominated Koscheck in his last fight with wrestling. He made KOS look like a rookie. I think GSP will win the striking ans most of the ground game. I am expecting Hughes to use his power to get a take down or two. I am going with GSP winning via decision.

Chuck Liddell Vs. Wanderlei Silva

(Chuck Liddell Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Chuck and wandy just went at it hard. Chuck was smacking him around, but wandy is always good to throw back even if he is getting punched. Chuck had Wandy up against the cage a couple of times and all I could think of was the Belfort fight, but wandy provde he was a lot tougher. Most of the guys Chuck fought like Tito and others would have dropped several times from some of the bombs Chuck was throwing. Both of these guys rocked each other a couple of times, but Chuck played it smart and got a couple of takedowns and just simply landed more punches.

This is gonna be a cool fight regardless of these guys last couple of fights. Silva is a maniac in the ring and he is in the best shape of his life coming into this fight. He has been training at Xtreme Couture after leaving chute-box academy and it will show in this fight. Liddell was really dominated and mixed up with Jardine’s leg kicks in Chucks last fight. Silva is a powerful kicker and strong in the clinch. I don’t think Liddell will be able to shake this axe murderer off. I can’t believe we are gonna see Silva back in the octagon! I am going with Silva via KO ala Knees in the third round.

Lyoto Machida Vs. Rameau Sokoudjou

(Lyoto Machida Wins by Submission (Choke) at 4:20 in the 2nd round by arm triangle.)
RESULTS: I was surprised by this fight. Not that Machida isnt good or anything, but Soko didn’t seem to have any power. He just kind of looked like a grappling dummy. He fought out of the arm triangle a bunch, but finally Machida landed it.

Rameau is bad and so is Machida. Both of these guys have some impressive records. A who whos of MMA. This one is really a toss up. I expect is to be one of the best fights this night. Maybe Sokoudjo via decision.

Rich Clementi Vs. Melvin Guillard

(Rich Clementi Wins by Submission (Choke) at 4:40 in the 1st round by rear naked choke)

RESULTS: This is a re-occuring problem for Melvin. He didn’t come out as strong and explosive as he usually does so I think he was being smart and had a strategy. Rich was just better on the ground and even did a little modified RNC.

I am glad to see Melvin back in the octagon after a suspension. He is so explosive and fun to watch in the ring. He does tend to gas out after burning up in the first round so I hope he has a better strategy because Rich is a smart fighter and will use that to his advantage. These guys have some bad blood after Melvin sucker punched Rich at an event so these two will probably leave it all out in the ring. I am going with Rich getting a submission in the third round after Melvin gases out.

Jordan Radev Vs. Dean Lister
(Dean Lister Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

I hope these guys end up on PPV. I would love to see Dean Lister get a shot at the title against. Anderson Silva. I really think he could hang and maybe get Silva in a submission. This fight against Radev won’t help much since Radev isn’t much of a contender in the middle weight class and a win against him won’t be a real barn burner. Not to mention Henderson will probally beat Silva. Anyways I think Lister is badd ass and should be rused up the Middleweight ladder and quit wasting his time with some of the fighters he has faced. Lister via submission in the first round.

Nate Mohr Vs. Manny Gamburyan
(Manny Gamburyan Wins by Submission (Leg Lock) at 1:31 in the 1st round by ankle lock)
RESULTS: Man that was a ankle lock. I beleived Manny when he said he didn’t mean to torque the knee. It was more from Mohr twisting the wrong way or something. Ouch. No I know why they don’t let beginner BJJ guys do these in tournaments.

Cool to see Manny back in the ring after his shoulder mishap in the TUF finale against NAte Diaz. Manny is super strong and can really dominate in a fight. His fighting style is a little boring, but he does win fights. I am going with Manny winning via decision.
Jordan Radev Vs. Dean Lister

Mark Bocek Vs. Doug Evans

(Mark Bocek Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round .)

This will be a cool fight to see. I am curious to see these guys get tested. I think they are on the same level as far as the tier in the UFC so it will be good see which one presses on. Evans was impressive against Huerta and showed very good technique in the octagon. Bocek is really good, but hasnt had the best of luck latley. I would have to guess and say Evans wins via decision.

HDNet Results at: http://www.hdnetfights.com/events.php
Jason Miller VS Tim Kennedy - Middleweight

(Miller wins via unanimous decision)

This will be a good fight to test both of these guys. Tim is ferocious in the ring while Miller seems to be a little more calm and collected in the mayhem style of his. Not that Tim has any trouble setting up moves at all. Tim seems to be good at alot of things with heavy hands. Miller is good with exchanges and ground work. Somebody is just gonna have to make a mistake during this fight for a winner to come out on top. This one will probably go to the judges much like there first fight together. Lets say Tim wins via decision mostly from take downs.

Frank Trigg VS Edwin Dewees - Middleweight
(Trigg def Dewees via kimura submission at 1:40 of the first round)

I really would like to see Edwin win a fight on a big stage. Not sure if you could call HDNet FiGHTS a big stage yet, but he is at least headlining a show with him fighting a big name. Frank Trigg has fought alot of big name fighters and loses mostly to submissions. Trigg’s last fight ended with a KO. Alot of fighters have trouble getting back to normal after a solid KO fight. Not to mention Edwin is coming off two bad TKO / Ko fights. Hopefully they will have some time in the ring to get warmed up and feel each other out. Edwin is a good submission guy and I am sure Frank doesn’t plan on laying on top of Edwin to much. Maybe we will see these guys slug it out a bit, but I think as soon as Edwin feels in trouble we will see these guys on the ground. Maybe Edwin via submission in the second round.

Yves Edwards VS Alonzo Martinez - Lightweight

(Edwards def Martinez via rear naked choke at 3:15 of Rnd 2)

Everyone is hoping that Yves will get a win in this fight. He won his last fight and might be on a roll. Yves recently went to American Top Team in September of 2007 to polish up his game. This dude hopefully will have at least 5 to 10 years left in the sport so we can continue to see his stellar standup. Lucky for Yves, Alonzo is more of a ground guy and Yves has no problem with these type of guys. I think after getting rocked a few times Alonzo will try to take Yves down, but will end up with Yves on top ending with an old school GNP in the first round.

Pete Spratt VS Tristan Yunker - Welterweight

(Spratt wins via TKO at 1:38 in Rnd 1)

Spratt did good in the debut of HDNet by getting a quick KO. Hopefully he has still been training hard so he can come to bang again. Yunker usually comes out fast and hard to try and end it in the first round. He has a RNC win over Clay Guida in the first so you know he can bring it. Maybe Yunker with a submission in the first.

