Diego Brandao vs. Pablo Garza Poster
Fighter Profiles
Diego Brandao (15-8)
Pablo Garza (12-3)
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UFC on FUEL TV 9: Gustafsson vs. Mousasi
Overview
Man, do I really love this matchup. Two of the most dynamic and powerful featherweights in the business. It should make for a very fast-paced and exciting fight.
Fighter Profiles
Amir Sadollah (6-4)
Stephen Thompson (6-1)
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UFC 160: Velasquez vs. Silva 2
Overview
Amir Sadollah tries to get back on the winning track after a loss to Dan Hardy at UFC Nottingham by unanimous decision. It was a tough loss for Sadollah who’s now dropped two of his last three. Amir has been with the UFC for his whole 10-fight career. He won TUF 7 back in 2008 and it’s been and up and down ride since then. He’s a very tough opponent with an aggressive style so we should see a good fight between these two.
Luke Rockhold
The UFC announced today that Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort (22-10) and final Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold (10-1) will headline a major UFC event in Brazil, with the second quarter of 2013 being the target timeframe.
UFC President Dana White today confirmed the plans while in London and also added that a date and venue have not been determined yet for the fight.
Renan Barao and Michael McDonald
The pre-event press conference for this week’s UFC on FUEL TV 7 took place today in Hook’s Gym at The Royal Leisure Park in London, England. Attendees included Dana White and fighters Renan Barao, Michael McDonald, Cub Swanson, Dustin Poirier, Jimi Manuwa, Cyrille Diabate, Matt Riddle and Che Mills.
The YouTube (also available at http://www.ufc.com/media/FUEL7-presser):
[UPDATE: FIGHT CANCELLED due to injury suffered by Alistair Overeem while training. More info. at: Alistair Overeem injured during training, pulls out of UFC 160 fight with Junior dos Santos]
Fighter Profiles
Junior dos Santos (15-2)
Alistair Overeem (36-12-0-1)
CageWall Event Page
UFC 160: Velasquez vs. Silva 2
Overview
Junior dos Santos looks to rebound from his title loss to Cain Velasquez at UFC 155. Fortunately for him, he will have Alistair Overeem to take his frustrations out on. He was ready to fight Overeem, and wanted to fight Overeem, but Overeem’s suspension got in the way. Hopefully, the fight will go down without incident and I’m pretty sure we will see a very determined dos Santos enter the Octagon May 25th. The Cain loss was his first in the UFC and only the second of his career. Junior was in the process of clearing out the heavyweight ranks before the loss to Cain. With a win over Overeem, it’s highly likely that he’ll get another shot at Cain and then continue his work clearing out heavyweights again.
Cain Velasquez vs. Antonio Silva
Fighter Profiles
Cain Velasquez (11-1)
Antonio “Big Foot” Silva (18-4)
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UFC 160: Velasquez vs. Silva 2
Overview
Cain Velasquez is champion once again, and I’m sure this time he hopes to remain champion for more than one defense. Velasquez knocked out Brock Lesnar back in 2010 to win the belt for the first time, but then lost it to Junior dos Santos trying to defend it for the first time. Cain was just coming off a rotator cuff injury though, and didn’t look as confident as he normally does.
Cain wanted a rematch, but instead went on to fight Antonio Silva to re-establish himself for another title shot. The match with Silva didn’t last too long though as Cain opened up Silva early and proceeded to knock him out in a bloody mess of a first round.
Nah-Shon Burrell vs. Yuri Villefort
Fighter Profiles
Nah-Shon Burrell (8-2)
Yuri Villefort (6-1)
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UFC 157: Rousey vs Carmouche
Overview
With the ‘Chad Mendes vs. Manny Gamburyan’ fight dropping off the UFC 157 card, the UFC has filled the gap with a pair of ex-Strikeforce fighters, Nah-Shon Burrell and Yuri Villefort. The two were expected to face each other on September 29, 2012 at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Healy, but the event was cancelled due to headliner and lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez getting injured. They will now face each other at UFC 157.
Justin Lawrence vs. Daniel Pineda
Fighter Profiles
Justin Lawrence (4-1)
Daniel Pineda (17-9)
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The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale
Overview
Justin Lawrence made his first appearance with the UFC as a cast member of TUF 15: Live. He was the first overall pick by Dominick Cruz but lost in the quarterfinals to eventual winner Michael Chiesa. Lawrence came back in a huge way at the show’s finale where he won both “Knockout of the Night” and “Fight of the Night” with his brilliant head kick KO of John Cofer. He suffered a setback last time out though at UFC 150 where he was knocked out in the second round by fellow young gun Max Holloway. Lawrence dropped down to featherweight for that fight and even though he lost, at 22, he’s got all the skills to wreak havoc in that division.
[UPDATE: Clay Guida suffered an undisclosed injury and has withdrawn from this fight]
Fighter Profiles
Chad Mendes (13-1)
Clay Guida (30-13)
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UFC on FOX 7: Henderson vs. Melendez
Overview
Chad Mendes gets a new opponent on a new card just days after Manny Gamburyan had to pull out of their scheduled UFC 157 fight due to an injury. No offense to Manny, but this is a much better fight for Mendes, provided he wins of course. A win over Guida definitely carries more weight than over Manny and given Mendes has won both of his last two fights by first round knockouts, a more weighted victory like this one keeps him right in line for the next title shot.
Bart Palaszewski vs. Cole Miller
Fighter Profiles
Bart Palaszewski (36-16)
Cole Miller (18-7)
CageWall Event Page
The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale
Overview
It’s the tale of the two-fight skids as both these guys look to end theirs. Bart Palaszewski lost his last two by unanimous decision to Hatsu Hioki and Diego Nunes. Prior to that, Palaszewski knocked out Tyson Griffin at UFC 137 and earned the “Knockout of the Night” bonus for the effort. At only 29 years of age, Bart already has 52 professional fights under his belt. He has always been one of my favorite fighters to watch in the WEC back in the day where he went 5-3 with some great knockouts.
