Video of the Day - Mercer KO's Sylvia

Here is Ray Mercer ending former UFC Champ Tim Sylvia's night at Adreneline 3. Rich Clementi and Jeremy Horn also notched victories on the card. Mercer's KO was the first major upset by a former boxing champ in MMA.

Fedor v. Sylvia

Here is Fedor Emelianenko fighting Tim Sylvia at Affliction Banned which took place on 7/19/08 in Anaheim, California.

At the time, Fedor had reeled off 24 straight wins since his contentious loss due to cut. He faced Sylvia, who was coming off a loss at UFC 81 via guillotine in the third round against Big Nog after being ahead on the scorecards.

Currently, Fedor (34-4) has resumed training and rumors are swirling regarding a comeback to MMA. The most likely spot would be a one off fight in M-1, but landing spots in Bellator or One FC would not be too surprising. Fedor in the UFC however would cause the MMA world to be flipped upside down.

What Can Boost TUF Ratings?

Despite awesome fights, dynamic story lines and being "live," Ultimate Fighter 15 scored the lowest ratings after moving to FX.  The 12th episode came in with 875,000 viewers and the 11th episode drew 821,000, the two worst totals in series history.  So, what can be done to perk up the ratings?  TUF: Comebacks - USA v. World on Wednesday Nights, winner gets $100,000!  Here are some changes I would make:

Move back to Wednesdays

The easiest change would be to moving the series back to Wednesday nights.   The average guy is sitting around Wednesday night with nothing to watch besides the occasional 6 episode run of South Park.  That same South Park episode is replayed at 11 PM.  Friday night usually means a night out for many fans, and while bars love playing UFC PPV's, they aren't going to tune in for TUF.

Bigger Prize

Lay out a $100,000 bonus if you win the show.  That will help you attract bigger named talent.  The biggest prize for current TUF'ers is publicity.  The fighters make $8,000 to show and $16,000 to win to start upon entering the UFC, usually with an escalating pay grade.  Zuffa recently kicked in bonuses for Fight of the Show, KO of the Show and Submission of the Show.  While that is fine and dandy, a fighter entering the UFC through the normal route typically makes $8-12K to show and $16-24K to start.  They also can earn the same bonuses.  What incentive did emerging stars Michael McDonald and Rory MacDonald have to give TUF a try?

Go Worldwide for Talent

The next change would have to be getting more talent in untapped markets.  Last time I checked, MMA fans are able to read closed captioning.  A TUF: USA v. World series could be very intriguing.  Have 16 guys from Japan, Korea, Brazil, Canada and the UK try out for a team of 8.  How great would it have been if Charles Oliviera was on TUF?  He just smoked TUF 12 winner Jonathan Brookins.

Another Season With Heavyweights

The biggest draw for the UFC and TUF have been heavyweights.  TUF 10 featured heavyweights, featuring Kimbo Silce, Roy Nelson, Brendan Schaub, Matt "Meathead" Mitrione and Marcus "Big Baby" Jones producing steller ratings.  The Heavyweight division dominated at UFC 146, as it is generally regarded as the most entertaining card of 2012 so far.  The division currently has the least talent as well, only having 29 current fighters on the UFC roster.

Another TUF Comebacks Season

TUF 4 churned Matt Serra who pulled off one of the largest upsets in UFC history defeating Georges St. Pierre for the welterweight title.  What draws more than fighters with name recognition?  Nothing!  If the UFC can land some big names, the ratings will return.

Bracketology

The main reason the NCAA basketball tournament is such a hit is the brackets.  Since TUF is an MMA tournament, why not have the fighters seeded and placed in fillable brackets?  We could fill out our brackets on UFC.com, have pools with friends, and so forth.  The UFC could capitalize on fans wanting to watch to see if their picks win and how their bracket shakes out.  

What Does it All Mean?  TUF Comebacks- USA v. World!

