Rabey Recommends - July, 2012.
That FUCKING injury curse has messed up this blog more than once since i wrote it all up....Minotauro Noguiera, Thiago Silva, Shogun Rua, Thaigo Alves and Michael Bisping have all been hit by it, forcing me to re-write this sum' bitch about thee times now.Anyhow, here are the five fights you don't miss in the month of July !!
THE FIGHT: Anderson "The Spider" Silva vs. Chael "American Gangster" Sonnen II
THE EVENT: UFC 148
THE TIME AND PLACE: July 7th, 2012. Las Vegas, Nevada.
WHY YOU NEED TO SEE THIS FIGHT:
UFC title fight...Check.
Another chance to see the greatest MMA fighter in the history of the sport...Check.
The most anticipated rematch in UFC history...Check.
If you're not excited for this fight, you have no business watching this sport, period!
He may be 37 years old, but Anderson Silva (31-4) is still reigning over the 185lb division in impressive style. He may fight less often then he used to, but all that means is that each one of his fights becomes more of an event than the last. Nowadays, you'll be lucky if you get two fights a year from the Brazilian legend, but when he does enter the cage, he makes it count. The Spider is 14-0 in the UFC, and has finished 12 of those fights, many of them in ridiculous highlight reel fashion. Should he manage to defeat his nemesis, he would have won fifteen straight in the Octagon, defended his belt a record ten times, and overcome his greatest rival. Could there then be ANY debate about him being the greatest of all time ? Fedor Emelianenko may be sat in Russia wearing a Chael Sonnen T-shirt and praying for the upset.
Love him or hate him, 35 year old Chael Sonnen (27-11-1) will guarantee that you pay attention to him. The former WEC champion came closer to beating Anderson Silva than anyone else in UFC history, winning 23 minutes of there UFC 117 bout, before Silva threw up a hail mary triangle choke in the last two minutes, breaking the hearts of Sonnen fans everywhere. Sonnen smashed through Brian Stann and struggled past Michael Bisping to get his second shot at his Brazilian foe, and every MMA fan in the world will be watching to see if he can once again threaten the champion.
WINNER - Wow....how in the hell do you call this fight? Sonnen smashed Silva for most of the first fight, but the flipside is that Silva swore that he has busted ribs going in. Will a healthy Spider be able to stuff those takedowns? Will Sonnen's work with Vinny Magalhaes improve his BJJ enough to prevent any similar mistakes? Was Sonnen's struggle against Michael Bisping just a bad night in the cage? Can Silva's aging body stay strong enough to survive the onslaught of the decorated wrestler? I find it hard to believe Sonnen can capture lighting twice....I expect this to go the full five rounds, with Silva busting up the face of Sonnen and earning a close decision.
THE FIGHT: Gleison Tibau vs. Khabib "The Eagle" Nurmagomedov
THE EVENT: UFC 149
THE TIME AND PLACE: July 21st, 2012. Calgary, Canada.
WHY YOU NEED TO SEE THIS FIGHT:
I'll keep this one short but sweet, Addicts. In a month decimated by injuries, this unfancied lightweight bout interests me quite a bit. You have a fairly young veteran of the sport in Gleison Tibau, facing off with one of the best unbeaten prospects in the division in Khabib Nurmagomedov. It's a big fight for both men, and in my opinion, could be deserving of slightly more attention.
Despite having more than 30 fights to his name, and fighting for thirteen years, gigantic Brazilian lightweight Gleison Tibau is still only 28 years of age. The American Top Team standout has long been one of the biggest fighters at 155lbs, with rumours persisting that he drops around 30+ lbs to make the weight limit. Tibau is a veteran of the UFC as well, appearing fifteen times in the Octagon, amassing a 10-5 record. Despite flying largely under the radar, Tibau has notched impressive wins over Thiago Alves, Fabricio Camoes, Terry Etim, Jeremy Stephens and Caol Uno. The 28 year old is currently riding a three fight winning streak, and could well earn himself a big name fight if he can overcome his unbeaten opponent.
