UFC PPV

Georges St. Pierre vs. Matt Hughes

Georges St. Pierre via Submission (Armbar) (Rd. 2)

Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva

Chuck Liddell via Unanimous Decision

Eddie Sanchez vs. Soa Palalei

Eddie Sanchez via TKO (Rd 3)

Lyoto Machida vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou

Lyoto Machida via Submission (Arm Triangle) (Rd 2)

Rich Clementi vs. Melvin Guillard

Rich Clementi via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) (Rd 1)

James Irvin vs. Luis Cane

James Irvin via Disqualification (Illegal Knee)

Manny Gamburyan vs. Nate Mohr

Manny Gamburyan via Submission (Heel Hook) (Rd. 1)

Dean Lister vs. Jordan Radev

Dean Lister via Unanimous Decision

Roan Carneiro vs. Tony DeSouza

Roan Carneiro via TKO in (Rd. 2)

Mark Bocek vs. Doug Evans

Mark Bocek via Unanimous Decision

Soa Palelei Vs. Eddie Sanchez

Soa is a relatively unknown fighter. This will be his first fight in the UFC, but he does have a couple of quality wins.

You remember Eddie Sanchez for giving Mirko his only win in the UFC, right?  Eddie hasn’t done badly so far, though, with two wins in the UFC.

Prediction: Soa Palelei via TKO Rd. 2

Rich Clementi Vs. Melvin Guillard

I have no faith in either of these fighters. Melvin is wasting his talent, while Rich is just a mediocre fighter. Melvin *SHOULD* win this one, but he’s been known to start to crumble when he meets adversity.

Prediction: Melvin Guillard via TKO Rd. 1

Lyoto Machida Vs. Rameau Sokoudjou

Soko is riding the upset high, but I think that it comes to a stop here. Lyoto is just too illusive, too cunning, and just too cautious for Soko to make any headway. Lyoto will find a way to prolong the fight, and escape with a decision.

Prediction: Lyoto Machida via Decision Rd. 3

Chuck Liddell Vs. Wanderlei Silva

The big fight! In my personal opinion, Chuck is done. Yes, I realize styles make fights, but Chuck is getting older by the minute and a loss here might seal his career. Wanderlei hooked up with the right camp, and he looks to be in great shape. The only thing that makes me hesitant is the fact that he’s taken so many shots to the head that he still might be reeling. Hopefully this fight is as entertaining as it has been billed to be.

Prediction: Wanderlei Silva via TKO Rd. 2

Matt Hughes Vs. Georges St-Pierre

GSP *SHOULD* win this fight. He dominated Hughes before, but we’ve been hearing about how Hughes hasn’t been training like he was supposed to previously, and now he is better than ever. I don’t buy this. What I think will happen is, GSP will “surprise” everyone by taking Hughes down and pounding on him for 5 rounds. I think the only way Hughes can win is by submission or punch to the back of the skull. GSP should be able to take Hughes down and control him, and pick him apart on his feet.

Prediction: Georges St-Pierre via TKO Rd. 4

Getting closer and closer to this PPV, here’s the finished fight card.

• Matt Hughes Vs. Georges St-Pierre * For the Interim Welterweight Belt (5 Rd. Fight)
• Chuck Liddell Vs. Wanderlei Silva
• Lyoto Machida Vs. Rameau Sokoudjou * Soko’s UFC Debut!
• Rich Clementi Vs. Melvin Guillard * Grudge Match
• Sao Palelei Vs. Eddie Sanchez

May Not Be Shown

• Luis Cane Vs. James Irvin
• Nate Mohr Vs. Manny Gamburyan
• Jordan Radev Vs. Dean Lister
• Roan Carneiro Vs. Tony DeSouza
• Mark Bocek Vs. Doug Evans

UFC 80: Rapid Fire featuring BJ Penn vs. Joe Stevenson for the Interim Lightweight Belt, will be adding the following fights:

• Wilson Gouveia vs. Jason Lambert
• James Lee Vs. Alessio Sakara
• Per Eklund Vs. Sam Stout

- Source

Other fights include:

• BJ Penn Vs. Joe Stevenson
• Paul Kelly Vs. Paul Taylor
• Gabriel Gonzaga Vs. Fabricio Werdum

UFC 80: Rapid Fire will take place in Metro Radio Arena, England, tickets are still available.

Spencer Fisher is a wrestler?

He must have forgotten this on the way to the octagon. Fisher isn’t getting any younger, and if he doesn’t stop sputtering he’s going to find himself in the WEC.

How about that Frankie Edgar?

