UFC Live Jon Jones Vs. Vladimir Matyushenko: Preview and Predictions

Jon Jones vs. Vladimir Matyushenko

The Hype: Jon Jones has dominated every big name that the UFC has thrown at him. In his last fight, Jones showed that he had put his DQ loss to Matt Hamill behind him by making quick work of Brandon Vera.

In his third stint with the UFC, Vladimir Matyushenko has beaten Igor Pokrajac and Eliot Marshall by decision. Jones will be a huge step up in competition for the 39-year-old Belarusian.

Jones will be a heavy favorite heading into the fight, but a loss would be a major setback for a fighter that most believe will contend for the title someday.

For Matyushenko, this fight will be a huge opportunity to jumpstart a run at a title at the tail end of his career.

The Fight: Matyushenko’s best bet in this fight will be to try to take Jones down and grind out a decision victory. Although Jones has a strong wrestling background, his unorthodox striking style could leave him vulnerable at times.

Jones could easily outstrike Matyushenko standing, but he should try to go for the takedown in this fight in order to minimize the opportunity for Matyushenko to take him down.

Matyushenko is an excellent wrestler, but Jones showed that he can ground excellent wrestlers in his fight against Hamill.  

Once on top, Jones looks to drop devastating elbows. In his last fight, Jones literally broke Brandon Vera’s face with his scary ground-and-pound. If this fight goes to the ground, expect a similar result.

The Finish: Matyushenko is a tough fighter and could go the distance with Jones. However, a highlight reel throw will put Matyushenko on his back and sooner or later, Jones will land a flurry of strikes that will force the referee to put an end to the fight.

Jon Jones def. Vladimir Matyushenko by TKO in second round.

Yushin Okami vs. Mark Munoz

The Hype: In his last fight, Mark Munoz received Fight of the Night honors for his come-from-behind TKO victory over Kendall Grove. Munoz will face the biggest test of his young career when he meets Yushin Okami in this fight.

In the last six years, Okami’s only losses have come to Chael Sonnen, Rich Franklin, and Jake Shields. Despite losing, Okami took all three of those fights to decision. Therefore, don’t expect Munoz to finish Okami.

With the recent success of these two fighters, the winner of this fight could propel themselves into contender status. 

The Fight: This fight has the makings of a grappling match. Both fighters have solid takedowns and top control. The fighter that can defend his opponent’s takedowns the best will likely come away with the victory in this one.

A slight advantage goes to Munoz in striking, but this fight probably won’t stay standing enough for that to play much of a factor.

Meanwhile, Okami is the much more experienced fighter. He has competed with some of the elite fighters in the middleweight division. Unlike Munoz’s slight striking advantage, Okami’s experience will likely play a major role in determining the winner of this fight.

The Finish: Okami will come into the fight with the better game plan. He will try to stay out of Munoz’s striking range and wait for a takedown opportunity to present itself. When it does, Okami will make the most of it.

It won’t be an extraordinarily exciting win by any means, but Okami should be able to grind out a decision victory in this fight.

Yushin Okami def. Mark Munoz by unanimous decision.

John Howard vs. Jake Ellenberger

The Hype: After winning Knockout of the Night in his last fight against Daniel Roberts, John Howard will look for his eighth consecutive victory against Jake Ellenberger. The fight marks the first time Howard will fight on a UFC main card.

Ellenberger last fought at UFC 108 in a fight that ended with a TKO victory over Mike Pyle.

Both of these fighters are a long way away from consideration for title contention. However, the winner of this fight can expect to earn a big step up in competition.

The Fight: Jake Ellenberger is an excellent wrestler who will try to take you down and work his ground and pound until the ref pulls him off. His game plan for this fight will be no different.

With 6 of his 14 victories coming by way of submission, Howard does have an underrated jiu-jitsu game that we have yet to see him use in the UFC. Therefore, Ellenberger will need to fight smart when he is in Howard’s guard.

Howard has shown that he has devastating knockout power with knockouts in his last two fights. His most recent of which won him Knockout of the Night honors.

If Ellenberger fights an intelligent fight by avoiding Howard’s power punches and submission attempts, then he should be able to come away with the victory as he is the more technically sound fighter.

The Finish: With Howard’s power and Ellenberger’s efficient ground and pound, it is hard to imagine this fight going the distance. If Ellenberger can take Howard down he should have no problem finishing the fight.

Jake Ellenberger def. John Howard by TKO in the second round.

