In case you missed it, UFC lightweight Michael Chiesa dropped by the set of Josh Nason’s Punch-Out this week to help analyze UFC 193, talk about his December fight against Jim Miller, and shoot the breeze in general. It’s free for everyone, so give it a listen here and tell your damn friends.
Our panel:
– Jack Encarnacao (95-37 | .719): Sherdog Rewind host, The Lapsed Fan podcast co-chair
Lots of alliteration going on for this main event, eh? Assuming Rousey decimates Holm, the only fight that makes sense is Lady Cyborg. That’s it, that’s all. No other women in the division is going to test Rousey like Cyborg could in July, and ultimately, that’s what we need. She’s the equivalent of Anthony Davis sent back to the 1945 version of the NBA — so far ahead of her time that no one can stop her.
How the public will take to this fight is interesting. Holm has done nothing to promote other than get a fist up in Rousey’s face during Friday’s weigh-ins that Rousey sold like she was training for another WWE appearance. Legit or showmanship? Given the buzz this week, you can figure that out just as well as I can.
Will the mainstream/casual Rousey fan plunk down the money to watch or will they just wait to hopefully see the fight on Instagram like many got conditioned to do this year? The UFC is worried about that, proactively sending out a notice to media members about not sharing any GIFs or videos of the event, missing that it’s the general social media loving DGAF public that should be the focus of their proactive approach.
I’m more excited for what happens after the fight than the battle itself which I think will wrap up in less than a round. Holm is unbeaten and a former boxing champion in an era long ago, but she’s getting the shot due to a lack of options rather than a truly earned opportunity.
To say the weigh-ins for these two was awkward to watch Friday is an understatement. Seeing nearly emaciated 115-pound women step on the scales isn’t my idea of a fun time.
To the fight itself, Letourneau represents a speed bump on the way to Double J’s eventual title defense with Claudia Gadelha. After two straight decision to open her UFC ledger, Jędrzejczyk has two straight wins by T/KO, two straight bonuses, and a piece of shiny metal and leather around her waist. How the 28-year-old resonates with the mainstream Rousey crowd will be something to watch in the months ahead.
The 32-year-old Letourneau has won all three of her UFC fights by decision, and with all three of her career losses comes against more well-known fighters (Sarah Kaufman, Gadelha, Alexis Davis). She can’t see the image of Jessica Penne’s bloodied face before she steps in the cage, even though the oddsmakers seem to think a similar fate awaits the Canadian.
> Mark Hunt (10-10-1) vs. Bigfoot Silva (19-7-1) II Heavyweights
Rematches of classics rarely, if ever, live up to the hype of the predecessor. With heavyweights, there’s a little more of a chance because if someone gets knocked out, you at least have that to point to. Can Hunt and Silva give us anything close to what they had on that night 2 years and one month ago? Doubtful.
The 41-year-old Hunt is just 1-3-1 since a four-fight win streak brought him to Junior dos Santos’ violent doorstep in 2013. In all three losses, he’s been knocked out by JDS, now-heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum, and Stipe Miocic. Any fight could be his last and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Hunt hangs them up after tonight.
Strangely, Silva is also 1-3-1 in his last four after a two-fight win streak brought him to a title shot against then-champion Cain Velasquez. We all know what happened there. In his losses, he was also knocked out all three times (Velasquez, Frank Mir, Andrei Arlovski). He could also retire at any time. What time to be a UFC heavyweight!
> Robert Whittaker (14-4) vs. Uriah Hall (12-5) Middleweights
The fight that Mike Chiesa is looking forward to this most is an interesting scrap between two middleweight prospects. Hall is fresh off his short-notice fill-in fight against Gegard Mousasi, one he won in, ahem, SPECTACULAR FASHION. We all still want to understand what Hall we have now (vicious striker vs. passive decision-maker), and if he wins via a T/KO finish for the third straight time, we might have our answer.
This is already the eighth UFC fight for the 24-year-old Whittaker and since he decided to stop cutting to 170, he’s won two in a row by T/KO and three straight overall. Brad Tavares was his last victim, knocked out in just 44 seconds earlier this year.
> Stefan Struve (26-7) vs. Jared Rosholt (13-2) Heavyweights
Struve kept his UFC career alive with a decision win over the now-retired Rodrigo Nogueira in August. Before a heart issue and a two-fight losing streak (Mark Hunt, Alistair Overeem) derailed Struve, Double-S had won four straight in 2011-12 and was moving into title contender category. He’s still just 27 which is truly insane.
This is the biggest fight of the 29-year-old Rosholt’s career. A winner in five of his six Octagon tilts, his biggest enemy has been apathy over those wins due to bland, wrestling-filled decisions. This is an interesting fight for both guys as Struve hasn’t fought a wrestler like Rosholt in years, if ever.
An injury has forced another change to the UFC’s upcoming debut in South Korea, this time affecting the headline bout.
A rib injury has forced former welterweight title challenger Thiago Alves (21-10, 13-7 UFC) out of his scheduled five-round main event bout against Benson Henderson (22-5, 10-3 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 79 in Seoul. Henderson, the former UFC Lightweight Champion, will now take on Jorge Masvidal (29-9, 6-2 UFC) in the new headliner. MMAFighting.com first reported Masvidal as the replacement after Twitter user @TalkMMA reported the injury to Alves.
