UFC 71

Hopefully by now, all of you have heard that Chuck Liddell was knocked out by Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. I guess my funny feeling was right. The big question is what's next?

The UFC 205 pound division (light heavyweight) is full of talent, with fighters like Liddell, Jackson, Ortiz, Evans, Griffin, Bonner, Jardine, Bisping and let's not forget about Houston Alexander (what a performance against Jardine last weekend).

Rumors are also all around about Shogun entering the UFC ranks (according to the Chute Box web site that is). Also, announced last weekend we have Quinton Jackson facing off against Pride middleweight and welterweight champion Dan Henderson.

Dana White recently stated that he's considering Wanderlei Silva as Chuck Liddell's next opponent. Can you imagine that match? Of course this would set up the logical matchup of the winner of Silva vs Liddell to fight the winner of Rampage vs Henderson.

From there on it it gets really crazy. Do you give Shogun a title match, or the winner of Ortiz vs Evans?

One thing is for sure, the rest of 2007 will be crazy for the UFC light heavyweight division. 2008 might be even better!

A recap of who's fighting:

Chuck Liddell vs Quinton Jackson
Terry Martin vs Ivan Salaverry
Josh Burkman vs Karo Parisyan
Houston Alexander vs Keith Jardine
Kalib Starnes vs Chris Leben
Thiago Silva vs James Irvin
Sean Salmon vs Alan Belcher
Jeremy Stephens vs Din Thomas
Carmelo Marrero vs Wilson Gouveia

UFC 71 Results after the link...after the fights.

As the Chuck Liddell vs Quinton Jackson fight draws nearer, I am getting a very strange feeling. The intellectual in me says that it's just the UFC marketing machine building up the fight, but I can't help but feel that Liddell is genuinely worried about Rampage and Rampage genuinely believes that he's going to "whoop Chuck's ass".

After watching the UFC 71 countdown and UFC All Access, Rampage edition, I can't help but feel this way. Now, the UFC has fooled me before (see Renato Babalu Sobral vs Chuck Liddell), but this time is different.

I watched the first Rampage vs Liddell fight live (or as live as any of the Pride matches being fed from Japan were) and I thought that Chuck would have a rough time, but defeat Rampage. I was suprised that Rampage ran over Chuck like he did, then lost so decisively to Wanderlei Silva. It was this sequence of events that made me start believing that the Pride talent pool was much deeper than the UFC's. Of course events since then have proven that to be incorrect (as a general statement). Anybody who witnessed Ricco Rodriguez vs Antonio Nogueira should know that the UFC (and former UFC) fighter are right on par with their Pride counterparts. Big Nog won that fight, but I thought it was closer than the judges did.

Chuck vs Rampage...we could be seeing a changing of the guard. Of course, I am a glass half full kind of guy, so what can we expect if Rampage does win?

How about Chuck vs Wanderlei? These two have wanted to fight for a long time and with both coming off losses, it may be the perfect time. Or would Dana White give Chuck and instant rematch against Rampage? That would probably depend on Chuck and his camp. If it is a close fight which comes down to a decision, I could see this happening...if it is a decisive Rampage victory then I don't see a reason for it.

With Shogun entering the UFC (see the Chute Box home page for this info), it would open up Shogun vs Rampage 2. Where does Dan Henderson fit into this picture? Ideally I'd like to see Dan fighting at middleweight and taking on Anderson Silva.

Any way, for now this is just a feeling. Feel free to comment on my sixth sense!

Just a quick update on a bunch of different things:

Upcoming UFC events
UFC 71 - Chuck Liddell vs Quinton Jackson May 26th
UFC Fight Night Live - Sam Stout vs Spencer Fisher June 12
UFC 72 - Rich Franklin vs Yushin Okami June 16th
Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale Jens Pulver vs BJ Penn June 23rd
UFC 73 - Tito Ortiz vs Rashad Evans July 7

Looks like the next month and a half will be extremely exciting for the UFC fans out there. Also, lets not forget the debut's of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Mauricio Shogun Rua. Also Forrest Griffin, Keith Jardine, Heath Herring, Anderson Silva, Nate Marquardt, Kenny Floirian, Chris Leben, Sean Sherk, Hermes Franca and a number of other big names are spread across these cards. Keep tuned here for predictions on all the big fights.