Krzysztof Soszynski VS Robert Villegas - Light Heavyweight

(Soszynski wins via TKO by referee stoppage at 3:15 in Rnd 2)

KS is an IFL veteran that has had some mixed success fighting some of MMA heavyweights. He is dropping back down to compete in the light heavyweights for this fight and it is probably where he should stay. It is too bad his first fight back will be against Villegas. Robert Villegas is as a cool as a cucumber when he is in the ring and follows his gameplan plan to a tee. Villegas’s only loss is from an illegal kick and he has also fought Denis Kang before. The fight with Kang was going good for Villegas, but Kang head butted him a couple of times so they stopped it and ruled it a No Ccontest?!?. RV is also alot more polished as a fighter from this fight two years ago. I think Villegas will smoke him. KS never really has lot of stamina in his fights. Villegas is a guy to watch over the next few years. He is an up and comer for sure. I am going with Villegas softening KS up a bit and then taking him down and landing a sick RNC in the first round.

Freddie Espiricueta VS Nissen Osterneck Bout Details Middleweight
Chris Bowles VS Cory Mahon Bout Details Lightweight
Patrick Castillo VS Jay White Bout Details Heavyweight
Jason House VS Liam McCarty Bout Details Middleweight 5 Rounds x 3 Minutes Each
Lee King VS Marcus Lanier Bout Details Welterweight 5 Rounds x 3 Minutes Each

Ok am I the only person that is still mourning Big John’s absence from this sport. The WEC card this Wednesday is stacked and that was the first that hit my mind. Ok personal things aside this card is stacked and I am surprised it hasn’t been promoted more. On this card we have old and new fighters. As Big John USED to say, “Lets get it on”.

RESULTS: Alot of first round fights. I had to actualltry and think if any of them went past the first round and a couple did. Good action in the WEC and hopefully we can see more of this.

Urijah Faber Vs. Jeff Curran
(Urijah Faber Wins by Submission (Choke) at 4:34 in the 2nd round by guillotine choke)

RESULTS: Really cool fight Curran had some pretty good control right off the bat and then got Fabers back, but just sat there for two minutes not able to tdo anything. Faber was pretty calm during the whole thing just conserving his energy for what was to come. Then in the second round they clinched around a bit and Faber threw a one legged knee to the face while Curran had his other leg. It was wild and Frank Mir was ecstatic saying that Faber was making up all kinds of new moves. Curran just made a bad mistake and Faber caught his head and then was able to lock it in with only one leg, but that was enough as Curran tapped out. Not bad one of the first people in a while to bring the champ into the second round.

Ok everywhere everyone is saying that that Faber is gonna be tested by this VETERAN of MMA. I mean he has more fights but come on. In Curran’s last fight he was touted as the Veteran against a newcomer. Currans last fight was pretty flat with nothing to exciting. He is going up against Faber, fireworks Faber! Ok that’s not his nickname, but it should be. Faber’s pace and his uncanny ability to win each fight no matter what his opponent comes up with is what will keep him the champ. I know what some people might be thinking, oh its about time for this long MMA champ to mess up and get caught. After all he might be letting all the hype get to him and will contribute to a loss. Nope, this kid has been featured on TV with a look at his maturity and will to stay the champ. I am thinking Curran will get a take down on skill alone, but Faber will use his explosiveness to reverse something and unload a TKO big frog style. I am going with Faber winning via TKO in the second.

Cub Swanson Vs. Jens Pulver
(Jens Pulver Wins by Submission (Choke) at 0:35 in the 1st round)

RESULTS: Man what an explosive quick match. Jens looked game and Cub didn’t seem to have much of a game plan. Cub immediately tried to take Jens down and Jens secured kind of an upside down RNC and then Cub kept tring to counter flip, but he only made it worse. The announcer called it an Anaconda choke, but it was a little bit of everything if I had to guess. Really cool to see Jens win and I hope it will keep him motivated to train hard for the next big fight, which will probably be Faber.

I along with everyone is excited to see the Pulver get back in the ring. His last performance against BJ was a little uncharacteristic and left me a little confused. I if something else wasn’t a factor in that fight. Enough excuses, I hope Pulver like he says will have trained hard for this fight. Cub is young quick and dangerous. I hope Jens can use his experience to ride the wave in the beginning of this fight. I think if played smart Jens will win via decision.

Paulo Filho Vs. Chael Sonnen
(Paulo Filho Wins by Submission (Arm Lock) at 4:55 in the 2nd round by arm bar)

RESULTS: Wow I was real impressed with Sonnen. He threw Filho around like a rag doll. At one time he slammed him so hard on the mat that Sonnen yelled at the ref, “He’s out, He’s out). Sonnen shouldn’t have been so concentrated on the ref and tried to finish it right there. That may have been his only chance to win. Lucky for Filho he was able use his BJJ to keep from taking any real major damage after the hard slam. Sonnen was just a little to comfortable laying in his guard and after Filho attempted one arm and missed he tried another and got it tight. Sonnen didn’t tap, but the ref stopped it. While I don’t agree with refs stopping a fight before a guy taps the writing was on the wall with this one and I don’t think he was getting out.

Well, Paulo is said to be the best middle weight in the world. this fight will define him and solidify his place in all the naysayers that are still left out there. I loved his telephone pole training tires. I think Sonnen is in for a rude awakening. All these wrestlers think they do so good in MMA until they get punched by someone that can hit hard. Paulo has some sick BJJ as well. I am not sure what Sonnen will get caught in, but I think it will be in quick fashion much like Filho’s first fight. Maybe Filho wins via submission in the second round.

John Alessio Vs. Todd Moore
(John Alessio Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: I didn’t get to see this one, but hopefully I will be able to find it on the Internet. I am sure it was a WAR.

This is gonna be such a cool fight. Moore is from Houston and he just recently signed a contract with WEC. Alessio had a lackluster performance in his last fight on a WEC card. That game plan will not keep him alive when he is sharing a ring with Moore. This guy will take you down stay on top and keep hitting you with elbows until you either tap from pain or you get knocked out. Moore via TKO in the first round.

Doug Marshall Vs. Ariel Gandulla
(Doug Marshall Wins by Submission (Arm Lock) at 0:55 in the 1st round by arm bar)

RESULTS: Doug didn’t seem to mind going for the arm bar that Ariel gave him. Doug said he wanted to win this one via triangle choke, but switched to an arm bar instead to finish it.

Bryan Baker Vs. Eric Schambari
(Bryan Baker Wins by Split Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round )

Alex Karalexis Vs. Ed Ratcliff
(Ed Ratcliff Wins by Technical Knock Out at 1:26 in the 2nd round )

Ian McCall Vs. Charlie Valencia
(Charlie Valencia Wins by Submission (Choke) at 3:19 in the 1st round by guillotine choke)

RESULTS: Charlie beat this guy up pretty good. Ian didn’t keep his hands up enough while Charlie landed alot of the same punched over and over again. He could have easily TKO this guy, but opted for the safer finish and took the choke that Ian gave him.

