Diaz would go on to defeat Penn via Unanimous Decision and called out St. Pierre in a profanity laced attack claiming that GSP wasn’t really injured and instead was ducking a potential fight with him. At the UFC 137 post fight press conference White claimed that GSP was as angry as he had ever seen him and demanded his next fight be against the Stockton, CA resident as opposed to Condit. White also stated that Condit was okay with the situation and instead would face a yet to be named opponent at UFC 143 in the co-main event. As we would learn later on, Condit was not happy with the situation.

Of course, as luck would have it, GSP’s knee injury would turn out to be much more severe than anyone first thought and he would require surgery keeping him out until the fall of 2012. The natural thing to do for the UFC was to match-up Diaz and Condit which was scheduled for the main event of UFC 143 and would be for an interim title. The winner would then face “Rush” once he was healthy for the right to become the undisputed 170-pound champion.

The anticipation for Diaz-Condit was incredible as the UFC marketing machine was in full effect. White was telling anyone who would listen that this bout could be one of the best the UFC had ever seen. Based upon both fighters’ histories he wasn’t off as both men liked to stand and bang. They also brought a lot of intensity, toughness, and heart into every one of their fights. GSP felt uncomfortable rooting against the fellow Greg Jackson trained Condit, but still harbored a lot of ill will towards Diaz and made no secret of who he was pulling for.

The much anticipated tilt took place this past Saturday night and did not go anywhere near as well as planned. Condit fought a methodical, well-planned fight. He avoided Diaz’s pressure by keeping his feet moving at all times and landed a great deal of leg kicks and seemed to be ahead on the judges scorecards. When Bruce Buffer announced “The Natural Born Killer” as the winner it did not sit well with Diaz or his legion of fans who felt that Condit was awarded for avoiding Diaz at all costs and doing the bare minimum to take home the victory. As Joe Rogan interviewed Diaz after the fight he went into full tantrum mode and claimed he was done with MMA; that he no longer needed to be part of the sport.

It seems as though his threats and promises have worked to his advantage once again as word leaked out yesterday that Condit had not only agreed to, but asked for a rematch with Diaz before his scheduled bout with St. Pierre. Apparently Diaz was able to get under the skin of Condit in much the same way he did with GSP. The entire thing just goes to show you that self promotion is just as important as the fight you put on inside of the cage. The real story here is whether or not the UFC is hoping for a Diaz win so they can finally get the money bout everyone wanted in the first place, but has been canceled on two separate occasions – St. Pierre vs. Diaz.

Diaz lost the bout on all three judges’ scorecards. He won just one round on two of the judges’ cards and was awarded two rounds by the third judge. No one is arguing the fact that Condit fought a safe fight, but is there really a need for an immediate rematch based upon the outcome of the first fight? However, to be honest, this is the best call the UFC could make. Without trying to placate Diaz who seems to know how to push White’s buttons along with his opponents, if this fight doesn’t take place there is a potential nine-month gap between fights for Condit. If that is the case then what was the need to create the interim title in the first place if it was just going to be held up for nearly a year anyways?

The fight was close enough to get these two guys back in the cage as soon as possible. As we have learned in the past the judges aren’t always the most educated, responsible people in the arena at any given time. It’s certainly not fair to ask Condit to wait a minimum of nine months before GSP is ready to fight. This fight will kill three birds with one stone, it keeps Diaz happy, even if it means bowing down to his demands once again, it keeps Condit fresh and it gives more meaning to the interim title. For once the UFC is making the right call.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Interim Welterweight Title Fight: Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit

If nothing else, Condit’s preparation will be rendered easier by the fact that he, along with everyone else, knows what Diaz will be looking to do in this fight. The far more complicated problem of course, is actually finding a way to counter it.

As ever, Diaz will move forward, throw his trademark “peppering punches”, put together plenty of combinations, and go to the body repeatedly. This is the way the older of the Diaz brothers has always fought, and he has done remarkably well to improve upon it in recent times. While his approach and strategy remain the same, his technique has gotten significantly better. That is not to say that Diaz will ever be mistaken for a technical striker, but he has displayed glaring improvement in his boxing — namely his ability to sit on his punches and produce extra power.

Many of Diaz’s opponents have found themselves helpless against the sheer volume with which he throws, and the Stockton native will look to overwhelm Condit the same way he did to many of his previous adversaries. He will try to take advantage of his reach by establishing his jab, get his lead right hook working, and follow it up with the left — most likely to the body. In fact, Diaz’s single most dangerous punch is his left hook to the liver, and if he is to have a real chance of stopping the otherwise extremely durable Condit, the left hook to the body is the shot he will bank on.

However, for all of Diaz’s offensive improvements, his defense has remained typically shaky. His flat-footed stance means he is always a still target, which, coupled with his lack of head movement, makes him extremely susceptible to getting lit up by a talented counter-puncher. Additionally, while Diaz does well to utilize his reach effectively, he is often all too content to stand inside the pocket and trade. This almost cost him dearly against Paul Daley, and had it not been for his otherworldly chin and recovery, Diaz  would have likely been separated from consciousness.

Nevertheless, Diaz remains MMA’s embodiment of the old adage: “the best defense is a good offense.” Despite the aforementioned defensive flaws, his offense is often too overwhelming for that to matter. Because of his iron chin and unlimited gas tank, Diaz can afford to keep moving forward, throw with abnormal volume, while simultaneously absorbing shots that would have been enough to stop most humans. Bizarrely, those defensive holes can at times work in Diaz’s favor, as upon seeing how open he is, opponents are often all too tempted to engage in ill-advised fire fights with him, and pay a dear price in the process. Diaz simply has a way of forcing opponents to fight his fight.

Condit needs to avoid falling victim to that trap. “The Natural Born Killer” needs to use a lot of footwork, circle away, and crucially, stay away from being trapped with his back to the fence, where Diaz could unload on him with trademark combinations. Concurrently, Condit would be wise to throw kicks liberally. He will likely look to fight “long” by utilizing plenty of body kicks (namely push kicks) from the outside to keep his opponent at bay. Most importantly however, leg kicks should be the backbone of Condit’s offense, as Diaz’s stance and unwillingness — or inability — to check them make him particularly vulnerable to getting his legs chomped on, as witnessed in his bout with Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos.

Condit will have the luxury of being the more diverse striker, as in addition to his kicks and improved boxing, he possesses some lethal knees. If he is to put Diaz away, the latter is going to be the most likely method. As such, the clinch battle could prove vital, as Diaz is sneakily good at landing short punches from close-quarters, while Condit’s knees are not something the Cesar Gracie protege wants any part of.

Against Dan Hardy, Condit displayed a brand of crisp boxing on the inside that he seemed to lack prior to that. He was able to stand inside the pocket, beat “The Outlaw” to the punch, and land clean, powerful counters, the last of which being a left hook that turned the Brit’s lights out. Should he be able to replicate that sort of counter-punching against Diaz, the bout could be his for the taking. However, doing so while absorbing minimal damage will be substantial, as Condit will inevitably slow down if he is to take too many of Diaz’s shots to the body.

Diaz’s historically iffy takedown defense could result in Condit taking the fight to the ground at some point. Diaz is guilty of being too comfortable off of his back, as he isn’t urgent enough in his attempts to get back to his feet and instead relies on throwing submissions from the bottom. However, Diaz does make up for it with excellent scrambling. Condit’s top game is often too aggressive, and Diaz could well use that to his advantage if he finds himself on the bottom. As such, the Team Jackson product needs to be more methodical in his attempts to pass the guard — something he is unlikely to have too much success with against a grappler of Diaz’s caliber to begin with — and perhaps be a bit more content to stay tight, and land short elbows from inside the guard.

Diaz holds an edge in cardio over most fighters in the division, but Condit’s stamina has never been an issue, and he has repeatedly proven that he is more than able to go the distance, and at times get stronger as the fight progresses. That however, could change if his opponent is able to put it on him early, as Diaz’s style has a tendency to take a toll on his foes.

If Diaz is to win this fight, he needs to pile up the pressure, tag Condit continuously, avoid the incoming counters, and wear him out. On the other hand, Condit needs to take Diaz’s legs away early and take over the fight from there. Which is more likely to happen is anybody’s guess, but it is just difficult to pick against Nick Diaz at the moment, least of all in a five-round fight.

Official Prediction: Nick Diaz to defeat Carlos Condit by Decision

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Then Jeremy is joined by Todd Bergman to talk about very little MMA but plenty of pro wrestling and NFL. Coming off the heels of the Royal Rumble, we’ll talk about the show and where the WWE is headed from here as the Road to Wrestlemania is underway. Then we’ll preview this weekends Super Bowl between the Giants and Patriots, telling you who we think will win and why, and review the season of our beloved Carolina Panthers.

It’s nearly two hours of MMA, WWE, and NFL talk, so check it out.

Download (Right Click -> Save Link As) – iTunes

Preliminary Predictions

* Rafael Natal to defeat Michael Kuiper by Decision
* Stephen Thompson to defeat Daniel Stittgen by Decision
* Matt Brown to defeat Chris Cope by TKO in Round 2
* Edwin Figueroa to defeat Alex Caceres by TKO in Round 3
* Matt Riddle to defeat Henry Martinez by Decision
* Dustin Poirier to defeat Max Holloway by Submission in Round 2

Main Card Predcitions

Heavyweight Fight: Ed Herman vs. Clifford Starks

The talented but inconsistent Herman returns to the Octagon for the first time since his submission of Kyle Noke last August. At this stage in his career, Herman is pretty much what he is: well-rounded enough to dispose of many mid-level middleweights, but unlikely to ever manage to get over that ceiling. Throughout his career, Herman has out-grappled inferior grapplers, and out-struck inferior strikers. He is able to achieve the latter by mixing up just enough takedowns with his stand-up to keep his opponent guessing. In particular, Herman closes the distance well, where he is far more comfortable boxing from close-quarters and working in the clinch. That approach allows the Team Quest veteran to mask some flagrant flaws in his striking game, both offensively and defensively.

Starks’ striking isn’t much to write home about, but he does possesses a solid counter left hand that could prove very useful if Herman is his usual aggressive self, and is as persistent in his efforts to close the distance. Conversely, Starks is unlikely to have too much joy with his bread-and-butter single leg takedown, as Herman is a superior wrestler, and possesses solid enough takedown defense to stay vertical. If Starks wants to take the fight to the ground, he would be better served to use his single leg attempts to initiate scrambles, as clean takedowns will be hard to come by. This however, is a two-fold problem, as Starks’ grappling isn’t dynamic enough to take advantage of those scrambling opportunities and get dominant positions on someone as seasoned as Herman.

The match-up favors Herman, who shouldn’t have a difficult time clinching up, dirty-boxing, and putting Starks on his back, before polishing him off with a late submission or some ground-and-pound.

Official Prediction: Ed Herman to defeat Clifford Starks by TKO in Round 3.

