Jon “Bones” Jones vs. “Suga” Rashad Evans
Finally. This is a fight that was a year in the making, ever since young Jonny Jones defeated then champion Shogun at UFC 128. The fight between Bones and teammate/#1 contender Evans was destined to happen. It all started with an interview between Jones and Ariel Helwani recorded weeks before his fight with Shogun Rua. Jones (15-1) when asked if he would ever fight his teammate Rashad basically said only if Dana absolutely makes them, then he would. And to make a long story short, Evans (22-1-1) took offense and felt betrayed; Evans split from Greg Jackson’s, started his own gym called the Blackzilians in South Florida, and Jones and Evans have been feuding ever since.
Evans believes that the time that him and Jones spent together as teammates and training partners will give Evans the advantage. Evans has boasted that he usually handled the champ pretty well in sparring sessions. Rashad believes the “big brother” factor will give him the mental advantage in this fight. But the champ believes (as do many others) that he has improved leaps and bounds since his training days with Evans. Many people can’t see Jones, who has solidified himself a top pound-for-pound fighter, losing to a challenger the likes of Evans. At least that is what the odds-makers in Vegas believe. Jones opened up as a -505 favorite over Evans, who is a +405 dog.
But with all the hype aside, let’s look at the matchup for what's in store to be fight of the night material. Evans enters this championship bout riding on a 4-fight win streak. In his last outing he defeated Phil Davis in a very impressive showing. Using his dominant explosiveness and elite level wrestling, Evans grinded out Davis for five rounds. Ever since Evans’s return from injury, people are calling him Rashad 2.0. But this new look Evans is going to have to utilize every tool in his arsenal to dispatch "Bones" Jones. Evans will have to utilize his quick first step to enter in and out of Jones’s record-breaking reach. Evans will have to use great level changing and faints to unleash his powerful double-leg takedown. We haven’t seen Jones fight off his back, as some believe could be his only weakness. Evans must exploit this while creating as much damage from the top as he can. But doing all that won’t be any easy task.
Jones enters his 3rd consecutive title fight as pretty much undefeated. Excluding a disqualification from a fight he was dominating, Jones is 16-0. In his last fight, Jones put former champion Lyoto Machida to sleep. Although, Machida was the first of any of Jones’s opponents to mount any sort of effective offense as he stuck Jones with pretty solid punches in the first frame. But Jones turned the tide quickly in the second round with solid elbows and knees, finishing up with a standing guillotine.
Look for a fairly long feeling out process, probably lasting 2 rounds. There Evans will try to effectively move in and out of Jones’s pocket, land some successful short punches, but most attempts will ultimately be defended with long jabs and body strikes. Jones will eventually tie up and bring Evans to the ground to work viscous elbows and punches en route to a fourth round TKO.
Rory “Ares” Macdonald vs. Che “Beautiful” Mills
MacDonald (12-1) has already been tagged as the next GSP by some, with his only loss coming to current interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit. MacDonald is a force to be reckoned with at welterweight with his great all-round game and athleticism. At only 22, MacDonald aims to be champion by the time he’s 24. MacDonald has won back-to-back bouts with dominating performances over Nate Diaz and Mike Pyle.
Mills (14-4 1 NC) is another prospect looking to make a dent in the 170 lbs class. With a brutal knee KO over Chris Cope in his UFC debut, it was clear Mills was here to stay. Mills likes to stand and strike with his opponents, where he can utilize his great technique and accuracy. Facing MacDonald will be a huge jump in competition for Mills, but a win over this rising star would definitely put Mills on the map.
Pitting Mill’s standup against Macdonald’s great all-round game is a recipe for disaster. MacDonald is too smart to lock himself in a stand up war with Mills. MacDonald will press the action by constantly pressuring Mill’s to the outside of the Octagon. With this constant forward movement, MacDonald will land a takedown against the cage, where he immediately unloads with bombs from the top position. MacDonald will eventually slip in an armbar and end the fight by submission in the second.
