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UFC on FOX 4: Does Brandon Vera Really Have a Shot at Beating Shogun Rua?

When UFC President Dana White recently announced that the winner of Saturday night’s main event bout may be in line for a title, fans and analysts alike were left scratching their heads—mostly at the possibility that Brandon Vera may get the nod….

Vera, who was once one of the UFC’s biggest prospects, has only won one fight since 2009 and is the heavy underdog against former champ Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. While anything can happen in MMA, the chances of Vera coming out victorious at UFC on FOX 4 are slim.

“The Truth” has had trouble in the past with high level strikers and is severely mismatched against Rua standing up.

Prior to his recent win over Eliot Marshall, Vera was soundly beaten down by Muay Thai specialist Thiago Silva at UFC 125 and would have been cut by the promotion had Silva not falsified his urine sample.

Even before that bout Vera was completely dominated by the current champ Jon Jones, another telling sign that “the Truth” just can’t hang with the upper echelon of the division.

Rua, a Top Five 205-pounder, is one of the most dangerous strikers in the division and will likely overwhelm Vera with his powerful kicks and punches. Vera’s only real shot at beating Rua is if he takes the fight to the ground, an unlikely feat due to “the Truth’s” underwhelming ground skills.

And with this fight most likely staying standing, Vera really doesn’t stand a chance. Unless Rua comes into this bout out of shape—a very unlikely occurrence due to the possible title shot for the winner—it will take a miracle for Vera to get the win.

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UFC on FOX 4 Weigh-in Results for Shogun Rua vs. Brandon Vera Fight Card

The UFC will take its show to the Staples Center in Los Angeles on Saturday for UFC on FOX 4. Headlining the fight card will be two light-heavyweight scraps. In the main event Mauricio “Shogun” Rua will face Brandon Vera, while in the co-main event Lyo…

UFC president Dana White has said that the fighter that is most impressive in victory in these fights will move on to face the winner of the September 1 title fight between champion Jon Jones and challenger Dan Henderson. For Rua and Machida, that would mean a shot at regaining the title they both once held, while for Vera and Bader it would mark their first shot at UFC gold.

Also appearing on the FOX portion of the card will be a lightweight bout between Joe Lauzon and the resurgent Jamie Varner. Opening the FOX televised card will be Mike Swick versus DaMarques Johnson.

Full weigh-in results

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (205) vs. Brandon Vera (203.8)

Lyoto Machida (201) vs. Ryan Bader (205)

Joe Lauzon (155.8) vs. Jamie Varner (156)

Mike Swick (170) vs. DaMarques Johnson (171)

Cole Miller (145) vs. Nam Phan (145)

Phil Davis (205.5) vs. Wagner Prado (205)

Josh Grispi (146) vs. Rani Yahya (145.5)

Phil De Fries (235) vs. Oli Thompson (232)

Manny Gamburyan (145.5) vs. Michihiro Omigawa (145.5)

Ulysses Gomez (125.5) vs. John Moraga (125.5)

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UFC on FOX: Why Shogun Rua Will Crush Brandon Vera

UFC on FOX is a big event, hence increased coverage. In this case, one of the assignments was why Shogun Rua will crush Brandon Vera at Staples Center in Los Angeles tomorrow night. Usually, such assignments lend themselves to slideshows because there …

UFC on FOX is a big event, hence increased coverage.

In this case, one of the assignments was why Shogun Rua will crush Brandon Vera at Staples Center in Los Angeles tomorrow night. Usually, such assignments lend themselves to slideshows because there are a host of reasons to argue why one guy will beat another—or vice versa.

But you know what? Not this time.

The reason is pretty simple: Brandon Vera isn’t in Shogun’s league.

He’s barely in Elliott Marshall’s league actually.

He shouldn’t be in the UFC.

He surely doesn’t deserve this chance he’s getting; marketing efforts and the silver tongue of Dana White be damned.

And that’s why an elite mixed martial artist, a former champion in multiple organizations coming off a Fight of the Year against the current top contender (like Rua) is going to demolish him.

The fact is that Vera can strike a little bit. But this isn’t a Thai boxing, and even if it was, he’s probably not on Shogun’s level. Plus, if Dan Henderson isn’t putting Rua away, Vera sure isn’t. They could give him a bat and it wouldn’t make any difference.

And that’s his best chance at victory.

He’s a serviceable grappler, but Rua has tight jiu-jitsu that people rarely see because he loves to slug it out so much. It’s, at best, a wash. At worst, it’s a place Vera absolutely doesn’t want to contest the fight.

Then again, is there any surprise that a guy not in the Top 30 of any sensible ranking in the universe has nothing on paper for a consensus Top 5 guy and likely one of the best pure martial artists in the division?

No.

Look, call this fight what you want. The chance of a lifetime. A real-life Rocky moment. An effort by the UFC to put an exciting main event on FOX. Whatever.

Realistically, it’s a joke as much as anything.

Brandon Vera hasn’t won a name fight since 2006 against a Frank Mir that had recently almost died in a motorcycle accident. He did nothing to earn this, he was basically just a warm body that could weigh 205 lbs when the UFC needed him to. That’s likely to be reflected in the outcome on Saturday night.

