UFC 107 is upon us this Saturday and it is a fight that I have been waiting to see for quite some time now. But I do think if Diego Sanchez had fought BJ Penn earlier in his career he would have been thoroughly dominated by the “Prodigy.” However, after Sanchez had his last loss something did seem to change with him. In my opinion, he seemed to transform into the “full-time fighter” which are the guys who are training year-round and always working on their game just like Georges St. Pierre and Anderson Silva (when their not injured).
We have always known that Diego Sanchez has a really good ground game and he has added, what appears to be, a really good stand-up game as well. But the factor that gives Sanchez his ability is his heart and mental toughness – even if he is a little “out there.” But most MMA fighters are probably a little “out there” (e.g. Forrest Griffin). Even with all of that – I just cannot see Diego Sanchez beating BJ Penn. Do not forget that many of the major MMA fight writers thought Kenny Florian would beat BJ Penn and we witnessed Penn beat Florian at his own game. I suspect that Diego Sanchez will try to stand-up and box BJ Penn which is likely a bad combination because Penn has heavier hands than Sanchez…
Now on to the predictions!!
Diego Sanchez v. B.J. Penn: Even though I really like how much Sanchez has improved his all around game, I just cannot see him beating BJ Penn especially after what Penn did to Kenny Florian. I like BJ Penn KO3
Cheick Kongo v. Frank Mir: This is kind of a toss up for me to predict a winner because both guys looked bad in their last fights but considering each guys opponent that is a bit unfair to base them on that. However, Mir is the one who changed trainers after his loss to Lesnar and that is not always a good thing. Mir definitely has the superior ground game but I think Kongo has the better stand-up. I’m going to go with Kongo by unanimous decision on this one.
Mike Pierce v. Jon Fitch: No question about this one here. Jon Fitch unanimous decision. Fitch is a good fighter with an even greater heart. Unfortunately, a big heart will not allow him to beat GSP.
Clay Guida v. Kenny Florian: This is going to be a great fight. Clay Guida has never been in a boring fight and he is going to keep coming at you no matter what. However I think this kind of aggression will benefit Kenny Florian.Even thought Florian was submitted in his fight against Penn – he did not look “bad” in that fight, he was just up against a fighter who had all the answers. This is my upset pick on this one. I think Guida pulls this one out on a split decision over Florian.
What do you guys think about my fight predictions?
Here are the results of the Ultimate Fighter 10 Heavyweights finale on SpikeTV!!
Brendan Schaub (240) VS Roy Nelson (263) : Roy Nelson KO1… Roy used his stand-up skills to literally knock out Schaub in the first round… Impressive win for Roy Nelson!!!
Jon Jones (206) VS Matt Hamill (206) : Hamill wins over Jones via DQ… Jones was Disqualified for 2 illegal elbows where the referee had to utilize instant replay to determine if the elbows were illegal or not… I do not believe that Jones was intentionally trying to use illegal elbows as he was dominating Hamill…
Houston Alexander (208) VS Kimbo Slice (212) : Kimbo wins unanimous decision over Alexander… Kind of a boring fight… Kimbo showed far better ground skills and even tried a rear-naked choke!! In my opinion, Alexander seemed to be intimidated by Kimbo…
Matt Veach (155) VS Frank Edgar (155) : Frank Edgar wins via rear-naked choke in round 2… Matt Veach had a good showing but Frank’s all around skills proved to be the winner here…
Matt Mitrione (255) VS Marcus Jones (262) : Matt Mitrione wins via KO in round 2… Marcus Jones had some really good take downs in the first round, but his questionable stand-up skills were the decisive factor again and Marcus came walking straight into Mitrione, chin up, and got knocked out…
Well the Ultimate Fighter Season 10 is finally over with the finale this Saturday night. I have mixed feelings about this season because although it was entertaining, the actual fights were not all that entertaining. What did you guys think about this?
