UFC 74 Predictions

Why not? Everyone else is doing it...

Tonight, saturday, August 25th is a UFC fight night. Last week I went to a local MMA event and I got in the mood for tonight's event in Las Vegas (USofA) and since I'm waiting for it to start on PPV (*cough, cough*) I'll throw down my predictions for two of the main card fights for UFC 74 "Respect"

These predictions are not to be taken seriously, in case you're thinking of betting on them.

• Georges St. Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck

Both fighters have heart. GSP and Koscheck are both serious about their professions and they work hard to do the best they can. Kos has a huge mouth and rugged good looks while GSP is the quiet type that looks like he's built for fighting. I've watched a few of their fights, as I only took up MMA last year, and I was happy when I saw this match up, especially after GSP's loss to Matt Serra - he has a long road back to the top and I believe he can walk it. Kos' fight with Diego Sanchez came as a surprise to me, there was a lot of bad blood in the ring and plenty of opportunities for do-or-die moves but Josh controlled himself very well and took the victory in a clear decision.

I predict a GSP victory by TKO in the second round. Josh will work his game plan and avoid trading with the quick Canadian but GSP will find a way in and take him down like he took Matt Hughes down.

• Randy Couture vs. Gabriel "Napão" Gonzaga

Ah... The fight Dana White didn't want. I'm sure he put Napão against Mirko Cro Cop to act as a jobber to justify a high profile Cro Cop vs. Couture battle. A shame he didn't put someone easier against the Croatian Assassin. Anyway, here we are, old vs. new, speed vs. power and USofA vs. Brazil.

I watched quite a few of The Natural's previous fights and was surprised by his ability - I didn't expect that much from an "old school" MMA fighter but was pleasantly surprised by the fact that he was doing back in the 1990's what the younger fighters do now - speed and aggression. When I heard of his comeback I expected more of the same but, to my surprise, he fought smart against the giant Tim Sylvia. He had really adapted to his adversary so his victory wasn't a surprise at all.

Gabriel Napão, on the other hand, I have only seen one of his fights - the high kick heard around the world, when he toppled Cro Cop with his own weapon. As I read up on Napão I saw a well rounded fighter - well versed on the mat (his strength is his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu) and getting better on striking (as proven versus Cro Cop). He's a very humble and grateful guy - after he took beat the croatian he thanked Randy Couture for his kind words about him (Randy had predicted his victory over Cro Cop) and a shocked Dana White for the title shot. He's also a very hard worker, he knows this is his shot at greatness so he's been working night and day to get ready for the greatest fight in his career so far.

I predict Gabriel Napão to take it in round two by TKO.

I expect Randy to run around Napão and take the decision to the judges, which - if he can stay out of Napão's reach and ground skills - will award him with the title defense. However, Napão will work his best to bring Randy down and if he does, the greco-roman wrestling veteran will have the fight of his life.

If Napão does win, Dana White will have a hell of a pickle on his hand - he's not nearly as marketable as Randy is and Dana will get Napão into a title defense as quickly as possible to try to move it off to another, more marketable, fighter.

And that's what I think.