Brian Bowles Vs. Marcos Galvao
(Brian Bowles Wins by Technical Knock Out at 2:09 in the 2nd round)

RESULTS: Brian may not have alot of MMA pro matches, but you would never know with the way this guy brings it in the ring. He blasted this guy standing up pretty good most of the first and then his corner man (Rory Singer) told him to come with the over hand right in the second. This proved to be right as Brain blasted him into an oblivion.

Roger Huerta Vs. Clay Guida

(Roger Huerta Wins by Submission (Choke) at 0:51 in the 3rd round by rear naked choke.)

RESULTS: This was an awesome fight and went alot liek I thought. I did however think Huerta would kick in around the second, but he took a while on this one. You could see the determination start to boil over out of his mouth at the start of the third as he was getting ready for another round. I wish I had the footage of that. He gritted his teeth and looked pissed. He went in a knocked Guida around landing a good knee that dazed Guida enough for Huerta to get the RNC. Easily fight of the night, but I think the Jrock fight was a close tie.

This is gonna be a cool fight. I have counted Huerta out of to many fights. I will not count him out anymore. he has proven me wrong to many times. The dude is so solid and can find a way to win in every fight. Look at his last three fights and if you looks closely you will see that he always seems to get overwhelmed in the first round against his opponent, but then comes out in the second and dominates. Guida will be one of his first hard fights, but don’t be surprised to see Huerta lose the first round. It seems like his MO now for some reason. Not the the other guys didn’t challenge him, but Guida is a non stop animal when in the cage. Guida has one small problem with finishing fights so that is a big reason why I will have to pick Huerta winning via decision.

Tommy Speer Vs. Mac Danzig

(Mac Danzig Wins by Submission (Choke) at 2:01 in the 1st round by rear naked choke.)

RESULTS: Man this went bad quick. I was pretty surprised to see a much smaller MAc take Tommy down and get him to his back. I really thought Tommy would learn alot more in the six or so month he was off from the show. Mac did what he came there to do and no he is headed for lightweight.

I feel pretty good about both of these guys ending up in the finals. I never thought George was as great as everyone seemed to hype him on the show. I just figured they all saw more during practices that we as viewers were not prevy to. After seeing him freeze up and get Ko’ed I felt pretty good about my assessment. I was really impressed with his follow up shot after he initially dazed George. Alot of guys would miss alot on follow up shots from being so excited, but he seemed to land alot of shots and wasn’t to concerned with making each one a haymaker. Tommy has alot of power and if his technique will get caught up with his heart and power he will be a force to be reckoned with. Hopefully he has been learning alot at the HITS training place. Danzig on the other hand seems to find a way to win fights. He keeps cool and doesn’t get to overwhelmed and finds ways to exploit his opponents game. I didn’t see him show any super strength in any area though. Good and well rounded, but he wasn’t exactly a show stopper in his TUF fights. I am gonna go with Tommy doing a repeat of his fight with George. In some way or another he will daze Mac and finish him off. Tommy wins via TKO in second.

Jared Rollins Vs. John Koppenhaver

(John Koppenhaver Wins by Technical Knock Out at 2:01 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Man this was a war. Such a back and forth battle. There were so many times I counted War Machine out and was waiting for the ref to step in. So many times War Machine looked gassed, but in the very end he swept Jrock and blasted him with everything he had left. I really think Jrock just had nothing left and gassed while he took all the punches from War Machine. Great fight and war. Jrock had some sick elbows from the bottom that opened up War Machines head on the top.

Jared has alot of power. For a brief second we saw it in his TUF fight, but he fought stupid and lost his gameplan. John seems to have his wits and game plan good until he gets hit in the face. I really don’t know who is gonna hit first, but I would go with that guy winning. Lets say Jared wins via decision.
Billy Miles Vs. George Sotiropoulos

(George Sotiropoulos Wins by Submission (Choke) at 1:36 in the 1st round by rear naked choke)

RESULTS: This went pretty much how I thought but George decided to go for the clean finish via RNC.

Billy was not to hot in his TUF fight. Im not saying George is the best, but he is alot better than Billy. George via TKO in the second.
Ben Saunders Vs. Dan Barrera

(Ben Saunders Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Dan looked like he didn’t learn one thing since he lef tthe show. I really though he would look better. All he did was take Ben down even taking some hard knee shots to the head while doing so. Pretty boring and I think Ben won strictly on strikes.

This will be cool to see a sequel to this fight. I think Barrera could have won if he didn’t keep freezing up. I figured it was just due to in-experience and he should have his act together by this finale. Barrera also has so much to add to his fight game that I think he will improve alot by the time this finale hits. I believe the Saunders we saw on the show is probably the Saunders we will see again. Barrera via TKO in the first round.

Other Fights

Matt Arroyo Vs. John Kolosci (I wonder how he set up to the arm bar)

Matt Arroyo Wins by Submission (Arm Lock) at 4:42 in the 1st round by arm bar

Roman Mitichyan Vs. Dorian Price (Damn dude needs to work on his ground game)

Roman Mitichyan Wins by Submission (Leg Lock) at 0:23 in the 1st round by ankle lock.
Paul Georgieff Vs. Jonathan Goulet ( I am glad to see Goulet win one :-))

Jonathan Goulet Wins by Submission (Choke) at 4:42 in the 1st round by rear naked choke.

I think this card in NJ was in trouble at one point, but was raised from the dead with some really good fighters now on the card. Alot of good fighters fighting opponents with similiar styles make for exciting fights. Hopefully they don’t just stay at arms length in respect of each others game and make a bunch of boring decisions. I really don’t think this will be a big problem because of most of these guys have aggressive characters.

RESULTS: A lot of good fighters and maybe an upset or two depending on your perspective. I still havent seen any undercard fights yet, but I am sure they were good to.

Michael Bisping Vs. Rashad Evans
(Rashad Evans defeats Micheal Bisping via Split Decision)

RESULTS: Good all out fight with both guys giving it everything they had. Only what they had wasn’t enought to finish the fight. This fight has me wondering the MMA rules again because what constitues as a fight winner these days? If all we need to do is go in there and take down fighters to death and do nothing to win? I like both of these guys alot and they fought with alot of heart, but I hope they are not gonna keep letting the judges do this to us.

Both these guys are coming off of fights that were almost made into instant rematches. Bisping won a controversial decision win over Matt Hamill and Evans got a draw fighting Ortiz. I among many people did not want to see a rematch of either. The UFC has too many fighters waiting to showcase themselves on the big stage to have anymore boring fights. Anyways this will be a good fight to adjust the pecking order a bit in the light heavy weight division. Provided Bisping stays a light heavyweight and doesn’t go down to middle weight as everyone thinks he should. Bisping can probably get off more crisp punches than Evans we are able to. I hope Bisping has worked on his power more since it was lacking against Hamill. Evans isn’t like Hamill, but he is also good in the clinch and can control his opponents well. I think this will end up being another decision with a win for Bisping just because he landed more strikes.