Dominated a “contender” and should probably take on the winner of Huerta vs. Guida.

Taking fights on short notice isn’t a good idea

If a triangle had been applied ten seconds earlier the opposite would be stated. Herman escaped by luck, and ended up knocking Doerksen the fuck out. Doerksen looked like death coming out in the third, that extra week would have paid off.

The fight that wasn’t

Disappointing performance by Chonan. Just another guy to flail in the bowels of the Welterweight division.

What’s there to say about Karo? The guy just can’t finish a fight. He needs to find a camp that is going to teach him the art of ground and pound. It’s going to be nearly impossible to get a belt without being able to seal the deal.

Don’t forget what got you here

Houston Alexander all of a sudden became a typical stand up fighter. His aggressive, balls to the wall fight style won him fights. Now he decided to change his style, and look where it got him. It got him his head pounded on.

Pass on the dessert and get on the treadmill

Well, it was as dull as everyone thought it would be. Plus, Rashad almost managed to let an easy win slip away. Rashad needs to switch camps and get with a team that will focus him on cardio, because this isn’t the first time we’ve experienced an exhausted Rashad.

Bisping has no answer for a decent wrestler and where is his jiu-jitsu off his back? Bisping just got out-muscled and he should cut to middleweight and let Rich Franklin beat on him.

All and all probably the most boring event I’ve ever witnessed. The lackluster crowd didn’t help. I’d have rather listened to booing idiots then NOTHING. If the fighters didn’t walk through the crowd I wouldn’t have known anyone was there. The UFC should do what most people do. Stay out of Jersey.

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Akihiro Gono Vs. Tamdan McCrory

Gono is another one of those crazy guys from PRIDE. He is very experienced though, and has fought some stiff competition. I was not impressed by his striking however, and his ground game is about average. He is able to absorb an incredible amount of punishment (Shogun gave him a beating for 9 straight minutes). Tamdan looks pretty solid, he’s finished every fight of his but one by TKO. I went with experience last time, this time I’ll go with raw talent.

Tamdan Highlight:

Prediction: Tamdan McCrory via Decision (Rd. 3) – UPSET

Luke Caudillo Vs. Marcus Aurelio

Marcus Aurelio took out Gomi, and took Clay Guida to a split decision loss, and has never been stopped in his career. Luke Caudillo is 13 and 8 and probably only in the UFC to give Marcus a victory. Aurelio is the future star, and Caudillo is probably going nowhere.

Prediction: Marcus Aurelio via Submission (Rd. 1)

Jason Reinhardt Vs. Joe Lauzon

Joe is the ultra aggressive fighter that rained on Jens Pulver’s comeback, and also made it relatively far in The Ultimate Fighter. Reinhardt is coming in with an impressive 18 and 0 record. The fact that I’ve never heard of any of the people he’s beaten leads me to believe that they weren’t spectacular opponents. I just don’t see Joe losing, he’s too good of a fighter, and has too many tools. This fight could be the sleeper of the night.

Prediction: Joe Lauzon via TKO (Rd. 2)

Chris Lytle Vs. Thiago Alves

Thiago Alves is a scary fighter, but has lost twice via submission. Lytle has a surprisingly impressive amount of victories by submission and I wouldn’t be surprised if Lytle was able to tie Thiago in a knot. Thiago was able to beat a BJJ guy in Tony DeSouza however. It’s a tough fight to call, but because of Chris Lytle’s ability to play it safe, I think I’ll go with him.

Prediction: Chris Lytle via Submission (Rd. 3) – UPSET

Frank Edgar Vs. Spencer Fisher

This fight should be great. Frank Edgar is undefeated in his career and has an impressive win over Tyson Griffin under his belt. Spencer Fisher has a ton of experience with only 3 losses. Spencer showed impressive boxing skills in his last fight with Sam Stout, however, I just don’t think it’s going to stay on the feet for very long. Edgar should be able to take Fisher down and pound on him for three rounds, he just has to be wary of a quick submission.

Prediction: Frank Edgar via Decision (Rd. 3)

Ryo Chonan Vs. Karo Parisyan

Another great fight. Ryo of course has his victory over Anderson Silva, and he’s on a 2 win streak. Karo is coming off of a win over a game opponent in Josh Burkman. Karo has been nipping at the heels of a title shot, but just hasn’t seemed to been able to get over the hump. Ryo is a very dangerous fighter, but I just don’t know if he’ll be able to handle Karo. Ryo has been KO’d by people with heavy hands (Dan Henderson, Phil Baroni), I think Karo might be able to finish this fight.

