UFC 156 Main Card Recap

Joseph Benavidez vs. Ian McCall: When will the flyweights put on a boring fight? These two put on an incredible scrap, technical back and forth slugfest. It was extremely close, but the difference was the fact that Benavidez landed more and landed harder. McCall should have gone for more takedowns, which really could have won him the fight. He had him on the ground at the end of the second and showed his superior grappling. Benavidez did end up winning by decision, but it was such a close fight that McCall is still very relevant in the title picture.

                                                               

Possible matchups for Benavidez: With this huge win over McCall, Benavidez has earned himself a rematch with the champion, Demetrious Johnson.

Possible matchups for McCall: A record of 0-2-1 in the UFC is never good, in fact, it’s terrible. And yet McCall is still somehow one of the top contenders in the UFC. Right now, due to the lack of depth in the UFC’s flyweight division, there aren’t a lot of fights for a person in McCall’s position. I would say the fight that makes the most sense would be against John Dodson, who is coming off of a very close loss to Demetrious Johnson.

Jon Fitch vs. Demain Maia: Maia just defined the word relentless. He was Velcro; Fitch just couldn’t get Maia off of him. It was impossible. Maia kept on going in for the takedown without losing a step. He had Fitch’s back for about thirteen and a half minutes of the total fifteen. It was complete dominance and it launches Maia into the top of the division.

Possible matchups for Maia: A win over Fitch launches you into the top of the welterweight division, no matter how dominant. With a performance as dominant as Maia’s, he is probably one or two wins away from a title shot. He needs to fight a top contender, so he should fight the loser of Jake Ellenberger and Johny Hendricks.

Possible matchups for Fitch: This was an absolutely devastating loss for Fitch. It puts him back pretty far in the welterweight title ladder. I would like to see him fight Dan Hardy to get back on track. Hardy is coming off of a very impressive win over Amir Sadollah, where he showcased a much improved grappling game.

Alistair Overeem vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva: I was really disappointed at the first two rounds of this fight. The first two, the third though, not so much. Bigfoot came out into the third realizing he might be down by two rounds. He started to land violent hooks left and right. Overeem started to fade off and Bigfoot knocked the K-1 legend completely unconscious. Dave said before the fight, “If Bigfoot can land a solid punch on Overeem, he will go against the cage and try to run away.” Guess what happened.

Possible matchups for Silva: Who do you give this guy? Overeem were guaranteed a title shot if he won and Bigfoot knocked him out. I would like to see him in a number one contender’s bout with Junior dos Santos. That would be a very interesting bout.

Possible matchups for Overeem: There aren’t a lot of choices for Overeem now. The heavyweight division is similar to the flyweight division in its lack of depth. I would like to see him fight the winner of Mark Hunt and Stefan Struve. A fight with Mark Hunt would be especially amazing.

Rashad Evans vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: This fight was absolutely terrible. Despite the fact that Nogueira pulled off the huge upset, both fighters didn’t look particularly great, but Rashad looked especially bad. Nogueira didn’t win this fight; Rashad lost it. I’m very happy that Noguiera won though and I look forward to see who he gets next time out.

Possible matchups for Noguiera: This was an enormous win for the younger Nogueira brother. It puts him right there in the top of the light heavyweight division. I would like to see him fight Glover Teixeira in a fight that would put the winner in a number one contender’s bout.

Possible matchups for Evans: Rashad Evans needs to drop down to middleweight, now. He obviously isn’t going to be fighting Anderson Silva, but I would love to see a fight against Vitor Belfort. That could be a fantastic fight and a potential number one contender’s bout at middleweight.

Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar: This was the exact fight we were all envisioning going in. A back and forth barnburner that ended in controversy. I mean, is that last statement even needed for a Frankie Edgar fight? Unsurprisingly, the first two rounds were very dominant for Aldo. He showed incredible speed and unparalleled accuracy. He rarely missed his target. The leg kicks and jabs were starting to wear down Frankie, but Edgar showed that Jersey toughness. He came out to the third round the fresher fighter and started to find his groove. Edgar was landing solid combinations as Aldo began to visibly tire. Aldo did do much of the same in the third round as he did in the first round, though, as he landed lots of powerful leg kicks and combinations. Once this fight entered the championship rounds, Edgar really began to pick up the pace. He was tagging Aldo with tons of combinations and was really starting to surprise Aldo with some leg kicks as well. The last ten minutes of the fight were Edgar landing lots of solid strikes. But ultimately, Aldo won the very close decision over Frankie.

