Three Fights I'm excited for this September:

Justin Gaethje vs. Luis Palomino 2 (September 18^th, WSOF 23: Gaethje vs. Palomino 2)

I'll be the first to admit that this fight is largely unnecessary. The first fight between these two only happened in March, and while it was a great fight, Gaethje won and won convincingly. He overwhelmed Palomino for a third round TKO, and that should have been that. WSOF decided otherwise, however, so I am just going to enjoy it.

Their first fight was an absolute brawl, reaffirming Gaethje as a must watch fighter and showcasing both fighters toughness to a ridiculous degree. At 14-0 with with 11 knockouts, it seems inevitable that Gatheje will be called up to the UFC or maybe Bellator, sooner rather than later. Due to his lack of defense in exchanges, we might just find out that he does not fare so well against top level competition. Then again, he is a very good fighter and can take a mighty amount of punishment, so who knows. For now all we what we do know is that these two have great chemistry in the cage. And while I don't expect the result to be any different this time around, I hope that the level of action is no different either. Mark your calenders.

Phil Davis vs. Emmanuel Newton (September 19^th, Bellator 142: Dynamite)

Ok, let me explain myself here for a minute. I am not exactly a huge Phil Davis fan. He has had some pretty terrible fights, and found himself being given the Jon Fitch treatment earlier this year, released after a split decision loss to Ryan Bader. Technically his contract ran out and he wasn't offered a new one, but for a top 10 light heavyweight this was pretty unexpected.

Davis only just turned 30, and I think still has plenty of time left to make it to the top. At Bellator 142 he will get the chance, facing former Bellator champion Emmanuel Newton. Newton has had much more exciting fights than Davis the past few years, and with two victories over “King Mo” Muhammed Luwal in this time, he is no stranger to fighting wrestlers.

While there is no guarantee that this fight will be good or even watchable, I will still tune in out of interest in seeing how a top UFC light heavyweight does in Bellator. Some no doubt think that he will climb right to the top, but I think his road there might be a little more difficult than expected.

Josh Barnett vs. Roy Nelson (September 26^th, UFC Fight Night 75)

I know it is strange to look forward to a Roy Nelson fight, but I think this one is interesting just for how these two potentially match up. Both are getting on in years, and at 39 for Nelson vs. 37 for Barnett, both guys best years are definitely behind them. Still, Barnett hasn't fought since being elbowed unconscious by Travis Browne in December last year. He maintains that this was a fluke on the part of Browne, and this is his chance to prove that he can still compete at a UFC level.

Nelson is also desperate for a win, having lost four out of his last five fights. A divisional mainstay since 2009, Nelson could find his job in jeopardy if he loses, and especially if he gets finished. Barnett won't want to take too many bombs from Nelson, so look for him to take the fight against the fence or to the mat. This might mean we get to see the grappling of Nelson after all these years, and whoever winds up on top first might end up the winner. With Nelsons cardio issues in the past it will not bode well for him should he not get the early knockout. 

Some interesting dynamics in this fight.

Looking ahead for UFC 191 Fighters

With another two weeks before any more big time MMA events, us fans are going to have to find some way to occupy our time. Today we will be looking at potential next matchups for the fighters who competed at UFC 191. Let's begin:

Demetrious Johnson: The flyweight champion retained his belt again, with a more dominant display over John Dodson that their first fight. The manner of his victory makes a third fight between the two unlikely, and leaves Johnson with very few potential challengers in his division. If Mighty Mouse is unwilling to move up to bantamweight, then the only option seems to be waiting for the winner of Novembers Henry Cejudo Vs. Jussier Formiga bout.

Cejudo is being touted as the next flyweight challenger, but his displays in the UFC so far have not really been as dominant as expected. He is 3-0 in the UFC, and 9-0 overall, but has no UFC finishes or wins over top competition. Formiga is 4-2 in the UFC but was TKO'd by top contenders Dodson and Joseph Benavidez. At this point Johnson is almost in Ronda Rousey territory when it comes to superiority over his division. The best bet would appear to be putting Johnson up against the Cejudo/Formiga winner and hoping that a new challenger materialises in the meantime.