Tyson Griffin vs. Takanori Gomi

The Hype: Tyson Griffin is coming off a heartbreaking split decision loss to Evan Dunham. A win in that fight could have put Griffin back in the mix with the other contenders in the lightweight division. Luckily, he will now enter an equally pivotal fight against a big-name opponent in Takanori Gomi.

Gomi, who lost his UFC debut to Kenny Florian in his last fight, might need to win this fight to salvage his career with the UFC. Although few expected him to beat Florian, the UFC did not sign Gomi to be a gatekeeper. With a loss to Griffin, he may be just that.

The Fight: There is never a secret behind Tyson Griffin’s game plan heading into every one of his fights. Griffin will fight a smart fight on his feet and is constantly looking for takedown opportunities. Stylistically, he matches up very well against Gomi.

Gomi possesses dangerous striking ability and is more effective in his submission attempts when on top of his opponent.

Griffin should take a page out of Kenny Florian’s book by moving in and out with quick jabs against Gomi. This will minimize the opportunity for Gomi to hurt Griffin when the fight is standing.

Also, it could frustrate Gomi and force him to become overly aggressive, which will open takedown opportunities for Griffin.

If Griffin is able to take Gomi down, which shouldn’t be a problem, he will look to work his ground-and-pound and grind out a dominating decision victory.

With eight of Griffin’s 10 UFC fights going to decision, it is hard to see this fight ending any other way.

The Finish: Tyson Griffin has never been finished in 17 professional fights. Unless he can completely shut down Griffin’s takedown attempts, it will be hard for Gomi to grind out a decision victory.

As the chances of that are unlikely, Gomi will probably need to rock Griffin on his feet to have a shot at winning this fight.

As long as Griffin fights smart, this should be another dominating decision victory to add to his record. The fight should result in a win for Griffin that will get him back in the mix in the lightweight division.

Tyson Griffin def. Takanori Gomi by unanimous decision.

Paul Kelly vs. Jacob Volkmann

The Hype: Jacob Volkmann’s first fight at lightweight was a successful one ,in which he defeated Ronnys Torres by split decision. Torres was cut from the UFC after the closely contested fight. Had the decision gone the other way, it may have left Volkmann as the fighter looking for a job.

Volkmann will now seek to prove he deserves his spot on the UFC lightweight roster when he faces off against Paul Kelly.

Kelly, who is coming off a submission victory against Matt Veach, will also be looking to try to string two wins together.

The Fight: Paul Kelly, like most British fighters, lacks takedown defense as was on display very early in his last bout against Veach. Kelly made up for that flaw with good submission defense and conditioning. However, his takedown defense will need to be better in order to defeat Volkmann.

Although Kelly was successful in the end against a Division I wrestler in Veach, Volkmann is a physically bigger opponent. Therefore, it will likely be much more difficult for Kelly to escape after a Volkmann takedown than it was after Veach’s.

Volkmann will be looking for the takedown because Kelly will out-strike him if he elects to stand. If he can take the fight to the ground, Volkmann should be able control Kelly for all three rounds.

The Finish: Volkmann has no problem taking down Kelly. Volkmann’s top control is excellent and Kelly is forced to spend most of the fight on his back.

As long as Volkmann fights smart and doesn’t leave himself exposed for submission attempts, he should be able to secure another grind-it-out victory.

Jacob Volkmann def. Paul Kelly by unanimous decision.

DaMarques Johnson vs. Matthew Riddle

The Hype: After losing to James Wilks at the TUF 9 Finale, DaMarques Johnson answered by winning Submission of the Night and Knockout of the Night honors in his subsequent two fights. Johnson will attempt to continue that streak of fight bonuses when he meets, fellow TUF alum, Matt Riddle.

With a UFC record of 4-1, Riddle has made the most of the second chance that the UFC provides for many of its TUF participants.

After an illegal up-kick resulted in a DQ victory in his last bout, Riddle will be in search of a more satisfying win against Johnson. Dominating the fight or not, no fighter wants to win by disqualification. 

The Fight: Matt Riddle’s four UFC victories have been a product of his excellent wrestling ability. However, his inability to finish inferior opponents could play a factor in this match-up.

Johnson could have the perfect skill set to be able to offset Riddle’s strengths. Johnson holds the advantage in striking over Riddle and with half of his professional victories coming by way of submission; Johnson poses a legitimate threat from his back.

If Riddle is unable to finish Johnson with ground and pound, then he could find himself tapping out before he is able to go the distance for another decision victory.

The Finish: Riddle takes Johnson to the ground fairly easily. However, unable to inflict much damage from his opponent’s guard, Riddle is forced to tap after Johnson locks in a triangle.

