UFC 141 Will Belong to Donald Cerrone and Alistair Overeem

Friday night will feature two epic displays of power and endurance. However, only Alistar Overeem and Donald Cerrone will feel no pain. 

If Dana White wanted to steal the show from every other sport in 2011, he certainly put together one hell of an attempt. This has the makings of one of the more epic UFC fight cards. 

While most are discussing the finer points of Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem, it might be Nate Diaz and Donald Cerrone that steal the show in the end. Here is how I find the two bouts will go down on Friday night. 

No matter what happens, it is all but guaranteed that UFC 141 will be one of the best collections of fights in MMA. 

Nate Diaz vs. Donald Cerrone

Cerrone is one of the hottest fighters around, capturing wins in his last six bouts. What has me confident in the extension of that streak is the pace of the fight. 

Nate Diaz is prone to slow starts as he tries to assess and feel out the situation. Cerrone, meanwhile, is a bruiser that loves to instigate the action. I have nothing but love for Diaz, who I consider one of the most underrated fighters out there. 

However, Cerrone will control this thing from the start. Diaz won't have time for his usual feeling out process, throwing him off balance. 

Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem 

I have to buy into the hype that Lesnar will be a shade off his game as he makes it back into the Octagon after a second bout with diverticulitis. 

The ring rust will be just enough to have a very hungry and tough fighter in Alistair Overeem overcome what Lesnar has for him. Also of note is the fact that Overeem has solid takedown defense, limiting what advantage Lesnar does have over the kickboxer. 

Overeem will sprint into the UFC with a takedown of the mammoth who just needs another fight or two to get back to where he was before his illness. 

This is going to be a night filled with hard hits and surprises. 

Follow @gabezal