UFC 135 Fight Card: Breaking Down Best Fights Among Prelims

As excited as I am to see Jon "Bones" Jones and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson face off for the light heavyweight championship belt at UFC 135, I'm just as intrigued by the preliminary card fights.

It's here that we see real desperation, real drama. From up-and-comers climbing rung by rung to wily veterans looking to extend their careers to late bloomers gunning for one last shot at glory, the undercard is where the compelling, Shakespearian stuff is at.

Saturday's prelims should generate plenty of intrigue of their own, with these three matchups standing out as the ones most likely to produce quality, even fights.

Tim Boetsch (13-4, 4-3 UFC) vs. Nick Ring (12-0, 2-0 UFC)

The fact that Nick Ring is practically named after the arena of competition from a rival sport is ominous enough to put him down as the underdog against Tim Boetsch.

But while Boetsch comes in as the favorite, nobody's expecting him to win by a landslide. "The Promise" is the one with the technical savvy and the more calculated approach here.

"The Barbarian", on the other hand, approaches fights just as you would expect a guy with his nickname to—with plenty of fury, wild aggression and brute strength.

Boetsch is getting better in all phases, though, and could really make a mess of Ring if he gets him on the mat.

That being said, it will likely take Boetsch several rounds to get into that position, if he ever does, by which point Ring will have enough stamina left to push this one to a close decision.

Albeit for Boetsch. 

Cole Escovedo (17-7, 0-1 UFC) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (14-6-2, 1-1 UFC)

Cole Escovedo and Takeya Mizugaki will be out to add at least one more definitive piece to the puzzle of the UFC's bantamweight division, though neither fighter figures to do enough or win decisively enough on Saturday to warrant ascension into the top tier.

Escovedo is skilled and methodical but doesn't have much strength to show, relying instead on volume to wear down his opponents.

Mizugaki, on the other hand, is more the raw, athletic type who has a knack for getting the job done, no matter how ugly the process may appear.

Escovedo will likely cede the mat to the physical Mizugaki but should dish out more than enough punishment while on his feet to defeat Mizugaki on points in a split-hair decision.

Junior Assuncao (12-4, 1-2 UFC) vs. Eddie Yagin (15-4-1, 0-0 UFC)

Just because Eddie Yagin is the new kid on the UFC block doesn't mean you shouldn't take him seriously. In fact, you'd probably be best off giving Yagin the benefit of the doubt in this fight with Junior Assuncao.

Yagin owns the edge in skill and aggression in the stand-up game and is better on takedowns than Assuncao, but the Brazilian can still pack a mean punch from time to time.

Look for Assuncao to stay in the game with some slippery jiu-jitsu until Yagin tires him enough to get him on the ground. From there, Yagin should be able to put Assuncao out of the bout around the fourth round or so.

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