UFC 129 was an action-packed night that gave the fight community highlight finishes and fanbase-building fights. Now that the event is over, the MMA world looks toward what happens next for the fighters who competed in Canada. Here are some suggestions for upcoming fights.
Jake Ellenberger vs. Rory MacDonald
The welterweight division is stacked with fighters who are eager to take Georges St. Pierre’s place in the welterweight division should he head to middleweight. MacDonald and Ellenberger, however, could be the type of challengers who might one day defeat the current champion. At UFC 129 both fighters gave eye-raising performances, as Ellenberger knocked out Sean Pierson in the first round, while MacDonald tossed Nate Diaz all around the cage. An Ellenberger-MacDonald fight could be treated the same way that the Jon Jones versus Ryan Bader fight from earlier this year was treated, when two blue chip prospects were set against each other to determine where both stood within the division, and whether the winner was ready to take the big step from prospect to bonafide contender.
As for the fight, I believe that Ellenberger would be able to walk away with a hard-fought victory. His high-level wrestling would be able to ground MacDonald and wear on him through the rounds. On top of that, his standup is constantly improving, and he has explosive power in both hands. MacDonald is a great young talent who was 7 seconds (in the Carlos Condit fight) away from remaining undefeated. Still, I believe the constant pressure that Ellenberger brings in the cage would be too much for “The Waterboy.”
Benson Henderson vs. the loser of Anthony Pettis/Clay Guida
Benson Henderson proved that the WEC lightweights are here to stay on the UFC roster, outpointing Mark Bocek over three rounds, and showing that the former WEC lightweight champion is still improving after each outing. The winner of Pettis-Guida will earn a date with the UFC Lightweight Champion. But Henderson, on the other hand, has business to settle with them both.
While in WEC Henderson was categorized as “WEC’s version of Clay Guida.” They both have wild hair and a wilder workrate, wearing their opponents down with pace, superior conditioning, and great wrestling to boot. However Henderson has never been dominated on the feet the way that Guida was by Kenny Florian. A matchup with Guida would be action-packed from bell to bell, but I believe that Henderson’s superior striking would bring him the victory.
Due to Anthony Pettis, Henderson will always be known as “the guy who got kicked off the cage.” But many people believe that fight was really close until that moment, and Henderson was actually winning the fifth round. A rematch between the two fighters would be sure to get fans to their feet, though I believe that Henderson would walk out as the winner of a “grind out” style fight, one which hopefully would set up an exciting trilogy.
Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes
For the first five minutes of his title defense, it seemed that Jose Aldo was due to put Mark Hominick out at any moment. Then Round 2 started, and while Aldo’s intensity slipped, Hominick kept coming back and coming back. As Aldo continued to tire, the contender wouldn’t stop, even after being dropped and almost finished twice. Though unsuccessful in his title bid, Hominick did do one thing: He exposed a tired Aldo too weary to fight off his back. Enter Chad Mendes.
The undefeated Team Alpha Male prospect is nearly perfectly suited to complete what Hominick started. He has the wrestling to ground Aldo and force him to compete from his back for the majority of the fight. However the crucial questions for Mendes would be whether he is able to tire Aldo out effectively, and what would happen on the feet before then. Aldo used thudding leg kicks to slow down Urijah Faber to the point where he couldn’t return to his corner without help. I believe the same fate would await Mendes; a steady dose of the body punch – leg kick combination would slow down the contender, and allow for Aldo to really let loose with his striking. But regardless of which way the fight would go, I believe this is the next Featherweight Title matchup the UFC should make.
Georges St. Pierre vs. Nick Diaz
Should Anderson Silva defeat Yushin Okami at UFC Rio, the MMA community will be looking forward to a matchup between Silva and St. Pierre. While that was considered the next logical fight for the two fighters sitting atop the pound for pound rankings, I have decided to take another route, and suggest that GSP face off with Nick Diaz.
The world knows that St. Pierre’s striking and wrestling skills are top notch in MMA; he has shown that he can stand with some of the best, and wrestle down the rest. In defeating Jake Shields, he dominated a world class Brazilian Jiu Jitsu player for the majority of the contest, forcing him to fight outside of his element. While he didn’t look to be performing at his best, GSP continued to show why he is considered by many fans to be the best in the world.
Nick Diaz knocked out the high-level striker Paul Daley during his last outing, doing so in impressive fashion. The fight world knows that Diaz is an extremely tough guy who enjoys standing with whoever is placed in front of him. He also has Cesar Gracie Black Belt-level abilities to fall back on should the fight hit the mat. A battle with GSP would be interesting because I believe that Diaz would push the pace, staying right in front of GSP and landing the combinations for which he has become known. The unanswered question lies in whether Diaz has improved against strong wrestlers. His Achilles heel has been guys who, like GSP, can take him down to the mat, and hold him there for extended periods of time. Diego Sanchez and Sean Sherk were able to defeat him in this fashion. I do not think Diaz would be able to remain standing long enough with GSP to hit him with sufficient significant strikes, and once the fight hits the mat, his BJJ abilities would be stifled due to superb grappling by the champ.
Regardless, in Diaz you have a contender in St. Pierre’s weight class who couldn’t be hotter, and who would bring an intensity and fearlessness that is unmatched in the division. If the fight goes the distance, it’ll be with Diaz fighting every single minute, and for a champion who has been accused of being machine-like, an animated, outspoken, larger than life challenger such as Diaz will be riveting both in the Octagon and outside of it.
