UFC 120 Thoughts & Predictions

This Saturday UFC 120 will take place at the O2 Arena in London, England, and will be aired for free on Spike TV. There won't be any title fights, but there are some good match-ups, so let's get to them.

Claude Patrick vs. James Wilks: Ultimate Fighter winner James Wilks makes his return to the cage to face fellow submission specialist Claude Patrick. After winning the Ultimate Fighter by submitting DaMarques Johnson at the finale, Wilks was matched up against Matt Brown. Wilks lost the fight by TKO, but bounced back with a decision win over Peter Sobotta back in June. Patrick made his debut at the same event and defeated Ricardo Funch via submission, the ninth submission victory of his twelve wins. Patrick's lone career loss came to UFC-vet Drew McFedries in the second fight of his career. Both men are well versed in submissions, as evidenced by their records, but it is difficult for me to make an informed decision as I have not had the opportunity to see Patrick fight. Wilks looked good against Johnson, but really wilted under the pressure that Brown was able to put on him. After Brown escaped a Wilks submission attempt, Wilks looked defeated and was eventually pounded out. Patrick seems to favor the guillotine as half of his wins have come via that choke, and while he is very talented, I question if Wilks is truly UFC material. I'll take Patrick by submission as he seems to have a knack for catching necks.

Cheick Kongo vs. Travis Browne: After consecutive, devastating losses to Cain Velasquez and Frank Mir, Kongo got back into the win column after decimating Paul Buentello, making him tap due to strikes. Kongo is a talented kickboxer and has shown excellent ground and pound, but he seems to falter when faced with someone can turn the tables and take him to the mat. Browne made his UFC debut June, and easily defeated James McSweeney. Browne is undefeated and only one of his fights has gone the distance. I've seen Kongo fight many times, so I know what he brings to the table. He is a very strong striker who can easily toss someone to the mat, and rain down brutal punches. I've only seen Browne fight the one time against McSweeney, so it's hard to say what kind of fighter he is considering the fight lasted only 30 seconds. Browne is the bigger, taller fighter here, but I think Kongo will continue his reputation the guy who can beat most everyone, except for the best. I'll take Kongo via TKO as he'll continually dump Browne to the mat and beat him up.

John Hathaway vs. Mike Pyle: Pyle, from what I've heard, is the Wilson Gouveia of Xtreme Couture. That is, he's extremely talented in the gym and receives high praise from his teammates, but once he's in the cage, it's a coin flip. Pyle has collected wins over Chris Wilson and Jesse Lennox, but has also been defeated by Jake Ellenberger and Brock Larson. On the other hand, Hathaway is undefeated and most recently defeated Diego Sanchez in a very one-sided fight. I've sung Hathaway's praises in previous entries, so I'll try to keep it in check here. Hathaway has shown several times that he has an excellent jab thanks to his frame, and is very capable on the ground, especially his ground and pound. Pyle was able to survive Ellenberger's GnP for a round, but eventually couldn't deal with it. I think this will be a very similar fight for Pyle as he'll get lit up on the feet, and will only be able to defend himself against an onslaught of punches for a limited time. I'm taking Hathaway via TKO.

Dan Hardy vs. Carlos Condit: When I first heard about this match-up, I was thinking that this was a bit much for Condit, considering Hardy is coming off of a title fight and Condit was losing his last fight before finishing (a sketchy finish at that) Rory MacDonald with only 7 seconds left in the third round. After thinking about it, though, this fight has a lot of potential to be Fight of the Night. Condit has shown in the past that he is talented on the feet as well as the mat. Hardy, on the other hand, is primarily a striker, but showed in his fight against GSP that he is tough enough to survive dangerous situations. I don't think Condit is nearly as strong as GSP, though, so Hardy might be able to escape situations should Condit take him down. Hardy will want to keep this fight standing, and I think Condit will be happy to comply. Unfortunately for Condit, I think Hardy is the better, more technical, and stronger puncher. I see this fight going a lot like Hardy's fight with Mike Swick. Hardy will get the better of the stand-up and maybe rock Condit a few times, but I think Condit is too tough to finish here. I'll take Hardy by decision.

Michael Bisping vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama: Am I the only one who finds it strange that Akiyama is headlining an event despite the fact that he is coming off a loss, and is a relative unknown to the casual MMA fan? Maybe it's his international appeal, but after barely beating Alan Belcher, dealing with a long lay-off, and then losing to Chris Leben (who had fought 2 weeks prior) I just don't get it. Also, Akiyama could really cut down to 170, but as with many Japanese fighters, weight cutting doesn't seem to be a priority or a concern really. Sexyama is a judo practitioner, but also has some big power in his hands. Bisping is probably the more technical striker, but he has a bad habit of pulling his punches, causing them to lose power. Bisping is good at defending the takedown, though, and will also have a much bigger gas tank, as Akiyama looked dead in the third against Leben. I see this being a typical Bisping fight as he'll use his superior foot work and speed to peck away at Akiyama and cruise to a decision victory.

(Image from MMAResolutions.com)