UFC 137: Expect Finishes

If long, drawn out fights that go to a decision are your thing, UFC 137 is not for you.  Looking at the matchups this is a card that will have finishes galore. Here’s a rundown of a few of the bigger fights on the card.

DENNIS SIVER VS DONALD “COWBOY” CERRONE

Siver and Cerrone appear to be on similar arcs right now and this match will be a good title eliminator. Siver, a stocky German with a formidable kickboxing background, will look to employ a similar strategy as the one that enabled him to upset grappling specialist George Sotiropolous. Siver was able to stuff Sotiropolous’s takedowns and pick him apart by controlling the distance with vicious kicks.

Cerrone, a WEC transplant riding a nice five fight win streak, finds himself a win or two away from a lightweight title shot. Cerrone looked mighty impressive defeating promising prospect Charles Oliveira by Technical Knockout in a mere three minutes for his first knockout win at UFC Live: Hardy vs Lytle. Cerrone has won 12 of his 16 fights by submission and will be looking for an impressive finish of Siver in this fight.

Prediction: Cerrone has simply been on a tear and Siver has been impressive but has had difficulty putting opponents away. I think Cerrone’s superior submission skills get him the win Cerrone by Submission.

ROY “BIG COUNTRY” NELSON VS MIRKO CRO COP

Skipping to the pay-per-view card is a heavyweight tilt between two guys fighting for their jobs. After winning the Ultimate Fighter 10 and defeating Danish prospect Stefan Struve, the rotund Nelson has been on the losing side of lopsided decisions against Junior Dos Santos and Frank Mir. What Nelson has shown in those two fights is that he has a heart the size of Texas and a chin that could get hit by a truck and keep going.

On the flip side of the affair is the aging Mirko Cro Cop. Cro Cop is an MMA legend branching back to his days in the now defunct Japanese organization, PRIDE. Cro Cop is known as the best kickboxer to ever become a Mixed Martial Artist and has earned the right to be called a legend with his impressive resume. However, he is now a 225 pound Chuck Liddell at this point in his career. For the latter part of Liddell’s career we kept telling ourselves he could still compete at the highest level he just kept getting caught. Then after watching him do his best Glass Joe impersonation everyone came to the sad conclusion that ole Chuck just couldn’t take a punch anymore.

Cro Cop has become the same thing. His last few fights he seems like he could possibly still land that signarure left high kick that used to be the most feared strike in MMA, but most of the time he ends up flat on the canvas with the medics checking his vitals.

Prediction: Unfortunately for Cro Cop, Nelson has a pretty nice overhand right that he is able to land with regularity. The weakness of Cro Cop has always been his inability to take a fight to the ground in the rare case he was in trouble on the feet. If Nelson doesn’t catch him standing he should be able to easily drag the fight to the ground and pick up the TKO victory. Nelson by TKO.

MATT MITRIONE VS CHEICK KONGO

Aside from the main event, this matchup is truly the most intriguing of the night. It is truly a classic gatekeeper vs prospect matchup. Playing the role of interesting prospect is Matt Mitrione. A former practice squad fullback for the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings Mitrione has athleticism in abundance and continue to evolve as a Mixed Martial Artist.

Playing the role of gatekeeper will be Cheick Kongo. A hulking Frenchman with a kickboxing background, Kongo is certainly not an opponent to be taken lightly and will certainly put Mitrione’s lauded chin to the test. Kongo is coming off of the craziest comeback in UFC history when he knocked out Pat Barry after the ref had almost came to his rescue from being pummeled seconds earlier. The win was certainly a huge won and showed the striking prowess that Kongo truly possesses. Mitrione may be wise to try to take Kongo down and not stand and trade like he is known to do.

Prediction: Kongo is by far the toughest test Mitrione has faced and how he fares will go a long way in determining his rank in the heavyweight division. One thing is for certain, this fight won’t be going to decision. I think Mitrione continues to show progress as he wins a close fight that nearly goes the distance. Mitrione by TKO.

B.J. PENN VS NICK DIAZ

For my full Penn-Diaz preview check out my first Bleacher Report piece here: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/909878-ufc-137-6-things-to-expect-in-the-penn-vs-diaz-main-event

Prediction: As stated in my preview I am not a believer in Diaz’ boxing. Penn is the more polished fighter in every area and I look for him to beat Diaz with his own impressive boxing. Penn by TKO.