Kang will come out with something to prove after his disastrous debut, but Xavier is well rounded as well. I admit I don't know as much about "Professor X," but he has a number of wins by submission as well as (T)KO.
Kang has faced better competition, I believe, but has lost to most of them. Kang can't seem to settle down for a decision win, switching back and forth between tactics and needlessly exposing himself to danger. I'm picking Foupa-Pokam just based on Kang's tendency to throw away fights, but I wouldn't be surprised if it went the other way.
Jason MacDonald d. Nate Quarry
Quarry wants a stand-up fight, MacDonald likely wants nothing to do with it. MacDonald has done better against both of their common opponents, Rich Franklin and Demian Maia, even though both fighters have lost to both of them.
Also, MacDonald has been logging a crazy amount of cage time lately,fighting every few months, and Quarry can't seem to stop getting injured outside the ring. He also can't seem to get a fight that goes past the first—not counting the Starnes debacle. His ring rust will be his undoing.
David Loiseau d. Ed Herman
I think Loiseau has finally gotten his head right, and is coming off three wins, including a gutsy fifth round TKO of Solomon Hutcherson. Herman is an unpredictable fighter, and not in the good way. He has been winning and losing upsets his entire time in the UFC.
The telling factor is that Herman is not a very explosive fighter and will probably have difficulty controlling Loiseau. His striking is also very rudimentary, and I think Loiseau will give him fits on the feet. That is if he can open up, which shouldn't be an issue with Herman; I think the UFC is giving Loiseau a good style matchup in this one.
Mark Bocek d. David Bielkheden
Bocek has a strong grappling pedigree, as does Bielkheden. I don't see either man submitting the other, and both have proven to be very difficult to finish. I see the difference being the fact that Bielkheden has had trouble in the past with strong grapplers who can control him for a decision win.
Also, the Swede is cutting to lightweight for the first time in the UFC, which may affect his endurance. Bocek is a big 155'er, and I think he can manage to take the win away from a fading Bielkheden.
Matt Wiman d. Sam Stout
A very difficult fight to pick. Stout is coming off of two very close decision losses, while Wiman is coming off a three round mauling at the hands of a short-notice Jim Miller. Wiman has shown flashes of brilliance on the feet, such as when he smashed Thiago Tavares, but the ground is arguably his strong point, and should be in this fight.
Stout has shown improvements in his grappling; his takedown defense looked airtight against Per Eklund, but when Rich Clementi showed him a well-rounded attack, he was able to drag him to the ground time after time. This is the sort of threat that Wiman can pose when on his game, and I think he will be after being outclassed in his last fight.
Stout is nearly impervious on the feet, but can be outpointed by more versatile strikers, as Terry Etim and Spencer Fisher showed. Wiman best not try to knock him out, but Stout's kickboxing, while technically accurate and sound, can be predictable against more unorthodox MMA strikers.
All in all, Stout seems content to try and play the sprawl and brawl game, which has shown him the losing end more than once, and he doesn't possess the imposing physical style that wore out Wiman against Miller. Stout could catch Wiman and put him away, but he has never finished a UFC-level opponent, and Wiman's chin has proved sturdy.
Wiman by decision.
TJ Grant d. Ryo Chonan
Grant comes in with an impressive 13-2 record, a Jorge Gurgel purple belt who put away UFC vets Forrest Petz and Chad Reiner last year. I haven't seen any tape on him, but he's billed as a solid wrestler and has 12 of his 13 wins by submission.
Chonan has not looked the same since Pride, and also seems to be small as far as UFC welterweights go. He can be excellent on the feet, but has not shown a strong takedown defense, which is difficult to get away with in the mutant shark tank that is the UFC's wrestler-heavy lineup.
Gurgel's students seem to have incredible submission games, and unlike their teacher, choose to apply them.
If Grant pushes the pace, I think he can take the fight, but I doubt he will finish Chonan, who has shown to be very difficult to put away for all except the most elite submission fighters or hard hitters like Phil Baroni or Dan Henderson.
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