Daniel Cormier puts his UFC Light Heavyweight Championship on the line against Alexander Gustafsson in the headline bout at UFC 192. As a whole, Saturday night’s group of fights creates one of the promotion’s most well-rounded cards of the year so far.
Other notable matchups include Ryan Bader taking on Rashad Evans and Shawn Jordan facing off with Ruslan Magomedov. A bout between Johny Hendricks and Tyron Woodley was also expected, but UFC president Dana White announced Friday it was cancelled due to Hendricks’ weight issues.
With that in mind, let’s check out the complete slate of fights scheduled for the showcase at the Toyota Center in Houston and make predictions for each. That’s followed by a breakdown of the main event.
Fight Card and Predictions
Main-Event Preview
Cormier comes into his first title defense wanting a brawl. Not only would that play into his favor given his wrestling background, but it would prevent Gustafsson from utilizing his length and power, which even gave Jon Jones trouble two years ago.
The biggest question is whether the champion will be able to execute that plan without sustaining too much damage. The punishing Swede is surely going to make him pay every time he pushes in for a takedown. He must fight through that to set the tone.
Cormier seemingly isn’t concerned with the matchup problems Gustafsson can create, though. He feels confident heading into the bout, as noted by Mark Emmons of UFC.com.
“When you look at our body of work, and compare the guys I fought with the guys he fought, they’re just different levels,” Cormier said. “I’m at a higher level. It’s as simple as that. I know I’m speaking an uncomfortable truth. But it’s still the truth. He’s going to lose to me.”
On the flip side, Gustafsson is enjoying his return to the underdog role. Expectations soared after he pushed Jones to the limit, but he could never really match them. Now he’s happy the spotlight is once again on his opponent ahead of a fight, per Ryan McKinnell of Yahoo Sports.
“All the pressure is on him,” Gustafsson said. “He’s the champion; he’s got that belt. He’s fighting in front of his home crowd. I’m here in the United States and I’m challenging him. I’m coming here as the underdog, and he has other stuff he has to worry about.”
That’s nothing more than a slight mental edge, however. He must still perform on a level much higher than he showcased over his last two fights: a win over Jimi Manuwa and a surprising first-round knockout loss to Anthony Johnson.
Former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz told Bleacher Report’s Patrick Wyman what he believes “The Mauler” must do to take control of the fight:
He has to shut down Cormier‘s pressure by getting respect right off the bat. When Alex fought Jon Jones, he came right out and hit him immediately with combinations. That’s how he got the respect of Jones.
He has to do the same thing here. He can’t come out backpedaling and worrying about the power or the wrestling of DC, because if you’re worried about it, you’re going to back up. If you’re confident that you know he’s going to wrestle, and you know when he’s going to wrestle, that makes it easier to deal with Daniel Cormier.
Of course, that’s much easier said than done.
Cormier is the more complete fighter and that gives him the edge going into the bout. That said, it will be interesting to see if he can adapt if he’s forced to fight at Gustafsson‘s preferred distance for extended stretches of the fight while waiting for a chance to get the takedown.
If Gustafsson does control the pace in the early going and can land some heavy strikes, the odds of an upset greatly increase. That’s why it’s important for the champion to set the tone early if he wants to retain the title.
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