UFC 137 Preview
The artist who makes the fight posters was busy over the last few months and not only because there were a lot of fights. There was a stretch of 4 fights at the beginning of the month and there will be another stretch of 4 events starting with UFC 137. This was the least of the artist’s worries as the poster for UFC 137 took enough work with the fight changing three times. First the fight was Nick Diaz’s return to the UFC against one of the best fighters in the world Georges St. Pierre. This would the unification of the Strikeforce Welterweight belt held by Diaz and the UFC Welterweight belt held by St. Pierre. Then Nick Diaz did not show up at not only one but two press conferences without telling anyone and for no real apparent reason other than he doesn’t like going to see media. With this blunder Diaz lost his title shot and lost his main event payday after Dana White replaced him with Carlos Condit as a form of punishment. Then after GSP and Condit prepared for their fight the champion was injured during training knocking him out of the fight. With this the UFC decided to delay Condit as well to save the fight for a later card when GSP is healthy. So with that fight gone Nick Diaz got his main event again as his new fight was slated as the co-main event but was moved up. Diaz will take on a refocused BJ Penn who will be looking to make one more run at the title. Both these fighters are very polarizing as they are both loved and hated by at least one half of the fans. Diaz has been a controversial fighter with his no care attitude and his fight after a fight against Jason “Mayhem” Miller. After his absence at the media conferences Diaz did not impress a lot of UFC fans as he continues to refuse to apologize. He still has a lot of fans though with his relentless fighting style that makes him one of the most exciting fighters in MMA. BJ Penn was nicknamed the Prodigy because he had all of the talent in the world and rode this at the beginning of his career. Then fighters caught up to him by training and Penn became a good fighter but not as good as he could have been. Penn’s training has been questioned throughout his career as he never seemed to take it seriously which lost him a lot of fans. Penn still has a lot of this talent and has shown just how good he can be repeatedly leading a number of fans to his side. Both of these fighters will get their share of boos and cheers but whatever way you cheer it is sure to be a thrilling fight. Both fighters are good standing but Diaz will take the advantage in that as he has a relentless stand up style that has led to 10 knockouts in his career. Penn is not afraid of standing but he is also a great BJJ practitioner with 6 submission victories. Diaz is no slouch on the ground either as he was brought up as a BJJ practitioner. Either way this fight goes both fighters will feel comfortable but it still remains to be seen if Penn’s new training focus will actually make him the fighter he has always been touted as. I believe that Penn is on his way out of the UFC and is simply trying to make one or two more runs at a title fight but Diaz will be too much for him as Diaz remains at the peak of his career. Look for Diaz to end this fight by knockout in the 3rd round.
With two welterweights facing off in the main event the big boys will face off just before in two heavyweight fights. First the Always dangerous Mirko Cro Cop will take on Roy Nelson in a big striking matchup. Mirko Cro Cop seems to be out of title contention but he is still dangerous as the best pure kickboxer in the UFC. It has been said that his left leg means hospital and his right leg means morgue as the former K-1 Champion has lethal kicks that can take anyone down. Meanwhile Roy Nelson has continued to climb after entering the UFC through The Ultimate Fighter. Nelson has done this with his great hands that can catch even the best of heavyweight fighters. There won’t be much wrestling in this fight as both fighters will come out firing and try to put on a great show for the fans. There won’t be much wrestling in the next fight either as Cheick Kongo and Matt Mitrione will face off in the co-main event spot. Kongo is coming off of one of the craziest fights this year after seemingly being knocked out twice by Pat Barry, Kongo stayed alive and landed his own power shots knocking out Barry for the win. The comeback may have inspired him to take the momentum to the top of the division finally in his long career. The fight against Mitrione will go a long way to putting him in to the top-tier as Mitrione will look to do the same. Mitrione has risen up the Heavyweight division with his surprising athleticism and his heavy hands and will look to enter the title conversation. Both of these fighters are not known for their wrestling and they will both stand and trade. These heavyweight fights will be thrilling as they will either both be three round wars or they will end with a knockout. The heavyweights are finally back to fighting and it will be fun to see them square off before the main event.
Fight Card:
Main Event:
“The Prodigy” BJ Penn vs. Nick Diaz (PPV)
Main Card:
Cheick Kongo vs. Matt Mitrione (PPV)
Mirko Cro Cop vs. Roy “Big Country” Nelson (PPV)
Scott “Young Guns” Jorgensen vs. Jeff “Big Frog” Curran (PPV)
Hatsu Hioki vs. George Roop (PPV)
Undercard:
Dennis Siver vs. Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (Sportsnet)
Tyson Griffin vs. Bart “Bartimus” Palaszewski (Sportsnet)
Brandon “The Truth” Vera vs. Eliot “The Fire” Marshall (Facebook)
Ramsey Nijem vs. “Danny Boy” Dan Downes (Facebook)
Chris Camozzi vs. Francis “Limitless” Carmont (Facebook)
Dustin Jacoby vs. Clifford Starks (Facebook)
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