Thiago Silva Vs. Houston Alexander
(Thiago Silva def. Houston Alexander via TKO (Strikes) Round 1)

RESULTS: Wow what an upset. For me anyways, I had this fog about me that the UFC was so lucky that it has discovered a fighter that could go in there and KO everyone. Kind of like a superman. Well, Houston has a kink in his armor and I guess it was his ground game. He could have done a few things fighting from his back to keep Silva from climbing up his mount to the point that Houston had nothing left to defend the top mount attack from Silva.

I am so excited to Alexander again. This guy is so bad. I hope it wasn’t too early for him to fight again. This should be a fight ending in the first round for sure. I would bet on it ended in the first round not because Alexander always ends the fight within under a minute, but because both of these guys are aggressive striking machines. Both of these guys can KO like crazy, but Alexander has fought the tougher tier of MMA fighters so I will have to go with the new KO phenomenon Houston Alexander getting a TKO in the first round.

David Terrell Vs. Ed Herman (Changed from Terrell to Joe Doerksen)
(Ed Herman def. Joe Doerksen via KO Round 3)

RESULTS: Ed Herman has improved alot and this fight showcased that he is doing more than treading water in the UFC middleweight class. Ed did get lucky at the end of the round oen time when Joe had a sick Triangle and would have submitted him, but Ed got saved by the bell.

UPDATE CHANGE: Joe last fought against an overpowering Paul Filho in the WEC for the middleweight title. I actually thought he might pull that fight off, but was surprising blown away. Hopefully he has fixed his mistakes and can rebound to his old self. Doerksen will be a good fight and I will have to go with Doerksen getting a submission in the first round.

I am very excited to see David Terrell back in the mix after taking off more than a year from the sport. The middle weight class needed a guy with champion type fighting back in the competition. Terrell is what a dangerous fighter is, BJJ skilled and KO power. A lot of these fights tonight will be fighters with the same type of style so interesting fights will be all night. I am not sure if Ed will be able to submit Terrell so I am expecting that both fighters will respect each others ground game and pick to keep most of the fight up. If this happens I would have to give that advantage to Terrell for sure. I am going with Terrell getting a TKO in the second round.

Ryo Chonan Vs. Karo Parisyan

(Karo Parysian def. Ryo Chonan via Unanimous decision)

RESULTS: Karo is the man when it comes to winning via decision. He wasn’t happy with his performance although physically he looked alot better appearance wise, but he just didn’t do anything to finish the guy.

Both of these guys have some cool techniques and can be interesting to watch. This will be one of Karo’s tougher opponents. Chonan is that guy that beat the UFC’s Anderson Silva with that crazy scissor heal hook. This will be a fun fight to watch so I hope it goes the full three rounds. Maybe Parisyan with a win via decision.

Frank Edgar Vs. Spencer Fisher

(Frankie Edgar def. Spencer Fisher via Unanimous Decision)

RESULTS: I was really depressed watching Spencer in this fight. He really didnt do much to defend the takedown and pretty much fell a couple of times. I don’t think Spencer was robbed at all, but you gotta start wondering about this evolving strategy trend that seems to be occuring. Take a guy down 2-3 times in a round and you win. You don’t have to do anything when you take him down and if he gets up even better, it gives you a chance to take him down again. Wooopee! They should change the winning title from Unanimous Decision to “Wins via Takedown”.

This fight should be epic. Fisher stand up is advancing light years with every fight. Edgar can control a lot better and is way more comfortable in the scramble. The only kink I have seen in Fisher’s armor in last few fight was when he was scrambling he would leave openings for his opponent. I hope Fisher has been working on his sprawl because he will need it against a guy like Edgar. I am pulling for Fisher so I will base this predication on them standing up and Fisher picking Edgar apart. I am going with Fisher getting a decision win over Edgar on strikes and leg kicks.

This is a great event that has been going on for around seven years. I have not been able to attend any of these until now. Mainly because of a free ticket, man am I a cheapskate. Some of these guys just fought at the recent IXFA event and others are Renegades Veterans. I don’t know some of these guys, but I will try to make some comments and predictions based on their professional stats/records.

RESULTS: All in all it was pretty good. We had good seats and there was alot of fights on the card. I was actually surprised to see a couple of the fights go the distance. There were also two title fights I think. In know one of them went the distance.

John Kirk Vs. Chad Cook
(John Kirk d. Chad Cook: Rear Naked Choke)
RESULTS: This was a title fight and ended pretty quick. Kirk got Cook against the cage and Cook started going for some kind of heel hook or something but as soon as Kirk cleared it he came down on cook fast and got his back soon after. Kirk rounded the cage afterwards yelling, “It’s my belt!”.
This is a rematch from the REF event on 9/30/06 where John got Cook in a submission and took the win in the second round. Kirk is undefeated and has always finished all of his nine professional fights. Kirk is pretty impressive and appears to be a well rounded fighter. Cook is coming off of three losses in a row with his last fight being Kirk so I don’t see this one changing history or anything. I am going with Kirk getting a submission in the second like last time.

Rocky Long Vs. Jose Santibanez
(Jose Santibanez d. Rocky Long: Unanimous Decision)
RESULTS: This was an all out five round fight. Rocky showed alot of heart in this fight, but just couldn’t stay off his back.
These guys have fought as well with Jose winning via decision in another REF in Houston. Rocky seems to go the distance in a lot of his fights persistently going for a submission. Jose quit competing in 2002 after his first loss, but has come back in 2007 and racked up two really good wins. this one should be interesting with their first encounter going the distance and Jose being away from the sport so long. Jose seems to bang alot not really after the submission game. I am gonna go out on a limb and say that Rocky will catch Jose in a submission in the third.

Tim Snyder Vs. Steve Garcia
(Tim Snyder d. Steve Garcia: KO 1:32 R3)
RESULTS: Snyder really redeemed himself in this fight. Garcia kept the pressure on early and to me seemed to score better in the exchanges, but in the end Snyder came with a hard punch to wobble down the champ.

Both of these guys have fought before as well in a 2006 REF event (seeing a pattern here?) with Garcia getting a KO win over Snyder in the first round. Steve only has one fight in his career as a MMA pro fighter and it was this last fight with Snyder so it kind of makes this guy an unknown at this point. He could be a a bad dude, but maybe we will know more after this fight. It would be good if Snyder could avenge this loss, but I will have to go with Garcia winning via decision.

Jesse Vazquez Vs. Robert Villegas
(Robert Villegas d. Jesse Vazquez: Rear Naked Choke 1:06 R1)

RESULTS: Villegas was the most skilled/technical fighter of the night in my opinion. He seemed to have a strategy going into the fight and executed it perfectly. Jesse was handled by Villegas from the start to the finish very easily. Watch out for Villegas to make it big in the world of MMA. I think he has all the tools and composure to move up in the competition.

Villegas has a good record and a bunch of submission wins. His only loss was because of a Disqualification in another REF event in 2002. I think Vazquez will be ready to bang away since almost all of his wins were via TKO/KO, but if I had to pick I would say go with Villegas winning via submission.

