UFC Welterweight Rankings

Fighters Only Magazine reports that British welterweight fighter Dan Hardy will face off against Korean fighter Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 105.

Hardy, the Team Rough House trained fighter is 3-0 in the UFC including wins over Rory Markham and Marcus Davis.

Kim is also 3-0 with one no contest to his credit.

This should be a solid bout if it comes to fruition.

UFC 105 will take place November 14th and will air on SPIKE.  Stay tuned as more fight announcements are made.  It is expected that several other British fighters will be on the card including Paul Taylor, Nick Oscipzak, John Hathaway, and even Marcus Davis is possible.

UFC 100 is this weekend and it is being marketed, justifiably so, as the biggest UFC to date. It estimated that over 1.3 million people will buy this event on pay-per-view this weekend, which would make it the most watched UFC pay-per-view of all time. I will definitely be watching this pay-per-view and if any of you had seen my previous blog layout, you will know that I was using the poster above as the custom header of my blog, which shows just how excited I am about this event. If you’re looking for some great fights this Saturday, you should definitely check this event out or give me a call. Now onto my preview and predictions for all 11 fights on UFC 100, which will be quite lengthy so feel free to skim.

Main Card Bouts:

Undisputed Heavyweight (206-265 lb) Championship: Brock Lesnar (3-1 Overall, 2-1 in UFC) vs. Frank Mir (12-3 Overall, 10-3 in UFC)

This is the main event of the evening as Heavyweight Champ Brock Lesnar who recently TKO’d MMA legend, Randy Couture at UFC 91 in the 2nd Round to gain the title takes on Interim Heavyweight Champ (2 Heavyweight Champs? I know, long story..) Frank Mir who recently TKO’d another MMA legend, in Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 92 also in the 2nd Round to gain his title. This is a huge bout between 2 men who may not be in the best heavyweights in the world (that distinction belongs to Fedor Emelianenko, who isn’t in the UFC), but are probably two of the top 5 heavyweights. These two men have history as at UFC 81 in Feb. of 2008, they faced off. It was Brock Lesnar’s debut in the UFC and his 2nd fight overall. In that fight Brock Lesnar was putting a beating on Frank Mir in the first minute of the fight before Mir caught Lesnar in a kneebar submission to escape with the victory. Ever since Lesnar has been claiming that he made a mistake and has been clamoring for a rematch, while Mir has been talking a whole lot of trash about Lesanr, which brings us to this epic rematch.

I honestly don’t know who is gonna win this fight. Lesnar has shown great improvement in his last 2 fights against Herring and Couture. He was able to use his lunchboxes for hands to pound both men. Mir displayed greatly improved boxing in his last fight against Nogueira, and his jiu-jitsu is top notch. I see this fight coming down to Lesnar’s strength and great wrestling vs. Mir’s improved Muay Thai and great jiu-jitsu. Mir is a threat to Lesnar in every area of the fight, standing and on the ground, yet I believe Lesnar can win this rematch if he’s patient on the feet and lands one of his huge fists on Mir’s chin. I believe Lesnar’s rapid improvement will shine through as he keeps this fight on the feet and takes down Mir sporadically. He will drag this fight into the later rounds where Mir’s suspect cardio and inability to deal with punishment will fail him. Prediction: Brock Lesnar 3rd Round TKO

Welterweight (156-170 lb) Championship: Georges St-Pierre (18-2 Overall, 12-2 in UFC) vs. Thiago Alves (22-4 Overall, 9-2 in UFC)

This is the co-main event of the evening and a fight I am very excited to see. Georges St-Pierre who has looked like the prototype for the new wave of MMA takes on a guy who has looked like a killer in his last few fights in Thiago Alves. This is arguably the toughest fight of St-Pierre’s career as Alves is a vicious Muay Thai striker unlike anyone St-Pierre has ever faced. St-Pierre is quoted as saying something along the lines of, “when you face a guy like Thiago, you’re not only afraid to lose, you’re afraid to get HURT,” which is what he has done to his last few opponents. Alves is no pushover as he is very legitimate threat to St-Pierre. Despite all this, I still think this is St-Pierre’s fight to win. I feel he can win this fight on the feet or on the ground. St-Pierre comes from a great camp and I believe his strategy will be to stay out of Alves’ range on the feet as St-Pierre will have the longer reach, and when St-Pierre is in close he will smother Alves against the fence and put his ass on the ground. Once St-Pierre is on top of you, its over as he has some of the most smothering, devastating top games in MMA. Alves only chance will be to use his great takedown defense to keep the fight on its feet and knock out St-Pierre. I don’t see that happening. Prediction: Georges St-Pierre 4th Round TKO

Middleweight (171-185 lbs) Bout: Dan Henderson (24-7 Overall, 4-2 in UFC) vs. Michael Bisping (18-1 Overall, 7-1 in UFC)

In a bout that is the other co-main event of the evening, The Ultimate Fighters coaches from the last season of the reality show collide as Team USA’s head coach and former Pride Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Champion Dan Henderson takes on Team UK’s head coach and Ultimate Fighter Season 3 Light Heavyweight Winner Michael Bisping. If Bisping wins this bout he will get a title shot at Middleweight Champ, Anderson Silva in Manchester, England. Henderson is a legend in the sport who possesses Olympic caliber wrestling and huge right hand. Bisping is a solid all-around fighter who hasn’t broken to the next level in the sport, yet. Bisping is a huge underdog in this fight, as Henderson has taken on and beaten most of the best fighers in the game. Henderson has never been knocked out, yet Bisping claims to be the first guy to do it on the 11th. For Henderson to win he’s gonna have to do what he always does and make this an ugly fight. He will have clinch with Bisping, dirty box him, pound him on the ground and just make it an all out brawl. Bisping will have to stick and move, circle to his right to avoid Henderson’s big punch, and scramble back to his feet if he gets taken down. I don’t see Bisping knocking out Henderson, but I do see this as his breakout performance as he puts a striking clinic on Henderson en route to a decision victory. Prediction: Michael Bisping Unanimous Decision