Ben Rothwell vs. Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub
Ben Rothwell is in a downfall. The last time we saw Rothwell (31-8), he lost in one of the most embarrassing displays of mixed martial arts I’ve ever seen against Mark Hunt. Before that he won an equally lackluster affair against Gilbert Yvel. Rothwell needs an impressive showing to stay relevant at the heavyweight division. Schaub (8-2) is coming off a devastating KO loss to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in August, but he still has a lot of potential at heavyweight. Being a former football player, Schaub possesses special athletic capabilities that most heavies don't. Schaub needs to rebound impressively over Rothwell; he can’t take this one by decision if he wants to fight top heavyweights. Rothwell will want to grind out Schaub and wear him out with good clinch work and continuous shots to the body to wear out the Hybrid. But Schaub will have none of it. Schaub will stay on the outside connecting with combinations, tiring out Rothwell. Eventually, Schaub will connect with his big right had for a KO in the second.
Miguel “Angel” Torres vs. Michael “Mayday” McDonald
While Jones vs. Evans may be the biggest fight of the night, this one is without a doubt my pick for fight of the night. These two talented bantamweights will surely put on a show the fans will not soon forget. The former WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Torres (40-4) is slowly crawling back to his elite championship form. After his controversial Twitter remarks, Torres was fired and then rehired by the UFC. A good way to show appreciation to the company for giving him his job back, Torres should put on a great show. After dropping two fights in a row for the first time in his career, Torres has scrapped together a 3-1 record since. Torres, once renowned as the best bantamweight in the world, will have his hands full against Michael McDonald, who is regarded as the most powerful 135er. McDonald (14-1) impressed in his last fight with winning fight of the night after knocking out Alex Soto at UFC 139. McDonald has blamed weight cutting and injury for his two performances prior to the Soto fight. So a healthy McDonald and an always-game Torres should make for a very exciting fight. Torres has had his fair share of troubles with wrestlers in the past, but McDonald doesn't have a good enough wrestling pedigree to give Torres too much trouble. But if the fight goes to the ground, Miguel is more than capable of handling himself. With a very active guard, it will be hard to keep Angel on his back without letting up a submission attempt. I have Torres using his long reach to land plenty of jabs and control the distance for a close unanimous decision.
Mark “The Machine” Hominick vs. Eddie “The Pilipino Phenom” Yagin
It’s been a long rough year for The Machine. After dropping a unanimous decision to featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo last April, Hominick (20-10) got knocked out in seven seconds to The Korean Zombie Chan Sung Jung. Hominick came in careless and immediately threw a looping left in which Jung countered with a straight right for the biggest upset of the night. Perhaps it was the loss of his long time trainer Shawn Tompkins before his fight the fight that led the Canadian to be so reckless. Now Hominick has a long way back to the top if ever wants to compete for a title again. Hominick opens up as the biggest favorite on the card against Eddie Yagin. Yagin (15-5-1) is coming of a disappointing decision loss to Junior Assuncao in his UFC debut. Yagin was tentative in selecting his strikes and was repeatedly taken down and controlled for the duration of the fight. Hominick will definitely come into this fight more calculated and together with his fight against Yagin. Look for accurate strikes from the former contender, as he controls the pace, bloodying up the Hawaiian in the process. Hominick by third round TKO.
Mark Bocek vs. John “The Natural” Alessio
Mark Bocek has fought the best of the best in the lightweight division. He’s faced the likes of former 155lbs king Frankie Edgar, current champ Benson Henderson, and Jim Miller, but he has fallen short on each occasion. Don’t let that fool you however; Bocek is stiff competition for anyone in the lightweight division. Bocek (10-4) will look to create his first winning streak since 2009 against UFC vet John Alessio. Alessio (34-14) is making his first UFC appearance since 2006, when he lost to Thiago Alves at UFC: The Final Chapter. Alessio has been fighting at welterweight for most of his career, but has released new kind of animal at lightweight. Since dropping the extra 15lbs to fight at lightweight in October, Alessio has put together a 5-1 record (11-4 since being cut by the UFC). Bocek will want to take this fight to the ground and use his great top-game to land powerful shots and look for submissions. Alessio on the other hand will want to make this a stand up war, as he is the superior striker. In this classic striker versus grappler matchup, I like the grappler Bocek squeaking out a close spilt decision victory.
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