UFC 160: Velasquez vs. Bigfoot 2 Preview

Main Card on PPV

Heavyweight Championship: Cain Velasquez (11-1) vs. Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva (18-4)
Prediction: "Bigfoot" wins via 2nd round KO.

Last 3 Fights for Velasquez:
UFC 155 - Junior dos Santos II - Win by unanimous decision for Heavyweight Championship
UFC 146 - Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva I - Win by TKO (elbow & punches) at 3:36 of round 1
UFC on FOX 1 - Junior dos Santos I - Loss by KO (punches) at 1:04 of round 1 for Heavyweight Championship

Last 3 Fights for "Bigfoot":
UFC 156 - Alistair Overeem - Win by KO (punches) at 0:25 of round 3
UFC on FX 5 - Travis Browne - Win by TKO (punches) at 3:27 of round 1
UFC 146 - Cain Velasquez I - Loss by TKO (elbow & punches) at 3:36 of round 1

For the second fight in a row, Velasquez is fighting a guy that he has already met inside the Octagon before. In the first encounter between the two Velasquez came out victorious and many are thinking this fight will go the same exact way.

While Silva's chin is in question, Velasquez was knocked out last year as well. When I look at the three main factors of the fight in stand-up, wrestling and BJJ; I see this fight being very even. In my opinion the stand-up is even with Velasquez having the wrestling advantage and "Bigfoot" having the jiu-jitsu advantage.

I think in the first round we will see a lot of Velasquez applying the pressure and using his wrestling to win the round. In the second round I'm expecting Silva to realize he doesn't want a grappling match and eventually throw some heavy blows that will likely catch Velasquez early in the second. If Silva isn't able to finish Velasquez early in this fight then expect a lot of what we saw in the second Velasquez-dos Santos fight.

Heavyweight: Junior dos Santos (15-2) vs. Mark Hunt (9-7)
Prediction: Hunt wins via unanimous decision.

Last 3 Fights for dos Santos:
UFC 155 - Cain Velasquez II - Loss by unanimous decison for Heavyweight Championship
UFC 146 - Frank Mir - Win by TKO (punches) at 3:04 of round 2
UFC on FOX 1 - Cain Velasquez I - Win by KO (punches) at 1:04 of round 1 for Heavyweight Championship

Last 3 Fights for Hunt:
UFC on Fuel TV 8 - Stefan Struve - Win by TKO (punches) at 1:44 of round 3
UFC 144 - Cheick Kongo - Win by TKO (punches) at 2:11 of round 1
UFC 135 - Ben Rothwell - Win by unanimous decision

As good and exciting as the main event will be, I think this is the fight to watch. The main event will likely end early by KO, but I just don't see either of these guys getting knocked out. These two guys have the heaviest hands in the heavyweight division as well as the strongest chins. Hunt has only been knocked out once while JDS has never been knocked out in his career.

The winner of this fight will likely get the winner of the Velasquez-Silva fight at some point later this year and which ever way this fight and the main event end, that fight later this year will definitely be worth watching.

This fight will likely not to see the ground once in 15 minutes unless someone knocks the other guy down, so I'm not even going to bother to write about the ground games of each fighter. As for standing on the feet, I'm giving Hunt the slight advantage overall as he is a former professional kickboxer. Dos Santos might have the better hands, but Hunt will be a lot better at using kicks and knees than JDS is. I think this fight will go the full time and in the end Hunt will be victorious. Hunt asked for this fight when Overeem got hurt and with a win tonight he could finally get that UFC title shot.

Light Heavyweight: Glover Teixeira (20-2) vs. James Te Huna (16-5)
Prediction: Teixeira wins via 2nd round submission.