23 year old Khabib "The Eagle" Nurmagomedov is currently undefeated in his young career, rattling off 17 straight victories, including 13 finishes. Now, whilst pretty much all of those wins have come against unknown Russian opponents in tiny shows in Eastern Europe, it remains an impressive start for a career. "The Eagle" also showed that he can cope on the bigger stage, when he beat Kamal Shalorus via third round submission at his UFC debut back in January. Fighting Gleison Tibau is a huge step up for Nurmagomedov (Rogan should have fun getting that right), but i'm always intrigued by these young fighters on a hot streak.
WINNER - Hard fight to call, mainly because we still know little about Khabib Nurmagomedov other than the fact he's talented. Tibau will have a big size and experience advantage, not to mention he is riding a three fight win streak. I have to go with the Brazilian to defeat the Russian, and i'll take him to win it by submission. I wouldn't mind seeing Nurmagomedov continue his great streak, i just think this is too much, too soon.
THE FIGHT: Hector "Shango" Lombard vs. Tim "The Barbarian" Boetsch
THE EVENT: UFC 149
THE TIME AND PLACE: July 21st, 2012. Calgary, Canada.
WHY YOU NEED TO SEE THIS FIGHT:
Because this will finally answer a question that has been debated in MMA Forums for the last 2/3 years....Can former Bellator middleweight champion, Hector Lombard, continue his amazing 25 fight unbeaten streak and implement his vicious knockout style in the shark infested UFC middleweight division. The promotion aint wasting time in finding out either, as they are matching him up against a top ten ranked Barbarian who loves to bang. Expect fireworks!
It took longer than it should, but 34 year old Hector Lombard (31-2-1-1) is finally going to get the chance to face the best 185lb fighters in the sport. He's spent the last few years cleaning out veterans, cans and prospects, finishing most in some style, and forcing fans to salivate at the idea of him plying his trade for the big boys. Now he is here, fans are expecting big things, so Lombard will need to deliver. With a 25 fight unbeaten streak, a Bellator title, a CFC title, wins over James Te-Huna, Brian Ebersole, Trevor Prangley and Alexander Shlemenko, not to mention 24 finishes on his record....a big win against Tim Boetsch could see the Cuban getting a quick-fire title shot.
February 2nd, 2008, UFC 81...that was the day i took a liking to Tim Boetsch (15-4). It was the night that the now 31 year old made his UFC debut. During the fight, Boetsch grabbed David Heath, and simply threw him to the mat like he was a ragdoll. It wasn't your normal slam, suplex, throw or toss, it was more isnulting than that, it was a statement, it let Heath know exactly who was in control. Since then, Boetsch has left and returned to the UFC, made a drop to Middleweight, and looked alot better for it. He has won his last three straight, and recently shocked the world by absorbing a two round beating at the hands of Yushin Okami, before storming back in the third and knocking out the highly ranked Japanese star in front of a stunned Japanese crowd. The win served as notice that Boetsch can hang with the best at 185lbs, something he will need to show again against the hard hitting Cuban.
WINNER - First things first, do not expect much grappling, these guys like to stand and bang. Expect this to be two guys trading bombs, with both having enough power to end the bout with one punch. Now, i like both of these guys and i want them both to do well, but one of these guys is going down. My head tells me that Lombard will be the one to connect with the hammer blow first, some time late in the first.
THE FIGHT: Forrest Griffin vs. Tito "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" Ortiz III
THE EVENT: UFC 149
THE TIME AND PLACE: July 21st, 2012. Caglary, Canada.
WHY YOU NEED TO SEE THIS FIGHT:
I know there are plenty of fans out there who have looked at this fight, shrugged shoulders, and pretty much forgotten about it. Two fighters, long past thier prime, meeting for a third time, with a victory offering little more than bragging rights for the winner. My take on it....We have two former UFC champions, fighting to decide the winner of arguably the most closely contested trilogy in MMA history (the first two fights were both split decisions), in a fight that will see the legendary Tito Ortiz enter the Octagon for the last time ever. No, neither fighter will benefit greatly from the win, but it's a piece of history all the same.
