UFC 144: Breaking Down Every Main Card Fight

UFC 144 could end up being the most stacked card of the year by the end of 2012, and with so many promising fights on the card, it makes sense that the UFC would up the ante and throw down seven high-profile fights on the main card.

With the organization returning to Japan for the first time in over a decade, there is a lot of Japanese talent on the card and a huge main event between Frankie Edgar and Benson Henderson for the lightweight title, making the card a must-see for both hardcore and casual fans.

Throw in Rampage Jackson’s return to Japan and a number of fights that have some serious title implications, and this card could easily become one of the best of all time.

Anthony Pettis vs. Joe Lauzon

If any fight was able to steal fight of the night honors from the main event, this one probably has the best chance.

Anthony Pettis is one of the most exciting fighters in MMA, and his tendency to pull off unorthodox moves has made him a fan favorite inside the Octagon.

Obviously, everyone knows about Pettis from his Showtime Kick he landed in his WEC 53 title bout, but he’s much more talented than a lot of fans realize and has a very well-rounded game.

Coming off a huge first-round submission over Melvin Guillard, Joe Lauzon has all of the sudden found himself in title contention, and a win over Pettis could possibly propel him to a title shot.

Lauzon always comes out fast and furious, and some of his biggest wins have come from him running out and smashing his opponent early, something he will definitely try to do this weekend.

This fight could easily come down to how well Lauzon is able to pace himself, as he always comes out strong and tries to finish the fight early, but Pettis is going to be a tough fighter to finish.

On the feet, Pettis is going to have a pretty solid advantage, and if he is able to keep it standing, he should be able to finish Lauzon before the fight ends, but if the fight hits the mat, it will get interesting.

Lauzon is a submission artist on the ground and he has a good shot to finish the fight on the floor, but Pettis is no slouch when it comes to BJJ.

Pettis should have the advantage in this fight, but Lauzon has a solid chance to pull off the upset if he can get Pettis to the mat immediately.

Hatsu Hioki vs. Bart Palaszewski

With the UFC returning to Japan for the first time in the Zuffa era, there are a number of Japanese fighters on the card, but none of them have a chance to make an impact in the organization like Hatsu Hioki does.

Hioki made his UFC debut back at UFC 137 and had a bit of a lackluster performance in his win over George Roop, but he is still one of the top competitors in a very weak featherweight division.

If Hioki is able to take out Palaszewski this weekend, he could easily find himself next in line to challenge Jose Aldo for the belt, and the road to Aldo is going to depend on his ability to take Palaszewski to the mat.

Bart Palaszewski made his featherweight debut on that same UFC 137 card that Hioki fought on, but he made a much more lasting impression with the fans.

Fighting the well known and highly regarded Tyson Griffin, Palaszewski came out and smashed Griffin with a furious barrage of punches, earning his first UFC victory and putting himself in title contention in the process.

Palaszewski has some serious power in his hands, and his wrestling is vastly underrated, but most think his best chance at a win will come in stand-up exchanges.

This isn’t exactly a striker vs. grappler matchup, but it may be in Palaszewski’s best interest to make it that way, as he has a much better shot at winning this bout if it remains upright.

Yushin Okami vs. Tim Boetsch

After getting completely outclassed by Anderson Silva at UFC 134, Yushin Okami is going to have a long road ahead of him if he wants to get anywhere near the middleweight title again.

Okami has been regarded as one of the five best middleweights in the world for a long time, but he has always had to work a bit harder to get noticed, and a big win over Tim Boetsch probably won’t do much to give him credibility.

A powerful wrestler who has underrated striking, Okami is seriously talented and could potentially win this fight either on the feet or the ground, but this seems like more of a showcase fight for him in front of the Japanese fans.

Boetsch has looked extremely good since dropping to middleweight last year, scoring a nice set of decisions over Kendall Grove and Nick Ring, but this is a huge step up in competition for “The Barbarian.”

This is the biggest fight in Boetsch’s career and the size and strength advantages he’s had since moving down to 185 won’t be as relevant again Okami, who is a huge middleweight himself.

All that being said, Boetsch is going to be a formidable threat for Okami, if only because he may be able to negate “Thunder’s” wrestling, meaning the fight could easily become a slugfest on the feet.

Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Jake Shields

It’s rare to see two guys that are well known and liked by fans fight each other in a must-win situation, but that’s exactly what we have between Jake Shields and Yoshihiro Akiyama.

Shields came over to the UFC with a ton of momentum in late 2010, walking into the Octagon as a former Strikeforce champion on the heels of a big win over Dan Henderson, and after a win over Martin Kampmann at UFC 121, Shields was thrust into a welterweight title fight against Georges St-Pierre.

After a slightly disappointing but highly expected loss to GSP, Shields was knocked down the ladder and thrown into a fight with a prospect in Jake Ellenberger, and after going into the bout as a favorite, he was promptly crushed in less than a minute by “The Juggernaut.”

