UFC: Jones vs Matyushenko
So, tomorrow night sees UFC once again put on a free show on the Versus 2 channel. Headlined by young superstar Jon “Bones” Jones vs the near-40 year old veteran; Vladimir Matyushenko.
Here are my predictions for the card
MAIN EVENT; JON JONES vs VLADIMIR MATYUSHENKO
Matyushenko’s best hope is to outwrestle him, get top control and get a dec. Matyushenko has heavy hands so if he could get inside and land some punches there’s a possibility of a ko, I dont think Jones has ever been hit and his frame is similar to Kendall Grove’s, so maybe his chin is too?.
But, having said that, I see a standard Jones performance- explosive takedown followed by brutal elbow gnp for the win, R1
YUSHIN OKAMI vs MARK MUNOZ
Munoz is an excellent wrestler and that appeared to be Okami’s weakness when facing Sonnen, but since that fight Okami has been training with Sonnen so his wrestling should have gotten better and Okami has heavy hands; his striking looked really good in his last fight, whereas Munoz hasn’t got a great chin.
Munoz could grind out a dec. but im going with Okami with the tko, R2.
JAKE ELLENBERGER vs JOHN HOWARD
This is a tough fight to call and I see alot of scrambling as both fight for position. All that will tire Howard out and Ellenberger will start to take control on the feet and in the grappling as the fight goes on.
Ellenberger Dec.
TAKANORI GOMI vs TYSON GRIFFIN
I’m calling the upset. Gomi’s main weaknesses are against submission grapplers or bigger fighters. Tyson isn’t a big lightweight and hes started to rely more on his striking lately. Tyson’s key to victory will be to out wrestle Gomi, but I doubt he’ll even try to.
Gomi, tko, R1
JACOB VOLKMANN vs PAUL KELLY
Volkman is a one dimensional grappler and Kelly’s aggressive style will force Volkman to mainly be on defence the whole fight.
Kelly, dec.
DAMARQUES JOHNSON vs MATTHEW RIDDLE
Riddle is a tough kid with alot of heart, hes also a bit of a one dimensional wrestler and Johnson is very dangerous off his back, having a couple of subs of the night.
Johnson, sub (Triangle?), R1
JAMES IRVIN vs IGOR POKRAJAC
It’s just gonna be a slugfest but I think Igor is the tougher and technically better fighter.
Igor, tko, R1
BRIAN STANN vs MIKE MASSENZIO
Here, Stann will use his wrestling to keep the fight standing, but not over commit, so he wont be taken down. I see a drawn out, circling stand up dominated bout, with Stann peppering Massenzio with shots for the full 15 minutes, as Jackson has Stann fighting smart these days.
Stann, dec.
…I don’t know enough about the other fighters to call them
