Can Someone Tell Me Why ?

Can Someone Tell Me Why ?

The biggest mistake an athlete can make is to carry on long after the height of their athletic abilities . Far too often we’ve seen athletes such as Muhammad Ali, Brett Favre and now mixed martial artist Randy Couture . Seemingly,carry on as if , they’re still at the height of their athletic prowess.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (left) and Randy Couture (right) mix it up at UFC 102 . Nogueira would go on to defeat Couture with a unanimous decision in the title elimination bout. The winner has a lucrative title matchup against the UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. A date has yet to be scheduled for the highly anticipated bout. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/ Mark Jasper ......................

We’ve seen Favre come back for the umpteenth time , well at least it appears that way ! Ali, as we know came back for that one or shall we say that four or five fights too many ? Unfortunately for the man, himself , he’s no longer the athlete that so many of came to love and grew up watching.. He’s seemingly a broken and irreparably damaged individual, not only physically but also mentally. Now a sufferer of Parkinson’s disease , Ali lives within a shell , and a silent world where he can neither speak or communicate with anyone with any semblance of normalcy.

Nogueira lands a left hook to the side of the head of Couture in their title elimination bout at UFC 102 held at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland Oregon this past Saturday night. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Jon Kopaloff .....................

Favre , for all of his misgivings and the belief that he can come back and lead the Minnesota Vikings to a title. It has to be said that his failings as a player were all too prominent last season in his tenure, with the New York Jets . Not only as a player but as a leader by example. If there’s one thing that has been abundantly clear as to Favre’s demeanor as a player in his latter years in the NFL, as a teammate. It has been the fact that it has to be about him and being center stage, as the turmoil unfolds. If you doubt my view then here’s an actual quote from the player, himself. ” I don’t have to be a teammate or teach anyone anything !” If you can guess that Favre was actually stating this about his then teammate , Aaron Rodgers.As the then rookie, had been drafted by the Green Bay Packers. Then you can understand the reservations that may now well be , being felt within the Vikings’ camp at present. On the outside everything may well seem rosy. But then again what’s a schism amongst friends ?

On Saturday night at UFC 102 , Randy Couture , the grand-daddy of the UFC veterans now still competing in the octagon. ‘The Natural’ ,as he’s come to be known showed for all sense and purpose that his best years are indeed most definitely behind him. Much like Muhammad Ali , who’d returned to the ring to have those five fights too many. Therein ,he became the punch bag for fighters who in his prime he’d have destroyed within the blink of an eye. But that was then and this about the here and now. It’s not about what you did then but what have you done lately ? And for Couture his last few fights have been absolutely nothing to write home about. He’s suffered the ignominy of having been beaten by fighters who in many respects aren’t as experienced . But their main advantage was the presence of youth and in many respects Couture as a practitioner is now said to be on the downside of an illustrious career. Where in reality, it’s no longer a young man’s game.

His opponent on Saturday night, in the none title eliminator was Brazilian ju-jitsu expert Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira . Thirteen years younger than the veteran Couture , 46. Nogueira totally dominated the bout from start to finish. It was an emphatic and decisive win for the Brazilian. And it was understandable that all three judges decided in Nogueira’s favor. Not at anytime, in this headlined event, was Couture able to anything worthwhile inside the octagon. And if anything , it was quite embarrassing having to watch Couture try and even take down his much younger opponent. As I’d alluded to earlier, this is in every way a young man’s sport. And for all of the expertize that Couture is said to have. It was a totally lacking and embarrassing effort on his part. It’s hard to see where he can now go from here.

UFC , for all of the hype behind it . It’s now at a crossroads in terms of real visibility and credibility. Its heavyweight champion, in Brock Lesnar , while being a dominant physical specimen. He is by no means the best practitioner within the heavyweight division, given the various faceted organizations within MMA genre. But until we actually see Lesnar face off against Russia’s Fedor Emelianenko . We’ll continue to see a great deal of hype placed around Lesnar , as to the alleged belief that he’s the best of the best within the heavyweight division.As to an anticipated defense of his title against Noguiera. UFC Chairman , Dana White , has started the ball rolling in that endeavor. However ,if anything , it is hoped that particular event will be a great deal more entertaining than the main bout that took place at UFC 102 between Nogueira and Couture.

