Comments on: Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Shane Carwin expected to be added to UFC 96 in March

By: Mark H.

Mark H. — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 03:03:45 +0000

I saw this fight coming. Either Carwin was going to fight Gonzaga or Herring…I’m glad it’s Gonzaga. Carwin would wipe the floor with Herring. Gonzaga is good, but doesn’t have the heart that Carwin does. Also, Carwin’s striking is still way underrated. Gonzaga will have trouble with Carwin’s size, strength, speed, takedown defense and will break down mentally. Don’t forget, Carwin doesn’t just train at altitude, he lives at altitude. So cardio isn’t going to be an issue here. Also, he trains with Nate Marquardt so I bet he’s getting some good BJJ skills to match. I think this may go to the second round, but not far into it. I can’t wait for this fight!!!! My pick is Carwin via ground and pound around 2 minutes of round 2.

By: Rich S.

Rich S. — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 19:32:56 +0000

Spot on, Sergio..

you could see how confident Gonzaga was during the Cro Cop bout, or even his most recent bout against Hendricks..

but in the bouts with Couture and Werdum, he seemed broken after a while..

it seems like all it took was a few takedowns from Randy or legkicks from Werdum, and Gonzaga just felt defeated..

i think if Carwin can land a few big shots, or stop a few takedowns, GG will break..

By: JOe K.

JOe K. — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 00:42:02 +0000

Despite all of the fighters being added to the HW division it still is not very stacked. Most of the fighters aren’t well rounded enough.

By: Ervine383

Ervine383 — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 22:18:33 +0000

Gonzaga would be a great fight for Brock. His striking paired with his size could pose some problems for Brock. Really i guess Carwin could pose the same problems, so i’d like to see Brock fight both of them in time.

By: joe

joe — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 20:42:59 +0000

carwin vs gonzaga is awesome!! i will pay to see it

great fight

By: Chris

Chris — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 20:33:04 +0000

Chuck vs Jardine
Carwin vs Gonzaga or manbearpig
and maybe Huerta vs Spencer Fisher

Thats a good card, but if Chuck vs Jardine will be on the March card, that means that UFC 95 has to be on Spike now right, with Diego vs Joe Stevenson being the co main event, without Spider fighting or Chuck vs Jardine being the main event for that card, what other main event could they make to make it worth being a PPV? Diego vs Joe and Nate vs Wilson are great fights, but after that, they dont have any big fights on that card, so UFC 95 is in London, which are the cards that always get put on Spike, the Bisping card, was the Rampage/Hendo card in London? Anyway, so any news on if the UFC will put UFC 95 on Spike? I think they have too.

By: Rich S.

Rich S. — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 20:25:02 +0000

whoa.. great news..

Gabriel has continued to feel better and better about his striking since the CroCop fight..

and you could really tell in his last bout..

so, he may just try to stand with Carwin the whole time, which could result in a nasty knockout by Carwin [or another insane miracle ko from Gonzaga]

but, one thing with Carwin, is that his insane amount of adrenaline could push him to just slam GG to the ground, where, i feel, he’d get submitted..

By: Chris

Chris — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 20:23:53 +0000

Wow, this is a huge fight in terms of the next HW title shot. Once a true HW champ is crowned, you got Carwin, Cain V, Gonzaga, Kongo all in the mix for next shot, right now it seems to be Gonzaga is at the front, but if Carwin wins that fight, I can see a Brock if he is the champ vs Carwin fight, wow, that would be great, oh yeah, my bad, also the guy who beat Werdum, Dos Santos or whatever, he should be in the mix too. But this wont be for a while, figure Brock vs Mir/Nogs wont be till May or so figure next title shot wont come till the fall, so Carwin/Gonzaga winner could fight Kongo by then or Cain V, then a true HW contender will emerge. But this is gonna be a great fight.

This card seems to be getting good
Carwin vs Gonzaga
Huerta vs Fisher
And I heard maybe Chuck vs Jardine rematch, thats a big card if those fights are all on it.

