UFC 117 Silva Vs Sonnen
Main Event: Anderson Silva vs Chael Sonnen for Middleweight Championship
It seems easy for us to believe that Silva will dance around Sonnen for three and a half rounds after his recent performances. However with the amount of trash talk Chael has directed not only at Silva but the whole Black House camp coupled with Silva's brutal history of crushing non-brazillian opponents spells an early night for Sonnen...Did I forget to mention how Anderson may be the greatest striker in MMA history? Well he still is and he's more than a small threat to Chael on the ground should it get there. Sonnen has multiple submission losses and Silva trains with one of the all time great jiu jitsu practioners in Rodrigo Nogueria and has his black belt under his teaching as well. Silva's already amazing skill set will be too much for Sonnen and hopefully we get to see yet another highlight reel finish from Silva.
Prediction: Anderson Silva TKO Round 2
Co-Main Event: Jon Fitch vs Thiago Alves
Finally fans have been screaming for this rematch since Alves was handed a five round beatdown by welterweight champion Georges St Pierre at UFC 100 over a year ago. However a pre fight CT scan showed spots on Alves brain and the rematch was called off while Alves recovered. Since his loss the St Pierre Fitch has picked up where he left off with four straight wins over Akihiro Gono,Paulo Thiago,Mike Pierce,and most recently Ben Saunders. However in that span Fitch didn't finish any of his opponents and almost seemed content to grind out unanimous descison. This fight presents a very unique match-up a very good wrestler and ground control master in Fitch and then an explosive dangerous striker in Alves. If Alves can keep this standing he has a very good chance of dropping Fitch and finishing this fight. However last time Thiago faced a dominant wrestler he ended up on his back for five rounds courtesy of GSP. Also Thiago Alves hasn't fought in over a year thats a long lay off and ring rust will more than likely be a hinderance to him. Fitch always comes prepared and if Alves isn't prepared he's going to have Fitch pounding on him for three rounds on the ground
Prediction: Fitch via Split Descison
Clay Guida vs Rafael Dos Anjos
Once again we get to see fan favorite Clay Guida back in the octagon this time against Dos Anjos. Now we all know Guida is a dynamo never stopping and pushing the pace for every single round he's in. Now both men are coming of submission wins in their last fights Guida with a sub over Shannon Gurgerty and Dos Anjos over highly touted brit Terry Etim. Now Guida is a very good wrestler but taking down Dos Anjos could be a bad idea as Dos Anjos is much better on the ground than Guida who has been choked out in fights against Kenny Florian and Roger Huerta. Dos Anjos is on a three fight win streak after losing his previous two fights his striking is good enough to match Guida's but his advantage is on the ground should it hit the mat Dos Anjos needs to use his grappling advantage to its fullest and put the pressure on Guida.
Prediction: Dos Anjos Round 3 Submission
Matt Hughes vs Ricardo Almeida
I personally can't wait for this fight be it my dislike for Hughes but Almeida is going to show that Hughes is on his way out of top contendership. Everyone knows what Hughes brings to the table good wrestling,solid ground skills,and decent stand up. However his last two fights have shown me no reason to believe that he can beat a hungry contender like Almeida. Has he won his last two fights? yes however beating up on Renzo Gracie who hadn't had an MMA fight in over three years proves nothing and he took a descision against Matt Serra in a fight where he was dropped early and then just laid on the smaller man for two rounds. Before that he was submitted against GSP and KO'd brutally against Thiago Alves. This will be Almeidas second fight at welterweight and he comes in riding a three fight win streak. Almeida has a very good ground game as we saw in his submission win over a tough Matt Brown plus his stand up skills are decent as well not special but enough to where he can most likely outstrike Hughes. This isnt an easy match up for Almeida but i think he will put a hurting on Hughes over the course of the fight
Prediction: Almeida via Unanimous Descison
Roy Nelson vs Junior Dos Santos
This match comes down to whether Nelson's skills are as well rounded as his gut. He's had two very impressive wins inside the octagon however neither of those men are even close to Dos Santos in terms of skill. Since he began in the UFC Dos Santos has been on an absolute tear eithing ko'ing or tko'ing everyone hes faced and that list includes Fabricio Werdum,Stefan Struve,Mirko Cro Cop,Gilbert Yvel and Gabriel Gonzaga. So should Cigano defeat Nelson he is basically next in like for a heavyweight title shot. Now Nelson has a very good ground game(he submitted Frank Mir in a grappling match a few years back)and we dont exactly know how good Dos Santo's ground game is however with him training at the famous Blackhouse Gym one can only assume its above par. Now on the feet its a different story, Nelson who has a decent stand up game is no slouch however Dos Santos is an absolute beast on his feet as evidenced by his wins in the UFC.
Prediction: Dos Santos via TKO Round 2
Thats it for my main card predictions for UFC 117 any feedback is always welcome
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