Sam Adkins Vs. George Paz
(George Paz d. Sam Adkins: TKO cut :58 R1)

RESULTS: Sam didn’t have much for Paz. Paz had an answer for just about everything and overpowered Sam in the small portion of the fight until Sam got a cut on his forhead that poured out fast. After the stoppage Sam got the mic and gave props to all his sponsors.

Wow talk about a veteran like Sam Adkins. His MMA career dates all the way back to UFC 8 winning his first match of the night and losing to Don Frye. If you look at his record you see all the famouse MMA guys. He really didn’t beat any of them, but talk about being around the block. I have no doubt in my mind that this guy is tough for sticking around in MMA for more than ten years, but he has a lot of losses. George Paz on the other hand is a newcomer with only two MMA fights. I will have to go with the veteran again on this one and go with Adkins getting a submission.

Larry Mack Vs. Ken Laney
(Ken Laney d. Larry Mack: TKO ref stop :28 R1)

RESULTS: Ken Laney annouced that this was his first proffesional fight after fighting an amature fight on 6/16 earlier this year. Well he didn’t change his game plan much from his last fight because he came in and blasted Mack into an oblivion. Mack said he was gonna be a Mack truck running over a Cadillac, but it couldn’t have been more opposite. Ken knocked Mack down and went in for the kill striking the back of the head. (Wasn’t sure if that was legal since UFC always doesn’t allow, but oh well the ref didn’t say anything)

I know Ken Laney fought in the last REF on 6/16/07 against Steven Do and won. Other than that I can’t find anything on either of these fighters. Ken was banging hard with an aggressive Steven Do and taking alot of shots in the video, but ended up towards the end getting a KO with a sweet combo as Steven Do fell face first into the cage. Going with Ken getting a TKO in the third.

Mike Bronzoulis Vs. Matt Rangel
(Matt Rangel d. Mike Bronzoulis: Armbar 1:50 R1)

RESULTS: Mike had a WWF like entrance with two entourage bruisers, rap, a Greek flag and a Roman Soilder costume on. I wasn’t able to see Mat transition into the arm-bar, but it had to be fast because Mike didn’t see it coming either as he was streched out on his back with his arm pully pinned between Rangels legs.

I cant find much on Mike, but Matt just fought in the IXFA a month ago and got a quick first round submission. Mike is coming from the Metro Fight club and Rangel is coming from the infamous Bushi Ban. Let’s go with the newcomer Mike getting a TKO over Rangel.

Vince Lasota Vs. Paul Hansen
(Paul Hansen d. Vince Lasota: Unanimous Decision)

RESULTS: This was a good back and forth fight. Forgive me if I am getting some of these fights mixed up, but Hansen threw some knees and kicks alot. I can’t remember more of the details, but I remember it was a good fight.

Can’t find anything at all on these guys. Flip a coin, Tails say Hansen.

Jason Lantrip Vs. Husam Mohamed
(Jason Lantrip d. Husam Mohamed: Unanimous Decision)

RESULTS: I really can’t remember much of this fight. I remember Husam was overpowered most of the fight with his back against the cage alot.

These guys already matched up at another REF on 9/30/06 and Jason got a 3rd round TKO over Husam. Jason is a new up and comer with one win and one loss. He is probally still honing his ring skills and becoming a better fighter eveytime he comes out to compete. Both of these guys are REF veterans and should put on a good banging show. I will go with a repeat on this one with Lantrip winning via decision.

Kier Gooch Vs. Daniel Pineda
(Daniel Pineda d. Kier Gooch: Tapout strikes from back mount :59 R2)

RESULTS: Good start, but Gooch seemed to run out of gas in the end of the first round. Pineda seemed to be gearing up and it was only a matter of time. Gooch seemed to tapout a little early on the strikes. After it was stopped Gooch seemed to have alot of energy he should have used in the fight as he punched the side of the cage. Pineda seemed tired after the fight and might have hurt his shoulder in the fight (I might be getting the shoulder mixed up with another guy). Picture is of Gooch in his Iceman like attire with the mo-hawk.

Kier just lost at a REF in 1/20/07 due to a split decision. Pineda isn’t showing up in any MMA records. Hard to tell on this one so the coin says tails with Pineda winning.

Sam Vasquez Vs. Vince Libardi
(Vince Libardi d. Sam Vasquez: TKO Ref Stop 2:50 R2)

RESULTS: Both of these guys were banging hard and left in all out there. Libardi was getting on top alot, but not doing much everytime he got the take down. Some where somehow Vasquez got rocked becuase as they went to stand up one time Sam was wobbly and couldn’t stand up. The Ref went and asked him to stand up, but he couldn’t. I never saw the clear stike that caused it. Sam could not get up after that and had to be carried out on a stecher. I hope he is ok.
Sam is 1-1 in his REF career. He seems to be a ground guy. Vince also seems to be a ground guy with one fight he lost to the TUF’s Cole Miller via Guillotine. Not sure on this one either. Maybe Sam via submission in the second.

I left off one that ended up being the first fight of the night:

(Chris Reed d. Isaac Eubanks: TKO Ref Stop :35 R1)

Source:http://www.houstontoyotacenter.com/events/event_618.php

Pretty good main card on this event. The title bout between Rich and Silva is highly anticipated by the UFC fans and all other that want this UFC poster boy to return to the top. Tim Sylvia is back and he claims he is better after a back surgery. Vera is also back after a UFC ontract nego hiatus. Bonnar is back after and hopefully on a win streak after getting a win over Mike Nickels.
RESULTS: I didn’t ge tto watch this one on PPV since I was at another MMA event saturday night, but I did watch it online later.

Rich Franklin Vs. Anderson Silva
(Anderson Silva Wins by TKO Stoppage (Referee) at 1:07 in the 2nd round )

RESULTS: This fight was pretty much a repeat of the first fight. Rich was at his best and he still fell the same way. The good news is he probaly doesn’t have any doubt in his mind about losing to Silva, bad news is he will have to fight other middle weights. Silva has his number and as some people say he is Rich’s bad fight match. Every fighter has one. Maybe this fight will entice Henderson to drop down for a fight.

Rich is coming into the octagon this time to reclaim his middle weight belt from Silva. I hope is driven this time and shows up as the fighter everyone says they want to see and love. Silva has proved that he can change his game for each fighter in the last few fights. Although I wasn’t to impressed with his defense in the Travis Lutter fight. I wouldn’t fear his ground game as everyone has been stating as if he was hiding these skills from everyone. The one thing Rich had going for him in the first fight was that Silva was actually a little intimidated with Rich and you can see if as he fights him. I hope Rich has been fighting alot of knee defense and clinch work. I don’t think Silva is the end all be all middle weight killer, but he is good and can adapt in a fight and knows how to end them. Rich just has to show up and overpower this guy with a barrage of ole time Rich. If Rich shows up I believe he can overwelm Silva and win TKO in the second.