As with all of the previous Ultimate Fighter seasons, the “house” moments are always entertaining and comical. I cannot begin to tell you how many times that I laughed at how simple some of these guys were – especially Matt “Meathead” Mitrione. This guy is, without a doubt, lacking in the intelligence department – but maybe that’s what makes him so comical. When he first said he had a shoulder injury, I gave him the benefit of the doubt and believed he was truly injured. But after a while I started to really question the guys heart. I will give him credit that he did put up one helluva fight against Scott Junk but his lack of conditioning (and the entire TUF10 “cast” for that matter) prevented him from finishing Scott Junk…
In all honesty, the biggest surprise for me was seeing Kimbo’s improvements. Whether you like him or not, you can see that the guy really wants to be an MMA fighter. Kimbo could have easily went into boxing (rumor is that he turned down several offers from promoters to go into boxing) but he wanted to stick with MMA. It really is too bad Kimbo did not get into Martial Arts earlier in his life as he certainly could have been so much better. However, I have seen all of his “professional” fights when he was in EliteXC and up until now and I can definitely see an improvement. In Kimbo’s defense, he has spent all of his time after the TUF10 filming training with Rashad Evans and the American Top Team camp in Florida which he should have gained immense knowledge and training to better himself. Let us hope he did better himself because he is not fighting a “bum” this Saturday in Houston Alexander. That should be a good fight!! Ultimately though, Kimbo needs to drop down to Light Heavyweight because you and I both know there is no way in hell that Kimbo would beat any of the top tier guys in the heavyweight division (Lesnar, Carwin, Velazquez, Mir, Noguiera, Kongo) because he’s just too small…
I was really impressed with Marcus Jones. This guy really has the size, strength, intensity, heart, and ground game to be a difficult opponent for quite a few heavyweights with the exception being the elite guys. His stand-up game is pretty weak though and I hope that he sticks with MMA and gets a really good trainer to help with his stand-up game. The only mistake Marcus made when he was fighting Brendan (aside from letting out of the full mount) was standing up with his chin out which Brendan exploited to earn the win. Once Marcus learns to keep his chin tucked along with straightening out those punches and learning to establish a stiff jab – he will be good. Unfortunately for Marcus – he’s already 35 years old…
Ok… Enough about all that… The TUF10 Finale Weigh-In’s came in today – check it out at by clicking (it will open in new window) on HERE… I will go ahead and make my personal predictions here – just for the “main” card and not the prelims – and hopefully you guys will chime in with your own predictions:
Brendan Schaub (240) VS Roy Nelson (263) : I REALLY hope Brendan Schaub wins this won because the way Roy Nelson won his fights in TUF10 were not very entertaining but I suspect that Roy Nelson will end up winning this thing. Once Schaub lands a few good shots on Roy, Roy will just shoot in, take him down, and put the belly on him. Roy Nelson by KO second round or decision victory…
Jon Jones (206) VS Matt Hamill (206) : I think with all the hype surrounding Jon Jones might be legit. The guy definitely looks like he’s going to be really good. He trains with GSP and his people, has a wrestling foundation and is still young. Look for Jones to knock Hamill out in the second round but don’t be surprised if Jones gets a decision. Hamill is going to be a great test for Jones after he dominated Bonnar early this year. Jon Jones by UD…
Houston Alexander (208) VS Kimbo Slice (212) : I kind of think this is a bit of a hand picked opponent for Kimbo – not a guarantee but a hand picked opponent. Houston Alexander is known as a stand-up guy and this plays right into Kimbo’s game. If Kimbo has improved as much as Rashad Evans has said – then this should be a great showcase fight for Kimbo. I personally am pulling for Kimbo to win this one and win impressively so that we could see him with some of the other light heavyweight guys. Alexander is no push over though, and has several highlight KO’s of his own so this is not a “gimmie” by any means. Even still – I say Kimbo KO first round…
Matt Veach (155) VS Frank Edgar (155) : I have seen Frank Edgar fight a few times and he seems to have the total package but Matt Veach is also VERY good. This is more of a pick ‘em for me. But I do think Frank Edgar pulls this one out as he has been on the big stage already and is very well-rounded. Frank Edgar UD…
Matt Mitrione (255) VS Marcus Jones (262) : This is a fight that I am pretty excited about just based on the intensity from Marcus when he thought Scott Junk was not going to be able to fight again. Hopefully Marcus will channel this intensity again and we will see him just manhandle Mitrione. However, if Jones has not learned to keep his chin tucked, Mitrione could easily knock him out. I was pretty surprised by how much Mitrione weighed in at for this fight because to me, it seems like he’s a bit over weight but then again he never had a physique. I like Marcus Jones by submission (likely a Kimura) in second round…
