Breakdown UFC Fight Night

Breakdown UFC Fight Night

Johnson VS Bader

 

            UFC Fight Night, Johnson VS Bader takes place Jan 30, 2016 at Prudential Center Newark, New Jersey. The action starts at 3:30PM ET with Prelims streaming on UFC Fight Pass. Then Fox Sports One begins airing live prelims at 5PM ET and switch it over to Fox for the main card at 8:00PM.

            The Main Event matches #2 Light Heavyweight Anthony Johnson and #4 LHW Ryan Bader. Thirty-one year old Johnson is 20-5 with 14 Knock Outs to date. He comes fresh from one of those KO wins over Jimi Manuwa (9/5/15). Of Johnson’s five losses, four were by way of Rear Naked Choke Submission. He last fell victim to the hold versus LHW Champ Daniel Cormier at UFC 187 (May 23, 2015) in the third round at 2:39. Prior to the loss “Rumble” racked up a nine fight win streak, with six by KO.  

            Ryan “Darth” Bader is 20-4, with five straight, decision wins (he has 10 in career). In 2015 he earned a Unanimous Decision over Rashad Evans, in October and a Split Decision win over Phil Davis in January. Bader was a three time Pac 10 Champion and two time All American wrestler at Arizona State University. He has yet to finish by RNC, but does have 4 Sub wins. Of Bader’s four losses, two have been by Sub and two by KO. In Sept of 2013, Glover Teixeira TKO’d “Darth” at 2:55 of the first round and in Aug of 2012 Lyoto Machida ended his night at 1:32 of the second. Bader also credits six of his wins to KO.

Two Veteran Heavyweights in the Top 10 Do Battle

          Josh Barnett, the #8 ranked UFC HW takes on the #7 ranked HW, Ben Rothwell to move up the Heavyweight ladder. With over forty Pro MMA fights, Barnett has fought for all the big promotions: Pride, Strikeforce, Dream, K-1, Pancrase and this is sixth fight in the UFC. His first fight dates back to 1/11/1997, before fellow main card competitor, Sage Northcutt celebrated his first birthday. In nearly twenty years “The Warmaster” has faced the sports best, early fighters like Dan Severn and Pedro Rizzo to more current names like Travis Browne and Roy Nelson. The Catch-wrestler’s last fight was a UD win over Nelson at Fight Night 75 (9/26/15). The Thirty-eight year old is 34-7 with 20 Sub wins and 8 by KO.

The 6’4” Rothwell owns a similar record at 35-9, but he has 20 wins by KO and 12 by Sub. He is currently riding a three fight win streak, putting those finishing skills to task: Sub over Matt Mitrione by Guillotine last June (1^st 1:54), first round KO of Alistair Overeem (2:19) 9/5/14, and TKO over Brandon Vera in the third (1:54) in August of 2013. Rothwell’s career began 1/6/01 with a 0:21 TKO.

Jersey Native VS #14 BW

            Ramsey, New Jersey’s own Jimmie “El Terror” Rivera steps into the Octagon for the third time, opposite #14 Bantamweight Iuri Alcantara. Although he owns twelve wins by decision, before earning a SD over Pedro Munhoz 11/7/15, “El Terror” was causing just that, with three consecutive KO wins. In July he stopped Marcus Brimmage in the first 1:29 of the contest at UFC FN 72. Rivera looks to improve his 18-1 record.

Alcantara is 32-6-1 with 13 KO and 12 Sub wins to date. He is four of his last five, the stumble: UD loss to Frankie Saenz (2/22/15). “Marajo” recovered with a UD of his own over Leandro Issa (8/1/15).

“Super” Welterweight?

          Sage Northcutt takes his 7-0 (all stoppages 3 sub 4 KO) record to the Welterweight Division to face late replacement, Bryan Barberena. Northcutt packed six fights into 2015 (2 in UFC). Staying busy in 16, “Super” is back following his Dec 10^th Guillotine Sub over Cody Pfister, to make three fights in four months. All of this before his twentieth birthday, in March.

Barberena is 1-1 in the UFC. He lost his last time out against Chad Laprise by UD (4/25/15). On Dec 13, 2014 he made his UFC debut, KO’ing Joe Ellenberger (3^rd 3:24). The KO was the eighth of his career. His record is 10-3.

Breakdown: UFC FN Prelims

Breakdown: UFC FN Prelims

 

            Before the main card starts on Fox, Fox Sports 1 will air UFC Fight Night Prelims starting at 5PM ET. Fight Pass subscribers can view even more prelims, to start streaming at 3:30. The FS-1 card’s main event, between #11 Tarec Saffiedine and Jake Ellenberger, will take place in the Welterweight Division.

