Onto the card that has been cursed since its been announced. I have never seen so many fights get dropped from one card ever. Overall, I think Strikeforce did a good job and finding some decent replacements to step in on short notice. Plus, adding the Mousasi vs Sobral fight did a lot for this card. Anyways, on to the shenanigans.
Cris Cyborg Santos vs. Gina “my future wife” Carano:
I’ll start by saying I tried my best to not let my undeniable lust for Gina sway my opinion on this fight. Dreaming of her putting me in a triangle is one of things I look forward to before I go to bed every night. As for this fight, I’ve had quite the change of opinion from when this fight was first announced. My first gut reaction was wow, the super-hotty is going to get her face smashed into oblivion. But after actually doing a little research and trying to come to a justifiable conclusion, my stance has changed. Cyborg is definitely a Muay Thai beast with undeniable power in her hands – not to mention the fact that she looks like a transvestite that sprinkles the roids in her cereal. But after watching a bunch of her fights and looking at the competition she has faced, I wasn’t overly impressed. In pretty much all of her fights shes faced girls who she had a decent size advantage over. Not to mention her opponents were tailor made for her aggressive style. For the most part she’s been put up against opponents who have no standup game. This will not be the case when she fights Gina. There’s no denying Gina has top-notch Muay Thai skills which she has proven in both MMA and Muay Thai matches. She’s also known for her great technique and underrated ground game. But I think the biggest advantage she has in this fight is that she trained with a great camp that I’m assuming will have a solid game plan for her to follow. As well, I’m sure the trainers at Xtreme Couture have her cardio up to par for a 25 minute championship bout. Also Cyborg won’t be having that size advantage that shes used to. I think the longer this fight goes, the more it favours Carano. If she can withstand the first round 5 minute onslaught from the beast, I think she will be able to pick apart a gassed Cyborg on her way to a late round TKO. I know I’m crazy and I’m going against a lot of other good cappers, but im going to take a chance with Carano.
My Pick: Gina Carano (+160) 2 units to win 3.2 units
Gilbert Melendez vs Mitsuhiro Ishida
This is one of the fights that got disrupted due to Josh Thomson swaying back and forth on whether he was going to be able to fight. Well it turns out the doctors said no, so Ishida comes in on short notice. This is a rematch from New Years Eve 2007, where Ishida took a decision by using his superior wrestling and takedowns to his advantage. Since then Ishida has only went 3-2, although his losses came to quality fighters in Hirota and Uno. Melendez has only fought 3 times since that fight due to some injuries. Overall, I don’t think a lot has changed from the first time these 2 fought. Ishida is still the superior wrestler, and I believe he will employ the same strategy as before. Melendez has already stated in multiple interviews that he’s a little bit annoyed that he didn’t know his opponent until recently. Not having a full training camp to prepare for a fighter of Ishida’s style is something that I think Melendez will not be able to overcome. Ill take my chances on another dog with Ishida taking a unanimous decision.
My Pick: Mitsuhiro Ishida (+175) 2 units to win 3.5 units
I may have more later tomorrow. All the fighters I like on the undercard are laying heavy chalk so I might come up with a parlay(s) of some sort. As well, I want to take a little more time looking into the Mousasi fight to see if I can find a reason to take Sobral. Right now, still leaning Mousasi, but I just want to make sure before I put the money in the vault. Also leaning Hieron, but I’m a little worried Jessie is going to do his lay and pray nonsense (although I would still have faith that Hieron would catch him in a submission when Jessie gets sloppy). If I go with anything I put a sloppy writeup of my own together!
PS: Just watched the weigh ins. Gina came in at 143, Cyborg just over 144 so they both made weight THANK GOD….Gina is a such a disadvantage at weigh ins with those massive boobsicles. Some others – Werdum looked in much better shape than his last appearance in UFC. He came in at 228. Jesse Taylor was 2 pounds overweight so he has 2 hours to lose a pound; shouldn’t be a problem.
Cris Cyborg Santos vs. Gina “my future wife” Carano:
I’ll start by saying I tried my best to not let my undeniable lust for Gina sway my opinion on this fight. Dreaming of her putting me in a triangle is one of things I look forward to before I go to bed every night. As for this fight, I’ve had quite the change of opinion from when this fight was first announced. My first gut reaction was wow, the super-hotty is going to get her face smashed into oblivion. But after actually doing a little research and trying to come to a justifiable conclusion, my stance has changed. Cyborg is definitely a Muay Thai beast with undeniable power in her hands – not to mention the fact that she looks like a transvestite that sprinkles the roids in her cereal. But after watching a bunch of her fights and looking at the competition she has faced, I wasn’t overly impressed. In pretty much all of her fights shes faced girls who she had a decent size advantage over. Not to mention her opponents were tailor made for her aggressive style. For the most part she’s been put up against opponents who have no standup game. This will not be the case when she fights Gina. There’s no denying Gina has top-notch Muay Thai skills which she has proven in both MMA and Muay Thai matches. She’s also known for her great technique and underrated ground game. But I think the biggest advantage she has in this fight is that she trained with a great camp that I’m assuming will have a solid game plan for her to follow. As well, I’m sure the trainers at Xtreme Couture have her cardio up to par for a 25 minute championship bout. Also Cyborg won’t be having that size advantage that shes used to. I think the longer this fight goes, the more it favours Carano. If she can withstand the first round 5 minute onslaught from the beast, I think she will be able to pick apart a gassed Cyborg on her way to a late round TKO. I know I’m crazy and I’m going against a lot of other good cappers, but im going to take a chance with Carano.
My Pick: Gina Carano (+160) 2 units to win 3.2 units
Gilbert Melendez vs Mitsuhiro Ishida
This is one of the fights that got disrupted due to Josh Thomson swaying back and forth on whether he was going to be able to fight. Well it turns out the doctors said no, so Ishida comes in on short notice. This is a rematch from New Years Eve 2007, where Ishida took a decision by using his superior wrestling and takedowns to his advantage. Since then Ishida has only went 3-2, although his losses came to quality fighters in Hirota and Uno. Melendez has only fought 3 times since that fight due to some injuries. Overall, I don’t think a lot has changed from the first time these 2 fought. Ishida is still the superior wrestler, and I believe he will employ the same strategy as before. Melendez has already stated in multiple interviews that he’s a little bit annoyed that he didn’t know his opponent until recently. Not having a full training camp to prepare for a fighter of Ishida’s style is something that I think Melendez will not be able to overcome. Ill take my chances on another dog with Ishida taking a unanimous decision.
My Pick: Mitsuhiro Ishida (+175) 2 units to win 3.5 units
I may have more later tomorrow. All the fighters I like on the undercard are laying heavy chalk so I might come up with a parlay(s) of some sort. As well, I want to take a little more time looking into the Mousasi fight to see if I can find a reason to take Sobral. Right now, still leaning Mousasi, but I just want to make sure before I put the money in the vault. Also leaning Hieron, but I’m a little worried Jessie is going to do his lay and pray nonsense (although I would still have faith that Hieron would catch him in a submission when Jessie gets sloppy). If I go with anything I put a sloppy writeup of my own together!
PS: Just watched the weigh ins. Gina came in at 143, Cyborg just over 144 so they both made weight THANK GOD….Gina is a such a disadvantage at weigh ins with those massive boobsicles. Some others – Werdum looked in much better shape than his last appearance in UFC. He came in at 228. Jesse Taylor was 2 pounds overweight so he has 2 hours to lose a pound; shouldn’t be a problem.
