8 Must-See MMA Fights in June
June features six major MMA cards, and we have already seen one of those pass. If UFC Fight Night 68 is any indication, we may be in for a wild ride this month.
Ten of the 12 bouts from UFC Fight Night 68 were finished, and many in spectacular fashion. Joe Proctor had a slick guillotine over Justin Edwards, Shawn Jordan pulled out a hook kick on Derrick Lewis and Francisco Rivera flattened Alex Caceres in 21 seconds. And the night was just half over by that time.
Anthony Birchak, Brian Ortega and Dustin Poirier all still had incredible KO/TKO performances remaining, and if you thought the action was over, you were wrong. Ben Rothwell surprised in more ways than one with an entertaining promo following his win to lead into the main event—a main event where Dan Henderson finished Tim Boetsch in just 28 seconds.
June started off on the right foot for fight fans.
The UFC still has three events to go this month, and Bellator chimes in with two of their own. There is to be a lot of televised fisticuffs in the sixth month of 2015. And plenty of gold is up for grabs as well.
Here are your can't-miss scraps for the remainder of June.
Chico Camus vs. Henry Cejudo
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Event: UFC 188, June 13
Let's kick things off with the UFC 188 featured preliminary bout.
This fight is all about Henry Cejudo. Will he make weight? How will he look? Is he a true contender at flyweight? Those are the three key questions.
Cejudo has struggled to make the 125-pound limit in prior fights, but was able to successfully make it at UFC 185. The Olympic gold medalist has had a lot of hype surrounding him, but that has always been a dark spot on his resume. His wrestling doesn't need to be discussed, as it's apparent how great it is, but his striking is fantastic as well. And he has power.
Chico Camus is not an easy out. If Cejudo is able to make him look like a scrub, we may see a serious threat to Demetrious Johnson. He's one of the pound-for-pound best, but Johnson isn't unbeatable. John Dodson nearly finished him with power shots, and he was tagged by Kyoji Horiguchi a couple of times in his most recent outing.
If Cejudo looks impressive, he will jump into title contention right away. This performance will answer a lot of questions.
Tecia Torres vs. Angela Hill
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Event: UFC 188, June 13
I originally glossed over this fight for this piece, but I had to go back and include it. This should be an easy fight for No. 5-ranked strawweight Tecia Torres. She has more experience and has been doing this longer.
However, she is primarily a striker, and that makes it a little more interesting.
Angela Hill, ranked No. 15, is a decent boxer in her own right. If Torres goes in and has a wild brawl with Hill, it is entirely possible she gets touched up in the pocket. That opens the door for Hill to have a big upset at UFC 188.
Much like the Cejudo fight, this is about how Torres can look. In spite of a clean professional record and a victory over Rose Namajunas, she remains behind the TUF 20 runner-up in the UFC rankings. A dazzling win on the pay-per-view should elevate her into serious title contention.
Styles make fights, as they say, and these two strikers could steal the show with a fast and furious stand-up battle. It should be fun.
Gilbert Melendez vs. Eddie Alvarez
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Event: UFC 188, June 13
UFC 188 continues on with can't-miss action, and this should not be a surprise to anyone. No. 4-ranked Gilbert Melendez versus No. 9-ranked Eddie Alvarez is a stellar fight.
We have not seen Melendez since losing his title bid in December, and Alvarez has been absent since September. After some time away we can expect revitalized veterans who almost always deliver exciting fights. If you try to think of the last time one of these two gave you a boring performance you may get brain freeze.
These two lightweights could either come out with elite-level technique, or just meet in the center and throw down. We have seen them do both, and that's an exciting proposition for fans.
Both Alvarez and Melendez will want to make another run toward the gold, but recent performances and Father Time will play a major role. Thus, UFC 188 is a big fight for both men in that regard. It could be their final chance to make that title bid. A victory is of the utmost importance.
Regardless, Alvarez-Melendez has all the makings for a spectacular fight.
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Cain Velasquez vs. Fabricio Werdum
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Event: UFC 188, June 13
If you want a must-see fight, then how about champion vs. champion?
UFC interim heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum welcomes UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez back to the cage for the UFC 188 main event.
There are so many questions surrounding this fight.
If the fight had taken place immediately following Velasquez's thumping of Junior dos Santos in 2013, it would not have had as much excitement surrounding the fight. Velasquez looked unstoppable, and Werdum didn't show much to make anyone believe he was a serious threat.
Fast forward to now, and it's not as simple.
