Cage Rage 24 from Wembley Arena in Middlesex, UK provided some flashes of great mixed martial arts action and some moments of boredom, but it was overall a decent card for an otherwise weak MMA weekend. In the main event, Murilo "Ninja" Rua executed the perfect gameplan against Xavier Foupa-Pokam, although it was a tad later than I would have expected. We'll take a more in-depth look at the card and the main event.

Breakdown of the Cage Rage matchups

During my initial breakdown of the main event, I thought that Murilo's best chance of winning this matchup was to take Xavier to the mat and use his ju-jitsu skills to pull out the submission early. For the most part, Rua executed this plan flawlessly. My only concern during the battle was that in the first round, Rua looked to be trying to stand against Xavier's longer reach and more powerful strikes. Xavier had the obvious advantage with his length and was peppering Rua with leg shots and strikes from the outside while keeping away from Rua's power. He escaped the first round, and was able to clinch up Xavier and put him to the floor, eventually scoring an impressive rear naked choke after some slick movements on the ground. Rua's body control was fairly impressive, although Xavier does not present much of a defense against Rua's ground game.

Drew Fickett took on Mark Weir in what many thought would be an easy victory for Fickett. Initially, it did not look that way. Weir used his striking to put Fickett in some tough spots while he unleashed flurries from the top while Fickett tried to get Weir into guard. Fickett eventually got Weir to the ground, and showed why he wins a lot in the MMA scene. Fickett rolled over a couple of times with Weir in his arms and gained his back by the end of the rolling. Fickett sunk in the rear naked choke after the initial danger from Weir.

Marios Zaromski seemed to be in some danger during his fight with Ross Pointon. Pointon was getting the better of some of the standup exchanges and at times, Zaromski seemed to be slightly hurt and running from Pointon to recover from the blows. After some exchanges in the first, Pointon finally shot in the second, but was cut badly between his left eye and high nose area. The gash extended up to his forehead and was very long. The referee stopped the fight and Zaromski escaped the onslaught, although Pointon looked to be gassing.

Tom Watson vs. Mark Epstein was said to be one of the more even bouts of the evening and it delivered. After some exchanges during the fight, Epstein looked to be ahead in the standup wars. Both fighters had some respectable ground tactics and exchanges in the striking area. Epstein seemed to have some slick reversals on the ground at times and seemed to edge out Watson on the ground during some of the grappling exchanges. Overall, Epstein won a close decision, a split decision.

Neil Grove didn't win his fight, per say. He was being beaten by Robert "Buzz" Berry in the first round after being dropped like a giant Redwood early in the round. After some more exchanges, the fight went to the floor and Berry tried to lock in a keylock with horrible form. Grove eventually emerged from the ground war, and exchanged some "slaps" with Berry toward the end of the round as both fighters gassed. The amazing thing was that everyone thought Berry won the first round. It was the consensus of the MMA fans watching. Berry didn't answer to the referee to continue because he was so terribly gassed. Berry gave up, Grove wins by default.

Elvis Sinosic extended his terrible mixed martial arts record to 11 losses after being knocked out cold by Paul Cahoon in the first round of their matchup. Cahoon exchanged with Sinosic, they moved to the center, another flurry, and Sinosic got caught dead center on the chin. He went down in a Sean Salmon-esque "TIMBER!!". It was obvious that Cahoon had more size on him that Sinosic, and he once again exploited Sinosic's poor standup game.

In other action, Mohamed squeezed out a close decision win over Robbie Oliver. I won't go into detail too much as it was back and forth with Mohamed getting the better of the ground game, but Oliver had some decent skills. Newcomer Robert Paczkow smothered James McSweeney in the first round... seriously. Ivan Serati beat down Lee Hasdell for most of the fight and was able to sink in a submission in the second to win. Interestingly enough, Serati was deducted a point before the fight started due to having Thai Oil on his shins before the fight. Ronnie Mann won in predicted fashion, 1st round submission over Jordan Miller.

Analyzing the wins

Overall, Rua proved that his ground game is much more of a force than people give it credit. Problem is, he tends to fight much like all of the regular Chute Box fighters in the mixed martial arts scene. He gets caught up in the standup wars and uses poor takedown attempts to try to put his opponent to the floor. What has happened to the explosive takedown fighters? Jake Shields explodes into the takedown whereas many other fighters don't. Of course, he's susceptible to a knee in the face when he shoots, but it's much better than the poor takedown attempts of guys like Nick Diaz or Rua's tries on Saturday evening. Hopefully, "Ninja" will continue to use his ground game a bit more in bigger fights or at least gameplan enough to consider it.

Fickett continues to be impressive, but he has been fighting lower level competition since his UFC days. Could we see him back in the Octagon? It's possible, but it would be more probable to see him in HDNet Fights again or EliteXC. Zaromski was a fighter I was looking forward to because of his Lithuanian background. Lithuania seems to be a country that is producing a stronger MMA scene every year. With their K-1 rivalry that has produced small events in the country, I was expecting an explosive Zaromski as I have seen from other Lithuanian fighters. I was a bit disappointed as I didn't expect Pointon to catch him, but overall, it was at least a win.

