-Randy Couture (#5 Heavyweight in the World)* vs. Gabriel Gonzaga (#6 Heavyweight in the World)*
This fight will come down to who can control the takedowns. Couture will probably look to use his striking to set up the clinch where his dominance is always present. The real question is how this fight will go if it goes into the later rounds, and judging by the way Randy’s last fight with Sylvia went it probably will. Couture could dominate early on the ground and if Gonzaga does not do some damage on the feet, Randy will slowly but surely wear down his energy for a late round TKO or decision, as he has so many great opponents. I see this fight being a changing of the guard, however, as Randy has had trouble with opponents that were bigger than him (other than Sylvia who has no takedown defense) and fighters with good submissions. Gonzaga not only has both these qualities, but also should be the superior striker on the feet. While Randy will likely get the early takedown, the question remains as to his abilities to fight off his back. I see Gonzaga submitting Randy later in the fight, probably from his half-guard where he has nasty leg locks or with a triangle choke, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he swept Randy and finished him with strikes while on top. Gonzaga by TKO Round 4 -Georges St. Pierre (#2 Welterweight in the World)* vs. Josh Koscheck (#4 Welterweight in the World)* Koscheck has been on an absolute tear lately and is developing into a complete mixed martial artist. His is leaps and bounds above his TUF days and is truly a top 5 UFC welterweight. I personally think Kos would have better luck against Hughes than GSP though. St. Pierre has stopped the takedowns of Hughes and Sherk with his striking and sprawl and to win Kos will absolutely have to get a takedown. He will not be able to dominate Rush on the feet like he did Sanchez whose striking leaves plenty to be desired.
On the other hand, I can’t see Kos being taken down by anyone in the WW division, even GSP who took down both Hughes and Sherk. If GSP puts him down the fight will be over very quickly, but I give Koscheck a lot more credit than that. He very well could be UFC champ one day, but coming off a loss GSP has no doubt trained like a hungry animal and if he doesn’t TKO Koscheck in the early going, he will win a convincing unanimous decision by dominating the striking and stuffing most of Koscheck’s takedowns. Look for GSP to face off against Hughes in their rubber match for the WW Title soon. GSP by Unanimous Decision Round 3 -Joe Stevenson (#10 Lightweight in the World)* vs. Kurt Pellegrino I’ve always been impressed with “Daddy” and while both fighters have excellent submissions, I think Stevenson will be too strong at this weight for Pellegrino. With this win Stevenson should be a top contender for the belt if Sherk has to give it up. Stevenson by TKO Round 2 -Kendall Grove vs. Patrick Cote Grove can give anyone problems with his length and good ground game, but I’m going to give the edge to Cote. His wrestling and striking are better and I think his submission defense is good enough that he will be able to work for a Unanimous decision. Cote by Unanimous Decision Round 3 -Roger Huerta vs. Alberto Gonzales Crane Another can for Huerta to run through and build up his rep. UFC fans should already be familiar and impressed with Huerta, hopefully after this win he will step up in class and face Stevenson (sounds like a great fight night Main Event) or the winner of Guida vs. Aurelio. Huerta by TKO Round 1 -Marcus Aurelio vs. Clay Guida This one had fight of night written all over it and hopefully we will actually get to watch it. Huerta vs. Crane on the main card over this one is an odd decision by the UFC because fans will be in for action when these two step into the octagon. Guida can push the pace all night and I see this one being a war in all aspects, wrestling, striking and ground work. Guida will probably spend a lot of time on top and unless Aurelio can get an early submission I think Clay will pick up a hard fought decision. Guida by Split Decision Round 3 |
