Tag: Jose Aldo

Former WEC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis comes off his lackluster defeat to Clay Guida, and it came after he was offered to sit out and wait for the winner of Edgar vs. Maynard, something he had no intentions of doing after his impressive WEC win over Ben Henderson in 2010.

If not for that loss and the rescheduling of Edgar vs. Maynard , Pettis could be in the main event tonight fighting one of them.

Instead, he finds himself on the Spike TV undercard of tonight’s event, and it comes against “Lil Heathen” Jeremy Stephens, one of the UFC’s most exciting and durable lightweights.

Stephens comes off his two victories versus Marcus Davis and Danny Downes. His knockout over Davis is one of the leading candidates for 2011’s knockout of the year.

In a fight that could set back Pettis even more if he comes up short, look for him to fight a safe fight and one that he can guarantee himself a victory without taking many risks. That’s something any of Stephens’ opponents would choose not to do, and it will be what wins or loses Pettis this fight.

A victory over Stephens puts Pettis back into the title picture, but it won’t guarantee him a title shot in the stacked lightweight division. It will be one of the more important fights of his career in getting him ready for that potential shot in 2012.

UFC 136 will also host two title fights. The main event will feature UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar going up against Gray Maynard for the third time.

The co-main event will be a featherweight title fight between UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and No. 1 contender Kenny Florian. Aldo comes into the bout off his victory over Mark Hominick while Florian was last seen defeating Diego Nunes in his 145 pound debut.

Other main card bouts include Joe Lauzon vs. Melvin Guillard, Chael Sonnen vs. Brian Stann and Nam Phan vs. Leonard Garcia.

The event will kick off its preliminary card on Facebook at 6 p.m. ET and will feature four bouts, including Mike Massenzio vs. Steve Cantwell.

The Spike TV portion of UFC 136 will be broadcast at 8 p.m. ET. It will feature two bouts, including Demian Maia vs. Jorge Santiago and Anthony Pettis vs. Jeremy Stephens.

Be sure to check out Bleacher Report for all things UFC 136. B/R is your home for MMA, from pre-fight predictions to in-fight coverage , live results and post-fight analysis…which you can check out on our UFC 136 event hub.

Jeremy Stephens vs. Anthony Pettis is one of the most interesting forth-coming matchups in the UFC’s lightweight division and it has the potential to be one of the most exciting fights of 2011.

Pettis is a relatively new addition to the UFC roster, but is known well throughout the world for being last WEC lightweight champion and—of course—for his famed Showtime Kick.

Despite all the momentum he had going when he entered the UFC, Pettis had an unsuccessful debut, losing a unanimous decision to Clay Guida.

Pettis now looks to bounce back and once again establish himself as a title contender.

The man standing in his way is Jeremy Stephens, who has been with the UFC for four years now, but never managed to establish himself as anything more than a gatekeeper.

This fight is essentially a matchup between a technical striker in Pettis and a brawler in Stephens.

Stephens has never had particularly technical or proficient striking, but he makes up for it with his vicious power.

Pettis has a third-degree black belt in Taekwondo and is technical on his feet, but also unpredictable.

In the past, we have seen Stephens struggle against technical strikers like Spencer Fisher, Melvin Guillard and Marcus Davis—Stephens beat Davis, but was losing the fight decisively before getting the KO in the third round.

Ultimately, I believe that speed and technique will triumph over brute force in this one.

Pettis will be able to use his footwork and superior stand up to keep Stephens off balance and uncomfortable.

Stephens has hung in there with some heavy handed guys before, so I don`t see Pettis finishing it, but he`ll do enough to snag the decision.

If he lands one clean power shot, Stephens can win this fight, but I don`t think he`ll pull it off.

Anthony Pettis wins this fight via unanimous decision

Bleacher Report’s Andrew Barr

Kenny Florian has seemingly had more title shots than WWE superstar John Cena. Will the third time be the charm? Can Florian get over the hump and finally win a world title?

The world will find out when he takes on UFC featherweight champion and top three pound-for-pound standout Jose Aldo.

Fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Aldo has left a path of destruction in the featherweight division. He made world class fighters like Urijah Faber, Mike Brown and Manny Gamburyan look like they didn’t even belong in the same octagon as him.

A world class grappler and a phenomenal striker, Aldo’s entire skill set is still somewhat of a mystery. He showcased explosive takedowns in his UFC 129 routing of Mark Hominick.

Wrestling has been the Achilles heel for Florian throughout his MMA career. Despite being a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Florian’s submission skills are more effective from an offensive position. He hasn’t shown the ability to work well off his back against imposing grapplers.

Unless he’s the one initiating takedowns, the Massachusetts native wants to keep this bout standing and try to best the exchanges.

The standup battle will definitely be interesting in this bout. Florian has a solid chin, great footwork, a deep understanding of range and pinpoint accuracy. He will be the most technical striker Aldo has faced thus far in his seven-year career.

With that said, Aldo is a wrecking ball hell-bent on destroying everything in his path.

While Florian certainly presents a unique and formidable challenge to the UFC champion, it’s hard to believe he has the skill set needed to debunk a guy like Aldo.

People tend to think of guys like Chad Mendes, Tyson Griffin and Hatsu Hioki, when considering legitimate threats to Aldo’s title reign.

This isn’t an attempt to minimize Florian’s chances. He has a serious shot to take Aldo in an upset. As stated earlier, there are still some question marks in Aldo’s game. If Aldo has a cardio meltdown like he did against Hominick, Florian won’t be as forgiving.

Fans can expect a brilliant display of technical striking in this bout. Eventually, Aldo will begin changing levels to exploit Florian’s wrestling. It’ll be a hard fought and well-rounded effort for Aldo as he takes home the unanimous decision and retains his UFC title.

Bleacher Report’s Jordy McElroy

Lightweights Melvin Guillard and Joe Lauzon are set to meet at UFC 136, where the winner will likely be in contention for a title shot in the near future.

Guillard has reemerged himself in the lightweight division riding an impressive five-fight win streak.  Although he possesses good wrestling ability, Guillard has tended to rely on his striking much more, which has seen him pick up his three of his last five bouts via knockout. “The Young Assassin” recently paired up with trainer Greg Jackson in Albuquerque, New Mexico where he has evolved as a fighter and been a lot more strategic and patient than usual during his fights. His combination of speed and aggression is what has allowed him to score victories over such fighters as Jeremy Stephens and Evan Dunham.

Lauzon has enjoyed some considerable success throughout his UFC tenure. Despite going 2-2 in his past four bouts, Lauzon holds some of the division’s best Brazilian Jiu-Jtsu skills, earning 16 of his 20 wins via submission. Relying on his conditioning and BJJ, Lauzon is a durable opponent to face and even more difficult to defend against on the ground.

Lauzon will likely be able to withstand some punishment on the feet in order to close the distance and clinch with Guillard to take this bout to the canvas. Guillard has been vulnerable against submission specialists in the past and he obviously will want to avoid the ground at all costs. Guillard’s speed and wrestling should help him keep this fight standing, as Lauzon doesn’t have the striking power to hurt his opponent, nor the wrestling credentials to keep him on the mat. Ultimately, Guillard’s striking will overwhelm Lauzon before sending him to the canvas.

Prediction: Melvin Guillard 1^st round KO.

Bleacher Report’s Mike Hodges