Brian Mazique | UFC Betting Sites - The Best MMA Online Bookies

UFC Fight Night 30 in Manchester: Machida vs. Munoz Fight Card, TV Info and More

What the UFC Fight Night 30 card may lack in star power, it could make up for in hard-hitting action. On Saturday, Oct. 26 in Manchester, England, Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida and “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” Mark Munoz headlin…

Machida and Munoz will do battle at 185 pounds, which represents a step down in weight class for Machida. The Dragon suffered a controversial loss to “Mr. Wonderful” Phil Davis in his last fight at 205 pounds. Rather than fall back in the rankings at light heavyweight, he chose to pursue a title at middleweight.

Munoz had been on a tear before current middleweight champion Chris Weidman stopped him in July 2012. Still, Munoz has won three of his last four fights over top-notch competition. Most recently, he knocked off Tim “The Barbarian” Boetsch at UFC 162 in July.

Which man will take the next step toward a title at 185 pounds? Here’s the information you need to watch the event, as well as predictions for each fight on the card. Deeper analysis is available for the top three bouts.

Manuwa vs. Jimmo Is an Exciting and Potentially Explosive Light Heavyweight Bout

When Jimi “Poster Boy” Manuwa and “Big Deal” Ryan Jimmo battle, there could be fireworks. Both men have powerful striking abilities and are looking to make their mark at 205 pounds.

Manuwa is undefeated in his MMA career and has a 2-0 mark in the UFC. Most recently, he stopped Cyrille Diabate in February at UFC on Fuel TV 7. Though he has a Brazilian jiu-jitsu background, Poster Boy likes to stand and trade. He has a nice variety of strikes, and he throws all of them with mean intentions.

Though both are dangerous strikers, Manuwa’s powerful leg kicks balance out his boxing game nicely. His ability to change levels gives him a slight edge offensively. However, Jimmo is the better defensive fighter. Per FightMetric, Manuwa only evades 36 percent of the strikes fired at him.

As you can see in the video here from BAMMA on YouTube, he holds his chin straight up and has a tendency to drop his right hand. His opponent Anthony Rea caught him on a couple of occasions, but to Manuwa’s credit, he absorbed the shots without going down.

That said, Jimmo is likely the most powerful striker Manuwa will have faced. Those lapses in defense will lead to a KO win for The Big Deal.

Guillard vs. Pearson Could Be Another Brawl

Melvin “The Young Assassin” Guillard doesn’t always fight smart, but he’s always entertaining. Few fighters have more raw talent in regard to speed and power, but he’s underachieved in his career because of poor tactical decisions.

Case in point, he rocked Donald Cerrone at UFC 150 early in the first round but failed to maintain the pressure to finish him. Moments later, Cerrone knocked him out with a head kick once he regained his wherewithal.

If Guillard maintains focus, he can compete with just about any lightweight in the world.

Pearson is on a two-fight win streak after stopping Ryan Couture and George Sotiropoulos in his last two fights. He’s a well-rounded fighter who has had success winning fights standing and on the mat. In his career, his 15 wins are evenly spread across the KO, decision and submission variety.

His wrestling ability gives him an edge over Guillard, whose takedown defense isn’t the sharpest. He only stuffs 65 percent of the takedowns attempted against him. While Pearson seems to enjoy trading with opponents at times, the smartest approach against Guillard is to take him down.

If Pearson does that, he’ll win a unanimous decision.

The Main Event

Machida’s wrestling skills should bring him a win against Munoz. He proved against Dan Henderson that one-dimensional strikers don’t fare well against him.

Munoz’s takedown accuracy is just 27 percent. More importantly, his takedown defense is just 58 percent. If he can’t stop Machida from putting him on his back, The Dragon will dominate from top position.

Will the weight loss hurt Machida? It could, and quite honestly, that is the only way The Dragon should lose this fight. If he doesn’t have the stamina or strength to hold position against Munoz, then the fight may be fought standing. If that happens, Munoz has a shot as an elite striker.

If Machida is in proper form, he wins by unanimous decision.

Stats per FightMetric.com

Follow me for news and musings on MMA, boxing, the WWE, the NBA and sports video games.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Junior Dos Santos Can Be Back in Position to Win Title Quickly

Junior “Cigano” dos Santos is clearly the second-best heavyweight in the UFC, but it may not be long before he’s back challenging for the title he once held. On Saturday at UFC 166 at the Toyota Center in Houston, dos Santos was domin…

The bout was the rubber match in a trilogy that has separated the two men from every other heavyweight in the UFC. Cigano is 15-1 against fighters not named Cain Velasquez in his career. His only other loss came in 2007 to Joaquim Ferreira before he made the move to the UFC.

He has simply dominated most every other heavyweight on the scene. Fabricio Werdum is the man in line to challenge Velasquez next, but dos Santos stopped him when he made his UFC debut in 2008. Cigano owns wins over many of the fighters who hope to ascend to a level where they can be called serious contenders.

Along with the win over Werdum, dos Santos has also defeated Stefan Struve, Gabriel Gonzaga, Roy Nelson and Frank Mir. Based on this impressive resume, it seems dos Santos shouldn’t have to go to the back of the line of heavyweight contenders.