Bantamweight Fight: Renan Barao vs. Scott Jorgensen

In a bout that could well determine who will earn a crack at the Urijah Faber/Dominick Cruz victor, Barao and Jorgensen square off in a rare showcase for the bantamweights on a UFC main card.

Barao is very single-minded in his approach: He will move forward, throw a lot of one-two’s, land an occasional leg kick, and aggressively pursue the takedown. The fact that he lacks a good shot from the outside forces him to be even more determined — and at times desperate — in his attempts to close the distance, as most of his takedowns come from the clinch. Once in that position, Barao will work for the double underhooks and look to land his favorite trip takedown. To his credit, in his last bout with Brad Pickett, Barao showed surprising versatility in his game, as he nailed the Brit with a step-in knee to the jaw before putting him away with a rear-naked choke.

If nothing else, Jorgensen will stay in Barao’s face the entire time, as “Young Guns” is relentless moving forward. However, as aggressive as he is, Jorgensen’s wrestling and takedown proficiency aren’t exactly unstoppable. He is often successful due to his ability to keep his opponent on his toes by having him worry about his monster of a right hand, but from a purely technical perspective, Jorgensen’s wrestling could still use some polishing. In his defense, his takedowns are far more effective once he actually closes the distance. If he is to put Barao on his back, this would be the path to do it, as Jorgensen is far more effective from up close than he is when in pure power double mode.

From the top, Jorgensen rarely looks to pass guard, and instead relies on his ability to generate an incredible amount of power with his ground-and-pound. However, his bout with Jeff Curran showed that Jorgensen’s top game can be neutralized with a solid active guard — something that Barao undoubtedly possesses. Furthermore, Barao will be able to threaten with sweeps and create scrambles frequently enough to regain his feet. Jorgensen needs to be particularly wary of his opponent’s ability to get the back in scrambles, as Barao shows no mercy once he is on his opponent’s back.

If the apparent improvement that Barao displayed in his striking against Pickett is indeed here to stay, the dynamics of this fight will shift to his favor, as Jorgensen’s wrestling isn’t nearly as effective when he isn’t controlling the striking portion of the fight. Nevertheless, Jorgensen’s right hand is a difference-maker in any contest, and should it connect, Barao may well find himself staring at the ceiling. In a real toss-up, expect Barao to edge out a tightly contested decision victory.

Official Prediction: Renan Barao to defeat Scott Jorgensen by Decision

Welterweight Fight: Josh Koscheck vs. Mike Pierce

While some have described the situation Koscheck finds himself in as “no-win”, the fact is, the American Kickboxing Academy standout could well find himself in title contention with a victory, especially should the winner of the evening’s main event fight one more time before squaring off with St. Pierre.

In Pierce, Koscheck faces a legitimately tough individual who never fails to make a fight out of any contest that he’s in. Despite a somewhat deserved reputation of an unspectacular grinder, Pierce is far more well-rounded than given credit for. His boxing is crisp, he knows how to sit on his punches, and can produce serious power with short, tight punches on the inside. This could spell trouble for Koscheck, who has displayed some lazy defensive tendencies in the past.

Conversely, Koscheck’s game negates what Pierce does best, as the Oregon native likes to get in close, get double underhooks and work for takedowns — a tough feat against a wrestler of Koscheck’s caliber. Koscheck’s double leg is good enough to drive through most fighters in the division. In fact, even in his one-sided beat-down at the hands of GSP, Koscheck was still able to take the best wrestler in the division down. However, while he is more than capable of putting Pierce on his back, Koscheck will likely choose to keep the fight standing, as he has done so many times before.

Koscheck sets up his overhand right with a jab that he throws with no real conviction, and the rest of his striking game consists of the occasional high kick. What he lacks in technique and diversity however, Koscheck makes up for with speed and power, and Pierce wouldn’t want to experience the sensation of an overhand right to the chin.

Despite the unlikelihood of a clean takedown for Pierce, he would be smart to force his opponent into a clinch battle where he could push him against the fence and land some dirty-boxing. This may well take Koscheck out of his element, as he has always preferred working from distance, both when striking and shooting in.

Nevertheless, the match-up favors Koscheck who is a vastly superior wrestler and will be the faster and more powerful striker. Pierce is good enough to hold his own in both departments, but not to the point of actually besting Koscheck in either.

Official Prediction: Josh Koscheck to defeat Mike Pierce by Decision

Heavyweight Fight: Fabricio Werdum vs. Roy Nelson

In a rare piece of legitimately interesting heavyweight action, grappling ace Fabricio Werdum looks to make the most out of a ticket back inside the Octagon when he takes on “Big Country” Roy Nelson. Despite a sorry performance against Alistair Overeem in June, there can be no doubt as to whether or not Werdum belongs in the UFC heavyweight division. Nelson however, provides the Brazilian with a stern welcome back test.

On the feet, Nelson will hold the edge as long as the fight is not contested in close-quarters. Werdum’s most efficient offense comes when he can close the distance on his opponent, land some short — albeit sloppy — punches, and work him over in the clinch where he possesses some underrated knees from the Thai plum. “Big Country” would not want to experience a repeat of  his bout with Frank Mir, and will therefore be looking to maintain his distance, where his superior boxing and power come into play. He will move forward, double up on the jab, and follow up with his bread-and-butter overhand right.

Normally, Nelson uses that pattern to close the distance and secure the clinch, where he will look for trip takedowns and get his top game working. Against Werdum however, he might choose to do away with that approach, as he risks playing right into the Brazilian’s hands. If a battle of underhooks ensues, and Werdum is able to turn the tables on his opponent, put his back against the fence, and get the takedown, Nelson’s strategy would have backfired in a major way. Even if Nelson is successful in putting his opponent on his back, Werdum’s guard is simply too good to get stuck helplessly on the bottom. In particular, Werdum’s ability to sweep will be troublesome for even someone with Nelson’s top game. At worst, Werdum is going to completely neutralize his opponent’s work from the top, and “Big Country” is not going to have success passing guard and looking for his trademark mounted Crucifix.

As such, Nelson would be wise to stay on the outside and look to fire his menacing right hand. However, unless he catches Werdum clean on the chin and puts him away, “Vai Cavalo” is going to be able to close the distance, get the clinch, land some knees and look for the takedown. Nelson has a solid enough base to avoid being planted on his back in the early going, but if his habit of fading away late in the fight persists, “Big Country” could well spend the third round fighting from the bottom.

This could turn into a more competitive version of Nelson’s bout with Mir, this time with “Big Country” having some success early, only for Werdum to rally back and get the nod on the judges’ scorecards.

Official Prediction: Fabricio Werdum to defeat Roy Nelson by Decision

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Let’s be clear here up front: I understand why Dana White and Zuffa would support legal action like SOPA & PIPA, and were I in their place I’d be concerned about piracy too. They have a company whose foundation is built upon their customers paying to see events live, so anything that undermines that business is clearly going to have an impact on profits.

That being said, SOPA is not the way to stop piracy. In fact I’d be very surprised if our government was able to introduce any kind of legislation that effectively stamps out piracy in all its forms. Fighting a war on piracy is similar to fighting wars on drugs and terrorism; they may be noble causes but ultimately they will prove to be futile. Religious and social divides will always cause cultures to hate each other, some people will always look for a way to alter their consciousness, and there will always be people on the internet with more free time than money.

Another thing that won’t help fight piracy is angering the hacker community. After taunting hackers on Thursday,the UFC President  had his site hacked again in addition to having his personal information compromised. I have no desire to know what Dana’s social security number is, but the fact that it’s now available for viewing on the internet should be a clear sign that mistakes have been made. Maybe Dana can shrug off this invasion of privacy and claim it’s no big deal. After all, he can change his phone numbers, hire private security for his home, and pursue legal action against anyone taking advantage of his personal information. His customers, however, may not be so lucky.

On Friday another member of the hacker group Anonymous (the very group White provoked on Twitter on Thursday) announced that he had hacked both UFC.com as well as the company’s live streaming site UFC.tv. This hacker also claims to have retrieved data from customer’s who have used UFC.tv to purchase PPVs. Anonymous made headlines this past Christmas when they used stolen credit card data to make donations to charity, and they have vowed to release the data acquired from the UFC if Dana provokes them again.

I know Dana has taken a carefree attitude towards this hacking situation, and at the start he wasn’t really out of line to do so. The initial attack just took down UFC.com for a few hours, which is roughly equivalent to taking down some advertisements. Had he left it at that things may not have gone any further.

By provoking the hackers (and specifically Anonymous) and equating their actions to terrorism, Dana brought unnecessary grief upon himself, his family, and his business. Anonymous doesn’t deal in the business of pirating PPVs, they are hackers acting as social activists. Whether or not you agree with their methods and their message is up to you, but there’s no reason to invite action from them against you and your business, particularly when your website is storing credit card information from your customers. It’s also worth noting that Anonymous is (by their very nature) a decentralized organization, with no control over their individual members’ actions. There’s been no action yet with any stolen information (at least that we know of) but this entire chain of events could lead to serious ramifications for the UFC and their online businesses. They have essentially broken the trust necessary in a capitalist society, wherein the consumer willingly supplies his financial information to a corporation with the implied understanding that it will be used in a responsible manner and not abused in any way. Obviously the UFC will be working with law enforcement agencies to find those responsible for this intrusion, but by inviting the attacks White may have implicated himself in any civil action that takes place in the future. It’s certainly too early to know exactly what will happen as a result of these hacks, but for now we can’t rule out the worst scenarios coming to pass.

So if the UFC and White are unable to completely stamp out piracy and stop the actions of hackers, what’s the solution?

One way to solve the problem is to give people a reason to buy your product online. Those who watch pirated streams are obviously willing to sit in front of their computer to watch a UFC event, so Dana White and Zuffa should be working to convert those people into paying customers. The easiest way to do this is to make PPVs less expensive. It seems like such an easy thing to do coming from somebody like me (you know, a consumer) but it really does make sense.

Whenever the price of his product is brought up, Dana dismisses the issue by stating that people can buy the program in groups, go to their local bar or restaurant, or if all else fails, just don’t watch it. What about those UFC fans like myself who usually watch the events alone? Not everyone has friends that watch the UFC and would be willing to pitch in for buying a PPV every single month. What about people under the age of 21, or those members of society who don’t drink? It’s hard to justify spending $45-55 for something that’s just for me, especially when that money could be used for food or clothing for my family. Dana would say that that’s too bad and I’ll just have to deal with not watching the UFC events, but is that any way to grow your business?

If the UFC really wants to get more people to purchase their streams online (especially in the wake of a possible violation on consumers’ private information), lower the price for the streaming version of the event. Since the UFC doesn’t have to share that $45 or $55 with cable and satellite providers for their online stream, perhaps they could pass some of those savings on to their consumer. Cut the price for a streaming event to $25 or $30 and I can practically guarantee that you’ll have a lot more people buying a reliable, quality stream over a sketchy pirated one.