Epstein, Grove, Serati, Mohamed, and Mann all gave typical performances. Grove and Mann are somewhat exceptions, but I expected wins. Mann needs some stiffer competition, although he did lose to Oliver in his last fight. I think Mann could benefit from some slightly better standup training. Grove got caught big time, and he needs some work on his defense. Flailing punches may be of entertainment value to the British MMA scene, but it gets you broken in standup wars.

Paczkow's debut was actually somewhat decent. He looks like a huge fat guy with no skills, but he came out with quick feet and plowed into McSweeney with some good drive. Although I don't expect him to knock off anyone with a name just yet, he has potential to make waves in Cage Rage.

Overall impressions

Cage Rage still has horrible production. The dancers are pointless, although the cameras seemed to focus less on them. The ring girls... who cares. The camera work was still fairly good, but the post-fight interviewer asked some uninformed questions at times. The event as a whole was ok, and I imagine they were setting up big standup fights that didn't all deliver on their predetermined fate. There was one big theme for the event though, and it's obvious as to what and why.

It should have been named Cage Rage 24: Hype Brits to beat MMA names. Sinosic, Pointon, Hasdell, and Rua are all names from the past and present that people know. Pointon is a Brit as well, but he's not a good fighter and has always had problems. His name is recognizable though. Sinosic is the same in many ways. Poor MMA skills on the feet, but he's a name. Hasdell isn't so much of a name unless you have been a fan for quite some time. Rua is the biggest name on the card. Cage Rage was looking to cash in on matchups and hope for the fan favorites and Cage Rage veterans to win to improve their standing. It worked for the most part, but Rua would have been ruined had he not beaten Xavier.

Final Thoughts

Not a bad card, entertaining for a Saturday afternoon, but it could have been a bit better as far as matchups. Mohamed needs to be tested. He's the champ, yet cannot finish anybody. Bring someone in who can finish him. Serati has a future in Cage Rage, Grove continues to climb, Zaromski was unimpressive but should be brought back for the mere fact that he has explosive power in his striking. Mark Weir tires my eyes. Weir should only fight standup guys for entertainment purposes. Xavier is the same way, as are many of the British and French fighters. Why is it that many of these guys aren't training in the ground game more? It's beyond me. Hopefully we will see some better skilled fighters in the next event.

Cage Rage 24 will take place this Saturday at the Wembley Arena in Middlesex, England. It's rash of stripper dancers, horrendous music, and quick standups should be a refreshing scene to most of you who haven't seen the British promotion's style of putting on a show. Although the production value isn't great, the fights usually aren't too bad and they do present a lot of fighters who just simply like to stand and strike. Let's take a quick look at some of the big fights on this card.

Murilo "Ninja" Rua (14-8-1) vs. Xavier "Professor X" Foupa-Pokam (13-7)

If you've been keeping up on your secondary promotion MMA lately, you'll know that "Ninja" Rua just recently came off a huge loss to "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler at EliteXC Uprising back in September. In the unification title bout, Lawler slowly picked Rua apart and ended the battle with some huge blows in the third round. Lawler's gameplan was specifically how Rua has been beaten in the past, in the standup. He'll have another test with Xavier.

Xavier is a French Muay Thai fighter, and as many would say, French MMA isn't exactly the best. Many of their fighters tend to stick with striking skills and fail to have impressive ground tactics. A good example would be the UFC's Cheick Kongo. Xavier has some decent standup with good knockout power, but is very susceptible to the submission on the ground. Many fans have been stating that Xavier's recent 5-win streak will extend through Rua, but I beg to differ.

Barring a complete lack of intelligence from "Ninja" Rua, I look for Rua to take it to the ground and prove that his black belt in jiu-jitsu will be too much for Xavier. Although "Ninja" isn't at the caliber as his brother "Shogun" Rua, he has some fairly good skills on the ground. I look for "Ninja" to feel out Xavier in the first round. I'll give Xavier some time, but I think Rua should put him out by the second round via submission.

Drew Fickett (30-5) vs. Mark "The Wizard" Weir (18-14)

Fickett has kept his skills on display recently with a stint in the newly formed HDNet Fights promotion. He recently defeated Anthony Lapsley, a fairly good wrestler, quickly via a first round submission. Before that battle, he had a six-fight stint in the UFC going 4-2 with a notable win over Josh Koscheck. Fickett had problems with some of the stronger fighters in the Welterweight division of the UFC, but still remains a top fighter in the world, only dropping 5 fights in his lengthy career.

Mark Weir is considered one of the more veteran fighters in the British scene, specifically in Cage Rage itself. He's known for his striking, but has some ground skills, enough to choke out lesser opponents. He's lost 5 out of his last 6 fights however, and it won't get any easier with Fickett. In his last fight, he was straight knocked out by up-and-coming British prospect Paul Daley. I don't look for Fickett to knock out Weir, but he shouldn't have a hard time submitting him. Fickett by second round submission.