Welterweight (156-170 lb) Bout: Jon Fitch (22-3 1 NC Overall, 9-1 in UFC) vs. Paulo Thiago (11-0 Overall, 1-0 in UFC)

Former Welterweight Title Challenger Jon Fitch looks to avenge the loss his teammate, Josh Koscheck suffered to Paulo Thiago. Thiago knocked out Koscheck with a huge uppercut, but before that he was getting his ass kicked on the feet. Thiago supposedly has great jiu-jitsu, but we have yet to see it in the UFC. I see this fight only going one way, Fitch mauling Thiago throughout the fight. Fitch will put Thiago on the ground up against the fence and put a beatdown on him to show that Thiago’s last win was the closest thing to a fluke that you will see. Prediction: Jon Fitch Unanimous Decision

Middleweight (171-185 lb) Bout: Yoshihiro Akiyama (12-2 2 NC Overall, UFC Debut) vs. Alan Belcher (14-5 Overall, 5-3 in UFC)

Yoshihiro Akiyama makes his highly anticipated UFC debut. You may not know him, but this man is hugely popular in both South Korea and Japan. He’s loved in South Korea as he is a native Korean and is known as “Sexyama”, and hated in Japan as he allegedly cheated in defeating a Japansese legend. Some say he hasn’t been the same since his knockout loss to Misaki over in Japan, but he’ll need to be at the top of his game against Alan Belcher who has already spoiled the debut of Denis Kang back at UFC 93. Akiyama has Olympic-level Judo and pretty good power in his hands while Belcher has pretty good Muay Thai and decent submissions. Fighters that have fought over in Japan and transitioned to the UFC haven’t fared well, and Belcher has already spoiled one Korean’s debut. I see Belcher pulling off the upset as he lures Akiyama into a kickboxing bout. Prediction: Alan Belcher 1st Round TKO 

Undercard Bouts:

Light Heavyweight (186-205 lb) Bout: Mark Coleman (15-9 Overall, 6-4 in UFC) vs. Stephan Bonnar (14-5 Overall, 5-4 in UFC)

UFC Hall of Famer and MMA Legend Mark Coleman takes on hugely popular Stephan Bonnar. This fight is a gimme for Bonnar. The only way I see Coleman winning is by wrestling Bonnar to the mat and holding him there for 3 rounds. That won’t happen though as Coleman has always had suspect cardio, plus at 44 years old he is on the wrong side of Father Time. Bonnar wrecks Coleman standing up before submitting him in the 2nd round. Prediction: Stephan Bonnar 2nd Round Submission-Rear Naked Choke

Lightweight (146-155 lb) Bout: Mac Danzig (19-6-1 Overall, 2-2 in UFC) vs. Jim Miller (13-2 Overall, 2-1 in UFC)

Ultimate Fighter Season 6 Winner Mac Danzig takes on the tough, scrappy Jim Miller in a bout in which both men are desperate to win. Both men are coming of losses, but Danzig will most likely be cut from the UFC is he loses this fight which would be his 3rd in a row. The UFC is certainly not doing Danzig any favors here as Miller is tough fighter and a decent prospect in the Lightweight Division. Miller certainly has the same sort of relentless style that trouble Danzig in his last two fights against Guida and Neer. Despite this, I see Danzig rising to the occasion in this fight and barely defeating Miller. Prediction: Mac Danzig Split Decision

Light Heavyweight (186-205 lb) Bout: Jon Jones (8-0 Overall, 2-0 in UFC) vs. Jake O’Brien (11-2 Overall, 4-2 in UFC)

This is a fight I’m really looking forward to and hope we get to see on the pay-per-view this Saturday. Mark my words, I believe Jon Jones will eventually be UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and might be the guy to defeat Lyoto Machida. I believe he is that good and is one of the more exciting prospects to come along in the Light Heavyweight Division. His arsenal of unorthodox strikes such as spinning back elbows, spinning back kicks, and side kicks combined with his top notch Greco-Roman throws make him extremely exciting to watch. Jake O’Brien has pretty decent boxing and good wrestling, but this fight is tailor-made for Jones. I see a spectacular, dominating victory for Jones here. Prediction: Jon Jones 1st Round TKO

Welterweight (156-170 lb) Bout: Dong Hyun Kim (11-0-1 1 NC Overall, 2-0 1 NC in UFC) vs. TJ Grant (14-2 Overall, 1-0 in UFC)

South Korea’s own Dong Hyun Kim takes on the Canadian TJ Grant. Kim was a pretty good looking prospect coming out of South Korea with his debut win over Jason Tan back at UFC 84, but he has looked less than impressive in his last two fights against Matt Brown and Karo Parisyan. He was able to destroy a lower-level fighter like Tan, but hasn’t look good when he’s stepped up in competiton. Despite this he’ s still undefeated and will be taking on a tough wrestler/BJJ guy in TJ Grant who’s coming off a good win over Ryo Chonan at UFC 97. Like I said, Kim has struggled against upper-tier opponents, but I don’t believe Grant is a top-tier guy. I see Kim using his judo well enough to stay on top of Grant in a ground battle. Prediction: Dong Hyun Kim Unanimous Decision

Middleweight (171-185 lb) Bout: CB Dollaway (8-1 Overall, 2-1 in UFC) vs. Tom Lawlor (5-1 1 NC Overall, 1-0 in UFC)

Ultimate Fighter Season 7 Runner-up CB Dollaway takes on another TUF Alumnus in Tom Lawlor. This will be Lawlor’s first fight at 185 in the UFC as he previously fought at 205. Lawlor didn’t impress me too much on the Ultimate Fighter, but neither did Dollaway. With that said, I feel Dollaway will be too athletic with wrestling and striking for Lawlor en route to a victory. Prediction: CB Dollaway 1st Round Submission Peruvian Neck-Tie

