UFC on FOX: 11 Fights to Build the Ultimate Fight Card

UFC President Dana White tweeted Thursday that tomorrow he will be revealing the main event of the first UFC on FOX fight card. Of course, this important main event announcement will be widely covered by Bleacher Report, but there will also be a large number of undercard fights that will make up this monumental event.

There has already been a ton of speculation surrounding the two fights that will be aired on the first UFC on FOX card, so why don’t we take some time to create a “dream card” of some of the best possible matchups for both the main card and undercard?

Most of these fights are purely fantasy and it is likely that none of them will ever come to fruition, but it’s always good to have a little bit of fun, isn’t it?

So sit back and relax as we take a crack at being UFC matchmaker Joe Silva by creating the ultimate fight card in UFC history.

Mark Bocek vs. Danny Downes (Lightweight Bout)

Danny Downes is an impressive young fighter who may just be the best lightweight under the Zuffa banner who currently holds a losing record in the company.

At 6-0, Downes debuted for the Zuffa-owned WEC in June 2010 when he took a fight on just three days’ notice against Chris Horodecki. Considering that he had such little time to prepare to fight, let alone to fight the most skilled opponent of his career at that point, Downes held his own prior to being submitted by Horodecki in the third round.

But the WEC admired his willingness to take the fight on short notice and rewarded him with a fight against one of their brightest up-and-coming stars, Zhang Tai Quan. Most presumed that Downes would lose the fight, but he ended up shocking the experts when he won a judges’ decision becoming the first and currently still the only person to earn a victory over the Chinese fighter. Unfortunately, his celebrating didn’t last long as he was defeated by Jeremy Stephens in his next UFC fight this past June.

Downes would be a great opponent for Mark Bocek, though, as the UFC veteran hopes to push his way back up the rankings in the lightweight division.

Bocek has been fighting in the UFC for over four years now and has put together a respectable 5-4 record for the promotion. That record sounds worse than it really is, though, given that three of the losses have come to current consensus top-10 lightweights Jim Miller, Ben Henderson and champion Frankie Edgar.

The American Top Team fighter has dropped two of this last three contests (to Miller and Henderson) but remains one of the most dangerous fighters in the division. He has defeated seven of his opponents nine career wins, utilizing an impressive rear-naked choke to finish off five of them.

With Downes’ Muay Thai and Tae Kwon Do background against Bocek’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu, the opening fight on this card would be an interesting stylistic clash between two of the division’s more interesting fighters and a sleeper for Fight of the Night honors.

Tyson Griffin vs. Jimy Hettes (Featherweight Bout)

Tyson Griffin was one of the top-ranked lightweights in the world for the better part of three years as he ran up an impressive 7-2 record in the Octagon between UFC 63 and UFC 103. His victories included impressive performances against the likes of Gleison Tibau, Hermes Franca, Thiago Tavares and even Clay Guida, while his only losses came at the hands of lightweight champions Frankie Edgar and Sean Sherk.

But something seemed to happen at UFC 115 when he battled his Xtreme Couture teammate Evan Dunham at UFC 115. Though the bout went down as a split decision loss for Griffin, he just did not seem to have the same fire in his eyes that he did throughout the previous three years. This loss led to a second, his first knockout loss, against Takanori Gomi in August 2010.

Following a third consecutive loss, this time to Nik Lentz, Griffin opted to move back down to the featherweight division. He had not competed in the division since December 2005, but Griffin looked sharp in his return to 145 as he won a majority decision over Manny Gamburyan in what many believed to be a must-win fight for the 27-year-old.

Now looking to get back into the title hunt in a new weight class, Griffin could find himself stepping into the cage with someone like Jimy Hettes. Hettes' 9-0 record includes a victory in his UFC debut this past month against Alex Cacares, a bout in which he submitted his opponent with a rear-naked choke in the second round.

Hettes’ perfect record is not only untarnished with a loss, but he has also never even been to a judges’ decision. Each one of his nine victories have come by way of submission. It is this kind of fighter who could make for a very interesting opponent to fight a quality wrestler like Tyson Griffin. 