This doesn’t have to be a permanent price change either; they could offer it on some of their events and reserve the higher price point for bigger cards. Flexible pricing is one idea that could be implemented for the streams as well as the regular PPV broadcast, and it allows the UFC to be more aggressive with cards that lack a blockbuster main event. As the sport’s biggest stars start heading towards the end of their career (and some are already there, see Lesnar, Brock and Liddell, Chuck) the UFC is going to be putting more and more fresh faces at the top of their cards, and having a lower price point for shows not anchored by proven draws allows these events to be seen by more people; which in turn gives these newer fighters a better chance to gain fans.

Let’s also consider the first time buyer. The whole point of getting their product on broadcast television with Fox is to create new fans who will in turn purchase the PPVs, right? If you had your first MMA experience this past Saturday night would you want to put down $45-55 to watch this weekend’s event? Make the first PPV after a Fox show lower priced and you’ll assure yourself a better chance of hooking those new fans.

The UFC will never be able to wipe out piracy completely. As their own employee Joe Rogan likes to state, “you can’t stop the internet.” Provide a product that’s both affordable as well as attractive, and back it up with great customer service, and you’ll please the customers you have while adding new ones all the time. It’s worked wonders for online businesses like Amazon.com, iTunes, and Steam, and there’s no reason why it can’t work for the UFC as well. They can continue their anti-piracy efforts by working with law enforcement to take down sites illegally streaming their shows, but at the same time they can be proactive and offer a more appealing product that people want to pay for.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

It’s over an hour and half of MMA talk, so check it out.

Download (Right Click -> Save Link As) – iTunes

It was the UFC’s big return to FOX and despite nearly one hour of in-cage action, fans were left just as disappointed as they were back in November when they only saw 64 seconds of fighting. Chicago hardcores, used to seeing the greatness of Michael Jordan, Derrick Rose, Stan Mikita, and Jonathan Toews were subject to watch the “just enoughness” of Rashad Evans and Chael Sonnen. By the end of the night, fans were probably begging for Kanye West to interrupt the main event to announce, “hold on Rashad, I’mma let you finish by Jon Jones is the greatest fighter of all time.”

Lets go to the scorecard:

*Pretty disappointing for Dustin Jacoby, Chris Camozzi, and the fans that their fight wasn’t even on Facebook. Maybe Dana White was more worried about the hackers than he’d lead us to believe. MINUS ONE

*Oh God, the first voice we hear on the UFC Prelims is Jay Glazer. Not a good start. MINUS TWO

*Can Lavar Johnson not get a banner? MINUS ONE

*Shame on Joey Beltran for not touching gloves. MINUS ONE

*I’m not sure how far Johnson can go in the division, but he has some scary power to be able to stop Beltran like that. PLUS FOUR

*Extra points to Johnson for those sick uppercuts. PLUS THREE

*No really Beltran, you should have touched gloves. MINUS ONE

*As always, I have to take away points from these TV broadcasts because they don’t televise walk outs and have too many commercials. MINUS THREE

*Michael Johnson looked much improved in the first round with his striking and takedown defense. Good job by him. PLUS TWO

*That said, he faded as the fight went along and it’s not like Shane Roller switched up his game all that much. MINUS TWO

*Poor form by the crowd, booing when they immediately clinched. MINUS TWO

*I didn’t like the call by Herb Dean in the third round. Were some of the shots to the back of the head? Yes, but Johnson wasn’t getting out of the position and we’ve seen guys get pounded out like that before. It made Roller re-think his strikes and gave Johnson time to recover. MINUS FOUR

*Also, if you’re going to make that call and say it’s a foul, then stand them up and give Johnson time to recover. Shoddy call by Herb. MINUS TWO

*I guess Herb judged the fight as well. MINUS ONE

*Not a good post-fight interview from Johnson. It didn’t help that Joe Rogan didn’t get his unfunny TV commercial reference but saying your footwork sets you apart while not acknowledging your lack of cardio was pretty lame. MINUS THREE

*To prove I actually liked something about the fight, I’ll give the fight as whole points because it was an entertaining bout. PLUS FIVE

*Big fan of Charles Oliveira and it was great to see him at 145 and winning again. PLUS THREE

*Awesome calf slicer submission by Oliveira. This kid will be a beast for years to come. PLUS SIX

*Not a great first UFC impression by Eric Wisely. MINUS ONE

*It was nice that Johnson didn’t get dragged into the whole “Strikeforce heavyweights have always belonged in the UFC” deal. Everyone is there now and that’s all that matters. Johnson’s win doesn’t prove all them have always belonged and if he lost, it wouldn’t have meant that none of them belong. It’s a dumb argument. PLUS FOUR

*FOX just can’t do any sporting event without including robots, can they? Get me Will Smith. MINUS THREE

*Even though FuelTV doesn’t televise full walk outs, they showed enough of Cub Swanson’s walk-out for me to catch that he came out to “N-ggas in Paris” by Jay-Z and Kanye West. BALL SO HARD! PLUS THREE

*It appears that Brittney Palmer is back to being beautiful and is no longer stunning according to Mike Goldberg. MINUS ONE

*Sick right hand by Swanson on George Roop. You would have thought that Roop realized that it was the only thing Swanson was throwing with any effectiveness, but nope. PLUS THREE

*Extra points for knocking out the mouthpiece of Roop with the punch. PLUS FOUR

*The less said about Jon Olav Einemo vs. Mike Russow, the better. It brought this card to a quick halt. MINUS FOUR

*And Goldberg’s commentary was extra bad during the fight as well. MINUS THREE

*Anyone who comes out to Red Hot Chili Peppers is a good man in my book. I salute you Evan Dunham. PLUS TWO

*Good scrap between Dunham and Nik Lentz. Not the most technical fight ever, but both guys got after it on the feet and did some nice work on the ground. PLUS FIVE

*It was a shame that the doctor stopped the fight as Lentz was still in the fight, but fighters safety comes first. I also think that UFC didn’t want too much blood on the mat before going on FOX. EVEN

*Once again, points will be deducted until UFC on FOX doesn’t use NFL on FOX music. MINUS TWO

*I approve of Randy Couture and Jon Jones in place of Dana White and Brock Lesnar. Couture won’t be as emotional as Dana and Jones obviously is invested in the main event. PLUS TWO

*That said, it would have been nice if Curt Menefee knew who Jones was. MINUS ONE

*BOOOO RANKINGS! MINUS TWO

*Yeah, lets not talk about Chris Weidman vs. Demian Maia. It was a sloppy striking contest before they got tired and then it was a drunken striking contest once they were tired. MINUS FOUR

*I’m taking away even more point from Maia, who had a full training camp and still showed up the way he did. At least Weidman has some type of an excuse. MINUS SIX

*A lot of credit has to be given to Michael Bisping, who fought a very good fight against Chael Sonnen, especially in the first two rounds. He bettered him striking and controlled the clinch, where many thought Sonnen would have the advantage. PLUS FIVE

*Also credit goes to Sonnen, who, as expected, just kept moving forward and out-wrestled Bisping in the third round. PLUS FIVE

*However, I have to take points from the judges for not agreeing with me, as I thought Bisping won 29-28. MINUS TWO

*Extra points because I was entertained for the entire 15 minutes. PLUS SIX

*What an awesome promo by Chael. PLUS FOUR

*As great as it was though, he didn’t mention fighting Anderson Silva again, which should have been his main bullet point. MINUS TWO

*Funny moment by Jones as he acknowledged Rashad’s “swagger jacker” comment. PLUS ONE

*You use “All of the Lights” by Kanye West, you get points Phil Davis. PLUS ONE

*”Survival of the Fittest” is such a great walk-out song. Nice job Rashad Evans. PLUS TWO

*Aaaaaand Evans vs. Davis was underwhelming. Evans seemed to fight not to lose while Davis was just in over his head. MINUS FIVE

*I do want to give Evans credit though because Davis is a skilled fighter and Evans was never in trouble during the fight. So good job by him. PLUS THREE

*If nothing else, Jon Jones really loves himself some Jon Jones. EVEN

*Overall UFC on FOX 2 felt pretty underwhelming. These FOX shows are built on the main card and this main card delivered one good fight, but it was sandwiched between two very lackluster outings. MINUS THREE

Official Score: 11

For a more in-depth look at UFC on FOX 2 plus a preview of this weekends UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit event, make sure to check out tomorrows Five Ounces of Podcast with Samer Kadi and myself.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Light Heavyweight Fight: Rashad Evans vs. Phil Davis

Undoubtedly the most highly decorated wrestler Evans has faced in his MMA career, Davis is a major threat even in Rashad’s comfort zone. Historically, Evans’ wrestling has never been an insurmountable obstacle. He was never one to finish clean double legs in the middle of the cage, and instead relied on pushing opponents against the fence and get the takedown from there. This has been a double edged sword, as Evans has struggled to enjoy too much time in top position due to his foes often finding opportunities to wall-walk. His more wrestling oriented fights turned into constant battles for position, as witnessed in his bout with Michael Bisping, which saw the Brit constantly escape from the bottom and turn the tables on Evans. Likewise, Thiago Silva was repeatedly able to regain his feet and prevented Evans from doing anything significant from the top, and it almost came back to haunt Rashad when he was badly rocked late in the final round. It wasn’t until the “Rampage” Jackson fight that Evans showed marked improvement in that regard, as for the first time in his career, the former Team Jackson product was able to use his ever improving boxing to set up takedowns. His transitions and level changes in particular gave his opponent all sorts of trouble, as Jackson never quite knew what to expect.

Against Davis, Evans is unlikely to find too much joy getting the former “All American” on his back for any extended period of time, as not only will “Mr. Wonderful” match Evans in that department, but he is an excellent scrambler as well. In fairness, Davis’ wrestling in MMA hasn’t been as dominant as one would have hoped, as he found himself continuously struggling to control the distance inside the cage. That is a direct result of Davis’ raw striking, which is reliant on a few kicks from distance but very little boxing, as his lack of confidence in his hands forces him to stay on the outside and fight “rangy”, which in turn often leads to him shooting from too far on the outside.

Davis makes up for that with excellent chain wrestling, highlighted by his ability to easily transition from one takedown attempt to the next, as well as some tremendous scrambling. Whether that will be enough to trouble Evans however, is doubtful, as “Sugar” excels in the scrambles as well, and despite not being exactly impossible to take down, he is very difficult to control on the ground, and knows how to create openings to get back to his vertical base.

This also negates one of Davis’ main strengths, and that is his ability to land submissions from scrambles. He possesses excellent front headlock control, and uses it to get dominant positions or transition into choke variations. Evans however, is too seasoned to fall victim to a guillotine or anaconda choke, and he would have undoubtedly watched enough tape on his opponent to be aware of the danger he poses in that position.

