The final nine weeks of 2011 are going to be very exciting form MMA. The UFC is about to launch into a four weeks four shows blitz that will include talent such as BJ Penn, Nick Diaz, Dan Henderson, Shogun Rua, Urijah Faber, Wanderlei Silva, and ohh yeah,... the biggest fight in the sports history with Cain Velasquez vs Junior Dos Santos. After that we will all get to catch our breath for a moment before another four weeks four shows wave takes place that will feature Jon Jones vs Machida, Brock Lesnar, Gilbert Melendez, and the Ultimate Fighter finale. The fact that there will be 8 shows before years end is impressive enough but at least three of them are on free TV and one of them will be featured on Showtime. As exciting as this is for me it could not come at a worse time. I quite simply do not have the time to give each of these shows the attention it deserves. Here is the deal. I am going to kill two birds with one stone right here. I am going to give you the top reasons to watch the next two shows. I would go ahead and do a quick rundown of all shows but UFC on FOX is big enough to make time for so I will return for that.
UFC 137: Penn vs Diaz
- GSP vs Carlos Condit might have been scratched from the show but don’t sleep on the new main event. Everyone knows the names Penn and Diaz but this fight is more than meets the eye. Both fighters have exceptional ground skills, both very tough strikers, and both have great chins. This fight is a real toss-up to me. Diaz might be able to earn himself a title shot with a win and Penn wouldn’t scoff at the chance to play spoiler and raise some questions about his own return to championship circles.
- With Penn/Diaz moving to the main event that gives ample attention to the heavyweight slugfests that are about to take place. Matt Mitrione is one of the hottest prospects in MMA. He might not look the part but this guy is a grade –A athlete, a former professional football player. He looks better every time we see him. Cheick Kongo on the other hand does look the part. He is a mountain of a man and will be Mitrione’s biggest test to date. I do not expect this fight to go the distance and I do expect someone to get hurt. The other big men going at it will both be looking to come off of loses. Roy Nelson was the talk of the town until he gassed out against Frank Mir and was made to look foolish. He has a lot of redeeming to do against Mirko Cro Cop, the former MMA world-beater. Cro Cop is very human now but do not sleep on him, ever. He still has a few high-kicks left in him and this might be his last stand no matter what. If nothing else we will get to see a legend off but I for one hope he goes down swinging. Either way, this fight will be worth watching
- There isn’t much you need to know about Hatsu Hioki other than that he is a highly touted Japanese star making his UFC debut. Sound familiar? He is fighting a very rangy and very dangerous George Roop. Look for the upset here because I think Roop is pretty good to be honest and I don’t believe the hype anymore until I see it come to life.
- The Spike TV prelim card is really exciting this week. If you have never seen Donald Cerrone fight this is your chance. This guy really likes to be exciting and brings pressure in every fight. He is running up against a brick wall of a lightweight in Dennis Siver who might be the hardest hitter at 155 pounds. Additionally Tyson Griffin is going to keep making his case for a title shot at 145 pounds when he fights Bart Palaszewski, a man never afraid to throw down and have a good ol fashion fight. I expect both of these to be exciting and neither to end too early.
- Way off the radar on the Facebook card Eliot Marshall (Ultimate Fighter Vet) will fight Brandon Vera in a loser leaves town match. This might as well be called a pink slip fight because I really can’t imagine either man having a job with the UFC if they lose. Both fighters have been in prominent fights, especially Vera so it might be worth logging into Facebook for.
UFC 138: Munoz vs Leben
This almost isn’t fair because I think top-to-bottom this is one of the weakest cards in recent memory. There are a few things here you don’t want to sleep on though.
- The main event is legit. Chris Leben has been hovering around the middle of the pack for the better part of his career. His recent victory over Wanderlei Silva purpelled him on the course to relevancy again. Leben will likely never be a champion but the one thing you know for sure is that he is going to come to fight. He fights fast rising Mark Munoz who I am officially on board with. This guy has all the talent to be a top tier start at middleweight. This is a real test for both men. Munoz is a super star wrestler but Leben is not easy to push around. Both men have huge power in their hands and both are looking to sneak in a title shot with Anderson Silva before he retires.
- Brad Pickett is far and away my favorite British fighter. He really brings the fight every time out and he might just be one of the top contenders at 145 pounds. In my opinion he is stunningly underrated. This should be a win and one of the hardest things for a fighter is to win when they are supposed to. I am going to keep a close eye on how he looks after a long layoff and hope he can impress on the big stage.
- Papy Abedi: not only does he have an amazing name but he is an amazing mystery. He sort of came on the scene quickly but has a fair amount of hype behind him. He is 8-0 with most of his fights ending in KO. Rumor has it he has solid take downs and pushes a frantic pace. The unfortunate thing for the young man is that he drew Thiago Alvez in his first UFC fight. Alvez is a beast on the feet and is really trying to find his identity at 170 pounds. Some people think he is too heavy to stay there but to short to be effective at 185. Either way, if Alvez makes weight he is going to be be a huge test for the newcomer, but if Papy can win he is going to turn a lot of heads.
- Here are some names to watch out for on the rest of the card. Terry Teim, Anthony Njokuani, Paul Taylor, Cyrille Diabate, Michihiro Omigawa, Jason Young. There is a lot of young hungry talent on this card but those guys stand out as game fighters who always bring it. Particularly keep an eye on Jason Young on the preliminary card. This kid has a bright future and he faces a stiff test in Omigawa.
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