Phil Davis vs Glover Teixeira verbally agreed for UFC 179

by Ben Heather @benheather

According to Brazilian website Combate Phil Davis will be heading back to Brazil to square off against Glover Teixeira as part of the UFC 179 event headlined by Jose Aldo vs Chad Mendes. Davis fought in Brazil last August where he picked up a debatable unanimous decision victory over Lyoto Machida.

The fight has not yet been signed off but Combate are reporting that both fighters have verbally agreed to the fight so it should only be a matter of time before its officially announced.

Phil Davis will go in to the fight having most recently lost to Anthony "Rumble" Johnson in April, which snapped a 3 fight winning streak and he will be looking to get back to winning ways after being dominated by Rumble in his last fight.

Glover Teixeira also lost last time out in a title fight against Jon Jones. That loss ended a 8 year, 20 fight win streak and I am sure Glover will want to get another shot at Jones' title.

The winner of this fight will put his name back in the pot with the growing list of other contenders at 205lbs. However, for the loser it may be a long road back to the top with Jon Jones already set to defend his title against Daniel Cormier. Then if he wins that fight you have other contenders very deserving of a shot at the belt as well with Alexander Gustafsson and Anthony Johnson at the forefront of the list.

What’s next for Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson?

What’s next for Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson?

by Connor Hutton - @ConnorHutton94

The resurgence of UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson is a story like no other, and his latest knockout victory over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC on Fox 12 opened up a whole new chapter.

However, Johnson’s current run of success follows a much more controversial career on the whole. ‘Rumble’ first entered the UFC frame back in 2007 where his debut lasted just 13 seconds, knocking out Chad Reiner, but despite a promising start in the octagon, Johnson was criticized for cutting an extreme amount of weight from his muscular body to make 170 lbs.

Concerns over the cut became more prevalent across the next four years, as Johnson missed weight twice in his following nine UFC bouts, which did however include some impressive displays, with four first round finishes for ‘Rumble’.

Early in 2012, Johnson finally made the decision Dana White and the UFC had been longing for, by moving up to middleweight in a fight against Brazilian veteran, Vitor Belfort. However, whilst it was assumed he would find it easier to make 185 lbs, he missed the cut by 11lbs, and the early submission defeat to Belfort ultimately saw him released from the UFC.

Johnson met the most challenging crossroad of his career at this point, but thankfully, he chose the right path. With a new home at WSOF and a comfortable place for his body in the light heavyweight division, Anthony Johnson transformed into the fighter he was always capable of being, stringing together a six fight winning streak, including four KO’s.

Following success in the WSOF, the UFC called time on Johnson’s two year exile from the company and threw him into deep water upon his return this past February, as he took on top ranked light heavyweight contender, Phil Davis, and despite being a near 3/1 under-dog, Johnson dominated his way to a unanimous decision victory.

Johnson’s win streak then added an eight victim with the recent knockout of Nogueira, however this has left ‘Rumble’ in somewhat uncharted waters. With the champ, Jon Jones booked to fight Daniel Cormier and previous number one contender Alexander Gustafsson sidelined by injury, the only fighters ranked higher than Johnson are Glover Teixeira and his team-mate, Rashad Evans.

Joe Silva now faces the difficult task of managing Johnson so he can build him into a potential title contender, but which way will the UFC turn? Some say Anthony shot himself in the foot with the unexpected win over Phil Davis, suggesting he started off almost too hot, as the following opponents are likely to be further down the rankings.

A likely scenario will be that Johnson is matched up with the winner of Ryan Bader and Ovince Saint Preux, this would fit the UFC’s norm of pairing together two fighters on a win streak, but on the other hand it would probably still leave Johnson one fight away from a title shot, if he was victorious that is.

Jon Jones’ most recent opponent, Glover Teixeira is without a fight, although there has been rumblings from Phil Davis regarding a possible fight with Brazilian, and reports say the pair have verbally agreed to fight, which means the door is closing on a match-up with Johnson in what would arguably be his toughest fight to date against Glover.

One more outcome, but very unlikely, is that ‘Rumble’ will take on Gustafsson in a number one contender fight, however the UFC has made it abundantly clear that Gustafsson is unquestionably next in line. Not to mention the Swedes lay-off from injury would also put Johnson on the shelve for a few months if they signed a bout agreement, but the UFC have made a habit of going back on their word so don’t be surprised to see this fight made.

