UFC 136: Why This Will Be the Biggest PPV of the Year

They say everything’s bigger in Texas, and this weekend, the saying holds true when the UFC brings UFC 136 to Houston.

I may be in the minority, but UFC 136 has the best fight card of the year, and I’m prepared to plead my case.

Before you start commenting below and telling me how great of a fight card UFC 137 is or how stacked the cards were for UFC 129, 132 and 134, I already know.

UFC 129, 132 and 134 all had phenomenal fight cards with title fights and exciting bouts, and as for UFC 137, Georges St-Pierre vs. Carlos Condit, B.J. Penn vs. Nick Diaz, Cheick Kongo vs. Matt Mitrione and Mirko Cro Cop vs. Roy Nelson are all pivotal, exciting match-ups. But did that fight card have two title fights and two potential No. 1 contender bouts?

From Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard going to war for a third time to Jose Aldo defending his title against Kenny Florian to Melvin Guillard potentially becoming the new No. 1 contender, this fight card is beyond stacked.

Whoops, I forgot to mention the other No. 1 contender match between Brian Stann and the returning Chael Sonnen.

I’m just saying this fight card is nasty, and anytime you have Anthony Pettis not featured on the main card, the card has to be amazing. These are the five reasons UFC 136 will be the biggest PPV event of the year.

Spike Prelims/PPV Opener Are SICK

It all begins with the Spike prelims, and these two fights could be featured on any main card.

Anthony Pettis is taking on Jeremy Stephens in what I would call a lock for fight of the night on most cards, but it’s nearly impossible to predict fight of the night on this night.

Stephens will go into that match-up to stand and bang against one of the most versatile strikers in the sport. Enough said.

As for the other Spike prelim, Demian Maia vs. Jorge Santiago is a compelling match-up between two guys looking to get on a roll. Both guys are coming off of a loss, and Maia is far from being a one-dimensional fighter anymore.

Maia has elevated his striking and showed tremendous improvement in the Mark Munoz fight, and I expect more improvement going into the bout with heavy-handed Santiago.

As for the bout most likely leading off the PPV, I’m beyond excited to see the rematch of Nam Phan and Leonard Garcia.

Garcia walked away with a ridiculous decision the first time around when Phan obviously should have been awarded the decision.

You can guarantee both guys are going into this one trying to finish one another after the controversial decision, and when's the last time Garcia was in a bad fight?

Melvin Guillard Finally Gets Opportunity to Reach His Potential

I always thought if Melvin Guillard reached his full potential, he would be a future champion one day, and over his past five fights, Guillard has finally put it together. 

It's well documented that throughout Guillard's career, he partied and didn't devote 100 percent of himself to become a better fighter. All that has changed ever since Guillard started training at Greg Jackson's gym.

Guillard is as explosive as he's ever been, and he's improved his grappling by leaps and bounds. He also refocused on his wrestling so he can keep the fight standing. Now the only thing standing between Guillard and a title fight against the winner of the main event Saturday is Joe Lauzon.

Lauzon is never reluctant to bring it and always has exciting fights, but once he gets past the first round, he starts to tire and fade.

A lot of that is due to the fact that Lauzon comes out to finish his opponent and finish the fight fast. This is one of many candidates for fight of the night, as I'm expecting one exciting first round from these two.

The Return of the King (Chael Sonnen)

The moment you’ve all been waiting for: Chael Sonnen’s first middleweight championship defense since “beating” Anderson Silva at UFC 117. 

For those of you who haven’t been keeping up with Sonnen’s interviews, first of all, what are you doing with your life and secondly, he’s been saying he got together with “Uncle Dana” (UFC president Dana White) and decided to give Brian Stann the first shot at "his middleweight championship."

In all seriousness, this is a match-up between two of the UFC’s biggest stars. Sonnen has a huge following for his pre-fight hyping of the fight and intelligently crafted interviews he gives, while Stann is beloved because he is an American hero.

The former Marine has been on a tear in the octagon and is coming off knockout victories against Chris Leben and Jorge Santiago.

Sonnen will push the pace and try to get this fight to the floor, while Stann will try to keep the fight standing and knock Sonnen unconscious.

Sonnen should take this fight to the ground with ease, but with the way Stann has been rapidly evolving, it would come as no surprise if he stuffs a few takedowns. Winner of this fight should get the next crack at Silva for the title.

Florian’s Last Chance

Kenny Florian is getting older, and his “window of opportunity” as Dana White loves to say, is closing rather fast. Florian is 0-2 in title fights, as he lost to Sean Sherk at UFC 64 and B.J. Penn at UFC 101, and this could be Florian’s toughest title fight yet.

At UFC 136, Florian will take on one of the best pound-for-pound fighters on the planet in Jose Aldo for the featherweight championship.

If you haven't seen Aldo fight, he's like a snake that can end a fight with any sudden strike. Whether it be by knees, shins or hands, Aldo is a lethal striker.  Ever since appearing on the first Ultimate Fighter, I feel like Florian's entire career has led to this moment.

This could very well be Florian’s last chance to capture gold inside the octagon, and with the clock winding down, it’s go big or go home for Florian.

Third Time’s the Charm?

I remember the moment I heard that the third fight between Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard in May was canceled, and I was completely let down because that was the fight I was looking forward to most over the summer.

Months later, this fight goes down in Houston, and I couldn't be more excited. Their second fight in January was one of the best fights of the year and is still a leading candidate for fight of the year.

Both of these men possess the same skill set, as they are both great boxers and phenomenal wrestlers.

Maynard has the power advantage, but Edgar has the speed advantage. I expect this to be another five-round war, and more importantly, I expect this to be a crowd-pleasing main event.

Argue what you will about which card is the best of 2011, but not one card has this many implications in one night.