In fact, if he were to face and defeat the winner of the Travis Browne-Josh Barnett battle that is scheduled for UFC 168 card in Las Vegas, dos Santos would deserve another shot to regain the title.

Fans may frown at a fourth meeting with Velasquez, but what other heavyweight would be more deserving?

If fans were forced to sit through a second Velasquez-Antonio Silva bout, the UFC community would have to be able to stomach another dos Santos-Velasquez scrap. That is of course assuming Velasquez defeats Werdum when and if the two men officially sign to face each other.

If Werdum upsets Velasquez, then things could be made easier for UFC head man Dana White. Velasquez would likely get a rematch and a new rivalry could be born. Those dynamics could force dos Santos to wait even longer for another shot.

In any case, Cigano is just 29 years old. Based on the way he’s handled most every opponent, he’ll almost certainly be back on the UFC heavyweight title scene before too long.

Record references per Sherdog.com

Follow me for musings on MMA, boxing, the WWE, the NBA and sports video games.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 166: Biggest Losers from Saturday’s PPV

Roy “Big Country” Nelson had his chance to earn a shot at the UFC heavyweight title in the next year. Instead, he lost a lopsided decision against a man who is working to move to light heavyweight.
Daniel Cormier out-boxed Nelson and proved to be a sup…

Daniel Cormier out-boxed Nelson and proved to be a superior grappler en route to defeating Big Country. He subsequently expressed his desire to move to the 205-pound division in his next fight, according to ESPN.com’s Franklin McNeil.

Nelson couldn’t land his big right hand, and without that weapon he looked helpless. The stamina bug also seemed to bite him late in the fight. When you consider the fact that the fight was just a three-round affair, it makes you wonder how well Nelson would perform in a five-round main event.

In his UFC career, Nelson has never been beyond the third round. Now he must head to the back of the line in the heavyweight ranks. At 37 years old, Nelson doesn’t have a great deal of time to climb the ladder again.

The loss on Saturday night was a huge setback.

C.B. Dollaway Didn’t Make Any Fans in Houston

In a spirited battle with Tim “The Barbarian” Boetsch, Dollaway did his best Nate Diaz impersonation. He taunted Boetsch defiantly and egged his opponent on with trash talk. That wasn’t the worst aspect of his performance, though.

On two occasions, Dollaway poked Boetsch in the eyes. The first one was the most severe and appeared to be accidental. But the second instance had to leave fans scratching their heads. Dollaway repeatedly attempted to fend off Boetsch with an open hand. At the very least, the second eye poke looked like it could have been avoided.

Referee Kerry Hatley apparently agreed, as he took a point from Dollaway after the second foul. In the end, Boetsch was awarded a split-decision victory. The judging in the fight was peculiar. It seemed Dollaway won the first round. It was possible to score the second even, though Dollaway could have won that one as well.

The Barbarian won the third—even without the point deduction—so awarding him the win isn’t totally preposterous. However, depending on how you scored the second round, an argument could be made that Dollaway deserved the win, or a draw.

In any case, karma says Dollaway deserved to lose after his controversial eye pokes.

Nate “Not-So-Great” Marquardt

The end is near for Marquardt—at least it should be. Hector Lombard did look like the beast most had expected him to be when he made his UFC debut in 2012. Still, Marquardt backpedaled the entire fight, and it was clear a KO stoppage was inevitable from the start.

Marquardt is 34 years old, and he’s been competing in the UFC since 2005. The loss to Lombard was his third in a row and second straight by KO.

Marquardt has been in with names like Chael Sonnen, Yushin Okami, Jake Ellenberger, Anderson Silva, Jeremy Horn and others; but it is in his best interest to call it a career.

Follow me for musings on MMA, boxing, the WWE, the NBA and sports video games.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

How Velasquez’s Amazing Cardio Led to Dominant Win at UFC 166

Junior “Cigano” dos Santos needed to keep his back off the mat to have a chance to beat Cain Velasquez at UFC 166. For the most part he did that. Cigano stopped 11-of-13 takedown attempts from the champion. He also absorbed some big punches before fina…

For the record, it wasn’t a punch that technically led to dos Santos being stopped in the final round. He banged the top of his head on the mat in an attempt to lock on a submission. Nonetheless, the event didn’t change the bottom line.

Velasquez was going to win the fight in any case. His amazing cardio was the biggest reason for his performance. After dos Santos appeared to gas out in their second meeting, he seemed intent upon keeping something in reserve for this bout.

Cigano clearly had a little more steam in his punches late in the fight, but he simply couldn’t keep Velasquez off of him. If the game plan was to outlast Velasquez and take advantage of him late, it was a seemingly impossible mission.

Velasquez used his weight and lower center of gravity to power dos Santos into the cage for much of the fight.

To get inside, Velasquez threw hard and accurate power punches. He floored dos Santos with one of those shots in the third round. It seemed the fight might have been over at that point. However, to dos Santos’ credit, he had an iron chin and will.

