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UFC on FOX: VanZant vs Waterson - Dec 17


wandshogun09

Who wins and how?   

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Not for nothing, it shows the massive shift in mindset from the UFC's earlier days to now. The promotion use to promote double tough bastards as fighters, like Liddell, Shamrock, Ortiz. Now it's behind people that can cross into mainstream like Sage and Paige with their model looks.

 

Not a criticism either, just another aspect of how UFC have polished their presentation over the years. Just Bleed is a much smaller thing, seemingly.

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They look like the blandest people ever. One of those dull couples you see on facebook who seemingly just go to the gym & nothing else. Grilled chicken & brown rice for every meal & missionary sex with the light off.

:laugh:

 

They actually do! They don't even look real there, they look like they've been created in a lab or something. Or Madame Tussaud's.

 

On a serious note, the closer this is getting the more I'm thinking Sage & Paige are getting fucked up here. I don't know what it is. Both fights should probably be looked at as around a 50/50 tossup give or take. But I've got a strong gut feeling that these two genetically modified little cherubs are heading for a twatting.

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I'm coming round to the idea of Gall winning, but it's worth remembering (and even Gall noted) that's he's not really fought anyone that's "UFC calibre" thus far. Granted, he's ran through his opponents, but Sage has some tough fights on his record already.

 

I think for UFC it's for the best if Gall wins. He seems to be a natural at being a dickhead, which makes his fights easier to get into.

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That's what I was getting at on the last page Bollocks. As promising as Gall looks, he hasn't fought what you'd call a 'real' opponent yet. In a way this is kind of Gall's proper UFC debut. All bets are sort of off where Gall's concerned because we've only seen him against scrubs so far. He's got bags of potential, he's got a solid boxing background, a BJJ brown belt and he trains with the Miller brothers. There's every reason to be optimistic about him. But he's still a 3-0 rookie at the moment and Northcutt is the first guy he's facing who isn't a glorified jobber and actually has some skills of his own.

 

I'm expecting Gall to win but I won't be surprised if it goes the other way or it's a lot harder than a lot of people think. I think the first round is where Sage will be at his most lethal. He's shown he's capable of firing off a bit of a Belfort Blitz early on.

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Weird weigh in. VanZant and Waterson had a dance off before their staredown. Supernerd Sage fist bumped the four bemused octagon girls. And Mike Perry continues to be a massive bellend who I want to see get a serious Iron Sheik breaky the back humbling. Don't know what the fuck Perry was doing, but he looked a right cock doing it.

 

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VanZant vs Waterson is going to be one of those frantic, chaotic, all over the place fights where you lose all track of scoring and have to rely on replays to tell you what the fuck just happened. We've really been spoilt the last month or so with the quality of fights we've seen. Pretty much every show since 205 has had at least one tremendous fight. And I really think this fight could be a last minute contender for FOTY. It's not likely to top last week's Swanson vs Choi, but I could see this being on the list of strong runners up. Both have that wacky offence where if there's a finish, it'll probably be highlight reel stuff. And if it goes the distance, expect a war.

 

Waterson on points is my prediction. The only thing making me doubt this is she's been on the shelf nearly 18 months and Paige has been active the whole time. That might be a factor in the later rounds maybe. But I like Waterson to take this one. I think she's got a better overall game, she's good everywhere, she's got the experience and I don't think Paige has improved enough since the loss to Namajunas to be ready for Waterson, who I think is just as tough a test as Thug Rose was. Whatever happens, it should be exciting.

 

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Northcutt vs Gall is another potentially awesome fight. Like I said, I've got a strong gut feeling Gall's winning this. If you look at Sage's last two fights, he's shown weakness on the ground. He got submitted by Bryan Barberena and then nearly got his arm ripped off by Enrique Marin at UFC 200. He did well to survive that armbar. And Gall's a BJJ brown belt, is probably the naturally bigger man and Sage is coming up in weight. Sage is dangerous on the feet, he's fast and explosive. You never know. It's definitely the hardest test for Gall yet. By far. Going from Punk to Northcutt is a massive jump.

 

Going Gall by submission though. I've got a good feeling about Gall. The UFC have stumbled upon him by accident really but I think he's a legit prospect. Even if he loses to Sage tonight, I think he's got a bright future. And while the win over Punk told us next to fuck all about his fighting level, I liked how calm and composed he was on the big stage. For a two fight rookie to be in such a prominent spot on a big PPV and look so comfortable was good to see. I think he rises to the challenge tonight and puts Northcutt away on the ground.

 

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Faber vs Pickett is yet another fight that you can't fathom being boring. Especially with it being Faber's swansong and in his backyard of Sacramento. He's going to be all kinds of motivated to go out on a positive note. And I think he will. If these two had met at any time throughout their careers, I'd have picked Faber. The fact that Faber's been slipping in form over the last couple of years might actually mean we get a better fight now though. It might be more competitive now. But I see it being fairly one sided.