John Dodson: It can't be easy being John Dodson right now. The second or third best flyweight in the world, he has lost twice against the champion, and is now in what we call Joseph Benavidez territory. He still has a win over bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw in his back pocket, so if he were to move up a division the story for a rematch writes itself. The lack of contenders at bantamweight means that one good win would most likely be enough to see him get a shot. Other than this, I think the only other attractive fight is Vs. Benavidez, in a battle for the flyweight silver medal.

Andrei Arlovski: If Arlovski's horrible performance against Brendan Schaub on his octagon return was down to nerves, then he must have had serious butterflies before his bout with Mir. Both fighters looked slow and hesitant, and even in victory Arlovski managed to kill any momentum he had in moving towards a title shot. We largely forgot about the Schaub fight when Arlovski went to town on Travis Browne earlier this year, so he needs to get in the octagon again and remind us why it didn’t seem so ridiculous a week ago that he could be a top heavyweight in 2015. For this he should get back in against the winner of Ben Rothwell/Stipe Miocic on October 24^th. If this goes ahead then the winner, should they look impressive, should be next in line for a heavyweight title shot after the inevitable Velasquez/Werdum rematch in March.

Frank Mir: It doesn’t seem that long ago that Frank Mir lost four in a row, now that his comeback has been halted. Though the fight with Arlovski was close, neither looked good nor neither looked like a top 10 heavyweight. Since Mir will most likely never win a title again, he should be put in a couple of fun fights and enjoy the impressive legacy that he has already built for himself. After a quick turnaround to fight Arlovski, Mir should take a break then fight either the Rothwell/Miocic loser, or else either Stefan Struve/Matt Mitrione in what should be reasonably winnable matchups.

Anthony Johnson: Rumble did what we all expected at UFC 191, knocking out Jimi Manuwa, albeit after deciding to show off his wrestling a little first. Rumble has said he is willing to step in as a replacement for either DC/Gustaffson or Rashad Evans/Ryan Bader at UFC 192 on October 3^rd. This sounds good to me, and if there are no injuries then either Rampage Jackson (if he resolves his legal issues), or the winner of Glover Teixeira/Patrick Cummins in November would be suitable opponents.

Jimi Manuwa: Manuwa has fallen short both times he has gone against a top opponent, being KO'd by both Rumble and Alexander Gustafsson. There in no shame in losing to the last and current title challengers in your division however, and Manuwa should still get a chance against a name opponent in his next bout. I would put him up against another rebounding fighter in Ovince Saint Preux. The winner could still have a bright future, whereas the loser will be a long shot to ever become a top dog in the division.

Corey Anderson: Anderson put on a wrestling clinic against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 191, and will find himself in the top 10 sooner rather than later if he keeps winning. Since most of the top names are occupied at the moment, I would suggest a fight against someone who will do their best to neutralise the wrestling of Anderson, so we can see what else he can do. Fabio Maldonado is fighting Tom Lawlor on November 7^th, and I would match Anderson up against the winner.

Jan Blachowicz: The stock of Blachowicz fell in a big way on Saturday, as he both gassed and proved unable to stop the takedowns of Corey Anderson throughout their fight. Though he survived to lose a 30-25 decision, this is probably more due to lack of killer instinct on the part of Anderson than anything else. Blachowicz should fight someone in a similar position, and my pick is Rafael Cavalcante, who was also wrecked by a wrestler in his last fight.

Paige VanZant: Paige dominated Alex Chambers as expected, but showed little improvement from her last fight, especially defensively. She leaves herself far too open to be facing the elite of the strawweight division, but unfortunately for her the division is so shallow that she could be finding herself in the title mix sooner than she would like. Still, she can’t keep being given such easily winnable fights, especially if she is to be built as a real contender. A fight against someone like Randa Markos or a rematch against Tecia Torres (should she get past Michelle Waterson), would give us a good idea of where she’s at right now.

Alex Chambers: Chambers is in a pretty unenviable position right now. Small for strawweight, 36 years old and was just on the receiving end of a very one sided beatdown. She will never be a contender, but she has a couple more fights to show that she still belongs in the UFC. She will most likely be used as a rebound fight for another fighter coming off a loss, so I say put her in there with Maryna Moroz and see what happens. 