Possible matchups for Aldo: Last weekend, Ricardo Lamas demolished Erik Koch, the original number one contender, in the second round. If Lamas doesn’t get a title shot (which would be criminal), then Aldo should move up and fight the winner of Ben Henderson and Gilbert Melendez.

Possible matchups for Edgar: Because this fight was so close and entertaining, I believe Frankie will be one win away from a title shot. Chad Mendes and Manny Gamburyan are fighting at UFC 157 so I would like to see Frankie fight the winner of that fight.

UFC 156: Aldo vs. Edgar Predictions

Dave’s Picks

Main Card

Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar: Wow…wow…I cannot wait for this fight. This is as close as a champion vs. champion matchup can get. It’s no UFC 94 but its close. I believe the fights Frankie had with Benson Henderson are very telling. Benson is slightly faster and stronger than Frankie and that helped Henderson to “win” those fights. Even if you think Frankie won you have to admit he struggled quite a bit. Aldo is faster and maybe even stronger (in my opinion) than Henderson. The speed advantage will be a big deal in this fight. If Aldo can land first and harm Frankie’s semi-weak chin then it will be lights out. The only hope Frankie has to win, and it is a definitely possibility, is to outwrestle Aldo for 5 rounds. But can Frankie do that without being finished and can he repeatedly take Aldo down throughout the fight? I don’t know if he can. This fight interests me more than almost any fight in a long time. I just think Aldo is too much for Frankie. = Aldo by unanimous decision. My Pick for Fight of the Night!

Rashad Evans vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: I love the Nog boys but this will be a beatdown. Rashad, minus his fight with Jones, has really perfected his craft. His MMA wrestling is top notch and will be way too much for Nog to handle. Rashad’s ground and pound might actually be strong enough to finish Nog by TKO but Nog’s chin is extremely good. I see Rashad smothering Nog with takedowns and top control until the final bell rings. = Rashad by unanimous decision.

Alistair Overeem vs. Antonio Silva: Oh boy. This will get ugly. Bigfoot is a great fighter but he is the perfect opponent for Overeem to destroy. He is nowhere near the level of striking that Overeem has achieved and his chin is degrading. I see Bigfoot coming out and trying to get the clinch up against the fence but Alistair having none of it and landing bombs so hard that people will look away. = Overeem by KO in round 1. My Pick for KO of the Night!

Jon Fitch vs. Demian Maia: Another great and interesting matchup. I would normally pick Fitch without too much thought but his fight with Erick Silva scares me. Yes that fight was awesome and he won but Silva had Fitch’s back and had a RNC sunk. If that happens in this fight, Maia will choke him out so fast he won’t even have a chance to tap. So, Fitch will have to fight with a much tighter ground game then he has in his last few fights. Maia has also looked like a fiery beast since dropping to 170 and looks to be easily handling top 10 guys. This fight is by far the hardest to pick but I am going to go with the safer pick. = Fitch by unanimous decision.

Joseph Benavidez vs. Ian McCall: Another great and important fight, such a great card. Sadly fan favorite McCall will lose again in the UFC. I was extremely shocked at Benavidez’s performance against Demetrious Johnson. I thought Benavidez was going to kill Johnson and be Flyweight Champion for a very long time. But I still think he may be the best flyweight alive. This fight will be another speedy technical battle but I think Benavidez just had the greater skill set and will smother McCall for the victory. = Benavidez by unanimous decision.  

Prelims

Evan Dunham vs. Gleison Tibau: This fight is hard to pick as well but Evan struggles against stronger guys. I am not sure if Evan has what it takes to stop Tibau’s takedowns and get back up once he is taken down. In my mind I see Tibau bullying Evan throughout the fight and getting an ugly win. = Tibua by split decision.

Tyron Woodley vs. Jay Hieron: Another difficult fight to predict. I believe Woodley is the better wrestler but Hieron’s style has proven to be hard for wrestler’s to handle. I want to go with Woodley but Hieron just finds ways to win. I am not sure what the safer pick is but I’m going to go with the better wrestler. = Woodley by split decision.

Yves Edwards vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg: I want go with Isaac but Edwards looked so good in his last fight. I think Yves is just too fast and will be able to use his superior footwork and skill set to take a close one. = Edwards by unanimous decision.