Tim Sylvia Vs. Brandon Vera
(Tim Sylvia Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Tim out weighed and over powered Vera. If I analyzed the fight I would say that Tim had a good strategy and fought a smarts fight, but as a fan I would say that the old Tim did not show up. He kept the distance close and against the fench and Miletich told him in between rounds that this was working and to keep doing it. Well it worked, but wasn’t to exciting.

This will be cool to see Vera fight a guy with Tim’s size. Most of Vera’s opponents have been bigger than him as he handled them easily. This guy probally could drop down to the lightweight class, but he still is proving himself in the heavyweight. Tim is the heavyweight of yesterday and if Vera wants to get more believers in his court this will be a good fight for him to prove himself, not to mention be in contention for a title bout. He has stated that he wants to be the first guy to hold a Heavyweight belt and a Light heavyweight belt in the UFC at the same time. Well I think he needs to focus on one first and this won’t be a very easy fight. Randy showed the world in the first moments of his fight with Tim that Tim’s chin can be penetrated and Vera has some sick strikes/knees. I think Vera will end this one with a TKO in the second.

Eric Schafer Vs. Stephan Bonnar
(Stephan Bonnar Wins by TKO Stoppage (Referee) at 2:47 in the 2nd round )

RESULTS: Eric is pretty good on the ground and he got on Bonnars back and stayed their until the end of round 1. Then Bonnar cam in and brought it.

I really don’t think this fight will be an upset. Bonnar has been training hard latley and I think he will showcase some new talent for al lthe MMA fans in this fight. Schafer’s only prayer is on the ground, but Bonnar is to good there for Eric to pull out a submission. I don’t think this one will go to the judges. I think Eric will somehow get it to the ground after being pressured by Bonnar’s striking and then Bonnar will get a submission in the second.

Alan Belcher Vs. Kalib Starnes
(Alan Belcher Wins by TKO Stoppage (Cut) at 1:39 in the 2nd round)
Both of these guys have lost to Okami, but yet they are on the main card and Okami is not. Hmm? Kalib brought it to Chris Leben in last fight. I really don’t think it was a close as he stated in his post fight interview. Both of these guys can survie in the ring and defend well so I think this will go to the judges with Starnes getting a decision win.

Pretty decent pay per view with some big names on it. The under card doesn’t seem to have anyone to exciting, but not to say that some of the fights might not end up being exciting.

RESULTS: A long night of decision fights. All out three round wars since there were no title bouts. Alot of the main card fights were not as people predicted especially me.

Chuck Liddell Vs. Keith Jardine
(Keith Jardine Wins by Split Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Chuck and Jardine came out swinging the first round and both of them landed a few combos and such. Round pretty much even with maybe Chuck winning it. Then Jardine started to come alive with killer leg kicks and body blows to the ribs one after the other. At one Point Jardine even knocked Chuck down with a punch to the head. Chuck recovered quick though and for the rest of the rounds Jardine would land more punches and killer kicks. Chuck’s ribs looked like a side of red meat. I think Jardine should have one this unanimously for sure.

It will be cool to see Chuck fight without all the pressure or hype on his shoulders to see if he does something different. Both of these guys are coming off of really bad knock out losses in the first round. I don’t think the loss has affecting Chuck much mentally like it would most fighters. He keeps saying that he is not gonna change anything or any of his training, but I hope he at least prepare differently for each fighter. Everyone says that when people fight Chuck they fight his fight and his style. I believe this to an extent, but there are alot of better fighters these days and they know how to impose there will. Not to mention that the big aura of Chuck being the SUPER light heavyweight champ is gone now. Both of these guys are strikers with Chuck being the better of the two in clinches and against cage control. I think Keith may get in a couple of good punches, but I expect Chuck to run side to side staying just out of Keith’s reach. This will start to test Jardine’s patience and he will put himself in front of Chuck just like Chuck wants. I see this one ending in Typical Chuck fashion with him getting a TKO or KO.

Mauricio Rua Vs. Forrest Griffin
(Forrest Griffin Wins by Submission at 4:45 in the 3rd round by rear naked choke)

RESULTS: Rua came out pressing some action, but Forrest held his own and quickly took over with the pace. Griffin took him down alot and controlled him better. In the second round Shogun goes from gas in the tank to empty sputtering on the side of the road. Griffin pretty much dominated the fight from here on out gaining top control and go after alot of submissions. Finally in the third round with only 15 seconds to go he sinks in a RNC.

Ouch. Forrest just got a much needed win over Hector in his last fight. To bad he was put up against SHOGUN. Even Forrest in his interview is like, “Shogun is a really good fighter and that sucks”. This division just got alot more competitive and the saying, “There are no easy fights” is going to be this way from here on out in the UFC. Everybody has seen Forrest Griffin take alot of punishment and go the distance in alot of his fights, but the Jardine fight showed that he isn’t made of steel. Shogun will probably leg kick the crap out of him and get him in some overwhelming clinches and fire away with knees. For those who don’t know Shogun to well, he is a PRIDE fighter. The reason why people keep referring to PRIDE fighters as such bad dudes is they would still do tournaments sometimes fighting some of the baddest dudes in MMA. Shogun also has never been knocked out. His last loss was to Mark Coleman because his arm broke and was one of the nastiest arm breaks in a ring that I have see. It was kind of a weird fall and it wasn’t even from a submission. The only other loss was to my man, BABLUA with a straight up Guillotine. He is most notabel these days as having KO’ed Quinton Jackson. Well if you watch the fight you can clreay see that Jackson does not get knocked out and that Quinton is trying to get his corner to throw in the towel because his rib is hurt. I am betting that everyone will talk about how he beat him, blah blah blah. Two things, he got hurt by Shogun (Gotta give it up to Shogun) and could not continue to fight and after taking several knees to the face he was still concsious. The other thing is Quinton was not training in proffesional facilities like Shogun at that time in Jackson’s career. Anyways I am seeing Shogun disable Forrest in this fight. Forrest isn’t gonna go for any crafty submission attacks or anything. He will try to fight Shogun at his best game standing up striking. I think Forrest might have a chance to make it to the second round, but it is gonna hurt alot. Shogun with a TKO in the early second round.

Jon Fitch Vs. Diego Sanchez
(Jon Fitch Wins by Split Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Man oh man, the beginning of this fight started out like the old Sanchez. Fearce start down and started out by running at Fitch for a take down. Then they went back and forth the whole night. They stayed against the cage alot and Diego seemed to perfer to fight from his back as he went for submission after submission. He almost got a Guillotine, but somehow Fitch didnt even seem phased by it. Then at another time Diego had a sick Triangle choke on Fitch, but Fitch twisted out of it. Fitch got alot of dominate positions, but didnt really do anythig with them and Diego seemed to be fighting from his back to get a submission. Kind close depending on how you looked at the fight.