Also, post a comment on who you'd like to see Shogun face first in the UFC. I think he should warm up with Stephan Bonner.

Spike TV is showing the first Chuck Liddell vs Quinton Jackson fight Monday night at 10pm. This is required viewing if you want to make an educated guess as to who's going to win their second fight.

Here is the MMA Girls UFC 71 Predictions Video. Enjoy!

UFC 71 is just 10 days away and it's time for my final UFC 71 Predictions...fasten your seat belts!

Chuck Liddell vs Quinton Jackson
I predict an exciting fight, with lots of heavy punches thrown and a couple of takedowns before it is over. If Chuck Liddell is going to get beaten any time soon it will be Quinton Jackson, or Shogun who does it. I'd give this one 60% to Liddell, but Quinton can end it with a knee or good takedown.

Prediction : Liddell...but I may change my mind on this before fight time.

Terrry Martin vs Ivan Salaverry
While Terry Martin holds victories over Jorge Rivera and Jason Guida, I think that Ivan Salaverry has faced the tougher competition.

Prediction : Ivan Salaverry

Josh Burkman vs Karo Parisyan
Josh Burkman is tough...and is apparently dating UFC ring card girl (Arianny Celeste). He gets full points for that, but I need to give the edge here to Karo Parisyan. My prediction is an all out war.

Prediction : Karo Parisyan

Alexander Houston vs Keith Jardine
Keith Jardine showed against Forrest Griffin that he deserves a title shot. I believe that he will eventually get one. Alexander Houston has not faced competition of this calibre and might be way over his head.

Prediction : Keith Jardine

Kalib Starnes vs Chris Leben
If Kalib can keep from getting hurt then he has a good chance of finishing this fight on the ground. Then again, Leben has heavy hands and is always tough. If it goes to the ground, Kalib. If Leben catches him, Chris Leben.

Prediction : Chris Leben.

Thiago Silva vs James Irvin
James Irvin has that one punch knockout power. He also throws an excellent knee.

Prediction : James Irvin

Sean Salmon vs Alan Belcher
I think we're going to see a completely different Sean Salmon than faced Rashad Evans. Sean was supposed to fight Eric Schafer, but Schafer is out with a broken rib. Sean is an excellent wrestler and will control the action against Belcher.

Prediction : Sean Salmon

Jeremy Stephens vs Din Thomas
I think Din is too strong at 155 for Jeremy Stephens. If you're looking for proof, see Din Thomas' record. He has wins over Matt Serra, Jens Pulver, Rich Clementi and Clay Guida. Add in a close decision loss to Caol Uno and you have a guy who's faced the who's who of MMA at 155.

Prediction : Din Thomas

There you go, my UFC 71 Predictions are in. I of course reserve the right to change my mind as the fights draw closer.

On May 26, 2007 Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will attempt to do what few others have done, defeat Chuck Liddell in a Mixed Martial Arts match. Luckily for Rampage, he is one of those chosen few. Quinton Jackson, along with Jeremy Horn and Randy Couture are Chuck Liddell's only losses on an otherwise unblemished MMA record. Quinton Jackson defeated Chuck Liddell in a Pride tournament match in 2003, can he do it again?

Certainly if you look at the won/loss record of these two figthers, they are evenly matched. Quinton, like Liddell has only lost to the best of the best. Even Chuck Liddell's own trainer admits that Quinton Jackson doesn't have any glaring weaknesses. Then again, either does Chuck. Let's try to break down the keys to victory for each fighter.

Quinton Rampage Jackson keys to victory

1) Don't back up after getting hit. Fighters who turtle, back up or just cover up when fighting Chuck Liddell do not fair very well. Tito Ortiz has been caught in both of his fights against Liddell doing exactly that. The problem with covering up to weather the storm against Chuck is that the storm comes from all angles, all big power shots and it doesn't stop until you are TKO'd.

2) Take Chuck down, but not until you have him hurt or tired. The best way to defeat Chuck Liddell is on the ground, whether it is submitting him (like Jeremy Horn), or ground and pounding him like Quinton Jackson or Randy Couture did. The problem is that Chuck has the best take down defense in the sport. Hurt him first or catch him when he's winded, he will go down. Once he's down, take advantage, Chuck gets up off the ground extremely well sometimes using the cage as leverage. Once Chuck is down, keep him there and don't stop throwing punches.