The change in the main event comes just days following the cancellation of the co-main event between Mirko Cro Cop and Anthony Hamilton. That bout was scrapped after Cro Cop was pulled from the fight due to a potential drug test failure and subsequent retirement. Masvidal was originally slated to meet Dong Hyun Kim in the new co-main event, but was selected as the replacement for Alves. There has yet to be an announcement on Kim’s status for the event.
Henderson and Masvidal were scheduled to meet earlier this year at UFC Fight Night 63 in April when both were competing in the lightweight division. Henderson then took a short-notice bout at welterweight against Brandon Thatch at UFC Fight Night 60 in February, which he won by fourth-round submission. Henderson hasn’t fought since then. Masvidal went on to fight Al Iaqunta at the April event, but lost by close split decision. However, he is coming off a win over Cezar Ferreira at The Ultimate Fighter 21 Finale in July, his welterweight debut in the UFC.
UFC Fight Night 79 will air on UFC Fight Pass on November 28, with a main card start time of 8 AM eastern time, and a preliminary card start time of 4:45 AM eastern time. Also on the card is the return of Yoshihiro Akiyama, who takes on Alberto Mina.
Welcome to WrestlingObserver.com’s live coverage of the UFC 193: Rousey vs. Holm weigh-ins from the Etihad Stadium in Melbourne, Australia kicking off at 5 PM eastern time. The event airs on Saturday on pay-per-view at 10 PM eastern time. Preliminary card action kicks off on UFC Fight Pass at 6:15 PM eastern time before moving over to FS1 at 8 PM eastern time. This will be the UFC’s third stadium show and the first visit to Melbourne, Australia.
The event is headlined by two title fights in each of the UFC’s womens’ divisions topped by dominant champions. UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey looks to continue her reign as the best female fighter in the world as she puts her 12-0 record and title on the line against undefeated challenger Holly Holm. UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk looks to continue her dominance of the 115-pound division as she puts her title and undefeated record on the line against Valerie Letourneau, winner of four straight fights. Also on the card is a heavyweight bout that is a rematch of an all-time classic fight as Mark Hunt takes on Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva.
MAIN CARD (PPV- 10 PM ET/7 PM PT): Ronda Rousey (134) vs. Holly Holm (134) – UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship Joanna Jedrzejczyk (114) vs. Valerie Letourneau (115) – UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship Mark Hunt (265) vs. Antonio Silva (263) Uriah Hall (185) vs. Robert Whittaker (185) Stefan Struve (265) vs. Jared Rosholt (239)
PRELIMINARY CARD (FS1- 8 PM ET/5 PM PT): Jake Matthews (155) vs. Akbarh Arreola (155) Kyle Noke (169) vs. Peter Sobotta (169) Anthony Perosh (205) vs. Gian Villante (205) Richie Vaculik (125) vs. Danny Martinez (125)
PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC FIGHT PASS- 6:15 PM ET/3:15 PM PT): Dan Kelly (185) vs. Steve Montgomery (185) Richard Walsh (170) vs. Steve Kennedy (169) James Moontasri (170) vs. Anton Zafir (170) Ben Nguyen (126) vs. Ryan Benoit (125)
*Ronda calling Holly’s niceness all fake, and Ronda can see through her. Ronda is ready!
*Ronda gets right in her face. Holly didn’t back down. Awesome!
*Joanna pre-stared her down before even getting on the scale, Dana stepped in. Joanna said, “Her lucky day was yesterday…”
It’s the second straight weekend for a UFC event, and more chances to cash in if you play Draft Kings. UFC 193 comes our way on Saturday night from Melbourne, Australia, with two title fights and the two most dominant women in their respective weight classes defending their championships. Below are our studs, value plays, and fighters to avoid to help you fill out your UFC 193 DraftKings lineups:
STUDS
Joanna Jedrzejczyk ($11,300)
I could easily pick both Ronda Rousey and Joanna Jedrzejczyk to occupy these two stud slots, but for the sake of the article, I’m only going one. I suggest you draft both, and it is possible to draft both and keep a solid team as I will show you later. I expect Rousey to win quickly, but she may have a much harder time, so I’m putting Jedrzejczyk as my top stud for this event. She has dynamic striking and lands a lot of significant strikes, and her opponent, Valerie Letourneau, leaves herself open to eat a lot of punches. Jedrzejczyk has underrated takedown ability as well, and she looks to finish every second of the fight. I sense both women getting early finishes, which grabs a lot of points. Jedrzejczyk’s significant striking ability will likely net more points for you, and that could make up a big difference. Do yourself a favor- draft both, or if you only wanna stick with one, I’d go Jedrzejczyk over Rousey, but only slightly.
Uriah Hall ($9,800)
Uriah Hall is coming off the biggest win of his career when he knocked out Gegard Mousasi in September. He took that fight on short notice and takes another short notice bout against Robert Whittaker on Saturday at UFC 193. He looks like he is finally living up to his potential, and he gets a stout test in Whittaker. Whittaker can be finished in his career, as evidenced to his February 2014 loss to Stephen Thompson. Hall is a similar striker to Thompson and could give Whittaker the same type of fits with his kicks. Hall is flashy and likes the spin kick, much like Thompson displayed against Whittaker. I hope that is a fight Hall watched over and over in preparation. Hall can be an enigma at times, as there have been moments when he hasn’t lived up to expectations. With the recent performance against Mousasi, he seems mentally into it and another big win could be coming his way on Saturday. He has a good chance at scoring a finish.
