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: Jordan Mein vs. Thiago Alves, UFC Fight Night 49
My pick for the best new fight announced this past week is the upcoming welterweight bout between Jordan Mein and Thiago Alves, which is set to take place at UFC Fight Night 49 on August 23 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It will be the UFC’s first event in Oklahoma in five years, and this fight should be on the main card and provide a ton of excitement for the fans.
Although Alves is 30 years old now, I still believe he has a chance to make a run for the belt in the wide-open UFC welterweight division. After all, he has a ton of experience against some of the best 170-pounders in the world already, and now that he’s healthy again, he can use his vaunted Muay Thai attack to try and make his way to the top of the weight class. After missing two years due to injuries, Alves recently returned to the Octagon and looked great in dispatching veteran Seth Baczynski at UFC on FOX 12, and I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do here against Mein.
As for the Canadian Mein, he also returned from a long injury layoff to pick up a win in his last bout against Hernani Perpetuo. The young Canadian was on a roll for a while there, and looked like he could be a contender at 170 pounds until he ran into Matt Brown at UFC on FOX 7 and was brutally finished. But looking back in hindsight, that loss isn’t so bad at all, and at only 24 years of age, Mein still has a chance to make another run up the ladder.
Both these guys are strikers who love to stand in the pocket and put on a show for the fans, and I truly believe this bout has “Fight of the Night” written all over it. I’m looking forward to this fight very much, and I believe the MMA fans in Oklahoma are getting a real treat when the UFC invades their state this summer and brings this tremendous fight with them.
• Jordan Mein vs. Thiago Alves
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
Worst: George Roop vs. Rob Font, UFC 175
My pick for the worst new fight announced this past week is the upcoming bantamweight matchup between George Roop and UFC newcomer Rob Font. It is set for UFC 175 on July 5 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV.
I just don’t understand this matchup. While I don’t consider Roop to be a top contender at 135 pounds, he’s certainly one of the top 15 fighters in the division and should have gotten someone ranked around the same position for this summer matchup. Instead, the UFC is giving him a fight against a complete no-name in Font, a fighter who has never fought anyone of Roop’s caliber yet, and who quite frankly doesn’t deserve this opportunity.
Think about it – Roop is the guy who knocked out former WEC bantamweight champion Brian Bowles and he’s the guy who knocked out Chan Sung Jung with a head kick in WEC. Sure, he’s been inconsistent and has had some let-down performances, but overall he’s been nothing but solid, especially since dropping down to 135 pounds, where he’s gone 3-1 overall, including a decision win over Dustin Kimura in his last fight.
Font, on the other hand? His biggest claim to fame is losing to recent Bellator tournament finalist Desmond Green on a regional show a few years ago. That’s right, he didn’t even beat him, he only fought him, and other than Green, Font hasn’t fought anyone of UFC or even Bellator caliber in his career. So for him to come into the UFC and get a fight against Roop, I’m not sure why he’s getting such a big opportunity.
It’s possible the matchmakers know something about Font that the rest of us are missing, but at first glance, this fight makes absolutely no sense, and I don’t understand why it was booked. But hopefully if Roop wins like he should he’ll get a bigger name in his next fight, because he deserves to fight fighters with at least a Wikipedia profile page at this point of his career, not fighters who are complete unknowns like Font.
• George Roop vs. Rob Font
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
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UFC 175: Weidman vs. Machida is due to take place on July 5, 2014 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC 175 will be.
UFC Fight Night 49: Henderson vs. Dos Anjos is due to take place on August 23, 2014 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC Fight Night 49 will be.
