Goodbye Ali

“I must be the greatest… Float like a butterfly sting like a bee… Rumble young man rumble...” The quotas are endless. The talent at times seemed unmatched. The shadow he cast over the world not just of boxing but the world as whole is so large that is seems shocking he wouldn’t be a heavyweight in the modern world of boxing. He was only 6'3 and weighed about two hundred and ten pounds. In today's modern era of boxing filled giants such as the Klticshko Brothers and Tyson Furry he would most and like fight as either a light heavyweight or crusierweight. And in many way Ali would not fit in with the modern world boxing all that well.

Muhammad Ali was all about risk. Both in the ring and out of the ring he risked it all. In 1984 he said “He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.” But modern boxing so much of the risk has been removed. The records are often padded out. The best rarely fight the best. Just look at Mayweather and Pacqiuo who spent years playing a game of “No you go.” When negotiating a fight and than finally stepped in the ring and board the crowd to tears. If GGG the most feared and avoided man in boxing today were a heavyweight in the 60's I feel Ali would not only fight him he would boldly declared he would turn him into lower case g because the beating would be that bad. After all Ali had already risked it all when he destroyed Sonny Liston.

Liston was Mike Tyson before Tyson was Tyson. He was a viscous knockout machine. He was truly dangerous in and outside of the ring. He had annihilated Floyd Patterson to win the title and than again in the rematch. Few gave the than Cassius Clay a chance. As the famous tale goes only two sports writers picked him to win. He was already viewed as two small and his habit of going backwards was viewed a huge flaw that would cost him. But Ali showed no fear taunting Liston and breaking him mentally before the first bell even rang. Sonny Liston never mounted much offense. But in the fourth Ali was suddenly blinded in his eyes. Some type of substance many believe placed on Liston by his corner got in his eyes and blinded him.

Trainer Angelo Dundee worked to flush the young challengers eyes. Still though Ali would have to fight the fifth round against a destroyer and dangerous fighter unable to see correctly. By the sixth Ali was fine and mounted another blistering attacking. Liston knew it was over he had no chance to win and would quit on the stool in the seventh. In the rematch he knocked Liston out with a single punch the image of Ali standing over the fall Liston is iconic.

In all Ali would defend his world championship eight times until he was drafted. Ali by this time have already rejected his slave name and a member of the Nation of Islam refused to serve In the army sighting his religious beliefs. He was stripped of his title banned from boxing and faced going to jail. Think for a moment of any athlete today that would willing to lose it all for something they believed in. Most avoid given any type of stance at all. Eventually the conviction was over turned and he granted a licensee to fight again. Ali fight outside the ring cost him three and a half years of his prime.

In the interim Joe Frazier had won the championship. The two had actually be friends with Frazier even helping out Ali while he was banned. But with a chance to regain his title Ali turned on him. The first fight was an epic event the kind of which boxing would kill to have again. Ali was lose but the fight was so close a rematch seemed to be a sure thing. Than things changed. Frazier would be annihilated by a than unknown George Foreman and lost the title. Ali would win the rematch with Frazier and than target Foreman.

Much like in his fit with Liston few if any gave him a chance. He was no thirty two years old. Since his return he appeared to have lost a step. Foreman was younger and had so easily blown through Fraser it seemed Ali was doomed. The fight would become the Rumble in the Jungle. With the back off the massive crowd in Zaire Africa Ali would reclaim his title. Using what would be known as the Rope a Dope Ali let Foreman punch himself out. Throughout the fight he be taunting Foreman. “Come on George… Is that all you got George.” Munch like Liston, Ali showed no fear and was once again the champion of the world.

The time had come to settle the score with Frazier once and for all. It would be known as the Thrilla in Manellia. It was a brutal final war between the top two fighters of there time. Both men came close to death in that ring. Going into the fifteenth and final round Frazier's trainer Eddie Futch refused to let his fighter answer the bell. Ali had won the feud and further cemented his legacy as The Greatest.

Ali would lose and regain his title one more time. He retired for a time and than announced his return in 1981 to challenge than Heavyweight Champion Larry Holmes. The combination of father time and Holmes own amazing skills were to much for Ali. He would lose when his own trainer Angelo Dundee stopped the fight unwilling to see him take more of a beating. While Ali would fight again for all intensive purposes this was the end. Muhammad Ali would never again challenge for a heavyweight championship.

There is so much more the amazing contributions Ali made to the civil rights movement, his battle with Parkinson, his work for the UN including the time he helped to negotiate the release of fifteen hostages in Iraq. But when I think of Ali. I will think and admire the risk taker. It would have been easy for him to stay Cassius Clay smiled and just fought. Instead he was willing to be unpopular to be hated. He could have taken easy fight or just lived off his reputation. Instead he took the uneasy path. Ali could have been a great champion but by taking risks he became an Icon, a Hero, A Legend. “I Must Be the Greatest!” Yes he was.

UFC 199 Picks

UFC Middleweight Championship Luck Rockhold (c) 15-2 MMA 5-1 UFC vs. Michael Bisping 28-7 MMA 18-7 UFC- A ten year UFC career spent hunting a title shot all comes down to two weeks. An injury had forced Chris Wediman out of his rematch with Luke Rockhold. Instead Rockhold will fight another rematch facing off with Michael Bisping. These have some history. They trained together a little bit and Bisping says he got the better of it when they spared. They had an actual fight in November of 2014 that night clearly Rockhold got the better of it. He really dominated the fight dropping the Bisping with a head kick and than submitting him in the second.

Rockhold last fought in December at UFC 194. That was the fight he won the title from Chris Weidman. It was a close fight. First round real argument either way it got scored. Second round was a pretty clear cut win for Rockhold. He used his great kicks control the round did some real damage to the champion. Third round it appeared to be Weidman's until he threw sloppy spin kick. Rockhold seeing his chance got him down and beat the ever living hell out of him. The result a dominate TKO victory and a new middleweight champion. Rockhold rides a five fight winning streak. Bisping is coming off the biggest win of his career. It was back in February in the UK. He faced off with Anderson Silva. What a lot people forget and ignore he actually put on a great performance. He won the first two round throwing good consistent combinations never got pulled Silva's game never froze up. He hurt Silva in the first and dropped in the second.

