The MMA Top Ten 07.09.09. Fights I Am Most Looking Forward To

Posted by Brandon Longe on 07.09.2009

From Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin at UFC 101 and Randy Couture vs. Antonio Nogueira at UFC 102 to Gina Carono vs. Cris Santos and this weekend's Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir, 411's Brandon Longe ranks his top ten most anticipated fights!

When I first told people of my idea for this weeks column most of them thought it would be hard to come up with ten matches. I responded by telling them I already had a list of twenty. These days there are so many great fighters and events that narrowing this list down to ten was the real challenge. These may not be the most monumental fights or draw the biggest crowds, but these are the ten fights that have me the most excited. So here we go...




10. Miguel Torres 37-1 vs. Brian Bowles 7-0 @ WEC 42 on August 9th

Reasons for making the list:
-Miguel Torres is one of the best fighters in MMA today.
-Miguel Torres puts his title and 17 fight win streak on the line.
-Brian Bowles is a top contender and probably Torres' toughest challenge to date.

Can anybody beat Miguel Torres? I'm not sure anyone can. Torres has been on such a tear his whole career. He is undoubtedly one of the best pound for pound fighters on the planet and has the record to prove it. He has a better record than Fedor in a division with a lot more explosiveness. This bout was supposed to take place back at WEC 40 on April 5th but Bowles was injured and replaced with Takeya Mizugaki. It was the first time Torres fought for five full rounds but he did come away with a unanimous decision. Brian Bowles is a tough opponent but it's very hard to imagine anyone beating Torres right now. Torres is one of the most focused and dedicated fighters in the sport today. He reminds me of Lyoto Machida how he has been groomed to be a champion his whole life. Torres has such a crazy metabolism that he easily makes 135 while being 5'10". This gives Torres a reach and size advantage over most of his opponents in the small bantamweight division. The division isn't very popular at this point but with a star of Torres' caliber it won't be long before the fans catch on. The 135lb weight division is so quick and explosive that almost all the fights end up being exciting.

My Prediction: It's impossible for me to bet against Torres at this point in his career. With Bowles strength and wrestling skills I think the fight will hit the ground. Torres has a very powerful mullet.
-Miguel Torres via submission in the 2nd round.




9. Melvin Manhoef 23-5-1 vs. Paulo Filho 16-1 @ Dream 10 on July 20th

Reasons for making the list:
-Paulo Filho has long been a favorite fighter of mine.
-Melvin Manhoef always puts on an exciting fight.
-Classic striker vs. grappler contest.

Paulo Filho has been a favorite fighter of mine since his early days in Pride. He is built so compact and strong at 5'8" 185. His frame and strength are a great mix for his takedown and submit style. He has a black belt in both BJJ and Judo and has competed in MMA since 2000. After Pride was acquired by Zuffa I couldn't wait for Filho to come fight in the states. When he did he fought for the vacant WEC middleweight title and won, defeating Joe Doerksen. He then defended his title successfully against Chael Sonnen. About a year later he was scheduled to a rematch with Sonnen but ended up not making weight. The two agreed to fight anyway in a non-title bout. During the fight it seemed that Filho didn't even try to win. He played defense the whole match and lost a unanimous decision. It was an ugly way to earn the first lose of his career and I'm sure he lost some fans as well. His opponent in this match will be Melvin Manhoef, a hard hitting, aggressive striker. I've never been a big fan of Manhoef but he can definitely but on an exciting fight. He has beaten some great fighters such as Sakuraba, Cyborg Santos and most recently Mark Hunt. The majority of Manhoef's matches end in the first round so if you tune into this fight I wouldn't go to the fridge, the bathroom, or even blink. All signs point to a quick KO or slick submission in the first round. If for some reason this fight does go longer than I think it will end up being decided by conditioning. Neither one of these guys is known for their great cardio. If it's a long fight we will see them both gas out.

My Prediction:If Filho can get this one to the ground he will win. I also think we will see how good of a chin Filho has because he's not going to get a clean takedown without taking some punishment.
-Filho via armbar in the 1st round.




8. Forrest Griffin 16-5 vs. Anderson Silva 24-4 @ UFC 101 on August 8th

Reasons for making the list:
-Two of the biggest stars in MMA today.
-Anderson Silva puts his 10 fight win streak on the line.
-Forrest loves being the underdog and always puts 110% into every fight.