There really isn't much i can tell you about Tito Ortiz that you don't already know. 37 years old, 16-10-1 record, 26 fights inside the UFC (still a record), former UFC light heavyweight champion who defended five times (still a record), some of the most memorable feuds in MMA history (Liddell, Evans, Shamrock, Dana White), former two time TUF coach, wins over Wanderlei Silva, Forrest Griffin, Guy Mezger, Vitor Belfort, Ryan Bader, and last but not least, it has been announced that prior to UFC 148, Ortiz will be inducted to the UFC Hall Of Fame....And there is nobody more deserving!
32 year old Forrest Griffin (18-7) almost seems more interested in winding down his career than Tito Ortiz does. Having lost three of his last five, being smashed by Shogun in his last fight, and dropping fast down the rankings. Griffin has shown little interest in making another run at the top, and has even mentioned retirement himself in interviews a few months back. That being said, once that cage door closes, Griffin switches to animal mode, and the laid back, weird character you see in interviews becomes a relentless, forward moving machine.
WINNER - Most people have Griffin winning this fight. Pointing to Ortiz's recent record (1-6-1), and the fact that Griffin has five years and less wear and tear on him. I'm gonna go against the grain though. Ortiz's recent record is filled with a murderers row of 205lb talent (Machida, Evans, Noguiera, Liddell), and he never once looked out of his depth against any of them. I think we see another close fought bout, with Ortiz getting the decision to see out his amazing career.
THE FIGHT: Urijah "California Kid" Faber vs. Renan Barao
THE EVENT: UFC 148
THE TIME AND PLACE: July 7th, 2012. Las Vegas, Nevada.
WHY YOU NEED TO SEE THIS FIGHT:
Because for the first time in more than 2 years, the UFC/Bantamweight title will sit around the waist of someone other than Dominick Cruz...if only for a while. After blowing his ACL, we were given this equally interesting 135lb match-up, and it pits one of the best fighters of all time against one of the hottest prospects to come down the pike in years....and whomever wins, Dominick Cruz will have a hell of a fight when he returns.
There are not actually that many "real" legends when you look at the lighter (135lb/145lb) weight classes. 33 year old Urijah Faber (26-5) is definitely one of them, probably the most notable to be honest. The man with a butt for a chin has faced a who's who of talent at both Featherweight and Bantamweight, and has posted great wins over Dominick Cruz, Charles Bennett, Ivan Menjivar, Cole Escovedo, Bibiano Fernandes, Jens Pulver and Brian Bowles. The California native has spent most of his career in title fights, and will be hoping to add to his already impressive reume with a win here.
Stop me if you have heard this before. A young and hungry Brazilian fighter smashes through everyone in his native country, heads to America to make a name for himself, continues to dominate, switches to the UFC, and starts blasting through the best in the division on the way to a title shot....Yeah, it's pretty much the same story as Jose Aldo, Junior dos Santos and now, Renan Barao. The 25 year old Barao is currently on a monster 28 fight unbeaten streak, and has taken out division stalwarts such as Scott Jorgensen and Brad Pickett along the way. This kid is extremely dangerous, and worse for Faber, he is hungry as well.
WINNER - Ever since seeing how lightning fast Renan Barao is in real life (at UFC 138 against Brad Pickett), i have been convinced, and telling anyone who will listen, that this guy is going to be a champion. I expected him to beat Dominick Cruz if and when they met, and i expect him to beat Faber at UFC 148. Faber is crazy tough, and cannot be ruled out. But i think Barao's young, hungry and aggressive style will be too much too handle. Barao by second round TKO.
Published by Lee Rabey - Tue, 26 Jun 2012 17:29
