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With UFC 95 upcoming at the O2 Arena in London, England, we can now look forward to what proves to be a very interesting main event. Making his debut at 155 pounds will be Diego Sanchez against a very tough opponent in Joe Stevenson. But that’s not the only intriguing fight on a good card, which we get to see for free on Rogers Sportsnet.
The main event sets up very nicely, with the very exciting Stevenson taking on the seemingly re-vitalized Sanchez. For Stevenson (34-9-0), he is in the closest to a “must win” fight he’s ever been in. He’s lost 2 of his last 3 fights, including a very one sided loss to Kenny Florian back at UFC 91. Florian was able to take him down and eventually lock in a rear naked choke for the win at 4:03 of the first round.
When I talked to Stevenson last week, he had clearly taken steps to work on his wrestling. The main things I got from the conversation was that Stevenson was ready, and that Diego is going to be in tough for his first fight at 155 pounds. I talked to Stevenson in the grocery store, while he was beside one of his training partners…Kevin Randleman. Because Stevenson was taken down too often in his last fight, Randleman (one of the best wrestlers in MMA history) has been helping him improve that part of his game. We know Stevenson is going to be pushing forward regardless, but against Diego, it might be even more successful.
In looking at Sanchez after Friday’s weigh-in, it was a tough cut to 155 for Nightmare (21-2-0). The problem I’m afraid he’ll face is wearing down as the 2nd and 3rd round goes on, and Stevenson is a fast paced fighter on any given night. Stevenson looks fit and focused for this fight, and what I’m hoping is that the weight cut is not a detrimental factor to Sanzhez, because a fight with both guys at 100% should be really, really good.
Sanchez comes off a very impressive win over Luigi Fioravanti in June of 2008. What impressed me about that fight was how well Sanchez was able to push forward throughout, and really wear Fioravanti down because of it. Make no mistake, Sanchez is still a great wrestler and may be able to gain some success early in taking Stevenson down. Diego has come eons in terms of his striking, so I really think a fight that stays standing could be exciting as well.
Also on the card will be Josh Koscheck, who apparently wants to fight on every UFC card possible. He’ll take on undefeated Paulo Thiago in what could end up being a very interesting matchup. Watch Demian Maia in his fight with Chael Sonnen…a win by Maia and he starts to really elevate himself into the upper ranks of the UFC’s middleweight division. And the middleweight bout between Nate Marquardt and Wilson Gouveia has the makings of an exciting fight as well. If Nate can withstand the early onslaught, I think he’ll have some success taking Wilson down and using his superior grappling.
How do you see the main event playing out? It’s sure to end on the ground because both Sanchez & Stevenson have such weak striking. Who do you think is the stronger grappler of the 2? Sure enough though this match will be a treat for any grappling fan. I’m concerned over Sanchez cutting down to 155. He’s said numerous times throughout the lead up to this match that this cutting has been hard. I’m scared he’ll be get gassed. Your take?
Now let’s talk about my 2nd man-crush. Nate the Great! How good is this fight going to be?! WOW! I think Gouveia is coming into this one a little too cocky. I see Nate’s stamina as the edge in this one. The winner of this one should get a shot at Anderson.
Maia v. Sonnen is gonna be awesome! Sonnen’s dangerous, but Maia is just too good on the ground. I see Maia winning by submission in the 3rd round. This may be the win that garners him a bit more respect and people will start seeing him as an elite threat. I don’t think Sonnen gets a lot of props for his game, do you think Maia can to take this to the ground or do you think Sonnen’s superior wrestling will enable him to keep it standing?
PS: I don’t know if I completely agree that both guys are weak strikers. I think Stevenson has come a long way in that facet, and Diego Sanchez completely picked his last opponent apart on his feet. So I think both guys are actually coming into their own in that respect. I agree that there is the real possibility Sanchez is going to gas as this fight continues, which is why it’s going to be huge for him to score some takedowns early and try and finish the fight when he has the opportunity. If we’re going to round 3, I think advantage will be Stevenson.
You’re bang on when it comes to stamina being a key in the the Nate-Wilson fight, because Gouveia LOVES to blow his wad early on in fights and then he’s ripe for the picking. Marquardt had great stamina, incredible BJJ and is fairly underrated standing. So I agree, I think we see a Marquardt decision victory here.
As for who gets the next shot at Anderson, I don’t know…if Maia wins his fight against Sonnen, I think he’s gotta be in the conversation somewhere. What I’d LOVE to see is a Marquardt win and Maia win and have them face eachother for the right to take on Silva. Anderson’s next opponent is already set (ugh, Leites), so I’m hoping both Nate and Demian look good so they can have a legit shot at maybe challenging for the title.
- TyHey Pat wondering what your thoughts are on the June UFC card announced for Cologne, Germany; specifically, the Rich Franklin/Wanderlei Silva Fight. Pretty interesting contrast of styles i think; Franklin more cool and controlled, Silva the wildman.
PS: What’s really interesting is the fact that they are fighting at a catchweight, 195 pounds. I really like that because it means both guys are fighting MUCH closer to their natural weight. Franklin had trouble with Anderson Silva’s really aggressive style, yet he was able to dismantle anyone else in the division. I believe he’ll be able to stand in there with Wand, but Silva scares me. So I think Wanderlei wins the fight.
- Blaine