VALUE PICKS
Dan Kelly ($9,000)
I’ll admit there aren’t a lot of value plays on this card. I expect a lot of the favorites with high salaries to win here. There are a couple of solid value picks, and one of them is Dan Kelly. Yes, he was involved in arguably the worst fight in the UFC in 2015 against Patrick Walsh. Yes, he lost in under a minute in his last bout. However, he has scored seven wins by stoppage in his career, including a first-round submission win in his UFC debut. He fights Steve Montgomery, who is coming off being finished in the first round in his UFC debut. Kelly is worth taking a chance on, especially if you wanna go after some of the higher salary fighters on the card.
Anton Zafir ($8,800)
Anton Zafir is making his UFC debut on Saturday on short notice, being an injury fill-in and taking his debut fight against James Moontasri on eight days’ notice. Zafir was being targeted for the UFC roster in the near future and was headed to the event to meet with UFC officials on what he needed to do to get on the roster. Luckily for him, a spot opened up and his UFC signing came sooner than expected. He is inexperienced, having fought just eight times, but he has won seven of those, and six of the wins have come by stoppage. His opponent, Moontasri, is coming off being finished in the first round in his last fight. Plus, Moontasri is also taking the fight as an injury replacement, though he had adequate training time, but he is also moving up in weight for this fight. Zafir is another solid option for those wanting to spend on bigger names.
AVOID
Antonio Silva ($8,900)
I’m avoiding Antonio Silva as much as possible at this event. First of all, I don’t expect him to defeat Mark Hunt. Even if he is able to, I don’t see him finishing Hunt. I actually see Hunt finishing him, so selecting Hunt for your roster might not be a bad idea. Silva’s best shot at winning is taking the fight to the judges and staying out of striking range. He might not maximize your point-scoring abilities on this card, so I’m saying to just avoid “Bigfoot” this time around due to his tough opponent and bad chin.
Valerie Letourneau ($8,100) & Holly Holm ($8,000)
I’m grouping these two together. They’re fighting the two most dominant women in the sport. I actually think Holm has a decent chance if she has an excellent gameplan. That gameplan, though, means staying as far away from Ronda Rousey as possible, and thus not maximizing point-scoring ability. Letourneau almost feels like she is being led to a slaughter. I’m finding a way to have both Rousey and Joanna Jedrzejczyk on my roster, and I think they score finishes over their opponents rather easily. That means avoid the challengers.
OUR LINE-UPS
RYAN FREDERICK: Ronda Rousey ($11,400), Joanna Jedrzejczyk ($11,300), Uriah Hall ($9,800), Anton Zafir ($8,800), Steve Kennedy ($8,600)
I found a way to get both dominant champions in my line-up, selecting Ronda Rousey and Joanna Jedrzejczyk. I see them getting the finishes in their title fights, and I don’t see either fight going past the second round. First-round wins won’t be surprising as well. I like Uriah Hall to continue to live up to his potential and get the finish win. The gameplan and blueprint for finishing Robert Whittaker is out there, Hall just has to execute. Anton Zafir is a sneaky play in his short-notice UFC debut, and he could make a big impression against James Moontasri, who can be finished. I rounded out my team with Steve Kennedy. Kennedy makes his second UFC appearance, but he has 22 professional wins in his career, with 17 by knockout or submission. His opponent, Richard Walsh, was brutally knocked out in his last bout. I give Kennedy a decent shot, and someone had to fill out my roster going with the two women.
PAUL FONTAINE: Joanna Jedrezejczyk ($11,300), Mark Hunt ($10,500), Richie Vaculik ($9,700), Robert Whittaker ($9,600), Steve Kennedy ($8,600)
This is a tough week for this. I really tried hard to figure out a way to get both Rousey and Joanna on my team but I cant’ find a combination that makes me happy so I’m let with this. I picked JJ over Ronda due to the fact that I think both will win by quick stoppage but Joanna will probably land more strikes in doing so and thus earn me more points. I also like Mark Hunt to rebound from his beating at the hands of Stipe Miocic to score a quick knockout over Bigfoot Silva. My third choice is Richie Vaculik. He should be motivated by the rabid home country crowd and his opponent Danny Martinez is on a 3 fight losing streak. My next two picks are also Australians with Robert Whittaker being next. The popular opinion is Uriah Hall but Whittaker shouldn’t be overlooked. He’s got a lot of power and again will be a huge favorite to these fans. Uriah Hall is either really bad or really good and we haven’t seen the bad one in awhile. With the short turnaround between fights and the long trip to Australia, it could be a recipe for disaster. My final pick is Steve Kennedy, who took his UFC debut fight on short notice. He’s had a proper training camp here and will hopefully rebound and score me some points.