Marius Zaromskis (6-1) vs. Ross "The Gladiator" Pointon (5-9)

You'll recognize one of these fighters as the TUF contestant on season 3 of "The Ultimate Fighter". Ross Pointon didn't fair too well in his 2 UFC fights, losing both by submission. As a matter of fact, he hasn't faired well in his career at all. He tends to do better against guys who like to stand and bang, but even then he's more susceptible to being caught due to his small size.

On the other side of the spectrum is Marius Zaramskis, a knockout fighter coming out of the Lithuanian MMA scene. The scene is beginning to produce some very tough competitors in the mixed martial arts scene. Zaromskis is a powerful standup fighter who has only lost one fight in a flash knockout by Che Mills at Cage Rage Contenders 2. Pointon is just too bad of a fighter for me to pick him here, but who knows, both fighters will stand and bang. Zaromski by first round knockout.

Abdul Mohamed (14-5-2) vs. Robbie Oliver (14-7-1)

One of the tougher fights to pick on the card, Mohamed is primarily a striker with some ground and pound abilities. He's not a prolific finisher, but he has hung around with some very good fighters. Although he recently lost to a good fighter in David Baron in October, he has defeated Jean Silva, Jess Liaudin, and drew with Paul Daley. Overall, Mohamed isn't a bad fighter, but he's not dangerous on the ground, and has trouble stopping the submission. He may be in trouble with Oliver.

This is a step up in competition for Oliver. He's taken on mostly Cage Rage fighters except for losing to Masakazu Imanari inside :30 seconds at Cage Rage 20. He recently won an impressive decision over Ronnie Mann, a man also fighting on the card. Oliver is also fairly well rounded, but susceptible to the submission, something he shouldn't be afraid of in this battle. Look for a strategic battle of standup from both competitors trying to put their opponents into the mat for a beating. I'll take Mohamed's experience. Mohamed by decision.

Elvis Sinosic (8-10-2) vs. Paul Cahoon (9-10)

Sinosic is mostly known for his journeyman status and gatekeeper status in the UFC. He was recently used in the UFC 70 Nations Collide card in which he was beaten by Michael Bisping after nearly defeating Bisping by a vicious knee strike and a close submission. After taking much of the year off, Sinosic will return to Cage Rage where he had success last year defeating Mark Epstein and Katsuhisa Fujii, both by 1st round armbar submission. Sinosic is mostly known as a ju-jitsu fighter, and I wouldn't expect anything less than Sinosic heading to the floor against the striking Paul Cahoon.

Cahoon is riding a 4 win streak with some decent submission wins mixed in. He has some ground game, but nothing compared to Sinosic. His style is mainly kickboxing, but he has been known to go to the floor. He has some knockout power, but I expect Sinosic to avoid it and put Cahoon to the floor early. Sinosic by 1st round submission.

Tom "Kong" Watson (4-2) vs. Mark Epstein (13-10)

Mark Epstein is another big name in British MMA circles, but he hasn't had that great of a go in the cage recently. He's lost his last 3 out of 4 fights, recently losing to Paul Cahoon by decision in July. Sinosic and Ian Freeman also defeated him late in 2006 before Epstein knocked out Roman Webber at Cage Rage 21. Epstein is a typical knockout fighter who can either pop you standing or put you down and maul you. He tries for various submissions on the ground, but I'm not sure if he has the skills to actually pull them off in guard. Look for him to try to pound out Watson.

Watson is much like Epstein in that he will stand and bang and basically look for any way to end the fight. He isn't primarily one type of fighter. He likes to clinch and use knees, throw looping blows, a typical Cage Rage matchup. I'm going to take Epstein for the pure fact that he has some more bulk on his body, a bit more power, and he may be able to take down Watson easier. Epstein, 2nd round TKO.

Neil Grove (4-0) vs. Robert Berry (11-6)

Neil Grove is on a run, a run that probably shouldn't be happening considering he isn't exactly the most polished fighter, but he has some very big power and the ability to maul his opponent to the ground. In his first Cage Rage fight, he flash knocked out James "The Colossus" Thompson in :10 seconds, increasing his stock instantly. He came back for Cage Rage 23 by mauling Domagoj Ostojic inside :35 seconds. A big powerful striker who can use his size to put you down and pound you out as well. He'll have another test with Robert Berry.

Berry is another standup fighter who hasn't fought since February. He defeated Mark Buchanen at Cage Rage 20, and then turned around and lost 14 days later to Colin Robinson at a non-CR event. He doesn't have any notable wins, but has managed to run into problems against Tengiz Tedoradze on multiple occassions. Tedoradze is one of the more successful fighters in the weight class in Cage Rage. Look for another standup war for this fight. Grove's size and power should put Berry down, Neil Grove by 1st round TKO/KO.

In other action...

George "Triplex" Castro, who seems to have a nickname, but no record will take on late replacement Mark Buchanan. Lee Hasdell, who just recently got back into MMA, will take on Ivan Serati, an Italian striker. James McSweeney will fight newcomer Robert Paczkow, this is Paczkow's first fight. Lastly, Ronnie Mann should make quick submission work of the 2-4 Jordan Miller.

