UFC 140 Fight Card: Early Predictions for Main Card Bouts

The UFC will return to Toronto, Canada for their upcoming UFC 140 show, which features both Nogueira brothers and former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz.

The December 10 event will host the rematch between Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Frank Mir. They first met after coaching on the Ultimate Fighter to fight at UFC 92. Mir shocked the world when he became the first man to stop Nogueira at the 2008 year-end show.

The co-main event will showcase the skills of Big Nog's twin brother, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. He takes on Ortiz in a match that was scheduled to happen earlier this year before Ortiz pulled out due to an injury.

Other featured matchups include Mark Hominick vs. Chan Sung Jung, Rory MacDonald vs. Brian Ebersole and Dennis Hallman vs. John Makdessi.

These are early predictions for those five fights.

Lightweight Bout: Dennis Hallman vs. John Makdessi

John "The Bull" Makdessi (9-0) is one of the best up-and-comers in the UFC, and he is making his way through the most stacked division at lightweight.

Makdessi was last seen knocking out Kyle Watson with a spinning back-fist at UFC 129 in front of 55,000 hometown fans. It was his second victory in the UFC.

He will be taking on former welterweight fighter Dennis Hallman (50-14), who has over seven times as many fights and has been fighting for over 15 years. He was last seen getting knocked out by Brian Ebersole at UFC 133 but was more remembered for his shorts.

In a battle of youth vs. experience, the dynamic and hungrier Makdessi will have an advantage here. At the same time, he will be challenged against a veteran of a sport that has seen everything there is to see.

Makdessi will get a sense of where his ground game is in this fight, but the weight cut might be a little too much for Hallman, who was fighting at 195 pounds just five fights ago.

John Makdessi defeats Dennis Hallman by KO in Round 3.

Welterweight Bout: Rory MacDonald vs. Brian Ebersole

Canadian prospect Rory MacDonald (12-1) is considered by many to be the next Georges St-Pierre. After dominating and impressive victories over Mike Pyle and Nate Diaz, it's not hard to wonder why.

In another battle of youth vs. experience, MacDonald will be taking on Brian Ebersole (48-14-1), who has nearly five times as many fights as the 22-year-old.

Ebersole is currently riding a nine fight win-streak with victories over Chris Lytle and Dennis Hallman. In fact, his only loss in the last four years came against Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard.

This will be a tough fight for MacDonald, and unless he can submit Ebersole, he will have trouble finishing a fighter who has never been knocked out despite having 14 losses. Nine of those have come by submission.

All of the momentum is on MacDonald's side, and it will definitely favor him going into this fight. Don't expect to see a finish but expect to see a well executed game-plan by the Tristar member.

Rory MacDonald defeats Brian Ebersole by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3).

Featherweight Bout: Mark Hominick vs. Chan Sung Jung

The best fight on the card might come in the featherweight bout between former title challenger Mark Hominick and "The Korean Zombie" Chan Sung Jung.

Hominick (20-9) comes off his valiant loss against UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo from UFC 129 while Jung (12-3) comes off his twister submission win over Leonard Garcia in their rematch from March.

This fight will take place everywhere, and it's the toughest to predict on the card for that reason. Hominick will have the advantage on the feet while Jung will have his advantage on the ground. Their willingness to mix it up is what will make the fight a fun one to watch.

Jung is primarily a submission fighter but is not afraid to stand and bang. His 2010 fight of the year versus Garcia showed that. UFC commentator Joe Rogan called it "fight of the decade."

The only clear prediction that can be made for this fight is that it will be fight of the night. It could go either way, and that's what makes it so exciting.

Hominick's boxing is probably what will win him the fight, but judges sometimes overlook that if the other fighter is swinging wildly, which Jung will be doing a lot of in this fight.

Mark Hominick defeats Chan Sung Jung by Split-Decision.

Light Heavyweight Bout: Tito Ortiz vs. Antônio Rogério Nogueira

In the co-main event, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-5) meets former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz (16-9).

Ortiz recently had a resurgence in his career when he submitted Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader at UFC 132. He accepted a late-notice fight against Rashad Evans at UFC 133, and he lost by TKO in the second round.

Nogueira is currently riding a two-fight losing streak and hasn't looked great since making his UFC debut in 2009.

The UFC doesn't do Nogueira any favors in giving him another wrestler who can put him on his back, and that is probably where this fight will take place.

As long as Ortiz can survive the submission skills of Nogueira, he should be put the Brazilian on his back for the first two rounds and secure himself a decision victory. A late-fight comeback from Nogueira could make things very interesting, but it might be a little too late to win the decision.

Tito Ortiz defeats Antonio Rogerio Nogueira by Unanimous Decision (29-28 x3)

Heavyweight Bout: Frank Mir vs. Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira

After Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (33-6-1) knocked out Brendan Schaub at UFC 134, he put himself back on the short list of heavyweight contenders.

He takes on Frank Mir (15-5) in a rematch of a fight they had in Dec, 2008. Mir knocked out the former Pride heavyweight champion, but many claim he had several injuries leading up to the fight that cost him the victory and led him to being finished for the first time in his career.

Since that fight, Mir has gone 3-2 with wins over Roy Nelson, Mirko Cro Cop and Cheick Kongo. Losses to Shane Carwin and Brock Lesnar followed as well.

Injuries aside, the game-plan of Mir is what won him the first fight. He executed it perfectly and got the finish because of it. Mir's confidence will be at an all-time high going into this fight, and that's something that is going to make him even more dangerous this time around.

It will be intriguing to see how Mir approaches this fight, but he still has the same advantages he had over Nogueira in the first fight. It will probably look the same, but the Brazilian should be able to make it the distance this time around. Don't be shocked if he doesn't.

Frank Mir defeats Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3).