Brock Lesnar v. Shane Carwin- This bout will unify the heavyweight title and be the toughest test to date for both fighters. Each fighter is an athletic freak, with massive hands, insane power, and quickness seldom seen for a 265 pound man. The key to each fighter will be avoiding a big punch standing and getting takedowns.
Brock Lesnar (4-1), an NCAA Division 1 HW champ, burst on the scene nearly three years ago in a K-1 bout in Los Angeles. In that fight, Lesnar destroyed Min Soo Kim in just over a minute. He would then enter the UFC to initial lukewarm results. Lesnar was beating up Frank Mir at UFC 81, before a ridiculous stand-up from Steve Mazagatti. Lesnar was then too aggressive and was knee-barred by the BJJ blackbelt.
(Brock Lesnar Pictured)
Lesnar would get his revenge on Mir at UFC 100, getting a big takedown and nasty ground and pound shots. Lesnar earned his way back to the rematch after a three round beating of Heath Herring at UFC 87, and a KO of legend Randy Couture at UFC 91. Look for Lesnar to try to out wrestle Carwin and lay down massive GNP.
Shane Carwin (12-0) has an insane streak of 12 straight wins in the first round. In his last fight, he clubbed Frank Mir at UFC 111, knocking out his foe in just under 4 minutes, his longest fight to date. Carwin also has victories over Gabriel Gonzaga, Christian Wellish and Rex Richards. Carwin will most likely try to out box Lesnar, trying to defend takedowns.
(Shane Carwin Pictured)
Yoshihiro Akiyama v. Chris Leben- Big time props have to be given to Chris Leben (20-6) stepping up and taking this fight on short notice after Wanderlei Silva was forced out with a rib injury. Leben is going to look to brawl in this fight, getting inside on Akiyama. Leben is coming off a big KO win over previously undefeated Aaron Simpson.
Akiyama (13-1), a black belt in Judo and Shotokan Karate, will mostly look to keep his distance with body and leg kicks, before getting the fight to the ground. Akiyama will have a big advantage on the ground, having submission wins over dangerous strikers Melvin Manhoef and Francois Botha. Akiyama has other wins over Alan Belcher and Denis Kang.
(Yoshihiro Akiyama Pictured)
Matt Brown v. Chris Lytle- Expect this fight to be a stand-up war between two solid fighters. Lytle (28-17) is known for his crowd pleasing style and willingness to take risks, and he will in this fight. Lytle is currently riding a two fight win streak over Brian Foster and Kevin Brown.
Matt Brown (11-8) has been improving dramatically since his run of TUF 7. Brown defeated TUF 9 champ James Wilks, Pete Sell and Ryan Thomas before his last fight, a submission loss to Ricardo Almeida. Expect Brown to slug it out, with each fighter having the possibility of snagging a fight of the night bonus.
Stephan Bonnar v. Krzysztof Soszynski
Kurt Pellegrino v. George Sotiropoulos
SPIKE TV CARD
Brendan Schaub v. Chris Tuchscherer
Seth Petruzelli v. Ricardo Romero
UNDERCARD - SELECT FIGHTS AIR IF TIME ALLOWS
Kendall Grove v. Goran Reljic
Dave Branch v. Gerald Harris
Forrest Petz v. Daniel Roberts
Jon Madsen v. Karlos Vemola
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