 

Faber by sub for me. Faber might've faded in recent years but he's still a high level player. He went 5 rounds with Dominick Cruz as recently as June and didn't embarrass himself by any stretch. I think he's going to crush Pickett, to be honest. And knowing it's his last fight, he'll be free to really let loose. He doesn't have to worry about where a win or loss puts him in the division or negotiating his next fight or contract or sponsors or any of that shite. He can just go out there in front of his home crowd and let shit fly. I think we'll see a classic Urijah Faber performance tonight. Pickett's a good fighter and tough as old boots but I think he's the type of opponent Faber should shine against.

 

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Jouban vs Perry was my pick for my **ONE TO WATCH** in the opening post and I'm sticking with that. I hate Mike Perry. He's a proper dickhead meathead knuckle dragging twat. BUT...he has been great to watch so far in the UFC there's no denying the facts. Really exciting fights and he can definitely crack. He's unbeaten as well. I hope Jouban fucks him up bad though and ends his undefeated streak. I like Jouban, he's an exciting fighter himself and seems a good guy so I'd hate to see this Perry prick beat him. I think he's going to though.

 

Perry by KO/TKO unfortunately. Jouban is never shy about getting into a brawl. And while it's entertaining as fuck to watch and he can certainly hold his own, it's also been his undoing in some fights. I can see this turning into a wild slugfest and Perry catching Jouban with something devastating and knocking him cold. Hope I'm wrong.

 

Tremendous main card that is. It really should've gotten more discussion. It's got a bit of a 206 feel to it for me where all four fights just look like they can't possibly miss.

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Jouban/Perry is gonna be wild, and like you said wand. Jouban's tendency to get hit and throwdown is gonna cost him i think. Perry seems like one of those iron chinned guy who will get battered but always carry dynamite in his fists and will always come out on top in them types if fights.

 

Waterson, Pickett, Sage, Perry is the acca.

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I'm really looking forward to this card. I'll be watching it at 5am tomorrow before work as I don't want to try and go until Monday having to avoid spoilers. It looks to be a very exciting show and I would hazard a guess that it'll do in the top 3 Fox ratings of the year.

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I think the old argument of "you can only beat what's put in front of you" comes into play with Gall. Yeah, the fighters he's been up against have been cack, but he's made dominating work of all of them. As Wand mentioned, Sage is moving up a weight class, to the division where he experienced his only loss no less. He's also shown vulnerability on the ground, which Gall has an excellent knowledge and appliance of. There's a clear path to victory for Gall, and because we haven't seen much of his stand-up work, there's unanswered questions in that regard.

 

This is a genuine question, because I'm not going to pretend I'm that smart when it comes to MMA - how do the guys Northcutt beat early in his career stack up against the guys Gall has been up against? With the obvious exception of Punk, did they have relatively similar experience and skill sets?

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There seems to be a automatic assumption Northcutt is great on his feet but i haven't seen it yet. So be interesting how both there stand up looks against each other.

It's early to say he's great but he's definitely shown flashes of quality as a striker. Offensively at least, we haven't really seen him against another good striker who can test him on the feet yet. The jury is out on everything really regarding Sage. But considering the guy has a 3rd degree black belt in Karate and a 15-0 kickboxing record, and he's been doing Karate since he was 4 years old, I'd say it's pretty safe to assume he can handle himself in most situations striking wise. The only question on his striking really is can he take a shot? We haven't seen that yet.

 

As for Sage's opposition, he's definitely faced a higher level of opponent than Gall has. Which is to be expected because he's about 10 fights ahead of Gall experience wise. The guys Sage has beat in the UFC weren't killers, but they were decent tests for the stage Northcutt was at in his career.

 

Francisco Trevino was Sage's UFC debut opponent. He was 12-1 and had never been finished when Sage fought him. Sage TKO'd him in 57 seconds. Then he beat Cody Pfister by submission. Pfister was 12-4-1 going in. Barberena was 10-3 going into the Sage fight. And Enrique Marin was 9-3 and the TUF Latin America finalist.

 

So yeah, Sage wasn't facing contenders or anything but he was often in with guys who were more experienced than him and/or durable journeyman types who would give him some cage time.

 

It's not even up for debate who's fought the better opposition so far. And there is the risk that Gall is trying to run before he can walk here. The media attention he got beating Punk might actually turn out to be a curse because it's kind of rushed him into a tougher fight than he's maybe ready for. But he specifically called out Sage. He must fancy the job. And he's probably sparring/rolling with Jim and Dan Miller on a daily basis, as well as whoever else they've got in the gym. So he must take confidence from how he does against those guys in the gym.

 

It's a really interesting one. And pretty rare that you get two really bright potential future stars matched against each other so early on in their careers.

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I'm really looking forward to this card.

 

Few little notes as most has already been covered.

 

Gall looks a lot bigger than Northcutt. It's the one thing I don't like about the fight. Whilst Northcutt isnt a small lightweight Gall certainly looks much bigger and could be a big factor in this fight.

 

I actually think Pickett has a strong chance of the upset here.

 

Striking wise he could actually be better than Faber and he has decent wrestling too.

 

Faber still is up there with the best but he's not as dangerous as many other 135llbers these days.

 

The main event could go either way. Van Zant's sheer determination could easily swarm Waterson but the later has the advantage from a skill perspective.

 

One of the hardest main cards to call in a while.

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