Saffiedine saw a five fight win streak come to an end in his last fight, a third round TKO by Rory MacDonald (10/4/14). The twenty-nine year old Belgian is 15-4 in his career with 5 wins by submission.

Jake “Juggernaut” Ellenberger is 30-10 with 18 KO, 6 Sub and 6 Dec wins. Ellenberger’s recent bouts have come against the WW division’s best and Jake has had a rough run, just 1-4 in his last five. At TUF Finale on July 12, 2015 he got caught by, two of “Wonderboy’s” spinning kicks. The second ended his night at 4:24 in the first round.

2 Lightweights, Each Have 6 Submission Wins       

          Olivier Aubin Mercier is 7-1, his only loss came at TUF Nations Finale VS Chad Laprise at 170 pounds. “The Quebec Kid” has won three since in LW division, including two Subs and most recently, Unanimous Decision over Tony Sims (8/23/15). He takes on Carlos Diego Ferreira (in the battle of three named men).

Ferreira is 2-2 in the UFC, his last two, the only losses of his career. Last April he was KO’d by Red Hot, Dustin Poirier (1^st 3:45). Prior to the losses he finished a pair of TUF Alumni: Ramsey Nijem by 2^nd round TKO (8/30/14) and Colton Smith by RNC in the first thirty-eight seconds of the fight (6/26/14).

Middleweights

            Rafael “Sapo” Natal is the #15 ranked MW in the UFC. He holds three straight, decision wins in the division: Uriah Hall SD 5/23/15, Tom Watson UD 1/31/15 and Chris Camozzi SD 9/5/14. The thirty-three year old is 20-6-1 and takes on Kevin Casey.

At 9-3-2 with 3 KO, 3 Sub and 3 Dec wins Casey’s Record is pretty balanced. His last fight ended by accidental eye poke VS Antonio Carlos Jr. in eleven seconds, last December. It’s also worth noting, Casey’s UFC 175 TKO win over Bubba Bush was later overturned by the Nevada Athletic Commission because a post-fight drug test came back positive for anabolic steroid: drostanolone (used in cutting phases by body builders).

Two Ranked Flyweights

            Dustin Ortiz is entering his seventh fight with the UFC, he is 4-2 so far. The #9’s last fight was a third round TKO over Willie Gates (2:58, 8/8/15). He takes on #12 Wilson Reis. Reis is 7-2 in his last 9 and 19-6 on his career with 9 Sub wins. The winner should advance up the rankings toward Flyweight Champion and #2 pound for pound, Demetrious Johnson.

This Weekend is Full of Free MMA

This Weekend is Full of Free MMA

 

            Both Friday night and Saturday night feature free televised MMA events. Friday Jan 29^th Bellator 148 will be aired live on Spike TV. The event takes place in the Save Mart Center in Fresno, Ca. The main event features 11-5 Andy “Stunner” Ulrich taking on Nottingham England’s own 37-13-2 Paul “Semtex” Daley. To read my Breakdown of the Main Card click here: http://fightpage.blogspot.com/2016/01/breakdown-bellator-148.html

 

Also on Friday

            Lion Fight 27 brings Muay Thai fighting to AXS TV at 10PM ET. The Main Event is for the Welterweight Championship, Champion Fabio Pinca looks to defend his belt against Challenger Charlie Peters.

            For UFC Fight Pass subscribers Victory Fighting Championship will air live from Baxter Arena, Omaha, NE. The Main event brings UFC Veteran 36-15-1 Josh Neer and 23-11 Anthony Smith. Not many other recognizable names on the card, but great opportunity for fans to pack away some I remember when this fighter… material.

Saturday Night

            The UFC takes over, first on Fox Sports 1 the Prelims to UFC Fight Night begin at 5PM ET. The main event: 15-4 Taric Saffiedine faces 30-10 Jake Ellenberger. Check the blog for Breakdown of FS-1 Prelims here:    http://fightpage.blogspot.com/2016/01/breakdown-ufc-fn-prelims.html

Then beginning at 8PM ET on Fox UFC Fight Night Johnson VS Bader airs. The Co-main event squares off to veteran fighters: 34-7 Josh Barnett and 35-9 Ben Rothwell. Also on the card is, recent Phenom “Super” Sage Northcutt. At 7-0 with 4 KO and 3 Submission finishes Northcutt hasn’t seen the third round yet. He takes on 10-3 Bryan Barderena.

