Top 100 weekend preview
Top 100 fighters scheduled for action between July 26-August 1 are listed below:
LW
PREVIEW: JZ Cavalcante was set to face Lyle Beerbohm, but due to injury, Bobby Green has stepped in on short notice. Cavalcante is desperately seeking a win following a no-contest with Justin Wilcox, and a 1-3 over the last 3 years. Cavalcante’s injuries have taken a toll on this past top 5 fighter over. Cavalcante looked decent in his last fight with Josh Thomson, which he lost via controversial decision. What’s gone though is the explosion in Cavalcante’s striking game. I believe we may see a return of vintage JZ in this fight, considering this is a huge step up in competition for Bobby Green.
Green is best known for his loss to Dan Lauzon in Affliction. Green is talented, but he is largely untested against top competition. Go big or go home for Green in this one.
PREVIEW: Francisco Drinaldo, the #1 prospect coming out of Brazil right now, will face Adriano Martins in a fight to unify the lightweight championship in Jungle Fights. Drinaldo has lethal power in his striking game, and has been called a “natural” by his coaches. Drinaldo was likely set for a UFC debut, coming into his fight with Yuri Alcantara in 2010, but Alcantara pulled off a submission win, and ended up with the UFC contract instead. Ever since Drinaldo is intent on taking out his frustration on all comers. Recently, promising prospect Derrick Burnsed flew down to Brazil to face Drinaldo, and was knocked out cold. Drinaldo is absolutely ready for a shot in the USA, but once again he needs to not look past his opponents.
Adriano Martins is a solid veteran of the sport, and has recently run off a 6-fight winning streak, including victories over Ronys Torres and Pedro Irie. Martins is the underdog coming in, but he has the experience advantage over Drinaldo. Martins cannot afford to make a mistake and he would be wise to let the fight come to him, and hope for Drinaldo to get over-aggressive as he did with Alcantara.
All signs are pointing to a big win for Drinaldo, but Adriano Martins is a game competitor and will be a solid test for him.
WW
PREVIEW: The co-main event of this weekend’s Strikeforce main event, is a hallmark clash of styles in wrestler vs. striker. What also needs to be pointed out though, is the disparity of fight experience the veteran and prospect. Paul Daley has traveled the globe in his 39-fight career, while Woodley is a homegrown Strikeforce fighter of 10 fights. The time has come for Woodley to step out from his usual Strikeforce Challengers setting into the forefront of the promotion.
Paul Daley won himself a reprieve from Dana White by all accounts after his dueling title loss to Nick Diaz. Following the loss, Diaz vacated the title in order to challenge GSP in the UFC. Daley and most fans, presumed this fight would be for the vacant title, but Scott Coker announced that a “big free agent signing” would also be in the mix once this fight has been decided. The free agent ended up being Kazuo Misaki, who is still a top fighter, but is virtually unknown outside of hardcore fans. It’s a huge gaffe by Strikeforce, as Daley or Woodley would have made a perfectly suitable title fight. Daley’s calling card is his stand-up. Once the fight goes to the ground he is still a fish out of water. Josh Koscheck, Jake Shields, Nick Thompson have all taken out Daley by using their wrestling.
Tyron Woodley has shown off a developing striking game, but make no bones about it, he is coming into this fight to wrestle. Woodley is a smart fighter, who fights conservative when the situation calls for it. I fully expect Woodley to look for his opening and take Daley down and keep him there.
PREVIEW: This should be a slugfest, as most Scott Smith fights are. Tarec Saffiedine is likely very happy for this opportunity following recent fights with wrestlers Tyron Woodley and Brock Larson. Saffiedine is highly-touted out of Team Quest and despite some early career stumbles due to his grappling, he looks to be a future contender.
Scott Smith is likely down to his last shot in Strikeforce. Scott Coker hinted that Smith needed to consider his options following a KO loss to Paul Daley. Smith is 1-3 in his last 4 fights, all against top strikers in Daley, Nick Diaz, and Cung Le. Smith is a notorious slow starter, who has defied the odds with miracle haymaker shots that has made him a regular on highlight knockout clips.
Smith can no longer afford to be a slow starter, as his chin cannot continue to accumulate the damage it has over the last few years. One has learned to never bet against Scott Smith, but it looks as if his career on the big stage is coming to an end.
PREVIEW: Eduardo Pamplona finally received his shot in a big promotion following years of anonymity. Pamplona easily submitted Jerrod Peoples in his Strikeforce debut and has quickly been placed in this bout with former Bellator fighter Tyler Stinson. Pamplona was known for his striking back in his heyday, but he’s a little slower now, but he has developed a nice ground game over the years. He’s going to need all of his veteran savvy against Stinson, who has been on quite a roll as of late.
Tyler Stinson, with a record of 20-7, has developed into a solid fighter plying his craft in Bellator over the last few years. Stinson has fallen short of Bellator notables, Dan Hornbuckle and Steve Carl. Those two losses, may have dimmed Stinson’s rise in the sport, but his resume is scattered with solid wins over veterans Drew Fickett, Leonardo Pecanha, Yasubey Enomoto, and Nate James.
Stinson’s revenge win over Leonardo Pecanha spoke volumes about his development in recent years. Pecanha was a solid Brazilian veteran, just as Pamplona is. This will be a big test for both fighters, and even more so for Pamplona, who has been regarded as one of the top fighters to ever come out of Brazil. Let’s see if he still has a little juice in his 37-year old body.
