Cain Velasquez-Cheick Kongo: Their Bid for UFC Gold

UFC 99 will feature tons of great talent. 

The likes of Wanderlei Silva, Rich Franklin, Cain Velasquez, and Cheick Kongo will all be showcased as the UFC heads across the pond. 

Most fans are incredibly excited for the battle of Wand vs. Ace, but the fight that has title implications is the one between Kongo vs. Velasquez.

This contest of big men is going to be a battle.

Cheick Kongo has been around awhile.  He has an impressive record of 24-4-1. He is a veteran of the Octagon and is riding the wave of a three fight win streak. All three of those wins were due to the combination of amazing power and precision in both of his hands and feet.

As he continues to win, the title fight rumors get louder and louder from the blogs and forums. 

In this fight he will be the bigger of the two athletes. He will have at least three inches of height on his opponent, which should relate to a longer reach. This could be a key factor in this fight. 

If Kongo is going to win, it will either be because he dropped his opponent with a perfectly timed strike, or a war of attrition that lasts to the bell. 

If he is able to push Cain for the first round and get him on his heels, it will make for a much easier fight. This will allow Kongo to use his height. This opens the door to use his reach and superior striking game, as well as rattle Cain's mental state.

The mental aspect might surprise you, but in this sport wrestlers always have trouble with better wrestlers.

This fight has a similar feel. Whoever is the weaker striker is in deep trouble.

Cain Velasquez is not a long time veteran of the UFC.

In fact he will be the newbie in this war of monsters. He has only had five pro MMA fights. Just like his opponent, Cain is riding the wave of an impressive win streak, but the level of competition has been in question.

Cheick Kongo is without a doubt the best fighter that Cain has faced.

Cain's strength to this point has been his stand up game. Every one of his five wins have been by TKO.

That is going to generate some fireworks. 

If he is going to win this fight, he will have to get inside and use solid elbow work on Cheick.  He is going to be slightly smaller and possibly stronger. If he has a ground game, this could be the fight to show it to the world.

This fight is going to be full of sparks. 

These two warriors are going to stand in the middle of the cage and swing at one another until someone falls. That is what everyone else is saying, but I am going to tell you it is going to go another route. 

Once the superior stand up fighter starts to take over, don't be surprised if you see a clinch to a take down, or some sort of push to take this to the ground.

Kongo has twice as many submission wins in his career as Cain. This fight will hit the ground at some point, and that is where the ground and pound of Kongo will help him get the victory.  his may even come after some sort of scramble after a solid shot.

After the dust settles in Germany, one of these two athletes may be considered the top contender in this division. 

If they aren't guaranteed a title shot, then they will get the winner of the Randy Couture and Big Nog fight, which will determine who will get the next shot at the belt.

Either way both fighters will leave everything on the table and be ready for war at UFC 99. 

This is one of those fights you do not want to miss!