Lightweight (146-155 lb) Bout: Matt Grice (10-2 Overall, 1-2 in UFC) vs. Shannon Gugerty (11-3 Overall, 1-1 in UFC)

In the first bout of the evening Matt Grice takes on Shannon Gugerty in a bout in which the loser will probably be cut from the UFC. Grice is a relentless type of wrestler who is always coming forward while I have to admit I still don’t know too much about Gugerty other than he tapped Dale Hartt back at a UFC Fight Night. I’ve seen Grice fight a few times, and I believe his style is very enjoyable to watch. Based off that and nothing else really, I pick Grice to win. Prediction: Matt Grice 2nd Round TKO

-Tony K

UFC 100 is being billed as the biggest martial arts event in history. On Saturday two UFC titles will be up for grabs. On top of that many entertaining fights will take place. There are not many mixed amrtial events which offer 3 main events which could carry a card alone.  However, UFC 100 will feature a trio of headline-worthy bouts including Lesnar vs. Mir 2, St. Pierre vs. Alves and Henderson vs. Bisping.  The UFC has intentionally put together a significant card to celebrate the 100th UFC. On paper this event should not disappoint and should garner great numbers. The event will air on pay-per view on Saturday July 11th and 9:30 P.M. EST.

Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir

This fight is title unification bout.  Brock Lesnar defeated Randy Couture at UFC 91 to earn the UFC Heavyweight title.  Frank Mir defeated Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 92 to earn the Interim UFC Heavyweight title.  Not only is this a title fight, but it is a re-match.  Brock Lesnar’s UFC debut was a fight he lost to Frank Mir by knee bar in the first round.  The fight was not without controversy though.  Lesnar knocked Mir down with a punch early and got on him and pounded away with hammerfists, but referee Steve Mazzagatti mysteriously stood the fight up citing hits to the back of the head.  The fight went to the ground again where Mir secured a tight knee bar forcing Lesnar to tap. 
This is still an interesting fight. Mir is the more experienced fighter and most assuridly has the better submissions. Lesnar will be the bigger, stronger and more athletic of the two fighters. Several questions come into play when determining how this fight will pan out. First, will Lesnar show continued improvement? Lesnar has shown constant improvement since his UFC debut. There is no doubt he is a better fighter than when he first fought Mir. The question really is not his striking or takedown ability, but rather his submission defense. Has Lesnar learned to avoud submissions? I would say he has. He has a great trainer in Nelson. He has good jiu jitsu trainers and is rumored to be greatly improved on the ground. We will see.
Second, can Mir avoid the big strikes of Lesnar? All it takes is one punch by Lesnar to end the fight. Mir showed great striking improvement against Nogueira, but Nogueira doesn’t hit as hard as Lesnar. I would say that Mir can handle his own on his feet, but no matter what Lesnar is more dangerous when the fight is standing.
Third, where will this fight take place. Mir needs the fight to go to the ground. However, Lesnar’s wrestling ability gives him the likely advantage to dictate where the fight takes place. If Lesnar takes Mir down (which he can whenever he wants) then he becomes vulnerable to Mir’s submissions. If it stands Lesnar has a better chance.
Fourth, where is Mir’s heart and mind? I give major props to Mir for his legendary climb back to the top following a potentially career-ending injury, however the question with Mir has always been the mental game. Right now he appears ready, determined and focused, which can be dangerous for Lesnar. However, what will be Mir’s state of mind come Saturday? Will he show the same heart he has shown of late? Or will he be the Frank Mir who lost to Marcio Cruz and Brandon Vera? If I was advising Mir I would be a little concerned with his apparent cockiness. He talks in interviews as though he dominated Lesnar is their last fight. I do not think think that was the case. I also do not think that it is a good idea to anger someone of Lesnar’s size.
I am not a Lesnar fan by any stretch of the imagination, however I think that he is so big and strong that it will pose major problems for Mir.
Prediction: Lesnar by TKO round 2.

Georges St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves

Georges St. Pierre will look to defend his title once again against Thiago Alves.  St. Pierre has looked better and better as his career has gone on.  He is a complete fighter.  He has shown great stand up skills, competent jiu jitsu, phenomenal wrestling, etc.  St. Pierre is the prototype of the next generation fighter.  He will get his toughest test against Thiago Alves.  It is very tough to bet against St. Pierre right now.  Greasegate aside, he looked dominant against B.J. Penn at UFC 94 and before that against Jon Fitch. 
Alves is a a phenomenal muay thai based fighter with great stand up skills.  He has great kicks and great knees.  He has shown against the likes of Matt Hughes and Karo Parisyan that he can knock anyone out.  He has also shown the ability to avoid takedowns like he did against Josh Koscheck.  Alves is a big welterweight and this may be the first time we see GSP fight a much larger guy.  Alves is most assuridly deserving of this title shot.  I will be curious about Alves’ cardio and conditioning if he is taken into the championship rounds.  He has shown a struggle to make weight so hopefully he is well prepared.
I believe that is GSP has shown a weakness it is that he can be knocked out. I have struggled with this fight prediction because I do think that Alves could give GSP a problem. I would give Alves the advantage standing up. However, on the ground GSP can work submissions, knees to the body, and some ground and pound. St. Pierre has shown that he can pass the guard of the best grapplers. Alves’ best chance comes with a well placed knee or kick. If he lands it he must learn from Serra and not let GSP recover. I would not have a heart attack if Alves TKO’s “Rush”. However, right now the smart money is on St. Pierre. I think Georges has more ways to win. I also believe his biggest advantage will be in game planning. St. Pierre is a master at finding a good game plan and following it through perfectly.

Prediction: St. Pierre by submission in round 4.

Dan Henderson vs. Michael Bisping
This is a match where the two Ultimate Fighter 9 coaches finally square off. There is a little bit of bad blood, but the animosity is not great in this one. Don’t get me wrong they want to beat each other up and things have been said, but this is not a case of Tito vs. Shamrock of Hughes vs. Serra. However, this is a case of two proud fighters squaring off and in some ways representing their respective nations.