Velasquez is returning from another major injury and has been away from high-level action for nearly two years. Meanwhile, Werdum has added some excellent striking to his arsenal. And let's not forget that Werdum is a large individual. Sometimes that fact is lost on folks.
If Velasquez takes Werdum down, he is playing in Werdum's world of elite-level jiu-jitsu; if he stands, he has to be concerned with Werdum's diverse striking attacks, including some surprises such as flying knees and wheel kicks.
Can Velasquez re-establish his dominance? Or does Werdum prove this is not a one-man division? The heavyweights will deliver at UFC 188.
Patricio Freire vs. Daniel Weichel
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Event: Bellator 138, June 19
Hey, let's not forget Bellator!
Bellator 138 has focus on it for other reasons that we'll get to on the next slide, but it also offers a featherweight title tilt between Patricio "Pitbull" Freire and Daniel Weichel. Pitbull checks in as the No. 7 featherweight in Bleacher Report's MMA rankings for June.
Weichel will be an interesting test for the champion. He is on a seven-fight win streak and is coming off a split-decision win over Pat Curran in February—the last man to defeat Pitbull.
Pitbull should enter as a heavy favorite, but Weichel will be a live dog in this fight.
If Freire is able to oust Weichel, it sets him up to affirm that he is one of the world's best at 145 pounds, regardless of the UFC's growing division. He is currently the best featherweight outside the UFC. A win solidifies that statement.
The Bellator 138 co-main event sees gold up for grabs, and two exciting featherweights vying for it.
Kimbo Slice vs. Ken Shamrock
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Event: Bellator 138, June 19
There are high stakes in the Bellator 138 main event—OK, that's a lie.
Call it a circus, call it a freak show. I don't care. It's a fight I will watch, and you will watch too. Why? Because it's Kimbo Slice vs. Ken Shamrock. Period.
Your gut instinct tells you not to miss it.
It could be a massive train wreck, but we don't care. Sometimes MMA just has to be fun, with random fights you didn't know you wanted until the time came. And here we are anticipating Slice vs. Shamrock. The heavyweight contest likely won't last long as neither fighter's gas tank will hold up.
But Bellator's increased production should make this fun. From the entrances to the first three minutes of fighting, this will captivate us. Count me in.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Jessica Penne
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Event: UFC Fight Night 69, June 20
The Berlin event was originally slated to have Alexander Gustafsson vs. Glover Teixeira as its main event, but an injury to Gustafsson left the UFC scrambling for a new main event. They called newly minted strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk to fill in on relatively quick turnaround.
And they gave her no favors with the matchup.
Jedrzejczyk is the current darling of the 115-pound division. She is charismatic, fun and talented, and with that comes new fans who tend to overlook her opposition. Do not sleep on Jessica Penne.
Penne has looked comfortable since returning to 115 pounds. She isn't drawn out from the weight cut, and her frame fits this division. She is getting stronger every day and is putting together a striking game to complement her grappling.
If she cannot muster up some decent strikes, she will be pelted just like Carla Esparza. But if she can at least utilize her jab, it could open up spots to get Jedrzejczyk to the canvas. If that happens, all bets are off. Penne has excellent grappling and long limbs to continually threaten with submissions.
This is a very intriguing matchup that will answer a lot of questions about Jedrzejczyk's grappling. There's also a solid possibility that we see a new champion crowned if she isn't prepared. Penne is no joke.
Lyoto Machida vs. Yoel Romero
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Event: The Ultimate Fighter Brazil 4 Finale, June 27
The final can't-miss bout of the month takes place in Florida as top-10 ranked middleweights square off.
No. 4-ranked Lyoto Machida meets No. 6-ranked Yoel Romero in the main event.
Stylistically, this matchup favors Machida. Sure, Romero has big power and Olympic-caliber wrestling, but he fights ultra-aggressively. He has been exposed and hurt by lesser fighters than Machida. That plays right into his counter-striking agenda.
Even still, his ascent into a potential title contender as an overly aggressive fighter makes this a can't-miss fight.
He has the talent to beat Machida, but his style could also make Machida look devastating with a counter KO. And no one wants to miss that happening.
Adding to the drama are the stakes. Machida is looking to get back in the win column, and Romero is attempting to prove his stock as a legitimate threat to Chris Weidman's title. The winner moves into position for a title eliminator for later this year or early 2016.
Something exciting will happen, but I'm not sure what. And that's why I'll be tuning in.
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