PEACH MACHINE: Ronda Rousey ($11,400), Jake Matthews ($11,000), Robert Whittaker ($9,600), Ryan Benoit ($9,400), Steve Kennedy ($8,600)
Rousey is definitely worth the price tag. Automatic. Ryan Benoit is going to keep winning, especially against Ben Nguyen. Jake Matthews is a hometown hero. I saw him fight live in Australia and it was awesome. I expect him to roll through Arreola. I like Robert Whittaker moving up to 185. He’s a fast middleweight, but so is Hall. However, I’m expecting the uncertain, cautious Hall to come out here once he starts dealing with Whittaker’s complete game. Steven Kennedy is my sleeper pick… Because he was all I could afford, so I’m hoping he does something besides go to sleep!
On Friday, EA Sports officially announced its second UFC video game, EA Sports UFC 2, that will be released in the spring. UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, to no surprise, will be featured on the cover.
“EA Sports is a cultural barometer to know what’s going on in sports at the moment,” said Rousey in a press release. “As a gamer myself, it’s pretty surreal to be on the cover of the game and to have a woman on the cover of a UFC game shows a lot of progress. I’m really happy to be involved with it.”
Rousey was in the running to be on the cover of the first game, which was decided via fan vote. But due to the timing of the game and voting being around the time the Ultimate Fighter season she coached was on, she lost in the voting in a head-to-head matchup with Miesha Tate. Due to a surge of European voting, light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson got the nod.
The game will add a new Knockout Physics System and authentic gameplay features, and have the largest roster of fighters. It is being released on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Other new game modes are KO Mode, UFC Ultimate Team and a new career mode that allows fans to create women fighters for the first time in a game, as was as Grapple Assist, for more ground game variations and submissions. Click here for more details on the game’s features.
Rousey defends her title against Holly Holm Saturday in the main event of UFC 193. Dave, Bryan and UFC star Filthy Tom Lawlor will break down the event for subscribers late Saturday night.
It’s a whole new season and Conor McGregor is the reason, as he and Urijah Faber go toe to toe as coaching foes on The Ultimate Fighter. They won’t duke it out after the season is done, but there’s still pride on the line, not to mention Conor’s reputation as the newest badass on the block. Join us each episode for “The Notorious Quote of the Week” as Conor puts his mouth where UFC’s money is! We’ll also spice things up with some predictions for week two about who could go all the way this season – two “Fighters to Watch” for each recap.
*****
There’s no Notorious Quote of the Week or Fighters to Watch this week. They crammed two fights into this episode so there really wasn’t enough time to glean anything worthwhile from the filler material.
Weigh-ins for Artem Lobov and James Jenkins open the show. Both fighters make weight. Faber predicts the entire fight will be a stand-up war and “a bloody mess.” Jenkins wants to “prove his worth and let it all hang out.” Lobov says he has the same game plan every single fight: “Hit him as hard as I can, as much as I can.”
Lightweights: Artem Lobov (Europe) vs. James Jenkins (USA)
Lobov is in the gray trunks and Jenkins the blue. Jenkins is 8-1 and Lobov is 11-10-1. That means Lobov is more experienced and more vulnerable at the same time. Both fighters get a warning for extended fingers 55 seconds in. Jenkins is trying to push Lobov into the fence and work him over, but that’s easier said than done. Lobov keeps his hands low and slams them into his face when Jenkins isn’t expecting it. He starts bleeding pretty badly and time is called at 2:44 to check the cuts. Jenkins says he’s okay to continue but Lobov keeps creaming him with the left. Lobov lands the kill shot right and pounds it out for a stoppage at4:05. Lobov looks at Dana White: “Did I promise you a good fight? A Russian Irishman always keeps his word!”
Team McGregor takes a 4-3 lead and we quickly move to the next fight announcement. David Teymur (McGregor) vs. Johnny Nunez (Faber) is up next. We don’t even see the weigh-in so we can assume both men made weight.
Lightweight: David Teymur (Europe) vs. Johnny Nunez (USA)
For unknown reasons, Conor McGregor doesn’t show up for his team for this fight, and Dana White says that after 15 minutes of waiting they had to go ahead.
Teymur is in the gray and Nunez is in the blue. Nunez dives hard for a takedown at 1:03 but it’s not there. Nunez is warned about shots to the groin, gets thrown by Teymur, Teymur starts pouring it on on the ground and the ref warns Nunez to fight back. Nunez stands back up after another warning with three minutes left in the round. Teymur is warned multiple times not to grab the fence, the fighters reset, and Nunez rocks Teymur with a shot and dives on top. Now when Teymur gets up, Nunez is getting the takedowns right away. He gets full mount with a minute left. Teymur gets half guard back as Nunez tries to posture up for elbows. A wild first round that could have gone either way.
Case partially completes a takedown at 1:18 of R2 but Teymur scrambles his way to the fence. The ref warns him about kneeing a grounded opponent as Teymur gets back up. Nunez gets another takedown at 1:56. Teymur is warned about shots to the back of the head. Teymur struggles to get off his back and can’t. At the three minute mark you can see his mouth wide open, breathing real hard, sucking wind. Nunez does get a warning to stay busy. Teymur gets up at 4:13. He lands a few good body kicks in the final 20 seconds but I’ve got Nunez winning the round clearly. The first round might have gone to Teymur with the judges though… AND IT DOES. R3 after commercial!