UFC 191 Aftermath

UFC 191 has come and gone, and we will find that not really all that much changed. Some heavy favourites lost, but most of the perceived mismatches played out more or less as expected. Rumble Johnson earned another knockout, Paige VanZant overwhelmed Alex Chambers, and Demetrious Johnson put on another masterclass that was largely either booed or ignored. Just another day at the UFC office. 

Some quick prelim notes:

• Clay Collard lost a sloppy decision instead of winning one, and though the fight was close, I am officially no longer on the Clay Collard bandwagon. He hasn’t really looked impressive other than in a late replacement loss to Max Holloway, and I think I can now accept that he isn’t a UFC calibre fighter at this point in time.
• Paul Felder really needs to fight with a greater sense of urgency. The guy paid for his inactivity vs. Ross Pearson. Even though many people were saying the decision could have gone Felders way, I think Pearson looked good and deserved the win. Felder definitely should not be a 5/1 favourite in any of his next few fights, at least until he shows that he can really try to win, rather than sort of try and then look really surprised and angry when he doesn’t. 
• Raquel Pennington is a beast, and looked great against Jessica Andrade. She can officially join Matt Brown and Mark Hunt on the list of fighters who seem much better than their records, (6-5 Pennington, 20-13 Brown, 10-10-1 Hunt).
• John Lineker can put on a two minute display of ferocity like few others. The size difference between he and Rivera also looked huge while they were in the cage, but luckily Lineker either didn't notice or didn't care. Great win for Lineker, who has officially become a must watch fighter at bantamweight.

The main card had less surprises, with 4/5 favourites winning in either very convincing or not at all convincing fashions. The convincing of course being Mighty Mouse Johnson, Rumble Johnson, and Paige VanZant. The not convincing being Andrei Arlovski, who scraped by Mir in a close and fairly terrible fight. Also in the mix was Corey Anderson, who put on a ground and pound clinic versus Jan Blachowicz, who managed to gas after roughly ten seconds of fighting. 

Main card thoughts:

• Demetrious Johnson really doesn’t have anything else left to do at flyweight. He has beaten the next two guys in line twice each, and his nearest challenger is 9-0 Henry Cejudo, who without a doubt needs more time to challenge for a title. This would be true for Cejudo in any division, but against a challenger like Mighty Mouse he better pray someone else steps up quickly, because he will get wrecked by Johnson. Johnson wants to break Anderson Silvas record, but he must be getting just as bored as the rest of us. I have no doubt bantamweight is in his future, as a competitor like him must be starving for a real challenge.
• Paige VanZant is not ready to be ranked in the top five. VanZant put on a great performance against Alex Chambers, as expected, and even scored a 3^rd round armbar finish. As mildly impressive as it is beating an undersized 36 year old in such a dominant display, Paige will get wrecked by a number of people in her division. She simply doesn’t defend herself well, and if she fights Joanna Jedrzejczyk or Claudia Gadelha, I genuinely fear for her safety. 
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•  Rumble Johnson had a pretty confusing gameplan versus Jimi Manuwa. It appears that the knockouts are just too easy for Rumble Johnson, as he elected to wrestle Manuwa after having him hurt within the first minute. Whether Rumble just really respected the striking of Manuwa, or wanted to show off some other facets to his game, his takedown heavy first round was pretty unexpected and slightly bewlidering. He made up for it in Round Two with a savage knockout, so I guess all’s well that end well.

My picks: The prelims were pretty terrible for me in terms of fight picks. Being on the wrong side of close decision between Felder/Pearson, Collard/Trator and Silva/Managerie brought my prelim picks to a miserable 1-5. The Stallings/Riggs decision also cost me, as the fight was ruled a DQ win for Riggs due to damage from an illegal Stallings upkick. This should have been ruled a No Contest, as the damage appeared to be done by legal blows in round one.

The main card went better for picks, as I wound up finishing 5-0. 4/5 of these were favourites, and the Anderson/Blachowicz fight went basically how I predicted, though Anderson should probably have done enough to get the stoppage. So with a 6-5 record for the event, I will have to wait until WSOF and Bellator events on the 18^th and 19^th of this month to try and improve. 

2015 Prediction Record: 6-5