UFC 199 goes down this Saturday from the House that Magic Built, also known as the Forum in Inglewood, California.
You know what that means: It’s showtime.
For the young people in the audience—and I hate all of you—these are references to the Los Angeles Lakers, the professional basketball team that won many titles in a decade called the 1980s. Their leader was point guard Earvin “Magic” Johnson, who ran an uptempo, high-excitement kind of game. Think Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors, except with passing and running instead of shooting.
In any case, because they were so fun to watch, it was like watching a great “show.” Hence the team’s unofficial nickname: Showtime. And they played at the Forum, which I thought had been demolished years ago!
Thanks for listening. OK, wait, I need to say something about UFC 199. So, the main card has a lot of exciting and magnetic personalities on it, just like the old Lakers team. Middleweight champion Luke Rockhold is basically a real-life version of James Bond. He’s a heavy favorite to defend against fast-talking Brit Michael Bisping, who despite a long and successful career is making his first appearance in a UFC title fight.
But what about the torn MCL that Rockhold strangely self-reported to Bisping and the rest of the world on Thursday? Could it be a factor?
And don’t forget about the co-main event. Dominick Cruz defends the strap against longtime rival and California favorite Urijah Faber. These two really dislike each other, and this is the rubber match between them.
And these are only two of the five fights on a star-studded main card. Let’s analyze and predict winners for each one of these Inglewood scraps. As usual, our own star-studded team is up to the challenge: Craig “Cookie” Amos, Nathan McCarter, Sydnie Jones and myself, Scott Harris. Let’s tip it up.