Move TUF back to Wednesdays and put $100,000 for the winner of each tournament.  Have one bracket of heavyweights, one bracket at 170.  Here is potential cast list:

HW - Team USA

Tim Sylvia (30-7)- Former UFC Champ 

Heath Herring (28-14)- Former Pride star 

Todd Duffee (7-2)- 7 second KO in the UFC

Jeff Monson (45-13)- former title contender

Joey Beltran (14-7)- 3 UFC wins

Eddie Sanchez (13-6)

Chris Tuchscherer (21-4)
Wild Card- Tank Abbott (10-14)- 8 UFC wins

HW - Team World

Andrei Arlovski (17-9) - Belarus- Former UFC Champ

Pedro Rizzo (19-9)- Brazil- Former UFC Champ

Rolles Gracie (6-1)- Brazil

Marcio Cruz (7-4)- Brazil

Soa Palelei (17-3)- Australia

Gilbert Yvel (38-16)- Holland

Tim Hague (14-6)- Canada
Wild Card- Semmy Schilt (26-14)- Holland- K-1 Legend

WW - Team USA

Karo Parisyan (20-8)- 8 UFC wins

Gerald Harris (21-4)- 4 fight win streak

Ben Saunders (13-5)- 4 UFC wins

Marcus Davis (21-9)- 9 UFC wins

John Howard (16-7)- 4 UFC wins

Frank Trigg (21-9)- Former title challenger

Tamdan McCrory (13-5)- 3 UFC wins
Wild Card- Nate Marquardt (31-10)- Former title challenger, now with SF

WW - Team World

Paul Daley (29-12) - UK- Former title challenger

Jonathan Goulet (23-12) - Canada

Yoshiyuki Yoshida (14-6)- Japan- 3 fight win streak

Keita Nakamura (24-5)- Japan- 7-1 in last 8 fights

Ryo Chonan (20-13)- Japan

Roan Carneiro (13-5)- Brazil
Jorge Patino (27-13)- Brazil

Wild Card- Carlos Newton (16-14)- Canada- Former UFC Champ

UFC Hall of Fame - Who's Next?

UFC Hall of Fame - Who's Next by MMA Blaster

The UFC is the only mixed martial arts organization with a Hall of Fame. As of now, the members of the hall include Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Mark Coleman, Matt Hughes, Pat Miletich, BJ Penn, Forrest Griffin, Stephen Bonnar and Tito Ortiz. The late Charles "Mask" Lewis and Jeff Blatnick have been inducted as contributors to the sport. The fight Matt Hughes v. Frank Trigg 2 is reckognized as well.

Bas Rutten (28-4, 2-0 UFC) will next be inducted as a pioneer of the sport. Rutten was a beast in Pancrase and won the UFC heavyweight title and defended once. My hope would be that the UFC would look at inducting Don Frye, Kazushi Sakuraba and Frank Shamrock as the next group of pioneers. Georges St. Pierre is an obvious choice to come next.

Don Frye (20-9, 9-1 UFC)(UFC 8, UU96 belts)- Won the UU96 and UFC 8 title's in a epic fashion defeating Tank Abbott and Gary Goodridge, respectively. One of the most epic brawls in MMA history at Pride 21 against Takayama following a split decision win over Ken Shamrock at Pride 19. One of the first with devastating boxing and a solid wrestling base.



Guaranteed inducted upon retirement:

1. Georges St. Pierre (25-2, 19-2 UFC)(WW belt holder)- GSP has TKO's over BJ Penn and Matt Serra, while submitting Matt Hughes and taking decisions over Carlos Condit, Jake Shields, Nick Diaz, Jon Fitch and Josh Koscheck.


2. Anderson Silva (33-6, 16-2 UFC)(MW belt holder)- A recent failed drug test for steroids has put a major black eye over the legacy of Silva. Last three bouts have been two devastating losses to Chris Wiedman and having his win over Nick Diaz overturned. TKO's over Rich Franklin, Forrest Griffin, Chael Sonnen and Nate Marquardt. Submission wins over Dan Henderson and Sonnen.


3. Rich Franklin (25-5, 12-4 UFC) (MW belt holder)- Won MW belt from Evan Tanner and defended twice. Victories over Yushin Okami, Jason MacDonald, Ken Shamrock and Evan Tanner 2X. Recent wins over Travis Lutter and Matt Hamill with a close decision loss to Dan Henderson. Was crunched twice by Anderson Silva at 185. Defeated Wanderlei Silva at a 195 pound catch-weight then was TKO'd by Vitor Belfort.



