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Main Card (Pay-per-view):
145#: Jose Aldo (21-1) vs Frankie Edgar (14-3-1) wins by Unanimous Decision!
205#: Rashad Evans (17-2-1) vs Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (20-5) wins by Unanimous Decision!
265#: Alistair Overeem (36-11) vs Antonio Silva (17-4) wins by KO in RD3!
170#: Jon Fitch (24-4-1) vs Demian Maia (17-4) wins by Unanimous Decision!
125#: Joseph Benavidez (16-3) vs Ian McCall (11-3-1) wins by Unanimous Decision!
Preliminary Card (FX Channel):
155#: Gleison Tibau (35-8) vs Evan Dunham (13-3) wins by Split Decision!
170#: Jay Hieron (23-6) vs Tyron Woodley (10-1) wins by KO in RD1!
155#: Jacob Volkmann (15-3) vs Bobby Green (19-5) wins by Rear Naked Choke in RD3!
155#: Yves Edwards (42-18-1) vs Isaac Vallie-Flagg (13-3-1) wins by Split Decision!
Preliminary Card (Facebook):
135#: Chico Camus (12-3) vs Dustin Kimura (9-0) wins by Rear Naked Choke in RD3!
135#: Edwin Figueroa (9-1) vs Francisco Rivera (8-2) wins by TKO in RD2!
Ultimate Fighting Championship 156 takes place on February 2, 2013 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, Nevada. Facebook Prelims start at 7 p.m. EST before switching to FX Channel for the rest of the prelims at 8 p.m. EST. PPV begins at 10 p.m. EST. To watch the FREE prelims on Facebook simply visit their Facebook page and “like.”
Jose Aldo vs Frankie Edgar
Former lightweight champ Frankie Edgar heads down to featherweight and gets an immediate title shot in spite of losing his last two fights – and title – against Benson Henderson. Edgar has won fight of the night honors five separate times and knockout of the night once. He was not known as a “weight cutter” when he fought at 155#s and was considered small for the weight class. Most believe the drop to featherweight is something he should have done a long time ago. It remains to be seen how his first big weight cut affects his performance. Edgar’s best bet is to use his striking to set up takedowns where he can effect some ground and pound, perhaps pass Aldo’s guard and get to a dominate position. Mark Hominick had some success on the ground when he fought Aldo at UFC 129 in April of 2011.
His opponent and current featherweight champ, Brazilian Jose Aldo is as dangerous as they get. On a 14 fight win streak, very few have even come close to winning a round. Known for his striking prowess, there will be no surprise how Aldo will address Edgar in this fight. His kicks to the leg are some of the best which he demonstrated against Urijah Faber at WEC 48 in April of 2010. Aldo’s cardiovascular endurance was questioned in his fight against Mark Hominick and he had better be in great shape for this five rounder against a guy known for his pace and endurance. Aldo needs to maintain his distance and measure. Make Frankie pay when he tries to get to the clinch or takedowns. NBG Pick: Edgar.
Rashad Evans vs Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
This fight I am going to try to leave my bias out and make an objective evaluation. I am a huge fan of the now defunct Japanese MMA organization PRIDE and a huge fan of “Nog.” Brazilian Nogueira is (in)famous for his ability to take massive amounts of trauma and punishment and continue to fight and even win. Sadly, it often overshadows the skills he actually possesses: excellent Boxing and some of the best submissions on earth. He is one of the founding fathers of the MMA guard. Having said that, he is old in fight years. The punishment has taken its toll and he is far older in fight years than he is chronologically. Being the older fighter, with slower reactions, he will need to get this to the ground. Maintaining an allegiance to BJJ in some eyes means to learn to wrestle is a form of betrayal. In this fight it will haunt and hurt him. He’ll have no way to get Evans to the ground and where he is strongest and can actually win.
Evans is younger, quicker, stronger, and has the wrestling credentials that mean he decides whether the fight is a boxing match or takes place on the ground. This is one of the benefits of having a wrestling skillset and why every fighter should have it as a base. Evans is incredibly difficult to take down even by very good wrestlers as he has proven in his fights with Ortiz, Rampage Jackson, Phil Davis and Jon Jones. Evans will look to use his wrestling if Nog tries for a takedown and keep Nog striking where Rashad can utilize his superior speed advantage. For this reason the NBG pick is: Evans.
