UFC On Versus 2: "Bones" Jones vs. Matyushenko Picks

UFC ON VERSUS 2: August 1, 2010
San Diego Sports Arena in San Diego, California

Main Bouts (On Versus):
Jon Jones (10-1) vs. Vladimir Matyushenko (24-4) Nobodies giving the "Janitor" a chance in hell but why should they. Vlad is slow and steady but his prime is long past as "Bones" begins his rise to the upper echelon of Light Heavyweights. Matty has very little offense to begin with and Jon emanates an assaulting blitz at all times from obscure angles. Vlad is tough but he's going to get owned on the feet before being thrown to the floor where he'll absorb punishment until the referee has seen enough.

WINNER-Jon Jones by TKO Rd.2

Mark Munoz (8-1) vs. Yushin Okami (24-5) Munoz wrestling has not translated over to MMA but he has toughness you can't teach though he has been severely rocked by Kendall Grove of all people. Okami has compiled an amazing 8-2 record within the UFC while being passed over more than the 1st born in Egypt. Technically, "Thunder" has this fight everywhere it goes but Mark possesses more power on the feet though his striking dissolves into blind lurching so who knows. I'll take "Thunder" all day long but working for a judges decision could behoove Munoz because I can't see him stopping Okami in any way.

WINNER-"Thunder" Okami by his patented Decision win

John Howard (14-4) vs. Jake Ellenberger (22-5) "Doomsday" has 4 UFC wins, the last 2 by KO, but the record doesn't necessarily tell the tale. Howard has porous takedown defense and Jake is going to exploit that over and over again. The Cornhusker is gonna G&P while John tries to figure out why he doesn't train off his back more.

WINNER-Jake Ellenberger by Decision

Tyson Griffin (14-3) vs. Takanori Gomi (31-6) "Mini-Tyson" was looking at a title shot before Evan Dunham iced those plans, and the "Fireball Kid" is standing in the way. By standing, I mean soon he'll be laying on his back looking like a confused turtle meeting Splinter for the 1st time. Gomi has not even tried to evolve his game since his ass kicking days in Pride FC and was surpassed long ago. He got in great shape for his entrance to America via Kenny Florian, but didn't employ any decent takedown defense which just happens to be Griffin's specialty. It's a much needed stoppage win as Takanori is stopped by strikes for the 1st time in his career.

WINNER-Tyson Griffin by Rd.3 TKO

Prelims (Non-Televised):
Paul Kelly (10-2) vs. Jacob Volkmann (10-2) "Tellys" has revitalized his life and career while "Christmas" just doesn't seem to have any more tools for MMA other than his amateur wrestling. Seems pretty clear cut to me that Kelly is going to out work and pummel the fighter who most resembles an accountant.

WINNER-Paul Kelly by Rd.3 TKO

DaMarques Johnson (11-7) vs. Matt Riddle (4-1) Holy shit the battle of 2 never-will-be's that I can't stand or see any real future for, is finally here. Be prepared for 3 minutes of dry humping.

WINNER-Matt Riddle by Decision

James Irvin (14-6) vs. Igor Pokrajac (21-7) The "Sandman" has literal 1-punch KO power but was disastrously gaunt for his attempt at Middleweight that failed and returns to the Light Heavyweight division after a myriad of injuries and failure. All that being said, Igor is getting KO'd with extreme prejudice.

WINNER-James Irvin by Rd.1 KO

Brian Stann (8-3) vs. Mike Massenzio (11-3) The "All-American (Robot)" now tries the attempted move to Middleweight but Mike has been shelved for a year and a half in order to collect rust. Stann may be the stiff robot in the Octagon, but he is improving slowly while I simply cannot pick anyone to win who has previously lost to CB Dollaway.

WINNER-Brian Stann by Decision

Darren Elkins (12-1) vs. Charles Oliveira (12-0) Two top prospects meet in a highly underrated match as Elkins tries to avoid the entanglement of arms and legs that is Olive. I don't think he does but its gonna be an interesting trip to the finish line.

