UFC 89 discussion

Discussion in 'Fight Discussions' started by callsignfuzzy, Oct 18, 2008.

  1. callsignfuzzy

    callsignfuzzy Is not a number!

    Well, it's less than 24 hours away, and no discussion yet. Better late than never, eh?

    Bisping vs. Leben: Leben's got a cast-iron jaw, heavy hands, and an underrated ground game. Bisping's looked fast at MW, and we have yet to see one of his fights at this new class go past the first round. He's got a pretty well-rounded Muay Thai game, and is also underrated on the ground. However, I think it's safe to say that if this match goes to the ground, it's 'cause somebody got put there by a punch or a kick. While Leben's skills haven't shown too much improvement, he's been with a very good camp recently (BJ Penn's MMA in Hilo, Hawaii), and according to him he's laid off the booze for four months. I hope we'll see a rejuvenated Leben here, but I doubt it'll be enough to stop Bisping. The Count is used to trading punches with guys bigger than Leben, and while I think the latter has more punching power, I can't see him getting knocked out. Bisping is more technical on the feet, faster, and I would guess probably in better shape and better on the ground. The only question mark here is how the weight cut factors into his stamina when the fight goes into the later rounds, which is where I think it will head if he doesn't stun Leben with strikes in rout to setting up a submission. Bisping by UD.

    Brandon Vera vs. Keith Jardine: Jardine's a bit back-and-forth. He's got victories over the current and former LHW champs, but was quickly overwhelmed by both Houston Alexander and Wanderlei Silva. He does posess, however, a reputation for strong leg kicks and good punching power. He's also a bit big for a LHW, and will probably not be overwhelmed by Vera's strength. Speaking of Vera, he was supposed to be the Next Big Thing at HW before getting crushed by Tim Sylvia and Fabricio Werdum. No shame there, they're both good fighters. He got a pretty easy but ugly-looking victory over Reese Andy in his first 205 fight; maybe he'll perform better now that he's had a chance to get his confidence back. I think Vera has a chance to capitalize by letting Jardine try to play his leg-kick game, and catch him with punches mid-kick. However, it seems that unless you overwhelm Jardine early, he can generally take a decission win. I think this is an interesting mix of styles, but with Greg Jackson in his corner, I think Jardine will get the UD.

    Crane vs. Sokoudjou: this one will be stopped, I'm pretty sure. Both these guys like to bang. I'm hoping Sokoudjou gets the win, just so his wins over Arona and Little Nog a couple years back don't seem wasted. Plus, I think he's packing more power than Crane.

    Chris Lytle vs. Paul Taylor: I'm hoping Lytle takes it. He's got great punches, very good BJJ, and a ton of heart. Taylor won't be that easy, though. He's got good strikes on the feet. He's got to stay away from Lytle's power punching and submissions, and Lytle has to contend with Taylor's leg kicks. I'll give a slight edge to Lytle on the feet, but since two of Taylor's three losses have come by way of submission, the ground game is unquestionably Lytle's. Taylor might try to open up a cut on Lytle, who's face seems to cut more than an Emo kid, but failing that, I think this is Lytle's game, probably by TKO due to ground strikes or a submission, both set up from a knockdown from punches.

    Marcus Davis vs. Paul Kelly: This is an interesting undercard matchup. Davis is a boxer/BJJ guy, while Kelly seems more the ground-and-pound type, although he's got two wins by choke. Davis can punish him on the feet, but probably doesn't want to be on the bottom with Kelly. I'm hoping this one goes to decission in a back-and-forth battle, but there's a good chance Davis can end it with a punch on the feet, while if Kelly wins it'll probably be due to TKO (ground strikes). I'm going to give this to Kelly by a slight margin, as Davis's escapes and scrambling skills don't seem quite good enough to get out from underneath Kelly. Whether Kelly can get him there without being rattled or KO'd first will be the deciding factor in this fight, I think.

    Other matches:
    Akahiro Gono vs. Dan Hardy: Gono
    Neil Wain vs. Shane Carwin: Carwin
    Sam Stout vs. Terry Etim: Etim
    David Bielkhaden vs. Jess Liaudin: Liadin, by virtue of the fact that I can spell his name.
    David Baron vs. Jim Miller: Baron
    Per Eklund vs. Sam Schiavo: Eklund

    And remember, don't post spoilers of the event until 24hrs after the event has taken place live, unless you use spoiler tags!

    That means that yes, even though it airs in the US at 9pm EST, spoiler tags only apply up until 24hrs after the live event ends in the UK... which, correct me if I'm wrong UK folks, should be about 7pm EST. If you have any questions about how to post spoiler tags, please see the stickied thread at the top of the Fight Discussion page.
     

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