[RaiderNation MMA]

same like the Brazilians in rio, dont under estimate the home field advantage! sexyama sells out fukn arenas and stadiums in japan, theres no way he will lose in japan

plus style wise the matchup is favorable. jake poses no threats standing, and sexy has good judo and ground game. i say he squeaks out a decision.

also i think mark hunt is gonna be a huge upset. the way kongo leaves himself opens when he punches is gonna be lights out if hunt connects just once. plus hunt is too strong to be bullied against the cage for 3 rounds. and he has improved his takedown defense.

hunt and sexyama. gotta good feeling here

[Wanna Bet On It?]

If Akiyama greases again then perhaps. Shields will likely engage him in the clinch until he gasses then take him down and control him. Jake isn't a lock though - he's starting to get really expensive.

I like a Hunt play at close to 3:1. I have no idea how someone can feel comfortable laying ridiculous juice on Kongo after watching how vulnerable he was versus Barry, crappy gameplanning versus Mitrione until the final round and getting worked early by Browne. He's not to be trusted with his sketchy chin & halfassed gameplanning. He should be the favourite but nowhere near -300 IMO.

[v1y]

love how people think guys have a home country advantage, when canadians just went 1/5 at ufc 140.

[jacktheknife]

I'll give you +270. You got points stashed?

[FightFightFight]

love how people think guys have a home country advantage, when canadians just went 1/5 at ufc 140.

Don't recall who, but often they try too hard to get locals, thereby making matchups that favour the away squad. Hell, akiyama is probably an example.

[flyingillini]

No way in hell Jake loses this fight, you can take that to the bank.

[gabe]

No way in hell Jake loses this fight, you can take that to the bank.

I'm beating off to your avatar.

[flyingillini]

I'm beating off to your avatar.

Can you show the results in your palm?

[RaiderNation MMA]

already put on my points on them in the sportbook! lol canadians dont count. its just not the same, when its ethnic people its just different. theres white ppl all over the world maybe thats why

[Vaughany]

same like the Brazilians in rio, dont under estimate the home field advantage! sexyama sells out fukn arenas and stadiums in japan, theres no way he will lose in japan

plus style wise the matchup is favorable. jake poses no threats standing, and sexy has good judo and ground game. i say he squeaks out a decision.

also i think mark hunt is gonna be a huge upset. the way kongo leaves himself opens when he punches is gonna be lights out if hunt connects just once. plus hunt is too strong to be bullied against the cage for 3 rounds. and he has improved his takedown defense.

hunt and sexyama. gotta good feeling here

Everybody over-rated the "home-advantage" that Hardy had against Condit, Hathaway against Pyle and Picket against Barao as well

[Vaughany]

love how people think guys have a home country advantage, when canadians just went 1/5 at ufc 140.

yeah as much as the "home advantage" can motivate the home guy and maybe intimidate the opponent, it can just as easily make the home guy over zealous and wild and too keen to "put on a show" which is what happened with Hardy against Condit and Pickett against Barao. The opponent can also rise to the challenge and enjoy fighting in somebodies back yard as they have less pressure....i.e. Pyle against Hathaway

[sirchadwick1]

I only follow the home-field advantage plays when the events take place in Brazil.
Otherwise it's a crapshoot.

[gabe]

I would say Japanese fighters have a much better home field advantage than Canadian fighters, but not nearly as good as that of Brazilian fighters.

[Inkwell77]

Does Gustafsson win in Sweden?? I really want to fire on this fight. Gustafsson seems like the next big star and lil Nog is on his way out.

[gabe]

Does Gustafsson win in Sweden?? I really want to fire on this fight. Gustafsson seems like the next big star and lil Nog is on his way out.

yes

[RaiderNation MMA]

like i said it just doesnt work with white people, unless its like the town they grew up in, not tryn to be racist or anything, but due to colonialism and imperialism you can find whites in every continent and every hemisphere. its just not as special. its a different kind of bond for the minorities

[smoke a bowl]

love how people think guys have a home country advantage, when canadians just went 1/5 at ufc 140.

Well if you don't you are as big of a retard as they come pal. Try traveling 3,000 miles and being at your best. It's fukin tough.

[smoke a bowl]

yeah as much as the "home advantage" can motivate the home guy and maybe intimidate the opponent, it can just as easily make the home guy over zealous and wild and too keen to "put on a show" which is what happened with Hardy against Condit and Pickett against Barao. The opponent can also rise to the challenge and enjoy fighting in somebodies back yard as they have less pressure....i.e. Pyle against Hathaway

It's all about the travel and being uncomfortable in the new surroundings. The crowd cheering is what is overrated in all sports. Home field advantage is mostly about travel and surroundings but we as fans like to believe we make a difference so we think the louder we cheer the better our team/fighter will do.

