UFC 78 Validation Predictions

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)