Randy Couture has parlayed his success into several entrepreneurial endeavors. From a clothing line , bearing his name. To several small roles on tv and on film within Hollywood. And with a burgeoning gym establishment where he’s taking on young aspiring talent within his stable and training them in the art of the genre of MMA. It is hoped that he’ll finally walk away from the sport with his head held high ,that he once graced so successfully. If nothing else , that’s how a lot of his more erstwhile fans would like to see him bow out. Rather than under the impediment of having to be either dragged out kicking and screaming.
Or quite possibly not under his own steam but on a gurney, physically unable to perform and actually not knowing where or who he actually is.

Ali (left) seen here facing onetime sparring partner Larry Holmes in their much lauded bout. It would prove to be the penultimate fight of Ali's career. He lost in a unanimous decision to Larry Holmes. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ archives/ Lou Parrello .....................

Having seen that sort of situation befall Muhammad Ali. I’d like to think Couture and others of that ilk would know when it is indeed “….. time to call it quits. “ But then again, there are those among us who’d rather see our heroes go out battling with that do or die attitude. That tends to work for those who actually have some semblance of knowing what it is that they’re doing. Not so , I think now, in the case of Couture of Favre and for that matter, Ali. Great as they once were, there came a time when in reality they had in-fact made that one unnecessary journey too many. And in the end it came back to haunt them in one way or another. Certainly that was the case for Couture on Saturday night. And it was most definitely the case for Ali , in the several bouts that he took after having regained the heavyweight title for then an unprecedented third time.

Brett Favre (background) alongside teammate Tavaris Jackson (foreground) seen here at the Vikings' training camp in Eden Priarie , Minnesota. Favre hopes to lead the Vikings to the Superbowl in the 2009-10 season. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo/Star Ledger/ Elizabeth Flores ...................

In the case of Favre , he’ll be contending with his own ego and pride. And if anything we’ll see how he’ll fare this upcoming season with the Minnesota Vikings. One thing for is for sure however. There can be no excuses made on his behalf should everything implode. Declining skills and the mere fact that as a team the Vikings are merely considering the hear and now as to their immediacy of their ambitions. It can only lead but to one scenario , should things not meet the fans’ expectations.

So can someone tell me why it is that we have to witness this all , as to the ego driven athlete who doesn’t know when to call time ?

Thoughts, Predictions For UFC 101

Coming off an incredible night at UFC 100, Dana White and company are riding a great wave. The popularity of Mixed Martial Arts is growing by the minute, and the great show that was UFC 100 only helped that. There was a lot of hype surrounding that event, and the fights generally lived up to their billing. Now, the UFC will once again have to live up to big expectations with UFC 101: Declaration. Here are my thoughts on the event as well as my predictions for the main event (B.J. Penn vs. Kenny Florian) and co-main event of the evening (Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin):

>> This is the first major MMA event to be held in the city of Philadelphia, and it will be interesting to see how Philly fans take to MMA. Philly is one of the best sports cities in the world, with some of the greatest fans to boot. The UFC continues to go to new venues in order to expand the brand, and going to a great place such as Philly is a wonderful idea. The amount of coverage so far has been remarkable, as both major newspapers in the city (The Inquirer and The Chronicle) have been all over the event. Fans at the weigh-ins today seemed to be extremely excited to see a UFC event hit their town.

>> B.J. Penn can stop talking now. Penn, who has been criticized for his conditioning and commitment to the sport, had something very interesting to say about Georges St. Pierre, who defeated Penn for the welterweight championship at UFC 94. Penn, speaking to Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, said that he thinks St. Pierre is on steroids. “It’s just my opinion that he uses steroids,” Penn said. “That’s it. My opinion. I do believe it. I can’t hand you any proof, but that’s my opinion.”

But he didn’t stop there: “In my opinion, he doesn’t play by the rules when it comes to steroids and growth hormones and that stuff. Look at him. He’s the worst. He looks like that every day. That’s cheating. There is a reason why there are rules against using steroids. The rest of us, we get fat, then we train and get skinny and the cycle goes over and over again. He looks the same way all the time. Come on.”

His comments created a firestorm all over the internets, and rightfully so. In an era where steroids have become the black eye of sports, every allegation is taken seriously. Whether the allegation is true or false sometimes does not matter — just ask Barry Bonds. For Penn to come out and say that he believes GSP is on ‘roids is unfair. And if you are going to make those allegations, you better have some proof, which Penn said he did not. Is jealousy a factor? Maybe. Penn has lost to GSP in both of their fights, the latter of which was a four-round pounding from GSP.

