UFC 87 Preview Part I

It has been a really long time since I last posted. However, I am back and I am going to be giving my UFC insight on regular basis. In terms of the UFC 87 coming up on Saturday night I would rank it as an average to above average card. It's not the greatest card they've had but, its not the worst either at least 3 of the fights have "Fight of the Night" potential.

Let's start where we should with the Main Event:

UFC 87 Preview Part I Main Event

George St. Pierre vs. Jon Fitch

GSP vs. Fitch

Standup: This is probably where St. Pierre has the biggest edge. St. Pierre uses his jab really well to keep people at the distance he wants, to utilize his explosive kicks including leg kicks and some more unorthodox spinning kicks. Fitch does not have bad standup but, it is mostly effective against someone who is really defending against his takedowns. St. Pierre's biggest edge in the fight is his standup in this battle between two of the more well rounded fighters in the sport. Edge: St. Pierre

Wrestling: While on paper Jon Fitch is clearly the more accomplished wrestler being captain of the wrestling team in college at Purdue a Division I powerhouse, St. Pierre has shown you do not need to be a great collegiate wrestler to become a great MMA wrestler. He has not only held his own but, has made other tremendous wrestlers look like they have never attempted a double leg takedown in their life. He took down wrestlers like Matt Hughes, Josh Koscheck, Sean Sherk, and Frank Trigg.
Edge: Slight to St. Pierre but, very close

Jujitsu: This may be even more even than the wrestling aspect to this match. Fitch just got his black belt from Dave Camarillo at American Kickboxing Academy and St. Pierre has trained with pretty much every great BJJer there is. He started out with Renzo but, has had solid BJJ training for a long time now and has only been submitted once in an MMA match by Matt Hughes, in match I think he was just very nervous in, making a mistake by overcommiting to a Kimura. A mistake I don't think he would ever make again at his current skill level.
Edge: Even

Prediction: I think the only chance Fitch has in this match is to make it a really long match and keep on working on getting a takedown. He should not get discouraged from being stuffed early on in the match, keep shooting in on St. Pierre and see what damage Fitch can do while on top. The last thing Fitch wants though is to make this a standup fight or let St. Pierre take him down because I think that would lead to a TKO. I do not see either fighter submitting each other unless one of them is rocked first. My guess would be St. Pierre by TKO in the second or third round.