Keith Jardine x Thiago Silva- Thiago Silva was said to be one of the most underrated LHW's in the game before meeting with Lyoto Machida's fist.  Its true he was undoubtedly impressive in dismantling the lower tier 205'ers, but Keith Jardine has solidified his status towards the top of the food chain with respectable wins over Forrest, Liddell, Vera, and earned a lot of my respect in his split-decision loss to Rampage.  Thiago's strengths are his explosive striking flurries and his deadly clinch game, and the ATT fighter also boasts an effective and complete ground game, although I give Jardine the higher marks for wrestling.  Thiago will be looking to exploit the weakness Jardine has shown when facing ultra-aggressive strikers, and the former Chute Boxe fighter still has enough of that unchecked ferocity in his style to cause problems for Jardine on the feet.  Contrary to popular opinion, I do not consider Jardine to have a weak chin, as his TKO/KO losses are respectable (Wand, the unknown Alexander, Wiuff in Jardine's 3rd fight) and he was tagged several times square by Chuck and Rampage. Jardine has also shown a knack for dismantling strong strikers with his completely awkward and unorthodox style, angles, and timing.  He has never lost via submission in his entire career, and has a highly underrated grappling game.  I see Jardine avoiding Thiago's striking onslaught and fighting an almost Liddell-like game of evasion and counterpunching, frustrating Thiago and forcing him into mistakes that he can capitalize on.  My guess:  Jardine by decision Chris Leben x Jake Rosholt- Leben is back after his steroid suspension, and Rosholt is the NCAA wrestling champion who transferred over from the WEC.  Rosholt's only loss is to submission fighter Dan Miller at UFN 17, although Osterneck rang his bell in their WEC contest, and Leben's gorilla stand-up attack is something Rosholt hasn't dealt with yet.  Although Leben's wild strikes definitely lend susceptibility to takedowns, he has a very calculating and slippery guard that may give the unexperienced wrestler fits, and Leben's chin is still rock-solid.  This leaves a lay-n-pray decision as the best avenue for Rosholt's victory, and even though the man can do the BJ Penn 3 foot pool-jump in reverse, Chris's hometown crowd will boo Rosholt into undercard status should he attempt the tactic for 3 rounds.  He doesn't have as many weapons in his arsenal to finish the fight as Leben does.  My guess:  Leben by TKO Brandon Vera x Krzysztof Soszynski- This is a bad style match-up for the rising Soszynski.  Although he's aggressive and agile on his feet, packs power in his punches, and has strung together some nice Kimura wins, Brandon Vera is the complete package.  He's a polished and technical Muay Thai madman on the feet, and more than comfortable with his submission game on the ground. Soszynski may be able to outwrestle him, but I don't see him containing Brandon in an area where he can do enough damage to finish him.  Let's not forget, Vera's only losses were the heavyweights Werdum and Sylvia, and a close decision to LHW Jardine.  Although Soszynski has also competed at HW, the only way I see "The Polish Experiment" beating Vera is by outworking him with aggression on the feet or bullying him around in the clinch.  My guess:  Vera by TKO
Share/Save/Bookmark

Add comment

Security code
Refresh

Dead Serious

Random RomoShoop

Poll

Is Jon Jones the Greatest LHW of All Time?

Cage Girls Coming and Going

Kimbo Now and Then

  • Kimbo Boxing
  • Kimbo Street Fight
Could Cris Cyborg Beat You in a Fight?

MMA's Ultimate Shit Talker: Chael Sonnen or Nick Diaz?

Login Form