Now riding two straight losses and coming off a six-month layoff, a win over Akiyama is essential, and it will be interesting to see how Shields tries to tackle “Sexyama.”

Much like Shields, Akiyama came into the UFC with a ton of hype and delivered in his UFC debut with a win over Alan Belcher at UFC 100. But subsequent losses to Chris Leben, Michael Bisping and Vitor Belfort sent him tumbling down the UFC ladder and eventually out of the middleweight division.

Shields is an unbelievable grappler and would have an advantage over nearly anyone in the division on the mat, but Akiyama’s strength lies in his judo skills even though he has pretty much abandoned them at this point.

But while Shields is primarily known as a grappler, his striking against St-Pierre was actually surprisingly good, and he could hold his own on the feet against Akiyama.

Akiyama has been slugging it out as of late, and while he has some skills on the feet, a lot of people would like to see him use his ground game that he’s been neglecting over the last year or so.

That being said, Shields is at his best on the mat and Akiyama may be a bit too much for him on the feet, so expect Akiyama to try and slug it out for at least one more fight.

Cheick Kongo vs. Mark Hunt

The second this fight was announced, fans started hoping for a heavyweight slugfest, and we can only hope that it doesn’t disappoint on Saturday.

Both Cheick Kongo and Mark Hunt are fantastic kickboxers and have power in both their hands and feet, and this fight could get nasty quickly if they decide to turn the fight into a glorified game of Rock’em Sock’em Robots.

Kongo is riding a two-fight win streak and has won three of his last four bouts, but he hasn’t gotten that push into title contention that most would think, and a win over Hunt would likely get him a big fight in the heavyweight division.

Whether or not this fight ends up taking place on the feet will end up in Kongo’s hands, as he has a better-than-average ground game, especially when it comes to his top control.

Other than the fight with Pat Barry that saw Kongo get rocked and taken completely out of his game early, Kongo has a tendency to go after kickboxers by taking the fight to the ground and winning them with his superior ground and pound, a strategy that could work very well against Hunt.

It’s actually interesting to see Hunt even in this spot, as he was only given a fight in the UFC in the first place due to an old contract he had with Pride, but Hunt has performed reasonably well during his UFC run.

This is Hunt’s chance to shine in the UFC, and a win over Kongo might not catapult him straight into title contention, but it would easily help his star grow and will earn him a good fight against a big name.

Hunt needs to keep this one standing and hope to knock Kongo out with his insane power, because if it hits the mat, he will have a hard time pulling off the win.

Rampage Jackson vs. Ryan Bader

As excited as Rampage Jackson is to return to Japan, he has a tough opponent in front of him in Ryan Bader.

Rampage has looked like he’s stepped up his game over his last few fights, showing some great takedown defense against Matt Hamill at UFC 130 and putting on a decent showing against Jon Jones at UFC 135, and he’ll need to keep it up to take out Bader this weekend.

Rampage has always relied on his power to win fights, and his tremendous ability to knock anyone out in the world with his hands is his trademark; that’s what he will be looking to do against Bader.

This fight is going to come down to Rampage’s ability to avoid getting taken to the mat, as Bader is likely going to have to use his wrestling in order to pull off the win.

Bader is getting put into a huge spot, coming off a win on the preliminary portion of UFC 139 over Jason Brilz and getting thrown into a big fight against Rampage in Japan.

A win for Bader would be huge for his career, and it will take a huge effort for him to overcome Rampage’s power and takedown defense.

If Bader is able to get Rampage on his back early and often, he could easily steal a decision, but if he his forced to stand and trade with Rampage, it will end up being a long night for “Darth.”

Frankie Edgar vs. Benson Henderson: UFC Lightweight Title Fight

It seems like Frankie Edgar is finally getting the respect he deserves after taking out BJ Penn and Gray Maynard, and this may be the first fight since he won the belt where he is considered the favorite by the majority of fans, but he is going to have a huge test in front of him in Benson Henderson.

Edgar is one of the most well-rounded fighters in MMA as far as mixing striking and grappling, and he has shown that he is never to be overlooked, but he may have some problems with the sheer size and ability of Henderson.

Henderson has showed off his wrestling well in his UFC bouts so far, running through Mark Bocek, Jim Miller and Clay Guida in order to earn this shot at Frankie Edgar.

With Henderson’s strength and raw talent as a wrestler, it will be interesting if he will be able to get Edgar to the mat, something Gray Maynard had a lot more trouble doing that most anticipated.

If he’s unable to do so, he will have a seriously hard time competing with Edgar on the feet, as Edgar may have the best footwork in MMA and is unbelievably hard to hit.

The biggest advantage either fighter has anywhere in the bout is Edgar’s ability to outwork anyone on the lightweight roster on the feet, and Edgar’s takedown defense could end up being the key to this fight.

If Henderson is able to take Edgar down at will and throw down some serious ground and pound, he could easily win the majority of the rounds and possibly finish the fight, something that almost seems impossible after witnessing Edgar take some serious punishment at the hands of Maynard.