Alistair Overeem vs Antonio Silva
Dutchman Alistair Overeem is one of the highest rated prospects in the sport today. Originally a light heavyweight (205#s), he has packed on serious muscle and been campaigning at heavyweight these past few years. Championship performances at the highest level in kickboxing (Japan’s K-1) have showcased his striking skills and demonstrated that he isn’t simply a musclebound powerhouse. Of course, MMA and kickboxing are two different sports and the striking is set up and used differently. This was demonstrated by his performance against notable grappler Fabricio Werdum who threw and landed more strikes in that fight and controversially losing a decision to Overeem.
The criticism labeled against Overeem is that he really hasn’t fought the best on a regular basis. Outside of Werdum of course. Many believe that he has a suspect chin and feel he will falter in his first real test. I am not so sure this fight against Bigfoot Silva is the fight to test him. Silva is a big lumbering heavyweight who is coming off a win versus Travis Browne at UFC on FX in October, but before that he was brutally finished twice. Once by being put to sleep with strikes against Daniel Cormier in Strikeforce and once by current champ Cain Velasquez by leaving him in a pool of sangre. I am not sure a win against Travis Browne will be the confidence booster he needed to get back on track, but being in Brazil will certainly fire him up! Bigfoot needs to take the fight into deeper waters, grapple as much as he can and land heavy often to win. Overeem simply needs to avoid the ground to win this fight, which I believe he can do. NBG pick: Overeem.
Jon Fitch vs Demian Maia
Brazilian Demian Maia is under a resurgence of sorts. Typically luke warm….win some, lose some. He seems to have picked up some momentum as of late. A win against top fighters Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 148 and against Rick Story at 153 has people discussing him again. Many consider him to be one of the best submission artists in the sport and feel he hasn’t tapped into his potential.
His opponent Jon Fitch is known for using his superior wrestling as a defensive tactic to shut down his opponent’s offense. Many consider his style to be incredibly boring and feel he leads today’s “lay ‘n pray” style. This is a style of fighting where you take your opponent down and smother them and do little else. As can often happen when to grapplers get together, this fight could easily be a kickboxing match with little grappling. Maia may feel Fitch can smother his way to a win so will avoid the gorund, or he may be supremely confident that his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is good enough. Tough to pick this one! NBG pick is: Maia.
Joseph Benavidez vs Ian McCall
Team Alpha Male fighter Joseph Benavidez is one of the best flyweights on earth and has only lost to champions Dominick Cruz and Demetrius Johnson. His losses to these two were close, and against everyone else he puts on dominating performances. Surely dying for another crack at the title, he’ll be looking to pick up some momentum by putting together some wins against top fighters. 12 of his 19 wins are by finish with a mixture of knockouts and submissions. Definitely dangerous.
Ian McCall, known as Uncle Creepy, has something in common with Benavidez: losses to Demetrius Johnson and Dominick Cruz. Of course, since the division is relatively new, this isn’t unusual. The fast paced McCall fought Demetrius Johnson to a draw in their first fight, which many felt he won. McCall uses his pace and unrelenting attack to win fights. This is a match-up of the very powerful versus the very fast. McCall needs to throw and land more and make Benavidez stalk him. Benavidez needs to land power punches and mix it with takedowns.
Tough pick: Benavidez.
Undercard Bout Summary
Fighters to watch on the undercard are Evan Dunham, who went from heir to the throne to trying to put together wins. He faces an absolute hulk in Gleison Tibau. This fight has all the makings to steal the show with Fight of the Night honors. Tyron Woodley was also looking like an heir to the throne until he got derailed in brutal fashion by Nate Marquardt. He faces veteran Jay Hieron who can make anyone look bad and is certainly looking to spoil any attempt by “T-Wood” to get back on track. Of course, pioneer and living legend Yves Edwards is always one to keep an eye on.
Come back for the results, updates and animated gifs. What are your picks for the headline fight between Aldo and Edgar? Does Nog finally get “old” and lose to Evans? Is Overeem the real deal? Who wins the bonuses?