McGregor shows up just in time for the third round. Teymur gets on Nunez right away and he covers up on the ground for the first thirty seconds as the ref warns him to fight back. Nunez gets up at 1:09. The fact Teymur couldn’t pound him out shows just how tired he is. Actually they’re both gassed. The ref resets them at the center for inactivity at 2:07. Teymur lands a shot, Nunez dives for the legs, and time is slipping away for Nunez. He eats a kick to the head after they both stand up. Another warning to work as they wind up agains the fence.
Teymur gets multiple warnings not to grab the cage. They break with 90 seconds left. Teymur misses with a spinning head kick and Nunez finally gets a takedown at 3:55 right to side control. He takes the back with short time left and transitions to full mount. Both of these guys have come back from seemingly being totally spent and totally out of it. It wasn’t a pretty fight but it was a grueling scrap. Did Nunez do enough late to win R3 and the fight?
All three judges score R3 10-9 for a unanimous decision to David Teymur. Team McGregor takes a 5-3 lead.
The final first round fight is Abner Lloveras from Team McGregor and Jason Gonzalez from Team Faber. Join us next week!
It seemed rather sudden, and there appears to be more to the story of the sudden retirement of UFC heavyweight Mirko Cro Cop on Tuesday.
The UFC announced on Wednesday that Cro Cop has been notified by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency of a potential violation of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy and has been provisionally suspended. The UFC released a full statement on their website on Wednesday.
“UFC announced today that a scheduled bout between Mirko Cro Cop and Anthony Hamilton in Seoul, South Korea has been canceled. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has notified both Mirko Cro Cop and UFC that he has been provisionally suspended at this time due to a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation,” the statement read.
“USADA, the independent administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, will handle the results management and appropriate adjudication of this case involving Cro Cop. Additional information will be provided at the appropriate time in the process.”
Cro Cop was scheduled to fight Hamilton in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 79 on November 28, but then announced he was out of the fight due to a shoulder injury and retiring from the sport. With today’s announcement, Cro Cop becomes the first fighter to be suspended since USADA took over the responsibilities for the UFC’s anti-doping program in July. Cro Cop last competed at UFC Fight Night 64 in April, scoring a TKO win over Gabriel Gonzaga in Krakow, Poland.
The UFC announced they will book Hamilton in a new bout on a card in the near future.
The UFC heads back to Australia this weekend for the third stadium show in company history, headlined by the two most dominant women in the UFC today each defending their championships in front of a potential record-setting crowd. UFC 193 takes place on Saturday night on pay-per-view with the main card airing at 10 PM eastern time. Preliminary card action kicks off on UFC Fight Pass at 6:15 PM eastern time before heading on over to FS1 at 8 PM eastern time for more prelim action.
The most dominant woman in MMA today, UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey, defends her title in the main event against undefeated challenger, Holly Holm, in a fight that could end up being the toughest test to date for Rousey. In the co-main event, the most dominant woman at 115 pounds, UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk, defends her title against Valerie Letourneau, winner of four straight fights. Also on the card is a heavyweight bout between Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva, who meet in a rematch of their epic encounter from December 2013. Let’s take a deeper look into the action and give you five storylines to keep an eye on at UFC 193 on Saturday night.
1. Can Holly Holm be the woman to dethrone Ronda Rousey?
Ronda Rousey has been, arguably, the most dominant champion in UFC history, or at the very least, of the last couple of years. She is undefeated in her career at 12-0, and she has only been out of the first round once in her career. She has scored eight wins in less than a minute, three wins by knockout, and nine wins by submission, with all nine coming by her signature move- the armbar. She has amassed just under 26 minutes of total fight time in her twelve career fights. Everything about her fighting has been dominant. She has become a mainstream star unheard of in the sport, due not just to the attention she has received from being a fighter, but also due to her new-found status in Hollywood. She may not be long for the sport at this rate, but every time she steps foot inside the Octagon, you get the feeling you are about to see something special yet again.
Holly Holm is 9-0 since moving over to MMA from boxing, where she won 19 world titles in her career while putting together a 33-2-3 career record. She also has some professional kickboxing experience. She was impressive early in her MMA career, winning six of her first seven fights by knockout, leading to negotiations with the UFC. It was a long process, but she finally signed in July 2014. Injuries kept her from debuting for a while, but she was coming into the UFC with a lot of hype. She also works with one of the best fight camps in the world, the Greg Jackson camp in New Mexico, and under a lot of great coaches and with some of the best training partners in the world. She has been somewhat underwhelming in her two UFC bouts, scoring solid, yet overall unimpressive, wins over Raquel Pennington and Marion Reneau. She was selected as Rousey’s next opponent, likely before she was fully ready, because it was what Rousey wanted. Holm now has the chance to show she is the one that can dethrone the champion.
Holm’s two UFC bouts have almost been like walk throughs in anticipation of a chess match with Rousey. Holm moves around a lot on her feet, and she picks her attacks rather nicely. She throws a lot, but doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. She’s methodical in her approach. Rousey is much the same. Rousey doesn’t make mistakes, and she is much better on her feet than she has gotten credit for. She is also a master of gameplans. Holm’s coach, Greg Jackson, is also a gameplan master. Holm has shown good takedown defense, and it is going to need to be on point against Rousey. Both women fight very smart and Holm isn’t going to rush in right after Rousey. This fight may be different than any Rousey fight we have seen to this date, but it is hard to envision the outcome being any different. It’s not a matter of if Rousey will win, but how long will it take. We are in store for another special moment on Saturday, but Holm will be a very tough test for Rousey to pass.
