UFC 127 Fight Card: 5 Questions Going In

The great thing about going into a night of fights is knowing that so many of your questions will be answered.

You never know which fighter is truly the best until they get in the ring and fight it out. And, especially in MMA, you never know what the fight is going to look like.

There are also plenty of questions going in that take more than one night to answer. Each fight gives you a clue; a piece of the truth. But, you usually can not predict the whole story after just one scene.

Here are five questions that may or may not be answered at UFC 127, but we will at least be closer to cracking the puzzle.

5. Is George Sotiropoulos Nearing a Title Shot?

Many were critical when Dennis Siver was announced as George Sotiropoulos' next opponent in the UFC. Sure, Siver has been on a good run, but mostly over mid-level opposition and Sotiropoulos is considered a higher class of fighter.

But, the truth is, Sotiropoulos is not ready for a title shot. Joe Stevenson, Kurt Pellegrino and Joe Lauzon are quality wins, but they are not on the level of Gray Maynard, B.J. Penn or Frankie Edgar. There is a big gap between those names.

Sotiropoulos may be on the ladder level, but there is no rush to find out. I say that if Sotiropoulos can win against Siver, and Jim Miller can get a win over Kamal Shalorus at UFC 128, pit them against each other with the winner getting the title shot.

After all, the UFC has the rematch between Edgar and Maynard to get out of the way, plus they promised a title shot to Anthony Pettis, as long as he gets past Clay Guida in June.

But, we can gauge how far along Sotiropoulos is by how he looks tonight against Siver.

4. Will Jorge Rivera's Dramatic Resurgence Continue?

In 2008, Jorge Rivera's oldest daughter died due to blood clots likely caused by birth control at the age of 17. It was a sudden and tragic passing.

As seen on Countdown to UFC 127, Rivera was filled with regret following her passing, feeling he could have dedicated more of himself to his daughter during her short life.

Since her passing, Rivera has gone 3-0 in the UFC, with his last two wins coming as impressively as any in his career.

Now, Rivera has his biggest opportunity in years as he faces popular Brit Michael Bisping in the co-main event of UFC 127.

With a win, Rivera is a major player in the middleweight division. With a loss, at age 38, he is back down with the journeymen for likely the rest of his career.

Bisping is the favorite, but there are many writers picking Rivera to pull off the upset, including me.

Will Rivera be able to harness his emotional strength and continue his final run at the top?

We shall see.

3. How Far Can Chris Lytle Go?

After starting his UFC career going 2-6 in the organization, Chris Lytle turned over a new leaf in 2007 and has since gone 8-3, winning his last four.

In his last appearance, Lytle won a unanimous decision over former champ Matt Serra at UFC 119.

Lytle is also one of the leaders in UFC bonuses for Fight of the Night, Knockout of the Night and Submission of the Night, with seven—frankly, it should be more.

Lytle was originally slated to meet former WEC champ and top UFC contender Carlos Condit, but Condit was forced to pull out with an injury. Instead, Lytle will face veteran Brian Ebersole on the main card at UFC 127.

Will Lytle continue his storybook run towards the top? Also, will Lytle tie middleweight champ Anderson Silva as the bonus leader with eight?

Tonight, we will get closer to an answer.

2. Is B.J. Penn Still Great?

There's no doubting the greatness of B.J. Penn's previous accomplishments.

Many consider Penn to have earned the fastest black belt of all active Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners. On top of that, he was the first non-Brazilian to ever win the black-belt division of the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship after only three years of training.

He is also one of only two men to have won UFC titles in two different weight classes. And he holds the record for most defenses of the lightweight championship.

But, after back-to-back losses to Frankie Edgar, in which he lost his lightweight title, many in the MMA world are doubting Penn's future in the sport.

Of course, Penn will likely never be completely irrelevant in the sport, but it has never been his way not to compete at the highest level of anything.

If Penn can beat Fitch, it is another great accomplishment in a career full of them. If he loses, it is hard to say where he goes from here.

1. Will Jon Fitch Ever Be a Champion?

There is little doubt who the second best welterweight in the world is. Despite Jon Fitch losing decisively to champion Georges St-Pierre in 2008, he has beaten every other welterweight the UFC has put in front of him, and barely even lost a round doing it.

Leading into his fight with St-Pierre, Fitch was on a 16-fight win streak. Since then, he is 5-0. But, when you compare the games of Fitch and St-Pierre, it is hard to imagine Fitch ever getting the best of the welterweight champion.

You could make a case for Fitch possessing a good style matchup against middleweight champion Anderson Silva, but with St-Pierre likely moving up in weight to challenge Silva, Fitch probably won't need to go to that length.

If St-Pierre moves up in weight, he has stated it will be a permanent move. That means the title will likely be vacated, assuming St-Pierre gets past Jake Shields in April.

As long as Fitch can get past Penn tonight, there is little doubt he would be first in line for a shot at that vacant title.

Considering his record against the rest of the division, he would have to like his chances to achieve his dream of being a champion.

But none of that will be worth the time it takes to think about it if he can't get past Penn in tonight's main event.

Will Fitch ever be a champion? We will certainly get a hint tonight.

UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch Results, News and More