Counting down to UFC 80: Rapid Fire at the Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle... it's now just two days away! This will be be my first MMA and UFC event that I've attended in person and I'm really excited to seeing it live.
I've been following MMA since my brother first showed me some fights from the UFC and Pride a couple of years ago. The first I can remember is the Tim Sylvia vs Frank Mir heavyweight title fight when Mir broke Sylvia's forearm in an armbar. At the time it looked completely crazy because nothing significant seemed to have happened but Herb Dean was right and Mir had broken Sylvia's arm - I'll always remember that 'pop' in the slow motion replays! Since then I've followed all of the UFC shows from the time second season of the Ultimate Fighter, along with the last Pride Openweight Tournament and last shows they produced before acquisition by Zuffa.
My predictions for UFC 80, which are often just a matter of percentages at the top level:
- I see Stevenson pulling a surprise - just a hunch, really as I think BJ will be conditioned but might get frustrated;
- Gonzaga will ground and pound Werdum with elbows - as would the outcome of his fight with Cro Cop if not for the early standup;
- Davis will get another submission victory, this time over Liaudin (and another submission bonus too maybe?);
- Da Spyder will be too leggy for Rivera and tangle him up on the ground for a submission;
- I have a feeling that Lambert is being underestimated against Gouveia and I think that he'll pull off the points win;
- Hardonk over Robinson as he's got more to offer across the board, though neither are exactly 'elite' fighters yet;
- Taylor over Kelly in the battle of the Brits. Taylor looked really good against Marcus Davis at UFC75 but was a bit overeager. He'll pull off the win here as long as he's not too shy with his kicks;
- Normally I'd pick the Octagon newcomer to debut with a loss but James Lee has already fought on some big shows and in the cage so I pick him to defeat the brittle Sakara through better groundwork;
- Stout and Eklund - Stout keeps it standing and gets the TKO, though not without some nervy moments beforehand.
