Ultimate Fight Night is a free, scaled down version of the UFC pay-per-views. The show may be scaled down but that doesn’t mean the action will be. Ultimate Fight Night has been a showcase for the UFC to promote fighters to the general public without making the public pay for it. The UFC uses the show to promote certain fighters that UFC management thinks will become stars of the sport. Ex-Ultimate Fighter reality show cast mates usually comprise the majority of the fighters in these shows, and Fight Night is no different. Unlike the Unleashed specials, which are basically re-runs of previous fights, Fight Night is a live broadcast. This fact only adds to the excitement of the event.
The first fight is Chris Leben vs. Anderson Silva. Chris Leben is a red haired brawler fighting out of Team Quest in Oregon. He was a member of the Ultimate Fighter season one show. He lost both of his fights on the show in shocking fashion, losing to NCAA Division 1 wrestling champion Josh Koshcheck and present lightweight Kenny Florian. However, he has been on a tear since the show ended, winning four consecutive fights and putting himself in a great position to be the next challenger for the middleweight championship against Rich Franklin. His challenger for this fight is a Brazilian fighter named Anderson Silva. He is a UFC newcomer who brings a big reputation into the octagon for a being a vicious striker and an extremely proficient grappler. Silva recently signed a contract with the UFC. This is rare for newcomers to the organization. Most fighters are paid on a fight-by-fight basis until they have proven themselves to be a top-level talent. For a fighter to enter the UFC with a contract already in hand means that UFC management is convinced that he is the real deal. The winner of this fight will probably be in the lead to fight Rich Franklin, who is still recovering from his broken hand. The loser will probably fight either a nobody, Mike Swick, or David Loiseau.
Chris Leben is a southpaw who prefers to brawl and has an efficient ground game. His last fight was a war that ended with Leben winning a decision. Leben is not afraid to get hit and has and enviable chin. All I’ve heard about Silva is that he is a dangerous striker with above average Jiu-Jitsu skills. Leben thinks he can out strike anyone. Silva is a cage-fighting champion. I hesitate to pick a fighter I’ve never seen in action, so I will go with Leben to win a unanimous decision. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if Silva pulls it off.
The second fight is between light heavyweights Stephan Bonnar and Rashad Evans. Bonnar is the season one runner up who received a six-figure contract despite losing in the finale. He had won several fights since the show convincingly until his last contest with Keith Jardine. Most UFC fans agree that Jardine won the fight, but Bonnar received the decision. Bonnar won’t forget that night very soon, as it was the first time he was booed after a fight. Bonar tried to marginalize the event by attributing the boos to fans with the “what have you done for me lately” mentality, but being booed for the first time has got to be hard for anyone. I can guarantee that the pressure is on for Bonnar to dispatch Evans in n exemplary fashion to prove once again that he belongs in the big leagues. The problem for Bonnar is that Evans is no slouch. At only a generously listed 5″11, Evans won the heavyweight division on season two. Bonnar comes into the fight at 6″ 2 ½, but don’t think the height advantage will be a huge weapon for him. Evans is accustomed to fighting larger opponents and knows how to minimize the reach advantage. Evans was an All-American wrestler at Michigan St. but prefers to strike. Even though Evans has been extremely successful, he has not been exciting. The only fight he was in that fans think of as an exciting fight was the season two finale against Brad Imes. He has shown an inability to end fights early, winning all of his UFC battles by decision.
Fans should expect this fight to be primarily stand up. Both fighters prefer to strike and they both think they can win this way. Bonnar has a very good clinch, decent chin, and excellent Jiu-Jitsu skills on his back. Rashad is faster and a better wrestler with more ground and pound. Both fighters seem to lack knockout power. I’m picking Bonnar to hand Evans his first loss because I think Bonnar will push the action more which in the minds of incompetent UFC judges usually means a victory. Bonnar by decision.
The last fight I will discuss is season two veteran Luke Cummo vs. Jonathan Goulet. This is a small time fight featuring two fighters who don’t look like either will ever challenge for the welterweight belt. Cummo is an overachiever who made it all the way to the welterweight finale after being the last welterweight picked on the show. He defeated fellow season two cast mate Jason Von Flue and is still looking for a little respect in the division. Goulet has had a couple of fights in the UFC, winning one and losing one. He is a small timer who is just playing the part of spoiler. He claims to have heavy hands and says he likes to knock people out, but he is amore known for his Jiu-Jitsu skills and lists his favorite finisher as the rear naked choke. The only thing he has to gain by winning is extending the dream a little bit longer. This is probably his last chance.
I think this fight will be more lopsided than the other two. Cummo has above average striking ability and long limbs. He has knocked out Sammy Morgan and laid some good shots on Joe Stevenson and Von Flue. He is also excellent on his back and stays out of submissions. That pretty much takes Goulet out of the fight. I predict Cummo to win by knockout.
Ultimate Fight Night should clarify the pecking order in the light heavyweight and middleweight divisions. I believe future pay-per-views will be shaped by tonight’s outcome. It’s broadcast on Spike TV at 8:00 pm eastern time on Wednesday, June 28th. Spike TV is also showing a UFC Unleashed marathon from 3-8 pm the same day. It will be a great chance to catch up on some storyline for people who don’t follow the sport. Any comments/critiques are appreciated and I will be posting a breakdown of the UFC lightweight division and a review of Ultimate Fight Night on Sunday.