All of this could well turn the fight into a wrestling stalemate, and that is where Evans’ superior striking comes into play. Rashad normally has two approaches to his stand-up: he either patiently sits back and waits for the opportunity to land a counter right hand, or he moves forward aggressively, puts combinations together, and transitions to takedowns. The former will be a difficult proposition in this one, as Davis isn’t one to let his hands go and leave openings for counters, and Rashad will have to fight with more urgency in his stand-up. This will be detrimental to his chances of landing a fight-ending blow, as Evans’ strikes are considerably more effective when he has time to sit on his punches and counter. However, given the lack of volume and accuracy in Davis’ offense on the feet, Evans won’t find it too hard to out-land him by moving forward, closing the distance, landing some shots to the head and body, throwing plenty of knees to the thighs and dirty boxing.

As long as Evans doesn’t tire himself out by fruitlessly pushing Davis against the fence, he should be able to win enough rounds with that approach. Unless Davis shows enough improvement in his striking to where he can use it to set up his takedowns, he will have a hard time out-wrestling Evans for five rounds.  It won’t be pretty, and it could well turn into a lackluster clinch-fest, but Evans will be able to land just enough strikes from close-quarters to earn the decision.

Official Prediction: Rashad Evans to defeat Phil Davis by Decision

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Preliminary Predictions:

* Chris Camozzi to defeat Dustin Jacoby by Decision
* Joey Beltran to defeat Lavar Johnson by Decision
* Shane Roller to defeat Michael Johnson by Decision
* Charles Oliveira to defeat Eric Wisely by Submission in Round 1
* George Roop to defeat Cub Swanson by Decision
* Mike Russow to defeat Jon-Olav Einemo by TKO in Round 2
* Evan Dunham to defeat Nik Lentz by Decision

Main Card Predictions:

Middleweight Fight: Demian Maia vs. Chris Weidman

One of the most promising rising fighters in the sport, Weidman’s transition from wrestling to MMA has been as seamless as he could have hoped. Like other fellow wrestlers-turned-martial artists, Weidman has been able to pick up the grappling aspect of the game with remarkable ease. His last two bouts showed the kind of submission grappler he’s developed into, as Weidman displayed a very diverse top game. Constantly looking to improve position while simultaneously punishing his opponent with ground-and-pound, the former “All-American” is far from being single-minded in his approach from the top. His guard-passing is extremely fluid, and is rendered even easier with an onslaught of punches and elbows. Where Weidman shines the most however, is when he is able to secure front headlock control, where he possesses quite an arsenal of submissions.

Interestingly, this could all prove irrelevant against Maia, whose BJJ wizardry could well negate Weidman’s grappling — that is of course, if Weidman decides to shoot on his opponent to begin with. After all, Maia’s bottom game is about as good as it gets in the middleweight division. In fact, the Brazilian is one of the few fighters in the sport who can still afford to use an open guard, as his triangles and vast arsenal of sweeps are a handful for any opponent to handle. Even if Weidman is confident in his ability to survive inside Maia’s guard, he is unlikely to find much joy in doing anything noteworthy from the top.

For his part, Maia will undoubtedly look to close the distance, get the clinch and work for the takedown. Maia’s takedowns from the clinch are extremely underrated, but putting Weidman on his back is a tall order. If he is able to do it, even for a brief moment, he could make inroads, as Maia is an expert at taking advantage of his opponent’s eagerness to regain his feet and use it to take the back, where he is incredibly difficult to shake off. When that fails however, Maia often likes to transition from single leg attempts to pulling guard in order to take the fight to his element; though just how much offense he can produce from the bottom remains to be seen.

Maia’s main flaw is his blatantly unpolished striking, highlighted by some extremely wild boxing. He will often rely on throwing a sloppy left cross and leaves himself vulnerable to getting countered in the process. Conversely, Weidman’s striking is a little raw as well, but he has shown some mild — but potentially crucial — improvements. His kicks have come along nicely, and he will be content to stay on the outside and chomp on Maia’s legs. When moving forward, he’s also capable of putting together combinations and dirty box from close-quarters.

It is a difficult test for the Matt Serra protege to take on such short notice, but this isn’t a match-up where he risks getting beat up. However, it is not a match-up where he is likely to look too good either, as his main strengths are negated by Maia’s. We could well be looking at a controversial decision in this one, as Weidman may enjoy some time on top, but his opponent will likely be doing most of the work. On the other hand, Maia’s takedowns from the clinch, sweeps, and scrambles could see him through.

Official Prediction: Demian Maia to defeat Chris Weidman by Decision

Middleweight Fight: Chael Sonnen vs. Michael Bisping

Fresh off his long awaited Octagon return where he made short work of Brian Stann, Sonnen squares off with Bisping for a shot at Anderson Silva‘s middleweight title. After initially being scheduled to take on a wrestling oriented fighter in Mark Munoz, Sonnen is actually facing an easier stylistic match-up here.

Despite his rightful reliance on his wrestling, Sonnen is much improved as an overall MMA fighter. His striking has become quite solid, highlighted by a surprisingly quick left cross. Additionally, Sonnen has always possessed a very good chin and has never been stopped with strikes, which allows him to aggressively move forward, eat some shots, but get the takedown anyway. This is made even easier by Sonnen’s speed, explosiveness, and ability to cover an usual amount of distance with his shot. Even when shooting for a power double from seemingly outside of the proper range, Sonnen’s quick first step allows him to catch opponents by surprise and get the takedown. Shooting for power doubles isn’t all the Oregon loudmouth can do, as if he decides to close the distance, Sonnen is an absolute terror in the clinch, where he can rough up his opponent with dirty boxing, get underhooks, and put him on his back.

For his part, Bisping will be the superior striker, despite some obvious flaws in his stand-up. He is constantly guilty of circling to his opponent’s power hand, and more worryingly as far as this bout is concerned, backpedaling right into the fence when pressed. Instead of circling out and resetting, Bisping digs himself a hole by allowing his opponent to have him pinned against the cage. Given that Sonnen will be looking to rush him at any given chance and put him on the back-foot, this could spell trouble for “The Count.” Bisping will look to get on the bicycle, land some jabs, throw plenty of body kicks, and mix them up with some combinations. He does well to set up the high kick, but he lacks the power to really use it to clobber an opponent. His right cross is his best punch, and to his credit, he rarely throws it as a single strike with little set-up.

The real issue for Bisping is that he doesn’t quite possess a puncher’s chance in this one, in the sense that he was never a one-punch knockout artist, and Sonnen’s chin has historically held up very well. When the Brit has managed to put his opponent away, he did it with a barrage of strikes from up close. Against Sonnen, this is a tough proposition, as he could easily change levels and shoot or clinch up every time Bisping is within that range.

The most underrated aspect of Bisping’s game is his ability to escape from the bottom. He possesses surprisingly dynamic hips, is good in the scrambles, and is especially savvy when it comes to getting back to his feet. This will be crucial, as he is almost certainly going to end up on his back in this fight, perhaps repeatedly. Sonnen however, has a suffocating top game that makes life very difficult for his foes. He is absolutely relentless, is constantly pounding to the head and body from inside the guard, and if his recent bout with Stann is any indication, is developing solid submission grappling to complement his punishing ground-and-pound. In that regard, Sonnen has definitely improved his guard-passing technique, which adds another dimension to an already authoritative top game.

Of course, Sonnen’s Achilles heel has long been his submission defense. He tends to leave his neck exposed when shooting in, is prone to getting caught in a guillotine, and has been submitted from the bottom on numerous occasions; mainly with triangles. However, Bisping has never been a significant submission threat, and the short notice nature of the fight means he didn’t have the necessary time to focus on working submissions from the bottom.

Look for Sonnen to do what he does best (no, not trolling), and dominate Bisping on his way to a decision.

Official Prediction: Chael Sonnen to defeat Michael Bisping by Decision

Make sure to check back tomorrow for my breakdown of the main event between Evans and Phil Davis…

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Keyboard warrrrriors….come out to plaaaay-yay!

Welcome to Grappling with Issues, our site’s regular weekly feature highlighting insight and opinion from myself and resident workhorse Jeremy Lambert whose general contributions and “Scorecard” event-breakdowns can be regularly found on Five Ounces. As always, just because we staffers get the fancy set-up, please don’t hesitate to offer your own take on the topics in the “Comments” section below.

Who should Melvin Guillard face in his next fight?

Lambert: Jacob Volkmann. Even though Volkmann is on a nice little streak and Guillard has lost his last two fights, Volkmann’s resume lacks a big win and Guillard’s losses have come in high profile positions. Plus, it’s not like Volkmann has blown anyone away with his performances, which usually means UFC will punish you a bit instead of rewarding you with a fight against a top contender. If nothing else, Guillard usually has exciting fights and he’ll either knockout Volkmann, ending his win streak and allowing UFC to handle him differently, or get choked out, giving “Christmas” a finish during his streak.

Conlan: Sorry Jeremy, but I think Volkmann is as bad a suggestion as could have been offered. Why would the UFC want to risk giving Guillard a third consecutive loss (essentially a lock given Volkmann’s grappling/submissions)? Rather, I think the organization would be wise to pair Guillard with a striker to provide him with an opportunity to get back on track in highlight-reel fashion. There are plenty of guys on the roster who have some name value and will come to bang. The one I’d go with is Anthony Njokuani. He may be linked to John Makdessi at UFC 145 but that’s definitely a bout they could restructure to include Guillard instead.

TRUE/FALSE – Pat Barry will have a winning record in the Octagon at the end of 2012.

Lambert: TRUE. I’m going to assume that Barry will fight three times in the Octagon in 2012. He’s already fought once and got his hand raised in victory. So he only needs to go 1-1 in his next two bouts, which sounds pretty reasonable given that he’s in the heavyweight division and I think UFC will give him favorable match ups, especially if he loses his next fight.

Conlan: FALSE. I think there may have been a misunderstanding here since Lambert is only looking at 2012, not Barry’s overall record in the Octagon. The win over Morecraft brought it up to 4-4 meaning he’ll need to go 2-0 (or 2-1) to improve things to what I would label as a UFC-worthy level. Since I can’t envision him having an undefeated campaign this year, and there’s no guarantee he’ll fight three more times, I don’t see him working his way above .500 anytime soon.

Biggest threat to pull off an “upset” at UFC on FOX 2 – Chris Weidman, Michael Bisping, or Phil Davis?

Lambert: Well, considering that Vegas actually has Weidman as a favorite over Demian Maia, I’m not sure if that will count as an upset. I’m picking Maia to upset Weidman, but I think Weidman has the best chance of pulling off the upset based on the question. I think Weidman and Maia are pretty evenly matched and that if Weidman can score takedown, play defense on top, and control the position then there’s no reason why he can’t win a decision.

Conlan: I think Weidman is a good choice and I’m actually picking him to beat Maia as well. However, for the sake of discussion I’ll go with Davis. “Mr. Wonderful” has the wrestling to fend off Rashad Evans’ relentless takedowns and work his way back to a standing position if he does indeed get put on the mat. He’s got excellent reach and is extremely athletic, two factors also potentially posing problems for the smaller, bulkier Evans. I’m still giving the nod to Evans in terms of actually coming away with a win but I won’t be shocked if Davis exits the Octagon in victory.