4. Andrei Arlovski (25-10, 14-4 UFC)(HW belt holder)- Won HW belt from Tim Sylvia with an achilles lock. Defended twice against Justin Eilers and a 15 second KO of Paul Buentello. Other victories over Vladimir Matyushenko, Marcio Cruz, Ian Freeman, Fabricio Werdum and Jake O'Brien. His contract expired after the O'Brien fight and the UFC shunned him to the undercard. After beating Roy Nelson in Affliction, he got KO'd by Fedor and Rogers, then dropped a decision to Bigfoot Silva. But Arlovski has risen from the ashes, notching big victories over Brendan Schaub, Bigfoot Silva, Travis Browne and Frank Mir.



5. Evan Tanner (32-8, 11-6 UFC) (MW belt holder)- Wins over Robbie Lawler, Homer Moore, Phil Baroni 2X and David Terrell (MW belt). Unfortunately, Evan Tanner has passed away. With 17 total fights in the UFC and a title, I think Tanner deserves a spot. If Tank Abbott gets in with his 8 wins out of 18 in the UFC, Tanner should with his 11 wins in 17 fights in the UFC.


6. Frank Mir (18-10, 16-10 UFC)(HW belt holder)- Biggest win by far was the arm break of Tim Sylvia for the HW title. Victories over Brock Lesnar, Antonio Noguira, Pete Williams, Tank Abbott, Antoni Hardonk, Cheick Kongo and Roberto Traven. Has some big losses and recent big KO wins over Todd Duffee and Bigfoot Silva.

7. Rashad Evans (19-3-1, 14-3-1 UFC, LHW belt holder)- Won the LHW belt over Forrest Griffin, but then was KO'd by Lyoto Machida, but  rebounded with a win over Rampage Jackson. Defeated Sean Salmon with a nasty high kick. KO'd Chuck Liddell, Chael Sonnen and Jason Lambert. Decision victories over Michael Bisping, Stephan Bonnar and Brad Imes for the TUF 2 HW belt.

Pioneer- Frank Shamrock (23-10, 5-0 UFC)(LHW, then called MW belt)- Entered the UFC winning the MW belt (now LHW) over Olympic Gold medalist Kevin Jackson (4-2) with an arm bar in 16 seconds. He then slammed undefeated Igor Zinoviev (4-1) into retirement in 22 seconds in his first title defense. He beat Jeremy Horn and John Lober in his next two defenses. Shamrock defended the belt once more in one of the best fights in MMA history against Tito Ortiz (15-5).
*The UFC would have to let him have another fight, I don't see it happening.

Dana White said he would put in:

Tank Abbott (11-14, 8-10 UFC)- His selection would be more to do with popularity and helping build the UFC in the early days. His best performances were at UFC 6 and UU96. At UFC 6, Tank delivered a highlight real KO of John Matua 20 seconds in, rising up the crowd. In his second fight, Tank crushed the "Polar Bear" Paul Varelens in the first reving the crowd into a fury. Oleg Taktarov then beat Tank in the final. In UU96 he crushed Cal Worsham in an intense flurry in the first round then KO'd Steve Nelmark at 1:03 in his second fight. He almost beat Don Frye in the final after a big punch to the face, but lost. Other notable wins were against Hugo Duarte and Steve Jennum.

**All text copyright of MMA Blaster**

Moosin - Sylvia v. Pudzianowski

Here is former UFC heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia fighting World's Strongest Man Mariusz Pudzianowski in a super heavyweight fight from Moosin which occurred on 5/21/10. Sylvia came in at 305, while Mariusz came in at 273.


Here are the results from Moosin -

Tim Sylvia def Mariusz Pudzianowski via sub(punches) R2, 1:43
Travis Wiuff def Josh Barnes via TKO (punches) R1, 0:34
Rafael Natal def Travis Lutter via KO (punches) R1, 4:12
Mike Campbell def Yves Edwards via unanimous dec
Roxanne Modafferi def Tara LaRosa via split dec
Lukasz Jurkowski def Ho Jin Kim via TKO (strikes) R1, 2:22
Forrest Petz def Ralph Johnson via unanimous dec

Adrenaline 4 Results

Adrenaline 4 took place in Council Bluffs, Iowa in front of a raucus crowd. Several former UFC fighters desperately needed wins in this event and Tim Sylvia, Houston Alexander, Joe Vedepo and Forrest Petz got much needed wins. Look for the event to be replayed on HDNet.