Chris Cope vs. Dennis Hallman (Welterweight Bout)

As perhaps the biggest underdog coming into Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter, Chris Cope surprised many viewers when he knocked out one of the show’s consensus favorites, Javier Torres, in his first fight on the show. He then went on to defeat Shamar Bailey in his quarterfinal matchup in a bout where his technique and ability to trust his corner were likely the difference against a more physically gifted fighter.

Cope made it all the way to the semifinal round before he was eliminated by the show's runner-up, Ramsey Nijem. But his performances and displays of heart throughout the series were enough to get the UFC to sign him even though he didn’t end up winning the show.

He made his official UFC debut at the series finale where he defeated fellow castmate and Bleacher Report contributor Chuck O’Neil in a close bout.

Cope has become somewhat of a fan favorite due to the perception that he has been an underdog in the fights he has competed in on The Ultimate Fighter. So putting him against someone who recently “disgusted” both fans and UFC president Dana White could be a great way to help advance each man’s career.

Dennis Hallman could be that opponent after his now infamous “fight attire” at August’s UFC 133 event, where he wore what essentially was a purple Speedo during the fight.

White made it sound like he was seriously contemplating firing the veteran who made his debut all the way back at UFC 29, but opted against it while making it very clear that this type of clothing would not be acceptable in the future.

Reuben Duran vs. Nick Pace (Bantamweight Bout)

Bantamweights Reuben Duran and Nick Pace are two of the division’s newest faces, but are looking to make a name for themselves after each man has put together just a 1-1 record in the Octagon so far.

Duran lost his UFC debut in a razor-thin split-decision to one of the top bantamweights in the world, Takeya Mizugaki. He then bounced back in his second UFC fight at The Ultimate Fighter 13 finale, submitting Francisco Rivera with a rear naked choke in the third round of their contest. The submission was good enough to earn him a Submission of the Night bonus.

Nick Pace came into the UFC with a 5-1 MMA record, his only loss coming at the hands of current UFC bantamweight No. 1 contender Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson. The New York native had dominated the New Jersey fight scene prior to that night and remains one of the top up-and-coming bantamweights in the sport despite having now dropped two of his past three fights.

Pace’s most recent loss came against Ivan Menjivar at UFC 133 earlier last month, but that loss was a bit more understandable given that Menjivar came into the fight three pounds overweight. Still, the loss was a discouraging one Pace was originally scheduled to fight a more highly ranked opponent in Michael McDonald. 

Christian Morecraft vs. Oli Thompson (Heavyweight Bout)

An undefeated Christian Morecraft made his Octagon debut at UFC 117 when he battled Stefan Struve in a battle of fighters with two of the most weird-looking physiques in the division. To the surprise of many, Morecraft dominated most of the first round and looked to be well on his way to victory in that bout, but was then knocked out early in the second round by a big punch combo from the “Skyscraper.”

Morecraft would go on to defeat Sean McCorkle in his second UFC fight before dropping a second bout to Matt Mitrione in June at UFC on Versus 4. It was the second loss that Morecraft appeared to be on his way to winning, only to be later knocked out in Round 2.

A fun fight to see Morecraft in could be against former English Strongman competitor Oli Thompson, who has already fought 11 times in only 28 months of competing in MMA.

At 6’1”, Thompson is one of the shorter fighters in the division, but that could also make for an interesting stylistic matchup with Morecraft.

Dustin Poirier vs. Pablo Garza (Featherweight Bout)

The only fight that the UFC has announced for the FOX card thus far is a featherweight contest between Dustin Poirier and Pablo Garza. As such, this is the only fight that we can guarantee (barring injuries) will be a part of the event.

Poirier made his stamp in the UFC in his first fight when he stepped in for an injured Jose Aldo to fight No. 1 featherweight contender Josh Grispi at UFC 125. Grispi was expected to dominate the fight, but ended up dropping the bout to Poirier, who was making his featherweight debut.

Garza is also new to the featherweight scene as he made his debut in the division at The Ultimate Fighter 12 finale following a loss at lightweight to Zhang Tie Quan. But the move down in weight has been great for Garza as he has won back-to-back fights in the UFC, including one with a beautiful flying triangle on Yves Jabouin at UFC 129. He has won both a knockout of the night and submission of the night honor in his two bouts for the organization.