[v1y]

Don't recall who, but often they try too hard to get locals, thereby making matchups that favour the away squad. Hell, akiyama is probably an example.

yea they really gave hominick a tough fight in which he only closed around -500.

[bipolar]

Jake is a really really strong wrestler... sexyama's wrestling isn't great, expect a decision for Shields

[bipolar]

Hunt has a great chin, I feel Kongo/Hunt will goto decision with Kongo winning a boring fight...

[Vitooch]

I would very hesitant to play Akiyama here. He seems to fade in the later rounds due to cardio issues. He may gas even harder in his first fight at WW.

[more_betterness]

I would very hesitant to play Akiyama here. He seems to fade in the later rounds due to cardio issues. He may gas even harder in his first fight at WW.

A late submission by Shields if Akiyama gasses as hard as he has in the past is definitely a possibility

[RaiderNation MMA]

to be fair condit was way better than hardy and barao is a monster. japanese fighters know whats at stake, they know they have all sucked in the states, they will have no excuse and will fight to the death like a samurai

[BIGDAY]

Shields by dec for me.

GL

[Vitooch]

One thing to note about both of the Rio cards is that the Brazilians in a majority of the fights were given a favorable matchup. Paul Harris faced Dan Miller and Massenzio, Paulo Thiago got David Mitchell, Barboza got Pearson, etc. Many of these fights were very winnable for the Brazilians. Not sure if this was the UFC's intention, but it seems like the cards were designed so that mostly Brazilians would win. The same could be happening in this card. With that being said, i think this is one matchup where the Japanese fighter will lose.

[MMAbetMASTA]

I'm not touching either, but I do agree I think akiyama could be a sleeper... I capped shields at -200 so I would be damn scared to pay anything higher. He's beaten much better guys before, but I wouldn't call this the best style for sheilds. Shields wins, probably easier than I am thinking, but just too scary and too many 'iffs' to pay a juicy price.

[gabe]

One thing to note about both of the Rio cards is that the Brazilians in a majority of the fights were given a favorable matchup. Paul Harris faced Dan Miller and Massenzio, Paulo Thiago got David Mitchell, Barboza got Pearson, etc. Many of these fights were very winnable for the Brazilians. Not sure if this was the UFC's intention, but it seems like the cards were designed so that mostly Brazilians would win. The same could be happening in this card. With that being said, i think this is one matchup where the Japanese fighter will lose.

You thought Pearson was an easy fight for Barboza? Wow...

[H1Cypher]

Homefield only matters if you finish your opponent or get a mismatch. The judges don't show that type of favoritism. They show a different type of favoritism which you just get to notice after watch so many events.

Akiyama is old- how will this weight cut effect him. Has Akiyama ever fought at 170? If he doesn't finish Jake he likely will not take the decision.

No such thing as home court unless you finish. Brazilians love to see brazilians win.... and right now it seems UFC is picking up major major steam in Brazil. They likely won't be back to japan in years... it isn't the same thing. There won't be the same type of mismatches you saw in that brazil event as far as main card stuff. I haven't even looked at the under card match ups.

[flyingillini]

No way in hell jake loses this fight plain and simple... I am going large on this....

[jacktheknife]

Akiyama is old- how will this weight cut effect him. Has Akiyama ever fought at 170? If he doesn't finish Jake he likely will not take the decision.

Most of his Judo career was at 178, whatever that's worth.

[the_situation]

Shields is gonna bend over sexyama

[UGOTPZD]

F Akiyama is a heel in Japan, there is no home "field" advantage here.
Akiyama is of Korean descent, on top of that he was accused of greasing vs Sakuraba....Japans all time MMA legend. The only advantage Akiyama has here in terms of home turf is not having to travel over seas for once.

In terms of the actual fight I think Yoshihiro has a good chance of pulling the upset.

[Jaug]

Yama wont win this. He is huge underdog for a reason.

[bipolar]

I think sexy is a live dog. sheilds striking is hilariously poor. he is so uncomfortable and vulnerable standing. Sexy is a solid kickboxer. the problem is wrestling. sheilds is one of the best in the division. yamas judo wont help him defend against a double leg takedown. but the price is so high, i think theres value on sexy as the underdog.. good chance of KO plus hometown crowd plus gameplanning against sheilds is easy, stop his takedowns at all costs..