UFC 87 Card Finalized: "Who Will Seek And Destroy?"

Here it is in all it's glory.......

The UFC has announced the final card for UFC 87 "Seek And Destroy" which goes down August 9 from the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota:

Main Card:

UFC Welterweight Title
-Georges St. Pierre vs. Jon Fitch

This match up worries me being a fan of GSP.  Fitch is the most well rounded competitor so far for the current Welterweight Champion.

Fitch has never lost in the UFC and has proved in previous fights that he has heart and a stiff chin. 

GSP is slightly better in every aspect of MMA, but he still does not have a successful title defense since becoming champion...either time.

Georges should win this fight because he's a better overall fighter, but Fitch IS going to be his toughest test yet.

It's not about who's better now, but who's better on August 9th.

"To be the man, you've got to beat the man.  Wooooo!"

I have to go with GSP with either 3rd round submission or decision. 

-Kenny Florian vs. Roger Huerta

In what many believe will be the fight of the night, Huerta and "K-Flo" just may deliver.

Florian has improved tremendously since coming back from Thailand where he focused in on getting that much better.

Even though he has one of the worst nicknames in MMA, along with Joe Lauzon, Florian has been on an unstoppable tear since his loss to Sean Sherk.

He's finished every fight before the final bell. 

"El Matador" proved his heart in his fight against Clay Guida.

Guida dominated most of the fight and we saw Huerta as close to being finished as we have yet.

However, he persevered and choked Guida out in the final round.

An inside source has told me that, "Huerta has a surprise for Kenny."

With that being said, and his track record, I see Roger picking up a hard fought victory and future title shot in this one.

Remember he trains with GSP and Florian brought in Kurt Pelligrino to help him out.

I think there's a BIG difference there.

Huerta takes it with either a surprise 1st rd TKO or decision.

-Brock Lesnar vs. Heath Herring

Brock Lesnar...this guy is a beast. 

However, we've seen skill sets overcome pure strength and aggression...two words...Frank Mir.

I know Mir's ground ability heavily surpasses Herring, but no one thought he would upset Cheick Kongo...he did.

No one thought he had a chance against Noguiera the third time...he did.

"Minotauro" was KO'd, Herring just needed to jump on him after the kick to the head to secure the victory.

If Pride fighters weren't dropping like flies at the time, there's a good chance the fight would have been stopped.

When Heath came in to fight Kongo, he was in the best shape we've ever seen him.

What shape will he be in this time?

Look at the match up...

Herring has crazy experience and a wide array of skills.

Lesnar is as "green" as they come.  He promised to "slow" down in this fight and not to be overly aggressive. 

This might be his downfall as he tries to balance his attack.

I still have to go with Lesnar here due to the fact that Herring's "Jits" is nowhere near Frank Mir's.

Expect a takedown with a ground and pound stoppage.

Don't get me wrong, I fear a Herring victory, and wouldn't be surprised, because we don't know much about what Lesnar has standing. 

It doesn't seem too effective from what I've seen.

If Herring takes it, he may be next in line for a title shot depending on the outcome of Werdum's next fight.

I have to say Brock by 1st or 2nd round TKO, ground and pound.

-Demian Maia vs. Jason MacDonald

The "Athlete" is in great shape and a well rounded fighter.

Maia is a submission freak and arguably the future of the Middleweight division, that is without Anderson Silva in the picture.

Demian is sick and a guy a lot of people are going to fear real soon, if not already.

MacDonald seems to be a "gatekeeper" at 185.

He's a good fighter with many skills but he can't beat the top guys like Franklin, Hendo, Okami and of course Silva.

Maia is undefeated and this will most likely continue.

I hate to go against a Canadian, but it's going to take more than an "Athlete" to stop Maia.

If your not sure, talk to Ed Herman because he got OWNED!  He gets it.

Demian Maia by 2nd round submission

-Manny Gamburyan vs. Rob Emerson

In who many believe would be the Ultimate Fighter instead of Nate Diaz, the "Manvil" is a ball of iron.

He has good judo skills, power, a strong chin, and a lot of heart.