2. Does Valerie Letourneau have a chance against Joanna Jedrzejczyk?
Valerie Letourneau enters UFC 193 on Saturday night challenging Joanna Jedrzejczyk for the UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship. She is doing it on the heels of four straight wins and is coming off a win over Maryna Moroz in August. She has been declared an undeserving challenger by most, but at the same time, they needed someone to challenge Jedrzejczyk, and she was likely the best option available at the time due to injuries and bookings to others. She enters as the biggest underdog in a title fight in history, and a simple $100 bet on her would win you $1,335 if she were to pull off the upset. Quite frankly, she is being counted out before the two women even step foot inside the Octagon. The big question is does she even stand a chance against Jedrzejczyk?
Letourneau has some solid striking and comes from a good camp in the American Top Team camp. The only losses in her career have come to Alexis Davis, Sarah Kaufman and Claudia Gadelha. Two of those have won and fought for titles, and the other, Gadelha, is next in line when she returns from the injured list. Jedrzejczyk is a different beast, though. She is undefeated in ten career fights, and she is likely the best striker in women’s fighting, no matter the weight class. She tees off on opponents, and her dominant win over Jessica Penne in her first title defense in June shows how great her attack is. She has overwhelmed both Penne and Carla Esparza in their title fight, and Gadelha has been the only one to give her a tough fight. Gadelha arugably beat Jedrzejczyk. Letourneau is going to need to be on the offensive and use her reach advantage. She won’t be able to outstrike Jedrzejczyk, so she should mix in some grappling. However, the champion is strong there. This is all set up for a showcase win for Jedrzejczyk, and it’s only a matter of how long it takes the champion to win.
3. Can Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva recapture the magic of their first fight?
Depending on who you ask and when you ask them, Mark Hunt and Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva were involved in the greatest fight in UFC history when they met each other in December 2013. It was an amazing heavyweight battle that surprisingly went 25 minutes, with over 320 strikes landed between the two of them. They were bloodied and battered, and when all was said and done, the fight ended without a winner. It ended in a draw, in one of those rare occurences where a draw is determined without a point deduction to factor in. It was a magical moment on that December night in Australia, and the two big heavyweights will step back into the Octagon again on Saturday night in Australia looking to recapture the magic of their first encounter. More importantly, after a draw, they, and fans alike, want a definitive winner.
When you are involved in one of the best fights in history, if you try it again with the same components, rarely does it ever live up to the first fight. Both men are different since that war. Hunt is coming off two straight losses, one of which was a brutal beating at the hands of Stipe Miocic. Silva lost his next two fights in bad fashion, but is coming off a big win over Soa Palelei. At this stage in their careers, it is unsure if either man has much left to give to the top contenders. Both still have that power that can make a difference in the heavyweight division, but their days of challenging for titles are likely long gone. That is why this is a perfect moment for a rematch. Hunt has the biggest difference maker in his right hand, but the beating he took at the hands of Miocic may be the beginning of the end for him. Silva’s chin can hardly take a punch these days, as his last five losses have all been first-round knockout losses. They are only going three rounds this time, and I sense a different outcome this time, with a winner truly decided. Who will that be? I like Hunt getting a knockout win.
4. Will Uriah Hall continue his surge up the UFC’s middleweight rankings?
Uriah Hall steps into the Octagon for fifth time on Saturday night, and he does so for the second straight time on short notice against a dangerous opponent. Last time it was Gegard Mousasi, and most thought Hall was headed to Japan to collect a paycheck and a beating. In the first round of their bout, it was looking like it was going to be a long night for Hall. However, in the second round, Hall pulled off a highlight-reel finish that he became known for during his time on “The Ultimate Fighter”. A spinning back kick landed to Mousasi’s face, then a flying knee, and before you know it, Hall finished Mousasi in a stunning upset to collect a performance bonus, a huge win, and the number ten ranking in the UFC’s middleweight rankings. It finally looked like Hall was going to start to live up to his potential as he has now won five of his last six fights.
He gets another tough foe on Saturday night as he steps in to fight Robert Whittaker, who has been looking great himself since moving up to 185 pounds. Whittaker is a former TUF winner, but after winning his first two UFC bouts, he dropped his next two. He has since won three straight, including two straight knockout wins after deciding to make the move up from 170 pounds. He has established himself as a formidable threat in the middleweight division, and he has moved to number 14 in the UFC’s middleweight rankings. He has a lot of power in his hands and can finish fights quickly with his punches. He doesn’t have the overall striking prowess of Hall, and when Whittaker faced a similiar striker when he took on Stephen Thompson, it was Thompson finishing Whittaker. Hall has a lot of momentum, and with taking another short notice fight, while it’ll be his third fight in three months, he has a lot of confidence after the win over Mousasi. It’ll likely be a highlight-reel win in either direction, but Hall gets the job done here.