More likely to happen: Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans in Atlanta or Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen in Brazil?

Conlan: Silva-Sonnen without question. For starters, Jones has only hinted at fighting in April at UFC 145 while Dana White has come out on record a number of times pointing at the possibility of doing Silva vs. Sonnen 2 at a stadium show in Sao Paolo this June. More importantly, I see Sonnen’s chances of winning this weekend being far greater than Evans’ based on the way they match up against their respective UFC on FOX 2 opponents. With both aspects in place there’s little doubt in my mind regarding which scenario has a greater probability of happening.

Lambert: I’ll go with Jones vs. Evans because I’m not fully convinced that Silva will be 100% healthy by the time the Brazil show rolls around or that he truly wants to fight Sonnen again. I’m also not convinced that sending Sonnen to Brazil is the best idea either. On the other hand, Jones and Rashad want to fight and they want to get things over with. The only thing stopping this fight from happening in Atlanta is Rashad’s health after the Davis fight and Rashad winning, of course.

OVER/UNDER – 5.7 million viewers (on average) for UFC on FOX 2.

Conlan: OVER (but not my much). I think the event will lose some non-fan viewers because the show doesn’t feature a title-fight but will make up for the hit based on a few things. The lineup features more star-power including a pair of Ultimate Fighter winners with experience coaching TUF as well as Sonnen who himself has gotten a bit of mainstream attention based on his colorful personality. It’s also two hours long so there’s more time for buzz to spread if things start out strong instead of a single fight that average folks will rush to tune in for at the very end of the broadcast.

Lambert: OVER. The first event had the luxury of being the first event and having that curiosity factor. This event doesn’t have that going for it and I’m not feeling the buzz for this event like I did for the first one. There is one huge factor working in this events favor though and that’s the success of FOX. They’re coming off the NFC Title game, which did 57.6 million viewers. You would have that UFC could get at least 10% of that audience. Also, FOX has done good ratings all week with shows like American Idol, Touch, House, and Alcatraz. So even though the event may not have the buzz of the first, FOX is on a roll right now, and that momentum could lead to a big number.

Will Zuffa take anymore steps this year to prevent PED use in the sport?

Conlan: No, not unless a major star gets popped and they need to save face in the mainstream media. Fighters are already tested by State commissions and the UFC has gone “above and beyond” by implementing their own pre-contract screenings. Personally I’d love to see them do more such as implementing their own system of fines/suspensions or randomly testing fighters but I don’t see it happening anytime soon.

Lambert: I think they’ll take a minor step or two, sort of like they did with the whole “all new fighters will be drug tested” rule. Maybe they’ll dabble in some out of competition testing or they’ll institute a harsher punishment, but it won’t be anything major if they do take another step. As long as they show a little bit more progress this year then I’ll be happy.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

In the second round of his first UFC fight against Brian Stann, Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan compared his skills and physique to Georges St. Pierre. In the third round, with three minutes remaining in the bout, Rogan was already bringing up the possibility of Jon Jones vs. Davis.

That’s right, before Davis had already collected his first victory in the UFC, he was already being linked to the current UFC light heavyweight champion. From that point on, various MMA personalities and media members have always linked him to “Bones” Jones due to their freak athleticism.

It wasn’t good enough for Davis to hit a power double in order to get guys to the ground; he had to suplex them. It wasn’t good enough for Davis to lock on submissions; he had to throw spinning back elbows. It wasn’t good enough for Davis to just win fights; he had to dominate opponents.

Davis and Jones are like #1 overall picks in different draft years. Jones is like LeBron James, the most gifted athlete in the sport today, with the ability to take over the game/fight like no else. Davis is like John Wall, a great athlete in his own right, but hasn’t quite taken the sport by storm the way Jones/James did. On their own, Wall and Davis are outstanding and any team/camp would be lucky to have them. When constantly put in the same sentence as LeBron and Jones though, well, that’s just not fair.

Now Kobe Bryant, better known in MMA circles as Rashad Evans, is coming to town.

Before we look ahead though, lets go back to when Evans and Davis were originally scheduled to meet, which was last August at UFC 133. Davis was so overlooked in that fight, that when he had to pull out with an injury and was replaced by Tito Ortiz, people were actually more excited and thought it would be more competitive. Maybe Ortiz fans were just so caught up in the nostalgia of Tito actually winning his bout against Ryan Bader that they thought he had another miracle in him, but no logical MMA fan could have truly believed that Ortiz stood a better chance than Davis.

As expected, Kobe dominated Mike Bibby.

Fast forward to now. In the build up to Davis vs. Evans, it’s been all about the former UFC light heavyweight champ.

Just look at the UFC on FOX promo. Evans is knocking out Chuck Liddell and Sean Salmon while also landing strikes on Forrest Griffin. Davis is throwing a head kick, which ended up being blocked, and they decided to show that from two different angles. That’s all the highlights they had of Davis? Not his submissions on Alexander Gustafsson or Tim Boetsch? How about his dominance against Stann or his ground and pound on Antonio Rogerio Nogueira? Nope. They just showed him throwing a kick that was blocked.

They had Kobe making game-winning shots and throwing down dunks while Wall was highlighted by taking a charge.

Furthermore, Davis isn’t guaranteed a title shot if he beats Evans on Saturday night, while Evans will get a title shot if he comes out on top. The consensus is that, unless Davis looks spectacular in victory, Dan Henderson will get the next crack at Jones and the 205 strap if Davis’s hand is raised at the end of the night. I guess remaining undefeated while beating a former champion who only has one loss on his record in front of what could be the largest UFC audience ever, isn’t good enough to get a fight that was brought up by one of the announcers 12 minutes into your UFC career.

Unfortunately, despite being brought up in his first fight, Jones vs. Davis isn’t the fight people want to see. LeBron vs. Wall might be the match-up fans are clamoring for in a couple of years, but right now, the people want LeBron vs. Kobe. The people want Jones vs. Evans.

“Mr. Wonderful” never had a chance to succeed in the UFC. If he hasn’t been compared to a fighter than might go down as the greatest light heavyweight ever, he’s been overlooked heading into the biggest fight of his career. He’s never been allowed to stand on his own due to the brilliance of Jones or the anticipation of a bigger fight. Davis can have his one shining moment on FOX. He could beat Evans in impressive fashion, have Goldberg and Rogan going crazy, have Dana White Tweeting nothing but exclamation points, and have fans begging for him to fight Jones.

If that’s going to happen though, Davis will have to put on the most flawless performance of his career in a building built by the flawlessness of Michael Jordan.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

It’s just over an hour of MMA talk, so check it out.

Download (Right Click -> Save Link As) – iTunes

The Scorecard

Usually fans that go to the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville see a hockey team filled with hard working and consistent players but very little star power. Things weren’t that much difference when the UFC came to town this past Friday as the card was filled with a lot of hard working and consistent fighters, but very little star power. Like the Nashville Predators though, the fighters delivered a top notch performance and sent the fans home happy. The only thing different was a distinct lack of Carrie Underwood.

Lets go to the scorecard:

*Being live at the event is different. I admit I was too busy staring at Brittney Palmer during the fighter walk-outs for the first fight. EVEN

*”The Ninja of Love” Nick Denis might have the greatest nickname ever. PLUS ONE

*Denis showed Joseph Sandoval his ninja skills with some brutal elbows in the clinch. PLUS FOUR

*Pat Schilling walking out to “Shipping Up To Boston” scores points. Although the last time I was in the arena and someone used this as their walk out song, Anderson Silva went all matrix on him (Forrest Griffin). PLUS ONE

*And Daniel Pineda proves that coming out to “Shipping Up To Boston” while I’m in the building only gets you beat. Great performance by him. PLUS THREE

*Never heard of “Memories” by David Guetta until Fabricio Camoes used it as his walk out song, but I like it. PLUS ONE

*Nice battle between Camoes and Tom Hayden with a cool finishing sequence as well. PLUS FOUR

*Extra points to Camoes for not giving up on that choke. PLUS TWO

*I don’t know the song that Daniel Roberts entered to, but he wasn’t doing the tomahawk chop, so I’m taking off points. MINUS TWO

“If “Whoop A Mans Ass” isn’t an appropriate song for a fight, I don’t know what is. Good job Charlie Brenneman. PLUS TWO

*That said, he ruined his walk out by having ear buds in. MINUS ONE

*I have to give the crowd credit for yelling “HASHTAG…..BOOM!” when Brittney walked back to her seat. I, along with a few other media people, appreciated it. PLUS THREE

*Aaaaaaand Brenneman brings an action packed card to a halt. He did what he needed to do but it slowed down an event that was moving along nicely. MINUS THREE

*Also, I blame Joe Silva a bit for making the fight. Roberts was coming off 2 straight losses where he was more or less out-grappled, what did he expect would happen when he matched him against a wrestler like Brenneman? MINUS TWO

*At least Charlie recognized that he needs to start finishing fights if he wants to move up the ladder. PLUS ONE

*Kamal Shalorus came out to Johnny Cash covering “I Won’t Back Down.” I’m torn on this. I love Johnny Cash, but Tom Petty’s version is pretty untouchable. We’ll call it a wash. EVEN

*Great first round between Shalorus and Khabib Nurmagomdev. It looked like Shalorus was out of it but somehow kept moving and ended up surviving. PLUS THREE

*Strong first impression made by Nurmagomdev. Shalorus is a tough opponent and he managed to dominate the fight in his UFC debut and put him away. PLUS FOUR

*Remember when Shalorus claimed that no one could take him down? Those were the days. MINUS TWO

*I don’t really like dubstep, but I thought Jorge Rivera’s walk out song was pretty banging. PLUS TWO

*Congratulations to Rivera, who went out a winner. He’s been through a lot in his life and this is a well-deserved moment for him. PLUS FOUR

*Extra points to the crowd for giving him a nice “JORGE!” chant after the victory. PLUS THREE

*I know the people at home don’t get to see it, but the “Baba O’Reilly” montage before the main card is the most awesome thing ever. PLUS THREE

*Christian Morecraft’s walk out music made my ears bleed. MINUS TWO

*Uh oh, Pat Barry is learning a little bit of submission defense. Nice job by him escaping those bad positions. PLUS TWO

*Brutal KO win for Barry. He’s gonna be a star as long as he keeps winning. PLUS THREE

*Planking? Come on Pat. That was so 2011. MINUS TWO

*Come on Jared Papazian, “Run This Town” can only be used by Jose Aldo. He’s earned that right. MINUS TWO

*Gotta love Mike Easton and his purple Hulk shorts. PLUS ONE

*A fun scrap between Easton and Papazian. Some really good exchanges and both men got their licks in. Glad they finally put a bantamweight fight on the main card. PLUS FOUR

*While I had Papazian winning 29-28, I wasn’t too upset with the judges scores. Close fight, but I’m still gonna take away points just because the judges didn’t agree with me. MINUS TWO

*Easton dancing his way past press row was a funny sight. PLUS ONE

*You walk out to 2Pac, you get points from me Josh Neer. PLUS TWO

*”Click Click Boom” is one of the worst songs ever. Shame on you Duane Ludwig. MINUS TWO

*Sick nasty guillotine by Neer. Dude is tough as nails. PLUS FOUR

*Props to Jim Miller for coming out to “Bad Moon Rising.” A choice walk out song. PLUS TWO

*Another great fight with a quick finish. Melvin Guillard looked like he had Miller in trouble, but you can never count out Miller in a fight. He showed outstanding composure to survive and them comeback to win. PLUS SIX

*Overall UFC on FX 1 was an excellent event. Obviously being there live didn’t hurt, but there was action in almost every fight and plenty of first round finishes. PLUS EIGHT

Official Score: 54

For a more in-depth look at UFC on FX 1 and a preview of this weekends UFC on FOX 1 event, make sure to check out tomorrow’s Five Ounces of Podcast with Samer Kadi and myself.

