Armchair Matchmaker - UFC 127

Another event down, more fights to line up. Overall, it was a pretty solid card. Some pretty big upsets (Siver, Ebersole, Hunt) made things interesting, though no one likes to see a draw, especially in a main event. Anyways, onto the matchups

Cut List - Jason Reinhardt, Tom Blackledge, Chris Tuchscherer

Fights to make

Jon Fitch vs the winner of Diego Sanchez v Martin Kampmann
No, I don't want to see an immeadiate rematch with BJ Penn. Fitch struggled with BJ for two rounds before beating the shit out of him in the third. I had the fight scored as a draw (BJ takes the first two rounds, Fitch takes the last round 10-8), and I don't really think the fight drops either fighters stocks at all. In a fight against either Sanchez (who he holds a close win over) or Kampmann, Fitch gets a chance to cement his status at the top of the weight list and try again to get a shot at the title. With St Pierre potentially giving up the belt in order to move to middleweight, Fitch could fins himself the top contender with one more win.



BJ Penn vs the loser of Georges St Pierre v Jake Shields
BJ, while looking solid through the first two rounds, was clearly gassed in the third, and got battered by Fitch for the full five minutes. If he wants to stay at welterweight, a fight with the loser of the upcoming title fight would be interesting. Obviously Penn has history with St Pierre, but a fight against another really good ju jitsu guy in Shields would also be interesting. That being said, I feel Penn belongs at lightweight, and should move back down.

Michael Bisping vs the winner of Nate Marquardt vs Yoshihiro Akiyama
Bisping didn't show a whole lot of class in his TKO win over Jorge Rivera, hitting him with a clear illegal knee in the first round and then taunting him after he won. I'm not alone in wanting to see Bisping get smashed, and if Marquardt gets past Akiyama, he's certainly the type of fighter that could do that. In the case that Akiyama wins, a rematch between the two would also be interesting.

Jorge Rivera vs Nick Ring
Rivera wasn't the same after getting hit with an illegal knee in his fight against Michael Bisping, but he really wasn't winning the fight before that either. Rivera has shown that he simply isn't a serious contender in the UFC, but he's still exciting and provides a good test for up and coming middleweights. Ring got a gift decision over Fukuda, though the fight was very close. Ring showed lacking wrestling against Fukuda, but that wouldn't be something he really has to worry about with Rivera. This fight would be a great test for Ring, and a chance for Rivera to regain some of his lost thunder.

George Sotiropoulous vs Ross Pearson
Sotiropoulous simply couldn't get Siver down to the ground, and it ended up costing him a decision. Meanwhile, Pearson used effective striking and wrestling to score a decision over Spencer Fisher. Pearson is a good rebound for Sotiropoulous: he's not as dangerous standing up (though he's not a bad striker), and he's likely more willing to go the ground. If Sotiropoulous can't get past Pearson, than he can't be considered a contender.

Dennis Siver vs Yves Edwards
Siver picked up the biggest win of his career, scoring an upset decision win over George Sotiropoulous. That being said, Siver still has room to grow, and a fight against Yves Edwards, who is 2-0 himself in his most recent stint in the UFC, offers him a chance to increase his win streak against a quality, though beatable opponent. The exact same goes for Edwards, who also needs a few more wins to become a serious contender. Neither guy will have to worry about the other taking them down, and it could lead to a KO of the night award going the victor's way.

Mark Hunt vs Pat Barry
Hunt picked up a upset of his own, knocking Chris Tuchscherer out in the fight and likely out of the UFC. He's still at the very bottom of the division, and is likely till fighting for his job. Against Pat Barry, he won't have to worry about going to ground: both these guys have professional kickboxing experience. Barry needs a more exciting win after edging Joey Beltran, and Hunt would likely lose any fight against a fighter with any sort of ground game. This gives Hunt a chance to stand and trade, and a chance for Barry to show of his skills. I don't think Hunt will win, but I can't think of anyone on the UFC's roster that Hunt would be a favorite over.

Alex Gustafsson vs Kyle Kingsbury
Gustafsson picked up another first round finish, choking out James Te Huna and making it look easy. A fight with Kingsbury, another light heavyweight on the rise, moves one of the two into contender status, and should result in an exciting fight. Both these guys need a step up in competition, and this fight provides that.

Anthony Perosh vs Stephan Bonnar
Perosh picked up his first UFC win in four tries, easily choking out Tom Blackledge. Perosh, much like Mark Hunt, is at the bottom of the UFC's light heavyweight ranks, and at 37 he's no spring chicken. A fight against Stephan Bonnar would net him TV time (likely on a free fight night show) and a chance to add a huge win to his record. For Bonnar, it gives him a fight in which he would be a heavy favorite, and a chance to work his way up into bigger fights (Stephan Bonnar is pretty much unanimously awesome, and pretty much everyone wants to see this guy win). Is Perosh likely to win? No, but there's no point in trying to bring him up, so he may as well take the biggest fights he can.

