UFC 101 Predictions- Preliminary Card
MMA Record- 150-89 (63%)
Jesse Lennox vs. Danillo Villefort: Two former WEC fighters will make their Octagon debut in this one. Lennox fights for the Miletich camp and is a solid striker and wrestler. He brings a MMA record of 10-1 into this contest, including a 1-0 record in the WEC. Villefort is an American Top Team product and has a record of 9-2. He formerly fought at the middleweight level, but dropped down to welterweight for his WEC debut against Mike Campbell who he defeated by TKO in the 1st round. He also defeated UFC fighter Mike Massenzio in the IFL. He’s a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and an adequate striker. Lennox’s best chance is to try and stand with Villefort, but I think Villefort will be able to get the fight to the ground in short order. From there, it won’t take long for Villefort to end the fight. Villefort via submission in the 1st.
George Sotiropoulos vs. George Roop: Roop was a late replacement for Rob Emerson, who suffered a cut that took him out of action. Both fighters were former members of “The Ultimate Fighter,” Sotiropoulos in season six, and Roop in season eight. Sotiropoulos relies mainly on his solid jiu jitsu skills, though he also has an improving standup game and a good clinch game. Roop is probably a stronger striker than Sotiropoulos, but should be at a severe disadvantage on the ground. That’s where I’m expecting this fight to end up rather quickly. Sotiropoulos via submission in the 1st.
Matt Riddle vs. Dan Cramer: Both guys were on Season seven of “The Ultimate Fighter,” but Riddle has been more impressive thus far in the UFC. Riddle has won his first two fights by unanimous decision, and will try to improve to 3-0 in the UFC. He fights with Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. Cramer fights with American Top Team, and is 1-0 in the UFC. He won a split decision over Matt Arroyo at UFC 94. Riddle’s strength is his solid wrestling and jiu jitsu games, while Cramer fights much the same way, though with less skill. I expect Riddle to control the fight on the ground and he should be able to grind out a victory. Riddle via unanimous decision.
Thales Leites vs. Alessio Sakara: Leites is coming off the much maligned performance against Anderson Silva at UFC 97. He looked totally unwilling to do anything on his feet in that fight, not that you can necessarily blame him when you’re facing Anderson Silva. He had earned the title shot by reeling off five straight wins. He is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and had shown decent striking prior to his fight with Silva. Sakara’s main strength is his striking. The American Top Team product brings a career record of 13-7-1 into this fight. He has done well against lesser competition, but has struggled each time he stepped up to tougher fighters. His only chance in this one is to catch Leites with a haymaker early, but I don’t expect that to happen. Leites will get back on track with an early submission. Leites via submission in the 1st.
Tamdan McCrory vs. John Howard: McCrory is 11-2 in his MMA career, and rebounded from a loss to Dustin Hazelett at UFC 91 to beat Ryan Madigan at UFC 96. He’s 6′4 and always brings a tremendous height and reach advantage to the octagon. He uses the reach well, keeping his opponents off balance with punches and kicks, and he also has a good clinch game. Howard won his UFC debut over Chris Wilson at UFC 94 via split decision to improve to 11-4 overall in his MMA career. Howard is powerful and has a good top game. In this fight, he will give up nearly nine inches in height to McCrory. That will be tough to overcome. If the fight hits the ground, there is a chance that Howard can pound out or submit McCrory, but McCrory’s ground game is improving. I don’t think there’s anyway that Howard can overcome the severe reach and height disadvantage in this fight. McCrory via TKO in the 2nd.
Aaron Riley vs. Shane Nelson: This is a rematch from a fight at UFC 96, where Nelson won via TKO in a controversial early stoppage. Dana White wanted to make the rematch, and both fighters agreed. Riley is a veteran of MMA who has a career record of 27-11-1. In his career, he has fought (and lost) to guys like Yves Edwards, Chris Lytle, Spencer Fisher, Eddie Alvarez and Ryan Schultz. He won his UFC debut over Jorge Gurgel at UFC 91 via unanimous decision before he took on Nelson at UFC 96. Nelson trains with B.J. Penn in Hawaii, and was a former cast member of “The Ultimate Fighter.” He’s 2-0 in the UFC including the controversial win over Nelson. His first UFC victory was against George Roop at the Ultimate Finale 8. Ten of his 15 career fights have gone to a decision, so the quick victory over Riley the first time was really an abberation. Riley is the better all-around fighter and should be able to control the fight wherever it goes. I think the first fight was a fluke, and Riley should be able to win this fight relatively easily. Riley via TKO in the 2nd.
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