5. What else on the card is there to look out for?
The UFC 193 main card on pay-per-view rounds out with a heavyweight bout between Stefan Struve and Jared Rosholt. It will be Struve’s 16th appearance inside the Octagon, and after a long list of setbacks, he got back into the win column in scoring a decision win at UFC 190 in August over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, which will be notable in history as the last fight in the legendary career for Nogueira. For Rosholt, it will be the first pay-per-view appearance for him as he looks to extend his two-fight win streak and move into the heavyweight rankings. He is 5-1 during his stint in the UFC, but it hasn’t been an overly impressive five wins as four of them have come by decision, and in not-so-pretty fashion. If there is one thing about Struve, it is that he can be finished, as all five of his UFC losses have come by knockout. It is the chance for Rosholt to score an impressive win, or for Struve to pick up his 11th triumph inside the Octagon.
In preliminary card action, each fight will feature a fighter hailing from Australia. It is not the most-stacked preliminary card in terms of name value, but features some solid fighters. One of the big names to watch is Jake Matthews, a 21-year-old lightweight looking to bounce back from the first loss in his career. He has been impressive in his short career, scoring seven of his eight wins by stoppage, but he gets a durable opponent in Akbarh Arreola, who has 22 wins by stoppage. In welterweight action, Kyle Noke looks for his second straight win against Peter Sobotta, holder of a seven-fight win streak. UFC veterans Anthony Perosh and Gian Villante will meet in a light heavyweight bout as both men look to rebound from setbacks in their previous bouts. A fight on the UFC Fight Pass portion to keep an eye on is the night’s opening bout, a flyweight contest between Ben Nguyen and Ryan Benoit. Nguyen has won seven straight fights, while Benoit is coming off an impressive second-round TKO win over Sergio Pettis at UFC 185 in March.
Full UFC 193 Fight Card, Betting Odds and Predictions
MAIN CARD (PPV- 10 PM ET/7 PM PT)
UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship: (C) Ronda Rousey vs. (#7) Holly Holm Betting Odds: Rousey (-1900), Holm (+1200) Prediction: Rousey by submission in round 1
UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship: (C) Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. (#8) Valerie Letourneau Betting Odds: Jedrzejczyk (-2150), Letourneau (+1300) Prediction: Jedrzejczyk by knockout in round 2
Heavyweights: (#8) Mark Hunt vs. (#11) Antonio Silva Betting Odds: Hunt (-265), Silva (+225) Prediction: Hunt by knockout in round 1
Middleweights: (#10) Uriah Hall vs. (#14) Robert Whittaker Betting Odds: Hall (-130), Whittaker (+110) Prediction: Hall by knockout in round 2
Heavyweights: (#14) Stefan Struve vs. Jared Rosholt Betting Odds: Struve (-125), Rosholt (+105) Prediction: Struve by decision
PRELIMINARY CARD (FS1- 8 PM ET/5 PM PT)
Lightweights: Jake Matthews vs. Akbarh Arreola Betting Odds: Matthews (-900), Arreola (+600) Prediction: Matthews by submission in round 1
Welterweights: Kyle Noke vs. Peter Sobotta Betting Odds: Noke (+145), Sobotta (-165) Prediction: Noke by decision
Light Heavyweights: Anthony Perosh vs. Gian Villante Betting Odds: Perosh (+325), Villante (-400) Prediction: Villante by knockout in round 1
Flyweights: Richie Vaculik vs. Danny Martinez Betting Odds: Vaculik (-105), Martinez (-115) Prediction: Vaculik by decision
A shoulder injury has forced Mirko Cro Cop out of his UFC Fight Night 79 co-main event slot against Anthony Hamilton. It has also brought an end to the career of Cro Cop.
Cro Cop revealed the injury, and subsequent retirement, on his website, mirkofilipovic.com, early Tuesday. UFC officials have yet to make a formal announcement, and it is currently unknown if a replacement will be sought to fight Hamilton on the November 28 card. That event takes place in Seoul, South Korea and airs on UFC Fight Pass. It is headlined by a five-round welterweight bout between Benson Henderson and Thiago Alves.
“Dear friends, unfortunately I had to cancel the fight in Seoul. In the beginning of the preparation I already hurt my shoulder, so I couldn’t raise a hand. I tried to save a shoulder injury and repair in all possible ways: daily therapy, injections of blood plasma and various cocktails of drugs but didn’t work out. The only cure would be a break of two to three weeks, and that I could not afford in the midst of final preparations. By daily trainings the injury gets worse. Part of the muscle is snapped, the shoulder is filled with a lot of fluids, and the great danger is that tendon ruptures and then go to operation again,” wrote Cro Cop on his website.
Cro Cop has competed in the UFC, PRIDE and K-1 during his combat sports career. He was one of the major stars during the height of PRIDE in Japan, being in numerous high-profile bouts against competitors such as Fedor Emelianenko, Wanderlei Silva, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Josh Barnett. He made his Octagon debut in 2007, but has gone just 5-6 during three UFC stints. If this is the end of his career, he will end it on a high note after scoring a come-from-behind third-round TKO win over Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC Fight Night 64 in April.
The 41-year-old has announced retirements in the past, only to come back to fight again. However, it truly seems like this will be the end of the legendary career of Cro Cop.
“I am aware that I have come to the end of my martial times, but training with pain I want no longer,” Cro Cop said in his statement. He continued, “This is not a temporary decision because I was unhappy due to all of that, but it’s my final decision and it’s best for me. Sooner or later the time comes when a man has to think on the health. I had a really long and great career and I believe I left a deep mark in the martial arts, in a free fight and in K-1 and I have no regrets. Thanks to everyone who followed me and supported me, but for me there remains beautiful memories.”
