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: Jamie Varner vs. Pat Healy, UFC on FOX 9
My pick for the best new fight announced this past week is the upcoming lightweight battle between Jamie Varner and Pat Healy, which is set to take place at UFC on FOX 9. Wow. What a fight – and what a card UFC on FOX 9 is shaping up to be.
We all know how Varner and Healy fight, that is, always pushing forward for a full 15 minutes, and leaving everything in the cage win or lose. I believe that these are two of the most exciting and well-rounded fighters in the UFC lightweight division, and I was ecstatic when the UFC paired them together.
I mean, honestly, how could this fight be boring? The answer is it can’t. It’s guaranteed entertainment, and it makes sense as far as the rankings go, and those two factors combined have led me to pick it as the best fight announced this past week.
Even though UFC on FOX 9 is a stacked card from top to bottom, look for this match to be in contention for “Fight of the Night.” And I think that says a lot about how good the matchmaking is in this matchup.
• Pat Healy vs. Jamie Varner
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
Worst: Julie Kedzie vs. Aleksandra Albu, UFC Fight Night 33
My pick for the worst fight announced this past week is the upcoming women’s bantamweight bout between veteran Julie Kedzie and newcomer Aleksandra Albu, which has been added to UFC Fight Night 33.
I don’t like this fight because matching up the fighter in the division with the most experience (Kedzie) against the fighter in the division with the least amount of experience (Albu) doesn’t seem fair to me. Kedzie, after all, has 28 career MMA fights, while Albu only has one.
That’s right, one pro fight, and somehow the UFC signed her.
I know that Albu is physically attractive and that seems to have generated a lot of interest about her on Internet message boards, but in my opinion, hype behind fighters should come because they are talented at fighting. And with a 1-0 record, how can we really say that Albu is UFC calibre at this point?
Yes, Kedzie is on a three-fight losing streak, but she’s lost to the cream of the crop in the UFC women’s bantamweight division: Alexis Davis, Miesha Tate, and Germaine De Randamie. The one opponent that Albu did beat, meanwhile, had only one career pro fight – that loss to Albu.
This fight may very well prove to be entertaining, but I don’t like the matchmaking here – and I don’t like the recent trend of the UFC signing female fighters with tiny records and little experience, all while cutting veteran winners like Yushin Okami. I don’t like that at all.
• Julie Kedzie vs. Aleksandra Albu
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
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UFC on Fox 9 is due to take place on December 14, 2013 at the Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento, California.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC on Fox 9 will be.
UFC Fight Night 33: Hunt vs. Bigfoot is due to take place on December 7, 2013 at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. (Due to the time differences, the event will air on December 6 in the United States.)
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC Fight Night 33 will be.