Last 3 Fights for Teixeira:
UFC on Fox 6 - Quinton "Rampage" Jackson - Win by unanimous decision
UFC 153 - Fabio Maldonado - Win by TKO (doctor stoppage) at 5:00 of round 2
UFC 146 - Kyle Kingsbury - Win by submission (arm-triangle choke) at 1:53 of round 1

Last 3 Fights for Te Huna:
UFC on Fuel TV 7 - Ryan Jimmo - Win by unanimous decision
UFC on Fuel TV 4 - Joey Beltran - Win by unanimous decision
UFC on FX 2 - Aaron Rosa - Win by TKO (punches) at 2:08 of round 1

Teixeira came into the UFC known as a guy who was really impressing everywhere he fought and also Chuck Liddell's training partner. Now in three fights in the UFC he might be one of the scariest guys at 205 and a future challenger to Jon Jones.

Te Huna has also been very successful as of late in the UFC and has only suffered one defeat in his time fighting in the Octagon. His only UFC defeat came to Alexander Gustafsson, who is currently considered as the best challenge to the champion, Jon Jones.

I think this fight might be pretty even on the feet, but am giving Teixeira the slight advantage there. On the ground I think Teixeira will have a clear advantage as he has never been submitted while Te Huna has suffered defeat via submission three times (a fourth by injury). I see this fight going past the first round as they will likely feel each other out first with Teixeira ending it in the second round. With this win I think Teixeira will likely need one more victory before earning a shot at Jones sometime in 2014.

Lightweight: Gray Maynard (11-1-1, 1NC) vs. TJ Grant (20-5)
Prediction: Maynard wins via unanimous decision.

Last 3 Fights for Maynard:
UFC on FX 4 - Clay Guida - Win by split decision
UFC 136 - Frankie Edgar III - Loss by KO (punches) at 3:54 of round 4 for Lightweight Championship
UFC 125 - Frankie Edgar II - Split draw for Lightweight Championship

Last 3 Fights for Grant:
UFC on FOX 6 - Matt Wiman - Win by KO (elbows & punches) at 4:51 of round 1
UFC 152 - Evan Dunahm - Win by unanimous decision
UFC on Fuel TV 3 - Carlo Prater - Win by unanimous decision

While I don't know too much about Grant coming into this fight he has been on a bit of a roll inside the Octagon. I don't really know if I believe the hype surrounding him as he has only defeated guys outside the top 15 of the lightweight and welterweight divisions. Maynard will definitely be the biggest test of his career tonight.

Gray Maynard has never been a guy that ends fights. Maynard uses his great wrestling to get his fights to the ground and then is usually able to keep his opponents there for 15 or 25 minutes depending on the length of the fight. He has been a very successful fighter in the UFC with only one loss in his career so far and could be looking at another title shot with a win tonight against Grant.

This fight is being looked at as a possible #1 contender's fight with the winner fighting Benson Henderson later this year for the UFC Lightweight Championship. Maynard will likely win this fight by using his wrestling and strength and not allowing Grant to really do anything. Unless Maynard finishes Grant tonight, or looks a lot more impressive than he has as of late I just don't see him having a shot against Henderson for the title.

Lightweight: Donald Cerrone (19-5, 1NC) vs. K.J. Noons (11-6)
Prediction: Cerrone wins via 1st round submission.

Last 3 Fights for Cerrone:
UFC on FOX 6 - Anthony Pettis - Loss by TKO (body kick & punches) at 2:35 of round 1
UFC 150 - Melvin Guillard - Win by KO (head kick & punch) at 1:16 of round 1
UFC on Fuel TV 3 - Jeremy Stephens - Win by unanimous decision

Last 3 Fights for Noons:
Strikeforce: Marquardt vs Saffiedine - Ryan Couture - Loss by split decision
Strikeforce: Tate vs Rousey - Josh Thomson - Loss by unanimous decision
Strikeforce: Melendez vs Masvidal - Billy Evangelista - Win by unanimous decision

Both of these guys were at the top of smaller promotions prior to coming to the UFC. Cerrone challenged for the WEC Lightweight Championship, losing all three times, with Noons winning the EliteXC Lightweight Championship and being unsuccessful in knocking off Nick Diaz for the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship.