Brad Pickett vs. Renan Barao (Bantamweight Bout)

Two of the UFC’s hottest bantamweights are Brad Pickett and Renan Barao, who have been tentatively scheduled to fight at UFC 138.

Undefeated since his MMA debut gave him a split-decision loss, Renan Barao made his UFC debut at UFC 130 when he defeated Cole Escovedo. Barro also holds a win over Chris Cariaso from his days in the WEC and is looking to take a step up in competition for his next fight.

That step up will likely be Brad Pickett, a seven-year MMA veteran who has not yet made his UFC debut. But unlike many other fighters who have padded their records by competing against lesser-talented local fighters, Pickett stepped right into top competition when he battled Demetrious Johnson, Scott Jorgensen and Ivan Menjivar in the WEC. Pickett is the only fighter who holds a victory over Johnson.

Michael McDonald vs. Miguel Torres (Bantamweight Bout)

A classic fight between an up-and-coming bantamweight and a falling-from-grace bantamweight could be perfect for one of the undercard fights on FOX.

Miguel Torres was almost unanimously considered one of the top 10 pound-for-pound fighters in the world just two years ago, but has since dropped three of his past five fights. Even though the fights have all been against fighters who are consensus top bantamweights themselves, the disappointing performances have led many to knock Torres not only out of their top pound-for-pound rankings, but some have even gone as far as to remove him from the top-10 bantamweight rankings.

On the other side of the cage would be the highly entertaining 20-year-old prospect Michael McDonald. McDonald made a memorable debut at UFC Fight Night 24 when he battled Edwin Figueroa to a decision victory in a bout that later won Fight of the Night honors.

Mark Hominick vs. Jung Chan-Sung (Featherweight Bout)

It was only a couple months ago that Mark Hominick was fighting for the UFC featherweight championship against Jose Aldo at UFC 129, but the Canadian fell just short despite a hero’s effort in his home country.

But even after the loss, Hominick remains one of the UFC’s top featherweight fighters and is likely only a fight or two away from another shot at Aldo. The best option for Hominick may be a fight with Jung Chan-Sung, better known by many as the “Korean Zombie.”

The Zombie became one of the hottest fighters in the world following his UFC Fight Night 24 victory over Leonard Garcia. It was a great fight all the way through, but it was the application of a unique submission known as the “Twister” which made him a star. It was the first time that the submission had been used in the Octagon and is practically a shoo-in for Submission of the Year.

These two fighters have unofficially agreed to fighting one another via Twitter despite their being no bad blood between the two, but it will ultimately come down to a decision by the UFC.

Semi-Main Event: Ben Henderson vs. Clay Guida (Lightweight Bout)

The first fight on FOX has to be a great one. It has to be something that will get the fans excited and deliver an entertaining bout. We have seen boring fights lead into anticipated main events in the past and the result is that the live crowd can sometimes be less than spectacular.

A lightweight bout between Ben Henderson and Clay Guida would be billed as a No. 1 contenders fight with the winner being in-line for the winner of champion Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard in October at UFC 136.

This kind of billing would make for instant attraction as not only do these fighters bring in fans because of their styles, but the title implications would just make things that much better.

Main Event: Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos (Heavyweight Bout)

The UFC is in a great place for this event as the main event of the first UFC on FOX card will go down in history no matter who is involved. There are a variety of fights that could possibly main event this card, including a rumored fight between Tito Ortiz and Rich Franklin, but no (realistic) fight could possibly produce the kind of ratings that a heavyweight title fight between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos could.

These two heavy hitters are both undefeated in the Octagon with numerous wins over top-level opponents, but someone has to walk out of this fight with an imperfection on his UFC record.

The hype for this fight continues to grow and it is expected to be one of the most successful heavyweight bouts in the organization’s history. Certainly the UFC could justify putting it on pay-per-view, but as they say, you only get one chance to make a good impression.

This is the UFC’s one chance to make an amazing impression in front of a network TV audience.