Tim Sylvia def Jason Riley via TKO (strikes) R1, 2:32- Tim Sylvia weighed in at 287 pounds and looked every bit of it as he bullied Jason Riley. Sylvia threw down, landing most of his punches with power until a left hand sent Riley to the mat. Sylvia still needs to string together a few more wins before he gets another big fight.


Houston Alexander def Sherman Pendergarst via TKO (strikes) R1, 1:51- Houston Alexander found his way back into the win column with a victory over journeyman fighter Sherman "The Tank" Pendergarst. Alexander used devastating leg kicks that quickly took the fight out of the Tank. Some knees to the body left the Tank on the ground covering up.


Jeremy Lang def Matt Delanoit via split dec
Alonzo Martinez def Ryan Williams via unanimous dec
Joe Vedepo def Webster Farris via KO - R1, 0:14
Forrest Petz def Chad Reiner via TKO (strikes) R1, 2:28
Jimmy Seipel def Bob Tuttle via sub (RNC) - R1, 2:59
Jordan Johnson def Ryan Shell via unanimous dec
Dakota Cochran def Bill Holcumb via TKO (strikes) R1, 1:25
Todd Meneely def Cory McDonald via sub (Americana) R2, 1:38
John Hanson def Dean Bradley via TKO (strikes) R3, 1:19
Danny Black def Matt Bentley via sub(triangle) R2, 1:49
Marcos Marquez def Dustin Smith via sub (RNC) R2, 2:22

Affliction: Fedor Style

A reported 14,832 were in attendance to see Affliction's inaugural show. The production was not quite UFC's level, but who cares about production values? I want to see great fights, and that's exactly what this heavyweight all-star card produced.

Paul Buentello def. Gary Goodridge via. Decision (Unanimous)- Buentello was able to push the pace and win the fight.

Vitor Belfort def. Terry Martin via. KO (Punch) R2, 3:12- Vitor stood and traded with Martin during the first which also saw Martin get some takedowns. In the second, Vitor began to string together standing combinations before bringing a massive knee to Martin's head. A big punch sent Martin to the canvas, with Vitor backing off as he knew Martin was KO'd.

Mike Pyle def. JJ Ambrose via Sub (Rear-naked choke) R1, 2:51- Pyle went from takedown to mount to rear naked choke.

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Edwin Dewees via. TKO (Punches) R1, 4:06- Edwin Dewees tapped into his inner Krazy Horse Bennett as he tried some push kicks while in a corner with his arms over the ropes. Unfortunately, the strategy didn't work as Dewees ended up being crushed and sent to the canvas after knees and punches. While Dewees put up a valiant effort, he was simply out-matched when it came to boxing.

Matt Lindland def. Fabio Negao via Decision (Unanimous)- Lindland won a couple rounds to win the decision.

Renato Sobral def. Mike Whitehead via Decision (Unanimous)- Babalu pressed the action more and landed more strikes to defeat Mike Whitehead via decision. Babalu came close with a submission attempt and did more damage in this mostly one-sided fight.

Mark Hominick def. Trenell "Savant" Young via Submission (Armbar) R2, 4:25- After a Savant Young trip take down, Hominick cycled through a barrage of submission attempts before using a triangle attempt to get an arm bar.

Josh Barnett def. Pedro Rizzo via. KO (Punch) R2, 1:44- Barnett and Rizzo mainly kept the fight standing and as a boxing match in the first. Barnett would lunge in for takedowns after punching and kicking. Barnett landed a variety of kicks, including two spinning back kicks. In the second, he connected with a vicious left hook sending Rizzo down.

Andrei Arlovski def. Ben Rothwell via KO (Punches) R3, 1:13- Wow, Andrei Arlovski is back. He got the better of every exchange as he used Ben Rothwell's head like a punching bag on more than one occasion. After knocking Big Ben to the canvas, Arlovski kept bring punishment. He tried leg locks in two rounds, which were unsuccessful. In the third, Rothwell went down hard after a straight right and right uppercut.

