By Jacob Kindt 
Is Mitrione really an underdog? Can Cheick Kongo’s Savate skills best the Meathead? What is that smell in Daniel “Danny Boy” Downes cup? Some of that and more! Looking at TUF 13 runner-up and Cerrone-Siver breakdown and implications. Also, newcomers Jacoby and Starks step in the 8-sided gel coated metal ring-thing for the first time! The breakdown and predictions of the UFC 137 fights:
Cheick Kongo vs. Matt Mitrone
Cheick Kongo is an accomplished kickboxer and Savate champion with big wins over very dominant strikers in MMA. He has shown spurts of wrestling, but has no submissions this decade, and seems to be on a decline in his career. Matt Mitrione is an up and comer showing vast leaps in skill every fight; we have yet to see any sort of plateau in his development. His physique does not measure up to Kongo’s, but don’t let that fool you, he is amazingly light on his feet, comes at great angles, and is undefeated in the UFC at 5-0. With nearly a third of the fights in the UFC as Kongo, he has just as many KO’s. I see this fight ending in the earlier half of the fight, as Kongo’s best days are behind him, and his chin is suspect. Mitrione is fresh and willing to trade shots, with a tested chin to take them, and is likely a much improved version of the Matt Mitrione that we last witnessed. This should be the difference in the fight.
Ramsey Nijem vs. Danny Downes
Dan “Danny Boy” Downes is a newcomer to the UFC, with this being his second Octagon outing, and his first fight with a full training camp. He is an aggressive striker with incredible will and toughness, and an apparent refusal to submit. He’s a clean technical striker, as most of the Roufusport products are, but he showed less-than-amazing takedown defense and overall poor grappling; his advantage in this fight will be striking.
Ramsey Nijem is a Division I wrestler, and a product of the Ultimate Fighter season 13. On the show he fought at welterweight, and dominated the fights with his clinch, wrestling, and finding his way to back control. Nijem is coming down from 170, which based on his build will be a disadvantage that will show if the fight goes to the later rounds. Ramsey is going to have to work for his takedowns without wearing his body out. The clinch game will be tricky for Nijem, as Downes has a great Thai clinch, so he could end up taking a lot of damage, while making little progress on takedowns. Every fight starts standing, and Danny has a significant advantage on the feet, so Downes needs to use good angles and a “stick and move” approach, picking his shots without getting baited into Nijem’s shooting range. I see this fight going to a decision in favor of Daniel Downes with an effective sprawl and brawl game plan.
Dennis Siver vs. Donald Cerrone
This is an interesting fight. Implications seem large, as an impressive win by either athlete would put him right in the proverbial “mix”. Dennis Siver is a Russian-born German national who started out as a kickboxer, and won the German Kickboxing Championship in 1997 under the WAKO banner, He is also a Taekwondo black belt and BJJ Purple belt. There is no secret, his strength is his striking, and he may have one of the most effective spinning back kicks in the sport. Siver should have a technical advantage in the striking, as well as a significant power advantage,as Siver possesses one-shot knockout power, which is rare in the lightweight division. Cerrone, however, is no slouch in the striking category himself, as he was an S-1 Muay Thai US champion in 2006. His recent showing at UFC Live 6 demonstrated impressive pressure and aggression, and he could easily overwhelm Siver and get him to the ground, where he is a threat to knock out or submit Siver. Cerrone has a major grappling advantage — 12 of his 16 wins are by submission — and he needs to take the fight down to win, as Siver’s ground game has not advanced enough to keep him out of trouble. Yet I see Siver winning this fight, because Cerrone will be over-aggressive and pay for it early in the fight, then he will have to play catch up, and end up losing a decision.