This fight is Noons' first fight in the Octagon as he is finally coming over from Strikeforce. Noons is probably more known for his rivalry with Nick Diaz more than anything else in his career at this point and since the last Diaz fight he hasn't been all that successful. Including the second Diaz fight he is now 1-4 in his last five fights. Noons was once considered one of the best guys in the weight class while with the EliteXC and Strikeforce and may be a loss tonight from getting his walking papers.

Cerrone is also coming into this fight off of a loss. While Cerrone has been very successful so far in his career, he just seems to be that fighter that can never win the big one. He lost in all three of his WEC Lightweight Championship bouts, and probably would've earned a title shot had he not lost to both Anthony Pettis or Nate Diaz in the UFC.

This fight is definitely a must win for Noons, while Cerrone could possibly be alright with a loss. I think that Cerrone definitely is the much more well-rounded fighter and should be able to beat Noons. His biggest advantage over Noons is on the ground as Noons used to box and kickbox so I'm expecting Cerrone to get the fight to the ground and submit Noons early. This will more than likely be the first and last appearance of K.J. Noons in the UFC.

UFC 156: Aldo vs. Edgar

Tonight is UFC 156: Aldo vs. Edgar. Tonight's main card on PPV features five fights including a featherweight championship fight and three possible number one contender fights. There are also four fights being aired live on FX, as well as two on Facebook.

UFC 156 Predictions:

Main Card on PPV:

Featherweight Championship: Jose Aldo (21-1) (Champion) vs. Frankie Edgar (14-3-1)

Aldo hasn't lost a fight since 2005 and has run through everyone he has fought. While in the WEC he defeated Alexandre Franca Nogueira, Jonathan Brookins, Rolando Perez, Chris Mickle and Cub Swanson before defeating Mike Brown for the WEC Featherweight Championship. He then defended it against Urijah Faber and Manny Gamburyan before the WEC was completely brought in to the UFC.

Most people thought that he'd receive better challenges once he came to the UFC, but he has gone 3-0 and has been just as deadly as before. With unanimous decision wins over Mark Hominick and Kenny Florian, he has most recently defeated Chad Mendes by KO almost a year ago.

Frankie Edgar is making his debut in the UFC Featherweight division after already having held the UFC Lightweight Championship. In Edgar's first UFC fight everyone found out who he was when he won against Tyson Griffin at UFC 167 in what was the fight of the night. He won his next two fights over Mark Bocek and Spencer Fisher before losing against Gray Maynard in what was the first matchup between the two.

After his loss he went on a roll where he defeated Hermes Franca, former champion Sean Sherk and Matt Veach before defeating B.J. Penn for the UFC Lightweight Championship. Many thought that the result was controversial so the two fought for a second time in which Edgar won again. Edgar then fought Gray Maynard a second and third time, drawing in the second fight and winning the third to remain champion.

After finally proving that he was the #1 lightweight in the world for good he then lost his title to Benson Henderson, who he then rematched and lost against again for a second time. Edgar is coming in to this fight on a two fight losing streak but has fought twice in the time that Aldo has had off so he won't have as much ring rust.

For tonight's actual fight you can throw out any possible chance of these guys getting tired. Both of them have gone the full five rounds before and haven't had endurance trouble. When it comes to standing the slight advantage will go to Aldo because of his more versatile striking, however on the ground I give the edge to Edgar due to his wrestling.

While most of the guys that have fought Aldo haven't been able to get him to the ground, I think Edgar is the best fighter that Aldo will have ever fought. I see Edgar's wrestling being the key to this fight. If he is able to get Aldo on his back, Edgar will win this fight. If this fight stays standing then this fight will more than likely go Aldo's way.