What people (mainly people that dislike Bisping) want to focus on is the third round. Late in the round Bisping lost his mouth piece he wanted the referee to stop the action and that allowed Anderson to hit flying knee that badly hurt him and drop him. At the same time the bell rings to end the round. The ref steps in to stop the round. The assumption is he is stooping the fight. Anderson jumps up on the cage the doctors rush in to check Bisping. Finally order is restored. We go back out for the forth round. Now at this point mentally he's left the fight, he's still badly hurt yet he comes out focus and manages win the round. Than in the fifth he survived a lot of big strikes that would have finished a lot of men. He finally won the big one and is now on a three fight winning streak.

Both men these men are very good strikers. But they are very different. Bisping is more bread and butter pressure and pace fighter. He throws a lot of jabs and crosses he mixes in some good kicks. He does have 15 career knockouts but is not often seen a power puncher. A big key to his striking is his pace he keeps guys from attacking him because he can still be throwing high levels later in fights. Rockhold is more a power striker but he only has four knockouts officially in his career. Part of that is due to his ground game. But he hurts guys when he lands. Also he doesn't wind or throw wild. Now I can only go off what I have seen and we know Rockhold can hurt Bisping. Both guys have pretty solid chins each has only been KO'ed twice. I am giving the edge to Rockhold.

As I said a big part of the reason Rockhold doesn't have a lot knockouts is due to his ground game. He often like to use his striking to set up taking the fight to the ground and getting the submission. He has a BJJ blackbelt. He has nine career submission wins and never been submitted in a fight. Bisping has only been submitted once and that was his loss to Rockhold. He does have four career submissions. But I gotta give a edge to Rockhold. He has great control just go back and watch his fight with Machida to see what I'm talking about. Also go watch his fight with Tim Boetsch where he pulled off a inverted triangle meaning he can pull off moves guys don't usually see.

The X-Factors are first Bisping only gets two weeks to get ready. By all account Bisping keeps himself in shape between fights but this being five rounds and he admits he has to cut more than twenty pounds to make weight will make it tough. Most guys also admit good shape is a level or more below fight shape. Now it does help he fought Rockhold before so it's not like he has to quickly figure out the style of a guy. The other one to me is ten years in the UFC a combat sports career that dates back to age 15, the judges giving a gift to channel Sonnen in a number 1 contender fight, having a TRT aided Belfort KO him in Brazil in a fight where if he won he was next in line. Bisping has wanted this fight a long time and he's finally got it. That could be the thing that makes him more dangerous than anyone.

The odds makers are leaving very heavy to Rockhold. I have to agree. Bisping in order to win this fight is going to have establish control early and force Rockhold to press more than he usually does. Rockhold though has that power that can just change a fight in a flash. Plus he will have a full camp that might give him the cardio edge. I think Rockhold wins and I think it could another TKO win using ground and pound sometime in the second round.

UFC Bantamweight Championship Dominick Cruz (c) 21-1 MMA 4-0 UFC vs. Urijah Faber 33-8 MMA 9-4 UFC- It all started with a poster. In March of 2007 Faber was the WEC Featherweight champion and Cruz was set to challenge him. Cruz became upset upon learning his picture was not on the poster for the event. In response during a charity signing he become writing over the picture of Faber an act the champion found disrespectful. Its been all down hill since in terms of there relationship. Its seems like every interview either one does at some point has them talk about the other and insult them.

In 2007 at WEC 26 Faber won with a Gulliteen Choke in 1:38. It is the one and only loss of Cruz's career. It would take Cruz over a year to return the WEC. Now a Bantamweight Cruz would rise up the rankings including two wins over Faber's than teammate Joesph Benavidez. Winning the WEC's Bantamweight title in 2010 and by years end when the WEC was abrosed by the UFC he was named UFC champion. That same year Faber who had lost his title and failed to regain dropped to Bantamweight setting the stage for a rematch. 2011 at UFC 132 it would take place. In a back and forth fight Cruz would win a decision evening the series up at 1-1. The third fight was set for the summer of 2012 until Cruz suffered the first in a series of injures that would limit to just 1 fight in four years.

Cruz last fought in January. It was his chance to regain what he never lost. He had been stripped of the Bantamweight championship due to injury. He would step into the cage with TJ Dillishaw. Why Dillishaw had deprated Alpha Male there was still a large amount of tension going in. The fight itself was a classic Dominick Cruz performance. Beautiful footwork great movement. He really turned Dillishaw into a head hunter he won the decision and is back as world champion. Faber last fought in December at UFC 194. He got a decision win over Frankie Saenz but it the latest in a long line poor performance by him. Now is that the decline of a fighter now in his late 30's or is that a top contender frozen out of the title picture not being as motivated as he should be.

Both men have seven career knockout wins. Cruz has never been stopped due to strikes. Faber has been knocked out three times. Also when he lost to Aldo and the first fight with Barrao while it the distance he was badly outclassed on the feet. Faber when striking tends to be flat on his feet and throw wild looping shots. If you had a fighter that every young MMA fighter should try to be like. He's is always on the balls of his feet. He is always moving. He never get wild instead throw perfect tight shot keeping his defense up. If you try to attack him he is moving out of the way with a slip and odds are coming right back with a counter. I see a huge advantage on the feet for Cruz.

Both men have wrestling backgrounds. Faber went further wrestling in college at UC Davis. Both have used there wrestling to win fights over the years. Now of course Faber beat Cruz with a choke in the first fight. Cruz has always only won once via submission. He does use his wrestling for control also had very good defense. Faber has 19 career submission wins and never been submitted. I see a slight edge for Faber.

I think a huge X-Factor will be Cruz is willing to change. The way Cruz talks he is always looking for the next level in this sport. He want to be perfect. Even when he was hurt he was telling people “You don't understand I am getting smarter I am better than I ever was.” Faber on the other hand doesn't seem to want to change. It seems that led to the falling out with Bang Ludwig and seems to be par tof the reason why a few of Alpha Males top fighters have gone elsewhere. The other X-Factor could be like with Bisping, Faber might be looking at this his final shot and will be willing to do anything to win. Of course the flip side could be Faber over commits to something and gets hurt by a perfect Cruz counter.

My pick is Dominick Cruz. I see this huge advantage on the feet. He's not going to be schooled on the ground. Cruz is not the guy to make a huge mistake because he learned from that one loss. He's finally healthy been able to have back to back training camps. Faber meanwhile hasn't looked good in a while. He's still very much the same fighter he was back in the WEC. I think this goes five rounds and it's another decision win for Cruz.

