Chris Cariaso vs. John Moraga:
In a division as shallow as the flyweight division, two finishes in a row is
mighty impressive. John Moraga has now won two fights in a row, one by knockout
and one by submission. The first two rounds of this fight were a bit slow, more
of a feeling out process than anything. Cariaso was throwing a lot of left head
kicks and Moraga would try to counter it. That is really the story of the first
two rounds. But Moraga came into the third with some urgency. Cariaso clinched
and jumped into a modified guillotine. Moraga finished him shortly thereafter.
Possible matchups for Moraga:
This huge win now puts Moraga at least one win away from a title shot. Ian
McCall and Joseph Benavidez are fighting at UFC 156 and the winner of that
should fight Moraga in a number one contender bout.
Possible matchups for Cariaso:
Cariaso was looking good up until he got caught in the guillotine. I would like
to see him fight the winner of Phil Harris and Ulysses Gomez. All three of
these guys are very talented but Harris vs. Gomez is a potential loser goes
home bout.
Max Holloway vs. Leonard Garcia:
This fight was…well… a Leonard Garcia fight. He was overly aggressive while
being countered down the middle. He did fight with a lot more technique though,
as he used a lot more head movement and more straight punches than usual.
Holloway proved to be the more technical and out countered him throughout. Many
people are saying that Garcia got robbed but you have to look at it this way:
the first could have gone either way, the second was much of the same but
everyone is leaning towards Garcia, and Holloway won the third. In other words,
it could have gone either way, therefore it wasn’t a robbery. But robbery or
not, Leonard Garcia is going to be released from the UFC.
Possible matchups for Holloway:
Though this is a win over a pretty big name in Leonard Garcia for Max Holloway,
it’s kind of a setback to be totally honest. He was a big favorite heading in
but almost lost against a guy whose striking is far inferior to his in many
ways. I don’t think Holloway is just yet ready for a step up so I would like to
see him fight another up and comer. That fighter is Rony Jason, who is coming
off of his TKO win over Sam Sicilia.
Phil de Fries vs. Todd Duffee:
This fight went much like I envisioned: Duffee being aggressive and getting the
finish early. He clipped Phil early but ended up being takedown and nearly
finished. De Fries had him against the cage and was landing several very solid
shots to the temple, but right after that, Duffee finished him off quick. There
is no doubt that Duffee has a lot of power.
Possible matchups for Duffee:
This now makes Duffee 2-1 in the UFC and right back on track. I have a feeling
that he is going to be put on the fast track towards a title shot by the UFC.
His knockout power and entertaining fighting style can make him a star in the
mainstream spotlight. Pat Barry is another fighter that has similar fighting
style: extremely powerful and entertaining. And he just happens to be coming
off of a KO of the year candidate over Shane Del Rosario.
Possible matchups for De Fries:
Though this loss only makes de Fries 2-2 in the UFC, his two losses are both
via early KO losses. He should be put in a loser goes home bout next with the
loser of Shawn Jordan vs. Mike Russow.
Michael Johnson vs. Myles Jury:
Right from the start, this fight was Myles Jury. Many people went in thinking
that this fight was going to be a mismatch, including myself. Jury was just the
better fighter. He controlled him everywhere the fight went, especially on the
ground; getting takedowns and battering him with ground and pound. That’s what
I envisioned Michael Johnson doing. Going into this fight, Johnson was
considered to be a future title contender and many now believe that Jury took
his position.
Possible matchups for Jury:
With this huge win over Johnson, this launches Jury up the rankings. I was
calling for a big name for Johnson but instead he got owned by lesser known
prospect in Jury. Mac Danzig is coming off of a very close decision loss to
Takanori Gomi, so I think he should fight Jury for either a rebound fight for
Danzig or a big stepping stone for Jury.
Possible matchups for Johnson:
This was a devastating loss for the Blackzilian product. It will certainly push
him down the ladder quite a bit. I’d like to see him fight guy for a rebound
like Fabricio Camoes, who is coming off of a decision loss to Melvin Guillard.
Jamie Varner vs. Melvin Gulliard:
This fight was exactly as many expected: a barnburner from beginning to end
with a great scrambles on the ground. Guillard opened the fight with a bunch of
very solid legkicks but Varner ended up countering them with a nasty combo that
almost knocked Guillard out. Varner ended up fighting smarter in the second
round though, as he began to wrestle with Melvin, who is known to have a very
poor ground game. It was a back and forth second round but Varner took it to
the ground again. In the third round, Varner fought smart again and
out-grappled Guillard. At one point, Varner did a reversed atomic bomb right on
Guillard’s head. Yeah, it’s a tad hard to describe in words. It was a generally
easy 30-27 for Varner and one of the judges gave it 30-27 to Guillard… Anyway,
on to the matchups.
Possible matchups for Varner:
This was an absolutely huge win for Varner. Guillard has a lot of name value so
I want Varner to fight a top-10 or top-15 opponent again. I would like to see
him fight the loser between Cerrone and Pettis. Cerrone and he have a huge
rivalry that goes way back to 2009 at WEC 38. And Pettis vs. Varner would be an
instant Fight of the Night.
Possible matchups for Guillard:
It’s a shame that Guillard may never actually reach the greatness in which we
all thought he could one day reach. I would like to see him fight another guy
who is coming off of a decision loss like Mark Bocek. It could go either way
with a KO from Guillard or a submission from Bocek.
Erik Perez vs. Byron Bloodworth:
Did anyone expect any different? Perez came right out and landed shots, pushing
Bloodworth against the cage. After landing a nasty knee to the body and
dropping Bloodworth, Perez swarmed and finished him soon after. This makes
Bloodworth 0-2 with two TKO losses in the UFC. He’s not UFC quality.
Possible matchups for Perez:
There were reasons as to why Perez was so hyped going into his fight and he
showed it in his win over Bloodworth. I would like to see him fight the winner
between Francisco Rivera and Edwin Figueroa. The winner would deserve a top-10
opponent.
Brad Pickett vs. Eddie Wineland:
From beginning to end, Eddie Wineland put on a striking clinic over Brad
Pickett, and I have to admit, I was quite surprised. Wineland was just
countering and landing with right hands the whole fight, battering Pickett’s
face. He looked fantastic, much like his last win over Scotty Jorgensen.
Possible matchups for Wineland:
Heading into this bout, there were very big title implications. Wineland
dominated this fight so I would like to see him fight the winner of Renan Barao
and Michael McDonald. With the technique and power that he brings to the table,
he will be a handful for either fighter.
Possible matchups for Pickett:
Poor Brad Pickett. He gets to a number one contender match, and loses. This has
happened at least two or three times to him now. If he wants to make it back
into contention, he should fight Mike Easton. A win over Easton could send him
right back into contention.
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