The Main Event sees 20-5 Anthony “Rumble” Johnson VS 20-4 Ryan “Darth” Bader. For a full Breakdown of the main card please click here:   http://fightpage.blogspot.com/2016/01/breakdown-ufc-fight-night.html

Breakdown: Bellator 148

Breakdown: Bellator 148

 

            Bellator 148 takes place Friday Jan 29, 2016 at Save Mart Center in Fresno, Ca. The main event, in the Welterweight division, matches Paul “Semtex” Daley VS Andy “Stunner” Uhrich. If Daley’s name sounds familiar it’s because, in May of 2010 Daley was 2-0 in the UFC with two KO wins, and on the 8^th Daley fought Josh Koscheck. There was building animosity between the two going into the fight. Koscheck out-wrestled Daley for three rounds and after the final bell sounded Daley hit Koscheck with a cheap shot. Dana White said the late punch earned Semtex a lifetime ban from the promotion, forcing Daley to carve a career outside of the UFC.

The Nottingham England native is currently 37-13-2 with 27 Knock Outs. This is his third fight with Bellator, his last: a 2^nd round TKO (1:12) over Dennis Olson in July.

Andy Uhrich has been out of BFC for a while, following back to back losses to Nathan Coy (9/27/15) by Unanimous Decision and Ben Brewer (5/17/14) by KO at 2:40 of the second round. “Stunner” has rattled off 3 straight, his latest a Split Decision over Bobby Cooper at Titan FC 33 (3/20/15). Uhrich, who also fights at Lightweight, will benefit from a three inch height advantage and looking to improve on his 11-5 record.

Rematch from July 17, 2015

            Paul Bradley fights out of Alliance MMA in San Diego. The 5’9” Welterweight has a balanced record 22-6 with 7 KO 7 Sub and 8 Decision wins to date. His last win was a UD over Josh Neer at Bellator 129 (10/17/14). Bradley rematches Chris Honeycutt after an accidental head clash (2^nd round 2:47) caused a no contest awarded.

Chris “The Cutt” Honeycutt is 6-0-1 with 4 KO and 1 sub win. Prior to the No Contest with Bradley, “The Cutt” was 2-0 in Bellator, both by TKO. His last was over Clayton Macfarlane (3^rd 4:16).

Heavyweight Division

            At twenty-nine years old Tony Johnson is 9-2. The Nebraska native’s last fight ended as a SD win over Alexander Volkov (4/10/15). He also holds a win over Derrick Lewis and a TKO of former UFC HW Champ Tim Silvia. He takes on Raphael Butler.

Butler has finished all of his nine wins: six by KO and three Submissions. “The Silencer” has only been out of the first round twice: Richard White made it to the 2^nd before submitting to strikes (3/25/11), and Nick Rossborough fought to a draw (5/9/14). Most recently he stopped Josh Diekmann by Guillotine Choke in the opening 1:04.

Fourteenth Fight in Bellator

          Patricky “Pitbull” Freire is fresh from a Split Decision loss to Derek Anderson in December. This fight with Ryan Couture will be the Brazilian’s 14^th with the promotion. The Thirty year old Lightweight is 14-7 with 9 KO wins. Earlier last year he bested Saad Awad by UD (8/28/15).

Ryan Couture is 10-3, currently riding a four fight win streak. All four of those wins by Rear-Naked Choke. The Las Vegas native has 6 submission wins in his career. The latest over Dakota Cochrane (3/27/15) in the opening (3:23).

 

Bellator 148 Fri Jan 29^th 2016 at Save Mart Center Fresno, Ca. 7:45 PM Prelims 9:00 ET Main Card airs on Spike TV

Newark Still Shoveling Snow

Just Days Before UFC Fight Night

            Newark, NJ and much of the Northeast finds themselves digging out from this weekend’s blizzard. Newark Airport reported an unofficial record snowfall of 28.1 inches, resulting from the Sat-Sun Storm (The National Weather Service will take days to confirm). Power outages, roof collapses and thousands of flight cancellations are just a few of the problems The Blizzard of 16 presented the region.

            Today: Newark Schools remained closed, but LaGuardia, JFK and Newark airports are open and with warmer weather (upper 30’s and 40’s) forecasted through Saturday, Fight Night Johnson Vs Bader should not be affected.

 

Velasquez, Then Werdum Pull Out of UFC 196

 

            With no Heavyweight Championship, Super Bowl Weekend event just won’t be the same. Cain Velasquez was forced to withdraw (sighting injury) from his Feb 6 match up with Champion Fabricio Werdum. Stipe Miocic was briefly announced as a late replacement, but Werdum revealed his own injured back as the reason he would be unable to defend the title next Saturday. All of these events took place between Sunday the 24^th and Monday the 25^th.