Max Holloway 15-3 MMA 11-3 UFC vs. Ricardo Lamas 16-4 MMA 7-2 UFC- Name value wise not the biggest fight but for fans that know what these two can do it the potential fight of the night. These are two top fight rated featherweight. One has had a title shot and the other wants one badly. Holloway last fought in December at UFC 194. He scored a unanimous decision win over Jeremy Stephens. It was a clear case of who was the better fighter. He's now won an incredible eight fights in a row. Lamas last fought in November TUF Latin America Finale. He dominated Diego Sanchez badly beat up in a way no other fighter ever has. It was a strong rebound after being knocked out by Chad Mendes in the fight before that.

In terms of power Max is Blessed with the advantage. He's won 6 fight via KO while Lamas only has 4. Lamas also has been KO'ed three times. Now the reach will be tied by Holloway uses more kicks. Now the ground game Lamas appears to have an edge He's got more submission 4 to 2. Also Lamas loves the smother your style. He's more likely to be looking to tie up and grapple. But Holloway can grapple so he won't be just held down.

I'm going to pick Max Holloway. He's the younger fighter but already has tons of high level experience. He's also looked so great during this recent run. Lamas is tough but I think Holloway will be get the better of him.

Dan Henderson 31-14 MMA 8-7 UFC vs. Hector Lombard 34-5-1 2NC MMA 3-3 1 NC UFC- Two of the most experienced fighters in the middleweight division do battle. Both men have won championships in other promotions but never held the UFC title. And both fighters need this win. Both have really some major downs the last few years. Henderson has not won back to back fights since 2011. Lombard is setting at 500 in the UFC and is coming off a long suspension for a failed drug test. And lets be honest one guy is 45 the other is 38 so if they are at that point where you need to win every single fight.

Henderson last fought in November at a UFC Fight Night. It was his third fight with Vitor Belfort. In the second fight he had been KO'ed by a head kick just over a minute into the fight. Well third fight went a bit better. It took over two minutes for Belfort to hit the head kick and KO him. Like I said he's not won back to back fights since 2011. Lombard last fought in March at another UFC Fight Night. It was his return from a PED suspension and he faced Neil Magny. Early on he had Magny hurt and seemed like it was going to be a big stoppage win. But in the second round Magny had recoverd started using his range and hurt Lombard. In the third Magny kept control and finished Lombard with strikes.

When it comes to there striking both men are knowing for there power. When it comes to Henderson it's the big over hand right that scored most of them. Hendo has 15 career knockouts wins. Now Henderson has 3 career losses via knockouts but all three of those come since 2013. On top of that over the years he's been in some real wars and well the chin doesn't get better as a fighter gets older. Lombard 19 career knockouts. He's only been knocked out once. I'm going with Lombard better chin and Henderson game plan these days seems to be charge throw over hand repeat. And it doesn't work.

Both men have great grappling backgrounds. Henderson very successful Greco Roman wrestler won medals in the Pan Americans and the Worlds. Lombard 4^th dan blackbelt in Judo and during his Judo career won numerous major tournaments. The truth is though neither guy really uses those skills in MMA. Number say there is an edge to Lombard he has seven career submission wins and never been submitted in MMA. Henderson has two career submission wins and has four career submission losses.

My head says pick Lombard. He's younger taken less punishment it seems in his career. But than you have Henderson who remains dangerous enough. Just look at his rematch with Shogun he was getting clipped over and over again and than bang hit that homerun shot. Went in a fought Boetsch he got that shot and dropped him for the win. So if Lombard just goes for broke he could win up taking the H bomb. But I'm sticking with the head. I think Lombard wins and gets a decision win.

UFC 198 Fallout

History is never on the side of the UFC Heavyweight Champion. Unlike the other titles in the company no single dominate champion has emerged claiming the title for years and making numerous defenses. There have been champion like Couture and Velasquez who held it more than once but in ever single reign the champion has made two or less defenses before losing the title. Fabricio Werdum entered UFC 198 looking to be the the man that finally broke the streak. On paper he was set up well. Werdum has truly world class BJJ and has submitted some of MMA's all time greats. Since heading to King's MMA and train with Rafeal Cordaro he's Muay Thai has become lethal. He didn't just beat Cain Velasquez when he won the title he destroyed him.

UFC 198 could have been his crowning moment. He was main eventing the fourth stadium show in UFC history. It was in his home country of Brazil. But history is never on the side the UFC Heavyweight Champion. Across the cage from Werdum was Stipe Miocic. A fighter man had pegged a future champion. A dangerous fighter with one punch knockout power. Also a fighter who could be the best pure athlete in the division. Werdum got Miocic backing up but made huge mistake. He came charging in hands down and took a right hand to the jaw. It shows just how powerful Miocic is that while back up off balance he could generate that kind of power. Did Werdum get to caught up in the moment? Was it simply fate Miocic would be champion? Does it even matter. Werdum woke up as Miocic celebrated screaming “I'm a world champion!”

In the semi main event of the evening Jacare Souza destroyed Vitor Belfort. While Belfrot and his supporters will point to his knockout of Dan Henderson as proof he' still a contender the facts are he's been utterly destroyed in two of his last three. Against both Souza and Chris Wediman the same story played out. Belfort was taken down quickly mounted and ate a lot of ground and pound punches and elbows. Dispute a BJJ blackbelt and a long career Belfort seemed to have no idea what to do. He barely even bucked his hips to try and get free. Souza whose sole UFC loss was in a close fight where his opponent cheated both during and with PED's might finally have secured that long hunted title shot.

The rest of the card saw a great night for Brazil. Little Nog secured a KO win, Shogun Rua won a close fight over young contender Corey Anderson. Also wind for Maia, Linkier, and Santos. Plus Cyborg was there and crushed a can. Yeah call me when she fight a real threat and fight in a weight class the UFC offers otherwise I don't care.

Biggest Winners-

Stipe Miocic- It was the biggest fight the biggest night of his life. Miocic has always been seen as a fighter with great potential. But in big fight's he's been mixed with results. Strong wins over Hunt and Arlovski are counted by a knockout loss to Struve in his first main event and loss (although disputed) to Dos Santos a few years ago. We had also never seen Mocic fight someone like Werdum with lethal BJJ an ever improving Muay Thai game, and a great history in big fights. Yet Miocic never got over whelmed. He didn't allow Werdum's striking to pick him off or rush into a bad position. Even when backing up he was in control. That one big punch dropped Werdum and changed the line from “Give Me My Shot!” to “I'm a World Champion!” Plus don’t' be shocked if that KO winds up being knockout of the year for a lot sites.