Bisping is the pride of U.K. mixed martial arts. He has shot to stardom since winning the Ultimate Fighter 3. He has even looked better since he dropped down a weight class into the middleweight division. It is no secret that a win over Henderson will guarantee Bisping a title shot, most likely before the year is over and most likely in England. Therefore for Bisping this is a big fight.
Dan Henderson is one of the legends of the sport. He has huge wins in his career. He is a two time former PRIDE champion. He is a former U.S. Olympian. He has a powerful right hand that has knocked out guys like Wanderlei Silva.
I think these are two well match fighters, but I think one danger for Dan Henderson is his cardio. He knows that. I think this fight will go all three rounds. Henderson simply has more skills right now. It is hard to pick against Henderson if we go by the careers so far. Henderson by far has the mroe storied career. However, the other question with the Team Quest fighter is his age. Can he still do it at 38 or 39 years old?  I think he can.  He wants another shot at Silva and a win over Bisping is essential for him if he is to get that shot. 

Prediction: Dan Henderson by Split Decision

Jon Fitch vs. Paulo Thiago

This fight is much less complicated than the other before it.  The question that dominates this fight is: was Paulo Thiago a one hit wonder? He holds a big knockout over Josh Koscheck and following that win he ascended into most top 10 rankings for the welterweight division.  I have to say that prior to the blow that took out Koscheck I was not impressed with Thiago.  His striking looked very, very elementary.  Obviously, he packs some power, but he did look to be getting picked apart in that fight.  I am not suggesting that Thiago is a scrub, I am just saying what we have seen of him was not that impressive besides a knockout punch.

Jon Fitch is a concensus top 3 welterweight in the world.  He is one tough dude who gained tons of respect for the heart he showed in his decision loss to Georges St. Pierre.  Prior to his loss to GSP, Fitch won 8 fights in a row to begin his UFC career, tying a UFC record held by Royce Gracie.  Among those wins were victories over Brock Larson, Thiago Alves, Josh Burkman, and Diego Sanchez.  One of the stories going into this fight is that Fitch will look to avenge a loss that Koscheck, his American Kickboxing Academy teammate took at the hands of Thiago. 

I just cannot pick Thiago in this fight.  Fitch is way too well rounded, tough and talented.  He always has a punchers chance, but I doubt Fitch will make the same mistakes as Koscheck.  I’d like to see Fitch finish a fight and he very well may do it here, although percentage wise he will go the distance.

Prediction: Fitch by unanimous decision

Alan Belcher vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama

The last bout on the main card may not sound all too appealing to casual fans, but the UFC debut of Yoshihiro Akiyama is a huge event.  Akiyama is one of the most popular fighters in Japan.  The Korean fighter who was born in Japan is exciting and talented.  He will come into the UFC with a great judo pedigree.  Many people feel that Akiyama can contend for a title and he will enter his first bout with a lot of hype surrounding him.  He has definite knockout power, however 7 of his 12 wins have come by way of submission.  Dave Meltzer suggests that Akiyama’s carreer was really ruined by an illegal kick he received to the head by Kazuo Misaki.  A win here would be huge for Akiyama.  The UFC would certainly liked to see Akiyama do well as they expand into international markets.  Akiyama would be a huge draw in the Asian market.  However, he has to get past Belcher before we can talk about that.

Alan Belcher seems to be a guinea pig who the UFC keeps feeding debuting fighters.  Belcher derailed the debut of Denis Kang at UFC 93 and now he hopes to do the same to Akiyama.  Belcher is well-rounded, but certainly excels in muay thai.  Belcher’s problem (besides his horrible Johnny Cash tattoo) is consistency.  He goes from beating Jorge Santiago to losing to Jason Day. 

Prediction: Akiyama by submission in round 2

Mark Coleman vs. Stephan Bonnar

This light heavyweight bout is one that many people thought could have made it onto the main card, however this will indeed be a prelim fight. 

Mark Coleman, the 44 UFC legend and Hall of Famer will look to rebound from a loss to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.  Coleman has a storied career that he is looking to buil upon.  He is looking to show that even at his age he cans till fight.   He earned the reputation of the being the “godfather of ground and pound” in the early days of the UFC.   He has been in there with some of the best throughout his career. 

Stephan Bonnar gained fame on the first season of the Ultimate Fighter and especially in his classic fight with Forrest Griffin at the finale.  Bonnar is a well roudned guy who is not afraid to brawl.  He too is coming off of a loss to rising star Jon Jones. 

I think this could be a bad match for Coleman.  I look for him to have a better showing, but for his cardio to still be a problem.  I think Bonnar needs this win too badly. 

Prediction: Bonnar by TKO in round 3

Mac Danzig vs. Jim Miller

I don’t like this match up.  I mean, I like it, but it is bad for one of these guys.  Danzig has lost two in a row and Miller is coming off of a loss to Maynard at UFC 96.  The loser of this fight is really in trouble, especially if it is Danzig.

Danzig is the Ultimate Fighter 6 winner.  He looked really good to start his UFC career, but losses to Clay Guida and Josh Neer have really set him back.  Danzig is a very well roudned fighter who has shown great improvement, however he has had some bad breaks inside the cage. 

Jim Miller, the former Virginia Tech wrestler and IFL veteran is also coming off of a loss.  He is a great prospect and very well could be a household name one day.  He has really good cardio and good submission skills. 

I think Danzig will have too much to loose in this one.  I predict this to be fight of the night as neither fighter will quit easily.

Prediction: Danzig by decision

Jon Jones vs. Jake O’Brien

While Jon Jones has a lot of hype, let’s not sleep on Jake O’Brien.  O’Brien has had a solid UFC career so far.  His only losses have come to Andrei Arlovski and Cain Velasquez.  I don’t think the ceiling is as high for O’Brien, but he certainly is no push over. 