By: Cathedron

Cathedron — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 19:52:26 +0000

Great matchup. I’m hoping Carwin will live up to his potential here. Gonzaga won’t be an easy opponent. Carwin’s wrestling should nullify Gonzaga’s ground game (to a point), so I’m expecting a short, brutal slugfest.

By: BigDave

BigDave — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 19:35:47 +0000

This matchup has the potential to be really good. These are 2 fighters with alot to prove in there quest for a title shot. the keys to the fight for both guys is, For Carwin bring the fight to gonzaga push in fast and keep up the pressure Gonzaga will gas. For Gonzaga use side to side movement be elusive time your shots once it goes to the ground its in gonzagas wheelhouse. I predict that it will be a 2nd rd sub by gonzaga by armbar. Gonzaga has fought the better compatition and i think will be a bit to much for carwin to handle espceally should it go to ground.

By: chris

chris — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 18:59:40 +0000

good fight im going carwin gonzaga seems to fold under pressure and carwin is gonna put a lot of pressure. carwin is gonna beat him standing and if gonzaga can’t get a takedmwm he’ll give up. gonzaga could be great if he didn’t break down mentally.

By: Sergio Hernandez

Sergio Hernandez — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 18:27:16 +0000

“He would have beat Couture but his nose got broken by Couture’s head during a slam and blood ran down the back of his throat throughout the whole fight so he gassed quick. ”

He breaks down mentally. His fight with Couture was the first example, his fight with Werdum was the second.

It’s funny, he’s kind of like CroCop. If the fight’s not going his way, he loses focus and motivation.

By: JOe K.

JOe K. — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 18:04:04 +0000

Gonzaga is way underrated.

He would have beat Couture but his nose got broken by Couture’s head during a slam and blood ran down the back of his throat throughout the whole fight so he gassed quick.

He’s a beast, he’s complete, and he will be Carwin.

I think Gonzaga Lesnar would be a good fight because Gonzaga can strike and has great jitz. He’s gotta earn his way up there though. I think if he takes care of Carwin convincingly that will put him in line.

By: dpk

dpk — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 17:59:02 +0000

I would bet that the winner is going to be No 1 contender to fight the Lesnar v Mir/Nog winner. I’m glad Carwin is stepping up in competition, this should be a awesome heavy hitting fight. I am going to take Carwin by TKO.

By: glock

glock — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 17:31:26 +0000

FINALLY…. We finally get to see what Carwins got to offer in real world terms. I have no problem with him being brought along slowly, but as Buffer says
” iiiiiiitttttttssssss TIME !!! ”
Oops, i mean,
(POWER PIVOT) ” iiiiiiitttttttsssss TIME !!! “

By: flassassin

flassassin — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 17:22:07 +0000

Carwin isn’t AKA- you’re thinking of Velasquez

By: matt

matt — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 16:40:05 +0000

The only reasons I can figure as to why they haven’t tested Cain yet are: 1. AKA/UFC issues or 2. they recognize he’s only 4-0 and super young and that they have a young potentially top 5 talent as long as they bring him along slowly.

By: Austin

Austin — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 16:12:10 +0000

Carwin by TKO, round 2.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 15:50:29 +0000

Definitely an excellent fight and one I am looking forward to see. Should be a very stern test for Carwin, and at the very least a better test for Gonzaga then his last opponent.

I would have thought though that Cain Velasquez might have gotten this kind of test before Carwin would have.

By: Voridor

Voridor — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 15:20:40 +0000

Finally Carwin gets a prime opponite to test his level. This is going to be a great fight and a real challenge for both fighters. Hats off to Joe Silva and the UFC for making a great matchup. I expect Carwin to keep it inside and go for the KO and Gonzaga to work the ground for submissions. Maybe a knockout in Gonzagas guard for Carwin…I will have to think about it some more.