UFC 86 Preview
By Curtis Clontz on Jul 01, 2008
Amir Sodollah is The Ultimate Fighter and now it is time for the coaches to battle. This Saturday in Las Vegas Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson will step into the octagon to fight the real ultimate fighter in Forrest Griffin. These two were tapped to be the coaches for 7th season of the UFC’s hit reality show because of their outgoing character, but many believe that the show was a let down and the two coaches weren’t as flamboyant as expected. Let down or not, the fight between the two promises to be the complete opposite. This is MMAOpinion’s UFC 86 preview.
Some say that this fight card is sub par to the ones that we will see in 2008. I am not sure that it is. In almost every fight there is some sort of story or style that can make it interesting.
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Forrest Griffin
It is no question that these two will stand and bang. This is going to be one exciting fight! Rampage is known as Chuck’s kryptonite. He is the man that dethroned the face of the UFC in Chuck Liddell. He is known for his slams as much as his flare outside of the cage. Rampage is all about the money and one sure way to rack up the bucks is to keep that belt around his waist. However one former Georgia Bulldog has another thing on his mind. Forrest Griffin will be looking to out work and utilize his game plan to perfection against the champ. Forrest has been on an amazing journey since being laughed at in the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter. Not only was he one of the most liked fighters from that season; he also helped put the sport on the map with his legendary fight with Stephan Bonnar. Forrest has showed that he has the huge heart and mental toughness to be champ. Now it is time for him to prove that he belongs atop this division with the big dawgs. This fight has fight of the night written all over it!
Patrick Cote vs. Ricardo Almeida
Cote is riding the wave of a current 3 win streak. He is putting together his own run toward the title with victories over Scott Smith, Kendall Grove, and Drew McFedries; two of which were early stoppages. His last fight was in January due to an injury that kept him out of an April fight, but he is back and ready to make an attempt at a 4 fight win streak. Both of these guys have experience on the ground. While Cote is probably the most well rounded of the two, Almeida is a beast on the ground. Dont forget that Almeida is from Brazil so his BJJ is nasty. He has even placed 2nd at the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships. It is no secret that he will push for this fight to be on the ground; a move that would favor him and possibly put him in a position to finish the fight. His hands are average and he could be in trouble if this fight remains standing.
Joe “Daddy” Stevenson vs. Gleison Tibau
In one of the bloodiest fights ever in the UFC, Joe Stevenson was submitted by arguably the best American practitioner of Jui Jitsu in B.J. Penn. Joe has tons of motivation for this fight. He needs to get back on his winning ways and this will be the first fight that his son Joey will be attending. Stevenson has been fighting on the pro level since he was 16, this should be just another step along the way. On the other side of the cage will be Tibau. Tibau comes from one of the hottest clubs in the nation; American Top Team. This member of ATT will look to play the role of spoiler as he takes his great wrestling and Jui Jitsu in with him. Just like Joe he is fresh off of a loss and will be looking to rebound and get back on the correct path. If Tibau is to win this fight, he will need to take advantage of his ground game and put Stevenson in bad positions. If this fight stays on the feet Stevenson should be able to get the better of the two. Watch out for KO of the night from this one. Stevenson will come out throwing!
Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Lytle
Another beneficiary of TUF is Josh Koscheck as he did well enough to generate popularity and a UFC contract. Josh is still the most decorated college wrestler in the organization and has an improved standup that he has used to his advantage. With this 4 time All American there is no middle you either like him or hate him. He will look to get back into the title mix with a win over Lytle. Kos is fresh off of a win against Dustin Hazelett. Chris Lytle on the other hand is no slouch. He has over 50 career fights and is coming off of a knockout victory over Kyle Bradley. He is 2-3 in his last 5 fights will losses to Matt Hughes, Thiago Alves, and Matt Serra. A win over Kos would put Lytle up a big notch and possibly make him a household name.
Tyson Griffin vs. Marcus Aurelio
The last fight that is guaranteed to be televised is the fight between Tyson Griffin (no relation to Forrest) and Aurelio. Griffin is a former construction worker and knows the meaning of real work. For this fight he has been working hard to make sure that he is in good shape and will be ready to throw his hands. Griffin is a good all around fighter that can handle himself in almost every position. He is 11-1 with a loss to Frank Edgar. Aurelio is another American Top Team member and has a solid BJJ background. He also has some striking making this fight one of two well rounded fighters. There is no telling how this fight will go. Griffin seems to be the favorite but ATT is on a role.
Typically that would end MMAOpinion’s fight preview, but this time there are additional stories on the under card that deserve some attention. This under card is packed and many feel that it has more interesting stories than the main one.
Gabriel Gonzaga, yea, remember him? He was the guy that introduced his shin bone to Cro Cop? After two straight losses he is back and ready to show that his win over the Croatian Sensation was not a fluke.
The Jorge Gurgel vs. Cole Miller is another fight of TUF participants and could make for fight of the night. Both of these fighters have great respect for one another and this one will be a battle. Gurgel has more experience but Miller is healthy and has been training hard. Watch for Miller to take this one.
Melvin Guillard, can he rebound from 2 straight losses and possibly getting cut from the UFC? He knows that it is win or go home for this Louisiana native.
Last but not least is Corey Hill. His nickname is the real deal. Hill will look to show that he is not just a giant at the 155 division and that he is a solid fighter that can rise up the charts. He won his UFC debut and will look to become another Militech trained fighter to do well in the cage.
As you see this is more than just another fight card. There is excitement in both the main card and the under card. Tune into www.MMAOpinion.com for a post fight evaluation shortly after UFC 86.