“Irish” Jake O’Brien is a very good wrestler who has shown good grappling skills.  He has also shown that he can be outwrestled.  However, that was in the heavyweight division.  O’Brien made a wise choice droping to 205 lbs and should be bigger than most guys.  However, he will fight a big light heavyweight in Jon Jones who is rumored to have the longest reach in the UFC. 

Jon Jones was impressive in his wins over Andre Gusmao and Stephan Bonnar.  He showed great creativity, good throws and greco-Roman wrestling skills, good striking ability, and a great clinch game.  Many forget that Jones has just been training mixed martial arts for a little over a year.  Guys like Franklin McNeil have said that one day Jones could challenge Machida and is a bad style match-up for the UFC light heavyweight champion. 

I look for Jones to utilize the clinch like he did with Bonnar and dominate O’Brien from there. 

Prediction: Jones by Decision

Dong Hyun Kim vs. T.J. Grant

I think this is a very interesting bout.  Perhaps one that will slip through the cracks. 

Dong Hyun Kim lost a razor close decision to Karo Parisyan at UFC 94, but the loss was overturned following Karo’s positive steroid test.  Therefore, Kim, the Korean welterweight is still undefeated.  Kim showed against Karo that he can hang with the big boys.  He has shown that he can be an exciting fighter.  He has good ground and pound and he is very big and strong. 

T.J. Grant won his UFC debut against Ryo Chonan.  Grant is a great well-roudned fighter who ends most of his fights by submission.  I would expect Grant to take Kim down and look for submissions.  If Kim is to win this fight he needs to avoid the submissions of the Gurgel trained Canadian. 

Prediction: Kim by Split Decision

C.B. Dolloway vs. Tom Lawlor

C.B. Dolloway came onto the scene via the Ultimate Fighter 7 where he was the runner-up.  He has since inked wins over Jesse Taylor and Mike Massenzio.  Dolloway is widely regarded as a solid prospect.  He has very good striking mixed with above average submissions.  The former Arizona State all-american wrestler will have a definite wrestling advantage.  Dolloway also has great training at Arizona Combat Sports where he trains under the Lally brothers with guys like Ryan Bader, Carlos Condit, Jamie Varner, and Aaron Simpson. 

Tom Lawlor followed Dolloway on the Ultimate Fighter season 8 where he fought as a light heavyweight.  Lawlor lost on the show to eventual winner and teammate of C.B. Dolloway, Ryan Bader.  Lawlor perhaps games the most fame for knocking out Dave Kaplan inside the house upon Kaplan’s request.  Lawlor won his fight at the Ultimate Fighter finale against Kyle Kingsbury and will look to make it two in a row.  The American Top Team fighter will be the underdog in this one.

I honestly think C.B. is a really good fighter and an solid up and comer.  If he can deal with Lawlor’s size and avoid submissions (he has shown a weakness in submission defense) he should be able to use his wrestling to win the fight. 

Prediction: C.B. “The Doberman” Dolloway by decision

Matt Grice vs. Shannon Gugerty

Matt Grice is coming off of a disappointing loss to Matt Veach.  I honestly do not know why the UFC has kept him round.  Grice is a tough guy who has good skills, but he has struggled in the UFC.

Gugerty has faired slightly better in the octagon and his submission skills should be enough to earn him a victory.

Prediction: Gugerty by submission in round 2.

When there are UFC events, I’m going to do short previews for every single fight on the card individually. It’ll be a great chance to try and get to know the lesser known guys that fill out the spaces in the PPV shows that are created after quick stoppages. Sometimes, they make the PPV worth the buy.

TJ “No Gimmick” Grant (14-2) vs. Dong Hyun “Stun Gun” Kim (11-0-1-1)

Welterweights

Kim’s last 2 fights have been extremely close. He won a close decision against Matt Brown at UFC 88 and lost a close decision to Karo Parisyan at UFC 94. Luckily, Parisyan was on some illegeal meds during the fight and the loss was wiped clean from his record. Fun fact: Kim is the first Korean to ever win a fight in the UFC. This was made possible by MASH.

TJ Grant is a young Canadian who won his UFC debut at UFC 97 against Ryo Chonan. He is a Novia Scotian Jiu-Jitsu practioner. For more information on Mr. Grant, check out his Facebook page, eh.

New MMAPlanet Welterweight Rankings:

Others Considered: Chris Wilson, Frank Trigg, Paul Daley, Ben Saunders

Note: Frank Trigg may climb into the rankings with a good showing in his wleterweight debut.  Diego Sanchez is no longer ranked among the welterweight due to his drop to lightweight.

MMAWeekly is reporting that a weleterweight bout is nearing finalization between T.J. Grant and Dong Hyun Kim.  Originally, Dong Hyun Kim was set to face Canadian fighter Jonathan Goulet at the historic UFC 100, but Goulet was forced with withdraw due to a shoulder injury.  Meanwhile, T.J. Grant was expecting to face Rory Markham at Saturday’s Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale.  Markham also was forced off the card due to an injury. 

The UFC has decided to pit the two welterweights against one another at July 11th’s UFC 100 on the preliminary card. 

Kim is a strong Korean fighter who is 2-0-1 in the UFC.  He debuted at UFC 94 with an impressive win over Jason Tan, which he followed with a split decision win over Matt Brown.  At UFC 94, however Kim lost a split decision to Karo Parisyan which was later overturned into a no-contest. 

T.J. Grant (14-2) is a talented Canadian prospect who is 1-0 in the UFC with a big win over Ryo Chonan at UFC 97.

Few days into the aftermath of what started out as a pretty awful card and only picked up after the Machida knockout (seriously), seems that much of the talk is about vaselinegate, but even if what happened was done deliberately, could Penn have come back from there at all? I’m not sure. The way the fight went, Penn didn’t look like he had any realistic way to keep the fight standing from round 2 onwards, and GSP was controlling ridiculously from the top, any extra grip that Penn might have had from the back seems to be of very limited use.