You can view the event on ProElite.com as a Pay-Per-View stream for a price. They have packaged 3 stream together for $24.95 at ProElite.com, so check it out. It will be on Saturday during the day in the States at 1 PM.

For those of you who were unable to catch EliteXC's Uprising MMA event on Showtime on Saturday, you missed a well produced MMA event that delivered in many ways that the UFC has failed to do in the past. It had some great action, great matchups, very good production, and the judges were correct this time. You'll know what I mean as you read on. With the recent acquisition of ICON Sport, EliteXC was able to have a Champion vs. Champion showdown much like the UFC, but with some fairly explosive middleweights in the mix. "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler showed exactly why he is called "Ruthless" by knocking out Murilo "Ninja" Rua to obtain the unified EliteXC Middleweight title. Nick Diaz made a return to the cage with a controversial split decision over BJ Penn product, Mike Aina. Jake Shields made quick work of Renato "Charuto" Verissimo, and Gina Carano overcame doubts from her critics to beat Tonya Evinger by submission, her first rear naked choke. It was an exciting card, but what lies ahead for EliteXC? They have the star power to produce some very good up and comer cards along with a mixture of veteran competitors. What more do you need? There are many aspects to the MMA game that come to mind, but there are also many critics to EliteXC's Uprising in the MMA Community. I hope to answer some questions, throw out some facts, and let the people know why EliteXC is an organization we should all be watching.

Uprising delivered!

It came, it saw, it conquered. Uprising was anticipated to be a fairly good fight card on paper, but it was a guaranteed great card. Many people took Nick Diaz as a first or second round winner, and many took Robbie Lawler as a first round knockout winner. Instead, we got some lower card fights that delivered great rounds to the fans. Joey Villasenor vs. Riki Fukuda was generally a tough battle to judge from a MMA fan's standpoint. On one hand, you have a great boxer in Joey Villasenor and on another hand; you have a great wrestler in Riki Fukuda. For the casual MMA fan, I believe this card was great for a dip into the MMA world and for the hardcore MMA fan; it was crafted with great matchups that ultimately kept us wanting more.

There are still many issues that plague some of these promotions, no matter what organization is involved. We had some close bouts in which many MMA fans were very adamant could have went either way. Villasenor and Fukuda had a close matchup that ended in a decision victory for Villasenor. Nick Diaz had a split decision victory over Mike Aina, a fairly green MMA striker training out of BJ Penn's camp in Hilo. Either fight could arguably have went either way, but in my eyes, both of these fights were judged correctly and to the full effect of how the MMA judging criteria is quoted. Octagon control, aggression, effective defense, striking, and grappling. All five aspects of the MMA fight were judged and I felt correctly used in each decision.  Unlike many other promotions, the judges that EliteXC was able to have for this event made this evening honest.

With that said, let's take a small look at what EliteXC has going for it, what it could do better, and where it really stands in the MMA world today. Obviously from my previous analysis, the matchups were incredible, the judging in Hawaii was honest which really could go sour at any time, but what else was great about this promotion that others have been failing to really do?

The Report Card

1. Matchups: B 

I'll give them a "B" for their fight matchups. EliteXC has been rather smart in that department. At this last card, we saw some significantly great matchups down the board. Villasenor, mainly a good boxer, was put up against Riki Fukuda, generally known as a nasty ground and pound wrestler. Fukuda has been known to stand and slug it out though, and it proved to make for a great fight. We now know that Riki Fukuda should be nicknamed Riki "Iron Chin" Fukuda for the amount of shots he took from Villasenor. Robbie Lawler vs. "Ninja" Rua had an aggressive pace written all over it from the beginning. It made me excited just thinking about the type of fighters both were and how it would be very interesting to see how each fighter would come out. Definitely a step up from the previous cards.

If we look at some of the past cards as well, EliteXC has made some serious efforts to solidify a PPV audience. They are currently one of the only MMA organizations in the world to lend a platform for women's MMA to exist. Gina Carano has been their poster girl for the sport. They have yet to bring in the big dogs from SmackGirl, but it could be in the works sometime in the future since EliteXC did partner with K-1 Heroes for an event. They obviously have the power to bring partnerships from overseas to the U.S. for events. EliteXC Destiny came in with a Frank Shamrock vs. Renzo Gracie bout, and included many upcoming fighters now who are mainstays on the EliteXC roster. Fighters like Fukuda, Villasenor, Carano, and Shields.

The EliteXC roster also has a lot of buzz for potential matchups. With cooperation with K-1, they were able to bring some of the best fighters from K-1 over to compete in the U.S.. Fighters like "JZ" Calvancanti, Kazushi Sakuraba, and Melvin Manhoef. Brock Lesnar was also an attraction on the Dynamite!!! USA show. The potential is there for other cooperative promotions through EliteXC, and I for one will be a fan that wants to see those battles.

2. Organization and Cooperation: A

A MMA organization that isn't afraid to work with a Japanese MMA organization in order to bring some super fights to the states and showcase some of the best talent in MMA, what's not to love? Hopefully we will see something similar in the works soon. But what else has EliteXC done besides that?