At UFC 101 Anderson Silva will again move up to 205 and try to find some sort of challenge. These are two of the biggest stars in the UFC and this fight will surely pack in the fans. It's such a great matchup because Anderson hasn't been able to find a tough fight and Forrest is the kind of guy who tests everyone he fights. This match could really boost Forrest up in the rankings if he can pull off a miracle win over Anderson. On the other hand, if Silva can win a decisive victory here it could help him surpass Fedor in the pound for pound rankings on some lists. Depending on how Fedor does in his next fight of course. My hopes for this fight are that it lasts a while, I'd rather not see a first round KO. I want to see a battle. In my eyes this fight has the potential to be an epic war of legendary proportions.

My Prediction: It's really difficult to see Anderson Silva losing any fight. I often compare Forrest to Randy Couture, he always has a good game plan and has a chance to beat anyone on the planet. It's no fun predicting fights if you always go with the safe bet.
-Forrest Griffin by decision, Randy Couture style.



VS.



7. Gegard Mousasi 28-2-1 vs. Renato Sobral 32-7 @ Affliction on August 1st

Reasons for making the list:
-Two of my favorite fighters
-Mousasi's first fight in the U.S.
-Another striker vs. grappler contest

Finally Gegard Mousasi will fight in the United States. This guy really deserves to have a larger fan following. He is only 23 and has a 28-2-1 record. He is moving up to 205 for this fight and I think his body will like it. Both of these fighters are pretty well rounded but their skills are offset enough to call this a striker vs. grappler match. Sobral's ground skills are top-notch while Mousasi possesses K-1 quality kickboxing prowess. I love both of these fighters and really don't know who, if anyone, I will end up cheering for. These guys are both so high on my favorite fighter list that it's amazing they only made number 7 on this week's list. It just goes to show you how many great fights are coming up in the near future.

My Prediction: Mousasi is younger and is a slightly more complete fighter than Babalu.
-Gegard Mousasi by KO in the 2nd round.




6. Randy Couture 16-9 vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira 31-5-1-1NC @ UFC 102 on August 29th

Reasons for making the list:
-Two of the legends of our sport compete.
-Both former champions.
-Both fighters have always been hard to finish and very well respected.

This is one of those true super-fights that would have never been possible without the acquisition of Pride FC by Zuffa. These are two of the most prolific figures in MMA and they will finally meet in the octagon. It looks to be a classic BJJ vs. wrestling match so it may not end up being the most exciting fight. At least not for some, for me this fight will be exciting no matter what happens just because of the history both these fighters have in our sport. I do hope this fight stays standing for a while because it would be so much fun to watch them duke it out. Chances are this fight won't involve a lot of striking but instead be a battle on the mat for position. I think a few years ago this fight would have probably topped this list. This fight, for me, is a dream come true.
My Prediction: I have a strict rule to never bet against Randy Couture. Unfortunately I have the same rule with Nogueira. Sorry guys I can't touch this one.

5. Shinya Aoki 20-4 vs. Vitor Ribeiro 20-2 @ Dream 10 on July 20th

Reasons for making the list:
-A battle of two of the best ground fighters in the sport with awesome records.
-Shinya Aoki is one of my favorite fighters to watch.
-It's not often that two fighters who are so submission orientated are matched up.

Unlike some of the more casual MMA fans I really enjoy watching grappling dominated fights. This fight is almost a guaranteed battle of submission prowess. Both of these fighters are elite BJJ players and Aoki also has a black belt in Judo. Neither of these MMA warriors are fond of striking. Between the two of them they have 40 wins with only 3 KO victories. If you watch fights merely to see people get knocked the hell out you will probably want to skip this one. These two guys both boast great records and have been fighting for years. If you really enjoy watching technical jiu-jitsu guys roll around on the mat in a strategic battle for position than you will not want to miss this fight.

My Prediction: Shinya Aoki has a good height advantage in this one but whether that will come into play is yet to be seen. Regardless he will win this fight.
-Aoki via choke in the 3rd round.




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4. Gina Carano 7-0 vs. Cris Santos 7-1

Reasons for making the list:
-First female super-fight.
-A true battle of the top two fighters in a division.
-May answer the question whether looks have a factor in MMA.

This is a monumental fight in MMA history. It is the first female super-fight. If it gets enough viewers then it could do a great deal for the female counterpart of our sport. "Cyborg" Santos is a vicious muay-thai striker who loves to aggressively charge forward and press the action. This is no surprise seeing how she fights out of the Chute Boxe Academy in Brazil which is known for this aggressive style. I think of Cyborg as the female Wanderlei Silva. Carano is a great striker but also has a more well-rounded skill set than Cyborg. One of the big stories in the female MMA world has to do with the length of rounds. Previously female fights have been fought with 3 minute rounds due to athletic commission rules. The California State Athletic Commission has granted permission to fight this bout with 5 minute rounds like the boys. Strikeforce says they will decide round lengths for woman's matches on an event by event basis depending on governing athletic commission's guidelines. I'd have to say that these longer rounds may really benefit Carano who is known to have the better cardio. I'd have to suggest to all MMA fans that they watch this fight for they will be watching history in the making no matter what the outcome is.

