Almost 20 years ago, in 1993 at the Micnicholls Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado, something incredible happened. In a caged single elimination tournament, a 150 pound Brazilian in a Gi showed that ground skills were just as tactical, if not more useful than a punch. An incredible new era was born, and in the coming years the sport would be known as Mixed Martial Arts. On Saturday night, after almost 16 years away, the UFC finally returns to where it all began.
Granted, Zuffa didn't own the UFC back then and Sepamore Entertainment Group, the company that did, would hold regular cards in the Colorado capital back then, with its last coming in 1995. In 2011, a 6'4" freak athlete now owns the sport known as MMA, having become world champion in only his 13th fight. A grizzled veteran stands between him and his continued dominance, and we'll find out whether or not another grizzled veteran is going out to prove he's not done, or to prove he is and he's not coming back.
Onto my picks :
Jon "Bones" Jones vs. Quinton Jackson - The main event features that aforementioned freak athlete, Jon Jones, and that aforementioned grizzled veteran, Rampage Jackson. Jones is defending his title for the first time having beaten Brazilian Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in March, afterwards having to deal with both injury, and criticism from both Rashad Evans (whom he pulled out an originally planned main event at UFC 133 that ended up as Evans vs. Tito Ortiz) and Jackson, whom has labelled Jones a "fake" and "phony" and accused Jones of having a mole placed in his camp. Jackson is fighting since defeating Matt Hammil in Hammil's second to last fight at UFC 133.
If nothing else, Jackson can still talk a good fight. How he fights might be as Monty Python coined the phrase, "something completely different". I expect Jones to dominate this fight, using his athletic gifts to pepper Jackson from the outside, with him slowly moving in from the late 3rd to early 4th getting inside and taking Jackson down. From there, Bones might finish however he wishes.
The Pick : Jones by decision.
Matt Hughes vs. Josh Koscheck - the co-main event is a pairing between American wrestlers from the old generation and the new, with former UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes taking on Josh Koscheck. Hughes is making his UFC record tying 25th appearance in the Octagon (with Tito Ortiz), with his last fight being all of 21 seconds versus BJ Penn at UFC 123 last November. Koscheck, who is replacing injured Diego Sanchez on just 2 weeks notice, Koscheck himself coming back from injuring an orbital bone versus Georges St. Pierre last December for St. Pierre's Welterweight title.
I have no doubts this is the former UFC welterweight champ Hughes' last fight. Win or Lose, he will call it a career at the end of the day. Unfortunately, it won't be a Chris Lytle moment, as Koshcheck will finish this fight, and will finish it early.
The Pick : Koscheck by TKO.
Ben Rothwell vs. Mark Hunt - The fights first main card fight will feature a few big boys of the UFC's heavyweight division in Ben Rothwell and former PRIDE and K-1 vet Mark Hunt. Rothwell is fighting for the first time in over a year, having suffered a deviated septum in his fight against Dutchman Gilbert Yvel at UFC 115 in Vancouver in June 2010. As for Hunt, he recently did himself proud in front of family and friends at the UFC 127 prelims in Sydney, Australia this past February. This will be a slugfest, although at some point, expect the ground skills of Rothwell to come into play.
The Pick : Rothwell by decision.
The first preliminary on Spike will feature Canadian and TUF alum Nick Ring as he takes on Tim Boestch. Expect Boestch to advance on Ring early, and earn a unanimous decision win.
The Pick : Boestch by decision.
-In other news, Vitor Belfort has dropped out of a UFC 139 fight with former Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Cung Le, MMAjunkie reported on Tuesday. In his place comes former PRIDE champion Wanderlei Silva, whom Dana White says is in a "must win" situation in an article later posted on the Junkie website. Silva might be an all time favorite, but he's also lost 6 of his past 8. So, something's got to give.
-Stikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion (and free agent) Dan Henderson is no longer a free agent, having signed to return to the UFC. While the former PRIDE champion has expressed his desire to fight in both promotions, it seems to be only another piece of Strikeforce's proverbial Titanic sinking into the UFC's ocean. He will face Mauricio "Shogun" at UFC 139 on November 19th Junkie also reported.
-Alistair Overeem has dropped his longtime management team Golden Glory, various MMA sites have reported. I'm not an expert, and I know Bas Boon is telling me the truth, I can't help but think this stinks of Zuffa micromanaging. I mean, why would Overeem suddenly shun a team he's essentially fought for his whole career?
-And just for you guys, it seems even Sports Illustrated's Jeff Wagenheim is appreciative of MMArmaggedistism. He recently threw a shout out to yours truly on a recent e-mail article on reader feedback about Nick Diaz. check it out here http://sportsillustrated.asia/vault/article/web/COM1190510/2/index.htm
like him, if you've got Questions? Comments, you can give me a shout out on your site (which I'm assuming isn't as large as Sports Illustrated but I do appreciate it) or leave one at the bottom or email me at mmarmaggeddon@gmail.com you can also follow me on twitter at twitter.com/mmarmaggedon.
Until Next time, fight fans!
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