As for Penn’s reasoning — that GSP looks the same all the time — maybe it’s because he, you know, works out all the time. Could it possibly be that he is extremely motivated and dedicated to the sport of MMA?

Moreover, why is Penn talking about GSP in the first place? The comments were made on Wednesday, just three days before his fight with Kenny Florian. Instead of completely focusing on the fight, he’s off blabbing about GSP. B.J., stop talking and focus on your fight.

>> Florian has been on fire, and he knows it: Since losing to Sean Sherk at UFC 64, Florian has won his last six fight over a span of two years. The nature of his victories during the streak have been impressive, as he won by submission via rear naked choke three times, submission via TKO (technical knockout) once, submission via strikes once and a unanimous decision. His fight with Penn will be the toughest of his career, but there’s probably no better time for Florian to face him than right now. During the win streak, he has been extremely cocky and confident. When he interviewed for Countdown to UFC 101, Florian came off as a guy who isn’t even bordering on overconfident — he’s past that at this point. He fully believes he will defeat Penn, and he is letting everyone know about it. Confidence is never a bad thing, but he may be too confident.

>> Forrest Griffin is the ultimate underdog. Going into this fight, no one is giving Griffin a chance against Anderson Silva. While Griffin is a very good fighter, it would seem that he doesn’t have much of a chance against arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world in Silva. Griffin probably doesn’t mind being the underdog though. When he fought Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, he wasn’t given a chance. Griffin proved everyone wrong by submitting Rua via rear naked choke late in the third round. Against Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, people were practically handing Jackson the belt before the fight. That didn’t happen, though, as Griffin won in a unanimous decision.

>> Finally, Anderson Silva has a challenge. Silva has completely cleaned out the middleweight division, to the point that there is no one in the division who even deserves to step into the Octagon with him. He is, in my opinion, the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and the middleweight division is too easy for him. His last two fights, against Patrick Cote and Thales Leites, were clunkers, as Silva wasn’t as aggressive as usual and never went for the knockout. He appeared to be bored during both fights, and it is hard to blame him for that. He needs a real challenge, and Griffin will present that. For the second time in his career, Silva is moving up to light heavyweight. He had no trouble whatsoever in his first fight, knocking out James Irvin in the first round. It won’t be so easy against Griffin.

Now, here are my predictions:

>> Forrest Griffin vs. Anderson Silva: Griffin is a fomer light heavyweight champion and knows what takes to win in this division. Though he has lost 5 times in his career, he is one of the best fighters in the world who is neve afraid to take a challenge. He’s going to step in and fight with Silva, rather than run away and lay on his back like Cote and Alves did. Griffin is an excellent brawler and will use those skills against Silva. He’s a very strong guy, which he will also try to use to his advantage. Silva, meanwhile, has vicious striking ability and will certainly want to keep the fight standing up. He will have no choice but to be aggressive against Griffin, which is why UFC president Dana White decided to make this fight happen. Silva’s muay-thai skills are flat-out incredible, and Griffin will not want to get in the clinch on Saturday night. Just ask Rich Franklin how about Silva’s muay-thai skills. What a fight this should be. Prediction: Silva wins in a third-round TKO.

>> Lightweight Title Fight — Kenny Florian vs. Champion B.J. Penn: Penn has worked extremely hard to get into the best shape of his life for this fight. His work with physical trainer Mark Marinovich should pay dividends, especially if this fight goes past the third round, which I think it will. After getting gassed against St. Pierre, it appears that Penn has realized that he needs to be in tip-top shape in order to win fights. Florian greatly improved as a fighter over the course of his career, as evidenced by his six-fight win streak. He has become very good at submitting opponents, and as he has said, he can “finish fights.” If this fights goes to the ground — which it likely will — it will be very intersting to see whose ground skills prevail. This is a fight that will be nice to see, because Penn will be in his element at 155 pounds. He is a very strong fighter at this weight, his strength doesn’t translate to the welterweight division.  Watching him take on the No.1 contender in Florian will be a treat. Prediction: Penn wins in fifth-round submission.

Lesnar’s Classless Celebration Was Unacceptable

Broke Lesnar is talented, there’s no denying that. With his second round technical knockout (TKO) of Frank Mir to retain the heavyweight championship belt on Saturday, Lesnar showed just how good he is — and how much potential he has in the UFC octagon.