My Prediction: If Gina Carano can weather and early storm of vicious strikes and stay out of Cyborg's clinch than I think she will be able to win this fight with her conditioning. So either Cyborg will knock out Gina early or she will tire and Gina will capitalize later on in the fight.
-Gina Carano via submission in the 2nd round.



3. Frank Mir 12-3 vs. Brock Lesnar 3-1 @ UFC 100 on July 11th

Reasons for making the list:
-Long awaited rematch.
-Two very high profile fighters.
-A title fight.

This is the fight everyone has been waiting for. I've given into the hype and moved it up to #4 on my list. These two guys both have a huge desire to win this fight on the biggest stage in MMA. Frank Mir is fighting to complete his comeback and to become the undisputed heavyweight champ. Brock Lesnar is fighting to legitimize his belt. Brock still has a lot of doubters and with only 4 pro fights under his belt he is still trying to prove himself. Although Brock hasn't proved his legitimacy with a bunch of wins yet, it is hard to think of a fighter who could easily take his belt. Anything could happen in this fight. Mir has a good advantage in the submission game but Brock's size, strength and wrestling skills are all off the charts. There's a lot of hype circling this fight but it's all warranted. When these two warriors step into the octagon I know I will have goose bumps and I don't see a scenario happening that will disappoint. Both these guys train like animals and will be ready to go come Saturday

My Prediction: I really wish I could go with my man Frank Mir on this one but with Brocks improved skills and decent performance last time they fought I can't see Mir pulling off a submission. I think Mir's chance to win would be if he could just stay alive and try to get Brock tired than hope he makes a mistake.
-Brock Lesnar by TKO in the 2nd round.




2. Bj Penn 13-5-1 vs. Kenny Florian 11-3 @ UFC 101 on August 8th

Reasons for making the list:
-I'll admit it. Bj Penn is one of my favorite fighters.
-Finally Bj is fighting in his own weight class and putting his title on the line.

Bj Penn is a natural lightweight and I'm happy to see him back in his own weight-class. I would assume that Kenny's strategy in this fight will be to wear out Bj till he is so tired he can't defend himself properly. Probably the right strategy too, if he can pull it off. I think Kenny has earned his title shot and will be a huge test for Bj. Bj does seem to spend a lot of time on his back and with Kenny's brutal, razor-sharp elbows that may not be the best place for him. We may even find out if Bj Penn bleeds. I'm glad this fight is 5 rounds and can't wait to see how it unfolds.
My Prediction: If Kenny Florian can be elusive enough to take this fight into the later rounds we may see Bj Penn get tired and lose his belt. I just don't think he will be able to drag the fight out long enough for that to happen.
-Bj Penn via KO in the 2nd round.




1. Fedor Emelianenko 30-1-1NC vs. Josh Barnett 24-5 @ Affliction on August 1st

Reasons for making the list:
-Fedor is fighting.

When you're on the kind of dominating win streak that Fedor is on now, the whole MMA world revolves around your next fight. Josh Barnett will be a huge test for Fedor. He is a very worthy opponent with a decent size advantage and tons of experience. Both of these fighters have been in the game for a long time and have fought the best in the business. It's surprising that this is the first fight between them. Josh Barnett has awesome wrestling skills and can beat you with a submission or by strikes on the ground. Fedor is masterful in every aspect of the sport and obviously has some momentum going as well.

My Prediction: If Josh Barnett could get Fedor down and stay on top of him than this could end up being a long fight for Fedor. The only problem is I can't see Barnett being able to keep Fedor down for long. Josh may have a size advantage but Fedor is used to that. I've thought of every way this fight might unfold and Fedor always comes out victorious. It will take some sort of lucky, freak incident for Josh to pull it off.
-Fedor via TKO in the 4th round.

Honorable Mentions:

-Carwin vs. Velasquez
-Shogun vs. Machida
-Bisping vs. Henderson
-Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum
-GSP vs. Thiago Alves
-Nick Diaz vs. Joe Riggs
-Damian Maia vs. Nate Marquardt
And the list goes on and on and on…

Making this list this week really made me realize how great MMA has become. There are so many stars now and so many great events. Nowadays I'm always excited for so many upcoming match-ups. As a huge MMA fan I feel blessed that the sport has come so far. MMA fans are the luckiest fans in the world. We don't have to sit through an off- season and we always have something to be excited for.


Thanks for reading The MMA TopTen this week and please feel free to leave your opinions on the matter in the comment box provided below.