Shane Carwin Will Win Tonight and More UFC 116 Predictions

FROM:  http://machorhino.com/?p=15845

Tonight is UFC 116 live from Las Vegas on pay-per-view featuring the biggest fight in UFC history! Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar steps in the Octagon to defend his belt against Interim Heavyweight Champion and undefeated Shane Carwin. These are two gigantic heavyweights who’ve been destroying their opponents in their brief UFC careers. They now collide tonight to see who is the best heavyweight fighter in the world. I can’t wait to watch the main event tonight. It’s the type of fight that makes this lackluster card worth the buy price on PPV. On to the fight predictions:

George Sotiropoulos vs. Kurt Pellegrino
Two very strong grapplers who’ve been on a win streak inside the Octagon lately. This could be fight of the night. These guys are going to go back and forth. I think Sotiropoulos is slightly better on the ground but standing up, I give th edge to Pellegrino. It’s a tough fight to pick but I’ll take Pellegrino because he’ll push the action and land more shots to impact the outcome.
THE PICK: Kurt Pellegrino via Decision

Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Stephan Bonnar
This is a rematch of a stopped fight due to a cut on Bonnar. Soszynski would have probably won this fight had it not been stopped and this time should be no different. Bonnar will hopefully retire after this fight as he simply can’t hang in today’s UFC.
THE PICK: Soszynski via decision

Chris Lytle vs. Matt Brown
Lytle likes to stand and bang and will try to keep this fight standing up. Brown has good power but I think the experience of Chris Lytle along with his striking prowess should proof to be the difference in this one.
THE PICK: Lytle via TKO in round 3

Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Chris Leben
Leben just fought a couple of weeks ago so it’s hard to say how he’ll be for this fight. He’s got a dangerous opponent in Akiyama. He had a quick fight in defeating Aaron Simpson but to get back up just two weeks later will be tough. I expect Leben to wear down quickly in this one but Akiyama is a good match-up for him. Leben will have to go all out in round 1 and try to end the fight but it won’t happen.
THE PICK: Akiyama via decision

Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin
These two monster heavyweights are athletic freaks. It’s amazing at the agility both men have for their size. I can’t wait to see them tie up in the Octagon. It’ll be amazing to see who gets the upper hand if they lock up. Lesnar is coming off a very serious health problem that nearly ended his career in the Octagon. Shane Carwin has never had to go to round 2 in one of his fights and recently just destroyed Frank Mir. How does Lesnar look after not having stepped in the cage in a year? How does he handle the powerful strikes of Carwin? Carwin is a former college wrestling champion also but can he stop a Lesnar takedown attempt? For Brock to win, he’s going to have to get the takedown and put Carwin on his back. For Shane to win, he’s going to want to try Lesnar up and be able to land haymakers like he did against Frank Mir. This is an even fight scheduled for five rounds but I can’t see it going near that long. I think Carwin catches Brock with some hard shots in the middle of round 2 and gets pulled off Brock by the referee.
THE PICK: Shane Carwin via TKO in round 2