Jacob Volkmann vs. Bobby Green: Green is an underrated fighter with great skills but Volkmann is the perfect fighter to be able to beat him. Volkmann will be able to outwrestle Green and just blanket him. Volkmann could get a finish but Green will probably last. = Volkmann by unanimous decision.

Edwin Figueroa vs. Francisco Rivera = Rivera by 2^nd round TKO.

Chico Camus vs. Dustin Kimura = Camus by unanimous decision.

Sam’s Picks

Main Card

Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar: I can’t even remember the last time that the UFC had a super fight. This has been such a long awaited matchup ever since the UFC brought over the lower weight divisions. They are both going to be hardest test for each other, but what does that mean for Frankie, who is riding a two fight losing streak? Those two losses were so close and so debatable that a lot of people don’t even really view them as a full on undisputed losses. Aldo on the other hand, has only lost once and it was earlier in his career is too Luciano Azevedo. Aldo does arguably have the better power than Gray Maynard, but it's in his kicks and knees. Frankie’s best bet is to try and grind Aldo down, similar to what Florian did against Aldo in the first round. When striking. Edgar needs to be very in and out, really working the body and surprising him with a headshot. But Aldo won’t let him do that, at least not for a majority of the fight. Aldo will nearly finish him on a few occasions, but Frankie’s heart will push through. Aldo will win the first three rounds, and Frankie will win the championship rounds = Aldo via unanimous decision (48-47). My 1^st pick for FOTN!

Rashad Evans vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: Though both of these guys are top-10 light heavyweights, this is a bit of a mismatch. Phil Davis absolutely dominated Nogueira on the ground. Rashad Evans dominated Phil Davis on the ground. Nogueira’s only hope is to throw something up from his back or hope to out-technique him in the boxing = Evans via unanimous decision.

Alistair Overeem vs. Antonio Silva: This fight is similar to the co-main event: both top guys, complete mismatch. Silva is coming off of a very impressive first round KO over Travis Browne, which was a big surprise to many, even people picking Silva to win. Overeem, though, is on a whole other planet when it comes to striking ability. His power and technique is unmatched by most and Silva has shown a skeptical chin. Overeem will finish this fight with ease = Overeem via 1^st round KO. My pick for KOOTN!

Jon Fitch vs. Demian Maia: I absolutely love this fight. Ever since Maia made the decision to drop down to welterweight, he has looked amazing. His submission and takedown offense is even more prominent than during his good days in his middleweight run. Fitch is coming off of his fight of the night with Erick Silva, which was an incredible back-and-forth fight. There was one point where Fitch showed off his unchokable-ness. Silva had his back and with a rear naked choke sunk in, Fitch somehow never went unconscious. If Maia had that position with the choked locked in the way Silva did, Fitch would have been done. But Silva only received that back position due to his intense aggressiveness, something that Maia does not have. Maia does have the ability to submit anyone, but Fitch will grind him out while Maia throws up a lot of submission attempts. It will be close = Fitch via split decision.

Joseph Benavidez vs. Ian McCall: Now this is the way that you start a PPV. With both guys coming off of close decision losses to the champion, Demetrious Johnson, a title shot is very well on the line. With Benavidez’ only losses to present day champions, you must question how he does under such pressure. McCall is a guy who does well under the spotlight; he is very charismatic and does well in big-name fights, despite his loss to Johnson in a main event. They are equally skilled grapplers with very even striking. Who will be faster? It’s very hard to say but I would have to go with McCall; he’s been the flyweight for longer therefore he is more adapted to the weight cut. Easier weight cut equals better cardio and speed. McCall seems to have the upper hand in a lot of areas, but Benavidez is just too difficult to bet against = Benavidez via unanimous decision. My 2^nd pick for FOTN!

Prelims

Evan Dunham vs. Gleison Tibau: With both fighters looking rather mediocre as of late, it’s hard to decide who I want to go with. Tibau will most likely be the stronger fighter, an advantage he almost always holds. Dunham will have the speed and ground advantage. Though Tibau does have a fantastic ground game, Dunham has shown more offense with his grappling, something I believe will lead him to victory = Dunham via split decision.

