Cal Poly has a history of wrestlers-turned mixed martial artists, with former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell firmly entrenched as one of the faces of the UFC for the past several years. Chad Mendes, the Mustangs’ top grappler last year, made his mixed martial arts debut last month with a quick first-round victory. With that in mind, I present my first MMA fight picks for UFC 89. The event will be shown free at 9 p.m. Saturday on Spike TV.
Paul Kelly (8-0) vs. Marcus Davis (19-5)
It seems like every card that takes place in Europe features a fight with an unknown European fighter like Kelly. Both of these fighters hold wins over a common opponent in Paul Taylor (who will also fight on the card). Kelly won a decision, while Davis won via submission.
While Kelly is undefeated in his brief career, his biggest win has been over the journeyman Taylor. Kelly will take a mighty step up in competition when he faces Davis, who just had his 11-fight win streak snapped by Mike Swick. Couple that with Kelly having last fought 10 months ago and this has the makings of a victory for the American.
Winner: Marcus Davis via second-round submission
Paul Taylor (9-3-1) vs. Chris Lytle (35-16-4)
This is another fight pitting a relatively unknown English fighter against an accomplished American counterpart. Lytle has sparred with some of the best fighters in the world in a career that has spanned more than 50 fights.
This should be another punchers fight, as Taylor is a known brawler and Lytle moonlights as a professional boxer. Lytle is coming off a demoralizing loss to wrestler Josh Koscheck while Taylor has lost two of his last three fights.
This may be both fighters’ last chance to stay in the UFC. With all that pressure, I like Lytle, who has much more experience, to come through in the clutch.
Winner: Chris Lytle via third-round KO
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (5-2) vs. Luiz Cane (9-1)
Look for explosives early in this fight, which one would think may not last through the first round. Sokoudjou is making his third appearance in the Octagon after a two-fight whirlwind of destruction through the Pride middleweight division.
After a disappointing performance against probable title contender Lyoto Machida in his debut, Sokoudjou rebounded with a win over Kazuhiro Nakamura.
Aside from a controversial disqualifying loss in his UFC debut, Cane has won eight fights, seven by knockout. He has never lost via decision or stoppage. Cane is also well known in Brazil for his jiu-jitsu, but he has never had much of a chance to use it. I don’t see him getting a chance here, either. He takes a huge step up in competition against Sokoudjou, and we will see what Cane is really made of.
I like Sokoudjou, who has fought some of the best fighters in the world early in his mixed martial arts career, to win a slugfest.
Winner: Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou via first-round KO
Keith Jardine (13-5-1) vs. Brandon Vera (9-2)
Probably the most interesting of the fights on paper, Jardine and Vera are both coming off lackluster performances in their last bouts. Jardine was destroyed in 36 seconds by Wanderlei Silva, while Vera looked lost in a slow decision victory over unknown Reese Andy at his 205-pound debut.
While Jardine continues riding the notoriety from his split-decision win over Liddell, Vera was once thought to be the “next big thing” in the heavyweight division. But losses to much bigger fighters in Fabricio Werdum and Tim Sylvia forced Vera to drop to the 205 division.
Vera said after his last fight that the cut to 205 pounds was much harder than anticipated. Look for Vera to handle his weight cut better and dominate an overhyped Jardine.
Winner: Brandon Vera via second-round TKO
Michael Bisping (17-1) vs. Chris Leben (18-4)
The main event looks to be a battle of two men content to stand and strike. Bisping is coming down in weight for the third time, as the traditional 205-pounder looks to continue his rise up the 185-pound rankings.
This fight was supposed to take place in June, but Leben’s legal issues would not allow him to leave the United States, and Jason Day took his place. The notoriously ill-tempered Leben claims to have straightened up and says he has been alcohol-free for several months.
Since winning The Ultimate Fighter, Bisping has been given the distinct advantage of fighting most of his contests in his home country of England. This fight will be no different, and the rowdy home crowd will be behind “The Count” the entire way.
Leben represents a big step up in competition from Bisping’s first-round demolitions of Day and Charles McCarthy at 185 pounds. Known for his heavy hands and iron chin, Leben has only been knocked out by future UFC dominator Anderson Silva.
This fight will likely come down to who has the better wrestling skill, and I give that advantage to Bisping. He showed he could wrestle with a close decision win over Matt Hamill. With the crowd behind him, I like “The Count” to weather the fury of an early Leben barrage and use his size to get Leben to the ground and pound his way to a decision.
Winner: Michael Bisping via unanimous decision
Scott Silvey is a journalism senior and a Mustang Daily sports editor.