UFC 142 will feature Anthony Johnson’s middleweight debut, where he will be taking on top 5 middleweight Vitor Belfort.
Johnson’s move up to middleweight has been long anticipated. Johnson walks around at well over 200 pounds between fights, and it has been argued that his huge welterweight cut has hindered his performance.
At middleweight, Johnson can threaten the division with his diverse, explosive striking and huge knock out power.
Three of his six UFC knockouts have occurred less than one minute past the opening bell. He is a threat to most fighters in the division.
But a fight against Belfort is too much, too soon.
I am not saying Johnson can’t beat Belfort. I think it’s a good stylistic fight for him, and he can conceivably end up emerging victorious.
But there are too many unknowns.
We don’t know how fast or how strong Johnson is at middleweight. Neither does the UFC.
The UFC should have given Johnson a warmup fight at middleweight over a borderline top 10 opponent.
The UFC could have gauged his skill, and if he won convincingly they could have hyped him up more easily.
But if Johnson loses to Belfort it will be hard for him to build back up again. He’d be 0-1 at middleweight and have lost to the only two consistently top-10 opponents he has ever faced.
The UFC can guarantee an exciting fight by pitting Johnson against Belfort, but it is a dangerous fight for both Johnson and the UFC, and not the right fight to make.
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