Smaller Gyms- The conventional wisdom in MMA is a fighter with potential who wishes to reach the next level needs to move a city and train with a big team. Hell just look at the reactions to the losses by Rousey and Nortcutt. Many began calling for both fighters to leave there team. OSP has often been criticize for staying in Tennessee and appearing to never grow as a fighter. Yet Miocic stayed with his team in Ohio. Now for every small gym out there looking to build it's own talent and keep them Miocic is an example.

Cleveland- If you weren’t' watching UFC 198 there is a good chance you were watching ESPN's latest 30 for 30 Bleveland. The film looks at the numerous heart breaking moments sport fans in Cleveland have had to deal with. The City had dealt with pretty much everything. The city hasn’t' had a champion since Jim Brown and the Cleveland Browns won the NFL title in the pre super bowl era. Until Saturday night. Miocic broke one of the most powerful curses in sports.

Biggest Losers-

Fabricio Werdum- Since returning the UFC since the end of Strikeforce Werdum has fought as well as any fighter in the world. His wins over Travis Brown and Cain Velasquez were extremely dominate with him picking the believed better striker apart on his feet. So it seem so strange he would go charging in hands down. Going into the event there was talk of “Is Werdum the greatest heavyweight ever?” Well any talk that ended. Why he has three huge wins over Fedor, Big Nog and Velasquez he can now never say he defended the title. And worse of all a lot of it is due to Werdum making a stupid mistake. Back when he was just seen as a BJJ guy it was one thing but over the year he's shown to be very smart on his feet.

Vitor Belfort- Many of Belfort wins have the same story he attacks early with a flurry and scores a knockouts. On the flip side many of his losses play out the same way. He doesn't attack often is forced to wrestle and than just gives up and takes a beating. For a man with a blackbelt in BJJ Belfort offered no resistance on the ground. When this happened to him against Randy Couture he was young and time to rebuild. Now he is 39 years old with a long standing cloud of PED use and much tougher testing. Add into that a good group of middleweights are now in the pack all adding up to him to it be highly unlikely he will get another title shot.

What Comes Next-

It seems Alistair Overeem has the inside track to the next title shot. He's on a long winning streak and would be fresh challenger. He and Miocic could be a really exciting fight. Reem is a talented Thai Boxer with a underrated ground game. Miocic is a former golden gloves champion with great wrestling. Reem a number of year ago was considered the best heavyweight in the sport. He was supposed to challenge for the title many years ago but a bad drug test and a number of stunning losses pushed him down the rankings. But now he' makes total sense.

Jacare did suffer an injury which will keep him from taking the place of Chris Weidman at UFC 199. But there is no reason at all not to give this man the winner of that fight between Rockhold and Bisping. His lone UFC loss should ignored he might be the best submission fighter in all of MMA His striking has become lethal. Assuming Rockhold retains his title there is an added element. Back in Strikforce Rockhold beat Jacare in a very good and very close fight. For years I have wanted a rematch and the cards never fell just right until now.

Fabrico Werdum has already asked for a rematch. Sadly for him it just doesn't make any sense. It's not like he was dominating the fight and lost on a lucky punch. Its also not like he was a long dominate champion unseated after a number of defenses. I think the perfect fight for him would Ben Rothwell. Rothwell. Big Ben just saw his own long winning streak snapped. Had both men won they would have very likely been the next title fight. Rothwell has great KO power and fairly unusual style. While not thought of as a ground fighter he has actually shown great skills in grappling.

UFC 198 Picks

UFC Heavyweight Championship Fabricio Werdum (c) 20-5-1 MMA 8-2 UFC vs. Stipe Miocic 14-2 MMA 8-2 UFC- What was supposed to be UFC 196 was set to be Werdum defending his championship against the man he won it from Cain Velasquez. However Velasquez suffered an injury the UFC booked Micocic in his place. Than Werdum reviled he was suffering from a back injury and pulled out of the fight. Now he said he was willing to fight Velasquez but the opponent change was to much. Well now he's healed up and the UFC made the call to give Miocic the title shot over a rematch. Werdum last fight in June at UFC 188 when he won the title from Velasquez. It was about as one sided as any fight in UFC history. Going in the thought was “Well Werdum's best chance to win is a submission but Cain is the better wrestler and striker.” That was very wrong. Werdum badly beat up Velasquez on the feet. Finally his trained in desperation called for a takedown and it was like jumping into a shark tank. Werdum got a hold of the neck and submitted him. Miocic's last fight was back in January at UFC 195. It took him just 54 seconds to knockout Andre Arlovski a former champion on a long winning streak.

Both these guys have great striking. Werdum has really worked his striking over the year making it as strong as his world class BJJ. He's become a very diverse Muay Thai style striker using hard punches, kicks and knees. He's now got 6 career knockouts. That includes the very tough Mark Hunt a guy that doesn't get knocked out. Also in fight with guys like Roy Nelson and Velasquez he badly hurt them on the feet. He's only ever been knocked out once early on in his career against Junior Dos Santos. Miocic is more of a boxer. He's got 10 career knockouts including a TKO win over Mark Hunt. He's also got a great jab that keeps guys off him. He's only been knocked out once that was against Stefan Struve but he's come a long way since than. Miocic has a reach advantage 80 to 77. But Werdum again is more diverse. I like that diversity in striking so edge goes to Werdum but is Stipie starts to land he shut down Werdum's striking.

Both men also have backgrounds in grappling skills. Miocic was a division 1 wrestler we saw it in the Hunt fight he took him down early and often and beat him up with ground and pound. Werdum is a BJJ blackbelt and a world champion in various tournaments. The number clearly show an huge advantage in the submission game to Werdum. 10 career submission wins and he's never been submitted. He has submission wins over two of MMA's all time great Fedor and Big Nog. Miocic has one career submission win and he's never been submitted. Gotta give the edge to Werdum as well. Even if Miocic can take him down he may not want to stay down with him as Werdum is active off his back.

Couple things I should note this fight will be in Brazil so you know it will be a very pro Werdum crowd. Another X-Factor will be the teams. Werdum is a fighter out of King's MMA a small team but with a lot of high quality talent and coaches. Miocic fight out of Power MMA in his native Ohio. He's the biggest name out of it and the only other other UFC fighter is Jessica Eye. X-Factors that do do for Stipie are the fact he's younger and appears to be the better pure athlete.