Lesnar, using his incredible strength, took Mir to the ground easily, and landed numerous elbows and punches that left Mir’s right cheek bloody and swelling at the conclusion of the first round.  Mir, who had defeated Lesnar in their first non-title fight less than a year ago, looked helpless in this fight. In their first meeting, Lesnar mostly dominated until he left his leg unguarded — Mir capitalized and submitted him with a knee bar. Lesnar had no trouble with Mir in Saturday night’s fight, however, as once again took Mir to the ground in the second round. He reeled off a string of 14 consecutive punches, forcing referee Herb Dean to stop the fight.

Lesnar had won by a TKO, but the real excitement of the night came immediately after the fight. Once Dean stopped the fight, Lesnar yelled at Mir, “talk all the [expletive] you want now.” See, Lesnar and Mir had been engaging a good amount of trash-talking leading up to the fight. Mir was mostly the instigator, and it clearly frustrated Lesnar. When Lesnar barked at Mir, Mir looked ready for another fight — as did Lesnar — but security guards and members of their respective camps held them off. Because of his remarkably confident and cocky attitude, fans in attendance already did not like Lesnar. The fact that he was trying to anger Mir, a Las Vegas-native, caused them to boo Lesnar incessantly. Lesnar, who was as fired up as could be, decided to give the entire crowd the middle finger.

To cap it all off, Lesnar gave a post-fight interview for the ages with UFC analyst Joe Rogan. About the antics of the crowd, Lesnar said: “I love it, I love it, Keep going, keep going.” This, of course, only made the crowd boo louder.

The reason why he was so fired up after the fight: “Frank Mir had a horseshoe up his [butt] , I told him that a year ago, and I pulled that son of a [expletive] out and I beat him over the head with it.” All of the trash-talking truly had gotten to him, and it was as clear as ever based on those comments.

On his plans for the rest of the night: “I’m gonna go home tonight and I’m gonna drink a Coors Light, that’s a Coors Light, because Bud Light wont pay me nothing.” Bud Light is a sponsor of the UFC, and UFC president Dana White — and Bud Light, for that matter — surely wasn’t happy with that comment.

And to finish it all of: “Im gonna sit down with my friends and family and hell I might even get on top of my wife tonight.” The fight was on pay-per-view, yes, but it was an inappropriate comment nonetheless.

Lesnar’s behavior was rude, classless and unacceptable behavior from a UFC champion. One of the great aspects of the sport of of mixed martial arts is the incredible amount of respect fighters show for each other. Sure, there have been numerous feuds in the sport, but the fighters have usually found a enough respect for each other to shake hands after pummeling each other for however long. For Lesnar, however, respecting an opponent is not an option. He has repeatedly stated that he has no respect for anyone he fights. As a result, his antics Saturday night were not surprising, but they were disturbing.

This was UFC 100, quite possibly the biggest night in the company’s 16-year history. Many great fighters of the past, including pioneer Royce Gracie, were in attendance. Of all the night’s to show no class, this was not the night. With all of the hype surrounding the fights, many new mainstream viewers were going to tune it to watch the UFC for the first time. If they had a bad perception of the sp0rt, fans minds likely weren’t changed after watching Lesnar. If fans thought that it was a blood-bath sport with fighters who had bad tempers, Lesnar fit right into that idea. While every other fight was what MMA truly is about, Lesnar vs. Mir was the main event, and Lesnar should have known better.

After the fight ended, all Lesnar should have done was shake hands with Mir, answer all of Rogan’s questions, conduct his post-fight press conference and leave the Mandalay Bay Events Center. While he did do the latter two in a nice manner, the former two went a little bit differently, and not in a good way. Lesnar had decisively won the fight — he took absolutely no punishment from Mir. At no point in the fight did you get the feeling that Mir had a chance to win. Because it was such a seemingly easy victory Lesnar, he should have been gracious and acted like a professional. He was anything but a pro on Saturday night.

For his part, Lesnar did use the post-fight press conference to apologize for his antics. “Well, first and foremost, I want to apologize,” he said. “I acted very unprofessionally after the fight and I’ll leave it at that.”

He also apologized to one of the UFC’s biggest sponsors: “I apologize to Bud Light. I’m not biased — I drink any beer –and tonight I’m drinking Bud Light all night.”

White surely was not pleased with how everything went down after the fight, and Lesnar discussed what was said between himself and White afterwards, and he also gave his final apology. “Dana came back and we had a ‘whip the dog’ session, and I screwed up and I apologize. The only thing I had against Frank was that he beat me. We both talked a lot of crap, and in the end I was just amped up.”