Have you ever been told that something is good for you, but you have no clue what’s actually in it or even bother to check? You just go ahead and accept that this “mysterious substance” is good for you because a friend told you it was and then take it. Me? I say, “If it’s good enough for me, it’s good enough for the ground.”

Now lets just say that this “mysterious substance” isn’t legal and could cost you a lot of money and scrutiny if it comes out that you’re on this substance. Lets just say that by taking this substance, you’re risking your health and the health of the people you’re competing against. Do you regret jumping a little higher or listening to your friend? Don’t you wish you just injected it into the ground?

Steroids in MMA are being used by more fighters than just the three or four who get busted every year. Those fighters are just better cheaters than the guys who do end up getting popped. They know when the teacher isn’t looking so they glance at their neighbors paper, they’ve come up with hand signals to relay answers to the person sitting behind them, or they’ve made a “water bottle cheat sheet” that is drastically underused in today’s society.

The fighters who do fail post-fight drug tests are just like the kids in school who get caught cheating. “I didn’t know I was cheating, it was an accident,” “everyone else is cheating, how come you only caught me?” “I didn’t know they were test answers, my buddy just wanted me to hold it for him.”

Obviously Zuffa could take steps to prevent the use of illegal substances, which I’ll get to later, but how about these fighters take some responsibility as well. I have a hard time believing that they don’t know what they’re putting into their body, and if they question a certain supplement, they should check with the commission, who should already be providing them with a list of every banned substance.

Fighters aren’t dumb. They know what goes into their bodies, they know others are cheating so they’re going to cheat as well, they know whether or not they’re using illegal substances. Instead of just admitting it though, and accepting that they screwed up, they try to play the victim. The only problem is, no one feels sorry for a guilty victim. Just ask Casey Anthony.

Earlier this week Zuffa started a new policy that will see them test any potential UFC or Strikeforce signee before the ink is dry on the contract. This sounds like a good idea and a step in the right direction, but what does it really accomplish? Guys get tested before they sign a contract and then what? There is nothing stopping them from getting on illegal substances after they’re signed. And how about the guys who are already under contract? I guess they can just keep doing what they’re doing.

An obvious next step would be for Zuffa to do their own random drug testing. Nevada tried to implement random testing a few years ago, but all they did was test the main event fighters a couple of weeks before the event once or twice, and we haven’t heard about their random testing since. The problem with this is the fact that it would cost a lot of money for Zuffa to send agents to random gyms, collect a urine sample, and then have it shipped off for testing. Would it be worth it? You would hope so if Zuffa actually does testing at random. And by random testing, I mean testing Georges St. Pierre within the first month of being cleared for training, and not testing him a month before the fight takes place.

I want to take it a step further though. Before a fight is official, both competitors sign a bout agreement. So how about when UFC sends over the bout agreement, they send over a plastic cup with it? Fighters will need to pass a drug test before the contest can become official.

It’d be like taking the SATs. You sign your name to prove you’re not completely stupid, and then you take the test to prove you’re smart enough to get into a college. Or you’re cut out to be a future teacher, which is what I always thought the SATs were designed to do.

Will that cost just as much money as random testing? Most likely, but Zuffa needs to take a step if they want to clean up the sport, because as good as commission testing is, it’s also flawed.

Harsher punishment would be a cheaper route to go. When a fighter fails a steroid test, they’re usually fined and suspended for one year, although the suspension can be reduced. A one-year suspension is a pretty big deal, but the UFC usually keeps the fighter around and continues to give them high profile fights when they return.

I’d like to see Zuffa implement a two strikes rule, but with extra punishment built in. If you fail a test the first time around; you get suspended for a year (no reduction unless it’s 100% proven that the initial test was false), lose your purse money from the fight that you failed the test for, and upon return, be put on the preliminary portion of the card. If you fail a test the second time, you’re done and won’t be brought back under any circumstances.

If fighters know that the punishment isn’t worth the risk, maybe they’ll be less likely to play with needles.

Steroids in MMA isn’t a new issue. It’s an old issue that’s going to keep coming up every time a fighter fails a test. The issue will likely never be put to bed, but we can at least get it drunk enough to where it passes out on the bathroom floor.

Preliminary Predictions:

* Nick Denis to defeat Joseph Sandoval by Decision
* Pat Schilling to defeat Daniel Pineda by Submission in Round 1
* Fabricio Camoes to defeat Tommy Hayden by Decision
* Charlie Brennenman to defeat Daniel Roberts by Decision
* Kamal Shalorus to defeat Khabib Nurmagomedov by Decision
* Jorge Rivera to defeat Eric Schafer by TKO in Round 2

Main Card Predictions:

* Pat Barry to defeat Christian Morecraft by TKO in Round 1
* Mike Easton to defeat Jared Papazian by Decision
* Duane Ludwig to defeat Josh Neer by Decision

Lightweight Fight: Melvin Guillard vs. Jim Miller

Before Guillard’s overconfidence got the better of him against Lauzon, he was riding the most impressive winning streak of his career. Having moved to Greg Jackson‘s camp in Albuquerque, Guillard’s head at last looked to be in the right place, and he had finally started to make the most out of his immense skills and physical gifts. The results came accordingly, and “The Young Assassin” seemed destined for a shot at the lightweight title. Now, Guillard finds himself where he was three years ago. Once again, he changed his training camp — this time opting to train at Rashad Evans’ “Blackzillians” in Florida — and once again, he claims this is exactly the kind of switch-up he needed.

Miller on the other hand, suffered a momentum-halting loss at the hands of Ben Henderson, who was able to take him down, shut down his submission attempts, and put on a ground-and-pound clinic. For once in his career, Miller was thoroughly out-grappled. And while he doesn’t quite have to worry about that happening against someone like Guillard, he does need to worry about having his lights turned off in violent fashion.

In addition to being arguably the hardest hitter in the division, Guillard possesses a diverse striking arsenal that is a handful for anyone to deal with. While he doesn’t flick his jab as often as he should, and is sometimes guilty of over-relying on single power shots, Guillard makes up for it with timing and accuracy. As efficient as he is moving forward and throwing heavy leather, he has managed to develop into quite a lethal counter-striker. When initiating the offense, Guillard possesses a beautiful left hook-right uppercut combination that he times to perfection. Likewise, his overhand right counter is just as dangerous, and makes opponents think twice about rushing him. From close-quarters, Guillard can absolutely crush an opponent with knees to the body. In fact, his body work in general is much underrated.

This creates quite  a tricky situation for Miller, who will need to get on the inside in order to work for takedowns or secure the clinch. As long as he’s on the outside, he will have very little success. From that range, Miller will offer little outside of the occasional head or body kick. His most effective work comes from mid-range and on the inside, where he has shown tremendous improvement in the past 18 months. He likes to leap in with a straight left or a lead uppercut, and often uses those punches to transition into takedowns.

Guillard’s takedown defense has improved tremendously, as he has learned to make full use of his athleticism and developed a very solid sprawl. More importantly, Guillard is very difficult to hold down, especially if taken down against the fence, where he can wall-walk and regain his vertical base. However, Miller’s strength isn’t in his ability to get clean takedowns. Instead, he is an expert at using scrambles to get dominant positions. Against Guillard, this could be key, as Melvin has a knack of giving up positions or leaving his neck exposed in scrambles. In particular, when attempting to regain his feet, Guillard is prone to having his back taken. This is especially worrying when factoring in Miller’s masterful ability of suddenly jumping in and latching onto his opponent’s back from out of nowhere.

Moreover, Miller’s wide arsenal of submissions will prove problematic, especially since he isn’t really methodical in his approach, and is more reliant on scrambles to secure these submissions rather than establishing position first. Whether it’s a guillotine, an armbar or a leg lock, Miller can lock in a submission hold instantaneously. The guillotine in particular could be a difference-maker here, as Miller can wrap it up in the blink of an eye, and possesses a tremendous grip to boot. Guillard has never shown good defensive grappling when it comes to actually defending and escaping submission attempts, which doesn’t bode well for him should he find himself in such situations.

Guillard is certainly capable of doing to Miller what he did to Evan Dunham last year. In fact, it is one of two likely outcomes in this bout: Either Melvin clobbers his opponent early, or Miller overcomes a difficult first round to submit Guillard in the second half of the fight. I expect the latter to happen.

Official Prediction: Jim Miller to defeat Melvin Guillard by Submission in Round 2

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Keyboard warrrrriors….come out to plaaaay-yay!

Welcome to Grappling with Issues, our site’s regular weekly feature highlighting insight and opinion from myself and resident workhorse Jeremy Lambert whose general contributions and “Scorecard” event-breakdowns can be regularly found on Five Ounces. As always, just because we staffers get the fancy set-up, please don’t hesitate to offer your own take on the topics in the “Comments” section below.

“Fighter pay” in the UFC is a small/big/non issue?

Lambert: It’s a small issue. If it were a big issue, I think we’d hear more about it from fighters, but it’s obviously not a non-issue since I’m sure fighters probably aren’t getting paid what they’re worth given how much time they put into the sport. The bigger issue is PEDs. Another fighter (Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal) got popped this week and now Zuffa is going to test every incoming fighter for PEDs. How about they test fighters already on the roster? Maybe it’ll prevent the new signings from not cheating (at least at first), but that doesn’t mean that guys who are already still employed won’t keep cheating.

Conlan: Agreed that the issue is relatively small and certainly not as inflated as ESPN’s recent report would have had viewers believe. I think Lorenzo Fertitta made a good point in the less-edited version of the network’s interview with him as far as saying you could go into any locker room, or any job for that matter, and find disgruntled employees who think they deserve more than they’re making. However, numerous fighters – even those who aren’t on the roster anymore like Sean McCorkle – have come out since the feature to back how the UFC handles pay and I’d rather listen to them than a bunch of anonymous sources or guys who haven’t been part of the company for 5+ years.