WINNER-Charles Oliveira by (close) Decision

Rob Kimmons (22-5) vs. Steve Steinbeiss (4-3) The "Rosedale Raper" is going to twist Steinbeiss apart and I'm assuming a last minute cancellation is the reason of Steve's employment. The "Hooligan" will be bounced after this loss.

WINNER-Rob Kimmons by scary face Submission

Anderson Silva Trains For Chael Sonnen

The Chael Sonnen Mixtape

MMA Melee: Shields, Shamrocks, Shark Fights, More Sonnen Mischief, & It's All "Sugar Free"

In shocking free agent news, Jake Shields has officially signed with the UFC focusing on the Welterweight Division. The Cesar Gracie team captain comes in with a 14 fight winning streak and a whole lotta expectations. An initial fight with Martin Kampmann looms ahead with a win earning the super-star title fight with Georges St. Pierre! Be afraid.

Frank Shamrock claims he has retired. Finally. Hey give the guy credit for seeing the writing on the wall unlike bro Ken Shamrock but more about his continual collapse later. 23-10-2 Shamrock was the first to hold the UFC Middleweight Championship (later renamed the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship) and retired as the 4-time defending undefeated champion. Shamrock has also won numerous titles in other mixed martial arts organizations, including the interim King of Pancrase title, the WEC Light Heavyweight Championship, and the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship. He has been named "Fighter of the Decade" for the 1990s by the Wrestling Observer, "Best Full Contact Fighter", by Black Belt magazine (1998), and three time "Fighter of the Year" by Full Contact Fighter Magazine. He is a 7th degree black belt in Submission Fighting as awarded by O-Sensei Philip S. Porter of the United States Martial Arts Association. Whew, thank you Wiki! Yes well the braced big mouth was good but his ego will always tarnish the "legacy."

Speaking of the "World's Most Dangerous Man," Ken Shamrock was TKO'd yet again in his return bout from a year long supspension from steroids by fellow UFC veteran/champion Pedro Rizzo. "The Rock" used his long jab and brutal leg kicks to cut down the 3-8 in the last decade crumbling man. I picked Rizzo/Shamrock wrong since I had a double KO finish. Shammy doesn’t do anything but take abuse before losing consciousness. He barely throws punches, zero leg kicks, zero movement, where are the damn takedown attempts you supposed “wrestler.” Same age as Randy but do you see a difference? 1 evolved 1 did not. The endings get more and more embarrassing every time! Beaten to pulp by Tito. Ass whipped twice by Tito after bitching about the stoppage that was completely warranted. Had to roid up to beat Ross Clifton. Jesus man hang it up. Homie's gonna die out there.

Keith Jardine has been cut by the UFC after losing 5 in a row, though to be fair, his final fight with Matt Hamill should have been a Draw but I digress. He'll be sighted soon against Trevor Prangley in Shark Fights.

Don't be sad though because the UFC roster just got heavier as Mark Hunt is coming to shake the Octagon. It's actually an old deal from the purchase of Pride FC as Zuffa owes the atomic-dropping fighter a few bouts. It is an iron chinned banger with kickboxing ability who can take and give a beating for some exciting rounds. The New Zealander has lost 5 fights in a row and not tasted victory since 2006. Won't this be exciting? This is far better than signing Aleksander Emelianenko who has won 8 bouts in a row.

One of the world's top, well, one free agent, Light Heavyweight Ricardo Arona, is seeking a deal with the UFC according to MMA Fighting. After a pair of brief meetings, Arona was scheduled to meet with UFC President Dana White at the conclusion of UFC 114. The "Brazilian Tiger" is 14-5 and won his "comeback" fight last year.

Former Mrs. Randy Couture the 2nd, Kim Couture allegedly got into a heated argument with her personal assistant at the home which they share (hmmmm? naughty), and when police officers arrived at the scene, Ms. Couture was choking her personal assistant and that the personal assistant had visible signs of abuse. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police took Ms. Couture into custody and booked into Clark County Detention Center. "Sugar Free" lives up to the nickname and will continue to fight, hopefully legally, and raise her impressive 2-3 record.