Fedor Emelianenko def. Tim Sylvia via Submission (Rear-naked choke) R1, 0:36- Fedor's United States debut was an absolute explosion. The invincible Emelianenko stood and traded with the taller Tim Sylvia. Fedor was able to close the gap between him and his taller foe. Sylvia admitted that he, "has never been hit like that before." It took only seconds before Fedor connected with a punch flush to the chin of Sylvia and sent him to the canvas. As Fedor swarmed in, a dazed Sylvia was not able to stop more punches before rolling into a rear naked choke.

*“I don’t think Fedor is human,” Sylvia half-joked after the fight. “He is by far the best fighter in the world."

In his next match, Fedor may see UFC legend Randy Couture as his contract with the UFC expires in October. Josh Barnett and Andrei Arlovski are two other Affliction fighters who deserve a spot. Hopefully there is a number one contender match if the Couture fight happens.
*MMA Blaster pollsters picked Fedor to win 7-2

Affliction - Banned

AFFLICTION - BANNED

Below is a rumored all-star card for the inaugural Affliction show. Affliction has a whopping seven current top twenty heavyweights according to MMA Blaster rankings. Almost every fighter on the card has fought on the main stage in the UFC, Pride, IFL or BoDog. The show will air on pay per view, and reportedly have a big music act as well. Megadeth has been mentioned as a possibility.



Fedor Emelianenko (27-1) vs. Tim Sylvia (24-4)- Finally we get to see number one heavyweight Fedor fight a legit heavyweight threat in former UFC Champ Tim Sylvia. Sylvia lost his UFC heavyweight crown to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 81. Fedor beat massive Hong Man Choi in his last fight. Sylvia will try to use his 6'8" frame and reach advantage to box with Fedor. Sylvia was 9-4 in the UFC.


Josh Barnett (20-5) vs. Pedro Rizzo (16-7)- Former UFC heavyweight champs Josh Barnet and Pedro Rizzo are squaring off against each other in this rematch. Rizzo has a KO victory over Josh at UFC 30, and last won against Jeff Monson in last September's Art of War 3 show. Below is a gif from Barnett v. Yoshida. Barnett has beat Monson and Yoshida after a very close split decision loss to Big Nog.


Ben Rothwell (29-5) vs. Andrei Arlovski (12-5)- IFL heavyweight sensation Ben Rothwell (29-5) should be in action against former UFC HW Champ Andrei Arlovski (13-5). The heavy-handed Rothwell last won a unanimous decision over Ricco Rodriguez in September. Rothwell is on a 13 fight win streak. Arlovski is on a three fight win streak against heavyweights Marcio Cruz, Fabricio Werdum, and Jake O'Brien. This will be Arlovski's first fight outside the UFC since May of 2000.

Matt Lindland (20-5) vs. Fabio Nascimento (19-5)- On the same note we finally get to see UFC/IFL/Bodog veteran Matt Lindland fight again. The former UFC middleweight contender has been on the shelf since his loss to Fedor at heavyweight last April. Lindland has been making a successful run at a state Representative spot in Oregon.

Renato "Babalu" Sobral (29-7) vs. Mike Whitehead (20-5)- Mike Whitehead is on an eleven fight win streak in the IFL and regional fight promotions. He is facing released UFC fighter Babalu Sobral. Sobral won his first match outside the UFC against Rodney Faverus (24-15). Babalu was booted from the UFC following the infamous David Heath choke incident.

Vitor Belfort (16-8) v. Terry Martin (17-4)- Another interesting fight is between Terry Martin and Vitor Belfort. Martin has won a boxing match and his last MMA match. Former UFC Champ Belfort won twice last year in Cage Rage, but hasn't fought this year. Vitor won the LHW Belt from Randy Couture at UFC 46.

Paul Buentello (23-10) vs. Aleksander Emelianenko (13-3)- Alistair Overeem recently defeated Buentello for the Strikeforce heavyweight title. Fedor's brother, Aleks, is coming off a victories over Silvao Santos, Dan Bobish, Jessie Gibson and Eric Pele.

