UFC Fight Night 33 Preview
The UFC goes back to Australia for UFC Fight Night for a fight that will feature two fighters trying to get back on track. Getting a title shot is a tough thing as the UFC is always producing more challengers in every division. Fighters are constantly coming in and are always getting better making a sustained run at a title a tough task. Fighters have to navigate a minefield of fighters to put together enough wins to earn a title shot. The problem then becomes sustaining the winning streak for long enough to get the shot. Many times the top fighters can bunch up at the top of the rankings especially when rematches are required to solve the title debate. When this happens some top fighters are forced to fight up and coming fighters with the risk of losing a title shot. Many times this turns out to be their downfall as they get so close but lose a key fight that drops them out of the running. It can be one of the most heartbreaking moments for a fighter as they have gone through everything that the UFC has thrown at them but come up just short. This is what would happen to Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva as both fighters were looking at a title shot until a key loss. Mark Hunt would arrive to the UFC in 2011 when he lost his first fight to Sean McCorkle. After that first loss Hunt would rattle off four straight wins with three of them coming via the knockout. Hunt was making a run at the heavyweight title with great finishes that had put him on the map. Then came Junior Dos Santos who would end the run for Hunt in a very important fight that would see the winner likely earn a title shot. Dos Santos would win and earn his rematch with Cain Velasquez for the Heavyweight title while Hunt was left to continue fighting it out for another chance to move up the heavyweight rankings and another chance to earn a title. To do this he will need to start a new winning streak that needs to start against Antonio Silva. Bigfoot Silva would see the same type of path as Mark Hunt except that he would start higher than the Super Samoan. Antonio Silva would come into the UFC in 2012 with a big name and a lot to live up to. Considered one of the biggest heavyweights in MMA Silva would make the move from Strikeforce to the UFC and would immediately become a favorite to win the heavyweight title. He would start slow losing his first fight to Cain Velasquez but would come on strong afterwards with two straight knockout wins. The two fight win streak would give Silva a title shot that he would lose to Cain Velasquez leaving him in the #4 spot with a smaller road to climb to get back. Both fighters have seen a small setback with a big loss in their careers but they are currently standing in very different spots. Hunt sits outside of the top 10 after his loss while Silva sits among the top five. A win for either fighter is a big thing as Hunt could work his way back into the top 10 while Silva could win his way into another title shot. It will be an interesting fight as the 6’4” Silva takes on the 5’10” in a matchup of one of the biggest and smallest fighters in the division. They go about things in a similar fashion though as both fighters are knockout artists that love to get the finish. Hunt does this in a different fashion than Silva as he must get inside his opponents and risk getting knocked out to get the KO. He has a great chin and can earn the KO while taking punishment. Meanwhile Silva uses his size and power to knockout opponents while his chin is not the best and will not stand up to a lot of punishment. The fight will be a stand up war between these two heavyweights as they will both be looking to pick up their careers and begin another run at the title. As good as Mark Hunt’s chin is it will not make up for his lack of reach in this fight as he will lose via knockout with Silva taking the win and the chance at a title fight.
The rest of the card will be loaded with talent from the surrounding area including a fight that is oddly similar to the main event. Before New Zealander Mark Hunt enters the octagon Australia’s own James Te Huna will look to set the tone. Much like Hunt, Te Huna was on a run before a loss to a top contender ended his title hopes. Te Huna would earn four straight wins before he would lose to top contender Glover Teixeira. Now he gets a big chance, like Hunt, to earn a spot in the top ten. He will take on #4 Mauricio Rua in a fight that could help him get into the top ten and make his way back to a potential title fight. Te Huna will be just one of the many fighters from the area as the Aussies and New Zealanders will show what they have at Fight Night. Australia is an often overlooked part of the MMA world but there will be plenty of great talent in the octagon at Fight Night 33. Fighters like Anthony Perosh, Soa Pelelei, and Dylan Andrews will all enter the octagon closer to home in a rare opportunity. These fighters are some of the few that very rarely see close to home fights as the Australia events are few and far between. Travelling to Australia is not an easy task for the UFC but they are trying to get out more and more with their constant attempt to be a worldwide brand. Now these fighters get their shot to fight close to home and many will look to become household names in their first chance on a big stage. They will all be looking to impress close to home as UFC Fight Night 33 becomes an important night for a lot of the fighters in Australia.
Fight Card
Main Event:
Mark “Super Samoan” Hunt vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Main Card:
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. James Te Huna (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Ryan “Darth” Bader vs. Anthony “The Hippo” Perosh (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Pat “HD” Barry vs. Soa “The Hulk” Palelei (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Dylan “The Villain” Andrews vs. Clint “Headbussa” Hester (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Julie “Fireball” Kedzie vs. Bethe “Pitbull” Correia (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Takeya Mizugaki vs. Nam Phan (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Nick “The Promise” Ring vs. Caio “Hellboy” Magalhaes (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Richie “Vas” Vaculik vs. Justin “Tank” Scoggins (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Bruno “Carioca” Santos vs. Kzrysztof Jotko (Sportsnet 360/Fox Sports 1)
Undercard:
Ben “Manimal” Wall vs. Alex “The Dominican” Garcia (Facebook)
The Sport Addiction 