The heavyweight championship is never held by any champion for long. So you can never say its a lock. Plus with the size and power any shot is potentially fight changing. So I think Stipie can win this fight. But I'm going with Werdum. He's got dangerous striking and anytime you are grappling with him just give him a small opening and you could wind up tapping out.

Ronaldo Souza 22-4-1 NC MMA 5-1 UFC vs. Vitor Belfort 25-11 MMA 14-7 UFC- Both these men feel they have an inside track to be the next challenger for the Middleweight title. Belfort is the last man to beat current champion Luke Rockhold however he's had a fairly recent title shot and lost. Souza fought Rockhold in a very close fight years ago and lost. But he's looked great since coming to the UFC. Both men are also known to finish fights. There is also that pride factor here as both men are from Brazil. Belfort last fought in November . It was the rubber match with Dan Henderson. Knocked him out in just over two minutes. Souza last fought in December at UFC 194. Currently the fight is listed as a loss to Yoel Romero. That fight had so much controversy around it. Romero did nearly knock him out. But later in the fight he was taking control and as he went for takedown Romero illegally grabbed the fence. The referee stood them up but didn’t take a point or really give Jacare the position he had earned. Than after the fight Romero tested positive for a banned substance.

All fight start standing and Vitor Belfort is among the most dangerous fighters standing in in the history of the sport. He is blessed with hand speed than you just can't train. He's always had great boxing now in recent years he's added more kicks to his game plan. Belfort has 18 career knockouts. He has been knocked out 4 times. Jacare's striking has actually come a long way. Number don't really tell the story with him as he only has 2 career knockouts and has been KO'ed twice also in the Romero fight he was nearly knocked out. Clearly there are still little holes in his game to exploit. That said Belfort enough needs to exploder early and blitz or it usually doesn't win up coming most of those KO's are very early on. I'd have to give the stand up advantage to Belfort.

Both men are blackbelts in BJJ but Jacare is a world champion in BJJ. He has won numerous tournaments. Early on in his MMA career he was so good at that he was able to rack up a great record just using his skills. In MMA he has 16 career submission wins he has never been submitted in a MMA fight. Belfort really does not use his BJJ skills in MMA. Number wise he only has three career submission wins. He's also been submitted twice. In the past we have often also had problems with strong wrestlers. Its that old saying if you can take a striker down and hold him down he can't strike. Big edge goes to Jacare.

This fight really could come down to where it takes place. If Belfort can keep it at range and land early on its his. If Jacare gets him down or forces him into the fence you feel like it's his. I really think Jacare is going to be extra motivated and extra smart in this fight. I think he takes it and gets the win. Call me crazy I think he gets a first round submission.

UFC 197 Picks

Interim UFC Light Heavyweight Championships Jon Jones 21-1 MMA 15-1 UFC- vs. Ovince Saint Preux 19-7 MMA 7-2 UFC- This was supposed to be the big rematch. The big grudge match take two. The chance for Jones to regain the title he never lost. The chance for the champion to show he was truly the best. Instead it will be an interim title fight. Instead Jones will return into a fight he is heavily favored to win. For OSP this is the single biggest fight of his career. Will Jones will return to top form or will OSP join the ranks of Holly Holm and Nate Diaz as stunning upsets?

Jones his last fight was in January of 2015 at UFC 182. He Daniel Cormier a guy many thought was his many thought was his biggest threat. Instead it was pretty one sided fight. DC had his moments but I don’t think anyone thought Cormier won that fight. We all know the story. Jones has been such a dominate fighter his only loss was on a DQ. And everyone knows what happened after that fight the hit and run being stripped of his title. Getting sober and than being put in Jail on a parole violation. It truly seems the only one that can stop Jon Jones is Jon Jones. OSP last fought in February at a UFC Fight Night he got a decision win over Rafael Cavalcante he's won 3 of his last 4. But we still wait for the day this guy truly becomes a contender.

In terms of striking the numbers are similar both men have nine career knockouts. Jones of course has never been knocked out and really the only time he's ever been hurt was against Gustffson. Both mean also have very long reach. Jones 84.5 and OSP 80. Now few fighters are as good as using there reach as Jon Jones. Now the one time he has real issues was against was Guffstson who has a 79 inch reach the only time hasn’t had 10 or more inches in advantage. That said I can't see OSP have the same success. Mainly he's not as technical as the Mauler. Jones is not only long but he's so diverse he punches and and kicks he lands knees and elbows. He's got great ground and pound. Advantage Jones.

Clear advantage for Jones on the ground. He's an amazing wrestler. Only Gusstsfson and Cormeir have ever taken him down. And with DC he was clearly the better wrestler that night. OSP we don’t' see much wrestling. When he lost to Bader a lot of that was due to him getting takendown and not being able to stand up again. Jones has six submission and never been submitted. OSP has five and been submitted once. Although one of his submission wins was on a injury. Also Jones has done it against a higher level of fighter so again advantage Jones.

UFC Flyweight Championship Demetrius Johnson (c) 23-2-1 MMA 11-1-1 UFC vs. Henry Cejudo 10-0 MMA 4-0 UFC- This fight reminds me of Rousey vs. Holm in a few ways. You have a dominate champion the only person to hold the title since the division started. You have a challenger that was very successful in a combat sport before the MMA career began. Who quickly earned a reputation in smaller promotions. Who many who have seen him believe he can be the one to upset that champion and take the title. Johnson last fought in September at UFC 191. It was a rematch with John Dodson. In the first fight Dodson had hurt Johnson few times with big punches. Many thought he was the biggest threat to the champion. But Johnson made all the right adjustments. He stiffed Dodson the entire fight controlled it and won a easy decision victory. Cejudo last fought in November at TUF Latin America Finals. He faced off with Jussier Formiga. That was a tough test for him. He was facing a top five guy lot of big show experience. He did manage to pull out a split decision win.

When it comes to the striking game I give the edge to Johnson. In terms of power each man has four career knockouts. But Ce judo all came early in his career when he wasn't fighting elite competition. Johnson again doesn't have many but one is on Joseph Benavidez and he's the only guy to stop that guy. Also really since the first fight with Dodson he doesn't really get hit that much. He's very smart with his striking has near perfect technique and has amazing speed. Now Cejudo does appear to have good striking but he's still learning and doesn't have the same speed or tehcqine Johnson does. If this becomes a kickboxing fight bet on Mighty Mouse.