Chael Sonnen has been trash talking up his title fight with Anderson Silva and his Twitter sent an particularly hateful and racist message to the "Spider's" manager Ed Soares.

"Ed, pray to whatever Demon effigy you prance and dance in front of with your piglet tribe of savages that I decide not to CRUCIFY you."

Chael claims the Twitter is not his and that he in fact does not own a Twitter account even though he used one when he was campaigning for public office a while back. I doubt it's true but Sonnen has said plenty of dumb things and Republicans are racist.

DREAM 15 Results: Aoki Retains With Submission & Tatsuya Mizuno Steals The Show!

Kazuhiro Nakamura defeated Karl Amoussou by Unanimous Decision as did Mitsuhiro Ishida against douche bag Daiki Hata.

Michihiro Omigawa subbed Young Sam Jung with a Guillotine at 7:31 of the 1st round which is like winning in the 2nd stateside.

Tatsuya Mizuno gave the spirited effort of his career willing a Kimura tapout over the consistently inconsistent Melvin Manhoef at 7:38 of the 1st round. The "Manho" went to work early landing big combinations that rocked the Miz and even dropped him to the canvas. Brutal G&P followed but the kid had real heart and kept scrambling for position and eventually a takedown. Mel actually defended well and even usurped position a time or two allowing the fight back to the feet. Tatsuya took an unholy beating before and returned the favor staggering the striker in the corner. Once on the ground he would not be denied the Kimura this time as "Manho" tapped out to end the "Fight Of The Night" at DREAM!

Gegard Mousasi used a standing Guillotine Choke to tap a chubby Jake O'Brien a paltry 31 seconds into the fight. "Irish" missed weight to welcome Japanese fans to his world and looked as soft as "Snooki's" orange skin warbling around a buffet. O'Brien attacked for a takedown instantly looking to employ "Mo" Lawal's tactics but was stuffed repeatedly before he left his next exposed and got wrenched into the loss column. We didn't get to see anything from Gegard again and he must fight the top tier to be respected in the Light Heavyweight rankings but he also seemed frustrated at the lack of fight. I am actually looking forward to seeing what courageous yet futile game plane Tatsuya Mizuno employs in this humongous tournament finals.

Gesias Cavalcante had to work for it but got the Split-Decision win over a very game Katsunori Kikuno. It took some doing but "JZ" controlled the bout for the most part to a tactical win but the rust is coming off.

Shinya Aoki clamped down with an Achilles Lock submitting Tatsuya Kawajiri just under two minutes into the 1st round. Aoki showed O'Brien how it's done shooting for a toe early and hanging on for dear life as he is known to do. Kawajiri must have been so frustrated to work his way to this title shot only to be caught in Shinya's leg lock without being able to land a single punch. "Crusher" fought admirably but no matter where he turned Aoki tightened down more until Tatsuya was painfully forced to tap out of the match. Aoki is a dick but give the guy credit for the "Submission Of The Night."

5-2 on the picks but I'm glad Tatsuya Mizuno won!

DREAM 15 Picks For Dancing

DREAM 15: July 10, 2010
Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan

Lightweight Championship:
Shinya Aoki (23-5) vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri (26-5-2) The mat wizard got e-x-posed by Gilbert Melendez stateside, and needs a big win at home to reclaim his aura in Japan. "Crusher" was just rattling off 4 wins in a row as everyone began to whisper that Aoki was weakening and Kawajiri was getting stronger. Now the Japanese superstars meet at a critical point for both fighters. Tatsuya has climbed to the top of the mountain before but never won a title while Shinya cannot afford another loss but he finds himself pitted against a wrestler/striker. I believe "Crusher" keeps business on the feet at all costs while hurting the Champion occasionally but not enough as he steals the crown on points.