Prediction: Karo Parisyan via KO/TKO (Rd. 2)

Joe Doerksen Vs. Ed Herman

These two have fought before, with Doerksen submitting Herman via Triangle Choke. Doerksen has a ton of fights under his belt, and is capable of beating you anywhere the fight goes. Ed is coming off two wins and is looking to avenge his loss. Both fighters are vulnerable to submissions, but I think that because Doerksen has beaten Ed before, that will give him more confidence to shoot for more aggressive subs. Herman will get caught by something eventually, he just hasn’t been overly impressive.

Prediction: Joe Doerksen via Submission (Rd. 2) – UPSET

Thiago Silva Vs. Houston Alexander

Houston Alexander is everyones new favorite fighter. He’s aggressive, strong, and exciting, but the problem with that is, Thiago has fought someone who pressed the pace just like him and was able to win. I think if you watch Thiago’s last fight, you’ll realize that he’ll be able to get through Houston’s initial onslaught and tire him out, leaving him vulnerable for strikes and subs. I think Thiago will be able to turn the tables on Houston and lay a beating on him.

Prediction: Thiago Silva via TKO (Rd. 1) – UPSET

Michael Bisping Vs. Rashad Evans

Is this the worst main event in recent memory? Yes. Is the winner of this fight going to be a top 5 Light Heavyweight like Dana has said? No.

While they have tried to hype this match up by bickering back and forth via blogs, they haven’t sparked any interest in me. I’ve been waiting for Bisping to finally go against someone who is going to be able to rock him and finish the job. I believe that someone is Rashad Evans. This is HIS fight to win, and if he loses, he’ll be blaming no one but himself. He should be able to out wrestle, out power, and out maneuver Bisping. The main worry is that when the spotlight was on Rashad when he fought Tito, he wilted like a leaf. If he’s able to do what he did against Jason Lambert, he should be able to win this damn fight and finally shut Bisping up.

Prediction: Rashad Evans via Decision (Rd. 3)

Televised Card

Michael Bisping Vs. Rashad Evans
Thiago Silva Vs. Houston Alexander
Joe Doerksen Vs. Ed Herman
Ryo Chonan Vs. Karo Parisyan
Frank Edgar Vs. Spencer Fisher

Undercard

Chris Lytle Vs. Thiago Alves
Jason Reinhardt Vs. Joe Lauzon
Luke Caudillo Vs. Marcus Aurelio
Akihiro Gono Vs. Tamdan McCrory

A quick breakdown of the Televised Card

Frank Edgar Vs. Spencer Fisher

It has the makings of the fight of the night. That could be said about a few of the fights on this card that aren’t the main event. Spencer is coming off of an impressive victory against Sam Stout. While Edgar is coming off of two victories in the UFC. One victory over a star in the making named Tyson Griffin.

Ryo Chonan Vs. Karo Parisyan

Ryo is coming in with a two fight win streak, and a notable past victory over Anderson Silva (expect this to be mentioned a thousand times). Karo is also coming off of two wins, and when Karo is fighting, you know it will be exciting (Rhyme time).

Joe Doerksen Vs. Ed Herman

Doerksen is subbing for the always injured David Terrell, and is coming off of a loss. He is hugely experienced though, racking up at least 39 wins in his career (source). Short fuse is on a two fight win streak, and looking to take it to the more experienced fighter. This also could be a potentially exciting fight.

Thiago Silva Vs. Houston Alexander

Another striker is being put in front of Houston Alexander. It seems like the UFC wants to ride this wave of brutality. Thiago Silva is undefeated, and has two wins in the UFC (one by injury). In Thiago’s fight with Thomas Drwal, Thomas came out hugely aggressive, much like Houston will. Thiago was able to weather the storm and win the fight. Thiago also shot on Thomas multiple times, so this fight might end up on the ground. Houston is a powerhouse, but his cardio and ground game are both questionable. If he spent his time on the treadmill instead of in the weight room, he could be able to put a loss on Thiago’s resume.

Michael Bisping Vs. Rashad Evans

Both are coming off of controversial fights. Bisping “won” his fight, and Rashad got lucky that Tito is a moron and got a draw. Bisping has been fighting in the 205 division on borrowed time, he gets rocked in every fight, and is nearly put out of his misery. He just hasn’t fought quality opponents in the division yet. Rashad has shown flashes of greatness, his win over Jason Lambert was hugely impressive. If Rashad trained like he should have, this fight should be an easy victory for him. But if he took him lightly, Bisping might find himself in the victory column once again.