UFC 124 Preview: Thiago Alves Vs. John Howard

UFC 124: St. Pierre vs. Koscheck II will take place live from the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada this Saturday night.

Currently, eleven fights are set for the event with two explosive welterweights looking to close out 2010 in the win column as Thiago "Pitbull" Alves takes on John "Doomsday" Howard.

Thiago

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CHICAGO- OCTOBER 25: Josh Koscheck (L) fights Thiago Alves in a Welterweight bout at UFC's Ultimate Fight Night at Allstate Arena on October 25, 2008 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Sixty-four percent of Thiago "Pitbull" Alves (17-7) victories have come via (T)KO and it is no secret what he brings into the Octagon, vicious Muay-Thai.

Alves comes into this fight on a two fight losing streak and had issues with making weight in his most recent loss to Jon Fitch. However, since that loss to Fitch at UFC 117 back in August, Alves has brought in weight-cutting guru Mike Dolce to oversee his nutrition.

This will mark his fourteenth fight in the Octagon and the American Top Team fighter will be looking to return to the form that saw him rattle off seven consecutive victories.

Last Four Fights:

Loss: Jon Fitch - Decision

Loss: Georges St. Pierre - Decision

Win: Josh Koscheck - Decision

Win: Matt Hughes - TKO (Flying Knee & Punches)

John

John "Doomsday" Howard (14-5), is coming off his lone loss in the UFC as he was defeated by Jake Ellenberger by doctor stoppage this past August.

Prior to that "Doomsday" was a perfect 4-0 in UFC action and had knocked out his previous two opponents. Much like Alves, Howard will be looking to return to the form that saw him notch seven consecutive wins before having the streak stopped.

Howard will step inside of the Octagon against Alves with a two inch reach advantage and he will need to utilize that to his favor.  

Last Four Fights:

Loss: Jake Ellenberger - TKO (Doctor Stoppage)

Win: Daniel Roberts - KO

Win: Dennis Hallman - TKO

Win: Tamdan McCrory - Decision (Split)

Prediction

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CHICAGO- OCTOBER 25: Thiago Alves (R) fights Josh Koscheck in a Welterweight bout at UFC's Ultimate Fight Night at Allstate Arena on October 25, 2008 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Both gentlemen are strikers and will be looking to impose their will on the other in the standup department throughout this fight.

With twenty-two finishes combined, Howard and Alves could very well close out 2010 with a knockout of the year performance.

According to Betus.com, Alves is currently the favorite at -300 and one should expect the American Top Team trained fighter to notch his eighteenth career victory.

Prediction:

Thiago "Pitbull" Alves by 2nd Round KO