I’ll save my take on PED testing for a future GWI when it’s like, you know, the actual topic being discussed.

Will Anthony Johnson ever fight again inside the Octagon?

Lambert: I’m sure he will. Dana White has already said that he likes Johnson as a person, which never hurts, plus he was only missing weight. I know that’s a huge deal and completely unprofessional but he wasn’t using steroids, and plenty of guys who have been busted for steroids still compete in the Octagon. If Johnson takes some fights on smaller shows, proves he can make weight, and picks up some victories, I don’t see why he wouldn’t be brought back sooner or later.

Conlan: I think so too. “Rumble” is only 27 and, as Jeremy said, all he needs to do is show he can consistently avoid coming in heavy to earn another shot in the UFC. He might even want to consider making a permanent move to light heavyweight. At 6’2” with a physique chiseled from marble he certainly has the size to be a 205er and cutting 15-20 pounds instead of 30-40 pounds would keep his cardio on point (not to mention be a lot safer in terms of his long term health). Also, accepting he’s too big for 170/185 would provide an additional layer of comfort for his former employers in terms of bringing him back on board since there’s no question he can safely hit THAT mark.

More likely ending to Friday night’s headliner at UFC on FX – Jim Miller submits Melvin Guillard or Guillard knocks Miller out?

Lambert: Well, since I’m predicting Miller to win via submission, I’m gonna go with that one. Guillard has that one punch power, especially early in the fight, but he has a tendency to fade, while we know Miller can keep up a high pace for all fifteen minutes. Plus, it’s not like Guillard has an outstanding chin and Miller does have power in his hands. If Miller can rock Guillard like Joe Stevenson or Joe Lauzon did, he may end up locking on a submission without securing a takedown.

Conlan: Without question the first scenario. Miller has three losses, all by way of decision. Guillard has nine losses, eight by way of submission (including all five of his defeats in the Octagon). Granted, Miller hasn’t faced a striker with Guillard’s power but he’s definitely faced opponents with more-than adequate stand-up like Bart Palaszewski and Duane Ludwig.

Will Jose Aldo lose in 2012?

Conlan: No, at least so long as he remains at 145 pounds since he’s unproven as a lightweight. There aren’t any dominant contenders looming on the horizon and the challengers that are out there aren’t at a significantly higher skill level than any opponent Aldo’s beaten already. Sure, he could get clipped behind the ear a la Georges St. Pierre-Matt Serra or shred his knee mid-round like Patrick Cote, but outside of some sort of freakish occurrence taking place I think Aldo’s incredible win streak will continue throughout the rest of the year.

Lambert: I would say not. Aldo has some tough fights at 145, like the Hatsu Hioki vs. Palaszewski winner or Dustin Poirier, but I don’t like the chances of any of those three fighters against Aldo. Even if he moves to 155, he stated he’ll only move up for a title shot, and given his skills, I don’t think it’s all that farfetched to say that Aldo could beat Frankie Edgar, Ben Henderson, or whoever the lightweight champ may be later this year. Though, if I had to design a perfect fighter to beat the current featherweight champion, it would be whoever he faces next.

Play UFC Matchmaker Joe Silva and book Rousimar Palhares’ next fight.

Conlan: The UFC is certainly set on that front given their January 28 lineup on FOX. Palhares, who just fought himself and will be ready to go in a few months, would be perfect for either the loser of Michael Bisping-Chael Sonnen or winner of Demian Maia-Chris Weidman. Since I see Sonnen and Weidman coming out of the show with a freshly printed “W” next to their names I’ll go with Bisping who certainly has the striking to take out Palhares but lacks the ground-game to fend off the powerful Brazilian’s BJJ-based attacks.

Lambert: I’ll be extremely cruel and say Mark Munoz. What better way to welcome a guy back from a knee injury than to have him face Palhares? Alright, even though that would be a terrible “welcome back” gift for Munoz, it is a fight that would make sense. Palhares obviously needs a step up in competition and Munoz isn’t one to back down from a challenge.

Is Pat Barry fighting for his job at UFC on FX 1?

Conlan: 100% yes. As entertaining as Barry’s personality and style may be a loss to Christian Morecraft would make him 3-5 inside the Octagon and that simply doesn’t cut it, especially when you’re looking at an undersized heavyweight whose BJJ/wrestling are subpar in comparison to most of his peers.

Lambert: I think he is, but I’m not willing to go 100% like Bren. Going 3-5 in the octagon doesn’t cut it, but all the higher-ups in the UFC love Barry because of his charisma and the fact that his fights, win or lose, are usually entertaining for as long as they last. Plus, even with the addition of the Strikeforce big guys, the heavyweight division is still pretty shallow and Barry, while obviously not a world beater, is a serviceable heavyweight who has some name value.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

It’s two hours of MMA talk and it’s well worth it, so check it out.

Download (Right Click -> Save Link As) – iTunes

Every time UFC heads to Brazil, magic happens. Maybe it’s because the crowd inspires the fighters, maybe it’s because the match ups are perfect, or maybe it’s because Jesus is in Brazil and not with Tim Tebow. Whatever the reason is, magic happens in Brazil and magic happened at UFC 142 with the greatest head kick KO and the most amazing scene following a main event in MMA history.

Lets go to the scorecard:

*Sympathy points to Felipe Arantes and Antonio Carvalho for being the only fight getting the Facebook treatment for tonight’s event. PLUS TWO

*UFC seriously needs to get their own music on FOX. The NFL on FOX music just isn’t working, especially when the NFL is currently on FOX while UFC is on Facebook/FX. MINUS THREE

*Points to Carvalho for coming out to “God’s Gonna Cut You Down” by Johnny Cash. Can never go wrong with “The Man in Black.” PLUS TWO

*Nobody should be allowed to wear a cowboy hat to the cage except for Donald Cerrone. Sorry Arantes. MINUS ONE

*Much love to the Brazilian crowd, who are by far the loudest crowd in MMA. They’re into it from the first fight to the last. PLUS THREE

*Arantes vs. Carvalho was a decent bout to kick off the card, made better by the crowd reacting to every little strike. Neither guy looked overly impressive though. PLUS TWO

*Man, with all these fights on TV, FX is really harshing my music mood since they don’t show walk-outs. MINUS TWO

*The Marine’s Keys to Victory are 100 times better than Joe’s Keys to Victory, mainly because there are no bullet points. PLUS TWO

*Great win for Mike Pyle. He may never get close to a title shot, but he’s a real test for anyone at welterweight. PLUS THREE

*”Thanks to my wife for putting up with me during my camp.” More fighters should thank their wives for putting up with them. And more fighters should request to be on Fear Factor with their wives. PLUS TWO

*Michihiro Omigawa, you gotta keep our hands up bro. MINUS THREE

*I thought Omigawa may have tapped when Yuri Alcantara first locked on the armbar at the end of round one, but the UFC replay team was horrible and Joe Rogan was so insistent that there was no tap that it did the viewers no favors. MINUS ONE

*Poor form by someone in the Brazilian crowd using a laser pointer. MINUS ONE

*Great performance by Alcantara. The straight left was there for him all fight and his ground game looked outstanding against a tough grappler in Omigawa. He may have gassed in the last round, but he still did well on the feet and had the fight well in hand. PLUS FOUR

*Even though it’s funny hearing Bruce Buffer yell, “Marijuana,” you would think he would know that Alcantara’s nickname is “Marajo.” MINUS ONE

*According to Rogan, Aldo has the best takedown defense in MMA. Take that Jon Jones. MINUS ONE

*I admit that it was nice to see Gabriel Gonzaga back in the UFC. Even though I’m not a fan of his, he’s better than most mid-level heavyweights and he should always have a special place in the hearts of MMA fans for his KO over Mirko Cro Cop. PLUS TWO

*Boy, does Edinaldo Oliveira suck on the ground or what? MINUS THREE

*Nice job by Gonzaga making short of a clearly overmatched Oliveira. If he starts using his grappling more, he could climb back up the heavyweight ladder. As long as he doesn’t get hit or anything like that. PLUS FOUR

*Translator? Gonzaga don’t need no stinkin’ translator. PLUS TWO

*Get it together UFC production team. Airing the prelim fight on TV but having the live in arena music playing is a definite production foul. MINUS TWO

*The intro video for Sam Stout vs. Thiago Tavares was one of the worst in UFC history. They never explain the “one big loss” Stout suffered (it was the passing of his trainer and brother-in-law Shawn Tompkins for those that don’t know) and said, “the winner will go from prospect to contender” even though both men have had 11 UFC fights. MINUS THREE

*A solid scrap between Tavares and Stout, although the crowd seemed pretty dead compared to the noise they were making in the opening fight. PLUS THREE

*I really love Stout’s striking. That is all. PLUS FOUR

*Bad call by the judges. I had Stout winning 29-28 as Tavares didn’t really do much besides throwing an overhand right in the last two rounds and getting hit in the face a lot. MINUS THREE

*WHERE WERE JOE AND DANA TO YELL AT ME?!?!?! MINUS TWO

*Remember when Dana said that they would do away with the Gladiator intro once they got on FOX? Dana doesn’t. MINUS ONE

*Terrible job by Goldberg and Rogan explaining the Johnson weight situation. MINUS TWO

*You can never go wrong with ”In The Air Tonight” by Phil Collins as your walk out music. The drum solo never gets old. Nice job Terry Etim. PLUS TWO

*I love leg kicks, so I love Edson Barboza. PLUS FOUR

*HOLY KNOCKOUT! That wheel kick KO by Barboza is already the KO of the year, I don’t care what happens over the next twelve months. PLUS TEN

*Extra points to Barboza and that kick. It was an absolute thing of beauty. PLUS FIVE

*That UFC 143 promo angered me. “For the first time in 3 years, the welterweight division, will have a new champion.” Get out of here with that. It’s a meaningless interim title. Everyone knows Georges St. Pierre is still the champion. Garbage promotional move by the UFC. MINUS SIX

*I don’t know what Erick Silva’s walk out music was, but man he timed it nicely at the start. PLUS TWO

*Great performance by Silva, making short work of a veteran like Carlo Prater. PLUS FOUR

*Just a shame it was overshadowed by Mario Yamasaki’s bad ruling. Sure there were some shots to the back of the head, but we’ve seen worse and they obviously weren’t intentional as Prater was trying to move. MINUS FIVE

*While I applaud Rogan trying to extract justice from Yamasaki, he had clearly made up his mind that everything was legal, despite there being more than one shot to the back of the head, and never let Yamasaki really explain himself. MINUS FIVE

*Mike Massenzio scores point for coming out to “Lose Yourself” by Eminem. PLUS TWO

*Was there any other possible outcome to the Rousimar Palhares vs. Massenzio fight? Shame on Joe Silva for even making that fight. MINUS THREE

