With the sudden departure of Randy Couture from the UFC, and not being able to secure a deal for the consensus #1 Fedor, the UFC now finds itself in a bind. There are no clear #1 contenders in the UFC for the title. We are left with a few fighters and a few issues with those fighter.
The breakdown:
Tim Sylvia: Sylvia is currently scheduled to face off against Brandon Vera at UFC 77. The winner of this bout is assuredly going to make up one half of the upcoming title fight for the vacant championship.
The Problem: No one was impressed with Sylvia while he held the belt. His fighting style is not one that plays to the fans, it actually pisses them off.
Brandon Vera: Will face off against his toughest test yet vs. Tim Sylvia at UFC 77.
The Problem: Vera has not fought in a year. Management issues prevented this fight from happening in March which gave Couture his title shot.
Minotauro Noguirea: Rumored to be facing off against Cheik Kongo sometime in early 2008. This fight will most likely determine who faces the winner of Vera/Sylvia for the belt.
The Problem: Noguiera is still virtually unknown to the average fan, only seeing him a eat a devastating kick from Heath Herring.
Cheik Kongo: If the fight with Minotauro is ever signed this would be a great opportunity to fight for the belt for this fast rising star.
The Problem: Whats a ground game? Has a glaring weakness on the ground, while his style is very appealing to fans. Still not a hot commodity.
What will happen: Vera will beat Sylvia next weekend and Noguiera will take Kongo out via submission if/ when they fight. This would set up a fight with a charismatic and well known fighter in Vera vs Noguiera, who fans don’t know but will have hours of highlights banged into their heads.
What we hope doesn’t happen: Tim Sylvia wins. That’s about the only downside I can think of to this structure.
My prediction: Vera takes the gold. |
