This weekend could mark the inaugural event for a promotion that seeks to resurrect PRIDE back into the mixed martial arts scene. DREAM will take place on Saturday from Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and it will feature one of the most stacked lightweight Grand Prix cards in recent memory. With nearly five or six top 10 lightweight fighters in the mix, the Grand Prix could climax into some big name superbouts later in the year. Shinya Aoki will be looking to prove his lackluster performance Bu Kyung Jung was only a fluke, but he’ll be taking on the devastating Gesias “JZ” Calvancante. Other action features Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Kultar Gill, Joachim Hansen vs. Kotetsu Boku, Andre “Dida” Amade vs. Eddie Alvarez, Mitsuhiro Ishida vs. Bu Kyung Jung, Hayato Sakurai vs. Hidetaka Monma, and the return of Mirko “CroCop” Filipovic to Japan as he will face Tatsuya Mizuno. It should be a fantastic event for hardcore fans everywhere.

Shinya Aoki vs. Gesias “JZ” Calvancante

This battle is a classic matchup of grappler vs. striker, but with the added danger of Calvancante actually having a great jiu-jitsu base to backup his quick and devastating striking. Aoki’s biggest threat is off his back. His flexibility, jiu-jitsu skills, and overall transitional game are unbelievably effective. He used techniques that are tough to escape, but he is susceptible to the crushing ways of a powerful puncher.

That’s where Calvancante may have the edge. He has an uncanny ability of staying out of the guard and crushing opponents, almost Fedor-esque. When he is in guard, he’s crushing and powerful. To supplement his striking skills, he does possess great jiu-jitsu skills. He also trains out of American Top Team, a camp that features a huge number of talented fighters for Calvancante to use to his advantage.

Gesias Calvancante has been a beast in his last few bouts. Before pulling out of the first scheduled fight with Aoki at Yarennoka, Calvancante went on a tear in the K-1 HERO’s tournament on September 17th of last year. He absolutely blasted Vitor Ribeiro in :35 seconds, arguably a top 5 lightweight, and submitted Chute Box striker Andre “Dida” Amade in the final. His striking is unmatched in this matchup, and he has enough awareness and skill to avoid the submission. I’ll take Calvancante by TKO/KO in round 2.

Leland’s Prediction: Gesias “JZ” Calvancante via TKO/KO, Round 2

Andre “Dida” Amade vs. Eddie Alvarez

The single pick’em fight on the card features the upcoming puncher Andre “Dida” Amade vs. the former BodogFIGHT and new EliteXC fighter Eddie Alvarez. This could vie for the fight of the night at DREAM, and it should give us a solid barometer for where each fighter stands in the world.

Dida is fairly green on the MMA scene. He’s 6-2-1 with his most recent bout being a losing effort to Gesias Calvancante at the HERO’S Middleweight Tournament final. Dida was still able to defeat Caol Uno and Artur Oumakhanov in the preliminary rounds to make the final as well as defeating Hiroyuki Takaya at Hero’s 8. He has some solid power in his hands, good striking, and the Chute Box Muay Thai/Brazilian jiu-jitsu base that could prove dangerous to Alvarez’s wrestling.

Alvarez also has some big power in his hands, but he also has some wrestling skills on the ground that usually work to help him ground and pound opponents. He shouldn’t be a danger in the submission game, so this fight will likely be a technical striking war between both fighters. In that case, I’m almost inclined to pick Dida over Alvarez due to his Muay Thai skills and big punch striking. Alvarez has a very good shot though, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he won. I’ll take Dida for my pick though.

Leland’s Prediction: Andre Dida via TKO/KO, Round 1

Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Kultar Gill

Kawajiri comes into this bout fresh off a win over Luiz Azeredo at Yarennoka. His performance was typical “Crusher” with a punishing ground and pound attack that won him the decision fairly easy in the two round affair. It was his first fight in exactly a year, and he looked to be in great shape. Kawajiri’s main skills will revolve around what gave him his nickname “The Crusher”. He’ll use punishing ground and pound and guard passes to try to TKO Gill.

Gill is more of a submission specialist, but he’s also very susceptible to being submitted himself. He lost 3 straight by chokes before defeating Hideo Tokoro at the K-1 HERO’s Middleweight Tournament in the Opening Round. He’ll also be coming off a long layoff and possibly some ring rust.

I have to go with Kawajiri here. He’s the better fighter, has great submission defense, and solid power and striking on the ground. He should be able to pound on Gill, and hopefully finish the fight.

Leland’s Prediction: Tatsuya Kawajiri via TKO, Round 1

Mitsuhiro Ishida vs. Bu Kyung Jung

This is one of the anticipated possible upsets of the evening for many fans. Bu Kyung Jung is an Olympic medalist judoka with some unbelievable power for his weight class. He nearly submitted Shinya Aoki if it wasn’t for some great escape tactics, and he was able to take the fight the distance against a top lightweight in his first MMA matchup. In typical Japanese fashion, Jung gets no break in competition.

Ishida had an impressive performance over Gilbert Melendez in their Yarennoka showdown. Ishida was on Melendez’s back for most of the first round using slick wrestling skill to dominate Melendez and wield his counters useless. Melendez turned it on halfway through the second round, but lost the fight via decision. Ishida looked fairly impressive in his return to the ring, and his wrestling skills were very explosive and controlling. Can he do the same to Jung?

I’ll take Ishida by decision, but it may be worth taking the underdog bet in Jung.

Leland’s Prediction: Mitsuhiro Ishida via decision

Hayato Sakurai vs. Hidetaka Monma

Sakurai should be able to put Monma away convincingly in this bout. He has better striking, a solid ability in submitting opponents, and can go the distance if needed. Monma, on the other hand, is susceptible to strikes, a skill that Sakurai has been dominant at over the years. Although I don’t know if Sakurai can put him away early, I think I’ll take my chances.

Leland’s Prediction: Hayato Sakurai via TKO, Round 1
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Quick Hits
Joachim Hansen vs. Kotetsu Boku: Boku isn’t much of a finisher, but in a two-round bout, you don’t really need to be one to move onto the next round. Hansen has finishing ability along with a very well-rounded skillset to defeat Boku. He has power and submission ability on the ground that could prove to be a tough challenge for Boku. Boku also hasn’t faced the upper echelon of competition that Hansen has fought in the past, and it may give Hansen an edge. Hansen via decision

Mirko “CroCop” Filipovic vs. Tatsuya Mizuno: Nobody can really bet against Mirko in a ring against a 3-2 fighter. This should be an easy “can” win for Mirko to get his confidence boosting. Mirko “CroCop” Filipovic via TKO/KO, Round 1

Kazuyuki Miyata vs. Luiz Firmino: Don’t be fooled by Miyata’s 5-6 record as he’s fought some of the best fighters in the Japanese scene early in his career. Hansen, Ribeiro, Yamamoto, and Sudo were some of his losses with Yamamoto’s flying knee 4 seconds into their bout being the most dominant. Firmino has also rolled with some of the best as well, but he’s actually defeated Imanari and had a good win over Nobuhiro Obiya in his last bout. My only concern is that Firmino hasn’t fought in over a year. Take a chance on Firmino. Firmino via decision

Katsuhiko Nagata vs. Artur Oumakhanov: This is really a straight pick’em for me. Oumakhanov has some good power in his hands and can pound out opponents on the ground, but he can also have the same delivered to his chin. Nagata is only 3-2, but his two losses are to MMA veteran Caol Uno and Yoshihiro Akiyama, two solid MMA fighters. He did manage to avoid Morkevicius’s power in his first fight, but can he avoid Oumakhanov in this fight? Nagata via decision