James Te Huna vs Tim Boetsch
Te Huna did not look good in his first round loss, and needs to bounce back with an impressive win. Boetsch is also in need a win coming off a submission loss to Phil Davis. Neither of these guys are likely to ever become contenders, so they may as well fight to see which one can stay in the UFC as a gatekeeper, and which one has to go back to the regional circuit.

Riki Fukuda vs Alexandre Ferreira
I, along with Joe Rogan, feel Fukuda had earned a decision over Nick Ring. The judges saw it diffrently, and now he's stuck with a loss. Ferreira, who was set to face Rousamir Palhares, is also in need a of a win after dropping his UFC debut to Vlad Matyushenko. Fukuda gets a second chance against an opponent who did not look good in his debut, and the loser of this fight is likely to be cut.

Kyle Noke vs Maiquel Falcao
Noke looked impressive in submitting Chris Camozzi in the first round. A fight against Falcao, who defeated Gerald Harris in his debut and was set to fight Alessio Sakara before he got injured, represents a step up in competiton and a chance for the winner to become a real contender in the muddy middleweight division. The two guys also have a bunch of finishes between them, so the fight isn't likely to go to decision.

Chris Camozzi vs Jesse Bongfeldt
Both these guys are looking to rebound, as Camozzi hopes to get back on the winning track after being subbed by Kyle Noke and Bongfeldt looks for his first UFC win after going to a draw with Rafeal Natal. Neither of these guys are close to contender status, and these are the kind of fights that prove who belongs in the UFC, and who simply doesn't. 

Brian Ebersole vs Carlos Condit
Condit was orginially slated to face Chris Lytle on this card, before he got injured. With Ebersole upsetting Lytle, he can move up to face Condit in his place, and get the chance to quickly become a contender in a division that may soon need a new champion. Condit is a dangerous fighter, and Ebersole would definitly be the underdog, but he proved against Lytle that being the underdog doesn't mean being the loser.

Chris Lytle vs Johny Hendricks
Chris Lytle's dreams of fighting for the title are likely gone with that loss to Ebersole, so he can return to his previous role: high level gatekeeper. Hendricks lost his last fight to Rick Story, but he's still a solid prospect and Lytle represents a hard test for him. Could Lytle win? Definitly. Could Hendricks win? Also a strong possibility. Lytle is always an exciting fighter (just look at his Fight of the Night bonuses) and this could either be a good showcase for Hendricks, or a chance for Lytle to get back to winning.

Spencer Fisher vs Terry Etim
Remember when Fisher was one of the top contenders at lightweight? Oh how the times have changed. With another loss, Fisher could be cut, and Etim is no can. Etim is coming off a loss to Rafael dos Anjos, and hasn't fought in more than a year. This could be a solid addition to a UK card, and gives Fisher another chance to bounce back and show he still belongs in the UFC.

Tiequan Zhang vs the winner of Alex Caceras v Mackens Semerzier
Zhang easily dispatched Jason Reinhardt in under a minute, but that had to be expected. He's a solid prospect, but needs time to grow. A fight against the winner of Caceras v Semerzier provides a both a step up in competiton (granted, fighting a punching bag would be a step up over Reinhardt) and a beatable opponent. Zhang has shown that he has skills and can be exciting, but his loss to Danny Downes also proved he needs to work on his wrestling. Here's hoping he improves and continues to grow as a fighter.

Curt Warburton vs Joe Lauzon
I'll be honest, I didn't watch Warburton vs Jewtuszko. I'm not sure if anyone did. Warburton won a decision, but doesn't seem to be anything special. Have him fight Lauzon, almost certainly lose, and then send him back to the UK regional circuit. If he manages to win, then we can talk about grooming him to be a contender.

Maciej Jewtuszko vs Cody Mckenzie
Jewtuszko was one of the most highly regarded european prospects coming into his UFC debut, but faltered in his fight against Warburton. A fight with McKenzie provides a second chance to show of his striking skills, while providing a beatable opponent for McKenzie to guillotine.

Jason Reinhardt vs the canned soup aisle at the grocery store
Jason Reinhardt goes to battle against his oldest rival: Campell's Chicken Noodle. Reinhardt likes his opponents like he likes his women: unable to put up a fight. With his UFC loss, it's time for Reinhardt to go back to his day job as an Oompa Loompa.

I had to get a few more jokes in. Had to.