Brian Stann vs Chael Sonnen UFC 136-This match up isn'tmy favorite because I like both fighters and I think its a horrible fight for Brian Stann who has shown his biggest weakness is his wrestling. Thats a problem when fighting an elite Olympic alternate greco roman wrestler like Chael Sonnen. The only way to beat Chael is to be an elite and I do mean elite blackbelt in jiu jitsu the only people who have beaten him in the last three years are Paulo Filho (who he rematched and beat), Demian Maia, and Anderson Silva. All of whom are great black belts, Stann however is has only won one fightby submission and has no formal belt in jiu jitsu. This match will go down exactly like this if Sonnen is to win, bell rings some light striking and bam! takedown by Sonnen, Stann won't get up and will get ground out for an easy victory. Now if im seriously underestimating Stann then his win will go something like this, he will get taken down but scramble back to his feet pretty quickly. This wil force Sonnen to stand for longer portions of the round than he isused to and gives Stann a chance lands some bombs rocking Sonnen maybe scoring a knock down or two. This plus some good sprawls and maybe a dazed looking sonnen will gain him some points making it just enough to win by split decision because I don't think he can finish Chael even standing. Sonnen directly verified to me that this matchup is in fact taking place!
Carlos Condit vs. BJ Penn UFC 137- Like the last matchup I love both of these fighters. Bj Penn has been in my top 3 favorite fighters since I started watching MMA. Carlos Condit on the other hand never ceases to impress me with what I think is the most impressive record in MMA with 27 wins and 26 finishes. So once again I don't want either fighter to lose. Penn and Condit are finishers and in turn are very hard to finish they possess some great standup and jiu jitsu. This fight could make me eat some crow for picking Cruz vs. Faber 2 to be fight of the year because this fight will be a war! Both fighters are very similar in style and they both fight very aggressively and always look for the finish. I give a size advantage to Condit for sure, standing at 6'2 with a 76inch reach his reach and height advantage are the biggest Penn has ever faced. I give a boxing advantage to Penn his hands are definitely faster and I believe he can knock anyone he connects with out in his weight class. Condit is no slouch in the striking department though and with his reach, power, and versatility he could very well test Penn's chin if he's not careful. Grappling I give the advantage to Penn he's an amazing black belt and while Condit has 13 submission victories he's only a purple belt so I don't see him submitting Penn while I believe Penn can submit Condit. Previously I thought the only way you could beat Penn was to be a great points fighter and grind him out, I believed that anyone who actually stood in front of Penn and fought for the finish would surely lose. This fight makes me re think that based on the simple fact that it's Carlos Condit. This guy really lives up to his nickname "The Natural Born Killer"and seems to do anything to win. He's also on his way up the ladder where as it is unsure where exactly Penn stands as of late. This fight will determine that and whoever wins for sure deserves a title shot . Im not even going to pick a winner till this fight gets closerto fruition but I can't wait to see it.
Josh Koscheck vs. Middleweight UFC 138- This will be very interesting and I have a feeling that if Koschecks debut in this weight class goes well this will be his new home. He has a lot of potential here and matches up with various top contenders nicely. My pick here with Sonnen and Stann seemingly tied to each other would be a rematch with Leben. This would be a great grudge match with all the drama that went on between the two fighters on season 1 of The Ultimate Fighter. The trash talking and storyline of both these fighters would make it a very hyped up fight. On top of that both fighters have improved since then making it different form the striker vs. grappler fight that was originally. I would love to see Leben avenge this loss and knockout Koscheck and though I think Leben would put up a good fight I don't see him winning. Koscheck is the most evolved of the two fighters and I think Koscheck would win every round. A more competitive albeit less interesting as far as hype goes would be Koscheck vs. Munoz. Both fighters have good power and speed in both hands along with some excellent wrestling. I give it to the natural middleweight Munoz to knockout Koscheck and send him packing to 170 but it really is either fighters match to win as they possess a similar skill set both at a high caliber. If Koscheck can beat a top contender like Munoz he could make a home in middleweight for while and try his hand to see how he does. He would be slightly smaller but with a few extra pounds of muscle I don't see it being a problem. The only question is are his skills up to par with some of the elite middleweights ... only time will tell.
Well those are the most promising fights on the rumor mill in my opinion and I think they have some great potential what do you guys think? What other match ups peak your interest and whats your view on the match ups gone over here?
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