This is gonna be an emotional fight for me since I am a huge fan of the Diego. His career this year has been an emotional roller coaster from doctors telling him he had Hepatitis and he would have to end his career to being to weak to really fight at all in UFC 69. I don’t believe in excuses, but to all the MMA fans that have watched Diego know that he was not present in his fight with Josh Koscheck. He did step in the ring and chose to fight, but I think he wasn’t right. Anyways it will be good to see the old Brawler Diego go in there and push the pace at the high octane level that he does. Fitch even said he was training harder on his cardio because he knows what kind of fighter Diego is. Eveybody says that Fitch is the man and that people dodge him in fights, but I don’t think Diego knows how to dodge a fight. Most of the stuff I have seen from Fitch does not live up to the hype. He is a great fighter and well above average, but he hasns’t fought anybody that great yet. I don’t know about all you guys out there, but I am looking past Fitch and highly anticipating the one day that Pierre and Diego meet up. Anyways I see Diego bringing it hardcore style like he does and trying to do a little boxing (Please Diego don’t stand up the whole time), but going back to his hard tossing power house ways of dominating a fight. I think Fitch will be able to go the distance and last, but don’t expect to see him on top much. Im going with Diego winning via unanimous decision.

Kazuhiro Nakamura Vs. Lyoto Machida
(Lyoto Machida Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Machida pretty much took down Nakamura alot and rained down some good punches and elbows. Webt back and forth alot, but Machida was never threatened by Nakamura.

This will probably be the most underated fight of the night. Most people don’t know how bad a dude Machida is. His record of ten wins is a list of whos who in MMA today. Click HERE to see his wins over guys like BJ Penn, Rich Franklin and Stephan Bonnar. People complain that he is a boring fighter. This is can be a disease in the upper tiers of MMA for fighters. They get all the way to the top and they forget that they are fighters and that all of a sudden get over cautious. Nakamura is another one of those fighters that will be underrated in the US for a while until people get to know him. This guy has fought alot of the hardest dudes in MMA and went the distance with a couple of them. I think this will be alot of back and forth top mount dominate positioning and so forth. Machida has one advantage over Nakamura that he has fought in the UFC cage a few times and Nakamura has not. I will go with Machida winning via unanimous decision.

Thiago Tavares Vs. Tyson Griffin
(Tyson Griffin Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

RESULTS: Pretty much Griffen contolling the whole fight with alot of intensity. Griffen would give his back up alot, but the second time he did he dropped Tavares hard on his head/neck area. Both of these guys were battling each other not really phasing the other. Tavares went for alot of submission, but could not complete one maybe because of cardio, strength or just Griffen’s defense.

Everybody loves Tyson Griffin and the excitement he brings to the crowd as he pushes the pace of each of his fights. His last couple of fights have been decisions and a little controversial to who won. This guy has a great record giving the only loss that Urijah Faber has. Anybody that watches the WEC knows how bad Faber is. Tavares hasn’t fought anybody to bad, but he has showed some great control and his experience in ground fighting. He will need it going against Griffin. Hopefully this will be fight of the night, but who knows. I think this will be the hardest fight of the night to predict. I will go with the favorite on this one and say that Griffin will win via unanimous decision.

The fight night is beginning to be a good night of free fighting. In the last couple of ones they have had two or so good fighters on there. On this UFC fight night they will have alot of above average fighters so it might prove to be several good fights.

RESULTS: Once again a fight night was awesome. All these good free fights and I am gonna stop ordering the PPV ones. Great night of good solid fights. Couldn’t have been better.

Kenny Florian Vs. Din Thomas
(Kenny Florian Wins by Submission at 4:31 in the 1st round by rear naked choke)

Din hits harder and is harder. Kenny will not be able to come up with anything that Din hasn’t seen already. Unless Kenny does a side to the head kick (Disclaimer on all fights) I think Din will out muscle and out strike Kenny into a TKO at some point in the fight.

RESULTS: Din didn’t do much at all and early on it was clear than Kenny was bringing it with everything. Din went for a take down late in round one and landed hard on his knee and kinda went to turtle position while Kenny rained down punches to the side of Din head. They probally should have stopped it but since he was blocking most of the punches with his hand it went on and it looked like since Din’s knee was hurt he rolled over and gave Kenny a RNC. Maybe he didn’t, but it looked like it.

Chris Leben Vs. Terry Martin

(Chris Leben Wins by Knock Out at 3:56 in the 3rd round)

SEE: Florian Vs. Thomas with Terry as the striker.

RESULTS: Pretty much fight of the night in my book. I was gonna give it to the Quarry fight until this one came up. I agreed with Rogan that Leben looked alot better with a clear strategy and calmness about him when he fought. Very smart and methodical. It still wasnt enough to overpower Terry at any point in the rounds. At the end of round three Terry rained in an onslaught of punches and Leben just ate them and came back and got right in front of him and started punching like crazy and caught Terry and Terry fell down cold. I was just as surprised as Leben was. Great never say die attitude.

Junior Assuncao Vs. Nate Diaz

(Nate Diaz Wins by Submission at 4:10 in the 1st round by guillotine choke)

Love ole Nate. This fight will probally showcase Nate’s ground game since Junior seems to be more comfortable on the ground. Look for Nate’s patented forward roll into guard when he gets clinched from the top on the ground. I love it and use it sometimes now. I forsee a good back and forth ground game ending early in the first with Nate dog getting a submission.

RESULTS: This one went pretty much as I expected. I liked Nates other move when someone is trying to take him down, he goes for a Kimura and uses it to distract the person as they fall to the ground. I was surprised to see Nate throw a flurry of punches at the end with everyone of them landing right before he went for the Guillotine. When Nate watched the reply even he was like, “man oh”.

Pete Sell Vs. Nate Quarry

(Nate Quarry Wins by Knock Out at 0:44 in the 3rd round)

Sell is losing alot and has already lost to Quarry. I dont see this one ending differently. Quarry with a TKO in the second.

RESULTS: This was a good fight with Sell dominating all of the fight with some really good striking. I thought he was gonna turn it around, but Quarry blasted him with a hard one and Sell fell down and Mario (REF) ran over to Sell to call it but Sell looked a little with it I guess so he didn’t end it and Quarry at that point only had to throw one down to end it.

Edilberto Crocota Vs. Luke Cummo

(Luke Cummo Wins by Technical Knock Out at 1:45 in the 1st round )

Crocota is Brazilian so I think Cummo can netralize him there. I mean Crocota lost to Taylor and Taylor just lost with an easy submission. Three degrees of MMA you could say so I don’t think Crocota is gonna come with anythin Cummo can’t deal with. Cummo is getting better everytime as a fighter so I think he will use this fight to showcase some of his striking skills while stuffing Crocota’s takedown attempts. I am going with Cummo via decision.