MW
PREVIEW: Tim Kennedy is without a doubt an American hero, but rather than letting his heroism do the talking regarding his character, he has curiously and continually given controversial interviews bashing others and attempting to put himself on a pedestal. Kennedy has thrust himself in conflicts he just doesn’t belong: criticizing the UFC, Michael Bisping, his unanimous decision loss to Jacare, Kurt Pellegrino’s retirement. Hopefully, Kennedy realizes his future promotional tool will not revolve around stirring up controversy, but rather around the honorable service he has provided for his country. Just take a quick look at Brian Stann’s career path, and it should be all laid out for Kennedy.
Skill-wise, Kennedy has developed into a solid, well-rounded fighter. He has shown that he can compete with the sport’s elite. He’s been calling out Robbie Lawler for some time, so he must feel that his ground game is definitely good enough to take him out.
Robbie Lawler has always been a fan-favorite. His battles with Chris Lytle and Nick Diaz in the UFC were classics, as were recent knockout wins over Melvin Manhoef and Matt Lindland. Lawler last 8 wins have all come via KO/TKO, so there is no secret in his fight strategy. Lawler’s obvious hole is his ground game. Lawler has ground skills, but his winging punching style requires a lot of energy and by the time the fight goes to the ground, it seems as if his penchant fury has been sucked right out of him. Lawler has gone just 2-3 in his last 5 fights. Especially curious was his loss to Renato “Babalu” Sobral, which was fought at 195. Babalu actually decided to strike with Lawler and used a very technical gameplan to outpoint him. It’s something Nick Diaz found success with as well.
Tim Kennedy’s striking is not flashy, but it is technical and methodical, so he could give Lawler problems on the feet. Lawler is a slow-starter sometimes, and can get a little frustrated and trigger-shy if he does not land some good strikes in the middle of the fight. Lawler can surely knockout Kennedy, but the safer bet is definitely on Kennedy taking Lawler down and submitting him.
PREVIEW: The promising undefeated Brunson, 7-0, will get another fight to aid his development, as Sayers is a prospect himself. Brunson’s unrivaled athleticism has many claiming he will be a future star in MMA. He’s coming off two big wins over solid fighters, Jeremy Hamilton and Danny Babcock. Brunson should be ready for a big step up in competition should he come out of this fight victorious.
LHW
None
HW
PREVIEW: The marquee match-up of the weekend features two legends of the sport, Fedor Emelianenko and Dan Henderson. A couple of years ago, many would have argued this fight would never be a possibility as Henderson was fighting at 185, while Fedor had made it known he would never even attempt to make a drop to 205. Now though, Fedor is coming off two consecutive losses that has cast a dark cloud over his MMA future. Fedor’s run as the top heavyweight in the world is long gone, and his lack of size has finally started to catch up with him, as Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva showed. Fedor’s cerebral fighting style has always came natural, but his physical gifts, power and speed, have started to deteriorate with age and a lack of evolving his training practices. Fedor may not be the unbeatable cyborg anymore, but he is still one of the most dangerous fighters in the world thanks to his right hand.
The only fighter currently in mixed martial arts who may rival Fedor in accomplishments may be Dan Henderson. His career trails back through countless wars with the best fighters in the world. Now in his 40’s, Henderson continues to look like he is just entering his prime, evidenced by his recent TKO victory over Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante, which made him the current Strikeforce light heavyweight champion.
This a tough fight to predict, and though Fedor is the betting favorite right now, Henderson will likely hold the edge in quickness and endurance. I see this fight going to the clinch often, following wild moments of haymakers, where Henderson can wear down Fedor. Then again, Fedor has the power to knockout Henderson, even with his legendary chin, while I don’t think Henderson can truly hurt Fedor on his feet. It’s either Fedor by KO or Henderson by decision. Pick your poison.
PREVIEW: One of Brazil’s best kept secrets, Edinaldo Oliveira, will face Ubiratan Marinho Lima. Oliveira has been unstoppable as of late and has cemented himself as the top heavyweight on the Brazilian independent scene. His body still hasn’t filled out completely so he will likely struggle in the UFC against a wrestler, but his striking is rapidly developing. It should be mentioned that Oliveira has been training alongside Junior Dos Santos for the last few months.
Ubiratan Lima is no slouch by any means. He has struggled when going up in competition though, losing to Jeff Monson and Thiago “Big Monster” Santos in 2010. Lima has to get this fight to the ground and hope to latch on to one of the long limbs on Oliveira’s 6’7 frame.
Oliveira has to be on the UFC or Bellator’s radar by now. Another win may seal the deal. Oliveira does already have another fight scheduled with Jair “Sorriso” Goncalves on September 16th, should he not sign with a US promotion.
PREVIEW: Abe Wagner has been gifted some golden opportunities in the last few years, and unfortunately he has failed to take full advantage of them. Wagner was not only selected to be on The Ultimate Fighter 10, but he was the 1st overall pick on Quinton Jackson’s team. Wagner was eliminated though, as his lack of takedown defense was exploited by Jon Madsen. Wagner was not invited back by the UFC to participate on the Finale, so he returned to the independent scene. Once again opportunity came calling as former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia needed an opponent. Wagner took the fight and ended up defeating a grossly overweight Sylvia. Wagner suddenly became a hot commodity, and Titan Fighting Championships was priming him as one of their top fighters. Titan FC decided to match Wagner with solid journeyman Aaron Rosa, which on paper looked like a good matchup for Wagner, as Rosa figured to be an oversized, out of shape light heavyweight. Come fight night though, Rosa easily took advantage of Wagner’s non-existent ground game and ended all hype surrounding Wagner. Rosa received a UFC contract shortly thereafter, and Wagner now finds himself facing a sub-.500 fighter on the independent scene.
Wagner should be able to use his striking and size to win this fight, as Grizzard does not have the skills to pose much of a risk.
