UFC 68 Preview

It's once again time for another UFC pay per view, with the company building on the torrent of publicity it's been receiving in the past few months.

Although this event has been hyped less than previous shows, the card still promises to be thrilling and sees three fights which could easily be the best of the year.

On Saturday night, Randy Couture makes his heavyweight return against the current champion Tim Sylvia. On paper, this is a GIGANTIC mismatch. With Couture now tipping the age scale at 43, the question is, has time finally caught up with "The natural"?

I for one, do not believe it has. This is a man who has always been in great physical shape, and for a tremendously experienced wrestler, he has suffered almost no joint problems. This is almost unheard of, in professional wrestling or in mixed martial arts. His cardiovascular conditioning will play a large part in the fight, and I find it hard to see this fight being a decisive victory for either man.

As a side-note, I cannot see Couture's reasonings for taking this fight. Although his desire to once again become champion is clear, his position in the hearts and minds of all MMA fans worldwide is already set in stone. Why would a 43 year old man come back into the ring against arguably one of the best heavyweights in the world?

The Natural's determination to be the best has already compelled him to become a champion in two different weight divisions. One would imagine that his Hall of Fame place would be enough to keep him in retirement. Tonight, he faces the danger of joining the likes of Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie by being humbled by a younger, fresher fighter.

That younger, fresher fighter however, is not looking particularly good right now.

Sylvia is well known for participating in matches that go through all five rounds, and his striking has not looked to be as deadly as it used to be. However, his massive height and age advantage cannot be discounted. Couture has never been particularly lucky against men of a larger stature than himself, which is also a large factor. This fight, to me, is too close to call. My heart says Couture and my mind says Sylvia.

The undercard is star studded, with two ex-champions making their long awaited returns to the octagon. The first of these matches sees Matt Hughes take on Chris Lytle in a fight that Hughes cannot afford to lose. The UFC have been hot on the idea of having St Pierre vs Hughes 3 in Montreal at a later date; if Hughes loses his return match, this could throw away one of the biggest money matches in the foreseeable future.

I don't think that will happen, because Hughes happens to be one of the most vastly experienced fighters in the entire organisation. My prediction for this fight is a first round knockout, Hughes.

Rich Franklin is also making his return against Jason MacDonald, and this is a fight where Rich Franklin is really going to have to work. After being destroyed in highlight reel fashion by Anderson Silva last year, Franklin now has to make sure that he wins this fight decisivley if he wishes to hold the fan's adoration once more.

Right now, the UFC can almost do nothing wrong. The company is finally receiving mainstream recognition, as well as obliterating opposing pay per views from both other MMA organisations or Pro-wrestling ones.

If things go right for the UFC tonight, UFC 68 will be forever remembered as a card used to set up dream matches; Couture vs Crocop, Franlin vs Silva 2, and Hughes vs St Pierre 3. Let's just pray that this happens.

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