Leonard Garcia Vs. Cole Miller

(Cole Miller Wins by Unanimous Decision at 5:00 in the 3rd round)

This will be a cool one to watch for all the TUF peeps. Anyone that saw Gracia’s fight in April remember this guy and how he comes to fight. Cole is slick with submission attempts so Gracia will have to be careful. This one if the toughest one to predict in my opinion. Maybe Garcia with the decision?

Joe Veres Vs. Gray Maynard

(Gray Maynard Wins by Knock Out at 0:09 in the 1st round)

This one won’t be to exciting. I expect Maynard to press the action and takedown Joe and pretty much dominate him on the ground and get a decision after three rounds of wrestling.

Kuniyoshi Hironaka Vs. Thiago Alves

(Thiago Alves Wins by Technical Knock Out at 4:04 in the 2nd round)

Alves has been doing good on his last couple of fights. One thing these guys have in common is a loss to Jon Fitch although Hironaka was able to make it all three rounds. Hironaka has also beaten Nick Diaz so this guy doesn’t seem to go away easy. I hope Alves does not take this fight lightly. Alves knows how to come back from getting beaten down and win (See Derrick Noble). Im gonna go with Hironaka winning via decision.

Dustin Hazelett Vs. Jonathan Goulet

(Dustin Hazelett Wins by Submission at 1:14 in the 1st round by arm bar)

Both of these guys are similiar and might make for a good fight. Hopefully they will both press the action and are not to overly careful. I think Goulet will end up getting this on in the end with a late TKO or a decision.

This is truly a pinnacle fight for the MMA world. This will be the first fight for a combination of belts. The light heavyweight UFC belt has been the most coveted belt because of its history and its competition in its deep division. Also the other belt will be the same a PRIDE light heavy weight belt. This event will combine both of these light heavy weight belts. Dana White has not commented on Dan’s other PRIDE middleweight belt yet or what will happen if he loses his PRIDE lightweight to Jackson.

Quinton Jackson Vs. Dan Henderson
(Quinton Jackson wins via unanimous decision after five rounds)

RESULTS: Pretty much went like I thought. The poll I did had 40 people vote on it with 55% for Henderson and 45% Jackson. Nothing really exceptional to point out on this fight. Henderson came out and used his Greco to do cage clinches and a few take downs, but Jackson was able to do a few himself and dominate Henderson. Every time the stood and banged Jackson got the better of the exchanges. Good five round war.

I could about an hour going through all the pros and cons about these fighters, but at this point everyone knows now who Jackson. The guy that is the new comer this time is Dan Henderson. This guy holds two belts in two divisions at one time and in an organization with that had the same talent or more than the UFC. Quinton has the age advantage of about ten years on Dan, but Dan gets better every fight. He is a lot like Couture because he seems to get better every fighter and the older he gets. Dan has fought all the hard guys and won, but he has also lost to powerful opponents as well. He has a superior wrestling upbringing and even though Quinton had some experience at wrestling Dan was in a different class all together with his wrestling. Quinton has him on his power. Quinton is so strong and with his new training and help has gotten even stronger. I think this will help with anything that Dan does with Jackson against the cage. Dan loves to stand and use his strong right hand. Several fighters have commented on how powerful he hits with his right hand. I am sure Quinton has trained with it in mind and has a good strategy with his striking just like he did with the Liddell fight. This will be an all out war, but I think we are still seeing the tip of the iceberg with the new and improved fighter Jackson. I am going with Jackson winning via decision.

Matt Hamill Vs. Michael Bisping
(Michael Bisping wins via split decision)

RESULTS: Wow before the fight Hamill looked like he was in great shape. Bisping looked a bit smaller. I wonder if all the media and attention got to him pre fight. Maybe to much confidence. This fight ended up being rather controversial with even the London crowd sending out some boos when the winner was announced. This and back and forth with Hamill dominating alot with stand up and take downs. Bisping had a few moments, but nothing extreme enough to think he would wind up the winner. I think Hamill learned a lesson in this fight that he better not let the judges score one more of his fights. Bisping thought he won because after it he didn’t seem to be to surprised at the announcement.

Bisping showed a lot of energy and striking against Elvis in UFC 70. Elvis seemed to get him in trouble a couple of times and caught him with that knee, but Bisping showed spirit and pounded out a victory. Hamill has little experience in the octagon and claims his fame from the reality show Ultimate Fighter. Although he is powerful and can fight at the UFC level I am not sure if he will slip out a win on Bisping. I am going to go with the favorite on this one and say that Bisping will win via decision.

Mirko Cro Cop Vs. Cheick Kongo
(Kongo wins via unanimous decision)

RESULTS: Mirko came out in the beginning hard and pissed. Stalking Kongo the whole time with force and strikes. I thought this was pretty much how it would go, but then in Round two Kongo got dominate and Mirko seemed to shrivel away into survival mode. Really weird because Mirko didn’t seem to be tired.

Mirko is mad. That should be his new name. This guy does not want to end his career with a knockout like he just got in his last fight. It usually takes two or three good fights to erase one like that so I think this dude is going to come with a vengeance. Kongo is good, but I think we will see the Mirko of old show up at this fight and be nothing short of spectacular. Maybe it is the PRIDE fan in me, but I think it will happen. No comparisons, just a quick win for Mirko via TKO in the second.

Marcus Davis Vs. Paul Taylor
(Marcus Davis wins via submission with an armbar)

RESULTS: Marcus came out hard, but Paul dazed him good and tried to finish with a flurry on the ground it was so close to being stopped, but Davis got back his composure somewhat and still took a bit longer to really get it back and then right after he got Taylor’s back they rolled out and Davis shot his leg around in front of Taylors face to cinch in the armbar. Pretty good comeback to witness. Davis is a tough guy.

Marcus Davis is a lot of muscle to put on this ole Brit Taylor, but Taylor is known for his cardio. I am sure Davis will have a knock out strategy like he did in the last fight and might get one over on this guy. I think with these fighters two styles I would have to go with Davis getting a decision win.

Houston Alexander Vs. Alessio Sakara
(Alexander wins via TKO with strikes)

RESULTS: WOW, Alexander is for REAL! Came out and blew this guy up. I was glad because we got to see him on his back and saw his guard and how easy he fights to get back up. I don’t know who he is gonna fight next but I feel sorry for the guy. I mean I don’t know what Alexander needs to work on for the next fight, but maybe to try to get a TKO within under a minute next time? TKO at 1:01 in the first round. WOW! He also gave a hard shout out to MMAJunkie.com at the end. Givin props to the sponsors, cool guy.

I can’t wait to see Alexander again along with everyone else that saw him knock Keith Jardine out. This dude had an answer for everything and blasted him several times. It looked like the GSP Vs. Serra fight and the crowd had the same reaction when it happened. Alexander will have to prove on this fight that he wasn’t a fluke and win this one. I don’t think he needs to knock him out, but if he wins this he will make an instant jump into the upper tier in the UFC lightheavy weight division. This would be one of the quickest jumps to the top for a no-name fighter to take in UFC history. Alexander wins by TKO in the third round.