Tyron Woodley vs. Jay Hieron: Back in October of 2011, Jay Hieron was stolen out of a victory over present day Bellator welterweight champ in Ben Askren. Though it was a close fight, Hieron seemed to be the victor. Woodley is a very similar fighter to that of Ben Askren. If Hieron is to use a similar gameplan that he used against Askren, he could very well win. But I just simply can’t bet against a wrestler = Woodley via unanimous decision.

Yves Edwards vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg: Both guys have looked fantastic lately, with Edwards’ KO over Jeremy Stephens and Isaac’s barnburner upset over JZ Cavalcante. Edwards will undoubtedly have the upper hand in the experience category, Vallie-Flagg is the one fighter entering into his prime and with Greg Jackson in his corner, he will most likely have a great gameplan. These guys are very evenly matched, but I see Isaac narrowly pulling this one out for the upset once again = Vallie-Flagg via split decision. My 3^rd pick for FOTN!

Jacob Volkmann vs. Bobby Green: I see this fight going one of two ways: Volkmann gets him down and submits him early, similar to what he did to Shane Roller, or he grinds Green out for a decision win. With Greens under-average ground game, I believe the former is the more likely scenario = Volkmann via 1^st round submission. My pick for SOTN!

Edwin Figueroa vs. Francisco Rivera = Rivera via 3^rd round TKO.

Chico Camus vs. Dustin Kimura = Camus via 3nd round TKO.

MMA Lightweight Rankings: September Edition

As we at CR continue our rankings, we now head into the most stacked division in MMA, and possibly combat sports, history: lightweight.

There are so many fighters that you could argue to be top-10 guys like Joe Lauzon, Eddie Alvarez, or even guys like Rick Hawn. The division is so unbelievably stacked that there are UFC cards that have 3 or even more fights that either feature lightweights, or former lightweight fighters. Fortunately, they are also extremely entertaining so there is no shortage of Fight of the Night performances.

Let’s try and sort out the standings of this chaotic division:

10. Michael Chandler – Many people wouldn’t exactly consider Chandler a prospect considering he is the champion in the 3^rd largest MMA promotion, but Michael arguably has the promising future out of everyone on this list. At only 26 years old, he already has wins over some of Bellator’s biggest names like Lloyd Woodard, Patricky Freire, Akihiro Gono, and Eddie Alvarez. The biggest fight of note is the win over Alvarez. That fight was a back-and-forth brawl that ended with a Chandler win via 4^th round RNC. With powerful wrestling and striking, the sky is the limit.

9. Jim Miller – Jim Miller is, in a nutshell, a tough SOB. “Jimmy Redbeard” is the type of fighter that I love. He always puts on a good fight and always figures out a way to win. His ground game is very solid, one of the best at 155, and it shows in his wins over Charles Oliveira, Melvin Guillard, and Duane Ludwig. His only “glaring” weakness is his standup. It’s good, but not good enough to hang with guys like Nate Diaz and Ben Henderson. If he can get his standup up to par with his ground game, or at least closely up to par, then he can be right back in there in the title picture.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

8. Anthony Pettis – Anthony Pettis is one of the most dynamic strikers in the UFC today. His kicks are absolutely nuts. And I’m not just talking about his wild crazy spinning kicks, I’m talking about simply his technique. Watch his wins over Danny Castillo and Joe Lauzon. He is a master at the KO (head kick and punches) finish. The main reason that he is this low though is because his loss to Guida and lackluster win over Jeremy Stephens didn’t do him any favors. But if he can beat Cerrone in his next fight, he will undeniably be top-5.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

7. Clay Guida – Say all you want about his last fight with Gray Maynard, but Guida is still one of the most entertaining fighters in UFC history. Go back and watch his fights with Benson Henderson, Rafael dos Anjos, Diego Sanchez, and Roger Huerta and tell me he’s not. He even arguably beat Gray Maynard, which most likely would have earned him a title shot. I see his next fight possibly being with Jim Miller.