If the UFC are to go with the sensible or easy option then expect the winner of Bader/Saint Preux to take on Johnson next, but if they are feeling adventurous, a fight with Teixeira could be on the horizon if the deal with Davis falls through. Either way, the light heavyweight division has a new breath of life and maybe someday sooner rather than later, Johnson will be under the spotlight of a title fight.

Dan Henderson vs Daniel Cormier announced for UFC 173

Henderson vs Cormier set to decide the future number 1 contender

by Ben Heather @benheather

The UFC twitter account got everyone excited this afternoon when it tweeted that Dana White would today announce some "Breaking News" on Sports Center on ESPN in the states. As always this started all kinds of rumours being posted on Twitter but not long after all was revealed as Dana announced that Dan Henderson would meet Daniel Cormier as the Co Main Event of UFC 173.

Both men come in to the fight off the back of knockout victories, Dan Henderson knocked out Shogun Rua one month ago today and Daniel Cormier easily finished Pat Cummins back at UFC 170 in February.

Henderson (30-11 MMA 7-5 UFC) ended a three fight losing streak when he came back from the brink to knock out Shogun Rua in a fight he was easily losing. However, when you have the power Henderson does in his fists and manage to land a H-Bomb in a fight it changes everything.

Can Henderson get back to a title shot, which he already had until he had to pull out of the fight with Jones at the ill fated UFC 151, the event which never actually took place. The big thing to remember for this fight though is it will be the first time in a few years where Henderson will not have TRT to help him. What impact will this have on his game, only time will tell.

Cormier (14-0 MMA 3-0 UFC) comes in to this fight knowing a win will get him a shot at Jon Jones, who he has been chasing to fight ever since he came over to the UFC.

Since joining the UFC Cormier has improved in every performance. His first fight wasn't the best for the fans to watch but he got the better of Frank Mir. Next up for Cormier was a potentially tricky fight with Roy Nelson, again it may not have been the best performance for the fans but Cormier easily won the fight.

His most recent fight should have been against Rashad Evans as Cormier dropped down to light heavyweight for the first time, unfortunately Evans got injured and on short notice the fight was scrapped. That was when Pat Cummings stepped in, a former wrestling partner of Cormier who had talked his way in to the UFC to fight on about a weeks notice. Cormier however didn't ease up and cruise in the fight, he destroyed Cummings in just over a minute.

Fighting Henderson will be a first test for Cormier at light heavyweight and will be the name he needs to help justify a title shot.

With Gustafsson next in line for the winner of Jones vs Teixeira I think the more realistic option will be a fight between the winner of this fight and the winner of the Phil Davis vs Anthony Johnson fight this weekend at UFC 172. I know Dana said that the winner of this will be the next number one contender but that will involve sitting on the sidelines for a good 6 months, so I think one more fight will be required for either man before they get a shot at the title.

Holloway vs Fili and Ellenberger vs Medeiros set for UFC 172

Two more fights added to UFC 172 in April

by Ben Heather @benheather

UFC 172 which is due to take place on April 26th has just added a couple of extra fights to the card and these should be sure to excite the fans.

Andre Fili will meet Max Holloway in a featherweight battle. Fili who made his UFC debut at UFC 166 taking the fight on less than two weeks notice and missed weight.... though this wasn't a massive shock as when he took the fight he weighed 178lbs. Fili managed to cut 30lbs but couldn't get down to the 146lb limit. However, when he got in to the Octagon he didn't disappoint again. He dominated the fight from start to finish when he picked up the win by TKO in the second round.

I certainly am looking forward to seeing him back in the Octagon again and I am pretty sure Dana White will be too after praising his performance last time out.

Fili's opponent at UFC 172 will be Max Holloway, who ended a two fight losing streak at UFC Singapore defeating Will Chope via second round. Before that he had lost to Conor McGregor and Dennis Bermudez but always comes to put on a show and with Fili's fighting style this should be a great fight for the fans.

Also added to UFC 172 is Joe Ellenberger who will be making his UFC debut at the same event as his brother Jake will be making his return from injury. Ellenberger, will meet Yancy Medeiros who defeated Yves Edwards by KO at UFC Fight for the Troops 3 last year and both men will be looking to continue up the ranks with a win in April.