If it wasn't for his shoulder injury at the TUF finale, Gamburyan could be headlining Fight Night cards.

I can't complain though, I'm glad he isn't because his fights don't derive much interest from me.

And Rob Emerson?

He's average at best, decent in most areas but I don't see anything he excels at.

Emerson has one advantage hear...he's taller. 

That's it!

Unless he's improved, by at least 60%, he's going to lose.

Manny is a tough fighter who wants a rematch with Nate Diaz.

There's been a lot of talks between the two camps but nothing signed yet.

If Gamburyan comes through here, as he should, and Nate defeats Josh Neer, then that fight could and should happen.

My only question is why the hell does Rob Emerson make the main card?

Pure rubbish, I'd rather see Kongo.  But I'm biased because I'm French.

Oh, and Emerson wouldn't be a champion in Ring Of Fire.

Maybe he's getting a lot of hits on his MYSPACE page? 

I don't get it at all.

Gamburyan takes the victory with 2nd Round TKO.

Prelim Card:

-Cheick Kongo vs. Dan Evensen

Kongo needs a win to get back into contention after his loss to Heath Herring.

He was coming off of a victory over that Croatian Kick boxer some of you may have heard of.

Kongo went from a possible title shot to not being on the main card.

I love the politics, ha-ha.

Don't worry though, Rob Emerson made the main card.

(Insert sarcasm at an all time high)

Cheick is hungry and somewhat desperate so I see him being very aggressive in this fight to prove to Dana White and the rest of the division...he's someone to deal with.

Kongo takes it, 1st rd KO.

-Andre Gusmao vs. Jon Jones

UFC newcomer and USKBA light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones (6-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will replace Tomasz Drwal (14-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) and face Andre Gusmao (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC).

Jones is a member of the Northeast-based Team BombSquad.

Although both fighters are undefeated in MMA, Jones is only 20.

He's been talked about as a future phenom.  (No Belfort comparison)

Even though the kid is young, I have to go on his potential and see what he's made off.

I'll go out on a limb and say, the replacement, Jon Jones by 1st rd KO, it's a stretch but why not?

-Chris Wilson vs. Steve Bruno

Chris Wilson, who fought a tough decision loss to Jon Fitch at UFC 82, will return to the octagon against ATT product Steve Bruno.

Not much to report hear, I just see Wilson getting it done.

Wilson had Fitch in trouble and fought a good fight.

Just on that I have to choose him.

Wilson 1st rd submission.

-Tamdan McCrory vs. Luke Cummo

We remember Luke Cummo as the crazy guy that had to have his bed facing north so his "Chi" was aligned right.

Weird or not, the guy is a decent fighter.

Looks like Tamdan McCrory returns after taking sometime off for school.

I know a lot of people probably wont care about this fight, and I'm one of them.

Take your pick here, it could go either way.

Tamdan hasn't fought in a while so there could be rust, or he could be pretty damn good.

But for that reason and uncertainty, I go with Cummo by decision.

Ben Saunders vs. Ryan Thomas*

*has replaced Jared Rollins

The reason for Rollins departure from the card wasn't immediately known.

Saunders, a fan favorite from "TUF 6," was knocked out of the reality-series competition by eventual show runner-up Tommy Speer.

However, he returned at the show's live finale for an entertaining and hard-fought unanimous-decision victory over Dan Barrera.

It was his fifth consecutive win.

Thomas, a former Eastern Illinois University wrestler, turned pro in 2006 and has fought primarily for the Courage Fighting Championships and Extreme Fighting organizations.

Of his eight pro victories, none have gone the distance; five were won via submission and four via TKO. 

Thomas has to step up to top tier competition now so I can't chose him until he proves himself.

Saunders' "Jeet Kune Do" and length should pull this out.

Out of respect for Thomas, I'll give Saunders a decision, although it could be a 2nd rd KO.

The card shapes up to be great on paper.  Let's see what delivers on August 9th.

For me, as long as GSP retains, "everything else is just cream cheese."

I had to quote the basketball coach from Teen Wolf on that one, the end part that is...classic!

Credit: MMA Weekly/ 411mania.com/ MMAJUNKIE.com