EliteXC acquired ICON Sport, Cage Rage, King of the Cage, and has really opened up their options for co-promotion efforts to really take off. Cage Rage has some great talent within its ranks, and we could see some great new talent and great veteran battles come from it. Vitor Belfort is scheduled to fight on their September 22nd card, which could potentially be the beginning of some huge co-promotion bouts involving him. King of the Cage brought up some great fighters such as Urijah Faber. There are potentially huge talent pools that EliteXC has just tapped into and it could make MMA very good for them in the long run.

3. Production: B

I have to admit, I love the old PRIDE Organization, so it brings a heartfelt sigh of relief to hear Stephen Quadros and Mauro Ranallo commentating the fights again. Although I was bitter at Quadros for judging the Diaz fight by saying the judges were only watching the end of the second round when I fully agreed with the judges in that Diaz landed many more shots and scored the submission attempts to win the round, I will refrain from calling him out and say that I respect the guy as a MMA analyst. Quadros got a C grade from me at Uprising, but overall, I love the Quadros/Ranallo combination. I have a softspot for Frankie "Twinkletoes" Trigg's crass honesty at times as well, and sometimes wish they'd give him a chance for EliteXC, but I can live without it if he continues to work the Art of War cards. EliteXC could do without Goldberg's horrible comments. He wasn't bad at Uprising, but he's had some horrendous outings at events. I understand he is star power, but I think they could do better.

The overall production of Uprising was great, much better than previous events. Blending in the Hawaiian culture with the background was interesting, but once again the old PRIDE days came back with the long runway to the cage. All we needed was an elevator to lift each competitor to the platform with smoke coming from it, and we'd have had a PRIDE 35: Third Coming. Ahh, those were the days. Overall, the production, camera work, interviews weren't bad either, and crowd was great at Uprising.

4. Potential: A

With all their recent acquisitions, many MMA fans have been weary as to what they will be doing with all these organizations. In an interview by Sherdog.com on Friday, Shaw mentioned that all the organizations would still be run by their respective presidents under the EliteXC Banner. Co-promotions would be done, bringing in fighters for matchups, etc. This sounds great from a MMA fan's standpoint. We will not only see a large talent pool for a matchmaker to choose from, but we will also see more new talent, more veteran matchups, and from what Shaw stated, a larger influx of events in 2008.

With no Pay-Per-View fees and shelling out $40 for a great card, what's not to love about Showtime's deal with EliteXC. The potential for this organization is through the roof. They have a long way to go before they can think about competing with the UFC, but in the end, all the fans win with this type of organization in the mix.

Overall Grade: B+

What's next?

EliteXC will be holding their next event on November 10th, 2007. No matchups have yet to be announced, but look forward to some very good matchups on their cards. If you are a true MMA fan and want to see some of the best matchups the U.S. MMA organizations have to offer, please include these shows in your MMA shows to watch list. The UFC and EliteXC combined make for a great MMA package in the U.S. Now all we need is Hero's and Shooto to get some PPV deals moving in the U.S. and we'd be set.

Fresh off all the news of the barrage of acquisitions including King of the Cage and ICON Sport¹, EliteXC flies into Honolulu, Hawaii this Saturday night for the EliteXC Uprising show. It will air on Showtime at 10 PM EST and will feature an unification title bout between Robbie "Ruthless" Lawler and Murilo "Ninja" Rua. The card itself is very interesting and one of the better non-UFC fight cards we've seen late this year. It will include the return of Nick Diaz, fresh off his suspension by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for having elevated levels of THC in his blood system for the fight over Takanori Gomi at PRIDE 33: Second Coming.² Also, he has been a big name in the media lately with outlandish interviews involving his marijuana use.³ Jake Shields will face "Charuto" and Gina Carano will try to extend her unbeaten streak against Tonya Evinger. Let's take a closer in-depth look at these matchups.

The Breakdown: Robbie "Ruthless" Lawler vs. Murilo "Ninja" Rua
Up for grabs: ICON/EliteXC Unification Middleweight Championship

Robbie is the current ICON Sport Middleweight Champion, attaining the title by defeating Frank Trigg in the 4th round by KO at ICON Sport - Epic in March. He currently has an impressive 14-4 record, and is on a three fight win streak. His last loss was against Jason "Mayhem" Miller, and his most notable losses were against Nick Diaz and Evan Tanner. Two of those losses via submissions and one being at the hands of Nick Diaz in a spectacular late 2nd round knockout at UFC 47. Lawler's main strength is his standup fighting. Ten of his 14 wins have ended via knockout or technical knockout. As evident in many of his fights, he likes to punch and has a load of power to back it up. He is very aggressive, almost to the point of recklessness.

