Posted 24 October 2012 - 10:25
So here's the card.
Preliminary Card (Facebook)
Steven Siler vs Darren Elkins - Siler is 3-0 in the UFC but still can't get himself out of the Facebook cards because he has the charisma and personality of a wet paper bag. On the other hand, Elkins is 3-0 at FW and took a major drop into the Facebook portion of the card. Probably as punishment for exposing Diego Brandão and Zhang Tiequan, therefore screwing with the UFC's expansion plans into China and Brazil.
Stephen Thompson vs Besam Yousef - Wonderboy is back after his loss to Matt Brown of all people. I'm curious to see if he shored up his grappling game. If not, he'll be an easy prey, providing Yousef doesn't get himself kicked out of conscience.
Ivan Menjivar vs Azamat Gashimov - Menjivar went from a fight with Renan Barão for a Interim title to a fight with Mike Easton for next in line status. But he lost. And now he's on the Facebook portion of the card welcoming a 7-1 russian guy that nobody has ever heard of into the UFC. That loss is really working out for him.
Antonio Carvalho vs Rodrigo Damm - Carvalho is a weird one. He holds a win over Hatsu Hioki in his prime but loses his UFC debut against Felipe Arantes, a guy who's practically already cut from the UFC. As for Damm, his only claim to glory is the win he holds over Jorge Masvidal, which is not saying much. I don't really see a future for him in the UFC but he's still getting some fights due to his participation in TUF Brazil.
Preliminary Card (FX) - Basically, CANADA vs other country.
Mark Bocek vs Rafael dos Anjos - It would be "funny" if Rafael dos Anjos got his jaw broken yet again like in the Clay Guida fight. Bocek is a very complete LW in terms of striking and grappling, only stumbling against the absolute top tier of the division. I don't think Rafael has the overall skills to beat him. His shutdown of George Sotiropoulos was great, but whenever he fought a guy on Bocek's level or lower, he lost.
Sam Stout vs John Makdessi - Stout is back where he belongs, the undercard, instead of clogging up the PPV with a meaningless trilogy. The formula for beating Makdessi is simple: if you can't grapple him to bits, keep him at range. Anthony Njokuani did it. Stout doesn't have the kicking arsenal of Njokuani but it think he will be able to punish Makdessi at will when he rushes in. Makdessi is pretty much fighting for his job here, being 2-2 in the UFC.
Nick Ring vs Costa Philippou - Ring keeps winning controversial decisions (in the eyes of some people). I think Philippou is going to push for the finish has he normally does but Ring has the grappling skills to dictate the fight. It should be interesting.
Patrick Côté vs Alessio Sakara - Côté's loss to Cung Le was dumb and entirely his fault, so I hope he really brings it in order to continue his employment with the UFC. As for Sakara, I don't really know. It's been 2 years since he won a fight and nobody even remembers how it went. In the end, it's still one of the toughest chins in MMA against one made entirely of glass. I don't expect it to last more than 2 rounds.
Main Card
Mark Hominick vs Pablo Garza - Hominick took a tough loss against Eddie Yagin in his last outing. Garza took one as well, getting manhandled by Dennis Bermudez. 0-3 meets 0-2 in a battle that will dictate who will remain employed. Garza has a very long range but Hominick already showed he knows how to beat that when he finished off George Roop. I hope he can get his groove back. If he loses this, he'll probably retire.
Cyrille Diabaté vs Chad Griggs - This is just a step down from the ridiculous idea that was Davis vs Griggs. Griggs skillset is simple: he hits HARD. So they put him against one of the rangiest guys in the division. Diabaté can't grapple his way to a win against Griggs due to the ground and pound factor, but he can certainly pick him apart from the outside. This will either be a short fight that ends in (T)KO or a 3 round 30-27 decision.
Francis Carmont vs Tom Lawlor - Carmont is a physical beast, with huge range. Lawlor is being setup to be the sacrificial lamb here but if given a chance, he can turn the tables like in the Jason MacDonald fight. Still, I think the physical prowess of Carmont, combined with his training at Tristar, will be on full display and Lawlor will have a very tough fight on his hands.
Martin Kampmann vs Johny Hendricks - Number #1 contender fight for the belt. Rangy, precise striker with grappling acumen against strong puncher with wrestling skills. What's not to like?
Georges St-Pierre vs Carlos Condit - GSP, most dominant WW since Matt Hughes, greatly surpassing him. Dominates the opponents. Can't get a finish to save his life. Condit, a very exciting fighter who tries hard for finishes and most of the times gets them. For the future WW endeavors, it would be nice if Condit won. Still, 50-45 GSP is the most likely scenario. One can only pray and hope for a finish.
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myxomatosis, on 25 September 2012 - 22:41, said:
