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| Condit doing damage in the first fight with Kampmann. |
Before FS1 takes over, don't forget about the prelims:
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- Abel Trujillo made quite an exciting UFC debut before being tossed around by Khabib Nurmagomedov in his 2nd fight. Roger Bowling was part of history in his last fight, which he also was beaten rather easily in. He was the victim of 1 of 8 knockouts on the UFC on Fox 7 card that set the UFC KO record. Both of these guys are tough and look very strong at lightweight. Both guys also are in do or die situations. Either one could be cut with a loss. That means that both will be hungry for a win, and also looking to be exciting to keep their jobs if they were to lose. I like Trujillo in this one, but it is basically a slugfest that could go either way. Second round TKO for Trujillo in a very exciting fight.
- The other Facebook fight features a pair of TUF contestants. Australian Ben Alloway will take on Zak Cummings at welterweight. I really do not care about this fight whatsoever. We will see if any of these two are impressive enough to merit my attention. I think Alloway is open to be submitted. Zak should sink in a guillotine or some other choke to win this fight early. Then again, I don't really care.
On to FS2, a channel I do not get....Hopefully I don't miss these!!
- The first fight features a pair of what I believe to be underrated fighters. Both James Head and Jason High are high caliber fighters despite their recent losses. Jason High has extremely good wrestling credentials. He was submitted by Erick Silva in spectacular fashion last fight, so he is looking to bounce back from that. James Head has some solid ground skills but I think he is overmatched. High via wrestling domination decision.
- Another very intriguing fight follows the welterweights. Darren Elkins was on a 5 fight winning streak before Chad Mendes finished him in under about a minute. I think Elkins is seriously talented, especially considering Siler and Brandao, two of the people he beat in the 5 fight win streak, just came off of rather impressive wins just last week. As for Hioki, he is 2-2 in the UFC after being very hyped over in Japan. I actually think he was on the bad end of a split decision against Guida in Chicago, and there is no shame in a lost to Lamas. The 145 lb division is very stacked right now, and a win here is very important for both of these guys. I'm flip flopping a bit, but I am going with Elkins. Hioki will most likely spend too much time on his back like he did against Guida. Elkins via decision.
- Brandon Thatch has his hands full in his UFC debut with Justin Edwards. Word on the street is that Thatch has a hell of a striking game but anytime Edwards is fighting someone who is not a top 10 welterweight the answer is simple: Edwards via his nasty guillotine choke. Shockingly, Thatch is a favorite in this fight. This is a fight I feel confident putting money on.
- Last but not least, Papy Abedi and Dylan Andrews will go at it. Andrews had a very good run on TUF before eventually being one of Hall's KO victims. Papy began his UFC career by being submitted by Head and Alves, but bounced back with a win in his last fight. I think he is good, but Andrews is more dangerous. I think Dylan Andrews takes a TKO win home in the 2nd or 3rd round.
FS1 takes over and hosts a UFC show for the 2nd time:
- Brad Tavares is a very talented middleweight with wins over Riki Fukuda and Tom "Kong" Watson. Bubba McDaniel was awful on the last season of TUF. Nothing to even think about here. Tavares via something in the 1st round.
- Takeya Mizugaki has had ups and downs in his WEC/UFC career. His opponent, Erik Perez, is now 3-0 with three first round finishes in the UFC. I doubt he will get this done in the first round. However, I think he outclasses Mizugaki on his way to a decision win. Perez via unanimous decision 30-27.
- After two tough losses at middleweight, Court McGee dropped to welterweight and won in very impressive fashion. He could be a dark horse in the division. Another dark horse in the division is Robert Whittaker. He won his last fight in the battle of TUF welterweight winners. He is an elite striker, but will he be able to stuff McGee's takedowns. Again I say yes. I really like this Whittaker guy and think he will be one hell of a good fighter for a while in this division. Whittaker will be the first man to finish McGee with a 2nd round TKO. I found this a very intriguing matchup, #10 on my list.
- There are a ton of TUF alumni on this card. Kelvin Gastelum is the most recent TUF winner when he beat the over-hyped Uriah Hall in the finals. Brian Melancon is stepping in to face Gastelum for the injured Paulo Thiago. In his last fight, Melancon made a very promising UFC debut, finishing Seth Baczynski in the first round. I think this is a rather intriguing matchup that I look forward too. I of course have to side with Gastelum to sneak away with a decision.
- Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone has been one of the most entertaining lightweights in the WEC/UFC for a long time. He lost to Anthony Pettis before bouncing back against KJ Noons. He has his hands full against with Rafael dos Anjos in the co-main event on Wednesday. Rafael has won 8 of his last 10 with 1 loss via split decision and the other via jaw injury. He very well could be 10 for his last 10. At the same time, many feel he lost his last fight to Evan Dunham. I like Rafael dos Anjos, but I love Cerrone. I think the kicking game of Cerrone trumps anything dos Anjos can do. Cerrone via decision.
- Carlos Condit and Martin Kampmann have been two of the best, and most exciting welterweights since they've been in the UFC. Condit lost his UFC debut to Kampmann with a split decision. He has since then won 5 in a row and captured the UFC Interim Welterweight Championship, only to come up short in decisions to GSP and Hendricks. Desperately needing a win, Condit will be at his best against Kampmann. As for Martin Kampmann, he also came up short against Johny Hendricks. Hendricks needed only a minute to leave Kampmann unconscious on the floor in Montreal. His entire career consists of getting his ass kicked in the first round, only to make an amazing comeback to win fights. I think this has caught up to him. He has all these comebacks because his chin is not as strong as it needs to be. Condit should rock him in this fight and finish him with a KO. Condit clearly has a wrestling problem, since he spends too much time on his back. He is slick from his back, but if he doesn't finish his opponent he will lose a decision. The 5 round main event format will aid Condit in that respect. Look for fireworks ending in a sick finish. Condit via main event round headkick KO.
Bonus predictions:
FOTN: Whittaker/McGee
SOTN: Edwards
KOOTN: Condit
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