UFC 126: 10 Shockers To Watch For From Latest Card
Will Spider return to form, or will Vitor Belfort pull off the upset?
Anderson "Spider" Silva headlines UFC 126 this Saturday as he faces Belfort in the main event at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
The card also includes a great bout between light heavyweights Jon Jones and Ryan Bader. Rich Franklin and Forrest Griffin will also face off on the main card, and the prelims will include the highly anticipated UFC debut of Japanese star Kid Yamamato.
The card is loaded with intriguing fights, but could there be any surprises? Here are 10 possible shockers to watch for this Saturday:
10. Donald Cerrone Dominates Paul Kelly
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Cerrone (17-3, pictured) makes his UFC debut this weekend, and is looking for his first three-bout win streak since he started his career 7-0 back in 2006.
Getting a win won't be easy against Kelly, who's 2-2 in his last four fights, but both wins have come by stoppage. He won by guillotine choke in UFC 112 and TKO in UFC 123.
9. Carlos Rocha Upsets Veteran Jake Ellenberger
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If you're looking just at experience, Ellenberger (23-5, pictured) has a definite edge, but Rocha (9-0) has eight wins by submission, all of which came in the first round. The only time Ellenberger has been submitted came four years ago by arm bar.
Ellenberger told bloodyelbow.com he thinks his experience will play a factor.
"We haven't seen a lot of this guy Rocha so we haven't seen how well he deals with pressure," Ellenberger said. "I've been there. I'm used to competing at this level and I definitely think the edge swings in my favor for this fight."
8. Michihiro Omigawa Loses
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The last time Omigawa competed in the UFC, he went 0-2, but dropped down in weight and has since gone 8-2-1 with wins over top 10 fighters like Hatsu Hioki, Marlon Sando and Hiroyoki Takaya.
He'll be facing featherweight Chad Mendes, who was 4-0 in the WEC and a two-time All American wrestler with a Greco-Roman background.
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7. Kid Yamamoto Does Back His Talk Up
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Spider Silva may be in the spotlight and the bout between Forrest Griffin and Rich "Ace" Franklin will draw attention as well, but some fans may be even more excited about the debut of Japanese sensation Kid Yamamoto (18-3).
Yamamoto's fight with Demetrious Johnson (8-1) will be streamed live actually on Facebook, and he's already boldly declared he'll win Fight of the Night honors or Knockout of the Night.
Dana White tried to tap the brakes on the bravado, but did confirm that Yamamoto made those predictions.
6. Forrest Griffin Gets Blasted
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Griffin (17-6) spent most of last year recovering from surgery for a lingering shoulder problem, so he'll have plenty of ring rust when he returns to the octagon on Saturday.
He admitted it's a source of nerves, and he'll be facing another veteran in Franklin (28-5).
I've been a longtime Griffin fan, and I have a hard time seeing him getting pummeled. It probably won't be pretty, but I think he can outlast Franklin and pull out a decision.
5. Antonio Banuelos Outworking Miguel Torres
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The two bantamweights will face off in the main card. Torres, a former WEC champ, will face a tough challenger who's great at stand-up and is a talented wrestler. Watch and see if Banuelos (pictured) tries to get in close with Torres and overwhelm him with takedowns.
4. Jon Jones Has To Grind out a Win
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This could turn out to be a tremendous light heavyweight fight. You've got to be impressed with how Jones has looked in his recent fights, and he could very well come out and end this quickly.
But Ryan Bader is a strong fighter and great puncher, and can get out of the first round, this could become really interesting.
3. Griffin or Franklin Get Caught
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If you've watched either fighter long enough, you have to think Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin (pictured) will go the distance.
I don't see Franklin being able to take down Griffin, and certainly can't picture either winning by submission. This will be a standup fight between two veterans who will have to patiently work at finding any openings and weaknesses.
2. Belfort-Silva Is Lopsided
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The main event should be highly competitive and a great matchup between Silva's versatility and well-rounded skills against Belfort's great punching power and jiu-jitsu.
Belfort has the ability to cause Silva plenty of problems, and could try to take this to the ground like Sonnen did, but watch and see if Silva has learned from his miraculous victory and tries to frustrate his opponent the longer the fight progresses.
1. Spider Loses
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Silva's aura of invincibility shrunk somewhat in his last fight with Chael Sonnen. Fact is, though, he still is riding a 12-bout unbeaten streak and is still considered pound-for-pound one of the best fighters in the sport.
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