Johnny Hendricks and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson will likely be moved from co-main to main event. #2 Hendricks comes in 17-3 with 8 KO wins, he is the former WW champ and has gotten back in the win column with a UD over Matt Brown since dropping the strap to Lawler last March. “Bigg Rigg” takes on #8 Thompson. The 11-1 Thompson will enjoy a 6” reach advantage. “Wonderboy” has six KO wins, most recently over Jake Ellenberger in July (1^st 4:29).

Great 2016 for UFC So Far

Great 2016 for UFC So Far

 

            Two main events, two of the best fights in each division titles’ history, 2016 has started marvelously for the UFC. On January 2^nd Carlos Condit fought Robbie Lawler to a close decision, causing fans to argue weather Lawler deserved to retain his Welterweight belt that night, at UFC 195.

On the 17^th TJ Dillashaw and Dominic Cruz treated Boston to the Bantamweight Division’s most thrilling title fight to date. Again fans disputed the judges’ split decision for Cruz. With the UFC taking this week off, fans can distract themselves with NFL Divisional Playoff games or shoveling feet of snow, depending on location, but next week’s (Jan 30) Fight Night from Newark, NJ has the potential to keep the company’s 2016 thrill streak going.

            Anthony “Rumble” Johnson vs Ryan “Darth” Bader matches the LHW division’s #2 and #4 fighters. #2 Johnson is 20-5 with 14 KO wins. Fresh off one of those KO’s: Rumble stopped Jimi Manuwa last contest at 0:28 of the second round.

He was submitted earlier this year by Daniel Cormier by RNC (3^rd 2:39) at UFC 187. Before the title fight Johnson had racked up nine straight in the win column including six KO’s.   Of his five losses, four are by Sub and one by KO.

Ryan Bader is 20-4 with ten decision wins, currently he is on a streak of five straight decision wins. In 2015 he outpointed, fellow top ranked 205ers: Rashad Evans (Oct) and Phil Davis in January. This clash of styles should offer excitement. Bader has also never lost by decision (2KO, 2Sub).

            If that weren’t enough, the following week (Feb 6) a Heavyweight Championship rematch between 20-5 Champion Fabricio Werdum and the man he took the title from 13-2 Cain Velazquez battle it out, the night before the Superbowl in Las Vegas and on PPV. So far this year the UFC has given us plenty to cheer, as we build up to UFC 200, the potential for great action continues.

Breakdown: Legacy Fighting Championship 50

Breakdown: Legacy Fighting Championship 50

 

            Returning from retirement, Evangelista Santos takes on thirty-five year old Artenas Young. If Santos’ name sounds familiar, he was formerly married to Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino. The Invicta Champ was awarded Santos’ nickname in the divorce and continues to use it today.

Santos last fought 4/27/14, a rematch with Melvin Manhoef (Manhoef won the first by 2^nd round TKO 3:51). In the April, 2014 rematch Manhoef improved on previous effort with a TKO in the opening 0:46.

“Cyborg” is 1-3 in his last four, dating back to January, 2011, when he was submitted by Nick Diaz (2^nd 4:50) in the main event for Strikeforce.

In addition to Legacy and Strikeforce, Santos has fought in many promotions, to include: Pancrase, Cage Rage and Pride. He began his career in November of 1997 with a 2^nd round RNC win over Roberto Pereira.

Artenas “The Machine Gun” Young will be fighting in his hometown versus Santos and hopes to halt a three fight skid. The 6’2” Young’s last win was over Jonathan Harris by Unanimous Decision at LFC 25 (11/15/13). His 10-9 record includes 4 KO’s and 5 Decision wins.

Heroes Battle it Out in Lightweight Division

            Jonathan “The Hulk” Harris faces Justin “The Wolverine” Reiswerg in a battle of Texan 155ers. Houston’s Harris is 3-2 in his last 5 LFC bouts, including his 8/28/15 win over Rey Trujillo by UD at LFC 44, improving his record to 10-5.

Reiswerg has lost his last two, to Caddington Banks by UD (LFC 44) and Mike Bronzoulis by RNC 2^nd 4:51 (11/14/14). Prior to the skid “The Wolverine’s” 8-5 record boasts a TKO win and two first round Submissions (5 subs in career).

Also Featured

            Another Houston fighter, Alex “Bet On” Black looks to improve his 8-4 record. Black lost his last fight by 3^rd round TKO to Kevin Aguilar at LFC 39. The loss broke a seven fight win streak, including 4 Subs (2 in the 1^st round). He takes on 7-4 Michael Rodriquez.

Legacy Fighting Championship 50 Jan. 22, 2016 in Houston, Texas airs on AXSTV Live!!!