He finishes his career with a 33-11-2 with 1 NC record in MMA, and a 23-8 record in kickboxing.
7 Number of title defenses made by Ronda Rousey since becoming women’s bantamweight champion, which includes one in Strikeforce and six in the UFC
8 Number of wins in less than a minute for Rousey in her professional career, she also had three wins in under a minute in her amateur career
9 Number of wins by armbar scored by Rousey in her career
25:46 Total fight time for Rousey in her 12 career fights
100 Finishing rate percentage for Rousey, who has never gone the distance in a fight
44 Number of professional wins, between boxing, kickboxing and MMA, for Holly Holm in her fighting career
100 Takedown defense percentage rate for Holm in her MMA career
19 Number of title reigns in Holm’s boxing career
7 Current ranking in the women’s bantamweight division for Holm
28 Significant striking accuracy percentage rate for Holm, among the lowest in the division
10 Straight wins to start the MMA career for UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk
126 Significant strikes landed in Jedrzejczyk’s successful title defense against Jessica Penne in June
4.9 Significant strikes landed per minute by Jedrzejczyk
9 Current ranking of Valerie Letourneau in the women’s strawweight division
3.73 Significant strikes absorbed per minute for Letourneau as she heads into the fight against one of the best strikers in the sport in Jedrzejczyk
3 Inches of reach advantage that Letourneau will have over Jedrzejczyk
10 Number of wins and losses in the career of Mark Hunt, and also the number of stoppage losses in Hunt’s career
529 Total number of strikes landed in Hunt’s UFC career
1:54:11 Total Octagon fight time for Hunt, seventh-most in UFC heavyweight history
6:46 Average fight time for Antonio Silva, seventh-lowest in UFC heavyweight history
8 Inches of reach advantage that Silva will have over Hunt
6 Losses by knockout for Silva, whose last five losses have come by knockout
200 Combined number of significant strikes landed by Hunt and Silva in their first bout in December 2013
49 Days between fights, the quickest turnaround of anyone on the card, for Uriah Hall, who scored a knockout win over Gegard Mousasi on September 26
75 Win percentage rate by knockout for Hall, who has scored nine of his 12 wins by knockout
10 Current ranking for Hall in the middleweight rankings after winning five of his last six fights
14 Current ranking for Robert Whittaker in the middleweight rankings after just two fights in the division
4.83 Significant strikes landed per minute by Whittaker in UFC competition
4.29 Significant strikes absorbed per minute by Whittaker as he heads into a fight against a versatile striker in Hall
84 Inches in height and reach of Stefan Struve, the tallest fighter on the UFC roster
19 Submission attempts by Struve in, second-most in UFC heavyweight competition
2.86 Submission attempts per 15 minutes by Struve, most in UFC heavyweight competition (min. 5 fights)
12:46 Average fight time for Jared Rosholt in the UFC, highest in the UFC heavyweight division
9 Number of takedowns landed by Rosholt during his UFC career
125 Wins in NCAA college wrestling competition by Rosholt, which makes him the winningest heavyweight in the history of the Oklahoma State wrestling program
19 Age at which Jake Matthews made his UFC debut in June 2014
87.5 Career finishing rate percentage for Matthews, who has scored seven of his eight wins by stoppage
33 Career fights for Akbarh Arreola, making him the most experienced fighter on the card alongside Stefan Struve
95.6 Career finishing rate percentage for Arreola, who has scored 22 of his 23 wins by stoppage
16 Number of wins by Kyle Noke in his native Australia
3.14 Significant strikes landed per minute by Noke
93.3 Career finishing rate percentage for Peter Sobotta, who has scored 14 of his 15 wins by stoppage
83.3 Percentage of takedowns defended by Sobotta during his UFC career
43 Age of Anthony Perosh, making him the oldest fighter on the UFC 193 card
100 Career finishing rate percentage for Perosh, who has scored all of his 15 wins by stoppage
298 Significant strikes landed by Gian Villante in UFC competition
5.81 Significant strikes absorbed per minute by Villante, among the highest in the UFC light heavyweight division
90 Career finishing rate percentage for Richie Vaculik, who has scored nine of his ten wins by stoppage
5 Wins by rear-naked choke for Vaculik, who has six submission wins in his career
3 Consecutive losses for Danny Martinez, who finds himself in a must-win situation
0 Number of times Martinez has been finished in his career as his seven losses have all been by decision
4 Number of times Dan Kelly competed in the Olympics, representing Australia in judo
5 Inches of reach advantage Steve Montgomery will have over Dan Kelly
2 Consecutive losses for Richard Walsh, who likely finds himself in a win-or-be-cut fight
22 Professional wins for Steve Kennedy, who seeks his first UFC win
80 Takedowns defended percentage rate for James Moontasri during his UFC tenure
8 Days notice for Anton Zafir in making his UFC debut as an injury replacement
7 Consecutive wins for Ben Nguyen, who won his UFC debut in May
100 Career finishing percentage rate for Ryan Benoit, who has scored his eight wins by stoppage (7 by KO/TKO, 1 by submission)
