5 Burning Questions Heading into UFC 203
UFC Fight Night 93 is in the books. Next up? UFC 203 on Saturday, September 10.
Alistair Overeem, Fabricio Werdum, Stipe Miocic—a whole lot of heavyweight champions are appearing on this card! Oh, and a number of interesting contenders and competitors too, including CM Punk.
So why not jump right on in? Check out the burning questions for next week's pay-per-view event.
What Will We See from Ian McCall?
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The Fight: Ian McCall vs. Ray Borg
The Real Fight: Ian McCall vs. Weird Things That Cause Him to Not Fight
The Stakes
Ian McCall is back after 20 months away due to injuries and oddities. But what does he have left? As the only man to give dominant champion Demetrious Johnson any kind of trouble at 125 pounds and not receive a vicious beating in return, McCall is one of the few interesting contenders left for the sport's top pound-for-pound fighter. However, he needs to show he still has a good amount of fight in him by defeating Ray Borg.
The Question
What will we see from Ian McCall?
Analysis
McCall, despite owning an unimpressive 2-3-1 UFC record, is a legitimate Top 10 name and easily could have been in line to fight the champ if he didn't face off with a John Lineker who didn't bother to cut weight at UFC 183. And, even today, McCall's March 2012 draw against Johnson gives him a unique claim to a title shot in a division short on contenders.
The only issue for McCall (32) is that he has suffered frequent health issues. He has fought just twice in the last three years, and in a division where agility and quickness are musts, that spells trouble for a fighter who is already on the wrong side of 30.
If McCall can show that, despite his physical troubles and age, he remains a top-level flyweight, he could be in line for a title fight with just one or two wins. If he comes up short against Borg, though, well, that would just be tragic.
So...Is Bethe Correia Any Good?
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The Fight: Jessica Eye vs. Bethe Correia
The Real Fight: Bethe Correia vs. Unconventional Career Trajectories
The Stakes
Bethe Correia helped produce one of the most successful pay-per-views in UFC history last year, when she smack-talked Ronda Rousey all the way to a title shot at UFC 190. That fast track, however, left a number of questions about her skill set as a fighter and, without a foil in Rousey, she has been left floundering.
Set to face Jessica Eye, she needs to post a solid performance to show that she isn't just a name on Rousey's resume.
The Question
So...is Bethe Correia any good?
Analysis
Correia's questionable body of work was well-documented ahead of her fight with Rousey, but here are the CliffsNotes:
- She faced weak competition on the Brazilian regional circuit.
- Her UFC competition was soft, with her opponents owning a combined 1-7 record.
- Even against them, she was never especially dominant, finishing just two fights to date.
Her loss to Rousey was downright difficult to watch. Her loss to Raquel Pennington wasn't too bad, but she again failed to demonstrate any remarkable skills or techniques.
If she can't muster up something against a straightforward brawler like Eye, though? It's going to be tough to justify her continued presence on the roster.
What the Heck Will We See from CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall?
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The Fight: CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall
The Real Fight: CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall, Fans, Steep Learning Curves, His Own Body, Etc.
The Stakes
Nearly two years after the announcement that the UFC's credibility as a legitimate sports organization was officially dead, CM Punk is going to step into the Octagon. With so long a build and so many mysteries still swirling, there's only one question to ask...
The Question
What the heck will we see from CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall?
Analysis
The assumption among fans and bettors is that Gall will win without much trouble. While that might be a bit of a leap (given how Gall has just two pro matches to his name), it's as good a prediction as any.
There is absolutely, positively no way to guess what Punk or Gall will look like at UFC 203. How good is either man at this point? What areas are they best at? Will they respond adversely to the pressure?
Again, nobody knows, and it's an exercise in futility to try to extrapolate data from the limited footage available on either man.
Just sit back, wipe away any preconceived ideas and drink this one in.
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Can Fabricio Werdum Get Back on Track?
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The Fight: Fabricio Werdum vs. Travis Browne
The Real Fight: Fabricio Werdum vs. Shifting Narratives
The Stakes
Earlier this year, there was a serious discussion about whether Fabricio Werdum was one of the greatest fighters of all time. How long ago does that feel? Coming off an ugly loss to Stipe Miocic, Vai Cavalo needs to beat Travis Browne, or else he will find himself permanently removed from the title picture.
The Question
Can Fabricio Werdum get back on track?
Analysis
As a 39-year-old, Werdum is approaching the end of his career. As somebody who has been behind some low-selling pay-per-views, he won't get any special treatment from the promotion. As somebody who upended the UFC's favorite heavyweight champ to date, he's most likely on a few decision-makers' naughty lists.
Werdum isn't getting any help from the company and can't afford any missteps on his way back to the title. A loss to Browne, a fringe Top 10 name who he once beat convincingly, would permanently derail him.
This may as well be a title fight for the former champ. He needs to win this one.
Is Alistair Overeem Going to Rain on the Cleveland Parade?
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The Fight: Stipe Miocic vs. Alistair Overeem
The Real Fight: Alistair Overeem vs. Inspiring Moments
The Stakes
The UFC is making an uncharacteristically smart play at UFC 203. Instead of its usual approach to cards, the UFC found a hot hand in new champion Stipe Miocic and put him front and center for a card in his hometown of Cleveland.
It's a storybook affair in the making. The only issue is that the conquering hero faces a tough opponent in Alistair Overeem.
The Question
Is Alistair Overeem going to rain on Cleveland's parade?
Analysis
Miocic, despite being one of the worst interviews and most awkward characters in MMA, became an overnight sensation when he knocked out Fabricio Werdum at UFC 198. From there, he became a character in the Cleveland Cavaliers' championship run and, with that, a bit of a hero in that slice of America.
That's a rarity for MMA in the Western Hemisphere, where the UFC has effectively turned its entire roster into interchangeable commodities. As a result, the UFC is taking the should-be-obvious (but for some reason isn't) step of capitalizing on that.
Of course, while CM Punk can take the title from John Cena in front of a raucous Chicago crowd without any question about the outcome, Miocic doesn't have that safety net.
So will he pull this off? Or is Overeem going to make the UFC think twice about actually setting up entire cards for one headliner?
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