UFC 118 promises to deliver a night of fights fans won't soon forget. We have a lightweight championship rematch,the long awaited boxing vs mma fight,a submission expert,a number one contenders fight and a brash cocky young fighter against a much older and experienced fighter. Needless to say its going to be an interesting night in Boston this saturday and without further ado i'll give my fight predictions.
Main Event Bj Penn vs Frankie Edgar for the Lightweight Championship
Oh man it seems like nowadays if you bitch and moan about a fight you can be granted an instant rematch. That's about all Bj Penn had to do to gain his rematch with Frankie Edgar,that's right he didn't have to go through another fight or anything he just cried about losing a fight he was expected to dominate and win. But enough about that at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi Frankie Edgar shocked alot of people with his Unanimous Descision victory over long time lightweight king Bj Penn. Edgar used his quickness to circle around Penn and pelt him with quick combos and then hop back out of range much like Lyoto Machida does. Many people felt the fight could have gone either way but it was two takedowns on Penn that may have secured the fight for Edgar. This time around the fight isn't going to be any easier for Edgar as Penn usually rebounds strongly after a loss. After his loss to Georges St Pierre at UFC 94, Penn went on to choke out Kenny Florian and then beat down Diego Sanchez for 5 rounds before the doctors halted the fight. Now in this fight Edgar has to work his same game plan and push the pace and Bj's suspect cardio to the limit. If Edgar can do that he'll retain his belt that however is easier said than done. I see Penn coming out in the first round hard and aggressive much like he did against Sanchez and if Edgar isnt prepared he'll be eating Bj's fist for 2-3 rounds before this fight ends. I see Bj taking this fight somewhere in the third round the minute he smells blood its good night for anyone he faces
Winner: Bj Penn via Rear Naked Choke Round 3
Co-Main Event Randy Couture Vs James Toney
Oh man there's alot to be said about this long awaited MMA vs Boxing fight here. But thats a topic for another day but to keep it short this fight will show why boxing is slowly but surely dying out and why MMA is the future of combat sports. James Toney was once the top of the heap in boxing with big power and technique to compliment it as well however over the past few years he's fallen by the wayside within his own sport and has been surpassed by the young guns so to speak. Randy Couture was once also at the top of the food chain(in two division no less)but unlike Toney he's still plugging away and beating up his opponents in the same way he did ten years ago. And this fight will be no different Couture is gonna push Toney up against the fence work some dirty boxing before dropping the boxer flat on his ass. From there Toney will make his fatal error he'll give Couture his back and a vet like Randy will make sure to use this chance to choke out Toney early in the first round. And yes i know Toney has great boxing but it's hard to box when you're being pushed into the cage and kneed repeatedly. Long story short Couture is going to make Toney look silly and hopefully we'll get to see him spank Toney much like he did Tito Ortiz in that fight.
Winner: Randy Couture Via Rear Naked Choke Round 1
Lightweight Matchup:Kenny Florian vs Gray Maynard
This fight kind of amounts to the winner possibly be the next title contender. Florian is just as dangerous as he's always been with razor sharp elbows, crisp boxing, and a very good ground game as well. Maynard brings a very tough grinding wrestling game plan with him and a very elementary stand up as evidenced by his fight with Nate Diaz. However Maynard is one tough SOB and isn't gonna go away quietly in this fight and Florian needs to be prepared for that. In Florians last fight he choked out former Pride star Taknori Gomi and before that he choked out fan favorite Clay Guida. Maynard is coming off a win against Nate Diaz and is still undefeated in the UFC. However i don't think Maynard will be able to take this due to the fact his stand up is far behind Florians and even if he takes Florian down he's gotta be careful about being submitted as well. I think Florian will win the fight but he won't finish a very tough Maynard.
Winner Kenny Florian via Unanimous Descision
Welterweight Matchup: Nate Diaz vs Marcus Davis
Nate Diaz's move up to welterweight has been going well so far with an impressive TKO victory over Rory Markham at UFC 111 however this Saturday he faces tough grizzled vetran Marcus Davis. Davis is coming off a KO win over Jonathan Goulet at UFC 113 and always comes prepared for a slugfest. I think Diaz will have a hard time winning this fight as Davis has too much fight experience for the younger fighter. Not to mention Diaz has a slightly suspect chin and Davis has the ability and power to expose that in their fight. Diaz does posses very good boxing but he lacks a real one punch KO ability whereas Davis is known for it. This fight will show people why Davis is nicknamed the "Irish Hand Grenade" and it will possibly send Diaz back down to lightweight.
Winner: Marcus Davis Via Knockout Round 2
Middleweight Matchup: Demain Maia vs Mario Miranda
This is basically a filler fight for Maia as his proposed fight with Alan Belcher was cancelled due to Belcher sustaining a very serious injury. Miranda is coming off a TKO/KO win over former contender David Loiseau at UFC 115. And Maia is coming off the debacle that was his decision loss to middleweight champion Anderson Silva. However i feel that Miranda offers nothing to Maia and the minute this fight hits the ground it's all over for Miranda as Maia is one of the best jiu jitsu fighters in the sport of MMA today. Miranda is still a developing prospect though and took this fight to help fill a spot on this card left open be Alessio Sakara withdrawing from his fight due to personal reasons. However this fight won't last too long and Maia will be adding another submission win to his record.
Winner: Demain Maia Via Triangle Choke Round 1
That wraps up my main card preview and thoughts for UFC 118 this saturday following the fights i'll have a post ppv analysis like usual. Thanks for reading and tell people to check out my blog in the future thanks.
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