3) Try to avoid getting hit, but if you do, fire back. Chuck throws long looping power shots, a good puncher should (in theory) be able to counter between them and tag Chuck. The problem is that Chuck takes a punch very very well, recovers quickly if hurt and when he hits you he hits you hard.

4) Use your knees in the clinch. If Quinton Rampage Jackson manages to clinch with Chuck, he should attempt to soften him up with knees. Jackson uses his knees well and a good knee could bring Chuck to the ground.

Chuck Liddell keys to victory

1) Chuck needs to keep this standing, if it does go to the ground he needs to be on top. Quinton is just too strong a guy and Chuck doesn't work as well as some from his back.

2) Avoid the clinch. Chuck lands a good shot when breaking from the clinch and this is what he should do, if Quinton grabs on, Chuck should push away and throw the uppercut. The problem is that Quinton also does this very well, just ask Marvin Eastman.

3) Finish early. In other words, if Chuck gets Quinton hurt he should pounce. He doesn't want this to go into round 4 or 5 with someone like Jackson. A late slam could be the difference between victory and defeat in this fight.

4) Use leg kicks. Chuck Liddell has great kicks, but usually finishes people with punches. Don't attempt the high kicks and risk the take down, but use lots of leg kicks to make sure that Jackson doesn't have that pop later in the fight.

On paper, this is an excellent fight. Two exciting fighters who love to go at it. Chuck Liddell believes that he can finish Quinton Jackson early, he thinks it will be completely different than the first fight. Quinton Jackson says it's just another day at the office. We'll see who's right on May 26th.

Here is the UFC 71 Fight Card. UFC 71 takes place on May 26, 2007 from Las Vegas.

Chuck Liddell vs Quinton Jackson
Terry Martin vs Ivan Salaverry
Josh Burkman vs Karo Parisyan
Houston Alexander vs Keith Jardine
Kalib Starnes vs Chris Leben
Thiago Silva vs James Irvin
Sean Salmon vs Eric Schafer
Jeremy Stephens vs Din Thomas

UFC 71 is more than a month away. UFC 71 is on May 26th, 2007, but here are my early UFC 71 Predictions anyway:

Chuck Liddell vs Quinton Jackson
These are two of the strongest guys at 205. I mean literally strong. I've been waiting to see this rematch ever since the first fight was stopped. Rampage took that first bout by out striking and then taking Chuck to the ground. Many people say that Chuck is a much better fighter since that first bout and that Rampage is not the same fighter. Their career paths have certainly gone in opposite directions.

Chuck has beaten everyone he has faced since the Rampage fight and Rampage has lost twice to Wanderlei Silva. Even so, I think this will be a fantastic fight, both of them are tough as nails, can take a punch and hit hard.


Prediction: Chuck Liddell by TKO

Karo Parisyan vs Josh Burkman
Prediction: Karo Paisyan by submission

Sean Salmon vs Sean Schafer
Every fighter trains their ass off for every fight. If they didn't, they wouldn't be in the UFC. That being said, I think that Sean Salmon has completely re-dedicated himself following his high kick loss to Rashad Evans.
Prediction: Sean Salmon by decision

Kalib Starnes vs Chris Leben
Both of these guys have looked great since the TUF seasons they were on...but Leben has looked better despite losing a couple of bouts (one to the current middleweight champion Anderson Silva).
Prediction: Chris Leben by TKO

UFC 71 will be held on May 26th at The MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada

There are two officially announced fights on the card so far:

Chuck Liddell Vs. Quinton Jackson
Fans have been asking for this rematch ever since Jackson defeated Liddell by TKO in their first meeting under Japan's Pride Organization as part of the Pride Middleweight Tournament.

Josh Burkman Vs. Karo Parisyan
Both of these fighters have excellent records, with Karo Parisyan only losing to Diego Sanchez, Georges St Pierre and Sean Sherk. Karo's wins include some top notch fighters including current welterweight champion Matt Serra. Burkman lost his first match, a match with Jon Fitch and one to Jeremy Horn and has wins over Josh Neer and Drew Fickett.