6. Donald Cerrone – Cowboy is a badass. Seriously, he fought Jeremy Stephens, dominated him, and then came out saying that he had some horrible intestinal issue going into the fight (and during) that felt like he was being stabbed in the gut. My lord. I would be incapacitated and he fights in the UFC against a solid fights and destroyed him for 3 rounds. And he is one of the only people who could win Fight of the Night with a fight that only lasted 76 seconds. His Muay Thai is one of the best in the lightweight division. I cannot wait for his fight with Pettis.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

5. Gilbert Melendez – I have always personally felt that Melendez is overrated. His last two wins over Jorge Masvidal and Josh Thomson are further proving my point. Now how can wins prove something negatively? Watch the fights and think about what I said. They are both guys that he should have not only beaten but finished. Especially Jorge Masvidal, it almost seemed like he wasn’t motivated for the fight. You’re the champion; you should be motivated for every fight. With that being said, I still can’t wait to see him come to the UFC and finally fight the best in the world.

4. Gray Maynard – Gray Maynard was just a few punches away from being a UFC champion, twice. How much more heartbreaking can you get? He had Frankie Edgar down and this close to out. He has been one of the best fighters at 155 for some time now in the UFC and now that there is a new champion in the UFC at lightweight, he may receive another title shot against the winner of Henderson and Diaz if he can beat Joe Lauzon.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

3. Nate Diaz – The younger of the Diaz brothers has become one of my personal favorite fighters lately. His wins over Gomi and Miller really made me realize that he truly has what it takes to become the next champion at 155. His standup is crisp and accurate and his ground game is slick. You can’t get much more well rounded then Nate Diaz. His title fight with Ben Henderson has what it takes to be a Fight of the Century.

2. Frankie Edgar – Despite having lost two in-a-row, Frankie Edgar is still undeniably the second best lightweight in the game in my book. He beat BJ Penn twice when Penn was considered unbeatable. He went to a draw and beat Gray Maynard when he was knocked silly in the 1^st round of both fights. He has more heart than any fighter in MMA. I personally believe that he should be champ still but perhaps a move to featherweight is the best thing for his career.

This picture shows just how apt his nickname is.

1. Ben Henderson – Henderson just absolutely loves to go to war. His last three fights are all stable mates for Fight of the Year. Say all you want about how he shouldn’t be champion and about how Frankie beat him both times. He is the champion of the UFC! He deserves the appreciation, no matter how close the fights were; the fact that he is the champion means that he is the champion. I love Henderson because he fights with all his heart every time. Let’s give him the appreciation he deserves.

So what do you guys think? Let us know in the comments on what you either greed on or disagreed on.

UFC 150: Henderson vs. Edgar II Main Card Recap

Max Holloway finishing Justin Lawrence.
Photo by MMAWeekly.com

This was a solid night of fights that was sadly capped off with controversy. Every fight but one was entertaining and the prelims only had one fight go to a decision. This entire card was stacked from top to bottom with lower weight class fighters, something that has been slowly taking over the UFC with their entertaining fights and incredible speed. Let’s take a look at those fights and give some possible matchups.

Justin Lawrence vs. Max Holloway: This fight was the one that I was looking forward to the most, with the exception of the main event, heading into UFC 150. It lived up to my expectations. They showed some of the more technical striking in the UFC, and they only have a combined age of 42 years old. That’s pretty incredible. The first round was very close as Lawrence pushed forward for the majority of the round but Holloway landed more combinations, utilizing his significant reach advantage. Eventually, Holloway landed a knee to the body that hurt Lawrence and followed it up with a punch to the liver, ala Bas Rutten, which dropped Justin and Holloway finished him with a hectic flurry.

Possible matchups for Holloway: Holloway is the next big thing, and that’s to say the least. At 20 years old, he has some of the best striking at 145 pounds, and arguably the most technical. But he’s not the only 145er to be making a name for himself; Jimy Hettes is also being considered a future title contender as he will be fighting Marcus Brimage at 152. The winner of that fight should face off with Holloway to see who’s truly ready for that title contender status.

Possible matchups for Lawrence: Pablo Garza was on his way to title contention before he lost to both Bermudez and Dustin Poirier. They are now both looking for rebound fights and Garza would be a good test for Lawrence’s ground game.

Yushin Okami vs. Buddy Roberts: I have to say, Roberts’ standup really impressed me in this fight. He started off very solid and was landing great jabs on Okami before Yushin realized he was losing. Okami then dragged him to the ground, not without difficulty at first though. Eventually in the 2^nd round, Okami would finish the fight with strikes in a very lackluster TKO finish.

Possible matchups for Okami: It really seems that Okami’s title contention days are behind him as he was losing the standup to Roberts. Him and Jake Shields both won very lackluster performances Saturday night and a fight between them makes perfect sense and I'm guessing that Okami would like revenge against Shields for their fight several years ago.

