After the crazy month of September, it seems like it has been a long time since we’ve had a UFC event. This Saturday night we get back into the mix with UFC 77: Hostile Territory as the UFC returns to Ohio. The UFC Middleweight title will be on the line as current champion Anderson Silva will rematch with Rich Franklin, the man he took the belt from. Once again, don’t forget to join the MMA HQ fight camp at MMAPlayground.com and make your votes before the event on Saturday.
Main Card
Anderson Silva vs Rich Franklin - Rich Franklin is facing a tough task at UFC 77. Not only is he fighting a man who took his middleweight title belt away and literally rearranged parts of his face, but he also has the added pressure of fighting in his own backyard. The UFC really did Franklin a disservice by holding the fight in Cincinnati even though I’m sure it will be great for the UFC’s ticket sales. While Franklin technically has the “home field” advantage, I’ve got to believe that this is actually an advantage for Anderson Silva in this case.
Franklin hopefully learned in their first fight at UFC 64 that he can’t compete with Anderson Silva in the clinch game. Anderson’s Muay Thai skills are just too much for Rich. Anderson also has the advantage in striking where his quickness and pinpoint precision allow him to move and strike at angles that most other fighters never even see. Franklin’s gameplan needs to focus on physically wearing Anderson down by any means possible and hoping to be able to take advantage of Silva’s weak oft-injured knees and work some ground-and-pound.
Anderson Silva just needs to come out focused and prepared to work Franklin over like he did in their first meeting. Most people don’t give Rich Franklin much of a shot in this fight, mostly because of what happened in their first fight. I’m inclined to agree that the odds don’t look good for Ace, but I’m not counting him out completely. Winner: Anderson Silva
Tim Sylvia vs Brandon Vera - Tim Sylvia returns to the octagon for the first time since losing his UFC Heavyweight title to Randy Couture at UFC 68; Brandon Vera returns to the octagon for the first time since beating Frank Mir in the first round at UFC 65. Both fighters have a chip on their shoulder and something to prove, especially now that it is widely assumed the winner of this fight will get a shot at the heavyweight title.
Vera has a lot of promise and is a very athletic fighter who most critics think should drop down to the light heavyweight division. Vera has all the talent and potential to be a force in MMA for a long time and getting past Tim Sylvia after a nearly year-long layoff will be a tough test. Vera should be able to take Sylvia down and control the fight from there. It’s always dangerous to stand and trade shots with Tim, especially with his height and reach advantage, but Randy Couture proved that it can be done effectively with the right head movement and footwork.
Tim Sylvia needs to win this fight to avoid a long, tiring journey through the doldrums of the heavyweight division if he were to lose. Sylvia has had more title shots at the heavyweight belt than most people would even dream about, and he doesn’t seem to be the most affable champion the UFC has ever had. Sylvia needs to avoid the ground at all costs and hope to catch Vera with some stiff jabs. Winner: Brandon Vera
Kalib Starnes vs Alan Belcher - The odds-makers have Kalib Starnes the slight favorite in this fight, and I have no idea why. In my opinion, Starnes is one of those fighters who receives lots of “hype” for his supposed “talent and upside” but isn’t able to follow thru on that hype. Belcher is a solid MMA fighter who will put up an extremely tough fight. I’m going against the odds-makers here and against general opinion and picking Belcher. Winner: Alan Belcher
Eric Schafer vs Stephan Bonnar - Stephan Bonnar returned from his steroid suspension at UFC 73 and quickly dispatched Mike Nickels by submission in the first round. Bonnar is looking to get back on track after his steroid “mishap” and the loss of his close friend and coach Carlson Gracie. “Ravishing Red” Schafer last fought at UFC 66 where he lost to Michael Bisping. Bonnar just has too much ground game for Schafer and should be able to win easily. Winner: Stephan Bonnar
Jorge Gurgel vs Alvin Robinson - Alvin Robinson made his much hyped debut at UFC 73 against Kenny Florian. Unfortunately, Robinson didn’t make it out of the first round and I don’t think his chances are much better against Gurgel. While I do think Alvin will make it out of the first round this time, Gurgel has both better standup and BJJ skils than Robinson. Gurgel by decision. Winner: Jorge Gurgel
Undercard
Yushin Okami vs Jason MacDonald - Winner: Yushin Okami
Josh Burkman vs Forrest Petz - Winner: Josh Burkman
Jason Black vs Matt Grice - Winner: Jason Black
Demian Maia vs Ryan Jensen - Winner: Demian Maia
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looks like im disagreeing with most of your picks this time around Doc.
