Say what you want, but that card was a mess in my mind. I won't go into as much detail but for my results and analysis read my bleacher article here.
Lashley vs. Sims was a joke. I don't care if hes got personality he shouldn't be on ppv. My mailman has personality that doesn't mean people want to pay to see him.
The Walker fight I would have found more intriguing had it not been on ppv. If you want to show you are on the UFC's level you need to keep this trash off of your show. I admire Walker for being an amazing athlete and I commend him for donating his purse ($600 Strikeforce? You cheap bastards!) but this shouldn't have been on ppv. Walker showed a great ability to control his opponent but was clearly gun shy. This fight was sloppy and hard to watch. The fact that Greg Nagy ever made it to ppv is a crime against the sport.
Now onto the good. Manhoef vs. Lawler lived up to the hype. Everyone (including myself, I can admit when im wrong) thought that Lawler had to take the fight to the ground if he wanted to win it, and through about three minutes it looked as though I was right. Manhoef controlled the action, tore apart Lawler's legs and landed at will. However, as we're found out so many times, it only take one shot to finish and Lawler did that.
Now the problem becomes what do you do with these guys next. Lawler cannot move directly into another title fight, but with all the middleweight talent signed as of late they should be able to keep him busy. Maybe someone like a Matt Lindland would be a good choice. However, if you want to throw him right into a #1 contenders shot thats an option as well. Perhaps a fight against Jacare? I would love to see that fight. The true grappler vs. striker battle if there ever was one.
Cyborg vs. Coenen was my choice for fight of the night. Coenen may have been demolished for most of the fight, but she showed heart and did have her straight right landing rather well, but Cyborgs power was just overwhelming. Cyborg showed why she is at the top of the game yet again as she sliced through Coenen like butter.
The scary part is that Coenen was the general consensus #2 in the world. So....what now? Strikeforce claims Erin Toughhill is up next and that may be the last interesting fight there is for Cyborg available. Coenen is reality should be fighting at 135 as should have most of Cyborg's opponents to date (Baezler, Akano, hell...even Carano) but Toughhill is a legitimate 145lb. fighter. Also, she holds a victory of her own over Coenen so mentally that should help. Do I think she has a chance in hell? Absolutely not. I think perhaps we should change Cyborg's nickname to "Axe Murderer 2.0"
Diaz again looked impressive against Zaromskis. It was the reach and awkward boxing style which proved to be the death blow to Zaromskis despite landing a nice blow to Diaz early. Other than the blow which knocked Diaz down, Zaromskis was picked apart fairly well by Diaz. The question came up on whether or not Diaz is a top 5 welterweight and after that performance I find it hard to deny him that spot. I would put Alves, Fitch, and GSP ahead of him, and hes certainly in the mix with Kos, Swick, Hardy, Daley etc.
Now onto my UFC 109 predictions.
Matt Serra vs. Frank Trigg
I'm gonna go with Serra in this one because of the logic of mma math (which never works). What I mean by that is that Hughes tapped Trigg twice, and Serra has better submissions than Hughes therefore Serra should be able to tap Trigg. Whether or not we'll see that happen im not sure. Will Serra be able to get the fight to the ground, and if not, who is better on the feet? Logic tells us that by knocking GSP out that Serra is better, but Trigg is no slouch either. This fight may be decided on the feet, but I don't think so. I think Serra will find a way to get it down and submit Trigg.
Matt Serra via 3rd round submission
Dan Miller vs. Damian Maia
The saying "you're only as good as youre last fight" has never rung more true than in the case of Damian Maia. Before the infamous 21 second knockout by Nate Marquardt, people were crowning Maia as the man to beat Anderson. You can deny it now, but it's true. Now, hes seen as just another fighter in the middleweight division. My pick for the fight is Damian Maia and again im gonna go out on a limb and use the mma math. Damian Maia submitted Chael Sonnen is about three minutes and Sonnen's wrestling is better than Millers AND Sonnen beat Miller rather soundly last year. Now we have to of course take into account that Millers standup is better than Maia's. Miller is a warrior and I think he will fight diligently in this one, but in the end, Maia will find a way. He always does...except for the Marquardt fight.
Damian Maia via. 1st round submission
Paulo Thiago vs. Mike Swick
There may not be a more evenly matched fight on the card and I really have been going back and forth on who to pick. On one hand, Paulo Thiago is 1-1 against AKA members and to be honest has been getting thrown right into the deep end against the welterweights best talent. On the other hand, he knocked out Kos and looked impressive against Volkhann in the fall. Swick was on the verge of finally getting his title shot before Dan Hardy beat him soundly at UFC 105 and now has to re-build. This might sound crazy, but I like Thiago in the fight. I think he feels like hes got something to prove and seems to be a real battler. I think the hidden factor in this fight might be Swick's ever improving wrestling. Can he keep the fight off the mat? We'll see
Paulo Thiago via. Decision
Nate Marquardt vs. Chael Sonnen
Interesting fight that has potential to be dreadfully boring. Sonnen's style isn't overly appealing to fans. He grinds out decisions using short strikes and advanced position. Marquardt is a better fighter, just ask Sonnen he'll tell you. His wrestling style might work against most, but it won't work against Marquardt, one of the most well rounded fighters in the game. I suspect that Sonnen will be able to make the fight competitive, but the amount of options that Marquardt has to win this fight just makes me unable to pick against him.
Nate Marquardt via. Decision
Mark Coleman vs. Randy Couture
Ugh, this whole time I wasn't looking forward to this fight, but as it came closer I just can't help myself. I love a fight, plain and simple. So now the oldest fight in history will finally take place. Coleman says he want's is bad, and I believe him. He knows this is his last hurrah and if he doesn't make the most of it, its all downhill from here. It's certainly not a "win or your gone" scenario, but a dismal performance here will guarantee he never headlines a ppv again. Couture may also be riding into his last sunset as a fighter. He put together a decent performance against Brandon Vera (which many still think Vera won) and now could be potentially just a single fight away from a title shot yet again. As much as i'd like to think this fight will be competitive, I just don't see it. Where is Coleman better than Couture? No where. Couture has continued to improve and I don't see the same evolution from Coleman. Couture wins this fight. My guess is that it will be a decision not because Coleman will make it competitive, rather just because thats how every Couture fight goes down.
Randy Couture via. Decision