Possible matchups for Roberts: I think that Roberts really surprised most of us with his solid striking attack against Okami. Andrew Craig is coming off an amazing comeback KO win over Rafael Natal and even though Roberts is coming off a loss, Roberts looked solid and deserves a move up the rankings despite the 0-1 added to his resume.

Ed Herman vs. Jake Shields: This fight was awful. I am personally a huge fan of a ground fight but Shields simply just didn’t do anything when he got there. He almost had a kimura at one point, but he never got it. He ended up winning the unanimous decision, but it didn’t do much to help his status in title talks.

Possible matchups for Herman: One of the more promising middleweights in the UFC, Ronny Markes, does not have his next fight set up yet and I’m sure that Herman wants to put this horrible loss to Shields behind him as quickly as possible.

Donald Cerrone vs. Melvin Guillard: It is very rare to see a Fight of the Night bonus go to a fight that didn’t go to a decision. It’s even more rare for a fight to earn Fight of the Night when it didn’t go past the second round. But for a fight to earn Fight of the Night when it only lasts 76 seconds, that's unheard of. Yes, the fight was only 76 seconds, and it undoubtedly earned Fight of the Night. Guillard landed a solid counter right hand that dropped Cerrone, which was a first in his UFC career. Guillard rushed in, trying to finish the fight with all his might, but was eventually caught with a head kick that clipped the top of his head. Guillard was out on his feet as Cerrone landed the final blow with a right straight that put “The Young Assassin” out.  Back-and-forth action is always the perfect formula for FOTN.

Possible matchups for Cerrone: Before this fight even happened, Cerrone was calling out Anthony Pettis. Joe Silva, it’s time to make this fight happen!

Possible matchups for Guillard: Not only did this loss make him 1-3 in his last four, but it was also his first ever TKO/KO loss in his MMA career. I still believe he is an elite lightweight in the UFC, his standup is incredible, but setbacks are inescapable in the slump he is going through. Danny Castillo and Michael Johnson are fighting at UFC 151 and they are certainly looking for a step up in competition with whoever wins that fight. Guillard could be that exact leap in competition they are looking for.

Benson Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar: This fight was amazing, but it was almost completely overshadowed by its decision. It almost seems like it’s in Henderson’s DNA to not put on a boring fight, and he didn’t fail this time. Edgar and Henderson put on an amazing fight that I, and many other journalists and fans, had scored for Edgar. It was an extremely close fight, but I personally thought that it was a clear-cut decision win for Edgar. A fight can sometimes be razor thin but still clear-cut. I had the last four rounds scored for Edgar with the 3^rd round being the only one I would give to Henderson, if I had to change one. I was very upset with this decision, and luckily, I’m not alone.

Possible matchups for Henderson: Nate Diaz was announced before this fight that he was the next challenger. I truly believe in my heart that Diaz can become the new lightweight champion.

Possible matchups for Edgar: After looking through the UFC’s lightweight roster, there are very few fights that make sense for Frankie. The one that stands out to me the most though, is a fourth fight with Maynard. Gray is coming off a, bizarre to say the least, win over Clay Guida and Frankie is still the second best in the world in my eyes. This would be a great fight to headline a Fox card to finally finish their 1-1-1 record with each other in what could be a number 1 contender's bout.

Click here for the prelim recap!

UFC 150: Henderson vs. Edgar 2 Predictions

Sam’s Picks

Main Card

Ben Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar: Oh, how I've been looking forward to this rematch. The first fight was an absolute war and I don't see this fight being any different. Their first encounter was as close as can be and I personally scored 3 rounds to 2 for the present day champ. Now that being said I thought that Henderson won, if you look at Frankie Edgar's record with rematches, it's 2-0-1 with each performance better than the last. Once you fight Edgar, he figures you out the next time around. Adaptability is one of the most important features in a champion and I see Edgar continuing his rematch rhythm and get his title back in another classic = Edgar by unanimous decision. My 1st pick for FOTN!

Donald Cerrone vs. Melvin Guillard: BARNBURNER ALERT: This fight will undoubtedly produce fireworks in the opening stages. Donald Cerrone needs to take this to the ground if he wants to win this easier. I think Cerrone will open up in the beginning, stalking him down and eventually clinching in for a takedown = Cerrone by 1st round submission (choke). My pick for SOTN and 2nd for FOTN!!