Franklin vs Silva
Ive believed Rich would beat Anderson in the rematch since he lost the title. Im sure it wont end up like the first fight thats for sure, i dont need to rehash everything i said before, but basically Rich has always dominated in the clinch and he met his match. By the time he realized that, it was too late and the fight was over. I would definately give Anderson the advantage on the ground, Nog doesnt give out black belts for nothing. The clinch is definately all Silva too, but when it comes to the striking game, i wouldnt give Silva as much as an advantage as most people believe. Hes a great striker with great movement, but so is Franklin, Anderson will have the speed on his size, but Franklin definately has the power advantage being bigger and stronger than Silva. Id like to see Rich work his movement, stay out of the clinch and force exchanges on the feet. He needs to be the agressor in the fight and get Silva to back up. Hopefully he can connect with that one shot he needs to hurt Anderson, then pounce on him and pound him out on the ground. I think this fight ends by TKO in the 2nd round no matter who wins, but im taking Franklin as the underdog here.
Sylvia vs Vera
i think i said enough about this matchup already, but heres what i havent said yet. Maybe losing the belt was the best thing to happen to Tim, maybe the old Tim will be back putting the stomp on guys. Not being an incredibly disciplined fighter, i think Tim is the kind of guy who fights better when hes mad or hurt. He has alot of respect for Randy, he doesnt have much for Vera, and like Doc said, this is a critical fight for Tim.. and Vera too. If you havent guessed yet im picking Tim, its only 3 rounds, sadly it will probably go to decision with Tim not being able to connect cleanly and Vera not being able to finish Tim on the ground. Tim Sylvia by decision.
Belcher vs Starnes
Im picking the hometown boy Kalib Starnes, firstly because hes Canadian hehe and secondly because im not a Belcher fan, i cant think of one instance where i wanted him to win a fight. Kalib may not be a well rounded fighter, but hes good at what he does, thats submitting people and Belcher has shown himself to be prone to submission. Kalib does not do very well in the later rounds, so he will need to finish Belcher by the 2nd if he can get him down and let Belcher tire himself out enough in the 1st. So lets say Starnes by submission in the 2nd
Bonnar should win fairly easily by submission in the 1st round, if not just GnP.
Gurgel vs Robinson?? wtf?? why is this even on the main card? i would much rather see Okami vs Mcdonald.. am i alone in this thought guys?? anyways… I think Jorge will probably win this fight by decision, like his last 3 fights.. zzzzzz main card? you kidding me?
Okami vs Mcdonald, this should be a great fight guys! i picture it being up and down, maybe start slow, then some exchanges on the feet followed by a takedown or knockdown, then some great grappling, sub attempts, escapes, sweeps, gnp.. This fight should have it all, i REALLY hope the air this fight, and if not that it will be up on the tracker, or fullcontactzone.. After Franklin Silva and Sylvia Vera, this is the best fight on the card.
I was just on the playground, did you guys notice they have Tim as a 2-1 underdog vs Vera? I think thats pretty surprising considering Tim was just the champ, and hes got alot more fights under his belt than Vera. Dam, ive yet to make a bet on the playground.. but now im seriously considering betting the farm on Tim. Ok ive made up my mind.. im betting it all on Tim.. why not? i havent paid much attention to the betting but its part of the game, so im officially IN THE GAME BABY! haha im gon end up broke like you RJ LOL
Awesome Franklin vs. Silva preview.. What you said about home field disadvantage makes a lot of sense. We actually are competing with some other websites this month to see who can be the winners of UFC 77. Maybe 78 you can join the group?
[quote comment="10337"]Awesome Franklin vs. Silva preview.. What you said about home field disadvantage makes a lot of sense. We actually are competing with some other websites this month to see who can be the winners of UFC 77. Maybe 78 you can join the group?[/quote]
Sure, I’m game for 78. Just let me know.
I’m still on the fence about ordering this PPV. After looking at the fight card, I realized that only 4 fights will be televised…that’s just atrocious and pisses me off…I’m paying $165+ cable bill every month and it’s killing my wallet. I think I may sit this one out.
@Amir,
They always only guarantee that 4 fights will be televised but the swing bout (the 5th bout) is always shown.
Lol…whopee Doc…that possible fifth one is what I’m hoping for.
Yushin Okami vs Jason MacDonald
why are they the undercard?? what weight are they fighting at?
man for me silva and vera is what sold this card for me i have to admit this fight card is pertty weak.but i got silva and silvia
@Richard
I agree for the most part… I have seen weaker cards in past days though… and compared to the headline “Bisping vs Evans” it really looks okay… lol
man sylvia ,i dont care hes big for nothing he still continues to squeak through fights