Here’s what some of our writer at Scrapp! have to say:
Justin Faux:
Bantamweight bout: Renan Barão vs. Chris Cariaso
A lot of people are really behind Barao as a future big prospect but I really don’t see it, I’ve seen his best performances against some Brazilian guys who aren’t WEC quality that he’s looked good against but when he finally got his WEC chance he missed weight then looked mediocre in his debut before securing an arm bar.
I’m gonna go with Cariaso in this fight, I think Barao will come out like a house on fire trying to land with some big strikes early but once he slows down Cariaso can out-box him, move in and out and land his shots, probably using the leg kick too — I’ll say Cariaso to take a 29-28 decision.
Lightweight bout: Yuri Alcantara vs. Ricardo Lamas
Yuri Alcantara is another guy I just don’t believe the hype in, he hasn’t fought good competition, he has mediocre hands at best but has a great ground game — I’ll take Lamas to win this one, I think he’s a much better striker and his wrestling is coming along, as long as he can keep it standing I think he can knock him out in impressive fashion.
Lightweight bout: Danny Castillo vs. Will Kerr
I like Will Kerr, I think he has a decent skill set and he was impressive when he subbed Darabedyan but let’s not kid ourselves here, Castillo is still a great 55er, he has great hands and his wrestling looks better every time we see him, I’ll take Castillo via a pretty one sided 30-27 decision.
Bantamweight bout: Ken Stone vs. Eddie Wineland
Ken Stone is a decent talent, he’s got decent wrestling and okay hands but he’s in there against one of the better 35ers in the world — I think Wineland is a miles better of a boxer and he can use his wrestling to keep it where he wants it and leave with the knock out.
Bantamweight bout: Ivan Menjivar vs.Brad Pickett
This is my pick to steal he fight of the night, Menjivar is making his WEC debut but he’s a savvy veteran who’s got victories over Matt Serra, Hideo Tokoro & Joe Lauzon just to name a few. Most of you know I’m pretty high on Brad Pickett, I think he’s a really good talent for the future, I’m gonna give the slight edge to Pickett — I think if he can get it down he can collect an arm and leave with a nice submission.
Lightweight bout: Shane Roller vs. Jamie Varner
This isn’t worth of making the main card? I don’t think the loser is making it to the UFC — I’m gonna give the edge to Roller, I think he may have troubles with the hands of Varner but I like his wrestling, he’s a decent chain wrestler, I like him to take mount and ground & pound or take his back for a rear naked choke.
Lightweight bout: Danny Downes vs. Zhang Tie Quan
Loser leaves town match — I think either is a good talent, either really brings much to the table so I won’t even go into it much, Quan will get the sub, probably late in the fight.
Lightweight bout: Bart Palaszewski vs. Kamal Shalorus
I don’t see why this fight’s main carded and Varner-Roller isn’t? I give the edge to Shalorus, I think he is a much better wrestler than Bart, I think he’ll be able to take him down and Bart’s submission defense isn’t the best so I’ll say Shalorus to submit him, probably later in the fight.
Lightweight bout: Donald Cerrone vs. Chris Horodecki
I like Cowboy in this fight, I think the last Varner fight really told the story of how far his game has come, I expect him to be able to keep this standing and use his boxing to gice Horodecki fits and probably stop him early in the fight, I’ll say first round TKO stoppage.
Bantamweight Championship bout: States Dominick Cruz (c) vs. Scott Jorgensen
This is an excellent fight, honestly I have a feeling the upset is coming here — I think Jorgensen is a much better wrestler than Cruz has ever had to deal with and this will cause him problems, I know Cruz is hard to take down but I have a feeling Jorgensen can get him down or work from a clinch to do damage and steal a decision.
Lightweight Championship bout: Ben Henderson (c) vs. Anthony Pettis
Another excellent fight, I see this one going the distance in a high impact roller coaster of action — I can picture anything happening in this fight because I think all round Bendo is the better, more complete fighter but on the feet Pettis could knock him out, if he’s on his back I could see a traiangle coming, I’m gonna pick Bendo to take a narrow decision, his hands and his wrestling should win this fight.
Shawn Smith Thinks:
Bart Palaszewski vs. Kamal Shalorus
An interesting fight here. Shalorus is coming off of an extremely controversial draw against Jamie Varner earlier this year and technically still has an undefeated record. Palaszewski has four wins in a row and is looking to make waves when he gets to the UFC.
I like the veteran Palaszewski to find a way to win this one. I think Shalorus will come out early throwing power and possibly win the first, but Palaszewski is a warrior and will overcome.
Scotty Jorgensen vs. Dominick Cruz
Both of these men have been on a role heading into this bout to determine the first ever UFC 135lb. Champion. Cruz does have wrestling in his background, but whether or not he can keep it off the mat will be a key factor in this bout.
Jorgensen’s hands have come along nicely in the last two years, but they will not compare with the vast amount of weapons that Cruz offers on the feet. I like Jorgensen to take a unanimous decision.
Chris Horodecki vs. Donald Cerrone
As much as I love Horodecki, I see this as a mismatch. I think Cerrone is better both on the feet and on the ground and Horodecki does not even have his wrestling to fall back on. Cerrone all the way, by whatever he wants, and early.
Anthony Pettis vs. Benson Henderson
What a fight this is going to be. You’ve got the awkward stand-up game of Pettis against the super aggressive wrestling game of Henderson. The thing that makes this fight intriguing is how well Pettis was able to keep his previous fight against Shane Roller (a higher calibre wrestler than Henderson) off the mat. Like the previously discussed Jorgensen vs. Cruz fight, if Henderson can’t put this fight on the mat he is in trouble.
That being said, I think he will find a way. He is an aggressive wrestler who will continue to try different things until he puts gets it to the mat. Both men have developing jiu-jitsu games and it will be interesting to see how that plays in. I like Benson to keep the title and finish Pettis in the third or fourth round.
Mary Bell:
Rudog predictions:
Straight from my blog.
http://rudog.com/blog/wec-53-and-rudog/
I have talked to both fighters and to Duke Roufus today. They are strong, at weight, and ready to go. The focus and discipline that the Roufus camp has is amazing. Pettis and Downes to win.