As for how the fight actually went down, St. Pierre looked slightly better in most areas in the first, but didn’t do anything to really punctuate it. Penn’s takedown defence was useful enough here, but a 10-9 first round. Second round was far more one-sided, and his ability to inflict damage and pass on top against someone with Penn’s BJJ skills was really impressive. 10-9 again, nearly 10-8 but that’d probably be a stretch. Third was another clear St. Pierre round, not as emphatic with less damage sustained by Penn, who by now was offering little. Fourth round was 10-8 imo though, GSP ran him over to the point where Herb Dean nearly stopped it, and wouldn’t have been at fault if he did, as Penn had no way to win.

Machida – Silva was a mismatch. Silva was picked apart by Machida’s counterpunching, twice being knocked down before being KO’ed at the buzzer. Someone give this guy a title shot already. Would be hilarious if he had to wait behind Jardine should he somehow beat Rampage.

Jones – Bonnar wasn’t a terrible fight compared to the first two, the first round was (at the time) easily the best round of the fight with Jones winning it clearly, using nice unorthodox striking, good takedowns, scoring a high quality knockdown and nailing a good knee to boot. Second round I also scored to Jones but it was much more even, with Bonnar coming back with good striking later in the round, and there were hints that Jones might have been tiring. As such, Bonnar took the third (but lost the fight 29-28 on my card), was much better standing, and when Jones took Bonnar down he wasn’t able to do much, with Bonnar looking closer to finishing the fight via triangle.

Prior to that we had two instantly forgetable fights, Karo Parisyan edging a very close 29-28 decision over Dong Hyun Kim which highlighted some of the flaws of the ten-point must system in a fight with few rounds, with him taking the first easily with superior positioning and control, threatening subs and doing some damage. Parisyan was much improved in the second with Kim not offering much at all, and he just took the third in a very close and dull round. I think the right result here would be a draw (but not a draw that necessitates a rematch) but Karo’s two rounds outweigh Kim’s much clearer first round.

Clay Guida – Nate Diaz was similar, I had Guida taking the first two but Diaz the third. Diaz looked to have a slight but noticable striking advantage, but after a takedown Guida’s solid ground game was enough. Second was much slower and duller, with Guida controlling an extended grappling session, barring brief sub attempts from Diaz. Diaz took the third by doing enough in early striking but nobody really cared by that point.

A potentially good card that went down the toilet quickly, rescued by two interesting if unbalanced fights. And they really need to stop referring to the penultimate fight as the co-main event regardless of what the fights are. It implies they are on the same billing, and if anyone thinks Machida/Silva is as important as St. Pierre/Penn 2, I want some of what they are smoking.

The Champion: Georges St. Pierre

The Top Contender:  B.J. Penn & Thiago Alves

The Next Tier:

·         Jon Fitch

·         Josh Koscheck

·         Diego Sanchez

·         Karo Parisyan

·         Martin Kampmann

·         Mike Swick

·         Matt Hughes

·         Matt Serra

On the Rise: 

·         Yoshiyuki Yoshida

·         Dong Hyun Kim

·         Dan Hardy

·         Dustin Hazelett

Other Notables:

·         Marcus Davis

·         Chris Lytle

·         Yoshiyuki Yoshida

·         Chris Wilson

·         Dustin Hazelett

·         Ryo Chonan

·         Dong Hyun Kim

·         Akihiro Gono

·         Luigi Fiorvanti

·         Dan Hardy

·         Jonathan Goulet

·         Tamdan McCrory

·         Kevin Burns

·         Anthony Johnson

·         Rory Markham

·         Paul Taylor

·         Roan Carneiro

·         Brad Blackburn

·         Pete Sell

Scheduled Fights:

·         Josh Koscheck vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida at UFC Fight Night 16 on December 10

·         Mike Swick vs. Jonathan Goulet at UFC Fight Night 16 on December 10

·         Luigi Fiorvanti vs. Brodie Farber at UFC Fight Night 16 on December 10

·         Ben Saunders vs. Brandon Wolff at UFC Fight Night 16 on December 10

·         Steven Bruno vs. Johnny Rees at UFC Fight Night 16 on December 10

·         Anthony Johnson vs. Kevin Burns at TUF 8 Finale on December 13

·         Brad Blackburn vs. Ryo Chonan at UFC 92 on December 27

·         Marcus Davis vs. Chris Lytle at UFC 93 on January 17

·         B.J. Penn vs. Georges St. Pierre at UFC 94 on January 31 (For Title)

·         Jon Fitch vs. Akihiro Gono at UFC 94 on January 31

·         Karo Parisyan vs. Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 94 on January 31

·         Matt Arroyo vs. Dan Cramer at UFC 94 on January 31

·         Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra April 2009

Match Ups I’d Like to See:

·         Dustin Hazelett vs. Chris Wilson

·         Martin Kampmann vs. Pete Sell

·         Thiago Alves vs. Georges St. Pierre/B.J. Penn

Other Thoughts:

·         When people talk about staked divisions they think of the UFC welterweight division.  The best welterweights are here.  There may be a handful of decent welterweights outside the UFC including Jake Shields, WEC’s Carlos Condit, Hayato Sakurai, Jay Hieron and Nick Thompson.

·         Jake Shields will likely land in the UFC.  That is what he wants and where he wants to be.  There are a lot of potential match ups here for him.

·         Thiago Alves will get a title shot in 2009 against the winner of Penn vs. St. Pierre.

·         Martin Kampmann signed a new contract and should fight at 170

·         B.J. Penn very well could become a fixture at 170 as he could vacate his lightweight title win or lose against St. Pierre.