In all, according to figures from FightMetric, Velasquez threw a total of 378 strikes; he landed 274 of them. That is an average of 75.6 per round. These attacks weren’t light blows. Velasquez threw 201 significant strikes and landed 123 of them.

When you factor in the takedown attempts, the constant pressure and leaning against the cage and the constant strike attempts, Velasquez’s work rate was phenomenal.

The combination of Velasquez’s skill and stamina makes him perhaps the toughest out in the sport.

Follow me for musings on MMA, boxing, the WWE, the NBA and sports video games.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Velasquez vs. Dos Santos 3: Best Potential Next Opponents for Both Heavyweights

Cain Velasquez mauled Junior “Cigano” dos Santos on Saturday night in Houston’s Toyota Center at UFC 166. In winning the rubber match of their trilogy and retaining his title, he has put himself in position to do what no other heavyweight in UFC histor…

In the 16-year history of the title, no man has ever defended it more than twice. The next time Velasquez takes the Octagon, he’ll be on the cusp of doing just that. Who will stand in his way?

More than likely, it’ll be Fabricio Werdum. The 36-year-old Brazilian veteran is the No. 1 contender. He told Fight Hub TV in the interview below that he would submit Velasquez if the champion took him to the mat.

Werdum submitted Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in his last fight in June. He’s also won eight of his last 10 bouts dating back to 2008. In that span, he’s only lost to dos Santos and Alistair Overeem. He’s defeated the likes of Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, Fedor Emelianenko, Gabriel Gonzaga, Brandon Vera and Roy Nelson.

With Daniel Cormier defeating Nelson in the co-main event in Houston, but expressing an interest to move down to light heavyweight in his next fight, Werdum is the only real option for Velasquez.

It could be an interesting battle between two fighters who do their best work on the mat.

Cigano’s Future is Muddled

It would seem clear that Velasquez is simply a better all-around fighter than dos Santos. Still, the question remains: What other heavyweight can beat the second-best heavyweight in the world? Nelson was made to look rather ordinary against a quicker and more-skilled wrestler in Cormier.

His chances of besting dos Santos seem slim. Cigano’s takedown defense was solid against Velasquez on Saturday. He stuffed 11-of-13 takedown attempts from Velasquez, per FightMetric.com. The champion’s cardio was perhaps his best quality. While Nelson is a skilled grappler, he doesn’t have the same stamina as Velasquez.

Cigano would likely catch him or out-strike him.

Werdum has his sights set on Velasquez. Further down the heavyweight rankings, there are names like Travis Browne and Josh Barnett that could create some interest.

These two will battle each other at UFC 168 and the winner could likely be one step away from getting a title shot. That one step could be dos Santos. It would seem unfair to make Cigano go to the end of the line considering his resume.

However, UFC head man Dana White may do just that to prevent another relatively quick turnaround engagement between Velasquez and dos Santos. At the end of the day, both may just plow through their competition and leave White with no other choice but to hype a fourth fight.

Follow me for musings on MMA, boxing, the WWE, the NBA and sports video games.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Velasquez vs. Dos Santos 3: Most Important Weapon for Each Man

After being flattened in the first fight, Cain Velasquez did well standing and punching with Junior “Cigano” dos Santos in their second meeting. However, in their third fight, he’ll need to go back to what he’s best at. Velasquez may have the best ground-and-pound game in the sport, and if he wins the rubber match with dos Santos at UFC 166 on Saturday in Houston, he’ll need to show those skills.

In their second meeting, Velasquez scored 11 takedowns against dos Santos after staggering him in the first round. He couldn’t finish Cigano, but he used top position and control to dominate the fight.

Though Velasquez gained an edge in the stand-up game, he rode his abilities on the ground to victory. He may have to earn his respect again as a striker at the outset of Saturday night’s battle, but if he wins, the victory will again be powered by his ground work.

Cigano‘s Keys to Victory and Most Important Weapon

If Cigano is going to have a chance to regain his title, he needs to diversify his attack. Coming into the second fight with Velasquez, he was almost exclusively a boxer. In today’s MMA, that type of one-dimensional approach will get you in trouble. It is a testament to dos Santos’ strength and athleticism—as well as the weakness of the division—that he was able to be so successful fighting this way.

In dos Santos’ last fight against Mark Hunt at UFC 160, he showcased a spinning kick that led to the KO win over the Super Samoan. Hunt and Velasquez are two very different fighters, though. Hunt didn’t attempt one takedown in his bout with dos Santos, thus allowing Cigano to stay in his comfort zone.

Obviously, Velasquez won’t do that.

After facing Velasquez twice, dos Santos should be fully prepared for his rival. After tasting defeat, he understands the need to diversify his skill set. His takedown defense is already fairly solid at 74 percent, but changing up his striking techniques could be the biggest difference against Velasquez.

As strictly a puncher, dos Santos can be predictable. That may have allowed Velasquez an opportunity to dominate him the way he did in their second meeting. With dos Santos becoming more comfortable with kicks and working to strengthen his takedown defense even more, he’ll create more opportunities to land the type of blow that could lead to victory.

Statistics per FightMetric.com

Follow me for musings on MMA, boxing, the WWE, the NBA and sports video games.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com