The wrestling pedigree goes to Cejudo. In 2008 during the Beijing Olympics he won a gold medal. He was one of those special athletes that was picked up and training at the Olympic Center when he was a teenager. That’s a lot of mat times against a lot of elite wrestlers. Now Johnson is a very good wrestler he just was never at the same level Cejudo was. That said we know MMA wrestling is different than Freestyle wrestling. So I don't think it will just be Cejudo easily taking Johnson down non stop. In terms of the submission game clear edge to Johnson. He has nine career submission wins. He's never been submitted. Cejduo has never scored a submission win. I am calling it a draw in grappling.

Couple of the X-Factors to look at one is teams. Johnson is a member of AMC Pankration and is trained by Matt Hume. Its a great team and a highly respected ttrainer. Its one of those cases of the perfect coach with the perfect student. Hume knows it all and Johnson wants to learn it all. Cejudo works with a smaller team. Seems he's the one big name out of it. Now you can say that has it benefits such as he's the focus his coaches worry about him. But I am picking AMC over a smaller team. Another X-factor is level competition. Cejudo has faced some very good guys. But Johnson has faced elite fighters and beat them. His only losses are are to Brad Pickett and Dominick Cruz and that was at Bantamweight. Hardly bad guys to lose to. Hell Cruz is a P4P best. Edge to Johnson.

My pick is Johnson. Cejudo can be champion some day. But right now there is a real argument that Johnson is the best pound for pound fighter in the world right now. He's great at everything and he only works to get better. He's very much like Floyd Mayweather in that he doesn't take a lot of damage and he seems to get better as the fight goes on. He studies and adjusts on the fly very well. He's also a guy that is on the attack all the time. That's why he has so many late finishes because he's looking to finish the fight.

Anthony Pettis 18-4 MMA 5-3 UFC vs. Edson Barboza 16-4 MMA 10-4 UFC- Just over a year ago Pettis was on top of the world. He was the lightweight champion having just defeated Gilbert Melendez in his first title defense. He was coming off a TUF coaching stint and was on a Wheaties Box. Dana White even came out and said Pettis should be in the debate for pound for pound best. Than it all came crashing down he would lose his title in a one sided fight with Rafael dos Angos. Than he would suffer an injury training for his comeback and he would miss the rest of the year. Finally in January of this year he would return and lose a decision to Eddie Alvarez. All of his losses have the same game plain its when he's forced into a wrestling match. Its a clear hole in his talents. For many years Barboza has been viewed as a future champion. He how ever has never really cashed in on the potential. Barboza last fought in December he was submitted by Tony Ferguson in a FOTN. He's now 1-2 in his last three fights. '

When you think about both men you think about there striking. Pettis has the taekwondo background. He was the man behind the showtime kick. His hands are very good and his kicks are deadly. He's got very good power having scored 7 career knockouts. He's also never been knocked out. That said last few fights he seems to wants to fight off the cage and counter strike. That was why Melendez had a lot of success against him what cost him against RDA and let Alvarez out wrestle him. Hopefully this fight he gets back to being more of the attacker. Barboza has great Muay Thai. He has amazing kicks as well. And great power. Nine career MMA knockouts he won 22 Muay Thai fights via knockout as well. And he's only bee knocked out once. I actually have to say draw when it comes striking. Really it feels like if Barboza can land hard and first he will take over. If Pettis keeps it moving and lands first than he takes over.

Often when you have two great strikers that cancels it out and comes down to the ground game. In BJJ he has a brown belt while Barboza is a Purple belt. Pettis has eight career submission wins. Barboza only has two. Another factor Pettis is very tricky off his back don't forget it was a submission from his back that won the lightweight title for him. On top of that he's been working his wrestling with Izzy Martinez. It doesn't seem Barboza has the strong wrestling that guys like Guida, RDA and Alvarez have to get Pettis down and control him.

Robert Whittaker 15-4 MMA 6-2 UFC vs. Rafael Natal 21-6-1 MMA 9-4-1 UFC- Two surging Middleweights on winning streaks do battle here. Whittaker last fought in November at UFC 193 he beat Uriah Hall by decision. Going into that fight Hall had all the moment he was coming off a huge win. He got the best of Hall all night long it felt. That’s four wins in a row three since moving up in weight to 185. Natal last fought in January at a UFC on Fox card he knocked out Kevin Casey. He's also won four in a row. At this stage it's not just can you win it's can you win impressively.

Both men are six foot but Natal will carry a 2.5 inch reach advantage. But Whittaker has the power and the chin advantage. He has 7 career knockouts and only been knocked out. Natal has four career knockouts and been knocked out four times. Edge goes to Whittaker. The edge for Natal comes in the ground game. He's a BJJ blackbelt never been submitted in MMA and has eight career submission win. Whittaker has 5 career submission wins and only lost once via submission but Natal is dangerous. Toss up fight could go either way but Whittaker is the one I think takes it.

UFC on Fox Fallout

It was a card that was going to be loaded. It was a card that was supposed to give us the next title challengers in two weight classes and see which aging legend could mount another run. Sadly it became a card hit by a injures and two PED issues. Shogun Rua and Tony Ferguson both were the injures. Lyoto Machida was the high profile PED issue. Still though the UFC manged to keep enough of the card together and the fighters showed up willing to perform.

The In Ring Action- Glover Teixeria has often spoke of the fact Mike Tyson is his favorite fighter. And his win over Rashad Evans was Tyson like. Teixeria backed Evans up early on landed a devastating hook to the chin that dropped the former champion and than followed up with a shorter vvicious hook from the other side that put Evans out cold. Glover has clearly put the two fight losing streak behind him and is back to being a top contender who might has put himself in the perfect postion to get a title shot later this year or early next year. For Evans you can't help but wonder if we are seeing the end of a career. In the co-main event Rose Namajunas avenged his previous loss to Tecia Torres. As expected the two straweights kept a high pass in the end Namamajunas takedown and her ability to steal rounds was key. After two long years plagued by injures Khabib Nurmagomedov returned. Darrell Horcher offered little opposition to AKA product but can hold hi head high for taking the risk against such a talented foe. For Nurmagomedov simply getting through a camp and fighting should be viewed as a win. In the opening fight of the night Cub Swanson returned to his old form and got a much needed win beating Harcran Dias. The prelims saw exciting finishes by Michael Chiesa, John Dodson, Santiago Pnzinbibio, and Michael Graves.

