Tonight sees the UFC's first pay-per-view of the year, headlined by the ever exciting Anderson Silva against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Travis Lutter in a fight that may be more of a style vs style match-up than the others on the card.
Silva, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under the Nogueira brothers, promises to be no walkover for the tough Texan, bringing his barrage of flurries, elbows and knees into a fight in which Travis really has nothing to lose, especially given that the American failed to make weight for the fight, forcing the Nevada State Athletic commission to turn the bout into a 3 round, non-title brawl.
In my opinion, the only chance Travis Lutter has of winning this fight is to take the match to the ground and keep him there. If the fight returns to the feet, the Texan may tire and without enough energy for a good takedown, the Muay Thai legend would have a massive advantage. My pick for this fight has to be Anderson Silva; although there is an opportunity for Lutter to win, he is first going to have to traverse the onslaught that the Brazilian will be sure to deliver; his chin has not been tested too much before this fight, so an educated guess tells us that he is likely to be knocked out.
Mirko "Crocop" Filipovic makes his in-octagon debut this evening, taking on Eddie Sanchez, an undefeated American fighter with a professional record of 6 and 0.
This fight is merely a stepping stone for Crocop, in order that he can kick a guy's head into oblivion to market himself to the UFC faithful. Although there is a slim chance that his opponent may get the KO, if a K-1 World Grand Prix champion like Mark Hunt can't get the job done, I don't think that the youthful Sanchez poses much of a threat. My prediction for this fight is a first or second round knock out, by way of highlight reel head kick, preceded by liver-shots that would make a grown man cry.
The third bout of the evening sees Quinton "Rampage" Jackson take on the man to give him his first MMA loss, Marvin "The Beastman" Eastman. Eastman, a California state wrestling champion, is coming off a draw with Jorge Oliveira at the WFA King of the Streets show, whereas his opponent is coming off a win to Olympic silver medalist Matt Lindland at the very same event.
If Rampage comes into this fight with his old, merciless attitude, I think that he has a much greater chance of winning than Eastman. Rampage's standup poses more of a threat, and although Eastman did beat him, Jackson has developed leaps and bounds since their last encounter, and I honestly think an upset is highly unlikely.
The night also features the likes of Scott Smith, fresh off his win over Pete Sell at the Ultimate Fighter Finale taking on Patrick Cote, in a fight which I think Scott Smith will win. Although Patrick Cote is perhaps a more technical striker, his UFC appearances have been less than dominant, so in this fight I'm going to have to give the nod to the fighter who has pulled out a recent victory in the octagon.
This show promises to be one of the best in UFC history, and the year has only just begun!
2 comments: on "UFC PPV Preview"
I can't believe Lutter came in overweight. I can't imagine making such a critical mistake in the biggest fight of your career.
However, if somehow he wins, he'll obviously set himself up for another title match.
To be honest, i think it would take more than just a win to set himself up for another title match. Yeah, he'd set himself up as a contender, but it could be argued that he's had his chance and blown it.
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