Sorry, Brock, but being “amped up” is not a good enough excuse. Ones temper can always rear its’ ugly head, but on a stage like UFC 100, Lesnar had to know how to contain himself. Lesnar could learn a thing or two from welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, who is always gracious and classy after fights. Did we see St. Pierre yelling obscenities at Mir? Absolutely not. Did we see Lesnar giving the crowd the middle finger? No way. What we did see, however, was St. Pierre shaking Thiago Alves’ hand, giving him a bow and praising him in the post-fight interview. Lesnar needs to realize that St. Pierre is a perfect example of how a fighter should conduct himself. Lesnar, however, has no filter. He doesn’t seem to realize that what he is doing is way out of bounds until after the fact. That quickly needs to change.

While Lesnar’s antics did get everyone talking, that is certainly not how White and co-owners Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta want to sell the UFC.

Lesnar alluded to the fact that he is “used to selling PPV tickets” and that he “come[s] from a business that is purely entertainment.” Lesnar is referring to his former employer, the WWE. That is a business based on fake wrestling, ridiculous storylines, and as Lesnar said, entertainment. MMA and the UFC are not the same thing as WWE. The UFC sells incredible athletes with an extraordinary ability to use different fighting styles and techniques. They also sell fighters who show class both after wins and losses. Lesnar is one of the most remarkable athletes on the planet, but no one seems to be talking about that. Instead, people are discussing what happened after the fight. He needs to understand that his boss in no longer WWE’s Vince McMahon.

Lesnar’s actions Saturday night were flat-out classless. When he doesn’t display his temper, he actually has a fun personality. With that, and his fighting ability, he has a chance to propel the UFC to even greater heights. He needs to take the time to realize his mistakes, and come out in his next fight a better, more mature man. Anything less is unacceptable.

Thoughts, Predictions for UFC 100

The biggest event in MMA history is here. The Ultimate Fighting Championship has held 99 events in its history, and now it’s time for the biggest of them all: UFC 100. What makes this event so big? Well, there will be two title fights and a match being two fighters who hate each other. Moreover, the mainstream media is finally starting to notice how just amazing mixed martial arts really is. UFC 100 — being held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas — is sure to be an incredible night of fights. Since we are just a day away from seeing how it all unfolds, here are my thoughts on the state of the UFC, what’s next for the UFC, and of course my predictions for tomorrow’s fights:

>> None of the success of UFC could be possible without the remarkable job that has been done by Dana White. White, the oft-criticized president of the UFC, has elevated the UFC into a billion dollar company and put it on the map. Before White and co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta entered the picture beginning with UFC 30, this sport was a grassroots fascination. Not many people even knew what the UFC, or MMA for that matter, was. In fact, most states did not regulate MMA at the time.

White used his excellent business sense to turn the UFC into what it is today. And despite the fact that many people don’t like him voicing his opinions, it’s what has made him — and the sport — so popular. MMAs key demographic is males 18-34, and hearing White use poor language on not be afraid to say whatever comes to his mind. While he is sometimes is out of control in what he says, he is always entertaining. Commissioners of leagues like the NBA, NFL and MLB are always politically correct, and it’s nice to have a change of pace with White. White isn’t afraid to smile when a fighter he doesn’t like gets beat up, but that’s what makes him Dana White.

With the company’s development, some of have begun to question whether White can get the UFC to reach its full potential. Anyone who doubts White is crazy. Without White, we would not be a day away from UFC 100. To be able to sell out arenas all over the world ever month is an incredible accomplishment considering where the UFC was when White took over, and it’s hard not to believe that he will continue to improve the company.

>> Credit also must be given to the sports’ original stars, most notably Royce Gracie. Gracie introduced the world to Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, and he revolutionized the way fighters went about fighting in MMA. No one had the submission skills of Gracie, and he forced fighters to vere away from simply kickboxing, and learning more skills. Gracie was truly a mixed martial artist. He paved the way for the stars we know and love today.

>> Because this is an historic landmark, many UFC fans have been reliving their favorite memories. They’ve also been discussing the best fighter in UFC history. Randy “The Natural” Couture gets my vote. Just like his nickname states, he was a natural at MMA. He wasn’t necessarily the strongest guy in the octagon, but he was usually the best. If you were to go through the biggest moments in UFC history, Couture’s fights would be littered all over them. His fights with Chuck Liddell were the stuff of legend. What sets Couture apart is that he could be you in so many different ways. Also a factor is his longevity. Couture just recently stopped fighting, and there’s no guarantee that he is done. He fought well into his 40s, and every time people thought he was done, he would come back and surprise everyone with a knockout or submission. Finally, he’s one of the most like-able guys in the sport, and his personality makes him a great ambassador for the UFC.

