Photo Sary: Joe Camporeale/USA Today Sports
Despite the turmoil experienced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship so far this year, from the failed drug tests of stars like Jon Jones, Anderson Silva and Nick Diaz, to the reshuffling of UFC 184 because of an injury to middleweight champion Chris Weidman, the company has delivered in the Octagon so far this year. Despite Weidman’s injury, UFC 184 was still a smashing success thanks to another dominant performance by women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey.
Now UFC 185 is here, with another stacked card that should entertain once again. This card is anchored by TWO title fights, taking fans back to a time when the UFC would routinely offer stacked fight cards before rapid expansion under their deal with FOX apparently created an oversaturated product.
Here’s who I think emerges victorious on this talent-filled card.
Chris “Kamikaze” Cariaso (17-6) vs. Henry “The Messenger” Cejudo (7-0) (Flyweight – 125 lbs.)
Cariaso is coming off a submission loss to flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson last summer. But to be fair, everyone is losing to Johnson these days, and he’s close to cleaning out the flyweight division. Cejudo has yet to experience defeat and enjoyed a unanimous decision victory in his UFC debut late last year.
Cariaso has been a UFC and World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) veteran for the last five years and rode a 3-fight win streak prior to his loss to Johnson. Cejudo is a young pup trying to make a name for himself in the UFC, but Cariaso will use his veteran savvy to catch the overeager fighter for a finish.
Winner: Cariaso by second-round TKO
Roy “Big Country” Nelson (21-10) vs. Alistair “The Reem” Overeem (38-14-1) (Heavyweight – 225 lbs.)
I’ll admit up front that I’m not a big Roy Nelson fan. He’s a talented fighter who delivers exciting fights and is an entertaining personality. But ever since he debuted in the UFC and won season 10 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” he feasted on lower-ranked heavyweights like Stefan Struve, Brendan Schaub and Matt Mitrione. But when matched up with elite heavyweights like Fabricio Werdum, Junior Dos Santos and Daniel Cormier (before he dropped to light heavyweight), Nelson was routinely outclassed and battered.
Overeem has also failed to live up to the hype that came with his jump to the UFC. After he demolished Brock Lesnar in 2011, a title shot was in the works against then-champion Junior Dos Santos. But the fight never materialized due to injuries and Overeem suffered back-to-back knockout losses to Antonio Silva and Travis Browne.
Overeem has alternated wins and losses since then but is coming off a first-round knockout of Struve. Nelson was knocked out in his last fight against Mark Hunt, which despite Nelson’s usually iron chin, does not come as a shock, given Hunt’s incredible punching power.
Overeem may not have Hunt’s power, but I think he will batter Nelson for a rather lopsided decision victory. At this stage in his career, Nelson is a gatekeeper. But “The Reem” doesn’t need to prove himself against a brawler like Nelson.
Winner: Overeem by unanimous decision
Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks (16-3) vs. Matt “The Immortal” Brown (21-12) (Welterweight – 170 lbs.)
Speaking of brawling and battering, this fight has all the makings of a Fight of the Year candidate. Hendricks dropped the welterweight title to Robbie Lawler last year and should he win this fight, a rematch with Lawler is all but assured – assuming Lawler gets past Rory McDonald later this year.
Brown also lost to Lawler in his last fight and was also on the receiving end of a brutal beating. Hendricks and Brown tend to just slug it out and ask questions later, which should result in an entertaining fight for the fans. Hendricks seems to have renewed his commitment to MMA following his loss to Lawler and he seems driven to get his belt back. Brown is as game as they come, but Hendricks will prove to be too much.
Winner: Hendricks by second-round TKO
Carla “Cookie Monster” Esparza (11-2) vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (8-0) (Women’s Strawweight Title – 115 lbs.)
Esparza made her UFC debut with a bang by winning the first season of “The Ultimate Fighter” to feature all female fighters, and in the process become the UFC’s first women’s strawweight champion. She effectively derailed the Rose Namajunas hype train to win the belt, when some were dubbing Namajunas the next Ronda Rousey in the strawweight division.
Jedrzejczyk derailed a favorite in her own right, defeating highly regarded Claudia Gadelha last year by a close decision when many thought Gadelha would be Esparza’s first title defense. Jedrzejczyk is a grinder who thrives in an ugly fight in close quarters. Esparza used her wrestling to neutralize Namajunas’ quick-striking offense, so getting into an ugly fight with Jedrzejczyk shouldn’t faze Esparza one bit. Esparza will take Jedrzejczyk down early and often and ride her wrestling to a decision victory.
Winner: Esparza by unanimous decision
Anthony “Showtime” Pettis (18-2) vs. Rafael Dos Anjos (23-7) (Lightweight Title – 155 lbs.)
Pettis has been absolutely dominant as of late, not only winning the lightweight title from Benson Henderson in quick and exciting fashion with a first-round armbar but routinely displaying his amazing athleticism and using it to quickly shoot himself up the best pound-for-pound fighter list.
But Dos Anjos is not to be taken lightly. He too finished Henderson in the first round and earned his title shot by absolutely dismantling Nate Diaz late last year. Dos Anjos is tough and will know that Pettis is looking for a quick finish. He won’t get it, but Pettis’ freakish athleticism will make its presence felt eventually and overcome Dos Anjos and solidify Pettis’ case as one of the best lightweight fighters of all time.
Winner: Pettis by second-round submission
Chris Huntemann writes about mixed martial arts in the state of Maryland. He also shares his thoughts on the UFC, Bellator, and World Series of Fighting. Check out his blog, or follow him on Twitter: @mmamaryland.
