First and Worst: Week of September 22 – September 28, 2014

By Adam Martin

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: Nate Diaz vs. Rafael dos Anjos, UFC on FOX 13

My pick for the best new fight announced this past week is the upcoming lightweight bout at UFC on FOX 13 between top-10 fighters Nate Diaz and Rafael dos Anjos. The event takes place December 13 at U.S. Airways Arena in Phoenix, Arizona, and Diaz vs. RDA will be the co-headliner underneath the main event heavyweight bout between Junior dos Santos and Stipe Miocic.

First off, it’s great to have Diaz back in the fold. Diaz is one of the most talented and exciting fighters in the entire UFC and it’s been bad for the whole division — and the promotion in general — to have him off for nearly an entire year. Sure, maybe he doesn’t “move the needle” like his brother Nick does (at least according to UFC president Dana White), but he’s still a fun fighter to watch, and definitely one of the top contenders at 155 pounds.

The same goes for dos Anjos, who is one of the best fighters in the division. With recent knockout wins over Benson Henderson and Jason High, dos Anjos has proven he’s a title contender, and a win over a guy like Diaz would do wonders to raise his profile in the division. Sure, he’s still behind Khabib Nurmagomedov in the title queue, as he lost a decision to the Russian earlier this year, but he’s still ahead of everyone else in the division as far as title contenders go, and that’s a good place to be.

Both fighters are coming off of destructive knockout losses — with Diaz knocking out Gray Maynard last year and RDA recently finishing Henderson in one of the biggest upsets of the year — and the winner of this fight will no doubt raise his stock to a massive level. This is a great fight, as it’s both exciting and makes sense as far as the rankings go, and I can’t wait to see it go down this winter on FOX.

UFC on Fox 13

• Nate Diaz vs Rafael dos Anjos

Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.

Worst: Brad Pickett vs. Chico Camus, UFC Fight Night 57

My pick for the worst new fight announced this past week is the upcoming flyweight matchup at UFC Fight Night 57 between Brad Pickett and Chico Camus, who is making his 125-pound debut. The event takes place November 22 at Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas, and Pickett vs. Camus will likely take place on the evening’s main card.

I know Pickett hasn’t looked great since dropping to flyweight, but this is a huge step down for the Brit. Yes, Camus is a tough dude and he’ll likely fare better at 125 than he did at 135, where he was undersized, but still, Camus isn’t a top-15 fighter at all, while Pickett most certainly is. Looking back, Pickett’s loss to Ian McCall isn’t even that bad, and in my opinion people have been criticizing him too harshly for his performances at 125 pounds. I mean, it’s not like McCall totally blew him out or anything, and in his other 125-pound bout he beat a vet in Neil Seery. So I think the fans and even the matchmakers have been too critical of him.

This fight does present a great opportunity for Pickett to get back on track, however, because I think he’s a stylistic nightmare for Camus, who doesn’t have the wrestling or striking to deal with him. Camus might have a speed advantage, but I don’t think it will help him out once Pickett plants him on his back and beats him up there. Having said all of that, this bout doesn’t intrigue me in the slightest, and I wish the UFC utilized both men in better bouts, especially Pickett, who I feel should be fighting someone who is ranked, like Justin Scoggins or Zach Makovsky.

Maybe this fight surprises me and it turns into a Fight of the Night contender, but my brain is telling me it’s a boring wrestling match, and I’m not too excited about it. I think the UFC is wasting one of its most exciting fighters in Pickett on a silly fight that doesn’t make sense in the division.