Jake Shields vs. Ed Herman: I really, really want to pick Herman. Ever since his return to the UFC, he's looked like a title contender. Jake Shields has not. Shields is still technically an elite fighter though and Herman is right on the tip of that consideration. I simply cannot in my right mind though pick Herman over a guy like Shields = Shields by split decision.

Yushin Okami vs. Buddy Roberts: To say the least, this fight is bizarre. Sure, Roberts has a promising future and Okami is on a two fight losing streak, but let's face it, Roberts isn't going to win this fight. It will be a big learning experience for him and I see him becoming a top-15 or top-20 middleweight but now is too soon = Okami by unanimous decision.

Justin Lawrence vs. Max Holloway: This is the fight that I am looking forward to the most behind the main event. These two will certainly be title contenders in their futures and now is the time for them to prove that point. The major difference for me in this fight is the reach and technique. Holloway is much more technical and taller than Lawrence. Also, Holloway has very good fight IQ which is something that someone his age, and Justin Lawrence, lack. This fight should have some amazing standup = Holloway by unanimous decision. My 3rd pick for FOTN! (For Holloway interview click here)

Prelims
Dennis Bermudez vs. Tom Hayden = Bermudez by 2nd round TKO.

Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper = Hamman by 3rd round TKO. My pick for KOOTN! (For Hamman interview click here)

Nik Lentz vs. Eiji Mitsuoka = Lentz by split decision.

Ken Stone vs. Erik Perez = Perez by 1st round submission.

Dustin Pague vs. Chico Camus = Camus by split decision.

Dave’s Picks

Main Card

Benson Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar: Frankie Edgar is the master of the rematch. He has had rematches with some of the sport’s best. He defeated BJ Penn in their rematch; which I saw live and Edgar won every round. Then Edgar defeated Gray Maynard in their third fight. He won both of those rematch contests even more decisively then the first fights. So, Henderson and Edgar’s first matchup was very close and I see Edgar repeating his usual rematch quality performance. It will be very close again but Edgar’s speed was a huge problem for Henderson and I think it still will be. It will be a close one but I am going with what I believe is the smartest choice. = Edgar by unanimous decision.

Donald Cerrone vs. Melvin Guillard: This fight will be awesome. Cerrone has the more technical striking and a much better ground game but Melvin hits harder than anyone at 155 pounds. I think Melvin’s only chance is to land a huge punch and KO or TKO Cerrone. But Cerrone has an amazing chin and I think he will be too much for Melvin. I think this will go to the ground at some point and Cerrone will finish it there. = Cerrone by submission in round 2. My Pick for Submission of the Night!

Jake Shields vs. Ed Herman: This will be an interesting fight and I think it will end up with who has the better cardio and heart. Neither have real KO power and both prefer the submission game. I think Shields is much more technical and higher level but sometimes can be very slow and lose out on good opportunities. Herman has a ton of heart and grit and decent cardio. This fight will be interesting but Shields has beaten better talent in the past and I think he can take this. = Shields by split decision.

Yushin Okami vs. Buddy Roberts: Roberts has not defeated or even faced a fighter even close to Okami’s level. Okami will be stronger with better grappling and striking. This might be ultra boring as well. The “potty break” fight I guess. = Okami by unanimous decision.

Justin Lawrence vs. Max Holloway: This fight is going to be amazing! Both of these guys are very young and talented athletes that are well rounded and exciting. Both of them also fight smarter than then their age would normally imply. Holloway showed in his last fight against Pat Schilling that his fight IQ and maturity is light years ahead of a lot of the young fighters at 145. His striking is scary good and it is just crazy that he is only 20 years old. Lawrence holds a lot of power and speed but is a little sloppier in his approach. Holloway should have the reach advantage as well. I see Holloway picking Lawrence apart and taking the decision. = Holloway by unanimous decision. My Pick for Fight of the Night! (For Holloway interview click here)

Prelims

Dennis Bermudez vs. Tom Hayden: Bermudez by split decision.

Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper: Hamman by unanimous decision. (For Hamman interview click here)

Ken Stone vs. Erik Perez: Perez by split decision.

Nik Lentz vs. Eiji Mitsuoka: Lentz by unanimous decision.

Dustin Pague vs. Chico Camus: Pague by submission in round 1.