UNDERCARD
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (13-3) v. *Edwin Dewees (38-12)
Mark Hominick (15-8) vs. Savant Young (9-7)
JJ Ambrose (9-1) vs. Mike Pyle (15-5)

+Some fights will air on FSN before the ppv broadcast.
++Check out the Inside MMA show for more information.
+++The UFC will run an Ultimate Fight Night to cut away at the debut show.

UFC 81 Results and Recap

UFC 81 will go down as one of the most entertaining events the promotion has ever put on. Most fights ended quickly with three guillotine chokes in the main card. The audience was star studded, with the Undertaker, Stone Cold, Ken Griffey Jr., Rampage and various others and they got their money's worth. Just like the old UFC's ju-jitsu dominated over brute force.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira def. Tim Sylvia via submission (guillotine choke) — R3, 1:28 - UFC HW Championship belongs to Nogeueira and he earned it. Nogueira took punishment from Sylvia for two and a half rounds as Sylvia hit him with everything in his aresenal. But it only took one mistake for Nogeria to sweep Sylvia and choke him out. Reminiscant of the Bob Sapp and Cro Cop fights, the legend of Nogueira continues.
*Both fighters won fight of the night bonuses.
(Poll results Nogueria 29-20, MMA Blaster readers correct)

Frank Mir def. Brock Lesnar via submission (knee bar) — R1, 1:30 - Lesnar came out in a fury taking down Mir immediately before starting to rain down hammerfists on Mirs face. Mir turned, and Lesnar inadvertantly struck the back of Mir's head. Lesanr was deducted a point, and the match resumed.

Off the bat on the restart, Lesnar threw a jab that knocked Mir to the canvas. After a couple punches in half guard, Lesnar looked out of place and a leg was open for Mir to get a knee bar. It was inexperience at its finest, and Lesnar didn't know what to do, tapping.

Lesnar's performance indicates that he has raw tools. He is big, he is powerful, he is agile. But, he is inexperienced. Mir had absolutely no answer for Lesnar's two takedown attempts. The punches that were thrown looked powerful and did damage. Maybe the point deduction distracted Lesnar slightly, but it did not have any real impact on the fight. You would think Lesnar or someone in his camp would have bothered looking at the toe hold Mir put on Tank Abbott and thinking a leg lock would be probable.
*Mir wins submission of the night.
(Poll Lesnar 59-37, MMA Blaster readers incorrect)



Nate Marquardt def. Jeremy Horn via submission (guillotine choke) — R2, 1:37 - Marquardt punished Horn for virtually the entire first round. Horn eventually worked in an omaplata shoulder lock to a sweep near the end of the round. The second round was more of the same as Horn fell into the guillotine after taking alot of punishment. Marquardt was sound on his feet working his punches and combos.

Ricardo Almeida def. Rob Yundt via submission (guillotine choke) — R1, 1:08 - Almeida overwelmed the inexperienced Yundt before getting the choke. Yundt attempted to slam himself out, but was unsuccesful.

Tyson Griffin def. Gleison Tibau via unanimous decision - Griffin probably had the edge standing, but Tibau was able to get some takedowns.

Chris Lytle def. Kyle Bradley via KO (strikes) — R1, 0:33 - Lytle came out swinging, and tagged Bradley sending him to the canvas where he absorbed another punch before the ref stepped in. A dazed Bradley pulled the ref into his guard before realizing what was going on.
*KO of the night.

Tim Boetsch def. David Heath via TKO (strikes) — R1, 4:52 - IFL vet Boetsch worked his front kick and unorthodox body punches. After getting the thai clinch, Boetch worked devastating knee strikes. To finish it off, Boetsch hip tossed Heath to the canvas and finished Heath off.



Marvin Eastman def. Terry Martin via unanimous decision

Rob Emerson def. Keita Nakamura via split decision

UFC 81 - Lesnar Commeth

Commentary by the MMA Blaster

The UFC 81 card is shaping up to be the type of card that destroys MMA pay per view numbers. The card is officially headlined by Tim Sylvia vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for the Heavyweight Belt. The unoffical headlining fight that will be hyped to death will be Brock Lesnar v. Frank Mir. Here is a look at the potential fights:

Tim Sylvia (24-3) vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (30-4-1)- HW Title- Two time UFC HW Champ Sylvia just beat Brandon Vera after losing the belt to Couture. Nogueira did not look impressive in his bout with Herring, but is widely regarded as the second best heavyweight of alltime with wins over Josh Barnett, Sergei Kharitonov, Cro Cop, Fabricio Werdum, Dan Henderson and Mark Coleman.