WINNER-Tatsuya Kawajiri by Decision

Light Heavyweight Grand Prix:
Melvin Manhoef (24-7-1) vs. Tatsuya Mizuno (7-5) Wow, yet another amazing tournament from Japan! [grumbles and shakes head] The "Manho" returns from a KO loss in the states and as always has amazing power, zero ground game, and questionable stamina. One thing about Mel, you know what you are going to get every time. Chubby fat fat wants to fight on the mat and will either get the submission or get unconscious in the initial stanza.

WINNER-"Manho" by Rd.1 KO
Gegard Mousasi (28-3-1) vs. Jake O'Brien (13-3) Always great to see "Irish" get a job and have the opportunity to bore us for 15 minutes. There is only 1 thing the Hoosier does and that is take you down and L&P for 15. That's it. Every damn time. However, in the "Dreamsnatcher's" last offering, he dropped the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight title by getting floored over and over again by "Mo" Lawal. It was embarrassing. I'm a little angry with Mousasi because he has so much natural talent and continues to rarely train and take meaningless fights for the most part these days. After all this and teammate Fedor Emelianenko's 1st loss, something has had to click and get this guy going again. He has so many ways to win this bout that I'm looking for the Gegard of old and an impressive stoppage.

WINNER-Gegard Mousasi by Rd.2 Submission

Non-Tournament Bouts:
Gesias Cavalcante (14-3-1) vs. Katsunori Kikuno (13-2-1) Remember when "G-Jizzle" was feared throughout the world and was dominating everyone in his path in 2007? Cut to now and the Brazilian ATT member has not won in his last 3 fights and battled many, many injuries for a couple of years. "JZ" returns against the very talented and dangerous Kikuno employs "Kyokushin" style and will want to turn this into a grappling match. "JZ" will keep things standing to unleash the most powerful strikes of any Lightweight today, but he'll need to keep his game clean and crisp not taking chances before the final bell.

WINNER-Gesias Cavalcante by Decision

Karl Amoussou (11-2-2) vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura (14-10) I love watching Nakamura fight and Karl is happy to oblige a brawl. Obviously Kaz should use his judo to get things to the ground for the win, but he won't. He'll bang instead and probably get hurt before he grounds things and taps the "Psycho" kickboxer.

WINNER-Kazuhiro Nakamura by Rd.2 Submission

Michihiro Omigawa (10-8-1) vs. Young Sam Jung (0-2) And I can't stand watching Omigawa fight and here he is given a gift by DREAM which he will crush.

WINNER-"Oh My Godwa" by TKO

Daiki Hata (11-6-3) vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida (18-6-1) Man "DJ.taiki" is a douche bag. I'll take the "Endless Warrior" who comes off DREAM's bench by, wait for it, wait for it............

WINNER-Mitsuhiro Ishida by his patented Decision

UFC 116 Resuts: Leben, Lytle, & Harris Impress While Lesnar & Bonnar Survive

Jon Madsen defeats Karlos Vemola by Unanimous Decision. That went pretty much exactly as expected. Karlos needs to move to Light Heavyweight and develop some sort of gameplan though I doubt he will while Madsen is just boring as hell.

Daniel Roberts defeats Forrest Petz by Split-Decision. Not much to say here save it should have been a Unanimous Decision.

Gerald Harris earned the win via KO Slam! over Dave Branch. David was definitely game in this even fought matchup that is until Branch started staying in Gerald's arms allowing himself to be slammed. The 1st slam was weak at best but the 2nd time brought unconsciousness to Branch and an emphatic end to the bout. This should win "Slam Of The Night" honors and Harris is still, very quietly mowing down the Welterweight division.

Kendall Grove bests Goran Reljic by Split-Decision in a bout I have not watched and probably will not watch.

Ricardo Romero submits Seth Petruzelli by Straight Armbar in the 2nd round on Spike TV. The "Silverback" came out swinging and showcasing his new found punching power as he battered Romero around for the 1st round as Ricardo just went into survival mode in what could have been scored a 10-8 round. Its more Seth as he attacks furiously landing a big knee and bloodying up Ricardo. Finally in his world on the floor, Romero fakes an attempt at the Americana and locks on the armbar forcing a loud painful tap from Seth who may have injured his elbow based upon his screaming like a little girl. Nice come from behind win for the Jersey Shore native in his UFC debut.