Biggest Winners

Glover Teixeria- There is no denying Teixeria has put himself right back into title contention with a KO win over Evans. First if OSP can some how upset Jon Jones he can make the claim of having already beat OSP. And the call out of Johnson makes sense in several way. The fight should be great with two powerful strikers. And it would a great stay busy fight for Johnson. Even if he can't Rumble Teixera will no doubt get another top contender or featured fight in his next UFC appearance.

Rose Namajunas- She backed up her dominated win over Paige VanZant by hanging the first official loss on another top five fighter. She showed improved takedowns. Also she never got overwhelmed even after being hurt with a punch in the first round. The 115 division is still forming with three wins in a row and an interesting style and growing fan base we very well could see Thug Rose getting a second chance to gain the UFC title.

Khabib Nurmagomedov- He was 22-0 the last man to beat the current champion entering the fight. He also hadn't fought in nearly two years. It seemed to be a cruel pattern he was injured would rehab have a comeback fight set and than another injury would force him to pull out. Finally he managed to get into a camp and fight. With Tony Ferguson out the fight became a tune up fight with new comer Darrell Horcher. Nurmagomedov was also very honest point blank admitting he couldn't afford to lose to Horcher. Early on The Eagle looked rusty early on but eventually got back into the grove.

Darrell Horcher- Officially it goes down as a loss but Horcher deserves respect. Horcher was dominated but still had moments where he looked good. Everything worked against him in this fight he had never fought on a show as large as a UFC event, he had never faced anyone close to a top ten fighter, and he took it on extremely short notice. Odds are Horcher will get another UFC fight and this time face someone more on his level.

Biggest Losers

Lyoto Machida- Any time fighter is linked to banned substances it taints his legacy. USADA will likely show Machida some leancy since he disclosed his use instead of getting caught with a failed test. Already several fighters have openly blasted him online. It also doesn’t help that Machida's story is he simply didn't know the substance was banned. Except that excuse doesn’t hold much water and any high level athlete has a team around them that should keep track of what is banned. Epically given Machida is friends and shares a manager with Anderson Silva another fighter who claimed “I didn't know” not that long ago.

Rashad Evans- He looked slow and unwilling to engage. Evans is now 0-2 since returning from ACL injury that kept him out all of 2014 and most of 2015. For a fighter like Evans who relied greatly on speed and athleticism a leg injury could career ending. Evans also was knocked out for the second time in the career. Anyone watching the post fight show clearly saw a devastated Evans unsure of where his career goes from here. Why its not out of the question that Evans could fight and win again it seems at thirty six he may be unable to ever truly contend for a championship again.

The Referee for Nurmagomedov vs. Horcher- I tried to find his name but couldn't It's not personal against the guy. I just feel he took way to long to stop this fight. Why Horcher was still trying to escape he took way to many unprotected shots to the head. The referee should have stopped the fight sooner.

What Comes Next- For Texeria the fight with Rumble Johnson makes all the sense in the world. Both men are extremly powerful strikers with knockout power. The highlight reel used for the promos alone would sell the fight it would perfect main event for FOX or Fightpass event or co-main for a PPV in the fall. Also why Rumble appears to be next in line for a title shot he will have to wait. It's not clear when DC will be back and there always a chance the winner of Jones vs. OSP could be hurt as well and need time off. Plus the UFC already seems to be leaning towards doing unification fight at the MSG debut in November. Plus if Johnson is truly the number one contender he should be able to beat Glover.

Dana White said Rose Namajuans is still a few fights away from another title shot. He even admitted he doesn't want to rush into another shot given she's only 23. I think a perfect fight for her would be Michelle Waterson. Waterson is the former Invicta Atomweight champion and is 1-0 UFC. She was supposed to fight Torres at UFC 194 but pulled out with an injury. She like Namajunas she has a background in traditional martial arts. Match up wise it could be very compelling and would give Thug Rose another win over a top ten fighter.

UFC on Fox Picks

Rashad Evans 19-4-1 MMA 13-4-1 UFC vs. Glover Teixeira 24-4 MMA 7-2 UFC- Evans was going to face Shogun Rua but an injury to Rua forces him out. Teixeria steps in on late notice. Evans former champion and Texieria former title challenger. These two were booked to fight in February of last year but injures forced both to pull out. Both have faced recent issues and a win moves them up in line. Evans last fought at UFC 192 in October. He had been out for two year dealing with a leg injury. He was facing Ryan Bader going in he talked a big game about trash talking all night and KO'ing Bader. Instead he looked very rusty. Unless his game plan was to headbutt Bader's hand until it was broken. He lost a decision. Teixeira last fought in November he KO'ed Patrick Cummins after beating him up badly. That was two wins in a row and two finishes.

Both men have knockout power. And have shown very good chins. Each has only lost via knockout once in there careers. Teixeira has 14 career knockouts. Teixeira is a rugged brawler he often speak of Mike Tyson being his hero. Evans has 7 career knockouts. He is more of a mover. He like to dance taunt guys. IF Teixeira is trying to be Tyson Evans is a bit like Mayweather. Power I gotta give the edge to Teixeira but when you brawl you leave yourself open just watch his fighter with Bader. Glover is taller with the longer reach so edge standing up goes to him.

In terms of grappling we got a former University of Michigan Wrestler vs. a BJJ Blackbelt. Evans was the college wrestler. But as his MMA career has gone on he uses his wrestling a lot less. Now Evans has never lost via submission but he also only has 2 career submission wins. Teixeira BJJ blackbelt has 7 career wins via submission and never been submitted. In terms of the advantage I'm giving it to Glover.

To me this is a very close fight. Even with me giving Glover the edge in stand up and the ground game I don’t' feel he has a huge advantage in either and truth is Evans could wind up being better than I am thinking. I think one thing that will help is Glover is more active not having dealt with the same injures. I am picking Teixeira to get the win in this fight. I see it going the distance and it being a decision win.

