Demian Maia vs. Mark 'The Filipino Wrecking Machine' Munoz
Demian Maia will be looking to continue his 2-fight winning streak on Saturday when he comes up against ‘The Filipino Wrecking Machine’ Mark Munoz, who is also riding a 2-fight win streak. Maia has slowly been getting his momentum back in recent fights after his disappointing performance against Anderson Silva, and he has worked extremely hard on his striking since that fight. Despite his improved striking I think it would be a mistake for Maia to keep this fight standing, Munoz has huge power in his hands and if he connects then I think it’ll be a very short night for the Brazilian. Maia will need to get the fight to the ground where he can use his world class BJJ to work for the submission, this may prove difficult though as Munoz is an excellent wrestler and will not give up the takedown easily. This is a tough fight to call, however with Munoz’s wrestling ability and his KO power i’m leaning towards a stoppage win for the Filipino.
My Prediction: Mark Munoz via TKO.
Kenny 'KenFlo' Florian vs. Diego 'The Gun' Nunes
In the co-main event of the evening Kenny Florian will make his debut in the featherweight division against Diego Nunes as he looks to create a winning streak that will eventually lead to that elusive UFC title. Diego Nunes had an impressive debut in the UFC, defeating former title holder Mike Brown and he has only been defeated once in his MMA career (Professional Record - 16-1) so this will not be an easy fight for Florian. Nunes is very aggressive when he fights and has some vicious leg kicks & good striking to go along with his excellent ground game. Kenny is also an extremely well rounded fighter and I think his ability to counter may be the key to winning this fight, if Kenny is able to get Nunes to come after him in his usual aggressive style then I think he’ll be able to pick the Brazilian apart and come away with the W.
My Prediction: Kenny Florian via decision.
Junior 'Cigano' Dos Santos vs. Shane Carwin
In the main event of the evening Junior Dos Santos will take on Shane Carwin, who has stepped in for the injured Brock Lesnar, in a fight that will decide the next challenger for Cain Velasquez’s Heavyweight title. Junior Dos Santos has been on an incredible run since debuting in the UFC and he has won his last 7 fights in a row, his excellent striking has enabled him to dominate his opponents and he has been tearing through the division at a rapid pace. Carwin was in a similar position to Junior until he suffered a loss to Brock Lesnar almost a year ago, since that fight Carwin has had surgery and totally revamped his cardio and nutrition which is one of the big reasons that he felt contributed to the first loss of his MMA career. Carwin should now be coming into this fight a lot lighter than previously and he will hope that his improved cardio will be the key to getting a title shot. With both of these fighters preferring the stand-up game I very much doubt that we’ll see this one go the distance. Carwin has huge KO power and he has also been rocked in the past, so we could see a KO for either fighter. I would give the power advantage to Shane, however I think Junior has the better technique with his strikes. If Junior is able to avoid the early storm then I think he stands an excellent chance of stopping Carwin in the 2nd or 3rd round.
My Prediction: Junior Dos Santos via TKO.