My prediction: Edgar wins via TKO (round 3)

Light Heavyweight: Rashad Evans (17-2-1) vs. Antonio Rogerio "Lil Nog" Nogueria (20-5)

Evans won the second Ultimate Fighter Tournament and is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Nogueira is a legend from the now defunct PrideFC that has competed against some of the best in the world and has beaten them.

Evans' notable wins include Stephan Bonnar, Michael Bisping, Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, Thiago Silva, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Tito Ortiz.

Nogueira's notable wins include Guy Mezger, Kazushi Sakuraba, Alistair Overeem twice, Dan Henderson, Luiz Cane and Tito Ortiz. He also had a fight against Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in the 2005 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix that is regarded as one of the greatest fights of all time.

The current rumor circulating the internet is that with a win Evans would then drop down and challenge Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight Championship. This would mark the first time that Evans would ever step foot in the middleweight division and is something that might actually suit him better because of his small size.

While many are thinking Evans will walk through Nogueira, I'm expecting Nogueira to pull out the victory. If Evans tries to stand with Nogueira he will find out the hard way that his boxing is not at the level of Nogueira's who won has had a very successful amateur boxing career, having won gold for the South American Championships in 2006.

My prediction: Nogueira wins via KO (round 2)

Heavyweight: Alistair Overeem (36-11, 1 NC) vs. Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva (17-4)

Overeem was coming into the UFC as the guy that would eventually take over the decision. He ends up beating Brock Lesnar which makes him the #1 contender and everyone realizes that he is going to be a force in the heavyweight division. Afterwards he ends up failing a drug test due to having too high of testosterone levels. This will be his first fight in over 13 months now and the likelihood of him coming into this fight as big as he previously has is very slim. Anyone could tell you that putting on about 50 pounds of muscle within 2 years is going to look fishy. Across the Octagon from him will be another guy with a history of testing positive for steroids. "Bigfoot" Silva tested positive for boldenone in 2008 while in the EliteXC.

Steroids and other drugs have been a problem with sports everywhere including the UFC as of late and is something that I think should be tested for more often. If these guys are being tested more frequently, then they won't have the opportunity to take anything in between drug tests and won't be able to get away with anything.


Overeem's five most notable wins include Vitor Belfort twice, Igor Vovchanchyn, Fabricio Werdum and Brock Lesnar. Silva's five most notable wins include Wesley "Cabbage" Correira, former UFC Heavyweight Champion Ricco Rodriguez, former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski, former PrideFC Heavyweight Champion and arguably the greatest fighter of all time Fedor Emelianenko and Travis Browne.


As for tonight's fight, steroids aside, I see this one ending quickly. Both of these guys are going to stand in front of the other and just throw bombs at each other. In Overeem's last 11 fights only 1 has gone past the first round. He hasn't lost any fights since 2007 when he was knocked out by Sergei Kharitonov. "Bigfoot" has only been to the decision 3 times in his career and his last five fights have all avoided going to the final bell.

My prediction: Silva wins via TKO (round 1)

Welterweight: Jon Fitch (24-4-1, 1 NC) vs. Demian Maia (17-4)

Don't expect a knockout in this fight. If this fight stays standing you will more than likely want to turn away. If this fight goes to the ground you will be in for a treat between one of the best wrestlers in the world and one of the best submission experts in the world.

Fitch is coming into this fight having just beaten Erick Silva while Demian Maia has won his first two fights in the welterweight division. Fitch and Maia have both challenged for UFC Championships in their careers with Fitch losing to Georges St-Pierre at welterweight and Demian Maia losing to Anderson Silva at middleweight.

Fitch's most notable wins include Thiago Alves twice, Diego Sanchez, Paulo Thiago and Erick Silva. Maia's most notable wins include Nate Quarry, Chael Sonnen, Kendall Grove, Jorge Santiago and Dong Hyun Kim.

Fitch is a fighter that takes guys to the ground and usually wins by decision. The main concern for him this fight is that if he wants to do the same thing he always does, he will be putting himself in the most danger. Having Maia underneath him will give Maia the best chance to win because Maia has won nine fights by submission. I don't think Fitch will be able to keep Maia on his back for 15 minutes without something bad happening to him.

