UFC’s Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida are headlining the stacked UFC on Fox 4 free card on August 4. The former title contenders will square off in their own respective battles as they attempt to regain their lost championships.
There are plenty of reasons to watch the UFC on Fox, the main one being that it’s free. The other primary reason is because they’re lining up some great fights for fans to enjoy in between their pay-per-view extravaganzas.
Let’s take a look at which fights you simply CANNOT miss on Saturday night.
Mauricio (Shogun) Rua vs. Brandon Vera
The main event of the night is sure to not disappoint. Former champion Shogun Rua is coming off of a devastating loss to Dan Henderson at UFC 139 in what many believe could be the best MMA fight of all time.
A win here for Shogun could set up the former champ with a rematch versus Henderson or Jon Jones. Can he reach down deep and recover from disappointments against Henderson and Jones?
Brandon Vera has shown promise but has never been able to get over the hump in his career. The unlikely event of a win over Rua here would effectively count as that.
This one will likely come down to a decision as Rua’s striking will be tested by Vera, who has only been taken down by striking twice.
Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader
“The Dragon” and Bader will make up the Co-Main Event at Fox 4. This fight could really go either way. Following a huge 2009, Machida has failed to live up to Joe Rogan’s branding of the “beginning of the Machida Dynasty.”
Bader has a real chance at upsetting the favorite Machida because of his excellent wrestling skills. If he can keep things close, he will have the opportunity to capitalize on those skills while keeping Machida away from using his strengths
Former UFC great Chuck Liddell disagrees and weighs in on why Machida is going to come away with the win in this one (via Opposingviews.com):
Bader has to take him down and not get caught on the way in…That’s going to be the fight right there. After Tito [Ortiz] caught him and knocked him almost out, I think there’s a question on Bader’s chin, but he has to take chances to get the win. Bader has to go forward, throw punches and set up the takedown. But I always side with the striker. I’m going for Machida to catch him coming in and stopping him.
There is also an underlying storyline that you may not know about. On his way to winning The Ultimate Fighter competition, Bader had a little run-in with Machida. He stated (via Dana Becker of Fightline.com):
Lyoto was demonstrating a move, he checked a kick, came under and swept my leg, knocking me on my back. I was a little upset because I had a fight in just a few weeks. So, he had me do it again, and I thought there was no way he’ll sweep me again. But, again, he sweeps me to my back; it was all in fun.
Joe Lauzon vs. Jamie Varner
Jamie Varner has had an up-and-down MMA career but is back in what you might call a redemption match against Joe Lauzon. This one looks like a true title contention bout for Varner, who defeated Edson Barboza, an exciting prospect, by TKO in May.
The draw of this match comes from the uncertainty. Lauzon is severely inconsistent and could come out and completely dominate, or come out and get pummeled. He hasn’t had a real signature win in his career and this wouldn’t be that.
However, defeating Varner as he is rising from ashes would do wonders for Lauzon’s career by helping set up a shot at something to make his mark.
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