Kevins current record 20 – 5

Well, Well, Well, kids, look who’s back. Welcome all to another action packed preview of the next UFC show, UFC: 101.  This card features some big names, and some up and comers, so strap yourself in and prepare to get worked over by some of the best.

-B.J. Penn (13-5-1; #3 Lightweight)* vs. Kenny Florian (12-3; #6 Lightweight)*

BJ the prodigy Penn steps away from his quest to hold 2 UFC Champion belts to face his toughest fight to date in the Light Weight division.  Penn who’s ground game is second to none is coming off a complete beating at the hands of Georges St. Pierre. Penn, always a fan favorite is a solid striker with a fierce ground game, his main weakness is going to be speed. BJ has long sat atop the LW ranks as the best fighter in the game, in fact many people consider him to be in the top 5 PFP fighters, however Kenny KenFlo Florian is gunning to knock him off.  Ken Flo is an ultimate fighter season 1 alumni, he has improved vastly and hasn’t in a very, very long time. His last loss was to Sean Sherk(former champion), in a 5 round decision.  That was well over 2-3 years ago believe. After his loss Florian has dedicated himself to the sport, and has redefined what it means to be a fighter in the Light Weight division, knocking off top contender after top contender example; His last fight was against top 2-3 LW fighter Joe Stevenson, it only took Florian about 1 minute to end the fight.  This fight has a lot of people giving question mark answers, personally I think this is going to be a great fight, but an easy one to pick, Florian is coming off a fairly long hiatus, last fight about a year ago, I think for once this will work in his favor, he will come in fresh, and focused.

Winner: Kenny Florian(new LW champion) via TKO(Knee strikes) in the 2nd.

-Anderson Silva (24-4; #1 Middleweight)*vs. Forrest Griffin (18-5; #3 Light Heavyweight)*

This is by far the fight im looking forward to most on this card, it’s got intrigue and excitement surrounding it.  Silva who is arguably the PFP greatest fighter in the world is moving up in weight to fight former Light Heavyweight Champion, Forrest Griffin.  Silva who is a very large fighter for the middleweight division is, for the first time, being thrown in against someone who matches him physically. I don’t really need to list Silva’s accomplishments because, well, if you don’t know then you probably are not reading this article.  Forrest, who is the ultimate fighter season 1 winner is facing one of his toughest fights to date. Personally I think Griffin has faced better fighters i.e. Shogun Rua, and “Rampage” Jackson, both guys he beat. Forrest is known for a strong chin and a big heart, and I think he will get both tested in this fight. The president of the UFC, Dana White, put this match together very quickly after Silva’s piss poor performance against Thales Lietes, I think Dana is hoping to spark a fire under one of his top fighters who was known for his quick and devastating knockouts, but lately has been boring as all hell.  Maybe im feeling punch drunk right now, but im calling for an upset, I think Forrest wins this fight one of two ways, first by submission in the 2nd, since I can’t pick both outcomes, im going with…

Winner: Forrest Griffin via Split Decision

-Amir Sadollah (5-0) vs. Johny Hendricks (5-0)

So the reaming fights on the card are exactly like this one, up and coming fighters who are getting a chance at the big show, part of me loves these types of cards, the other hates them.  Sadollah was season … 6? Winner of the ultimate fighter, he has been put on several cards since winning the reality show last year, however he keeps getting injured.  This is Sadollah’s first fight since winning.  To tell you the truth I don’t know much about Hendricks, he seems to be a solid fighter with a lot of good potential, part of me believes they are giving Sadollah a fairly easy warm up fight, but a also think this could be a trap fight for him.  As much as I want to see Sadollah win, because he is a likeable guy…

Winner: Johnny Hendricks via 3rd round TKO

-Ricardo Almeida (10-3) vs. Kendall Grove (12-5)

An interesting fight here as the 2nd fight of the night. Both Almeida and Grove are semi well known fighters who have a lot to lose, and a lot to gain in this fight.  Grove is coming off a very impressive win in his last fight. Grove a Hawaiian trained fighter seems to be hitting a good stride in his career.  Almeida was basically a heartbeat away from a title shot when he fought Thales Lietes last year. Personally I don’t think either of these guys will do much damage in the Middle Weight division, however both are solid strikers with a well rounded ground game.  Grove I believe will come in as a the bigger fighter thus I think giving him the advantage, however his chin is questionable.  I’m thinking this fight won’t take long to reach it’s outcome.

Winner: Ricardo Almeida vis 1st round KO

-Kurt Pellegrino (13-4) vs. Josh Neer (25-7-1)

Again, this fight is against 2 fighters fighting to a spot in the crowded lightweight division.  Pellegrino who’s a solid striker hasn’t faired well getting the match-ups needed to move forward, till now. Josh Neer is a great fighter with lots of skill and experience, however he is not a title fighter.  Neer is a great gate keeper for the UFC’s lightweight division.  I think this is a great fight to test Pellegrino’s desire and skill to become a champion.  For me this fight is as much a coin toss as anything, you have to guys with a similar style,  yet each very different in their approaches to fights.  I think this fight will be a bit of a snooze fest to start the night off, expect a chess match of sorts…

Winner: Josh Neer via split decision