Chuck Liddell – $500,000

Dan Henderson – $250,000

Rashad Evans – $180,000 (Includes $60,000 KO of the Night Bonus and $60,000 win bonus)

Jason MacDonald – $104,000 (Includes $60,000 Submission of the Night Bonus)

Rich Franklin – $100,000

Kurt Pellegrino – $84,000 (Includes $60,000 Fight of the Night Bonus)

Thiago Tavares – $73,000 (Includes $60,000 Fight of the Night Bonus)

Nate Marquardt -$56,000

Dong Hyun Kim – $46,000

Ryo Chonan – $30,000

Jason Lambert – $17,000

Tim Boetsch – $16,000

Martin Kampmann – $15,000

Matt Hamill – $10,000

Roan Carneiro – $9,000

Matt Brown – $8,000

Rousimar Palhares – $7,000

Mike Patt – $5,000

Quick Results:

Rashad Evans def. Chuck Liddell by KO in round 2

Rich Franklin def. Matt Hamill by TKO in round 3

Dan Henderson def. Rousimar Palhares by unanimous decision

Nate Marquardt def. Martin Kampmann by TKO in round 1

Dong Hyun Kim def. Matt Brown by split decision

Jason MacDonald def. Jason Lambert by submission in round 2

Tim Boetsh def. Mike Patt by TKO in round 1

Kurt Pellegrino def. Thiago Tavares by unanimous decision

Ryo Chonan def. Roan Carneiro by split decision

Fight of the Night: Kurt Pellegrino vs. Thiago Tavares

Submission of the Night: Jason MacDonald

Knockout of the Night: Rashad Evans

My Predictions: I went 6 of 9 (I missed the Rashad Evans vs. Chuck Liddell, Martin Kampmann vs. Nate Marquardt and Kurt Pellegrino vs. Thiago Tavares fights)

My Thoughts on UFC 88:

• Rashad Evans was impressive as heck.  I was utterly shocked.  I thought after round 1 Chuck would finish it.  Rashad looked good all round 2.  He was winning that fight even before the KO.  By the way, that was one of the most vicious KO’s I have ever seen in one punch.  That will be a highlight reel KO for years to come.  That will be knockout of the year candidate.  Rashad Evans showed he was no joke.  I don’t know if he deserves the title shot he was granted in December, but I won’t complain about it too badly.  I still think Machida deserves it.
• Rich Franklin is back.  I love Rich Franklin.  He is a class act fighter.  He is super talented and always improving.  His striking is world class.  He is a threat in the light heavyweight divison.  There are some guys he would lose to, but I think he would beat Forrest or Rashad right now.  I am glad to see him back on track.
• Matt Hamill looked good in the loss.  He showed he is improving his striking.  I think he still needs to rely on his bread and butter more of take downs and ground and pound, but he wants to show his striking.  Rich was just too experienced for him and found a weakness in his game and exploited it.  Hamill will be back and in my opinion he is still a top 15 light heavyweight.
• Dan Henderson looked alright, but nothing special.  I think that is because Palhares is that good.  Palhares has a solid chin and superior submissions.  Keep his name in mind because he will be back too.
• The most impressive performance to me was Nate Marquardt.  Nate has always had excellent grappling and submissions, but he showed versatile and skilled striking against a dangerous Kampmann.  He looked crisp and solid.  He is in the top heap at 185.  I’d love to see him fight Dan Henderson or Michael Bisping with the winner getting a title shot.  However, it may be that after Cote, Silva will get Okami.  Then Bisping is likely the next guy in line.  Then perhaps a re-match with Marquardt or Henderson. 
• Some people think Matt Brown should have gotten the decision over Dong Hyun Kim, but I don’t think so.  I think Kim won round 1 due to submission attempts and a near finish and I think he won round 3 due to the take downs and big elbows out the end.  I think Kim looked really good against a tough as nails Matt Brown who showed some improvement.  Kim is a contender at 170 and though many people think he shouldn’t have won, and though I am sure he would have rather finished the fight, a win is a win and he will climb the ladder.
• Tim Boetsh looked impressive against UFC newcomer Mike Patt, and I think if he can gain some cardio he can be a contender at 205.

Well deserved victory for Dong Hyun Kim.  He won the split decision by taking the first round and the third round.

Joe Rogan said he gave Matt the decision.  Unless the second round was scored 10-8 in favour of Matt Brown that idea is fanciful at best.

First, jesus, Khan got annihilated. I feel sorry for anyone that paid fifteen quid for that, it looked bad from the outset, with Audley “Borefest” Harrison giving us ten rounds of bollocks, then a fairly entertaining proper title match in between, before Khan lost within a minute. Oh well, it’s hard to judge how people do when they’ve not fought much anywhere you can get tape from, but that was destruction.

UFC 88 live: Kim looked to have much the better of the first, looked more likely to finish the fight, Brown did a bit better late but it seemed to not be enough, Brown took the second clearly enough, and the third was really close, but I gave it to Kim for a 29-28 card. A split decision looked correct, and I think Brown, despite being disappointed about losing the bout, can have some pride in his performance given the line, where people thought that Kim -450 was worth hitting. More to come via edits in theory

Marquardt – Kampmann: got to love Marquardt’s entrance music. Interested to see this matchup of two fighters that I saw live at UFC 85. WOW, awesome huge kick from Marquardt, then horrendously brilliant elbows from the clinch, and he’s able to finish not too long after. Jesus, that was quick.

