Sam's Picks
Main Card
Dustin Poirier vs. Chan Sung Jung: Both these guys have
looked outstanding as of late. Poirier continues to show that he will possibly
be the biggest threat to Jose Aldo for the belt for some time to come. His
standup is clearly his weak point. That is Jung’s strong point. Jung himself
has had some crazy finishes in his last two fights. He TKO’d (previously) top
contender in Mark Hominick in 7 seconds and finished Leonard Garcia with the
first ever twister. Jung is more well rounded but Poirier has the much better
ground game. The more I keep talking about this fight, the more I realize that
Jung actually has a big chance to win this fight. I see Poirier losing in the
standup, taking the fight down and submitting him in one hell of a fight =
Poirier by 2nd round submission (choke). My pick for SOTN and 3rd for FOTN!
Jorge Lopez vs. Amir Sadollah: I looked at the opponents
that Lopez has beaten and it did nothing to make me think that he has any
chance of winning a fight against a guy like Sadollah = Sadollah by unanimous
decision.
Donald Cerrone vs. Jeremy Stephens: BARNBURNER ALERT- This
fight is going to be sick! These guys always fight for FOTN. This has all the
makes to be FOTY as well. They are also coming off two very disappointing
losses. Cerrone looked like garbage against the most determined Nate Diaz that
we have ever seen. Stephen’s last loss was disappointing for a different
reason. He lost his last fight to Anthony Pettis by split decision, one that I
re-watched recently and actually scored it for Stephens. That would have been a
huge win for him, too, launching him into title talks. This fight will be
close. I vision this fight as Cerrone picking him apart with his far more
technical standup = Cerrone by close unanimous decision. My 2nd pick for FOTN!
Jeff Hougland vs. Yves Jabouin: I have a feeling that people
are counting Hougland out of this fight, don’t. He has a very good ground game.
Jabouin is one of those guys who people say has potential but I don’t see it nor
has he impressed me. He lost to Pablo Garza by flying triangle, barely beat Ian
Loveland by SD, and, once again, barely beat Walel Watson, in a fight that I
thought Watson won. Jabouin has the better chance of winning but I won’t be
surprised if Hougland wins = Jabouin by split decision.
Fabio Maldonado vs. Igor Pokrajac: BARNBURNER ALERT- This is
going to an absolute slugfest. They both throw with incredible power and swing
for the fences. Pokrajac has proved to be more impressive to me though.
Although Maldonado looked okay against Kingsbury, Pokrajac should win this
fight = Pokrajac by split decision. My 1st pick for FOTN!
Tom Lawlor vs. Jason MacDonald: This one is a really hard
one to pick. MacDonald has a really good ground game, his BJJ is amazing but
Lawlor has some solid wrestling. This one is probably the hardest won to pick
on this card. I am going to go with Lawlor based on the fact that he isn’t the
one talking about retirement as of late = Lawlor by split decision.
Prelims
Marcus LeVesseur vs. Cody McKenzie = LeVessur by unanimous
decision. *Just want to point something out. The people that McKenzie has
beaten have an accumulated record of 47-72. YUK! *
Brad Tavares vs. Dongi Yang = Tavares by 2nd round TKO.
T.J. Grant vs. Carlo Prater = Grant by 1st round submission
(armbar)
Rafael Dos Anjos vs. Kamal Shalorus = Dos Anjos by 3rd round
TKO
Jeff Curran vs. Johnny Eduardo = Curran by split decision.
Francisco Rivera vs. Alex Soto = Rivera by 1st round KO. My
pick for KOOTN!
Dave’s Picks
Main Card
Dustin Poirier vs. Chan Sung Jung: Since Jung’s loss to
George Roop he has fought much more intelligently. Granted one of those fights
lasted 7 seconds. But he has looked great in his last two fights. Poirier is an
absolute animal in the cage. He is so much fun to watch and he is young future
title contender. Everyone thinks he is ready for a title shot but I agree with
Poirier himself that he needs 2 more fights before he is truly ready for a shot
at Aldo. However I see this fight being Poirier’s throughout. If he fights
smart and doesn’t get too wild I think he takes this one. = Poirier by
unanimous decision.
Jorge Lopez vs. Amir Sadollah: I don’t really know what to
make of this fight. It’s a weird one for sure. Amir has definitely faced the
better competition and that is a huge factor in this fight for me. One thing
that scares me is that Amir hasn’t fought since last August. But If Lopez
couldn’t handle Justin Edwards I don’t see how he can handle Amir. = Amir by
unanimous decision.
Donald Cerrone vs. Jeremy Stephens: This fight will be nuts.
Both these guys will be swinging for the fences. But I feel like I am the only
one that notices that Cerrone can show up flat at times. His rematch with Ben
Henderson and his last fight with Nate Diaz are good examples. He shows up flat
footed, slower and looks disinterested. And if he coems out flat against
Stephens he will be in for a bad night. But when Cerrone is on top of his game
I see him beating Stephens, especially if it goes to the ground. This will be a
close one and I do not feel super comfortable in my pick here. = Cerrone by
split decision. My Pick for Fight of the Night!
Jeff Hougland vs. Yves Jabouin: Hougland has not beaten
anyone on Jabouin’s level and I think the last two guys Jabouin defeated (Walel
Watson and Ian Loveland) could beat Hougland too. Jabouin likes to make fights
close though. = Jabouin by unanimous decision.
Fabio Maldonado vs. Igor Pokrajac: This fight should be a
very fun match. Both of these guys are strikers with a lot of power. However,
Maldonado has not fought in almost a year and ring rust is always a big factor
in my picks due to the fact it seems to play a big role in MMA. I also saw
Igor’s last fight live and he looked scary. He came to the ring first and was
pacing back and forth like a lion in a cage. He came out and destroyed
Krzysztof Soszynski in 35 seconds. It was a brutal KO. Fabio should have the
more technical striking and Igor does have somewhat of a suspect chin. Super
tough pick. = Igor by split decision.
Tom Lawlor vs. Jason MacDonald: Lawlor is a big and strong
middleweight but has major cardio issues. Jason MacDonald is an interesting
character. He burst onto the scene in 2006 submitting some worth adversaries
but then fell to pieces. I see Lawlor overpowering MacDonald and getting a
finish but don’t be surprised is MacDonald somehow pulls off the upset. =
Lawlor by TKO in round 1. My Pick for KO of the Night!
Prelims
Marcus LeVesseur vs. Cody McKenzie:
Marcus LeVesseur by split decision.
Brad Tavares vs. Dongi Yang: Brad Tavares by unanimous
decision.
T.J. Grant vs. Carlo Prater: T.J. Grant by unanimous
decision.
Rafael Dos Anjos vs. Kamal Shalorus: Rafael Dos Anjos by
submission in round 2. My Pick for Submission of the Night!
Jeff Curran vs. Johnny Eduardo: Curran by split decision.
Francisco Rivera vs. Alex Soto: Rivera by unanimous
decision.
No comments:
Post a Comment