Lyoto Machida 22-7 MMA 14-7 UFC vs. Dan Henderson 31-14 MMA 11-9 UFC- It was 2013 at UFC 157 when these two fought in the co-main event. Machida won a split decision. The way I would sum up that fight is real simple Henderson charged hoping a hay maker would connect Machida back up or cut an angle catches him with a few shots. Reset do it again. That night a lot of people thought they were fighting for a title shot at light heavyweight. Now three years later at middleweight they are fighting in for both men a must win fight. One needs this to stay a top ten fighter the other needs this to really justify keep his career going.

2015 was the worse year of Machdida's career he fought twice and lost badly both times. In April he was dominated by Luke Rockhold got taken down in the first took massive punishment barely got back to his corner after the round. Second round take down again and got submitted. His next fight was in June he faced off with Yoel Romero. Seemed like a very typical fight he has but than suddenly he got caught with a powerful punch dropped than elbows and he was out. The truth is Dan Henderson has not been a contender in a long time. He has not won consecutive fight since 2011. And if you look at the wins they are over Rua another fading star twice and Tim Boetsch a guy that isn't contender either. His last fight was in December in a rubber match with Vitor Belfort got Knocked out in just over two minutes into the fight.

The stand up is interesting in that both guys have KO power but there chins aren't as solid as they use to be. Machida has nine career knockout win and only lost twice via knockout. Now that said in those two fight I just talked about both times he got rocked pretty badly taking some shots. A big part of his advantage has been speed but at 37 you wonder if his reactions are slowing. Henderson has 15 career knockouts wins. He's only been knocked out 3 times but two of those come in his last three fights. Its an all to common sight in combat sports the great fighter passed his prime fighting on getting knocked out. The edge has got to got to Machdida. He's a much more diverse striker he will punch kick throw knees and elbows. He's also a counter striker meaning he picks his spots. Henderson is very straight a head in his attacks most of his knockouts come from the over hand right. More and more as Henderson has gotten older it feels he's just looking for that punch to connect.

Henderson had a great wrestling career. But he doesn't always use it in his MMA career. He's more of a greco wrestling often tying up and using the clinch to get a guy against the cage. But again as he's aged he's even gotten away from that. In terms of submission he really only has one. (His record says two but 1 was due to knees and the guy quitting) that his second career fight in 1997. Now he's only been submitted 4 times. All four of those guys are great fighters two of them were The Nogeria brothers the others were Anderson Silva and Daniel Cormier. Machida is a BJJ blackbelt but he only has two submission wins. His last one came back at UFC 79 back in 2007. He's been submitted twice but that was to Rockhold and Jon Jones hardly guys that slouches in there submission games. But Machida is great and countering wrestlers he's just always been able to stop them. So edge goes to the Dragon.

This is the kind of fight I could see ending early with a highlight reel KO. And just as likely I could see it going all three almost no action as Henderson charges sloppy and Machida backs up looking for his shot. The first fight was defenlty the later. Machida style does seem to led to a number of controversial descions as him back up often gives the impression he's losing. Hell after the first fight so many people claimed “The UFC screwed Henderson.” That said there are few fights where most people thought he should win and the judges said he lost. My pick though is Machida. Why I don't think he's elite anymore I think Henderson is older slower and much more limited.

Rose Namajunas 4-2 MMA 2-1 UFC vs. Tecia Torres 7-0 MMA 3-0 UFC- The straweight division is still truly forming. So really it feels like every fighter is just one win away from a title shot. We have a title fight during the summer and you feel like the winner here can claim to be the next in line. These two met once before it was July 2013 back at Invicta 6. They were the opening fight on main card for a major show. Both were 2-0 going in. It was a hell of a fight as both women went for it. We saw tons of flurries both tried to break out different moves. In the end Torres won a decision but it was a very close fight and Namajunas had her moments and you could argue she should have won if you look at it again. Shortly after that the UFC started the 115 lbs division signed both fighters and put them on TUF.

If you look back at that show Torres was ranked 3^rd going in she was one of the favorites. While Namajunas was middle of the pack at 7^th. Torres was upset early on but allowed to return when another fighter got hurt she than won a fight before losing to Carla Esparza in the semi finals. Official though those fights don't count on her record. Meanwhile Namajunas kind of stole the show she went 3-0 on the show won all three fights via submission including the than undefeated Joanne Calderwood. She also beat Rando Markos the girl that beat Torress in the opening round. Now she did lose at the finals but it shows that maybe she surpassed Torres in that time.

Both women last fought in December. Namajunas fought on the 10^th on a Fight Pass card she main evented. That was a huge weekend it was UFC 194 part of a triple header weekend. She faced off with Paige VanZant. Going into the fight both were seen as young fighters that have already shown so much potential and are only getting better. The real difference was Thug Rose is a much better technical fighter. PVZ was clearly trying to out muscle her but Rose was smart. She kept her pace worked her game plan and really dominated the fight. She picked her apart on the feet took her down over and over again. She never seemed to get upset when the finish didn't come early. Instead she was just pressing finally fifth round she got a rear naked choke and earned a submission win. Torres fought two days later on the UFC 194 prelims. She beat Jocely Jones-Lybarger via decision. Originally she was going to face Michelle Waterson a former Invicta Champion. An injury changed that. So the fight went to being one of those that she needed to win to make in impression. Torres keeps winning but you get this strange feeling like she really hasn't had a chance to show just how good she is in the UFC cage yet.

On the feet expect a lot of flurries. Both fighters are extremely active. They throw a lot of strikes. Toress is called the Tiny Tornado she comes forward and will blitz its the kind of action that never give her opponent a chance to attack because they are defending. Namajunas is similar she throws a lot of strikes. I do think there is more of a use striking to set up a takedown with Namajunas. Odds are we won't see a knockout as neither woman has one in there pro career. Namajunas does have two in Amateurism MMA career. But I can't put to much stock in that given how big mismatches can be on that stage. This could be interesting because both fighters have backgrounds in traditional martial arts. Both have blackbelts in Karate in Taekwondo. I want to give a slight edge to Namajunas based on the fact she is taller and will have reach.

In the grappling game I see a real advantage for Namajunas all four of her pro wins come via submission. While she did lose via submission to Esparza I don't think Torres has the strong wrestling that Carla did. Now Torres has never won via submission but she doesn't really go for them by what I've seen. If this goes to the ground I think Namajunas can tap her out epically if she winds up in a good position on the ground.

Again the first fight was very close. Namajunas seems to be more aggressive but Torres is that fighter that knows how to win decisions. I am going to pick Namajunas based on how close the first fight was and my feeling she has improved more since that first fight.