My prediction: Maia wins via submission (round 2)

Flyweight: Joseph Benavidez (16-3) vs. Ian McCall (11-3-1)

As I stated last week during the flyweight championship, Flyweights=Speed. These two guys are both coming into this fight off of losses against the current champion Demetrious Johnson. Benavidez has only lost to current UFC champions in his career in Johnson and current bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz. McCall has also lost to Cruz and Johnson along with Charlie Valencia in his early WEC days.

Before coming to the UFC McCall had a stint in the WEC where he went 1-2 in the bantamweight division. Without a flyweight division at the time McCall left and went to Tachi Palace Fights where he won three straight fights including a fight against Darrell Montague for the Flyweight Championship. Upon the UFC implementing a flyweight division he was brought in immediately. He has also defeated Jussier Formiga who at the time was considered the best flyweight in the world.

Benavidez has had a great career so far, but has fallen short in big fights. He has lost in a title-eliminator to Cruz, and the two times he fought for the title he has lost as well (Cruz and Johnson). While he has struggled in the biggest fights of his career he has defeated Jeff Curran, Miguel torres and Eddie Wineland.

Tonight's fight will likely determine who will fight Demetrious Johnson next for the title. These guys are probably the second and third best guys in the division as of right now and both guys are looking for revenge. I see this fight going the full 15 minutes as I don't see either of them giving up or being knocked out.

My prediction: Benavidez wins via unanimous decision 


Preliminary Card on FX:

Lightweight: Gleison Tibau (26-8) vs. Evan Dunham (13-3)
Welterweight: Tyron Woodley (10-1) vs. Jay Hieron (23-6)

These are the two main fights on FX and I see them both going the same way. Neither fighter in both fights is that much better than the other and both fighters in these fights fight very similarly of their opponents. I don't think anyone will be finished in either of them and expect both of them to go the full 15.

My predictions: Dunham and Hieron win via unanimous decision

Lightweight: Jacob Volkmann (15-3) vs. Bobby Green (19-5)

Volkmann has had a relatively successful UFC career so far. He has gone 6-3 in the UFC, losing to Paulo Thiago and Martin Kampmann at welterweight and Paul Sass at lightweight. The Sass fight is his only loss at lightweight and has gone 6-1 since dropping down to 155. Green is coming into this fight on a four fight win streak against relative nobodies while in Strikeforce. Every time he has fought someone of any notoriety he has ended up losing in the fight. I don't think this Green will last long in the UFC.

My prediction: Volkmann wins via submission (round 1)

Lightweight: Yves Edwards (42-18-1) vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg (13-3-1)

Edwards has been around MMA and the UFC for a long time now. He's been fighting since 1997 and made his UFC debut back in 2001 against Matt Serra. While hasn't had the most successful UFC career he has definitely done more in his career than his opponent. Vallie-Flagg is making his UFC debut after defeating Gesias "JZ" Cavalcante in Strikeforce. Vallie-Flagg hasn't lost in over five years but I'm pretty sure if Edwards fought those same guys he wouldn't have lost either.

My prediction: Edwards wins via submission (round 3)


Preliminary Card on Facebook:

Catchweight (139.5): Chico Camus (12-3) vs. Dustin Kimura (9-0)

For this fight I'm picking Kimura to win by kimura. The amount of bad jokes Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg will probably make about that will probably make the fight worth watching.

My prediction: Kimura wins via submission (round 2)

Bantamweight: Edwin Figueroa (9-1) vs. Francisco Rivera (8-2, 1 NC)

This is the first fight of the night between two guys that are coming off of a lengthy layoff. Figueroa was out for awhile due to injury over the last year while Rivera was suspended for testing positive for a stimulant in his last fight. Figueroa is the better fighter and should win this one.

My prediction: Figueroa wins via KO (round 1)