Below you will find the current UFC 172 card

Jon Jones vs Glover Teixeira
Jake Ellenberger vs Tarec Saffiedine
Yancy Medeiros vs Joe Ellenberger
Max Holloway vs Andre Fili

'Shogun' Rua vs James Te Huna Announced for Fight Night 33

FIGHT NIGHT 33 GETS A LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT BATTLE

By Tommy Strong @strong_tea

Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua will get the chance to bounce back from defeat to Chael Sonnen last month, when he takes on New Zealand's light heavyweight, James Te Huna. The fight is scheduled to take place at Fight Night 33 which is being held in Australia on December 7th.

Rua (21-8) will be coming into a fight for the first time ever, with back to back losses on his record with defeats to Alexander Gustafsson and more recently losing to Chael Sonnen via submission inside the first round at last months UFC on FOX Sports 1 launch event.

Te-Huna (16-6) had his four fight winning streak snapped, when he fought top light heavyweight contender Glover Teixeira at UFC 160 in May, losing in the first round via submission.

UFC Fight Night 33 will be main headlined in a heavyweight battle that sees Mark Hunt vs Antonio Silva.

UFC 160 Main Card Predictions

Kingdom MMA: UFC 160 Main Card Predictions

by Chris Houten @KingdomMMAChris, Tommy Strong @Strong_tea and Jack Broadey @J3cK_b

On Saturday night we will see the UFC heavyweight title on the line as Cain Velasquez will try and defend his title against Antonio Silva at UFC 160 in Las Vegas.

It's hard to forget the first fight between the pair as Cain left Silva a bloodied mess when he finished him in the first round after a very one sided fight. Can this rematch be any different? We will find out on Saturday night.

On top of that we have a number 1 contender fight in the lightweight division between Gray Maynard and TJ Grant and a potential number 1 contender fight between Junior Dos Santos and Mark Hunt. This is the fight a lot of fans have been talking about, can Mark Hunt go from the UFC offering to pay him out of his contract to number 1 contender. We will find out tomorrow night.

Cain Velasquez vs. Antonio Silva

Jack: I will keep this one short as I think it's very easy to predict. Velasquez may not get Silva down as quickly as last time but he will find a way and pound Silva out eventually.

Prediction: Velasquez by TKO Round 1

Tommy: The UFC are trying to promote this fight, but failing to do so! Bigfoot was destroyed in their first fight inside a round. I just don't see anything changing this time around.
Silva is very lucky to be getting this title shot. He beat a one legged Travis Browne who was dominating until the injury. Then fought Overeem who took Silva too lightly and paid the price for it. I know I'm being harsh on Silva, but I just don't rate him at all. He will be found out again by Cain and I don't expect it to last two rounds.

Prediction: Velasquez by TKO Round 2

Chris: A lot of people have completely wrote Silva off due to the absolute battering he took in the first fight to the point where they don’t even want to see this fight, but I can see this one being a little bit more competitive than the last.

The facts are Big Foot lost the first fight due to a tactical error… leg kicks against a world class MMA wrestler, really Big Foot?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely not saying Big Foot is gonna shock the world and pull off another huge upset to go with his collection – Fedor and Overeem. All I’m saying is while he is still swinging those big Christmas Ham sized hands you never know, however it's more than likely Velasquez with his speed and ridiculous cardio who will try to push the pace and win the striking exchanges to the point where Big Foot can’t keep up.

Prediction: Velasquez

Junior dos Santos vs. Mark Hunt

Jack: This is quite intriguing as at least in my mind Hunt has the edge in terms of power. JDS likely has the technical edge as well as a huge speed advantage. He's also well versed in BJJ but as of yet has yet to show it in the UFC. I wonder if he feels he needs to take this fight to the floor. I think after he tasted a shot from Hunt he will attempt and succeed in getting the fight to the floor.

Prediction: Dos Santos by Submission Round 1

Tommy: A fight the fans have been calling for a while now. Its one that really interests me. JDS coming of the back of a beating by Cain will be looking to bounce back and show he's one of the best in the heavyweight division. Mark on the other hand is on a four win tear up and after his devastating knockout of Stefan Struve which resulted in leaving Struve with a broken jaw.

If JDS can keep Mark at range , using his superior boxing skills it could be a comfortable night for him, though if Mark can get close and land one of his bombs we could see an upset on the cards.

Prediction: Dos Santos by Unanimous Decision

Chris: I love the resurgence of Mark Hunt. Less than 3 years ago the guy was on a 6 fight losing streak and was actually being offer money by the UFC not to fight, now he is arguably one (Dangerous) fight away from a title shot.

