There are two examples of wrestlers turned MMA fighters in this card, Josh Koscheck vs. Frank Trigg and the other would be Jim Miller vs. Steve Lopez.
Trigg makes his return to the UFC for the first time since 2005. He wrestled at Oklahoma and is an accomplished MMA fighter. Josh Koscheck is a former NCAA Champion from Edinboro. He is also one of the UFC's most popular characters in the welterweight division. In the opinion of many, Koscheck is a younger version of Trigg. I agree to a certain degree. Trigg has stated that Koscheck may be the better wrestler, but Trigg has more experience. I don’t know how much that will help him, considering that Koscheck has 10 UFC wins in the last four years to only two defeats. Koscheck wins if he controls the takedowns and scrambles. He also has nice power. I see Trigg winning if he can turn the fight into a technical boxing match. Don’t miss this fight folks!
Mille is a veteran of the UFC. He wrestled at Virginia Tech ... and carries that skill to the Octagon. Miller is known as a high-level grappler that can win the fight by submission or ground-and-pound. He faces a heady opponent in Lopez, who will be a stern test for Miller. Lopez was also a wrestler, He competed at Bethel College in the NAIA division ... and has a fierce left hook. This fight is going to be electric. Miller wins if he can get him down and submit him. Lopez has the better boxing.
Efrain Escudero was the realty TV winner of Season 8. He is also an accomplished junior college wrestler at Pima Community College. He has great submission skills to go with his wrestling and faces a stern test tonight against a tall and lanky Cole Miller. Miller is a submission fighter who uses a long jab to keep distance since he is almost 6-2. Escudero will win this fight if he can control the takedowns and punish Cole on the mat. Miller will be the winner if he can secure a submission. He is great at the transitions and wins most fights in one of the many ways to apply the neck choke.
Ricky Story wrestled at Southern Oregon. His senior year, he competed for the 184-pound NAIA title. Coming off a tough loss to John Hathaway at UFC 99, he now faces a tough standup fighter in Brian Foster. Foster is a guy who likes to stand and bang, so it’s really important in this fight that Story takes him to the canvas and introduces Foster to his hammer fists. This is an intriguing matchup between two fighters trying to get their careers going.
Nik Lentz, who wrestled a season at the University of Minnesota, makes his UFC debut against Rafaello Oliveira, a black belt submission artist. This fight may be a standup battle. Lentz can take Rafaello down whenever he wants, but I don’t think he wants to. I think he will keep this fight standing and try to out box and kick Oliveira.
Ultimate Fight Night thoughts ...
I was blown away but former Michigan State standout Gray Maynard’s ability to win the fight against Roger Huerta using mostly his standup game. In his last fight against Miller, Maynard was openly criticized for the lack of striking and even got booed at times during that fight. Wednesday proved to be a much different story. He used great footwork circling ... and used a nice jab to keep the brawling Huerta off balance the entire three rounds. I was impressed. Xtreme Couture and Gray’s trainers have him on a short track to a title shot. He’s literally a win or two away.
Former Arizona State standout CB Dollaway's wrestling saved him from a defeat and shows people why wrestlers are the best in this MMA sport. Dollaway landed four takedowns and then ground- and-pound the entire first round. In the second round, he was dropped and hurt by a huge right hand. Luckily, as he fell to the canvas, he grabbed a single leg and took down Silva and held him there for the entire round while recovering. In the third round, Dollaway used more wrestling, clinch, and grinded out a three-round decision.
The big underdog winner was former Portland State’s Mike Pierce. He was a huge underdog against Brock Larson. Larson has great striking and good wrestling. Nonetheless, Larson, the former high school wrestler, had huge problems ... mainly because (as we all know) there a big gap between good wrestler and a Division I wrestler. Peirce controlled all the takedowns ... and took Larson down almost at will, grinding out a three-round unanimous decision.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now