Ricardo Almeida (8-2) vs. *Rob Yundt (6-0)- Almeida has six wins in a row including Ryo Chonan, Nate Marquardt, Kazuo Misaki, Yuki Sasaki and Ikuhisa Minowa. Alan Belcher has withdrawn from the fight. MMA Weekly rumors Alaska Fighting Championships' Rob Yundt will be filling in.

Nate Marquardt (25-7) vs. Jeremy Horn (79-15)- Marquardt, former King of Pancrase, is coming off a MW title loss to Anderson Silva. Jeremy Horn is a well traveled veteren with wins spanning from 1996 to present. Horn's victories include Chuck Liddell (21-5), Falaniko Vitale (24-8), 2X over Chael Sonnen (19-9), Trevor Prangley (17-5), Josh Burkman (9-4), David Loiseau (15-7), Dean Lister (10-5), Forrest Griffin (15-4), Travis Fulton (182-44) and Gilbert Yvel (32-12).

Tyson Griffin (10-1) vs. Gleison Tibau (15-4)- Tyson has wins over Clay Guida and Thiago Taveres since his loss to Frank Edgar. Tibau has four wins in a row, three in the UFC, since his loss to Nick Diaz in UFC 65. This fight will be all action.

Marvin Eastman (14-7) vs. Terry Martin (16-3)- I'd like to see this fight make the ppv because there will be plenty of bombs thrown. Eastman's last UFC appearance was a KO loss to Rampage. Martin last was KO'd by Chris Leben. Wouldn't be surprised if one of these guys is moved to fight Marquardt.

Tim Boetsch (6-1) vs. David Heath (7-2)- Heath is coming off of the Babalu choke incident. Boetsch is replacing Tomas Drwal.

Keita Nakamura (14-2) vs. Rob Emerson (6-6)- Nak is looking for his first UFC win.

Chris Lytle (24-15) v. Kyle Bradley (13-4)- Lytle is coming off a loss due to a cut from Thiago Alves. Bradley has 7 straight victories.

Brock Lesnar (1-0) vs. Frank Mir (10-3) - Hype Machine commence

"Finally" is all I have to say about this dynamite heavyweight contest. The anticipation of Lesnar's entrance into the UFC has been all the rage on internet MMA forums. People have been waiting for this for a long time. There are three different distinct opinions when it comes to Lesnar and his chances in MMA - the Lesnar is God and can take Fedor on next camp, the Lesnar is a former NCAA Champ/freak athlete division, and the Lesnar will suck because he has no standup or submission defense camp.

I fall into the Lesnar is a former NCAA Champ and freak athlete camp. You can't deny the fact that NCAA champions can and do perform exceptionally in mixed martial arts. His training video is something of legend. He has been training for two years in preparation for his big UFC debut and I hope he has been practicing his submission defense for this contest.

Mir is simply no joke when it comes to submissions, and after he broke Tim Sylvia's arm to capture the UFC Heavyweight title, he had everyone clamoring about the excellent JJ Mir had on display. His toe hold over Tank was really no surprise, but if you haven't seen that video, it is pretty good.

For anyone who didn't see Lesnar's debut in K1 I have posted it below. As you can see, Lesnar's gameplan was simple. Take Min So Kim down and pound him into oblivion. He made a good pass to the mount which I don't see Mir allowing.

My prediction is Lesnar by ground and pound in the second or third round. Yes, Mir could find Lesnar's overextended arm for a sub, but I don't think you can secure that mammouth neck for a choke. One thing is for certain, this will be one of the UFC's most hyped events. For those of you who don't necessarily appreciate the UFC hype machine, I feel for you.

Some additional notes: Many have labeled Lesnar's sole MMA opponent Min Soo Kim a can. However, he recently TKO'd Ikuhisa "The Punk" Minowa on October 28 of 2007 in K1. Minowa has victories over MMA vets Gilbert Yvel, Kimo and Phil Baroni.