Realistically Hunt has a punchers chance in this one, but as have so many before him. Sure Hunt has Knockout anyone with one punch, in fact he is so good doing it he even knows when to walk off before his opponent hits the mat, but that one punch (The overhand punch) is so predictable.
I like Dos Santos to use his hand speed and greater array of striking to beat Hunt to the punch, It also wouldn't surprise me if JDS puts Hunt way by countering the Overhand, with an uppercut.

Prediction: Dos Santos

Glover Teixeira vs. James Te-Huna

Jack: Both guys have proved they have great chins and are willing to stand and trade. Teixera's wrestling could be the key here as he can mix up his game to win rounds if he can't find the knockout blow.

Prediction: Teixera by Decision

Tommy: With a combined 43 fights between them, only 7 of their fights have gone to a decision. This fight really has me licking my lips! Glover has been in against better opposition than Te Huna and has a better all round game. Both are very durable and I fully expect an exciting fight.

I have a bad habit of writing off Te Huna , though Glover will be too strong for him and I can see Glover taking him down and submitting him later on in the fight.

Prediction: Teixera by Submission Round 2

Chris: All day I have been deciding whom I fancy in this one. I think Teixeira is the better MMA fighter; he has crisper, varied striking than Te Huna, and is better in the wrestling / jui-jitsu department.

What worries me about Teixeira is the brief moments in bouts where he loses discipline. He almost has that Amir Khan factor to he him where he needs to prove he is man enough to go toe-to-toe with his opponent, and if Te Huna can drag Teixeira into a dogfight, I think he can make him pay, the way Fabio Maldonado almost did.

That being said I can only judge the fight on skills alone, and Glover Teixera is the better fighter.

Prediction: Teixera

Gray Maynard vs. T.J. Grant

Jack: This is a great fight and will decide the next contender for Benson Henderson's lightweight crown.

Grant should have the edge in the standup game and will be looking to bully "the bully" and possibly look for the clinch to do some damage. Maynard's game has come on leaps and bounds but you would assume he will be looking for the takedown here. I think he gets it but can he keep Grant controlled for 3 rounds? Possibly not. This looks like a back and forth war and who wants it more?

Prediction: Maynard by Decision

Tommy: With the winner of this fight likely to fight Ben Henderson for the belt (still trying to figure out why) this fight could be very entertaining or very boring! Though its not often we see Maynard in a boring fight.

TJ will have an advantage on the ground, though getting Maynard there will be a different matter! Maynard with the better wrestling will dictate where the fight goes, so I can see this fight being a stand up fight.
If that's the case, I give a major advantage to Maynard to out strike TJ and work his way to a comfortable points win.

Prediction: Maynard by Unanimous Decision

Chris: In the build up to the Edgar vs Maynard fight, I was convinced Maynard was going to become The UFC Lightweight champion, and while he allowed Frankie back into the first fight, and ultimately lost the rematch, I'm still of the belief Maynard can hold UFC gold.

On paper Grant is the better fighter. He has considerable submission skills, and a proactive striking game, but I think Maynards wrestling pedigree will be too for Grant.

I like Maynard to control the fight, and untimely take a decision victory.

Prediction: Maynard by Decision

Donald Cerrone vs. K.J. Noons

Jack: Cerrone really is the better fighter pretty much everywhere. If he turns up in shape and ready to go I see no way he can lose this fight. He should dominate start to finish and he has the arsenal to stop Noons.

Prediction: Cerrone by Submission Round 2

Tommy: KJ Noons will be coming into this fight on the back of two losses and only having won one in his last 5 fight (outside of the UFC), he will be looking to stop the rot to keep his UFC career alive.
Cerrone on the other hand lost last time out in by 1st round TKO at the hands of Anthony Pettis. KJ will come into the fight as an underdog but I really like the match up for him here. I feel KJ will have enough to keep the fight standing and if he can will have the advantage.

I'm going against the odds here, and picking KJ to deliver a good performance and to beat Cerrone.

Prediction: KJ Noons by Unanimous Decision

Chris: This fight is basically Cerrone's to lose.

If he can keep his distant, mix up his striking, and not allow Noons to jab his way in he should take this one comfortable. From their I'd like to see Cerrone vs Pearson

Prediction: Cerrone

We will see if any of the guys can predict the results correct. Last week was a great week for the guys predictions as between the four guys who predict the fight results we went 49-3 with Tommy and Ben predicting all 13 fights correctly.