DaMarques Johnson def. Matt Riddle by submission in the second round.

James Irvin vs. Igor Pokrajac

The Hype: James Irvin will return to Light Heavyweight after an unsuccessful showing at Middleweight against Alessio Sakara. In that fight, a sickly looking Irvin was defeated by TKO in the first round. Irvin will now face Igor Pokrajac in a fight that could place both fighters’ jobs on the line.

Pokrajac is still looking for his first UFC win after losses to Vladimir Matyushenko and James Te-Huna.

The Fight: Irvin’s highlight reel knockout of Houston Alexander seems like a distant memory at this point. However, Pokrajac’s non-existent stand-up game could allow for Irvin to score one more sensational KO victory at what seems to be the looming end of his UFC career.

As long as he has been training with Mirko Cro Cop, one would think that Igor Pokrajac would have developed decent striking technique by now.

On the contrary, Pokrajac remains a mostly one-dimensional wrestler that stands no chance in this fight if he is unable to take it to the mat.

The Finish: Pokrajac should be able to secure a few takedowns en route to winning the first round or two on the cards. However, Irvin still possesses the knockout power to end this fight at any point the fighters are standing.

James Irvin def. Igor Pokrajac by TKO in the second round.

Brian Stann vs. Mike Massenzio

The Hype: Brian Stann will make his move from Light Heavyweight to Middleweight when he takes on Mike Massenzio. The decision to drop weight followed Stann’s unanimous decision loss to Phil Davis at UFC 109.

Mike Massenzio last fought back in December of 2008 against C.B. Dollaway. Dollaway won that fight by TKO in the first round. Whether Massenzio is fully healthy now or not, the long layoff is an interesting dynamic heading into this fight.

The Fight: Phil Davis showed that solid wrestling can pose a lot of problems for Brian Stann. Although he has a wrestling background, Massenzio is not on the same level as Davis in terms of grappling. Stann will also be on a much more even in terms of size when he fights Massenzio because of his drop in weight class.

Under normal circumstances, I would predict that, despite being a lesser grappler than Phil Davis, Massenzio would still be able to control Stann for a decision victory. However, spending a year and a half on the shelf has its effects on a fighter, and ring rust will level the playing field in this fight.

The Finish: Massenzio will score a takedown or two in this fight. However, Stann won’t let it stay there too long this time and will own the fight when it is standing to force the judges to make a tough decision.

Brian Stann def. Mike Massenzio by split decision.

Darren Elkins vs. Charles Oliveira

The Hype: Charles Oliveira, a highly touted Brazilian prospect, will make his UFC debut against Darren Elkins. Oliveira boasts a 12-0 record, mostly earned in his home country of Brazil, which he will attempt to improve with this fight.

Darren Elkins won his UFC debut in his last fight when his opponent, Duane Ludwig, suffered an ankle injury that rendered him unable to continue. Elkins will now look to earn his first legitimate win as a UFC pugilist.

The Fight: Oliveira has solid jiu-jitsu from top and off of his back. Any time this fight is on the ground, Elkins will be in danger of being submitted.

If Elkins keeps the fight standing, he will have a much better opportunity to win. That being said, the odds will likely still be in Oliveira’s favor.

The Finish: The odds makers will have Oliveira as a heavy favorite heading into this fight. Elkins won’t go down easily, but Oliveira will find an opportunity to lock up a submission at some point in the end

Charles Oliveira def. Darren Elkins by submission in the third round.

Rob Kimmons vs. Steve Steinbeiss

The Hype: Steve Steinbeiss will try to end a two-fight losing streak with a win against Rob Kimmons. Steinbeiss lost his last fight by submission to Ryan Jensen in the first round.

Kimmons, who also had a first round submission loss to Jensen in 2006 outside of the UFC, lost his last fight to Jorge Rivera by TKO in the third round.

It has been more than nine months since either of these two has fought, so it will be interesting to see who has made the most of their time off.

The Fight: With 14 of his 22 wins coming by way of submission, Kimmons poses a serious threat on the ground. Also, the fact that both of Kimmons’ wins in the UFC and Steinbeiss’ loss all were a result of guillotine choke raises an eyebrow.

Steinbeiss should try to keep this fight standing, but even when it is there he won’t have a significant advantage.

The Finish: Kimmons will try to finish this fight as soon as his back hits the mat. Steinbeiss will be forced to tap late in the first round.

Rob Kimmons def. Steve Steinbeiss by submission in the first round.