So why is Shogun Rua going to demolish Brandon Vera? Because he’s one of the best in the world, and he’s going into the cage to fight a guy who once needed the judges to confirm he’d bested Reese Andy.

That says it all.

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UFC on Fox 4: Mauricio Rua Will Take Down Brandon Vera

Brandon Vera’s nickname might be “The Truth,” but after UFC on Fox 4 concludes, he’ll need to deal with the harsh truth that Mauricio Rua defeated him on national television.This isn’t the first time Vera was scheduled to main event a UFC cable program…

Brandon Vera‘s nickname might be “The Truth,” but after UFC on Fox 4 concludes, he’ll need to deal with the harsh truth that Mauricio Rua defeated him on national television.

This isn’t the first time Vera was scheduled to main event a UFC cable program; he was initially scheduled to fight Thiago Silva at the UFC on FX 3 event, but he was unable to due to injury.

Even though Rua has been up and down in his past five UFC bouts, Vera having an injury just six months ago leads one to question how healthy he is feeling.

Rua is four years younger than his veteran opponent, and while both have been in the sport since 2002, Rua has more matches over his career as well as more knockouts.

In fact, Rua’s 17 career knockouts are 10 more than Vera’s total and are just one shy from equaling Vera’s career wins.

The man known as “Shogun” realizes that you should never underestimate your opponent, however, telling John Morgan from MMA Junkie:

I have a lot of respect for Brandon Vera…The guy has a great background in the business of MMA. I think he deserves [to be in the main event], just like many other guys who have been on the road for a long time.

Rua owns victories over MMA legend Chuck Liddell, Lyoto Machida and Forest Griffin over his past six matches. He realizes that a dominant performance against Vera on Fox would vastly help his chances of obtaining a title shot.

Vera is a formidable opponent who will be looking to erase people’s memory of his inability to fight at UFC on FX 3 with a win over Rua, but Shogun simply has too much talent to lose this bout.

The fight has the potential to be a close one, but all it could take is some deadly combinations or one tight-locked submission for Shogun to take Vera down early in this one.

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UFC on FOX 4: Joe Lauzon vs. Jamie Varner Head-to-Toe Breakdown

The main event of UFC on Fox this weekend may be Mauricio Rua against Brandon Vera, but another bout on the main card may steal the show.That is, Jamie Varner vs. Joe LauzonVarner and Lauzon are both long-time veterans of the sport with big fight exper…

The main event of UFC on Fox this weekend may be Mauricio Rua against Brandon Vera, but another bout on the main card may steal the show.

That is, Jamie Varner vs. Joe Lauzon

Varner and Lauzon are both long-time veterans of the sport with big fight experience. Similarly, they are both in the hunt for the lightweight title held by Ben Henderson.

Here is a head-to-toe breakdown of this important lightweight affair.

Begin Slideshow

Ulysses Gomez: UFC Flyweight to Raffle off Fight Trunks for Good Cause

When Ulysses Gomez looks back to 2011, the man who is known to many as “Useless” freely admits that his fight-trunks weren’t worth all that much. “A pair of my trunks and five bucks would get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks,&rd…

When Ulysses Gomez looks back to 2011, the man who is known to many as “Useless” freely admits that his fight-trunks weren’t worth all that much.

“A pair of my trunks and five bucks would get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks,” the 29-year-old Los Angeles product offered with a laugh.

But Gomez, who is to make his UFC debut against John Moraga at the UFC on Fox card on Saturday, is hoping that his trunks from this weekend prove to fetch more than a few dollars for a good cause.

Earlier this week, Gomez learned that the significant other of a co-worker at Las Vegas’ Hard Rock Hotel and Casino was diagnosed with three types of cancer. Gomez’s friend is a seasonal worker at another Las Vegas hotel and is thus ineligible to take advantage of certain benefits offered to some employees.

After Gomez’s match on Saturday, the 125-pound contender intends on raffling off a pair of his shorts—either his fight-worn trunks or his alternate pair, signed by the card’s other fighters—to help raise a bit of money for his friend.

At this point, the details are unclear as to how Gomez will sell his trunks—this is a new idea and the fight of the long-time mixed martial artist’s life is to happen this weekend, after all. But those interested in potentially participating in the raffle are encouraged to visit Gomez’s website (www.uselessgomez.com) or to keep up to date on his initiative via his personal Facebook page (www.facebook.com/uselessgomez).

Although Gomez noted that he has gotten quite a bit of positive feedback already, he isn’t certain how much his shorts will raise when they hit the market. Nevertheless, Gomez is hopeful that he can make an impact on the life of his friend—regardless of how many tickets are ultimately sold.

“If he needs $30,000, I want to get $50,000,” Gomez said. “Now, I’m not saying my trunks are worth $50,000, but I just want to go above and beyond what they need … All I can do is try. If it’s $100, it’s $100. If it’s more, it’s more.”

Ed Kapp is a Regina, Saskatchewan-based freelance journalist. Unless otherwise noted, all quotations were obtained firsthand.

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