One of Robbie's great strengths is his ability to use his awesome power to take down opponents and pound them. He can also use his power much like "Rampage" Jackson likes to use his strength to nullify takedown attempts and turn the pace onto his opponent. Lawler's power can be used not only in his powerful striking game, but also as a defensive tool. He can easily dodge an incoming attack and powerfully tackle an opponent to the ground, much like his training partner, Matt Hughes. He has on more than one occassion body slammed opponents in the Octagon with little difficulty. In many of his fights, he has brutally ground and pounded past opponent's guards like they were paper. Because of his aggressive style, he loves to push the pace and generally throws huge bombs as he charges forward. This is one weakness that Nick Diaz exploited during their bout. He was able to catch Lawler late in the 2nd as he charges in, and then was able to hit him with a short stiff jab that knocked Lawler out.

Murilo "Ninja" Rua is the current EliteXC Middleweight Champion. He is coming off a win over Joey Villasenor, and is also on a three fight win streak. Rua's name is most notably associated with current UFC Light Heavyweight, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua. "Ninja" Rua is his older brother, and does possess some of the same skills coming out of the Chute Box Academy in Brazil. Unfortunately, Murilo hasn't had the same devastating success his brother has had. Murilo has been the victim of some brutal knockouts in his career. He was knocked out in :15 seconds at PRIDE Bushido Survival 2006 by Denis Kang and in 4:14 seconds at PRIDE Total Elimination 2004 by Sergei Kharitonov. He currently holds a 14-7 records, 5 wins by knockout, 7 by submission, and 1 draw.

Rua is a Muay Thai, Brazilian ju-jitsu fighter who mainly likes to take the fight wherever his opponents want to take it. Much like his younger brother, Murilo will stand with his opponent as he sees fit. He has some great knockout power, but has a very good ju-jitsu ground game to supplement his standup if the fight goes to the ground. Most fighters try to keep the fight on its feet, but Murilo's standup game is impressive. Much like Lawler, Murilo is aggressive, likes to push the pace of the fight, and has some devastating power in his hands and knees. He's been known to come out with flying knees much like Lawler has done in the past. He also has a poweful clinch to set up his knees with. Against Joey Villasenor, Murilo literally landed haymakers at will on Villasenor's face. He threw huge right hands and rushed in with knees to push the pace and the fight into the fence.

Predictions

Two big name fighters coming from legendary fight camps in Miletich Fighting Systems and Chute Box. Two unbelievably aggressive competitors who has knockout power. Obviously, this fight is more than likely going to end in a knockout. I doubt that fighters of this caliber will last to a decision. Lawler is a very aggressive, powerful striker, but loves to plow people into the mat and rain huge punches onto his opponent. Murilo loves to push the pace, land the big jab and knees, and when down on the mat, use his ju-jitsu to try to isolate an arm or leg and sink in the submission.

I'm going to have to go with Robbie Lawler on this one. In Murilo's last fight, he threw huge haymaker punches that were landing at will on Villasenor. Lawler is a very good boxer, and I've seen much better defensive boxing skills from him than from Villasenor. Villasenor had the power to knock out Murilo, but he wasn't able to dodge any of his huge slow haymakers that should have been avoided. That will be much different against Lawler. Another factor is the clinch. In a good number of Murilo's fights, he's been able to clinch his opponent and throw knees into the midsection to weaken his opponent. Lawler's power is just too much to handle in that situation. I believe if Murilo tries to move in for the clinch, he will get brutally thrown down and become vulnerable to a big right hand from Lawler. I'm going to take Robbie Lawler via knockout in the 1st round of this battle. These two just have too much power for this to go the distance or even possibly the 2nd round. Murilo's only chance is to catch him with a shot or submit Lawler on the ground.

The Breakdown: Jake Shields vs. Renato "Charuto" Verissimo

Jake Shields is one of the most well known 170 lbs. fighters that is not on the main stage in the UFC. He's mainly a wrestler and a world renowned ju-jitsu fighter who is a former Shooto World Champion. He holds an 18-4 record with notable wins over Carlos Condit, Yushin Okami, Dave Menne, and Hayato Sakurai. He's currently on a seven fight win streak, submitting Ido Pariente in his last fight at K-1 Dynamite. Shields is a product of the Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and has trained fighters such as Nick Diaz and Gilbert Melendez in the past.

Jake Shields is becoming a real freak of nature. He has unbelievable wrestling skills and has added extensive ju-jitsu mastery to his game since he first started out. He is considered one of the better ju-jitsu fighters in the world. He placed 3rd in his weight class at the ADCC Championships in 2005, if that gives you any indication. He also has been training at Chuck Liddell's kickboxing academy and cross training with the professional Muay Thai kickboxing team at the Fairtex combat Academy, training with legendary Muay Thai Champions, Jongsanan Fairtex and Alex Gong.³ He's added to his standup game, but still likes to take the game to the ground whenever possibly. Shields isn't well known for his knockout power and has a majority of his wins via decision, 10 out of his 18.

