First and Worst is an ongoing series for MMARatings.net, where every week Adam will make his pick for the best and worst newly-announced fight of the past week (Monday to Sunday). If you’d like to see any additions to this series, hit him up on Twitter @MMAdamMartin.
First: Renan Barao vs. Eddie Wineland, UFC 165
My pick for the best fight announced this past week is the upcoming UFC interim bantamweight title bout between Renan Barao and Eddie Wineland. It has been set as the co-main event of the UFC 165 card, which takes place September 21 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
This matchup was originally supposed to take place at another Canadian city, at Winnipeg’s UFC 161 event, but an injury to Barao scrapped the bout. But with UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz still not yet recovered from his injuries, the UFC has opted to once again book the Barao vs. Wineland matchup instead of having Barao wait for Cruz.
I really liked this matchup the first time it was announced, and I like it even more this time around because I will get to see it live. Although I do believe Barao will win, Wineland is a very tough competitor and has excellent boxing, and who knows, as we saw in the Anderson Silva vs. Chris Weidman fight, anything can happen in MMA when both fighters are wearing little four-ounce gloves.
I think this is going to be an excellent matchup and I can’t wait to watch it go down.
Worst: Mark Bocek vs. Michel Prazeres, UFC 165
My pick for the worst fight announced this past week is the upcoming lightweight bout between Mark Bocek and Michel Prazeres, which is also due to take place at UFC 165 this fall in Toronto.
Bocek will be fighting in his hometown for the umpteenth time, only this time around I’d have to imagine he’s fighting for his job, considering he’s coming off a loss and he has a very boring fighting style. Add the fact he’s fighting another subpar fighter in Prazeres, and this one really has all the makings of a “loser leaves town match.”
Bocek hasn’t fought since UFC 154 last November, and it’s because no one wants to pay to see this guy fight, except for maybe a few of his friends and family in Toronto, which is why he’s fighting in Ontario’s capital city once again. Although a decorated BJJ artist, Bocek has been content to lay and pray and wall and stall his way to wins as of late, and no one is paying to watch that style of fighter anymore.
This is a big fight for both guys as they are both on thin ice with the UFC, and each guy needs a fun performance in order to have any sort of future with Zuffa. But judging from their last performances, I really wouldn’t count on this fight being fun at all.
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UFC 165: Jones vs. Gustafsson is due to take place on September 21, 2013 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC 165 will be.