>> Couture’s biggest fights came against Liddell, and Liddell is one of the greatest in his own right. No one has ever had the one-shot striking power of Liddell. He has the ability to knock an opponent out from any position, which is what makes him so lethal. Liddell was also the UFCs first cross-over star. He has appeared in numerous television shows and movies, making him a true celebrity. While I think that has hurt his fighting in some ways lately, I also believe that his popularity has helped the UFC grow immensely. People have seen him on shows, he’s promoted the UFC, and people have in turned watched because of him.

>> What about the UFCs competitors? Day-by-day, we get closer to the UFC being the only MMA brand around. When the UFC bought out PRIDE, most of the competition was elimated. Companies such as WEC and Affliction are still going, but they simply don’t have the talent pool that the UFC does. Fedor Emelianenko of Affliction is one of the best heavyweights in the world, but not many people get to see him because they only watch the UFC. Emelianenko is the really the only great fighter in the world currently not in the UFC. It likely kills White that he can’t have Emelianeko in the UFC, but it looks like he could be getting closer to landing Emelianenko. Elite XC was around for a short-stint, and actually got a four-card deal with CBS. While it was mostly a disaster, it was a big step for MMA to be on free television. Competition is never a bad thing, and all it does is force to the UFC to continue to put on blockbuster shows that will keep everyone watching.

>> What’s next for the UFC? It’s hard to top a card like 100, but the UFC is certainly going to try in the coming months and years. The next big hurdle for White will be to try and get MMA regulated in more states and countries. The big battle right now is in New York. If White is able to get MMA regulated in New York, the sport’s popularity will only continue to rise.

The fight that all UFC fans want to see in 2010 is Anderson Silva vs. Georges St. Pierre. We may be close to seeing the happen, as White has continually stated that there is a good chance of that fighting taking place. As long as the two keep winning, these two should be fighting against each other next year. They are arguably the two best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, and this would be a mega-fight that could bring the UFC even more attention and popularity.

Predictions

>>Will this card receive the most PPV buys in UFC history and generate the most money? Yes.

>> Dan Henderson vs. Michael Bisping: The two Ultimate Fighter coaches will square off in a middleweight fight that is sure to be explosive. These two don’t like each other one bit, and it will be interesting to see how that plays out in the octagon. Both have the ability to fight standing-up and on the ground, as Henderson packs a strong punch and has a wrestling background, while Bisping is solid at kickboxing and Muay-Thai. If this fight goes all three round, Bisping may have the advantage, considering he is eight years Henderson’s junior. Despite his age, however, Henderson can still fight with the best of them. Prediction: Henderson wins in a second-round knockout.

>> Welterweight Title Fight — Georges St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves: St. Pierre is arguably the best fighter in the world. He seems to get better and better with each fight, and his superior athleticism is something he always uses to his advantage. Also, his game-plans are always excellent. Having said that, he will have his work cut out for him against Alves. Alves is the top contender in this weight class for a reason, and he has the ability to beat St. Pierre. He’s won his last seven fights, including an impressive win over legend Matt Hughes at UFC 85. St. Pierre, though, is too talented and too motivated to lose this fight. Alves will hang around for a while, but St. Pierre will ultimately be too much to handle. Prediction: St. Pierre wins in a third-round submission.

>> Heavyweight Title Fight — Interim Champion Frank Mir vs. Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar: The rematch is finally in here. In just Lesnar’s second fight in the UFC, he lost to Mir. Lesnar was just getting his feet wet in the sport, however, and he’s since improved dramatically. Mir is no slouch, as he is the interim champion (though Lesnar has called that title a “joke.”) They have done their fair share of trash talking leading up to this fight, but that shouldn’t be a factor. What will be a factor is how much Lesnar has learned since losing to Mir, and how much Mir respects Lesnar’s game. If Mir thinks he can defeat Lesnar just like he did in their first match, he could be in for a bad night. Mir will want to keep this fight on the ground, though Lesnar has improved his ground game. Mir is excellent at submitting opponents and Lesnar isn’t great on the ground, yet. Lesnar is excellent standing up, and he may show some new skills on the ground. Prediction: Lesnar wins in a fourth-round knockout.