*That said, credit to Palhares for taking care of business like he did. He knew Massenzio shouldn’t have belonged in the cage with him, so he got him out of there quickly. PLUS FOUR

*Joe’s Keys to Victory. Nothing else needs to be said. MINUS THREE

*You know the rules, negative points for every pound a fighter misses weight by. For Anthony Johnson, he missed the 186 mark by a whopping 11 pounds, so for the first (and hopefully last) time ever, we’re going over the 10-point system. MINUS ELEVEN

*I don’t know what Vitor Belfort’s walk out music is, but I love it. PLUS TWO

*Holy crap was the crowd going crazy during Johnson vs. Belfort. PLUS FOUR

*Those were some awfully quick stand ups and breaks by Dan Miragliotta. I have a feeling that Johnson’s unprofessionalism and crowd influenced him, but he needs to stay professional during the fight. MINUS TWO

*Johnson obviously spent more time in the kitchen than the gym for this fight. Not only did he miss weight badly, but he gassed during his walk out, and just ran forward wildly in hopes of getting a takedown. Terrible performance on Friday and a terrible performance on Saturday. MINUS SEVEN

*Great job by Belfort. He handled things all weekend like a professional and capped it off with an outstanding performance against, weight issues aside, a pretty dangerous fighter. PLUS FIVE

*CREATE YOUR OWN ATMOSPHERE! PLUS TWO

*Guns N Roses seem like an underused walk out band. Good on you Chad Mendes. PLUS TWO

*I’ve just come to associate “Run This Town” with Jose Aldo whenever I hear it. PLUS TWO

*Oh man, the crowd yelling “IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT’S TIME!” along with Buffer was pretty dang awesome. PLUS THREE

*Mendes had a pretty good game plan, attacking the legs of Aldo and of course going for the takedown, but Aldo’s timing and instincts are second to none. Great KO finish. PLUS FIVE

*Extra points to Aldo because I love takedowns countered by knees ending in a knockout. And for the record, I predicted that Aldo would win this fight via knee countering a takedown. Take that Samer Kadi. PLUS FIVE

*And how awesome was Aldo celebrating with the Brazilian crowd? That may have been the most amazing scene in MMA. Just fantastic. PLUS TEN

*Overall, despite an underwhelming preliminary card, no one can say that the main card didn’t deliver. Sure there were some low points, most notably Johnson’s weight and Yamasaki’s error, but every fight delivered great action. PLUS EIGHT

Official Score: 45

For a more in depth look at UFC 143, along with a preview of this weekends UFC on FX 1 card, make sure to check out tomorrows Five Ounces of Podcast with myself and Mr. Kadi.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Featherweight title fight: Jose Aldo (c) vs. Chad Mendes

Despite the pressure weighing firmly on the Brazilian’s shoulder, it is Mendes who faces the more daunting task, as a shaky fifth round against Mark Hominick aside, Aldo hasn’t looked vulnerable in years. The champion’s performance against Kenny Florian may have underwhelmed, but he still managed to win the bout in relatively straightforward fashion — despite Joe Rogan‘s best attempts to convince us otherwise on commentary — and did so without ever really needing to switch gears.

However, it would be disingenuous to ignore that Aldo didn’t quite look like his usual dynamic self. Despite landing typically crisp and clean shots, and displaying some great hips to stay vertical, Aldo lacked the trademark explosiveness in his attacks. Moreover, he seemed to be throwing with less volume, and wasn’t quite as willing to move forward as he usually is. And while it remains too early to speculate whether this is a direct result of the shoulder injury sustained a year ago, his upcoming bout will be telling in that regard.

Aldo is a master at gauging distance. Like his compatriot Anderson Silva, he likes to dissect his opponent before picking his primary method of attack accordingly. Having one of the most diverse striking arsenals in the sport allows Aldo to choose between a boxing-oriented approach (such as the Manny Gamburyan fight) , or one that is more reliant on his devastating leg kicks (see the Urijah Faber bout). Ever since capturing the title in breathtaking fashion against Mike Brown back in 2009, Aldo has developed into a more patient striker. In fact, that tile-winning performance was the last time Aldo completely blitzed his opponent from start to finish, as he overwhelmed Brown with a barrage of kicks, knees and some terrific combinations. From that point onwards, Aldo has implemented a more measured approach, highlighted by less volume, better boxing technique, and improved counter-punching. Such versatility makes Aldo an incredibly difficult opponent to prepare for, as there is very little indication as to the specifics of what he has in store. This sort of fighting maturity is unusual at Aldo’s age, but it is what makes him such a special talent.

The main issue with Mendes is that despite technically solid striking, he shows very little confidence in his stand-up. When he actually throws with conviction, his punches are quite crisp. However, he very seldom does, and his lack of belief in his striking is quite evident. His outing against Michihiro Omigawa remains perhaps the only time where Mendes exhibited real improvement in his stand-up skills, only for his striking to look curiously regressed against Rani Yahya. His performance against the former saw Mendes show a remarkable ability to get on the inside and put clean combinations together. Specifically, his right cross looked extremely sharp, and he showed a surprising ability to sit on that particular punch and land with power. Getting on the inside will be vital against Aldo, especially if the Team Alpha Male fighter is able to show the kind of sharp boxing he did against Omigawa, as it would allow him to set up takedowns properly and potentially put the champion on his back, which ultimately remains his main goal.

And yet, getting on the inside against Aldo is not only a difficult task, but a risky one as well. The champion is an expert at controlling distance, and as long as he throws his leg kicks liberally, Mendes will be far too worried about them to be able to step inside, counter, and switch levels. Furthermore, Aldo is simply devastating on the inside, be it with combinations, snapping knees to the body, or some solid clinch work. The uppercut in particular could be a game-changer, as Aldo sets it up beautifully by faking a left hook, and it serves as a great counter to a constantly level-changing opponent.

Should Mendes succeed in avoiding Aldo’s laser-guided punches and go for the double leg, he is certainly capable of putting him on his back. It will be vital for Mendes to secure clean takedowns away from the cage in order to make Aldo’s life more difficult in his efforts to get back to his feet. However, Aldo’s hips and overall takedown defense will make Mendes earn his keep, as it is unlikely the challenger is going to be able to effortlessly and consistently put his opponent on the bottom. Should he succeed in doing so however, Mendes needs to show a dominating top game he has yet to display. “Money” does little in terms of guard-passing or significant ground-and-pound, and instead stays tight inside the guard, occasionally landing some short elbows. While this could actually limit scrambling opportunities for the champion, it increases the chances of referee-induced stand-ups, especially when a chorus of Brazilian boos is showering the cage simultaneously.

In light of his last two showings, the main worry for Aldo will be his conditioning, as he has looked somewhat faded in the closing rounds against Florian and especially, Hominick. This in turn could mean that Mendes will have less trouble taking the champion down in the final ten minutes, which, if accompanied by a solid outing in at least one of the earlier rounds, could well win him the fight. Nevertheless, banking on Aldo’s cardio to ultimately cost him the fight is — while possible — a bit far-fetched.

More likely, Aldo will control the distance and eventually polish his opponent off with superior striking. Mendes could well have his moments and get the fight to the ground, but those occasions will likely be very few, and would only delay the inevitable.

Official Prediction: Jose Aldo to defeat Chad Mendes by TKO in Round 2

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Pressure in sports is a funny thing. Some athletes rise to the occasion, even if they’re not superstars, while some athletes shy away or crack from the pressure, even if they’re the best player in the sport.

The best pressure players are the ones who want the ball when you need the basket or a strike out or a touchdown. Even if they don’t come through 100% of the time, it doesn’t matter to them because you know in the next game, they’re going to want the ball again. They’re going to forget about the shot they missed, demand the ball again, and get a better shot.

In MMA, Anderson Silva is the greatest pressure fighter. If he has a bad performance or two, it doesn’t matter because you know, when the lights are the brightest, he’s going to deliver. Fighting a former light heavyweight champion after back-to-back lackluster performances? He turns in the most masterful performance of his career. Down to his final two minutes as a champion? He locks on a triangle choke. Fighting a fellow Brazilian superstar who UFC said was the faster striker? He delivers the best knockout of the year. Fighting in Brazil against the last man to hold a victory over him? He finishes him in the second round.

When the pressure is on and he needs to turn in a performance to silence any type of criticism, he delivers.

Then there’s Vitor Belfort.

Throughout his career he’s constantly cracked under pressure.

Built up as an unstoppable phenom, he was slowed down by a controlling wrestler. A chance to beat a legend in his home country, he laid on his back and wanted little to do with the fight. Needing to prove his UFC title victory wasn’t a fluke, he was once again slowed down by a controlling wrestler. Getting a shot to dethrone the pound-for-pound king, he was front kicked in the face. And that doesn’t even count the times he was defeated by a former champion after dominating the first round, fell into a guillotine with 30 seconds left in the round, or lost a fight and was then popped for steroids.

When the waters get deep or the lights get brighter, Belfort either drowns or gets burned.

The lights will be bright once again on Saturday night in Brazil. Fighting in his home country for the first time since 1998, “The Phenom” faces off against Anthony Johnson, who makes his middleweight debut.

Make no mistake about it, Belfort is the biggest MMA star in Brazil. Ever since he appeared on a Brazilian TV show sucking on toes and marrying a model, he’s been the face of Brazilian MMA and despite the number of great and legendary Brazilian MMA fighters out there, Belfort still trumps them all in popularity.

Not only is he fighting in his home country, he’s already been tabbed as the first ever coach of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil opposite Wanderlei Silva. It wouldn’t look too good on him, or the show, if he’s coming off a loss as they’re trying to build up a rematch between the two men.

Even though he’s never done well in clutch fights, at least he’s been in them. He’s fought for UFC titles, he’s fought in PRIDE, he’s been in main events, he’s battled legends and champions like Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, Dan Henderson, Silva, Alistair Overeem, Kazushi Sakuraba, ect…. Johnson has never had that experience. His biggest fight was a co-main event bout against Josh Koscheck on a PPV that less than 400,000 people purchased. Because he’s been in this situation before, we expect him to, at least know how to handle, even if history tells us that he hasn’t handled it well.

Add in the fact that Belfort desperately wants another shot at the middleweight strap, and by all means, this might be the most pressure Belfort has ever faced in his career.

Believe it or not, Vitor is no longer a young man. He’s 34 now and has been fighting since 1996. If he loses at UFC 142, he may never sniff another title shot.

By all accounts, Belfort is in a good place in his life. He’s found a home at Xtreme Couture where he’s working with some of the best trainers and sparring partners, there’s nothing going on in his personal life to distract him from the fight, he got to Brazil last week to get soak everything in and get acclimated to the environment, and he’s creating his own atmosphere.

There are no excuses for him on Saturday night. It’s up to him to perform, to silence critics who believe he’s a mental flake, to stand up to the moment and unload a barrage of punches, knocking it, and Johnson, out in the process.

No pressure, Vitor.