Brendan Schaub straight dummied Chris Tuchscherer with a 1st round TKO victory. The "Hybrid" bent the "Crowbar" early sending fatty to the canvas for a quick beating and probably the end of the "training partner of Brock Lesnar" in Zuffa. Schaub doesn't impress me until he does this to a competent opponent.

George Sotiropoulos defeats Kurt Pellegrino by Unanimous Decision in their Lightweight war. George hurt Kurt in the 1st round with a two punch combination and from there just outwitted and outworked "Batman" the entire fight. At the very end of the fight Pellegrino landed a knee and put Sotiropoulos down but time expired saving his savant like effort. The Aussie is turning heads and scaring Lightweights as he climbs legitimately into the mix at the top of Frankie Edgar's division.

Stephan Bonnar TKO'd Krzysztof Soszynski in the 2nd round though bloodied and battered. The "American Psycho" needed the win to be more than a joke in the UFC and to avenged his controversial loss (a headbutt in the previous fight should have resulted in a NC not a TKO via cut) in the 1st fight. Both men came out swinging for hell and fairly reminiscent of Bonnar and Forrest Griffin's 1st fight. Soszynski was clearly better on the feet early as he cut up both of Stephan's eyes and forehead causing all the blood. Seeing red got the "Psycho" going in the 2nd as he saw Krzysztof's gas tank emptying and landed the best knee to the body of his career. Now floored it was trouble for the Team Quest fighter as Bonnar poured the pressure on earning a victory for the 1st time since 2007 to the elated TUF forefather.

Chris Lytle submits Matt Brown with a Straight Armbar in the 2nd round. Lytle hurt Brown with an uppercut and took him to the floor with a guillotine. He’d let it go only to effortlessly move to mounted triangle showing the most beautiful effective transition in recent memory! Keeping the hold in place he made a second move to armbar which forced The “Immortal” to verbally tap which is just that much more humiliating. "Submission Of The Night" yet again for Chris making it 9 fight night bonuses overall and 6 in a row!!

Chris Leben upsets Yoshihiro Akiyama via Triangle Choke. There is something to be said about Leben’s ability to lure opponents into his striking wars. Especially when Chris is hurt he seems to become more dangerous because he just lets go and gives whatever he has left. Akiyama actually hurt and wobbled Leben on the feet something that only Anderson Silva has been able to accomplish. For the 1st two rounds and most of the 3rd Yoshihiro got the better of the "Crippler" wherever the fight took place. Leben landed some big shots for sure but if this had gone to the judges cards, which it almost did, the Japanese/Korean superstar would have won.

Before the bell rang for the final round, Chris oozed charisma as he responded to the crowd that boomed cheers down upon both combatants showing their pleasure at the first two rounds and a desire for an epic third. What seemed like a sub par “co-main event” actually stole the show and won the “Fight Of The Night” honors and potential “Fight Of The Year” winner. In the final round Leben continued to lose the fight on the floor but always stayed in it. Akiyama got careless and most likely weary at the end and Leben locked on a triangle choke to which Akiyama slipped and fell deeper into eventually forcing the tapout and the end to a great war. To say Leben’s stock has soared in the last two weeks (defeating an undefeated prospect and nutting up for an even bigger opponent in dramatic come from behind fashion) as will his popularity as video of the fight makes its way through the Internet.

Brock Lesnar survives Shane Carwin and retains the UFC Heavyweight Championship with an Arm-Triangle Choke submission win. The big boys came lumbering out and Carwin rocked Lesnar with an uppercut that sent him reeling against the fence and then into some absolutely brutal G&P. It seemed like the referee would stop the fight at any moment but it continued with Brock moving but doing little else to "defend himself" as the rules state. It was a dramatic 10-8 round but you could almost feel Shane slowing down and beginning to fade. Surviving with a gift from referee Josh Rosenthal, Brock came out smiling for the 2nd round after Carwin winked at him. Lesnar got that Division-I wrestling takedown and adeptly worked to side control where he locked on the arm-triangle choke. Not deep at 1st, Shane seemed content defending but then Brock locked it down and he was trapped realizing to late he could not escape and tapping out for the 1st loss in his career.