Henderson – Palhares: looking forward to this, if Palhares can get this to the ground, he can dominate, but that’s a serious if imo. omg has ladies love cool james paid zuffa off? Big pops to Henderson prior to the fight. Cagey opening. Henderson catches him, Palhares unable to keep it on the ground, Henderson’s power is surprising. Palhares’ takedown attempts aren’t being successful. Palhares trying some kicks, Henderson’s takedown defense is excellent. Henderson’s reach advantage is apparent, and is able to unload dangerously on occasions, noticably rocking Palhares. Palhares is finally able to get Henderson down, but not with long left in the round, and can’t capitalise, but given longer, it looks like he will be able to. 10-9 Henderson. Second round sees Palhares shooting for takedowns, Henderson is initially able to prevent but hits a huge takedown eventually and is in Henderson’s guard. Palhares is looking for a heelhook out of Henderson’s closed guard, but Henderson is able to get back to his feet. Palhares looks to take it down, Henderson sprawling to keep it on the feet. Fight goes to floor with Henderson on top in closed guard. Still a dangerous position. After a while with nothing happening, it is stood up. Little happens in a round I score 10-9 Palhares. Awkward early, no huge advantage. Palhares trying some exotic kicks. Really not much happening, Henderson having the better of the striking. Will be hard to score if it stays like this. Really poor, Palhares has to try to do something imo. Good right overhands from Henderson. Palhares gets a takedown, but Henderson is able to roll out of it and get back to the feet. Palhares is able to get a leg on the ground after falling into a fortunate position, but Henderson’s sprawling is good enough to evade any danger. Some big strikes from Henderson at the buzzer should be enough to give him the last 10-9 for a 29-28 decision. Couple of judges give it 30-27 which I think is a bit generous, but not ridiculously.

Bonus Tim Boetsch vs. Mike Patt action, after a “waste no time and say Randy’s still the champ and omg he’s on PPV” interview. Ergo, expecting a quick KO/sub. Not overly enthralled by this in what is a hugely, hugely stacked LHW division, but will see what happens. They’re both going at it early, Boetsch looking better in striking, Patt looking to be carrying a bit too much weight imo. Boetsch floors Patt with a right hand, piles on and finishes from the mount very quickly. Well, it got promoted to the PPV for a reason

Rich Franklin – Matt Hamill: think this fight is a lot more important for Hamill than Franklin tbh, if Franklin loses he can dive back to 185 and looked to job to Silva in the future, if Hamill loses, then what? Regardless, the tapout crew (whoever they are) need to die in a grease fire. Really cagey opening, trading occasional shots. I think Hamill has slightly the better of the first half of the round, but it’s horribly close. Both fighters looking to utilise kicks as part of their striking repertoire, Franklin being more effective in that aspect. Franklin appears to have been cut somehow. Crowd is displeased, as Hamill springs a takedown. Looks for an armbar, but Franklin escapes, and lands a knee as he gets up. Hamill is cut as well. Very hard to score, Franklin had the better strikes, but Hamill had the takedown and looked closer to finishing, 10-10 imo, i’m not averse to giving tied rounds. Early in the second Hamill catches a leg following an attempted Franklin kick, but can’t get a takedown as a result. Franklin getting some good striking early. Ref is unsure of Rich’s cut, but they continue. Hamill trying to takedown Franklin again, but not succeeding and Franklin is hitting occasional big shots. Hamill appears to be the victim of a low blow and the ref gives him time. Soon after, they exchange scrappy blows, and clinch with Franklin hitting knees from it. Franklin seems to be getting the upper hand with a couple of minutes left. Hamill is not getting close to getting a takedown. Hamill tries to grab an ankle, but Franklin hops away. Clear 10-9 Franklin round. Franklin now looks the much more effective early in the third, and is able to floor Hammill with a kick and the ref stops really quickly afterwards for a round 3 TKO.

Chuck Liddell – Rashad Evans: urgh, i hate the way they’re now trying to use statistics, especially because most of them appear meaningless. Evans looks really large for 205, especially compared to Franklin/Hamill previously. I’m excited about this fight, as excited as I was when I bought tickets for the event it was supposed to be on, lol. no, not cecil peoples! please somebody get knocked out! barely any action whatsoever early, first action of significance is a right from liddell after a couple of minutes. this reminds me of the liddell-jardine fight except without the leg kicks, evans is acting in a mayweather-esque manner but not counterpunching. there is literally nothing of note in the first round whatsoever. 10-9 Liddell, basically just on aggression and the last half minute where he seemed to corner Evans and hit a couple of times. Second round sees them actually exchange a flurry of punches early, roughly even. Evans seems to be coming into the fight a bit more. Evans then out of nowhere hits a one-punch KO. Wow.

omg bonus action, jason vs jason, lambert vs. mcdonald, to ground real quickly, lambert with a one-handed choke thing, but mcdonald pops out. in closed guard, hitting some strikes. Elbows later look better. Clearly superior on top. Then at the buzzer, Lambert gets a real good guillotine from the bottom, and given another fifteen seconds or so, would probably have subbed him, but as is we go to the second, 10-9 McDonald. Straight into a striking exchange in the second and McDonald gets into half guard. Passed to mount nicely, Lambert gives up back, McDonald gets triangle, then taps him via RNC

Chuck Liddell vs. Rashad Evans

Rashad is good and improving.  He can knock someone out as seen by that highlight reel KO of Sean Salmon.  But that was Sean Salmon, this is Chuck Liddell.  I just cannot help but to feel Liddell is on another level.  I look for Liddell to win by KO in round 2 and get ready for the Griffin match in December.

Rich Franklin vs. Matt Hamill

This is interesting.  These are two of my favorite in MMA.  Both are good guys.  I don’t like the match up because of that.  Franklin is more experienced.  Franklin has fought at 205.  I think Franklin wins this one, especially is it stays standing.  Cardio could be a factor.

Dan Henderson vs. Rousimar Palhares

Palhares is good.  I think he could win this one.  This is a must win for Dan Henderson.  Palhares has pheneomenal jiu jitsu skills.  Den Henderson’s strikig has to be the advantage and his clinch game has to be aweomse, but Palhares has prepared for this.  I think this could be an upset, but Dan is my pick to win by decision.

Martin Kampmann vs. Nate Marquardt

Tough tough fight here to pick.  We will see how Kampmann’s injury really is.  If it is not bothering him he wins.  I suspect he wins by submission.

Matt Brown vs. Dong Hyun Kim

Matt Brown is known for his toughness.  Kim looked impressive against War Machine.  I think he wins this one by TKO in round 2.

Thiago Tavares vs. Kurt Pellegrino

Roan Carneiro vs. Ryo Chonan

Tim Boetsch vs. Mike Patt
Jason Lambert vs. Jason MacDonald