Renato "Charuto" Verissimo is probably best known for being BJ Penn's ju-jitsu instructor. He was also the showcase on an episode of TapouT this season.⁴ To those of us who follow MMA closely, "Charuto" is a name that became known during UFC 48 when he took on Matt Hughes. At the time, Renato came into the bout with a 4-0-1 record. He was beaten by Hughes by a controversial unanimous decision and then moved on to fight Frank Trigg, also dropping that bout due to TKO strikes in the second round. He had ran up against some of the top competition of the UFC and been beaten down pretty badly. He rattled of a small win at Rumble of the Rock, and then hit two more roadblocks, Carlos Condit and Kuniyoshi Hironaka. He took a year off after his last two losses and has now rectified himself with a two fight win streak. He is now hitting that wall again in a very tough competitor in Jake Shields.

Renato's style is ju-jitsu, plain and simple. He grew up in Brazil learning Brazilian ju-jitsu and was able to earn a black belt in ju-jitsu. He later moved to Hawaii and became the main influence in BJ Penn's ju-jitsu game. What can we really expect from "Charuto"? Expect some type of ground attack to supplement his ju-jitsu. Both of these competitors have a similar style. Neither fighter has brutal knockout power, but both have outstanding grappling skills. The X factor is Jake's acquired Muay Thai and kickboxing. In the past, he has shown some decent kicks that have dazed opponents or set up some great takedowns. Verissimo suffered a brutal knee to the head from Carlos Condit that destroyed any chance of him recovering and winning that fight.

Predictions

Jake Shields, all day, period. Although I respect "Charuto"'s world renowned ju-jitsu ground game, Shields is also very versed in ju-jitsu as well as having a phenomenol wrestling background. I am also leaning toward Shields because "Charuto" hasn't shown a very good standup game, and I find it doubtful that he will be able to clinch and knee Shields like he was able to do against Lars Haven early in the bout at ICON-Epic. I don't think Shields will be able to finish "Charuto", but I do feel confident he will be able to stuff his takedowns, keep it up if he wants, but ultimately mount and pound "Charuto" into an unanimous decision win.

The Breakdown: Nick Diaz vs. Mike Aina

Nick Diaz is coming of his recent suspension by the NSAC after testing positive for high levels of THC in his system after the Takanori Gomi win at PRIDE 33: Second Coming. Nick was also not allowed to corner his brother Nate Diaz at the Ultimate Fighter finale and was barred from competing at a Shooto card in California in August. He is finally off suspension and the real question of the night is, will Nick pass the drug test? If he does, this fight could very well be the spectacular knockout of the night.

Nick Diaz comes in after an impressive win over Takanori Gomi in which Diaz executed one of the most difficult submissions in ju-jitsu, the gogoplata, to win a slugfest of a matchup. Easily already one of the best fights of the year. Diaz will be coming into this fight with a 14-6 record, with notable wins over Gomi, Fickett, Lawler, and Neer. He has went the distance with Sean Sherk, Joe Riggs, and Diego Sanchez, and also fought Joe Riggs in the hospital after the matchup.⁵ Diaz's personality is one of the most controversial issues when he fights. Very outspoken, Diaz literally fits the "shit" talking street thug image that some people view fighters as. He backs down to noone, talks so much "smack" talk that he literally runs on a sentence for over 20 minutes, ie. Sherdog radio interview with Nick Diaz this week, and at times, has glimpses of genius and honesty that many people find refreshing to hear from an MMA fighter.

Diaz has world class ju-jitsu, taught to him at Cesar Gracie Academy in California. He recently was promoted to a black belt in May 2007, and also sports an aggressive standup boxing game along with a stiff chin and a "no guts no glory" attitude. Diaz is becoming a complete package. He has been training with former WBA and WBC World Champion, Luisito Espinosa, to supplement his boxing skills. He has shown in previous fights that he can take brutal punishment yet still throw huge punches that land cleanly and accurately throughout a matchup.

Mike Aina is a BJ Penn MMA fighter with an 8-5-1 record fighting out of Hawaii. He doesn't have an impressive record against impressive fighters. His most recent win over Rick Screeton didn't prove much since Screeton is well below a 50% win percentage in a 6-11 record. Aina's most notable loss was against Roger Huerta when Aina was first starting out in MMA. Aina has a highlight reel out there, if anyone wants to check it out. To be perfectly honest, Aina has a looping haymaker style that was fairly slow. He was able to knockout some opponents by pushing them back into the fence and landing huge haymakers, but didn't show great knockout power in any of his highlights. Look for Aina to definitely try to bully Diaz around the cage and basically hope to catch him.

Predictions

Nick Diaz via 1st round KO. Diaz has ridiculous cardio, way better boxing, and an unbelievable ground game. He's a black belt in ju-jitsu, trained by a former world champion in boxing, and has ran triathlons and actually placed in the top 5. Even if he gets caught, his cardio is so great that he would most likely recover within seconds. Aina's knockout power wasn't evident in the video I saw of him. The fighters that Aina faced were very sloppy boxers with poor defense. Diaz is far from that. Look for Aina to either get immediately knocked out, or for him to get frustrated with Diaz's superior boxing. Diaz will be able to pick him apart.