Lesnar seemed relieved and a bit more humble after this win as Shane Carwin went to the back more mentally distraught than anything where he began to hyper-ventilate and was taken to the hospital for fatigue. Obviously Carwin wanted this bout badly and is disappointed in himself though he should realize he won the fight in the 1st round if any other referee had been in there. I'm not saying I disagree with the decision, I'm just saying 9 times out of 10 this fight would have been stopped.

All that being said the title fight was sloppy and pretty basically simple moves from the standup to the floor. It is laughable to think these are the best two Heavyweights in the world considering people like Fedor Emelianenko, Josh Barnett, Fabricio Werdum, Alistair Overeem, are still out there and I'd actually put Cain Velasquez and Junior Dos Santos before Shane Carwin so let's not all just wet our pants with glee over Brock's return just yet. Lesnar meets the man called Cain next and the winner of Santos vs Roy Nelson gets next after that. Chris Leben and Yoshihiro Akiyama stole the show while the "Crippler" called out inured Wanderlei Silva next and overlooked Lytle needs more credit for his amazing MMA iq.

9-2 on the picking side and I don't know what I was doing trying to pick Tuchscherer. I apologize for that error.

Carwin vs Lesnar "Tale Of The Tape"

UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin: Picking Like I Care

UFC 116: July 3, 2010
MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada

Boy there is a lot of hate being spewed Russia's way but I will respond to this ignorantly berserk bandwagon drivel later. Another Heavyweight showdown headlines UFC 116 as two cats who actually cut weight to make the big boy division, clash with the Champion vs Champion banner though we all know that's fake. "Sexyama" and the "Crippler" make their last second match bitter with "lacks of respect," a Bonnar and Soszynski Rematch, a Lightweight top contenders match that could steal the show, and a new Czech Heavyweight that is possibly crazy. Its an odd and not so impressive card for Zuffa.

Main Bouts (PPV):
UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar (4-1) vs. Shane Carwin (12-0) The two (literally) biggest alpha males in the Zuffa brand meet in an epic title fight we have waited on since late last year before Brock became hospitalized "near death" and Carwin decided to fight as rarely as possible keeping his aura and undefeated streak alive with Cain Velasquez waiting in the wings as the official number 1 contender. Both men bring wrestling though we'd never know it from Carwin who also possesses instant brutal KO power which Lesnar has yet to show. What nobody is talking about is that neither guy has faced an opponent like the other yet. Brock has slid by on old timers and Jiu-Jitsu fighters while Shane has fought barely anyone of note save Gabe Gonzaga who was winning that bout before the devastating KO. I see this as more of a Lesnar vs Heath Herring fight with Lesnar being careful on the feet, and once hurt, will dominate this fight on the floor. I can actually see this fight going multiple rounds which will hurt Shane's power and who knows if either man can fight the full 25 minutes. The most shocking MMA moment of all time was last week so I'll just play it safe thank you.

WINNER-Brock Lesnar by Rd.3 TKO

Yoshihiro Akiyama (13-1) vs. Chris Leben (20-6) "Sexyama" was so disappointed that Wanderlei Silva fell out of this fight that he almost took his ball and went home which Leben took as disrespect. Akiyama has a big name in Japan and Chris ain't exactly in the bright lights of the current Middleweights. Still Leben always has that left hook that can put anyone to sleep. I fear his body may not respond quite like he believes it will after fighting 15 days ago! Besides, Yoshi is a far better fighter all around and as long as he fights smart, he will win and just maybe put the "Crippler" who didn't murder his family, away. This fight is too important to the peoples of Korea and Japan for Akiyama not to pull out the victory.