The Breakdown: Gina Carano vs. Tonya Evinger

Is this fight relevant? Evinger said she would make out with Gina Carano. Carano should just come out to the center of the cage and say "I'm a lover, not a fighter." Come on! Anyways.. back to reality people. Gina Carano is probably the most recognized female fighter in MMA. She's not exactly the best fighter in MMA since many of the Japanese female competitors are very good, but she is gorgeous, marketable, and always improving her MMA game to new levels. She will be tested against the rising Tonya Evinger.

Gina Carano, like many American female fighters, has an extensive background in Muay Thai. She compiled a 12-1-1 record before switching to MMA. She trains with Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, Nevada and is coming into her current bout with a 4-0 record in MMA. She's been featured in many mainstream media stories, and was also the star of a movie called "Ring Girls" in which she traveled to Thailand to face champion Thai fighters. This spun off into the show called "Fight Girls!" on the Oxygen network in which Gina helped Master Toddy mold the girls to fight and win in Thailand.

Tonya Evinger is a straight knockout fighter with some wrestling abilities. She definitely uses her size to move in on opponents and score big punches. A key matchup to look at with Evinger is her fight against Ginelle Marquez-Lee. Ginelle was technically more sound than Evinger, while Evinger mainly tried to push the smaller Ginelle around. She used her massive height and reach to eventually beat Ginelle, but Evinger's punches were slow, sloppy, and weak. The shorter Ginelle was even able to land some serious knee strikes to the much larger Evinger. Ginelle almost beat Evinger at the end of the 2nd round with a leg triangle and showed Evinger's weak ground defense. Evinger was also having cardio problems in the 3rd round. Overall, Evinger still has many flaws that Gina will be able to exploit.

Predictions

Gina Carano by 2nd round TKO/KO. Looking at Evinger's last bout, she looked fairly sloppy in her standup, enough to really allow Carano to exploit her open defenses and possibly throw a few good kicks and punches into Evinger to take this bout fairly handily.

The Breakdown: Joey Villasenor vs. Riki Fukuda

Joey Villasenor comes into this bout after a recent loss to "Ninja" Rua at Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Baroni. He sports a 23-6 record that looks better than it sounds. He's hit huge roadblocks as of lately wins big losses to Lawler, Chonan, and Rua. He has yet to really break into the top ranks. Villasenor trains out at Greg Jackson's camp in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Riki Fukuda has an 8-2 record with vast wrestling background. His most notable bout was his loss to Joe Doerkson by decision. The bout surprised many MMA fans considering Doerkson's vast experience to Fukuda's next to none experience, but impressive wrestling ability.

Villasenor is a great striker fighter with some grappling skills on the ground, but much prefers to strike with his opponents. He has been susceptible to opponents who have pushed the pace on his much like what Rua and Lawler both did in their fights. Villasenor does have some great leg kicking skils, decent clinches, and fairly basic takedowns. He is very vulnerable to the takedown himself and has shown in the past some poor defensive skills on the ground, ie. Chonan bout.

Fukuda is a straight wrestler with good ground and pound skills, but also likes to strike on his feet and use his kicks as well. Look for him to try to take Villasenor to the ground and respect his standup game and possibly try to win this via decision.

Predictions

I can't really convince myself that Fukuda is going to stick to a gameplan and try to take Villasenor down. I think Fukuda may try to strike with him and Villasenor may KO him early in the match. I will say that this bout could potentially be the upset of the night. I'm going to take Villasenor by 2nd round TKO. Bet some money on Fukuda though for a chance at a decision win.

Undercard Predictions

Tyson Nam over Albert Manners via judge's decision
- Unimpressive wins by Manners, Nam seems to be much quicker, much more dodgy, and uses his leg kicks well. Manners also seems to be vulnerable to.. everything.

Chad "The White Collar Brawler" Klingensmith over Brandon Wolff via 2nd round TKO/KO
- Wolff has some unimpressive wins against some tomato can fighters, where as Klingensmith has an impressive win over Barrantes. Klingensmith seems to have some huge size and power, along with some brutal ground and pound, and unbelievable cardio.

Kolo Koka over Justin Bucholz via 1st round TKO/KO
- It's a stretch to think he can knock out Bucholz, but Bucholz has fought terrible competition. Even his loss was against a very unseasoned fighter. I'll rely on Koka's experience to get him the big win here.

Mark Oshiro over Nui Wheeler via 1st round TKO/KO
- Seeing as Mark has knocked out some of the guys already fighting on this card, and this is Nui Wheeler's first MMA bout, I'm picking Oshiro's strong standup to win.

Kala Hose over Jeff Cox via 1st round TKO/KO
- I once saw Jeff Cox get obliterated in :15 seconds flat by Thiago Alves. He has a weak chin, and Hose is going to exploit it early

That's it everyone, that's one of the longest cards I've seen in awhile. A lot of decent local talent on the undercard. There are also two other fights, one pitting Jose Diaz against newcomer Mark Kurano and Elias Delosruyes vs. Chico Cantiberos. Two fights I'm really not interested in at all. Everyone tune in to EliteXC on Showtime at 10 PM EST on Saturday night, and hopefully this will be an amazing card.

Pictures courtesy of the UFC, and Gina Carano's website, http://www.gina-carano.com/.