WINNER-Yoshihiro Akiyama by Decision

Chris Lytle (28-17-5) vs. Matt Brown (11-8) Jesus why does Brown get any play on a PPV card? Overrated isn't a strong enough word for Matt who is strong with decent striking and toughness but that's about it. "Lights Out" is a very well rounded fighter who usually prefers a war which earned him 8 fight bonuses in his career and 5 in a row, but is the exact opposite gameplan to attack the "Immortal." Lytle has got to be smarter than that so look for the veteran to wear down the some times cardio challenged Hume disciple, and eventual tap him like in 2007 when Chris did the exact same thing to the exact same guy in the UFL.

WINNER-Chris Lytle Rd.3 Submission

Stephan Bonnar (11-7) vs. Krzysztof Soszynski (19-9-1) [Rematch] It was the now famous "clash of heads" that gave Krzysztof the undeserved win around four months ago. Now we do it for realz and I still lean toward the Pollock. The Team Quest fighter is a better striker though Bonnar wins the chin award and both are equal on the mat. Anything can happen but the percentages favor basically the same result.

WINNER-"The Polish Experiment" by Decision

Kurt Pellegrino (16-4) vs. George Sotiropoulos (12-2) Ooooh, possible "Fight Of The Night" honors here with two rising Lightweights looking to take that next step nearing the top of the division but one goes back down the ladder. I believe the Australian has it. "Batman" has almost gotten to that elusive title shot before but just can't seem to bypass that glass ceiling. George is a surprise to most (not me look back I called it) with skills everywhere and a zeal of determination and high MMA iq. Kurt has all that jazz as well I just think he'll always have that "gatekeeper" tag while Sotir is title bound. Expect a war either way.

WINNER-George Sotiropoulos by Decision

Prelims (Spike TV):
Brendan Schaub (5-1) vs. Chris Tuchscherer (18-2) Schaub finds himself in a similar situation as the Duffee/Russow fight. He is a better striker than Chris is a wrestler, but Tuch is such a wide assed box of a guy that I could see him taking Brendan down over and over again en route to a boring bout. I'm honestly not that impressed by the "Hybrid" so I'm taking experience and a solid base to win.

Upset Pick WINNER-Chris Tuchscherer by Decision

Ricardo Romero (10-1) vs. Seth Petruzelli (12-4) The "Silverback" returns to the UFC after being the first to topple the mighty Kimbo Slice and two minor league wins. Ricardo has his first fight outside Ring Of Combat in what will probably be a punch it out affair early and a G&P divorce late. I say divorce because once floored, this fight becomes Romero's as Seth just ain't got much game on the mat.

WINNER-Ricardo Romero by Rd.3 TKO

Prelims (Non-Televised):
Kendall Grove (11-7) vs. Goran Reljic (8-1) "Iron Jaw" is back in a fight I think he can actually win. He's got the Jiu-Jitsu advantage, amazing reach advantage, and is really a better striker as well. I really don't know what Reljic brings to the fight save a final dusting of that ring rust from the injury that sidelined him for a couple of years. Anyone can touch Grove on the chin and put him out but a smart careful gameplan leads to a win.

Upset Pick WINNER-"Da Spyder" by Decision
Dave Branch (6-0) vs. Gerald Harris (15-2) Damn, Joe Silva doesn't like Harris much since he has had a tough road to hoe so far in the UFC. Branch is a Renzo Gracie prospect with a lot of upside but Gerald's adequate wrestling should nullify the ground game while out pointing Dave in what could be a very close fight.

WINNER-Gerald Harris by Split-Decision

Forrest Petz (17-7) vs Daniel Roberts (9-1) Petz is simply filling a hole in the card and though he stumbled for the first time in his career in his UFC debut, Roberts is pretty good and will pound the far less famous Forrest into the mat.

WINNER-Daniel Roberts by Rd.2 Submission
Jon Madsen (5-0) vs. Karlos Vemola (7-0) Welcome the crazy attack machine from Czechoslovakia and CFC Heavyweight Champion Vemola to the United States. That being said, Madsen is going to take Karlos down after the initial "gong and dash," and from there bore the crap out of us for the next fifteen minutes.

WINNER-Jon Madsen by Decision